Chapter 19
Emmy had spent hours planning the next phase, and the hutches had been divided so each breeding pair had their own section.
Which meant there were more hutches than she’d started with, and she’d be forever grateful Zander was so easygoing about her taking over this part of the stables.
If this worked, if babies were born all the way around, it would change genetics.
She initiated a video call with Professor Chen to show him the setup, and he wholeheartedly approved, but then asked, “How are you feeling about this phase?”
“Nervous,” Emmy admitted. “And excited. If this works, if Gen1 can successfully breed with both parent species, it will be huge.”
He smiled. “You’ve already solved it; this is just confirmation.”
After they hung up, Emmy put everything away, checked in with Dave, and then headed to the house. They had a big day coming up — the yearly flock field trip. This year, Spence had arranged an excursion to Katmai to see the bears.
And they’d be leaving the coterie house at seven, headed to the airport. Another trip on Zander’s plane, but this time, they weren’t going to Mordnik.
Oh good, Spence telepathed as she trudged up the hill to the house. I was worried I’d have to come get you, to get you into bed at a decent hour. I’m making grilled cheese sandwiches. You want a couple?
Three, please.
The bond had been active for two weeks now, and Emmy was still adjusting to the constant awareness of both men. It wasn’t intrusive, more like knowing where your own limbs were without looking. She could feel Zander’s cool presence as a steady weight in her mind, could sense Spence’s warmth.
And when they touched, when they focused on each other through the bond, the connection deepened into something profound.
I love you, she sent to Zander.
I know, he replied. And I love you, too. Now stop distracting me. Lucien is trying to discuss next year’s guest list.
Emmy grinned, and jogged the rest of the way up the hill to the house.
Emmy dressed in layers the next morning. The weather was warm for Alaska, but still chilly this early in the day. It was supposed to reach sixty later in the afternoon though, and she was looking forward to the day.
At breakfast, Rhea was practically bouncing. “Bears! We’re going to see actual bears fishing for salmon!”
She sat near Rhea, Felix, Toby, and Maren on the plane while Spence organized everyone, but kept the seat beside her open, so he could sit with her.
When he finally slid in beside her, just as the plane started to move, his hand found hers immediately, fingers lacing together, and she felt the bond between them pulse with contentment.
Happy? he asked through their connection.
Very, she replied, squeezing his hand.
The flight took just under two hours, the plane cruising over Cook Inlet and the Alaska Peninsula. Emmy watched out the window as the landscape shifted from mountains to tundra, dotted with lakes that gleamed like mirrors in the morning sun.
“Look,” Spence said, pointing. “Beluga whales.”
Emmy pressed her face to the glass and saw the white shapes moving through the gray-blue water far below. Oh, how she wanted to fly down and investigate in her dragon form, but she settled for watching until they disappeared behind a cloud.
When they landed at Katmai, a park ranger met them on the tarmac. “Welcome to Katmai National Park. Before we head to Brooks Falls, I need to give you the bear safety briefing.”
The group gathered around as the ranger explained the rules: stay on designated paths, don’t approach the bears, make noise when moving through brush, never run. “The bears here are habituated to humans on the viewing platforms, but they’re still wild animals. Respect that and you’ll be fine.”
They loaded into a floatplane that flew them to Brooks Camp, then hiked about a mile through forest that smelled of spruce and damp earth. Through the bond, she felt Spence’s wolf responding to the wildness of it, his excitement matching hers.
They transitioned from trail to boardwalk, and a couple of hundred yards later, the trees opened up, and Emmy’s breath caught.
She’d heard the falls for a while, but now, seeing them, was magnificent.
Brooks Falls crashed down in a white tumble while massive brown bears stood in the river, fishing for salmon. Some waited at the top of the falls, snatching fish mid-leap. Others waded in the shallows, heads dunking underwater before emerging with silver bodies in their jaws.
“Holy shit,” Rhea breathed beside her.
The viewing platform put them about thirty feet from the nearest bear, much closer than Emmy had expected. She pulled out her phone and took a few dozen photos along with several short videos, but mostly she just watched.
