Dr. Wolf, the Fae Rift Series Book 1- Shockwave (10 page)

A hand touched his back.

“Aleric, the demon’s gone.”

He raised his head.

“It’s gone?”

Nurse Eastwick nodded. “It crashed through the doors of the Emergency Room. There’s glass everywhere.”

“What is it about demons and glass?” Aleric asked.

He pushed up to his feet. The nurse grabbed his arm and steadied him.

“Are you alright?” she questioned.

Aleric nodded, then put a hand to the wall as the world spun around.

“We need to find that demon. He could hurt people.”

“Dr. Worthen sent Jaroff to call the police. He’s worried about the same thing,” the nurse told him.

Aleric turned so that he could lean against the wall.

“How’s the banshee?”

“Better than you,” she said with concern in her gaze. “You look terrible.”

“I’d like to say I feel better than I look, but that’d be a lie.” He stood up straight.

“Where are you going?” Nurse Eastwick asked.

“To catch a demon,” Aleric replied.

“I’ll help.”

Both Aleric and the nurse looked toward the door to the D Wing. Dartan stood there in his hospital gown.

Aleric stalked toward him. “What are you doing out here?” he demanded.

“I heard the commotion,” Dartan replied.

Aleric stopped a foot from the vampire.

“You need to go back to the D Wing,” he said, his voice rough.

“I’m not going to endanger anyone,” Dartan said.

“You endanger them by being here,” Aleric pointed out.

Dartan glanced at Nurse Eastwick, then lowered his voice. “Look, Wolfie, you’re heading out to catch a demon nobody’s been able to control. What do you plan to do with him when you get him?”

Aleric opened his mouth and shut it again when no idea formed.

Dartan nodded. “Exactly. Two heads might be better than one in this case. I don’t want to see anyone else hurt, either, so let me help unless you have a better idea.”

Aleric wanted to have a better idea than trusting a vampire to help him bring in a demon, but no matter how hard he thought, he couldn’t come up with one.

“Fine,” he gave in, his tone reluctant. “Let’s go find the demon.” He looked at Nurse Eastwick. “Sedatives aren’t working. Do you have anything stronger?”

“How about horse tranquilizers?”

Aleric turned to find Marae standing near the end of the hallway holding what looked like a gun in an open black case.

He glanced at Dartan. “I think that’ll work.”

Dartan nodded, his eyebrows raised. “That’ll do nicely.” He pushed past Aleric and made his way to the veterinarian. He gave her a warm smile. “Thank you very much….” He paused expectantly.

“Marae,” Dr. Indley replied. A blush ran across her cheeks. “Dr. Marae Indley. I’m a veterinarian.” She gestured to the gun. “Hence the tranquilizer.”

“Oh, of course,” Dartan said with a chuckle. “Otherwise, you’re into some crazy stuff I don’t even want to know about.”

A laugh burst out of Dr. Indley. She covered her mouth with her free hand, her eyes wide.

“I don’t know where that came from,” she said.

“It was cute,” Dartan replied. “You should do that more often.”

Aleric elbowed him sharply in the back. “Come on.” He took the tranquilizer gun and closed the case. “Thank you very much,
Doctor Indley
,” he said, stressing the name in the hopes that Dartan would catch on.

“You’ve been very helpful, Marae,” Dartan replied.

He walked back toward the D Wing. Aleric followed behind. He skirted the room where the banshee boy was. Gregory stepped out when he passed.

“He’s swooping in,” the red-headed orderly said, falling in at Aleric’s side.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he replied.

“Of course you do,” Gregory told him. “That vamp’s as smooth as glass. He’s going to get your woman if you don’t do something about it.”

Aleric rolled his eyes. “Dr. Indley isn’t my woman.”

“Okay,” Gregory said, his tone unconvinced. “Just remember, fight for the desires of your heart or you’ll be left empty and alone.”

Aleric stared at him. “Empty and alone? What is this, psychotherapy hour at Edge City Hospital?”

Gregory grinned. “Actually, I minored in psychotherapy. Pretty good, huh?”

Aleric sighed. “Yes, great. Stop analyzing me, please? I’ve been here a day. That’s not nearly enough time for a love life.”

“The heart wants what the heart wants,” Gregory said.

Aleric pushed through the doors to the D Wing and left the orderly behind.

“A tranquilizer? That Marae is quite the girl,” Dartan said. “She’s a keeper. Don’t let that one go.”

Aleric shoved past the vampire. “Not you, too.”

Dartan chuckled. “No. I just heard what the scrawny assistant said and I wanted to give you a hard time.”

“I appreciate that,” Aleric replied.

He was almost to the back doors when he realized that he was still wearing scrubs and Dartan wore only the hospital gown. He stopped and Dartan nearly ran into him.

“What’s up?”

“We need different clothes.”

“I figured you’d wolf-out and I could wear your scrubs,” Dartan replied.

The thought of the vampire wearing scrubs didn’t seem right to Aleric.

“You hit on women in a hospital gown and they giggle; what would they do if you’re dressed like a doctor?”

“That’s what I’d like to know,” Dartan replied. He ran his tongue purposefully across his teeth.

“This was a horrible idea,” Aleric said.

He grabbed the vampire’s arm and attempted to drag him back to the D Wing.

Dartan crossed his arms and planted his feet. Aleric couldn’t move him.

Aleric paused. “You’re a lot stronger than you look.”

