by Cheree Alsop
Something showed in the Commissioner’s gaze when he motioned for Aleric to continue. Aleric realized that the light was one of respect.
“And now?” Commissioner Oaks prompted.
Aleric looked at the table. “In the past two days, I have saved the lives of several fae creatures I would have otherwise passed by on the streets of Drake City. I have battled a demon to keep him from harming humans, I have worked beside a medical doctor and a veterinarian to save the life of a faun, and I stood in the way of harm to protect your officers from getting killed.” He rolled his shoulders in an attempt to ease the tightness caused by the battering and met the Commissioner’s gaze again. “I’m a different werewolf in Edge City. I want to help people, and I think I have been placed in a position where I can.”
“You’re not a doctor,” the Commissioner said.
Aleric shook his head. “No, I’m not; but I am also the only individual here who seems to know how to take care of the fae creatures so that they can hopefully return to Blays and get on with their lives.”
The Commissioner sat forward. “How is that going to happen?”
Aleric shook his head. “I wish I knew. That’s something I’m still working on. Until then, not only are your people at risk, but so are mine through the ignorance of our two societies. You have a job to protect the citizens of Edge City. I see it as my responsibility to do the same for the fae.”
The Commissioner gave a grunt of acceptance. “Well put,” he said. “Are you sure you don’t want to go into politics.”
That brought a wry smile to Aleric’s face. “In Blays we have a saying, ‘Let the Light fae lead the Light and the Dark fae lead their own. The best place for a werewolf is to leave the twain alone.’”
The Commissioner nodded. “Werewolves stay out of it. Probably smart.” He stood. “Aleric Bayne, I appreciate your frankness.”
He held out a hand.
Aleric rose and shook it. “So what now?”
The Commissioner glanced at the mirror. “I imagine the mayor will be here any moment.”
“She’s here,” one of the officers said.
“She’s here,” Aleric repeated.
“He can hear us?” the voice of a woman asked.
Aleric looked at the one-way glass. “Apparently, she’s been watching.”
The Commissioner gave an appreciative nod. “Those ears come in handy. Can you see through the glass as well?”
Aleric shook his head. “Just acute hearing. One of the side-effects of my race.”
“Any others I should know about?”
Aleric took a chance. “Well, if I stay in here during the full moon, you might be calling animal control.”
A smile lifted the side of the Commissioner’s lips and he gave a single chuckle. “I’ll keep that in mind.” He gestured toward the table again. “I need to discuss a few things with Mayor Perlis. I must ask you to wait here again, though I don’t feel the handcuffs are necessary.” He paused, then said, “It might take a while. Things of this extreme nature aren’t easy to come to terms with. We have a lot of agencies involved.”
“I understand,” Aleric said. He took a seat again and watched the Commissioner knock on the door. “Commissioner Oaks?” he said.
The man turned.
“Given what I’ve seen on the news, your hardest job is going to be reminding them that the fae are people, too.”
The door opened for the Commissioner. He thought about Aleric’s words for a moment, nodded, and left through the door.
Aleric sat in the hard chair until it became uncomfortable. He rose and walked around the room. When he drew near to the mirror, he heard the officers on the other side step back. He paused and looked at the mirror as though he could see through it.
“I hope your chairs are more comfortable than mine,” he said, glancing at the microphone in the corner of the ceiling.
There was a pause, then a voice answered, “We actually don’t have chairs.”
Aleric grinned at his reflection. “Who would have thought this was the comfortable side?”
Voices laughed. Aleric crossed to the other side of the small room and took a seat on the floor against the wall.
“I hope you don’t mind if I relax a bit.”
He sat there until his shoulders ached. He stood and walked around the room again. After a few very short laps, he paused by the window. He gave his reflection a critical look. The blood that colored the front of his shirt had dried into a dark patch. His black hair was a disaster and scruff showed on his jaw.
“I’m a mess,” he said.
A few chuckles replied as he smoothed his hair and attempted to straighten his shirt. He clenched his jaw as he pulled the shirt away from the gashes. Dried blood on his skin wasn’t his favorite thing, especially when he had already gone through the gluing process.
“My doctor’s going to be upset at me,” he said. “I prefer to keep my blood on the inside of my body.”
“I agree,” a voice replied.
“Any idea how long we’ve been waiting?” Aleric asked.
“About four hours,” a woman answered.
Aleric let out a breath. His throat was dry and he felt lightheaded. He knew it was the aftereffects of his fight with the demon. “Any chance for some water?”
A pause followed, then a man said, “I’ll bring you some.”
“Thank you,” Aleric replied.
He took a seat against the wall once more. He figured it was the best way to prove to whoever entered that he wouldn’t hurt them. His shirt stuck to his chest again.
A few minutes later, the door opened and an officer entered. His nameplate read Officer Rellen.
“I found you another shirt. We figure if you get pulled in front of the mayor, you’ll want to look, well….”
“Like I didn’t just crawl out of a coffin?” Aleric suggested.
Officer Rellen nodded. “Exactly.” He set the cup of water on the table.
