There’s been ructions.”
The crease between Ian’s brows deepened. “S-serious?”
“Some. But it’s being taken care of. You just lie there and heal. Won’t be good for damn all for a while. I’ll call Simon and he’ll take care of you.”
“No!” Ian caught his wrist. Doc winced. “In Wyoming. Got enough on his plate. Don’t bring him back!”
“How about Neal?”
“Seattle.”
“Okay. I’ll find somebody else. Gonna give you a local and stitch you up right now. You just lie quiet for the next few days.”
“The ranch…”
“Taylor Weekes is a good foreman and can keep the ranch going until you’re on your feet again. Don’t be fussing about that, son. Whoops.” Doc chuckled. “He’s out again. That’s good. Gives me a chance to stitch those gashes so he won’t bloody up the bed of my pickup when we get him out to it.”
“He…he didn’t want to go to the hospital,” said Sierra hesitantly. “He freaked when I mentioned that.”
“Who’s the doctor around here? He’ll go where I take him.”
“But…” Sierra didn’t know whether to feel relieved or sorry. Ian really did need to go to the hospital, but he had been so upset at the thought. She didn’t want him to end up thinking she had betrayed him.
“How’s that coffee coming along?” asked Doc.
She went to check and was just pouring a cup when she heard a reverberating snarl from the bedroom. It sounded like…
She ran down the hall, then stopped dead in the doorway to the guest room. There was a leopard on the bed.
“Damn!” said Doc. “I was hoping to get him to my place before he did that!”
Sierra’s breath left her in one great whoosh. She fell against the doorjamb and leaned there, staring.
The leopard snarled, then flexed violently. Fur receded, muscles shifted, bones cracked and rearranged themselves. Then it was Ian lying on the bed, naked once more because the blankets had fallen away. A moment later, he spasmed again and the leopard was back. The entire transformation took only a few seconds either way.
Sierra’s legs gave way. She slid down the doorjamb until she was sitting on the floor.
“Put your head between your knees and just breathe,” said Doc.
Numbly, Sierra obeyed. When the world stopped spinning and she raised her head again, the leopard was gone and Ian was back.
“What…what is he?” she whispered.
“They call themselves Shifters.”
“They? It’s not just him?”
“Nope.”
“His brothers.”
“Yeah. And a few others.”
“How many…?”
“I don’t know and I wouldn’t tell you if I did. Let him tell you if he wants to. Not my business.”
Sierra jerked around suddenly to stare at him. She had known Doc nearly half her life, but after this revelation anything seemed possible.
“Are you…?”
“I’m human, just like you.” Doc smiled at her reassuringly. “I found out about it forty years ago, exactly the way you’ve done today, when a wounded cat I stumbled across and was trying to help went into the healing fever in front of me and suddenly started shifting. They can’t control it when they’re hurt. That’s why he doesn’t want to go to the hospital.”
Right. She could just imagine the hysteria. If they didn’t kill him outright, he would be chained up and subjected to every test and cruel research that the government and the scientific communities could devise. And the media! Panic in the streets if word of this got out, people terrified and suspecting everyone else of being a werewolf. Well, werecat. Whatever.
“Never thought werewolves exist,” she mumbled.
“They don’t. Werewolves are supposed to be humans who partially change into animals on the three or four nights that the full moon forces it on them. That’s the way the books and the movies have it, right? Brainless monsters attacking everything in sight, the condition caused by being bitten by another werewolf.”
Sierra ran a hand over her face. “I
The crease between Ian’s brows deepened. “S-serious?”
“Some. But it’s being taken care of. You just lie there and heal. Won’t be good for damn all for a while. I’ll call Simon and he’ll take care of you.”
“No!” Ian caught his wrist. Doc winced. “In Wyoming. Got enough on his plate. Don’t bring him back!”
“How about Neal?”
“Seattle.”
“Okay. I’ll find somebody else. Gonna give you a local and stitch you up right now. You just lie quiet for the next few days.”
“The ranch…”
“Taylor Weekes is a good foreman and can keep the ranch going until you’re on your feet again. Don’t be fussing about that, son. Whoops.” Doc chuckled. “He’s out again. That’s good. Gives me a chance to stitch those gashes so he won’t bloody up the bed of my pickup when we get him out to it.”
“He…he didn’t want to go to the hospital,” said Sierra hesitantly. “He freaked when I mentioned that.”
“Who’s the doctor around here? He’ll go where I take him.”
“But…” Sierra didn’t know whether to feel relieved or sorry. Ian really did need to go to the hospital, but he had been so upset at the thought. She didn’t want him to end up thinking she had betrayed him.
“How’s that coffee coming along?” asked Doc.
She went to check and was just pouring a cup when she heard a reverberating snarl from the bedroom. It sounded like…
She ran down the hall, then stopped dead in the doorway to the guest room. There was a leopard on the bed.
“Damn!” said Doc. “I was hoping to get him to my place before he did that!”
Sierra’s breath left her in one great whoosh. She fell against the doorjamb and leaned there, staring.
The leopard snarled, then flexed violently. Fur receded, muscles shifted, bones cracked and rearranged themselves. Then it was Ian lying on the bed, naked once more because the blankets had fallen away. A moment later, he spasmed again and the leopard was back. The entire transformation took only a few seconds either way.
Sierra’s legs gave way. She slid down the doorjamb until she was sitting on the floor.
“Put your head between your knees and just breathe,” said Doc.
Numbly, Sierra obeyed. When the world stopped spinning and she raised her head again, the leopard was gone and Ian was back.
“What…what is he?” she whispered.
“They call themselves Shifters.”
“They? It’s not just him?”
“Nope.”
“His brothers.”
“Yeah. And a few others.”
“How many…?”
“I don’t know and I wouldn’t tell you if I did. Let him tell you if he wants to. Not my business.”
Sierra jerked around suddenly to stare at him. She had known Doc nearly half her life, but after this revelation anything seemed possible.
“Are you…?”
“I’m human, just like you.” Doc smiled at her reassuringly. “I found out about it forty years ago, exactly the way you’ve done today, when a wounded cat I stumbled across and was trying to help went into the healing fever in front of me and suddenly started shifting. They can’t control it when they’re hurt. That’s why he doesn’t want to go to the hospital.”
Right. She could just imagine the hysteria. If they didn’t kill him outright, he would be chained up and subjected to every test and cruel research that the government and the scientific communities could devise. And the media! Panic in the streets if word of this got out, people terrified and suspecting everyone else of being a werewolf. Well, werecat. Whatever.
“Never thought werewolves exist,” she mumbled.
“They don’t. Werewolves are supposed to be humans who partially change into animals on the three or four nights that the full moon forces it on them. That’s the way the books and the movies have it, right? Brainless monsters attacking everything in sight, the condition caused by being bitten by another werewolf.”
Sierra ran a hand over her face. “I
Similar Books
