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NIGHTS in the sere often sultry Heat andto the long shawls of lacy Spanish ed drapes swayed in the slight breeze, adding a s chorused loudly, hundreds of the out joyously while raccoons slipped noiselessly down to the duckweed-filled water to wash their pao bull alligators challenged for territory, their bellows reverberating through the air

Sonia Lopez followed the narrow game trail, the one she'd widened over the last feeeks that led deeper into the swamp Insects droned all around her, a l

oud cacophony of sound None stopped when she stepped lightly along the ground, a tribute to the fact that she'd spent every night for the last two ed to her She owned forty acres and wanted to become acquainted with all of it For this She'd known it was colad she'd prepared

"We're almost there," she whispered softly "Hold on I know it's hard"

So moved beneath her skin, a wave that pushed outward and then slid away, leaving behind a horrible itch that made her want to scratch until she bled Her joints ached She burned in herher deeper and deeper into the swamp She was on fire Every part of her, her body so sensitive, clothing hurt Every movement brushed streaks of fire from her breasts to her sex She ached She needed The only safe place she had was the swamp

The grunt of a wild boar had her quickening her step She had to get to the very heart of the shere she'd constructed a sh so she could have a thinin relative safety and shift Hurry Hurry Hurry The words thundered in her ears acco of her heart

Sonia had allowed her leopard to run free when there was opportunity, ever since that first, shocking, terrifying appearance when the cat had saved her life It had never been like this Thisthisnecessity She breathed deep as her joints began to pop Her knuckles were on fire, the ache beco a terrible pain that wouldn't let up "Wait Just try foron We're close"

She didn't dare let her cat loose anywhere near civilization Not now Not ever, but noas the most important Gatita was definitely in heat That ht be She didn't trust herself She had had no idea the heat would be so intense, such a terrible force driving her beyond all endurance

Her leopard was in need, and if the way her body was burning was any indication, her cat was going up in flaan to curl down The blind was just ahead and she threw herself forward those last few feet, tugging her shirt over her head and pulling off her shoes Her jeans were next She was usually good about folding clothes and being neat, but there was no time Her female was in trouble, and Sonia was driven to help her

Nothing had prepared her for the brutal hunger, the need filling herhelped She'd tried Toys Fingers She'd given up, sobbing, standing under the cold of the shower until she realized that wouldn't help Nothing would help And it was far worse for Gatita

She found herself on her hands and knees, breathing as deeply as possible to ease the pain of the shifting Her skull hurt, feeling too tight Her jaw, her toes and fingers Every et, for that one terribleher

Shifting only took seconds now that she'd practiced, but those seconds were excruciating Then her leopard was there, sleek, agile and beautiful She was on the smaller side, her fur thick with so many black rosettes that one appeared to touch another from her head to the top of her tail Her coat looked black with traces of thin, glea to streak around the black All leopard patterns were unique, but Sonia was a little vain about her cat's fur She thought Gatita was beautiful and her fur different and rare Of course, that meant she had to be more protective than ever

There had been no tiather clothes and shove them into the pack to put around Gatita's neck, so she knew she would have to get the leopard to return to the blind where she'd set up the sed the leopard back into the swaement

"Run it off, pequeno Gatita, for both of us, run it off"

Gatita had never been in heat before Sonia knew it could last a week or even a few days longer than that It was going to be hell for both of them She'd known she'd have to face the feht about the possibility that she would feel what her leopard felt

Letting Gatita run free was a little on the dangerous side As a rule, Sonia knew she had no trouble controlling her, but right now, she could barely control herself Every cell in her body demanded she find a man Any man would do at this point She had taken tiht to board up her home with steel plates on the s and doors so neither of the the leopard run in the sas better than both suffering and tearing up the house she orking so hard to restore

Gatita ran through the swa tree trunks covered withthrough the trees, adding to the mystery and beauty of the land An owl screeched as it ators continued to bellow and posture