by Beverly Rae
He slid his hands along her neck, his thumb passing over the spot where Jason had marked her, to the top of her shoulders. “I could never hate you. I’m so relieved to see you better, I don’t care how it happened, sweet pea.”
She sucked in air, surprised and pleased he’d used her childhood pet name. “I love you, too, Dad. I always will.”
A gigantic sniff swiveled her attention to Benjy and Medusala who stood arm and arm, leaning against each other for comfort. With their heads touching, Benjy tapped a lavender hankie to his eyes while the medium wiped her nose with the same handkerchief. “This is beyond beautiful. I couldn’t have wished anything more for our little Syd.”
A sob racked Medusala, making her green hair bounce around her shoulders. “When you’re right, you’re right, Benjy, baby.”
“I guess we’re all one big happy family, huh?” Jason grinned, slipped an arm around Syd’s waist and placed a hand on her father’s shoulders. “If you can let bygones be bygones, old man, I guess I can do the same. How about it…Dad?”
The color drained from her father’s face and she lightly punched Jason in the ribs. Typical Jason. Make a joke when things get too serious.
Griswold growled at Jason who, of course, couldn’t let such an action pass without some kind of snarky comment. “Not bad, Pops. This time try growling with a bit more feeling. Let me know you mean it, Daddy Skeller.”
Her father choked and pink flowed into his cheeks. “Do. Not. Call. Me. Pops. Or Dad. Ever.”
“But, Dad─”
Her father’s fist hit Jason in the side of the head before Jason could duck out of the way. Taking the punch without losing his balance, he snarled and began to shift again.
“No!”
Her mother’s roar startled them, with Jason’s shift quickly fading. “Haven’t you two learned anything? This feud will stop right this instant. No more fighting. Do you understand?”
“Way to go, Mom.” Syd shot a fist in the air, making her mother fight to stay angry.
“You listen to me.” Her mother sauntered around the two men, glaring them into submission. “From now on, you two will behave like civilized creatures. Griswold, you will treat Jason with civility even if you can’t find any kindness for him.”
Jason thumbed his nose at Griswold until her mother caught him, then put on an innocent face.
“As for you, you will not shift in my home again without permission.” She ran her gaze up and down his barely covered body. “And you will put some clothes on, pronto.” Whipping around, she pointed at Benjy. “The same goes for you, skinny boy.”
Jason saluted her and made a face at Sydney. “We’ve got to figure out how to make clothes disappear and reappear at will.” He beckoned her over to him and pressed his lips to hers. Yet in the instant their lips met, a loud crash reverberated through the walls and in the ceiling above them.
Syd jerked apart from Jason, caught the startled expressions of the others, and whistled. “Damn. Your kisses always give me a bang, but I never thought they were audible to others. Way to go, my big strong wolfie.”
Chapter Twelve
“I’d like to, but I can’t take credit for the sonic boom.” Jason looked up at the ceiling, then over to the walls. “If I had to guess, I’d say someone is trying to break into the house.”
Syd’s elation from the kiss dropped forty levels. “Damn. I thought all I had to worry about now was a bad case of fur rash.”
Jason got a weird expression on his face and shook his head at Benjy. “She’s starting to sound like you and your bad jokes.”
Of course, Benjy being Benjy, he had to get the last word in. “What bad jokes? You people don’t know subtle humor when you hear it. Syd, however, shows promise.”
More crashes from above drew their attention to the ceiling again. Skeller moved closer to Miriam while Benjy grabbed onto Medusala.
“I think we’ve got company.” Jason let go of Syd and moved to stand next to the steps. His gaze traveled to the door above him. “Are you expecting visitors, Skeller?”
“No, but I have a bad feeling the hunters finally got their shit together and decided to come after my girl. And me for protecting her.”
“I. Have. Had. It.”
At the deep tone of the new voice, everyone stared at Medusala. She—he—whipped off the green wig and tossed it on top of a box. Syd gawked at the medium, stunned when she—he—hiked up the bottom of her—his—skirt and stuffed it into her—his—belt. Hairy legs protruded from the bottom of the skirt, legs no woman should ever possess, much less have to shave. Then she—he—dug into her—his—bosom to pull out pad after brassiere-stuffing pad. Before long, Medusala had changed from a big ugly female psychic into a pissed-off-looking buzz-cut male. “I am so not going to stand for any more of this insanity.”
