Chapter 2

To most of them, beasts in the zoo were curiosities, even sometimes objects of derision or scorn. The beasts all lived behind bars and in cages, sometimes nice, large cages where effort had been made to create a semi-realistic habitat, cages, nonetheless. There was no hunting, no exploring, no freedom.

As he mind-spoke with the other cheetahs and some of the other great cats, he learned their frustration, their anguish at being enclosed and imprisoned. He tried to tell them that for now the restrictions kept them safe and that perhaps eventually, they or their offspring would again be free. That time had not yet come.

Although the protections might help species survive where habitat and prey had declined and other pressures weakened and constrained them, few of the beasts could understand. They asked why they were kept far from their native places, captive and coddled, and he could really not answer.

Birds in gilded cages, Zyl thought, recalling something he’d heard or read in his human form. Could these stories ever end happily?

So he paced, waiting for dusk to come and the zoo to close its gates for the night. Until the people went home. Until the caged ones could pretend for a while that they were still free. Until he could change into his human form, gather the clothes he kept concealed and go off to attend to critical business he could not do in cat form.

In his mind, he laughed. He’d heard some of the zookeepers talking. They could not agree on how many cheetahs roamed in their artificial jungle and savannah habitat. There were only supposed to be twelve, although some of the people swore they had counted at least one more, one not on any of their records. How could that be? Others scoffed at that idea and insisted that one or two must have been counted twice.

The human he had seen today was one of those who insisted there was an extra one, a phantom of sorts, one that came and went. A big cat, he’d said, probably a male. Like most of the Were-kind, Zyl could vanish when he needed to and not be seen at all. Perhaps he should not let this more discerning human see him, and yet he was drawn to the man, felt the touch of his eyes and his mind. It was almost frightening, also excited him.

* * * *

The zoo closed at dusk every evening, except for a few special events scattered through the year. The guides and security team ushered the public out, closed and locked the gates, and finally peace and quiet descended. Carl always felt a vague relief once the world was shut out for the night.

Unlike many of the employees, who lived outside the boundaries, he had a small cottage in a back corner, not too far from the barracks where the security people were housed during their three-day-on shifts. There were patrols twenty-four-seven. Besides some rare and valuable animals, the zoo also housed some that could be dangerous if they ever escaped or if an unauthorized person either evaded closing time or somehow gained access. They all knew to summon Carl if they saw any animal in distress or injured. He slept lightly with his cell phone on the nightstand, set for a loud ring.

This evening, a strange restlessness troubled him, even after the public was gone and the evening feeding completed. Instead of going home, fixing himself a simple meal and sitting down to watch TV or do research on his computer, he wandered the grounds. Ultimately, he wound up near the cheetah habitat. In the gathering darkness, he could only see a short distance into the enclosure through the thick foliage. Still, he sensed movement within the shadows.

He paused, standing close to a wall of the compound that housed the elephants, and waited. A quiver of anticipation danced over his skin, along his nerves. Even though there was no obvious cause for alarm or concern, he found he could not move on just yet.

Perhaps he blinked. While he would have sworn there was nothing there an instant before, all at once he saw a nude man walking along the high fence. Was he inside or outside of the cheetah habitat? Carl blinked again, trying to clear a blur from his eyes. Another allergy symptom. It came and went and mostly was no big problem. Except at times like this…

The man was outside, at least now. He strode with purpose toward a stone-and-cement pillar that held several signs and maps indicating what the nearby exhibits housed and giving information on the various animals. While Carl watched, transfixed, the other man reached down near the bottom and wiggled a stone free. Then he thrust his hand into what was apparently a hollow space inside and drew it back with a bundle gripped in his fingers.