Chapter 2

Sam heard rustling and crunching leaves coming from the path she and Parker had taken into the clearing. She rose quietly and hid herself inside one of the hollow logs. She took off the shirt Parker gave her and began to shift. Her body was tired and weak, but she willed it on until she heard and felt her joints popping and realigning themselves into her feline body. She shook her head and as a silver and black fur erupted down her flesh. About 30 seconds after she started shifting, her claws extended and a beautiful silver leopard crouched behind the cover of a dead tree. Sam panted heavily. She really hadn't had the energy to shift, which was why Parker was out hunting alone. The past couple of days had been particularly hard on her what with Parker chasing her for half a day after she had just killed another stray tomcat who thought he could control her. She let her belly rest against the ground, and she waited.

In this form she could smell the intruder. Her bottle-brush tail was rigidly pointed out behind her. Sam waited in silence for the new tomcat. His scent was alarmingly similar to Parker's, and she worried that it might be because he was covered in Parker's blood. He had left to go catch something for her because his partner was taking longer to arrive than expected. They both thought it was safe for her to stay hidden near the clearing. She just hoped they hadn't been wrong. He was taking longer than she would think it would take to catch something small like a rabbit.

"Parker?" the new tom called. "Parker, it's Owen. Where are you?"

~Owen! That's the name of Parker's partner.~

Sam stood, stepped out from behind her log cover, and brushed the ground with her tail. The rustling leaves caught the tomcat's attention. He turned quickly to find a silver leopard watching him closely and baring its fangs. He realized the stray was the tabby, and her markings were exactly as striking as Parker had told him. He still had a hard time wrapping his mind around a female stray. Owen was a little flabbergasted being face to face with her, sort of. She was slightly on the alert and had been growling softly at him. He wasn't too worried about her being a threat. She couldn't have been more than 90 pounds soaking wet. He was relieved and disgusted at the thought. Even Manx was 110 pounds as a cat, and she was part of the South American gene pool. Those cats were smaller than the North American cats, and this cat had to be part of the Arctic genes. She should have been another 40 pounds or so heavier. Her body was rail thin. Even through her thick fur, Owen could see the sharp indents from her ribs.

Sam didn't like the new tom sizing her up. She growled a little louder.

"There's no need for that, Sam. My name is Owen. I hope Parker told you about me. We're partners. I came out here to give you both food and clothes, and I'm going to take you back to our Pride, to safety." Owen spoke in a low, calming voice. He knelt down and reached his hand out to her, trying to let her get a whiff of his scent. He was hoping she'd be able to tell he and Parker were a part of the same Pride.

Sam crept forward. She stopped growling but didn't put away her fangs. She didn't want the tom to get the wrong idea. She tapped his hand with her nose and quickly backed away. He had an undertone that reminded her of Parker. She was still wary though and decided it would be better to wait for Parker to come back before allowing this male to get any closer to her. At least she had the advantage of being in cat form if he decided to chase her. By the time he had his fur on, she'd be long gone.

"It's okay, Sam. I'll just sit here and wait for Parker to get back. Everything is going to be okay, sweetheart." Owen said with a kind smile and sad eyes. He couldn't blame the tabby for her wariness of him, but he still wanted to comfort her. Neither he nor Parker knew exactly what she had been through, except that some crazy Northern cat had kidnapped her, infected her, and then left her out in free territory to die. It made him furious. He hoped that the tomcat was still alive somewhere and that they would be able to find him. Sam deserved some justice for what he had done to her.

Just then Parker walked through the clearing carrying two small rabbits. Sam started purring and trotted over to him. He laid the hares at her feet and went to greet Owen. Sam didn't waste anytime eating his catch even as she watched Parker with Owen. He seemed relaxed and happy to see the male, so she decided he must not have been lying about knowing Parker. He padded over to Sam and nipped at her tail. She turn quickly to face him, and he caught her with his nose right at hers. He gently licked some of the blood off of her muzzle and motioned to his clothes. He rubbed her cheek with his own and picked up the bundle between his teeth. Sam watched his tail bob up and down with his long, even stride. She finished her last rabbit and went to pick up the pile of clothes Owen had laid out for her on her log. She followed Parker out into thicker cover and began to shift back.

It took Sam about ten minutes to become human again, and the effort left her heaving on the ground. She really needed to rest and refuel before anything else happened.