by C. T. Adams
When I reached the nurse station, I stepped behind the desk and looked around on the counter and work area for a note or message for one of us about the situation. But there was nothing. At least, there was nothing until I turned around to the computer station. That’s when I saw the smear of red on the keyboard during a lightning flash. My Taurus five–shot sort of appeared in my hand without my conscious recollection of pulling it from the holster at the small of my back. Even as I was reaching to check whether the blood was fresh or old I was scanning the area, looking for a target. Yep, it was still wet, slick, and warm between my thumb and forefinger. I searched around, now looking under the desk, inside cabinets, and behind doors. But there were no bodies, and no other bloodstains.
I moved to the pale cream wall and flattened, moving sideways smoothly. I slid through the shadows where the flashes of lightning didn’t reach and used the moments of light to keep watch around me. It might be that nothing was wrong and I’d wind up scaring the shit out of the nurse, bandaging her own nasty paper cut. But better safe than sorry.
Room after room was deserted. It wasn’t until I reached the next hallway that I realized just how far Charles’s power bubble extended, because the moon struck me with the force of a speeding bus. I dropped to my knees as pinpoints of too-bright magic erupted from my pores. That had never happened before and I could only hope that I was the only one who could see it. The gun clattered to the tile seconds later and my scream became a howl of pain as bone after bone broke and re-formed.
So much for low-key.
It’s hard to describe pain that intense. Your mind tries to block it and when that fails, you’re pretty much helpless until it ends. Thankfully, it didn’t last long, but even a few seconds can seem an eternity. I came back to my senses on my side on the floor. My breathing was labored and I was still seeing stars.
The world became a kaleidoscope of black, white, and a thousand shades of gray. The only colors were the scents that hung in the air like twinkling fireflies. I got to my feet and pulled off the tattered remains of my clothing with my teeth. They would eventually fall off my furred form, but there were still enough seams to prevent easy movement right now, and I needed to be able to move quickly. The ankle holster I’d been wearing slipped right off my leg and I couldn’t help but sniff at the gun, taking in the intense chemical scent of oil and residual cleaner. It made me stop to think. It used to be that I’d just move on and not even worry about the mess I left behind, but I really didn’t want someone to happen along and find my billfold, keys, and guns. Especially the guns.
It only took a few seconds to find a hidey-hole in a nearby patient room, but it took three trips to get the stuff there. No hands occasionally sucks.
Then it was back to the nurse station. I couldn’t seem to remember why I hadn’t sniffed around before now. I was a little surprised I hadn’t noticed the scent of the blood in human form. In fact, I hadn’t noticed any scents at all. Maybe there had been some sort of aversion magic tied in with the bubble around the room. But why would that be different now that I’d changed forms?
Weird.
Still, now that I could sense smells more strongly, I was able to find a trail that led away from the keyboard—tiny droplets that blended in with the red specks in the floor tiles. I could also pick up the lingering scents of the people who’d been here, and the particles of algae and dirty metal made all my senses go to full alert. How the hell could Ricky and Stuart have managed to track me to a private clinic in Boulder—especially when I’ve been traveling with my appearance altered?
I didn’t have any time to mull, though, because the sound of screaming and frantic splashing outside managed to catch my ear over the pounding rain and thunder.
It took only seconds before I was resting my front paws on a window ledge on the west side of the building. I could hear, but it took another flash of lightning before I could see the situation. There was a body lying in the mud. It was hard to tell, but it looked like about the right shape for the nurse, Sarah. But my eyes were drawn toward movement on my right, before I could make a positive ID. Ricky was running like mad away from something, his body moving in that sort of stumbling, sloppy gait that only life-or-death brings. Blood splattered his clothing, which was ripped enough to show skin at thigh and chest. I also noticed he was dragging one leg. Then I spotted what he was running from and I couldn’t say that I wouldn’t be doing the same thing in his place.
The beast following him was broad and low-slung, but at least thigh-high. It was chasing with a sort of loping motion like a ferret. Each leap forward showed off front claws probably eight inches long and bared teeth to match, if the light wasn’t playing tricks on my eyes. But it was the brilliant white stripe of fur that ran up the side of one eye that told the tale.
