“What you tell me here goes no further than this room. I can assure you of that.”
Lucy gave him the brief version of things, just that she was drugged and abducted and spend about five days in their hands, eating their food and breathing in whatever chemicals may have once been in the that room.
“You could send someone out to take samples in the room, see if there is anything that might not show up immediately.”
“Not an option,” she replied.
“Well, then we’ll just have to run some blood tests and see what we find out. Stress and fatigue can cause the symptoms you are describing and it sounds like you’ve had those in spades.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“Alright, let’s examine you and get some tests on the go.”
Lucy followed his instructions and let him check her over. A nurse came in and took some viles of blood and sent her to the restroom for a urine sample and then he came back in for a bit.
“Really, everything looks good, Lucy. You’re healthy. Your heart rate is solid. Your blood pressure is fine. Let’s get the rest of the tests run through the lab and make you an appointment to return next week.”
“Thanks, Dr. Morton,” she told him, feeling a bit better that at least he didn’t tell her she was half dead already or anything.
Of course, it was short lived as she returned home and continued to feel lousy. It didn’t help when she went to take her birth control pill and realized her period was due. Now, she would feel even worse. She hoped desperately that the doctor would be able to shed some light on her problem when she returned in a few days.
Ryan kept asking if she was okay and she told him she seemed to have a bug of some sort. He’d been really good about taking care of her when he was over but she felt like a pain in the ass and wanted to feel better. Fortunately, by the time her doctor’s appointment rolled around, she seemed to be returning to normal, though her period never had shown up. She’d even taken another one of the pregnancy tests and it had come up negative.
“How are we doing today, Lucy?” Dr. Morton asked when he walked into the exam room.
“I feel much better. I think maybe it may have just been as you said, stress and fatigue.”
“Well, I’ve got your tests back and I have some news for you.”
“Good, I hope.”
“I think so. There are no traces of drugs in your system, so whatever they gave you has flushed itself out.”
“But you don’t know what it was?”
“No. I can send you to a more specialized lab where they can test your hair and tell you if you really need to know, but it shouldn’t be a concern since it’s no longer present.”
“Okay.”
“You are negative for any diseases that could have been passed from a needle or consumed. You said you weren’t sexually assaulted, but I checked for STDs anyway, just to be safe. All came up clean. I also believe I’ve found the underlying reason for your bouts of illness.”
“Oh? Then not just stress or being tired?”
“Well, those are symptoms, but not the cause in this case. Lucy, you’re pregnant.”
“What? No. That’s impossible. I’m on the pill.”
“It’s not 100% effective. I’m sure you know that.”
“Yeah, but is there a chance you got a false positive or something? I’ve missed my period this week and took a test last night. It came up negative.”
“From the drugstore?”
“Yes.”
“Those tests are designed for humans. They don’t always read correctly for shifters. Both your blood and urine possess pregnancy markers. I suggest you follow up with your gynecologist for a full exam and proper care going forward.”
Lucy looked at him, as if it might make him change his mind about the diagnosis.
“Lucy, you said that you were abducted. I’m assuming you were without your birth control pills while there. Have you had sex since then?’
“Yes,” Lucy mumbled, already realizing her mistake.
“And how long had you been taking them again when you had sex after that?”
Lucy was sure her face said it all. She sighed loudly.
“I think you just found your answer to how this might have happened.”
“Yeah.”
“Make an appointment with your gynecologist to discuss your options. I’m sure you are aware that shifter pregnancy progresses at an accelerated rate. The sooner you decide what you intend to do, the better.”
“Okay. Thank you Dr. Morton.”
Lucy left his office in a daze. How was she going to tell Ryan this? He had already made it clear early on that he wasn’t keen on having a family and here she was pregnant before they had even discussed getting more serious about their relationship.
She needed to talk to someone. Since the abduction, she’d hardly talked to Sasha other than in class. Sasha had been offended that she’d just taken off without telling her and let her worry like she had. Lucy wanted to tell her the truth, but knew it was better than she be a bit angry with her than in danger if there was even the slightest chance this might continue at any point.