not moving,” Eric said, panic edging his voice. “JJ, Garth isn’t moving. I don’t think he’s breathing.”
“What?” She reacted without conscious thought, reaching for the infant and lifting him up to pat him soundly on the back. He gasped, his eyes flying open.
And then he let out a cry, a screeching sort of wail, so wonderful she sagged in relief.
“Garth.” Eric snatched him from her. “Baby boy?” Which only made him cry harder.
Trembling with relief, JJ reached into the crib and located the pacifier. She handed this to Eric, who held it to Garth’s mouth. Latching on and suckling wildly, he instantly ceased crying.
“What the heck was that?” Eric asked, bewilderment and panic lacing his voice. “I swear, I put my finger under his nose and he wasn’t breathing.”
“I don’t know.” Privately, she wondered if Eric had imagined it. “He must have been deeply asleep.” Tears stung the back of her eyes. “I’m so glad he’s okay.”
“Me, too.” The fierce tone told her how much the man meant it.
Aware she needed to be careful, she took a deep breath. “Earlier, you said he was full-blooded. If so, you know illness wouldn’t kill him.”
“I’m aware.” The shortness of Eric’s answer told her he was angry at himself for overreacting. “And while it’s true such a thing might not kill him, death isn’t always the worst thing that could happen to our kind. Think of a soul trapped in a nonfunctioning body. I’ve seen that before. A fever can cause brain damage.”
Slowly, she nodded. “I haven’t ever thought of it like that.”
“It’s because you’re not a parent.” He had no way of knowing how much those words stung.
All she could do was nod.
“What a night,” he continued. “I’m going take him downstairs now and get the both of us ready for bed.”
Good. Because maybe then she could sit down before her legs gave out from under her.
Apparently, he felt the same way. After jerking his head in a brusque nod, he grabbed the diaper bag and portable crib, then turned and left.
As soon as the door clicked shut behind him, JJ dropped into her chair, her entire body shaking. Had Eric imagined everything in a moment of overprotective panic, or had Garth really stopped breathing?
Truth be told, she didn’t know. Personally, she tended to lean more toward imagination, because every time she’d checked on him, the baby had been fine.
But after this, she had a feeling Eric wouldn’t trust her to watch his son ever again. Full-blooded or not.
* * *
Once he’d gotten Garth back home, Eric shook his head. What the hell was wrong with him? He’d never been the overprotective type of parent, stressing about his baby’s every sniffle. But for one split second there he’d been filled with a visceral dread, convinced something terrible and unimaginably awful had happened to his son.
Then Garth had drawn a breath and cried. Clearly, he was fine. Relief mixed with chagrin. His son was okay. Teething a little maybe, but all right. And Eric’s first reaction, that awful gut-churning response, had been to turn on the woman who’d been trying to help him.
He felt awful, though his one consolation was that maybe she hadn’t noticed.
Of course she had. He would find her tomorrow and offer an apology. Once he’d made sure his son had a clean diaper, he put him down for the night and climbed into bed.
When his cell phone rang at 1:00 a.m., waking him from a deep sleep, Eric fumbled for the phone and finally answered.
“Yolanda has gone off the deep end,” a familiar voice said. “That woman is stark raving crazy.”
Blinking, Eric didn’t speak at first while he tried to figure out why his friend Jason was calling. This was old news, restating the obvious.
“I thought I’d pass along a warning.” Jason worked for the Pack Protectors and acted as a liaison between the wolves and bears. He’d been helping Eric with his case ever since Yolanda had started her crazy accusations.
It helped that the Wolf Pack had lately been trying to end the divide between the bears and everyone else. It was slow going, as the distrust was mutual, but Eric gave them kudos for even trying. He certainly could always hope.
Eric had been brought up by two people who refused to accept the status quo. In Norway, they’d settled away from the small enclaves of their own kind, living among humans and other shifters before immigrating to the United States when Eric had been ten and settling in California, choosing a town with numerous other shifters, including Vedjorn.
Growing up, Eric hadn’t known there was any prejudice against bears. He and Jason—who had to be Pack, though of course they’d never discussed it—had been best friends since kindergarten. When Jason had gone into the military and from there the Pack Protectors, he’d never once lost contact with Eric. Even when his top-secret clearance revealed that his best friend was a Vedjorn bear shifter, Jason hadn’t turned away. Instead, he’d asked to work on the task force dedicated to keeping the few remaining Vedjorn safe.
Yawning, Eric rubbed his eyes. Luckily, the ringing phone hadn’t disturbed Garth, who still slept. Eric couldn’t stop himself from once again checking to make sure his son was breathing. He was, of course.
“Thanks, man, but couldn’t this have waited until morning? Is it really the kind of thing that warrants a phone call at 1:00 a.m.?”
Jason cursed. “I’m so sorry. I forgot you were on the East Coast. It’s only ten here. I just got home from work. It’s been a long day. Most of my afternoon and evening were spent dealing with your ex.”
“She doesn’t know where I am.” Eric felt quite confident in that knowledge. “You’re still the only one who knows, right? Everyone else—faculty, friends—all still think I went up to Seattle.”
“Yeah, still true. But you know what? I really didn’t get it before. Why you felt the need to put as much distance as possible between you and her.” Jason’s wry tone told Eric he did now. “Sure, she seemed a bit emotional. Dramatic, even. But not unstable.”
“Is she still trying to brand me a Berserker?” Though he hated to even speak the word, Eric didn’t have a choice. A true Berserker, though rare among their kind, was extremely dangerous. When Berserkers shifted into their bear selves, they could become uncontrollable killing machines. The Wolf Pack Protectors had been working in conjunction with the Vedjorn Bear Council in making sure any true Berserkers were destroyed before they killed any humans and brought unwelcome notice to the entire shape-shifter population. In Eric’s lifetime, he’d heard of only two, both back in Norway.
“Yes.” Jason sounded tired. “I’ve shifted with you, remember. I know you’re not. And I really don’t understand her plan. What is she hoping to achieve?”
“If I knew, I’d tell you. Despite her claims otherwise, it’s not like she truly wants our son—she handed him over without a backward