“Heavens, you’re a man!” Miriam’s shocked declaration spurred everyone to action.
“A man who pretends to be a woman? What kind of a man dresses up like a girl?” Skeller’s question went unanswered until Jason walked over and tugged Medusala’s shirt away from his body. With a glance of apology at the large man, he checked out the now-deflated chest area.
“Nothing up top. He’s definitely a dude.” Another crash had Jason jerking his head away from the psychic’s bosom to check the ceiling above them.
“You can’t tell by the chest, Jay-Jay.” Benjy bent over and lifted Medusala’s skirt higher to examine his nether regions. He tittered and wiggled his eyebrows. “The answer’s all in the balls—and not just the crystal ones.”
“Get your paws off me, you naked letch.” Medusala slapped at Benjy’s head and pushed him to the floor. “Okay, let’s get this party rolling. A guy can only take a limited amount of this craziness, you know. If a fight’s about to happen, I’m getting ready.” With a sneer at Benjy, Medusala pulled knives of various sizes from inside his clothing. “I don’t have claws and fangs, but I think these will do the job.”
“Is he another one of your freaky friends?”
Jason snarled at Skeller, who had moved halfway up the stairs. “Not all freaks are lycanthropes. In fact, most of the freaks I’ve seen are more your kind than ours. Besides, we didn’t invite her, uh, him here. You did.”
“I’m not a freak, you freak.” Medusala had four knives ready—two in his hands and two stuck in his belt. “I’m a struggling medical student trying to make enough money to pay for school and living expenses. Being a fake medium and, yes, a female impersonator pays better than any regular job. Screw you if you don’t like it, but having odd jobs doesn’t make me a freak.”
Benjy jumped up and down, barely keeping his makeshift wardrobe wrapped around his hips. His features lit up with excitement. “Shut up! I knew you looked familiar. You perform at Boys’ Toys, don’t you? Although I must say you dress better when you’re performing.” He touched Medusala’s arm several times in awed reverence. “You are simply amazing! I saw the show where you sang a Streisand medley and you were fab-u-lous. Seriously, I cried a river. Hell, no, an ocean. Miss Barbra herself couldn’t have sung them better.”
Medusala stared at Benjy for a full minute without saying a word before turning to Skeller. “What did you get me into? You never told me about all these…people. Now there’s more coming?”
“Quiet.” Skeller’s whisper brought instant silence. “I can hear them on the other side of the door. They’re talking about coming down.”
“Get ready, buddy.” Jason hadn’t taken his sight off the door.
“Oh, my, my. Do I still have to get dressed, Miriam?” Benjy dropped the scarf and cupped his privates in a coquettish gesture. “Or do I have permission to shift again?”
“Under the circumstances, you both have my permission.” She waved them on. “Wolf out, boys, and let ’em have it.”
Jason and Benjy didn’t wait a moment longer to begin their transformations. “I knew I liked you, Miriam, from the first minute I saw you in bed.”
Ske
ller gagged, then gaped at his wife. “In bed?”
“No, Griswold, I saw him in bed. With Sydney.”
Skeller choked again, clearly not helped by her explanation.
“Oh, get over it, Griswold.” She puffed out an exasperated sigh. “Did you think she was a virgin?” When he couldn’t answer, she dismissed him altogether. “I’ll explain later, dear.”
Almost simultaneously, the two shifters’ heads elongated, sprouting muzzles where once their jaws had been. Fangs, long and fiercely sharp, protruded from their mouths while the first layers of fur spread like a forest fire from the top of their heads to their toes in less time than Syd took to swallow the saliva bursting into her mouth. A second, longer layer of fur followed the same course as the first, protecting the undercoat that kept wolves warm. Hands morphed, losing fingernails and gaining claws. Yet it was their eyes Syd watched in fascination and envy as they grew thinner, narrower, sliding from dark brown to the flashing amber she’d seen in her dreams.