Liz was loose and she wasn’t happy.
In a sudden movement, she leapt into the air and I fully expected that she was going to pounce down on him. But instead she dove downward, her claws leading the way and those short little arms started moving in a blur of motion. Dirt and rocks flew into the air so high it look like a tornado had hit. She was underground quicker than I could follow. While she might be slow and clumsy on the surface, she moved like a dolphin underneath the ground. A smooth line of dirt and rocks appeared as she started to catch up to Ricky. I could tell he was trying to reach something to climb up on, like you would from a pack of dogs. But she was going to catch up with him before he could reach the nearest tree with a limb low enough to swing up on.
Now, I didn’t really mind if she killed him eventually, but not until after I did a hindsight on him to find out how they got here. Someone squawked, and loud, or they never would have found their way here from Kansas.
While prudence suggested that I wait until I figured out where Stuart was, there wasn’t much time before that burrow caught up with Ricky. Luckily, the Boulder clinic is outfitted with magnetic flaps in the exits on the west side. I refuse to refer to them as doggie doors. The nearest one was on the next hallway and I sprinted there as fast as I could, Ricky’s screams growing distant as I raced away from him.
Stuart was guarding the door I needed to go out, and it only took one second to figure out why he hadn’t already killed me and why he wasn’t helping Ricky. The stupid piece of shit was wearing earbuds, blasting some sort of weird techno beat with a Latin edge. He was happily watching the storm from behind the reinforced window, thumping his gun against his leg in time to the beat. I should kill him just because he was too stupid to live, but I really didn’t have time to deal with him. Fortunately, I was moving fast enough that I took him by surprise. He dropped the gun and didn’t even have time to finish fumbling on the ground for it before I dove for the flap and was outside.
The rain assaulted me and I had to blink repeatedly to stop my eyes from stinging while I oriented myself. I hadn’t expected that Stuart would follow me, so when I heard the zing of a bullet past my head, followed by a loud pop, I admit I was startled. I started to duck and weave to make it as difficult as possible to hit me. I had no idea if they’d been instructed how to kill a Sazi, and I wasn’t waiting to find out.
I raced after Ricky and Liz, hoping I’d reach them before Stuart managed a lucky shot. It would have to be lucky, because so far, he sucked as a shooter. I would have grazed me at least a couple of times by now, even back when I was human.
What I couldn’t figure out was where the hell Charles, Lucas, and Ahmad were. Three gunshots should have brought them storming out, which told me that either they were overly confident of the clinic’s remoteness, or that damned barrier was just too good.
I reached Ricky’s side just as the shooting ceased. Apparently Stuart had to reload. But then Ricky disappeared down into a massive sinkhole that suddenly appeared. His scream should belong to a six-year-old girl.
Crap. What to do? He was trying to climb up out of the hole while Liz’s claws raked his back. He started crying openly when she let out a fierce snarl tha
t would do a wolf proud. I didn’t dare jump down in the hole because she’d have me for dessert before I could get out. But I also couldn’t turn back because Stuart had finally reloaded on the fly—unless I killed him, and I really needed him alive. Of course, that didn’t mean I couldn’t take off his shooting hand. One Paw Prezza had a certain ring to it.
Hungry. Meat close.
Double crap. Apparently, the real problem was that the scent of Ricky’s blood was finally getting to me. My vision started to bleed red and my human mind was having blackouts. I bared my teeth and didn’t even realize it until I felt rain splattering on my gums. Or maybe it wasn’t rain. Maybe it was drool.
Pain erupted in my shoulder and I howled . . . not in pain, but in triumph. I realized I was several feet closer to Stuart and he was afraid. Thick Chinese spices roiled over the rain, turning the very ground into a pool of spicy flavor. He was standing his ground, which wasn’t bright of him. His little pop gun couldn’t help him anymore. He was shaking too hard to aim it.