A huge male stood at the falls’ crest, water rushing around his legs, completely focused on the salmon jumping up and toward him. He caught one with perfect timing, shaking it once before swallowing it whole.
Wow, Emmy sent to Spence, and she felt his wonder mirroring hers.
Beautiful.
They stood on the platform for over an hour, watching the bears fish and interact. A mother with two cubs appeared, and the group collectively cooed as the babies tried to copy their mother’s fishing technique with varying degrees of success.
Maren narrated quietly. “That’s probably a four-year-old male. See the shoulder hump? And that one’s a female — smaller, lighter coloring around the face.”
Emmy leaned against Spence’s side, his arm around her waist, and let herself sink into the moment. The roar of the falls, the smell of salmon and bears, the sight of raw nature doing what it’d done for thousands of years.
It was too early in the day to reach for Zander, who was still dead to the world, but they could show him the pictures and videos later.
She smiled and tucked herself closer to Spence.
Eventually, the ranger guided them back through the forest to Brooks Lodge. They ate lunch near windows overlooking Naknek Lake, and Rhea was already planning her social media posts, sorting through hundreds of photos. “This one. No, this one. Oh god, I can’t choose.”
“Post them all,” Maren suggested, stealing one of her chips.
Felix sat beside Emmy, quieter than usual, but she didn’t pick at his silence, merely worked to get him to talk without cajoling him.
Spence stood to go talk to the rangers, and she showed Felix one of the videos she’d taken of the baby bears being goofy while missing the fish, and then their mom finally handing them one to fight over.
“Oh, that is priceless. It’s really good to get out, you know?” He lowered his voice. “To remember there’s more to life than school and feeding vampires.”
Emmy bumped his shoulder gently. “There’s a whole world out here.”
“Yeah.” He smiled. “And you found your place in it.”
She had, Emmy realized. The research, her men, her friends. Her life had come together into something she’d never imagined wanting but now couldn’t live without.
Missing you, she sent to Spence, who was across the restaurant area, talking to Toby about bear migration patterns.
He looked up immediately, meeting her gaze, and his smile could’ve melted glaciers. Miss you too. Even though you’re twenty feet away.
The bond makes it worse, she sent. I can feel you, but I want to touch you.
Later. The promise in that single word made her shiver. After we get home. After Zander wakes. I am yours. Always.
The afternoon brought a second viewing platform closer to the river mouth, where bears caught salmon in calmer water. They watched a massive male who had to weigh at least nine hundred pounds catch and consume one salmon after another, barely chewing.
“That’s Bob,” the ranger said. “He’s a regular here. Twelve years old, dominant male, always claims the best fishing spots.”
Bob looked up at the platform as if he’d heard his name, water dripping from his muzzle, and Emmy could’ve sworn he made eye contact with her.
He knows we’re here, she sent to Spence.
They all do. They just don’t care as long as we stay on the platform.
What would you do if I jumped down there right now?
She felt his alarm spike through the bond. Don’t even joke about that.
Emmy laughed and squeezed his hand. Relax. I’m not going to fight a bear.
You’re a dragon. I’ve learned not to even try to second-guess you.
He wasn’t wrong. She was fascinated by these massive predators and desperately wanted to change and make them run from her.
But not in this realm. Ever.
They stayed until mid-afternoon, watching bears fish and sun themselves on the rocks and occasionally challenge each other for prime spots. Emmy’s gallery was full of photos and videos, and her heart felt impossibly full.
The flight home was quieter, much of the flock dozing in their seats, others scrolling on their phones. Emmy stayed awake, watching the landscape slide past below, Spence’s head heavy on her shoulder.
She reached through the bond for Zander and found him awake, working in his office.
We’re coming home, she sent, along with images of the day — bears, salmon, waterfalls, and joy.
I’ve felt your happiness since I rose, he replied. It’s been lovely, if a little distracting.
Good.
I can feel Spence sleeping, leaned against you.
He manages the flock perfectly, and had the day planned down to the minute.
I keep telling you, I have no idea what I’d do without him. He organizes my life and my people, so I’m free to handle everything being Master of Alaska requires.
