Page 30 of Cold Foot Croc

Dylan was quiet as they finished breakfast and cleaned up around the campfire, but he usually was silent in the mornings.He was a night owl and hated mornings, so when he spoke, it took Garret by a little bit by surprise.

“Are you ready?”

“Ready for what?” he asked.

“To Change again?”

Dylan must’ve been joking. “You couldn’t pay me enough,” he mumbled, heading to take out the tent stakes.

“The pay is a better quality of life,” Raynah said.

He turned toward them, and they both were staring at him. “What are you talking about,” he asked, straightening his spine.

“Raynah isn’t here to just camp out and eat our food, man.”

He didn’t understand. “She can have as much food as she wants.”

“Come on. Let’s go to the woods,” Raynah said, tilting her head toward the direction he’d just come from. “Not as far as usual though. You have to learn to Change near people.”

“Wait, what?”

Dylan had picked up the remote control for the drone, but Raynah shook her head at him. “No drone this time. I’ll keep track of him. The noise on that thing probably pisses his bear off.”

Dylan lifted his hands in surrender and set the control back in the box. “Whatever you say, boss lady.”

“I’m not the boss of anyone. Just trying to help. Let’s go, wild man. You’re fed, and now you can Change again.”

His stubborn streak was present and accounted for. “I’m not Changing. I just went through that.” Even the thought of another Change right now made him feel short of breath.

“You can’t keep suffering through Changes or letting them run your entire life. You’re overthinking them.” Raynah gestured around at the camp, his truck, and the woods. “This is too much. You can’t do this four times a week.”

“Four times a week?” he nearly choked on the words. “I’m not doing this four times a week.”

Raynah cocked her head, and there was sympathy in her eyes. He didn’t like it. “Hey Dylan, can you give us a minute?”

“Sure. I have to take a piss anyway,” he muttered, and then tromped off into the woods.

“Lots of people have medical conditions,” she started.

“This isn’t a medical condition, it’s a curse.”

“Look, at first everyone deals with their diagnosis different. It just depends on the person, right? And how big the diagnosis is. You take your time to cope, and then you learn about treatment, and you adjust your life so that you can be as healthy as possible.”

“It’s not some sickness, Raynah. I didn’t sign up for this.”

She arched an eyebrow, and he hated how good she was at making sense right now. Yeah, yeah, people diagnosed with sickness didn’t sign up for it either.

“You’re fighting your animal so hard, and you don’t have to.”

“I don’t want him in me.”

“And he can not only hear you say that, he can feel it. If you want a faster Change time, you have to get along with your animal. Hell, get to know him. They’re all different. Your bear has a personality.”

He shifted his weight to the other side and wished he was wearing a sweater right now. He felt very exposed, and the chill was starting to get to him. “What’s your crocodile like?”

“She’s loyal, and loves very sparingly, but very deeply. She’s reluctant to bond to anyone, but once she does, she would die for them. She’s a patient hunter. She’s been hurt. She lashes out sometimes. At least, she was doing that back when I had her. They wouldn’t let us Change in Cold Foot Prison, and by the time I got out, I was pregnant and still couldn’t Change. I miss her very much.”

“They wouldn’t let you Change?”

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