* * *
The group in the dining room spent a good part of the night dividing their time between working on the puzzle and laughing at the videos that Kitani found.
For the first time since all this craziness had started, Jessie relaxed. Kitani had a well-developed sense of humor, and to Jessie’s surprise, Kade revealed it was hereditary, to some extent. He was a Were of few words, but in his sister’s company, his softer side came through. Brother and sister bantered and sometimes argued, but the affection between them was clear as day.
“No way that piece goes there,” Kitani said. “And pushing on it won’t make it.”
“Look, the blue matches, and there’s even a bit of cloud there.” Kade pressed on the piece.
“I agree with Kitani,” Jessie said. “The pip on that piece isn’t lined up.”
Kade squinted at it, but he stopped pressing. His pale-brown eyes met Jessie’s, and for once, they were completely open. Unguarded. Intense as hell.
And riveted. On her.
It stole her breath and sent an electric thrill straight through to her core. For just an instant, the eyes flared gold with his beast, and her heart leaped in response.
“Women are always right.” Kitani was focused on the puzzle and hadn’t noticed the lightning passing between Jessie and her brother.
It shattered the moment. When Kade glared at his sister, Jessie laughed. “I can tell you guys are siblings.” Her voice trembled, ever so slightly.
“We aren’t just siblings,” Kitani commented. “We’re twins.”
“Ah, yes. Twins run in your family,” Jessie remembered, relieved that her voice had steadied.
Both Kitani and Kade’s expressions sobered. “Yeah. It did,” Kade said. “We’re the last of our family line.”
Kitani rubbed her belly. “Not the last. These are our final days of peace and quiet, though. Once these two hit the ground...”
Kade made the effort, his mouth twitching. “Yeah. Nothing like Sabre babies to liven up the place.”
“Are they like human babies?” Jessie asked, curious.
Kitani spoke with enthusiasm. “Weres push the development envelope. For the first six months, their shifts to animal remain tied to their mother. In animal form, they are far more mobile than when they are human.” She recited it like she had it memorized, something she confirmed when she shrugged. “Or so I’ve read.”
It was an odd comment, and when Jessie shot her a look, Kitani explained, “I’m the only female Sabre of reproductive age in Manitoba. So, Cara dug out references for me to read. When I found out I was pregnant, we made the trip to Ontario to visit a second cousin and her baby. We still text back and forth.”
Wow.Jessie exchanged a look with Cara. She caught a glimpse of worry in the woman’s eyes. It outlined the stark reality of the Sabres’ situation. They weren’t just in trouble; they were on the verge of extinction.
“Well, I, for one, am looking forward to the patter of little Were feet,” Neil said. “So long as I don’t have to change any diapers. That’s all on Cody and Ryan.”
“By the time they’re two months old, they shift with me and go outside,” Kitani said. “Weres don’t do diapers.”
“Yeah, explain that to the neighbors.” Neil laughed. “I have no doubt Ryan and Cody will be on diaper duty.”
Neil was much lighter hearted than Kade. And the man loved puzzles. His enthusiasm was infectious. It even had Laura smiling.
As they laughed and argued and joked, Jessie glimpsed the humans behind the beasts. And they were just like anyone else. No wonder Cryptids lived among modern civilization, unseen and unknown. Unless you saw them change, you’d never guess they were anything but human. Well, except for the pulse-pounding superhero physiques. And they did have spotted hair. Kitani’s cascaded down her back in thick ripples of gold and black. Neil had clipped his so short it was essentially a buzz cut. Fresh in from his patrol, Kade’s stuck out from his skull in unruly tufts.
He was right. Shapeshifting gave him bad hair.
“Hey. So tell me, when you shift back and forth, what happens to the hair on your head?” Jessie patted her bright-red curls. “Will my dye job hold?”
Kitani laughed. “Oh, yeah. It’ll be there, along with the other fur. What color are you naturally?”
“Dark brown. Almost black.”
“Oooh,” Kitani purred. “That will look sooo cool.”