I love you both, Emmy sent. More than I have words for.
I know. Warmth flooded through the bond, Zander’s version of an embrace. Come home. We’ll show you how much we love you, too.
The promise in those words made Emmy’s breath catch.
As soon as she got home, Emmy pulled up the hutch camera feeds on her laptop, scrolling through the day’s recordings. Her heart rate picked up as she fast-forwarded through hours of footage.
There. And there again.
Her smile was so big, she felt it in her cheeks — science, love, wild bears, and perfect men. Somehow, impossibly, she had all of it.
Because multiple breeding pairs had been active. Very active. Fucking like bunnies, she thought, and cracked herself up.
She watched Gen1 female 2-1 copulating with the unaltered domestic male three separate times. Gen1 male 4-1 with his domestic female partner twice. The cottontail pairings showed similar activity.
“Yes,” Emmy whispered. “Yes, yes, yes.”
Good news? Zander asked, responding to her surge of excitement.
Very good news. Multiple successful breeding attempts. Now we wait.
We’ll need to celebrate properly, he telepathed, and she felt his anticipation. Later. After you’ve checked everything.
Emmy forced herself to go through all the camera feeds methodically, documenting every observed mating, making notes in her research log. Science first, celebration later.
It took nearly an hour, but as she finished, Felix was on her mind. She needed to figure out what to do for him. Feeding the vampires wasn’t enough. He needed to have sex with someone who cares for him. Not love, since Vexare wasn’t here, but more than a transactional exchange.
She telepathed Spence, Is Zander busy? I need a conversation with him, when he has ten minutes. Nothing big. It can wait, if it has to.
Thirty seconds later, he responded. If he isn’t ready for you by the time you get here, you won’t have to wait long.
Thank you.
She heard his telepathic chuckle, and then, I’m here to serve.
Two vampires were leaving Spence’s office when she neared the door, and he motioned her to keep going when she entered.
“You can come, too,” she told him. “It’s possible you’ll have a solution Zander and I don’t think of.”
He followed her in and closed the door behind them.
She started out by telling them about what Felix had said about it being good to be reminded there is more to life than school and feeding vampires, and then told them, “I think he needs someone who cares about him to hurt him, and I know our agreement says I can do that without checking in with ya’ll, but I’m not sure it’s the right answer.
— but he isn’t getting what he needs from the regular rotation, so I’m hoping the two of you can help me figure out how to help him. ”
Zander sat back in his chair, considering, and telepathed, You were a lot rougher with Felix than you are with Spence.
Felix is a more intense masochist.
Zander nodded and said, “While you’re free to act on your own, of course, I agree there may be a better option. Give me a few days to consider it? I have some ideas, but I’d like to go through his head while he’s asleep, before I decide which is ideal.”
The next week brought the first confirmation: blood draws showed elevated hormone levels in five of the six breeding pairs. Emmy ran the tests three times to be certain, her hands shaking with each result.
Pregnant . They were actually pregnant.
She called Professor Chen immediately. “Five out of six. Edited males and edited females are viable. Domestic and cottontail.”
“Emmy.” His voice was thick with emotion. “I am beyond proud of you and your work. This will change everything.”
“It worked.” Tears streamed down her face. “It actually worked.”
“It means you’ve solved one of the fundamental problems in hybrid genetics.”
After they hung up, Emmy sat at her desk and let herself cry, relief and joy and terror all mixed together because they weren’t quite there yet. Pregnancy was one thing. Live births were another.
The rabbits had to carry to term. The kits had to be healthy. She had to prove this was replicable and sustainable.
Breathe, Zander sent through the bond, responding to her emotional spiral. You’ve done the hard part. Now you just have to wait.
I hate waiting.
I know. But you’re not waiting alone.
Through the bond, she felt both her men — Zander’s cool certainty, Spence’s warm support. Their triangle holding her steady even when her own anxiety threatened to knock her down.
Emmy wiped her eyes and pulled up her research calendar. Four weeks until the pregnancies should come to term. Four weeks of monitoring, documenting, hoping.
She could do this. The science was sound. This was one more hurdle, she just needed to keep documenting and monitoring.