Twitch Home

Chapter 26 - Zoo Day

Zoo day had finally arrived. Lynn was jumping with joy as we entered the zoo's gate. Jake had insisted he go with us so he could handle Clark while I focused on Lynn. Jake had been surprised to find out that I had a little girl living with me that shared my glowing eyes. I had been reluctant to tell him about her, but I knew he would find out about Lynn eventually. I knew he would guess about her eyes when he saw the reflective sunglasses she was wearing. Aunt Rose had decided to stay home, taking some time for herself. The weather was cool and sunny. A perfect day.

Jake had arranged for an early morning private zoo visit. The only other people there would be the zoo staff. Jake had explained he provided free assistance to the zoo's veterinary staff in exchange for access to the zoo before normal visiting hours.

Our first exhibit was the garden lake. A fountain of water shot from the center of lake. As the sunlight slid through the down spray, rainbows appeared and disappeared.

"Look there are swans!" Lynn cried. We watched the white swans glide across the lake. Ducks dabbled the water's surface and occasionally dove for some unseen treat. Turtles sat in the sun on logs that broke the lake's surface. As we approached, they slipped with a plop into the water.

The next exhibit was the bird house. Lynn oohed and awed at the bright colors of the tropical birds. An inside aviary was filled with tropical plants and flowers. Butterflies floated through the exhibit. Large parrots and toucans sat in the treetops near the ceiling.

"What would you like to see next?" I asked Lynn showing her the map the zoo had provided. I showed her where we were on the map and the exhibits nearby.

"I want to see the nighttime creatures," she said.

"Okay, but remember you must keep your sunglasses on," I reminded her. We had talked about the importance of the sunglasses. I had also added an elastic strap to the glasses to help them stay securely in place.

"Look an owl," Lynn said. "Wow, his eyes are large." We watched various desert rodents chase and devour insects. A small desert fox blinked at us through the glass.

"Look, bats," Lynn tugging my arm to the next window. A large room contained various species of bats. The room was large enough for the bats to fly around.

"What are they drinking?" Lynn asked pointing to small bowls filled with a dark liquid. Several small bats surrounded the bowl and were lapping up the contents.

"Probably cow's blood," I said. "Those are vampire bats."

"Cool," she said. I could hear Jake suppressing a laugh. When we left the exhibit, I showed Lynn the map again.

"Let's go see the cats," she said. The large cats were in an exhibit called Cat Canyon. As we walked towards the exhibit, we could see a black jaguar pacing behind thick glass. When the cat saw us approaching, she froze. Her ears went back and she focused on Lynn. The large black cat bared her teeth and hissed.

"She's mad," Lynn said stopping and leaning into my hip. Lynn wrapped her arms around my leg. Jake and I looked at one another. Suddenly the cat swirled and the next moment she was slowing stalking towards us. Her ears were still back, teeth bared and growling.

"Jake, have Clark get us out of here!"

"He's too scared. Don't move!" Jake ordered. I looked down to see the yellow lab leaning against Jake's leg. I could smell and see urine trickle across the pathway.

"Put your hand on my shoulder and touch Clark with your other hand. I'm going to try and get us out of here. Lynn hold on tight to my leg." I whispered.

The jaguar paused as the swirling began around us.

"Go to Kitty's cave," Jake yelled. I concentrated on the task at hand while I watched the jaguar go into a slouch then burst into a run. Right before she reached us, we disappeared. I was not a neat transporter. We found ourselves sprawled just inside the main cave entrance. We jumped to our feet.

"Kitty! Danger! A zoo jaguar attacked us and may be here shortly," Jake broadcast. "Prepare yourself Amber, we may need to transport again."

Kitty and Rocky swirled in front of us first, followed by the jaguar. A second later, Twitch appeared with Brock. I was glad to see my personal protectors were between me and the jaguar, even though Brock was sprawled on the floor with a salmon in his mouth. He quickly rose to his feet, dropped the salmon, and shook Twitch off his back. Shock appeared behind him.

The jaguar screamed her frustration. I watched as Kitty walked toward the intruder. Kitty's ears were forward, but her tail slapped from side to side. The jaguar stood her ground, ears back and softly growling. Kitty sat down in front of the jaguar, her tail still twitching, her muscles tensed.

"Cut the drama Ebony and explain why you are here. Why did you break our agreement and leave the zoo?" Kitty broadcast so everyone would hear.

"Why does that woman have Lynn," Ebony snarled.

"Because Myra is dead and Lynn needs a mother," Kitty said. The jaguar froze for a moment, then abruptly sat down. Her ears came forward. The tip of her tail twitched.

"No one told me."

"Why would we? You rejected your son after he married Myra. You would not acknowledge your granddaughter."

"I would have taken Lynn after her mother died."

"You lost your right to Lynn when you rejected her mother. Now go back to your zoo home and honor our agreement. If I hear of you leaving again without permission, I will hunt you down and kill you as per the shifter agreement."

"Are you sure this woman will be a good mother for Lynn."

"She is the only mother for Lynn."

"Well she must be powerful if she can swirl. I would like to see Lynn sometime."

"That will up to Lynn's mother. You need to figure out how to make amends for the fright you gave Lynn and her mother today."

"Good point. I apologize for my rash assumptions and for the terror I caused. Kitty is right, I need to make amends. Lynn's mother, if you ever need my assistance, just ask. You know where to find me." The jaguar disappeared in a swirl.

Kitty turned and looked at us. "Follow me, we need to debrief. Lynn, could you babysit some kittens for me while the grownups talk?"

"I will," Lynn said softly. "But first I want to ask Amber a question." Lynn turned to me and took off her reflective sunglasses. Her eyes glowed in the cave's dim light.

"Kitty said you were my mother. May I call you Mommy?"

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