“You’re still grinning.” Syd reached out to touch Jason and he rubbed up against her. “I think I like your wolf grin the best.”
However, a very human-like chuckle rumbled in his throat. He woofed at her, rose up on his hind legs and placed his paws on her shoulders. With another chuckle, he licked her face, sliding his tongue down her cheek. The rough surface scraped over her collarbone, sending her into giggles, but her laughter ceased when she saw her father’s expression.
She sent him a silent message, knowing he wasn’t ready to hear the words out loud, but needing to say them—if only to herself. I’m sorry, Skeller. You’ll have to get used to them. To me and what I’ve become. No, nix that. To what I’ve always been.
Pushing Jason away, she closed her eyes and gathered the power surging through her. The heat, the burn took her breath away. Her bones lengthened and altered, hurting her, but she allowed the force free reign. Tearing sounds echoed in her mind and she knew her clothes ripped away from her body. But she didn’t care.
Fur surged along the surface of her skin with a strange indefinable sensation and, when her teeth started aching, she instinctively knew the finish was near. She opened her eyes and saw the world in a different way. Although everything was now in grays and browns, the room around her was clearer, more distinct, sharper than she’d ever imagined. Textures she’d never noticed before burst to life before her, demanding her attention. The brown of the boxes was richer, pulsating with color, and she could see into the dark corners of the basement as clearly as if she’d shown a spotlight on them. A myriad of odors she’d never noticed before burned her nostrils, yet she could still separate them, identifying each one with a new instinct and knowledge. “This is fantastic.”
She went down on all fours, surprised at her garbled words. Why couldn’t she speak? Jason and Benjy had no problem talking when they were in wolf form.
“Don’t worry, Syd. You’ll learn to use your wolf tongue. Give it time. And, of course, practice.” Jason growled a comforting sound. “I wish you could see yourself. You are smokin’.”
Leaping onto the box where she’d placed the mirror, she stared at the image before her. A wolf with golden highlights streaked through brown fur looked back at her. I shifted! And not a partial shift, either. I’m grade-A canine and all wolfed out. Pure pleasure wafted through her. She jumped to the floor, yelped at her stunned parents, lifted her head—and howled.
An axe sliced through the door’s center panel. The wood splintered, pieces flying downward, and the humans leapt away. Jason, Benjy and Syd held their ground, ducking their heads to protect themselves from the small wooden spikes hurtling at them. They stayed hunched over until the rain from the destroyed door was over.
Syd scooted closer to Jason and caught his warning. “They’re coming. Get ready.” She nodded and crouched just in time to see a hunter barreling down the stairs.
“Watch out for her. Protect her, no matter what,” Jason ordered Benjy.
“Okie-dokie. Will do.”
“Don’t attack until I say so.”
“Gotcha, Jay-Jay.”
“Will you guys stop talking about me like I’m not standing right here?” Syd snarled at them in case they hadn’t understood her mangled words.
Two hunters reached the bottom of the stairs and Jason stepped in front of her. “Figures one of them would be your ex-boyfriend.”
She groaned, making an odd sound deep in her throat. Benjy tried to cut her away from Jason’s side and the hunters’ advances, but Syd bumped back. “Knock it off, boney-butt, or I’ll make you sit through an entire Sunday of football games.”
“Fine with me. I like boys in tight pants, Miss Mush Mouth.”
Max jumped over the last few steps to land in front of them with the other hunter rushing to catch up. “Holy shit. Three? You’ve got three shifters in your basement?” He glanced around the room and studied Medusala. “What the hell is that? Some kind of cross-dressing homo?”
“I am not a homo. Got it?” Medusala brandished the largest knife. “And I’m not with them. At least, not yet. However, if you’re out to cause trouble, I may have to take sides.”
“Good for you, uh… What’s your name, sweetheart? Your real name.” Benjy tipped his head and batted his eyes at the large medium.
Medusala unthinkingly straightened his sagging bra and cringed at his action. “I am not your sweetheart. My name’s William Forst. Medusala’s my stage name.”
Will you look at the people I’ve met since Jason came into my life? Syd tried to wave to William, but ended up swiping Benjy in the head. “Oops. Sorry.”