Aleric stood, reminding himself that most of the men and women usually held in the room were handcuffed. He was careful to keep his actions slow and turned his back to the mirror as he drew his shirt over his head and pulled it gingerly from the gashes across his chest.
“Is that from the demon?” Officer Rellen asked.
Aleric glanced behind him at the mirror. Dark bruises and scratches showed all across his back. No wonder he felt so sore. He nodded. “They’re stronger than they look.”
“By the video, that beast looked terrifying,” Officer Rellen said. “Me and the other officers at this precinct appreciate you putting your life on the line for Teri, Daniels, and Ling.” He crossed the space between them and handed Aleric the shirt.
“Thank you,” Aleric said, affected by the man’s lack of fear. “Officer Ling was very brave the way he protected his comrades. That demon would have killed him, but he didn’t run.”
“Ling is young and brave. He made the entire precinct proud,” Officer Rellen replied. He took Aleric’s dirty shirt. “I grabbed some compresses. You looked like you might need them. No sense in getting a clean shirt ruined.” The officer handed him a handful of large bandages.
“That was considerate,” Aleric said.
He pressed bandages over the wounds on his chest, then pulled the dark blue shirt over his head. The feeling of the clean fabric combined with the fact that his shirt was no longer sticking to his chest was more refreshing than he thought it would be. He drank the water down in one gulp.
“I’ll be back with some more. Take a chance to relax. You look exhausted,” Officer Rellen told him.
“Everyone keeps telling me that,” Aleric replied.
“When was the last time you slept?” the officer asked.
Aleric thought about it. “I caught a nap sometime yesterday, I think.”
Rellen gave him an empathic look. “I’ll bring you a pillow, too.”
The officer was as good as his word. An hour later, Aleric awoke to the sound of muffled
talking beyond the mirror.
“Shhh. Don’t wake him up,” a woman said. “He deserves to rest.”
“If we don’t get him out of here now, they’re going to have him caught up in red tape so tangled he’ll be stuck in holding for years,” Commissioner Oaks replied. “Our government friends don’t feel returning a fae, any fae, to the street right now is a good idea.”
“But he helped,” Officer Rellen pointed out.
“That’s what I argued,” the Commissioner replied.
Aleric sat up. He looked at the mirror. “So what’s the plan?”
“We’re running you out the back. The fewer questions asked, the better.”
Aleric met the Commissioner at the door. The man was ready with a set of handcuffs.
“For appearances,” he explained. “Trust me.”
“I do,” Aleric replied.
The Commissioner gave him a searching look. “Why? I’m the reason you’re in here.”
Aleric lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “I have a knack of knowing whether a person is telling the truth or lying.”
The Commissioner grinned. “What do you call that?”
“Instincts,” Aleric replied.
Chapter 11
The police car pulled onto a side street. Aleric glanced around. There were several shops with broken windows surrounded by rundown apartment buildings. No police precinct was in sight.
“Where are we?” he asked.
The officer climbed out of the car without a word and walked around to Aleric’s door. He pulled the door open and stepped aside.
“What are we doing here?” Aleric asked, standing up.
“I’m letting you go on Commissioner Oak’s orders,” the officer replied, stepping behind him. The sound of the key in the handcuffs was loud in the quiet square.
Aleric looked back at the officer. His gaze flickered from the familiar face to the name badge that read ‘Officer Ling’.
“How’s your partner?” he asked.
“Alive, thanks to you,” Officer Ling replied. “And so am I.” He put the handcuffs in his pocket and faced Aleric. His face was pale as he spoke. “I don’t know what you are or what that creature was. All I know is that we were powerless against that thing. Our bullets didn’t slow it down at all. We can’t do this alone.”
“I’m trying to get them out of your city and this world if I can,” Aleric said.
Officer Ling nodded. “I know you are. I’ll try to give you as much time as I can before I call in your escape. Oaks said to make it look as realistic as possible.” He indicated the car. “Think you can punch out that window?”
Aleric grinned. “Definitely.” He obliged with a quick jab that shattered the window and sent glass to the ground. “Have any other remodeling you need done?”
Office Ling shook his head. “That should do. I’ll give you a head start.”
“I appreciate that,” Aleric replied. He glanced around. “Uh, where are we?”
Officer Ling watched him closely. “You really aren’t from around here, are you?”
Aleric shook his head. “I have a feeling I’m a lot further from home than either of us know.”
The officer pointed past one of the abandoned stores. “I drove around to make sure we weren’t being followed. The press has been dogging the precinct’s every step. The hospital’s just through there.”
“Thanks,” Aleric told him. He headed in the direction the officer indicated.
“Dr. Wolf?”
Aleric fought back a smile at the title and turned. “Yes?”
“Be careful,” Officer Ling said.
“You, too,” Aleric told him.
The werewolf jogged down the narrow street; his steps slowed when he neared the side of the hospital. Scents swarmed his nose. He paused and looked around. A leaf lay on the street near his foot.
“You can come out,” he said. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“You’re not the one we’re worried about,” a breathy voice called from the dark end of the alley.
“The cops are gone,” Aleric told her.
“How about the man with the gun?” the voice asked.