I advanced again as the skinny human in the pit screamed once more. He was afraid too and that was good. But he was the little bear’s food for now. The big one was mine.
Shit, shit shit! I really had to get help out here—not so much to protect me from Stuart, but to keep me from eating him. I don’t eat humans.
No matter what Amber said, I had to get word to them inside and the only thing I feared would work was a direct call to Lucas’s private phone, which was a landline. I didn’t think it would be affected by magic like digital systems were. Sue had called him here more than once to talk over bookkeeping questions, and she was really good at remembering numbers.
I flung open the door between my mind and Sue’s, then threw myself into her body. She was in a restaurant, a nice one with paneled walls covered in heavy satin drapes. I grabbed onto her mind and spit out what might well be the last human thoughts I had. Call Lucas! West side of building. Assassins. Liz is out and so am I. Losing . . . the fight.
I could feel her lips move, hear the words come from her mouth. Linda dropped her knife and it hit the plate with a clatter, spraying bloody juices across the nice white tablecloth. Babs immediately reached for her purse and, I hoped, a cell phone. But then I couldn’t see anymore. The normal spark when our minds meet flickered and then caught fire. Red and black flames crackled over my brain, and then were joined by golden and white light. The pain was sharp and immediate and made me lose the little bit left of my senses.
The human went down in a tangle of limbs. Another flash of pain came from my back leg and I yelped. But I bit down hard and felt a satisfying squish as my teeth sunk home into warm, fragrant meat. It tasted bitter, but I was too hungry to complain.
The prey threw me off and scrambled to his feet, his shoulder dripping, sweet and red. The scent filled me, completed me and my growl told him I wasn’t done. The roar I heard in response wasn’t the metal thing in his hand that spit fire and steel. A white wall of fur filled my vision and then there was a blur before the prey’s head disconnected from his body and sailed past me.
I lowered my front legs into a fighting stance. The new bear was big . . . huge, in fact. But it was my dinner and I’d fight for it.
“Not this one, Tony. Not tonight.” The rumble of the voice struck something in my memory, and I struggled to place it. But then something was flying through the air toward my mouth. Something soft, furry, and succulent that smelled like food. I jumped up and grabbed it from the air with my mouth and tasted the sweet flavor of fresh rabbit—much better than the other meat. I dropped to the soggy ground and let my jaws clench down until I heard the satisfying crack of bone. The screams in the pit had ceased too, even though I didn’t hear the little bear feeding. Still, she wasn’t trying to take my rabbit, so I didn’t care.
Tony? Can you hear me? Are you there?
My mate! My mate came to hunt with me. I wagged my tail at her voice and let her taste the rabbit along with me. She was eating meat too—warm deer, and she chewed slowly, both of us savoring the blended tastes.
It took a few moments, but my head started to clear. I really was tasting both rabbit and deer, which confused me for a minute. You’re eating deer? Where are you?
The warmth of her smile filled my mind and beat back some of the black fire that scorched the edges of my thoughts. I wanted to surprise you. I’m down in Denver with Linda and Babs. They had venison on the menu, so—
“I need you back here with me, Tony. Can you hear me?” The deep rumble I’d heard a moment ago filled the air again, but now I could recognize the voice. I looked up, and up, until I could see a pair of dark eyes swimming in a sea of dirty white. Here, then, was Charles Wingate’s animal form. He was the size of a house . . . or at least a good-sized cabin. His feet were so deep in the wet soil that he must weigh several thousand pounds. Yet, that’s not possible . . . physics being what they are.
Or was it possible? I can’t honestly say I’ve ever weighed myself in my different forms. Did I have a different weight as a wolf than as a human? If so, where did the weight go? But that was a discussion for another day.
“Yeah, I’m here. Mostly. Thanks for the rabbit. Or was that you?”
He nodded and I could feel air whoosh against my face from the movement. “It was me. Can you use your gift in this form? The man Liz attacked is almost gone. He’s alive, but I don’t know whether his mind is still there.”
