Mercy looked at the test sitting on her bathroom countertop, Holding her breath andstaring, while the lines developed across the gaudy pink stick. She felt sick. Hell! She was sick. It's one of the reasons she finally hauled her ass to the dollar store closest to her home.

She quickly turned around. She couldn't bear to sit there and do nothing. She had to do something. Removing each article of clothing, she quickly walked down the stairs and to the back door that led to the porch and beyond to the peace of nature she sought.

Usually there were people all over the house seeing as it is the Columbia basin pack base, but for some strange reason people were scarce. She could hear Ben in the basement swearing at whatever he was doing on the computer. She was thankful no one was there to see her emotional state right. Adam had gone to DC to deal with yet another political meeting that Bran had no doubt wanted to skip for Lord knows what reason. Jesse, her stepdaughter, was away on a date with Gabriel, her garage hand.

She opened the door and ran out. Changing into her other form, a coyote, she ran off into the high grass and headed to the river. She had fully intended on relaxing and doing things she normally didn't since the house was uncharacteristically empty. She was going to take a nice long bath while listening to some sappy romance singer and then baking some. Hopefully that would have eased her weirdly tumultuous stomach. She didn't get nauseous, definitely not to the scent of her favorite bubble solution. Not unless she was given a true reason, and she had seen plenty of disgusting things in the past 5 years. She missed her simple life but she guessed it had changed for the better. Or for the better? She couldn't decide right now.

She had been 3 seconds from abandoning the idea of a bath altogether for a good nap to drive it away, when her sister had called. Of course, Nan, could tell there was something wrong. She supposed she had inherited it from their mother, who could sniff out anything you tried to hide. It was eerie to say the least. Bran was a close match to the both of them in that ability. After Nan had refused to accept that she was "fine" and incessantly prodded for the information she had wanted, Mercy was forced to admit that she was nauseous and waved it off as "bad leftover Chinese food".

It wasn't until her sister said, with a giggle,"maybe your pregnant! You and Adam have been married for a while. Time to start popping out those babies! I need a nephew to start spoiling!" That something clicked. She quickly got off the phone with her sister and pulled up the calendar on her phone. She counted and realized that her sister was onto something. 3 weeks late!!! How was she 3 frickin' weeks late! She never even noticed it! She had been far too busy with the special Valentine's surprise she had lined up for her husband that she hadn't even noticed that she was late.

She paused by the river breathing the cool air in. It definitely did help with the ever looming nausea and with her erratic state of mine. They had been careful. Always careful. The current state of the city and her being the protector of the Tri-cities. They couldn't afford for her not to be tip top shape. She didn't want to bring a tiny fragile life into a world that was so hell bent on ending hers. Another person to worry about was the last thing she needed. She already had too many weaknesses that could be used against her.

She definitely could end it. Adam being gone for the next couple of weeks could provide her with that chance and he would be none the wiser. No. She couldn't do that. Wouldn't. They had made this thing together. Made it out of love.

Adam would be too elated with the idea of another child. She noticed too often the look of longing anytime they were anywhere near a child and then ultimately the look of hurt when he knew that Jesse would be their only child. Of course he tried quickly burying that thought but sometimes their mating bond worked in mysterious ways. Thankfully due to the distance between them he shouldn't catch all that she was feeling right now.

She breathed in the cool winter air once more before she got up and started heading back to the house. She figured she could call Samuel and talk to him. He wouldn't be bound to tell Adam. She intended on telling him once he had returned from his trip and she had properly processed it.

Samuel being a doctor and an old wolf had its benefits. He might know what to do. If not, he could also just consult, Bran, his father who had witnessed the only pregnancy that gave a werewolf child, Charles.

She changed and quickly stepped in the door to avoid freezing outside and headed upstairs picking up the clothing she had thrown throughout the house on her speedy escape. She was so deep in her thoughts that she didn't even notice Adam until she walked into the bathroom and bumped into him.

He turned to her and said "Mercy, what is this?" Gesturing to the pregnancy test in his hands.

Well,guess that cat is already out of the bag.