Aleric’s blood turned cold. He spun around just as the sound of a bullet tore through the air.
The slug tugged at Aleric’s sleeve before it buried itself into the brick at his side. Aleric wasted no time. He dove forward, phasing into wolf form as he did so. He sprang the moment his paws touched the ground and leaped across the road. His jaw closed around the man’s arm. Aleric pulled him to the ground like a wolf bringing down a stag. The man struggled to hold onto the gun. Aleric bit harder and the man yelled. The gun fell to the ground with a clatter.
Aleric heard the back door of the hospital open beneath his rumbling snarl. He glanced up to see Dartan running toward them. The vampire held a newspaper over his head in an attempt to keep the sun from scorching his skin. As soon as he reached the shadows thrown by the building, he tossed the newspaper down and grabbed up the gun.
“Aleric, are you shot?” Dartan demanded.
Aleric mentally checked himself over. He gave a brief shake of the head.
Dartan pointed the gun at the man. “Move and I’ll shoot you,” he warned.
“I won’t move,” the man said, his voice tight with pain.
Aleric slowly let go of his arm. He could taste the man’s blood coating his teeth. He backed up and shook his head. Humans weren’t his favorite flavor.
“What happened?” Dartan asked him.
Aleric snorted.
Dartan waved his hand, realized he still held the gun, and aimed it back at the man. “I know you can’t tell me in that form. Go phase and get back here.”
Aleric trotted to his clothes and dragged them with him to a pile of boxes near the dumpster. He phased and pulled on the pants. Pants were easier to get out of when changing form because they slipped off in the process. His shirt, on the other hand, had torn along both sides of the neck. Aleric tried to put it on, but it hung awkwardly. He sighed and tore the shirt off.
When he reached the pair, Dartan handed him the gun. Aleric looked at the man on the ground who held his arm cradled to his chest.
“Why did you shoot at me?” he demanded.
“You’re a monster,” the man said.
Aleric shook his head. “I’m not the one taking cheap shots in an alley. How long were you waiting for me?”
“I wasn’t waiting for you. I was hunting them.”
Aleric followed the man’s finger across the way. He had forgotten about the fae who told him about the gun. Two green figures stood in the mouth of the alley. Leaves covered their bodies from head to toe. One leaned heavily on the other and clutched her stomach. Green blood dripped between her fingers.
Aleric swore softly under his breath.
“Watch him,” he told Dartan. He handed the vampire back the gun.
“I don’t know how to shoot this,” Dartan said.
“Then bite him if he moves,” Aleric told him.
“That I can handle,” Dartan replied.
Aleric reached the wood nymphs. The one who was shot had her eyes half-closed; she looked like she was going to pass out at any moment.
“I know people who can help you. Will you trust me?” Aleric asked.
Tears showed in the wounded wood nymph’s green eyes when she nodded. Aleric picked her up and took off toward the hospital. “Come on,” he called over his shoulder to the other nymph.
She caught up to him with graceful ease. “Are you sure it’s safe?” she asked in her breathy voice.
“Safer than out here,” Aleric replied. “She needs help fast.”
He ran through the doors and didn’t slow until he reached the Emergency Room.
Gregory was busy restocking shelves in the corner. He turned at their entrance. The orderly stared at the young woman in Aleric’s arms.
“Where’s Dr. Worthen?” Aleric demanded.
“Uh, the, uh, in his offic
e,” Gregory replied.
Aleric waited for a moment, expecting the orderly to respond. Instead, the redhead kept staring at the wood nymph.
“Go get him!” Aleric said.
Gregory took off running.
“Please,” the wood nymph at his elbow told him.
“Please,” Aleric called after the orderly.
Dr. Worthen appeared at a run. He took one look at the wood nymph and motioned for Aleric to follow him.
“She needs emergency surgery. What happened?”
“The man was following us,” the wood nymph at Aleric’s elbow said. We couldn’t hide anywhere. We saw you on the news and tried to make it to the hospital. He shot Valerian. I didn’t know what to do.”
Her breathy voice cut off.
“We’ll take care of her,” Aleric promised. “Dr. Worthen will do everything he can.”
“I need your assistance,” the doctor told him.
Aleric shook his head quickly. “I’m not trained for this.”
Dr. Worthen gave the girl in Aleric’s arms a meaningful look. “Neither am I. The hospital’s short staffed. We’re going to have to wing it.”
He pushed through the doors to Operating Room Seven. At his motion, Aleric set the wood nymph on the operating table. Nurse Eastwick entered the room.
“Uh, alright,” she said when she saw the woman covered in leaves bleeding green blood on the table. She met the gaze of the other wood nymph. “We have a room where you can wait.”
“I’d prefer to be in here,” the smaller woman replied.
Nurse Eastwick gave her a kind smile. “There’s a risk of contamination. We can’t allow anyone other than the doctors and nurses in this room during surgery, but I will personally keep you updated on your friend’s condition.”
“She’s my sister,” Aleric heard the wood nymph tell the nurse.
“Your sister is in good hands,” Nurse Eastwick replied, leading her through the doors.