Could I get a hindsight vision in animal form? I hadn’t a clue. But I stood anyway. My back leg hurt and I looked back to see blood painting the brown and gray fur and a rapidly healing hole. Did he shoot me? I couldn’t remember. But I padded slowly over to where the second man lay in the mud. He was lying faceup and really didn’t look that bad. But from the red smears on the edges of the hole where Charles had apparently pulled him from, I could imagine what his back looked like. Probably like mine did after Asri ripped me open. I pushed Sue into the background with effort. She tried to help separate us, but it was like the door was stuck open. I try not to force the visions on her, but I might not have a choice this time.
If you can handle it, so can I.
That surprised me, because she was normally really adamant that she not be involved. But it was nice, because I’d really hate to have to tell the nice white bear no. He might not be as nice if I did.
Liz crawled up out of the burrow she’d dug and glared at the man on the ground with undisguised anger. Her small dark eyes glittered and she thumped one paw on the ground like she’d rather be digging her claws into him again.
“He . . . hurt her.”
“You have a mind.” Charles nodded his head and it was just then that she realized he was there. Sometimes something is so immense that you sort of ignore it. But he’s hard to ignore once he starts talking in that bass rumble. “That’s good. It’s all that’s saving your life right now. Can you tell me what happened?”
Liz shook her elegant white-striped head and I could see the wheels turning as she tried to figure out how to respond. I could probably hindsight her to bring it to the surface, but she wasn’t damaged. Ricky was and he would probably give us better information.
His eyes were closed and his breathing shallow as I put a paw directly on his forehead. Skin to skin works best, but a paw isn’t really skin. Still, it was the best I had at the moment. I could only hope it was enough. Normally I try to center people and take them back to the place I need them to be. That’s because the most important thing on their mind will be what shows up first. Given no suggestion or stimuli, the important thing is usually one of the big four—hunger, thirst, survival, or sex.
I could pretty much rule out three of them in this case. The trick was going to be to get him to think of something other than survival. Like how he got here, or why he attacked the nurse, or even why they were hunting me. At first, all I could feel was blinding slashes of pain. The wounds enveloped me, became me, and it took everything I had . . . and more, to step outside of Ricky’s
injuries to be able to control his thoughts. I honestly didn’t know where the more came from. I pulled and it flooded into me. I was really hoping it wasn’t from Ahmad. He wouldn’t be a happy snake.
“Can you see anything?” Charles was trying not to sound impatient, but I did understand the urgency. Ricky wasn’t long for this world and we really needed information.
“It’s hard to get him past the attack.” There was a flicker of motion in his mind when I said that and I grabbed onto the thought like a lifeline.
It began to replay in my head and I threw more magic at it until the thoughts made sense to my animal mind. I was thinking differently, and that wasn’t helping matters. My wolf mind kept trying to take him back to his last meal . . . another of the big four. I needed a time between the major events of eating and dying. He kept coming back to the sensation of claws in his leg, teeth in his side, when . . . when—
Flight, run. Run from where? Water, storm, voices yelling. Yes, there. Start with yelling voices.
And suddenly the picture cleared. I was in Ricky’s body as he entered the clinic. Sarah was sitting at the nurse station and she was immediately alarmed. Of course, Ricky couldn’t know that she would know every person who walked in the place. “Okay,” I said out loud and presumed Charles was listening, because I could only see what Ricky was seeing. “I’m in. They’d made plans to pretend to be friends of one of the patients. But Sarah confronted them immediately and told them to leave. She reached for the phone. He—” I felt Ricky reach into his pocket but it wasn’t a gun that flashed into his head. “Hmm . . . sharp. Round. He flicked his wrist and then she was coughing. Oh!” I would have slapped my head if my legs would have bent that way. “Throwing star. She reached up to pull it out and then started to fall backward so she grabbed the keyboard. That’s the blood I found.”
“Go on,” rumbled the big guy, even though I couldn’t see him. But at least I knew I wasn’t talking to thin air. He was listening. I concentrated, trying to sense what he was thinking and feeling and trying to keep him alive long enough to reveal what I needed. His heart was trying to stop and I’m not a healer, or a doctor.