“Hey, watch it, sugar. You’ll mess up my fur-do.”
Max glared at Benjy. “Shut the hell up. I hate it when these things talk.”
“Then you’ll really enjoy this. Come a little closer.” Benjy hiked up his hind leg.
“I hope your aim’s good.” Not taking any chances, Syd scooted farther away and bumped into her father. He stood ready and armed with a garden hoe.
Max’s stare finally landed on her father. “What’s happened to you, Skeller? When did you go over to the dark side?”
“I have never and will never go over to the evil side. But you’re pushing me, Max, and you’re lucky I don’t have a gun.” He gestured toward the broken guns on the floor. “Or I’d shoot you full of lead for trespassing.”
“I’m pushing you? You’re harboring minions from hell and you say I’m pushing you? To think I admired you, wanted to be exactly like you. Once Sydney and I got married, I’d have taken your place as head hunter. But now I see you for what you really are. You’re a wolf-loving pussy.” He spat on the floor in front of Skeller.
“Eeww! How crass of your ass.” Benjy shuffled backward a bit, shaking his head. “I know hunters are uneducated morons, but pulease. Didn’t yo mamma ever teach you better than to spit on the floor? Pee, maybe. Spit, no.”
Max pointed his gun at Benjy. “The demon dogs have to die. And this one’s first.”
“Now, Jason?” Benjy crouched, ready to pounce.
“Not yet.”
“No! Don’t!” Her mother’s outburst tore Max’s attention from the wolf. “Not in my house. I won’t have any more violence in my home. And you’ll pay for the damages you caused, Max Tiller.”
Incredulous, Benjy, Jason and Syd turned to confront her. “What do you mean, not in your house? So it’s okay if he shoots us outside your house?” Jason’s words echoed Syd’s unspoken questions.
“I didn’t mean it like it sounded. Of course, I don’t want you harmed at any time, in any place.” She shrugged and gave them an apologetic look.
But, despite her mother’s demand, Max pointed his gun directly at Jason’s head. “They’re evil scum and they must die. When and where doesn’t matter.” His hard gaze never left Jason. “I figure Syd’s new furry boyfriend is one of these animals and his pansy friend is the other vermin. But who’s the third one?”
“Hey, Maxy, how’d you tal
k your way out of getting creamed by the hunters, big boy? Or were you hoping to get creamed?”
Max blanched at Benjy’s question, then scowled. With a deliberate slowness, he repositioned his aim at Benjy. “You’re gonna die, godforsaken cur.”
Benjy sat on his haunches. “Now wait a minute. Religion is not a matter I’d choose to discuss with you but, if you insist, perhaps you’ve heard of a thing called religious freedom?”
Syd tilted her head to study the man before him. How had she ever liked this guy? He and Jason were light years away from each other.
“Miriam, I hate to go against your wishes, but we may have to protect ourselves.” Jason shook his fur, growling another warning.
“Uh-oh, Jay-Jay, we may have lost our best chance.”
Three more hunters carrying guns thundered down the steps and slid into place behind Max and the other hunter. Waiting for a cue from their leader, they planted their feet apart and readied their weapons. One gigantic bear of a man coughed and nudged Max. “We going to do this or what? What’re we waiting for?”
Max snapped out of his fixation on Benjy. “What took you guys so long? I said check the upstairs, not go take naps. Never mind. Let’s take care of business.” Max licked his lips, hungry for the kill.
“Now, Jason?”
“No, Benjy, not yet. I’ll tell you when.”
Syd felt Jason and Benjy tense up when they placed their bodies next to hers, providing a barrier for her. She knew they’d protect her with their lives and she fought to hold her tears in check. Why didn’t Skeller step up to protect her again? Because he was sure she was a shifter now? Afraid her answer was right, she turned to seek her father’s eyes. His met hers, softening his angry expression for a moment before the hardened mask fell back into place.
“Are you fucking kidding me? What the hell are you doing barging into my home like this?” Skeller marched over to confront the group, putting him in close proximity to Benjy. “You don’t have the right to break into a man’s home and threaten him. Get the hell outta here before I throw you out.”