“I just ate, remember?” Dartan reminded him. “And I’m not going to use the doctor bit to get women. Don’t worry.” He winked. “Though it seems to work for you.”

Aleric shoved the back door open. “Why does everyone assume I need a girlfriend?”

“You’re dark-haired, good-looking,” Dartan began. At Aleric’s look, he shrugged. “I’m a vampire. I can say that.”

“I’m also trying to get us back home. Between that and attempting to keep all of the fae in the hospital alive, it’s been a busy day.”

“Almost two days.”

Aleric followed Dartan’s gaze to where daylight was just showing as gray on the horizon.

“Let’s hurry or I’m going to have quite the sunburn,” Dartan said.

“You can wear my scrubs,” Aleric told him. “But you get to carry my other clothes. I don’t want those scrubs back when you’re done with them.”

“Afraid of vampire cooties?” Dartan asked with a smirk.

“I’m more afraid of you running around the city in that hospital gown,” Aleric replied. “They’re drafty.”

“Built in air conditioning,” Dartan said. “People in Blays would pay big money for these.”

Aleric jogged back up the hallway to get his clothes. He returned with the outfit Nurse Eastwick had given him and an extra bag of blood.

At Dartan’s surprised look, he shrugged. “Never pays to be too careful.”

“Dinner to go,” Dartan said. “I’m not complaining.”

Chapter 9

“Any idea where he might have gone?” Dartan asked.

Aleric looked up at him.

Dartan smirked. “Oh, right. Wolves can’t talk. You do have rolling your eyes down to an art. Or would that be a science? It does take a biological effort to accomplish a feat like that, especially since I figure such an action isn’t engrained into a wolf’s regular psyche.” He sidestepped in time to avoid a snap of Aleric’s teeth. “Now that’s wolfish. You should do more things like that. Might make you seem less human when you’re in that form.”

Aleric paused at the edge of the hospital. Two police officers stood near the shattered doors talking to Dr. Worthen.

“With your description, something like that shouldn’t be able to hide for very long,” one of the officers was saying. “I’m just glad nobody here was hurt.”

Dr. Worthen nodded. “Something spooked it and it took off. Otherwise, we might be talking casualties.”

“With a creature that dangerous on the loose, Commissioner Oaks has issued a shoot on sight order to the department.”

“Did you hear that?” Dartan whispered. A grin spread across his face at Aleric’s straight look. “Of course you did. I’m just giving you a hard time.”

Aleric wanted to bite the vampire. Instead, he ignored the vampire’s quiet laughter and turned his attention to the night breeze. If the demon went south, the small current would carry a whiff of the Dark fae’s scent to his nose. After a moment of checking to ensure that no such smell was present, Aleric trotted quietly around the backside of the hospital. He was grateful when Dartan followed without speaking.

They paused at the opposite corner, ensured that the officers’ attention was captured by Dr. Worthen, and hurried across the road to the next alley. The metallic cinnamon scent of the Dark fae touched Aleric’s nose. He led the way down the alley.

By the spacing of the demon’s stride, the creature was running. Several alleys later, Aleric could smell the police officers who combed the city. The gunmetal and nylon scent carried through a dozen streets until the demon outdistanced them.

“We’d better find this thing quick,” Dartan said. “Give me another hour and you’ll be chasing demons with a barbecue crisp.”

Aleric glanced up at the rising sun filtering between the buildings. The scent he followed cut across a lit street. He chose instead to run down a shadowed alley and the next two streets that ran parallel to the first but were blocked from the sun by a bigger skyscraper a few streets away.

Aleric paused at the corner. The scent pointed toward the alley across from them, but the street in-between was lit by the bright sunlight. He glanced back at Dartan.

“Crisp, remember?” Dartan said.

Aleric knew he couldn’t ask the vampire to put his life on the line like that. He took a step forward.

“I’m not letting you go alone,” Dartan told him.

When the vampire moved to follow, Aleric bared his teeth.

Dartan lifted his hands. “Whoa. Chill, Wolfie. I’ll stay here, but don’t get upset if you run into our clawed friend and have to handle him by yourself.”

Satisfied that the vampire would stay put, Aleric waited for two cars to pass, then darted across the road. He reached the shadows, turned the corner at the end of the alley, and nearly ran straight into the back of the demon.

The creature turned with a growl and swiped at Aleric. He dove beneath the demon and tripped over the sprawled body of a police officer. The demon nearly caught him in its huge claws before Aleric reached his feet again. He danced backwards out of reach and spotted two more officers near a discarded refrigerator. One of the officers was crouched in front of an unconscious policewoman. Deep scratches showed across the front of the upright officer’s vest and his gun lay in pieces against the wall. Aleric had stumbled upon them before the demon could deliver a killing blow.

A rage-filled roar let him know just how the demon felt about that. The creature turned back to the police officers. Before he could finish the job, Aleric jumped onto the demon’s back and bit down hard.

The demon let out a bellow and reached back. It grabbed Aleric and threw him over its shoulder. Aleric hit the wall near the refrigerator and fell to the ground. He pushed back to his feet just as the demon charged at the officers. Aleric threw himself in the way, hitting the demon with enough force to push it off its feet. It pummeled him with its claws and threw him off its chest before he could get a good hold.

The demon clambered back to its feet and faced the officers once more. Aleric could see the terror in the young officer’s eyes; he respected the man for not leaving the unconscious policewoman. The man’s badge read Officer Ling; his eyes shifted from the demon to Aleric as the demon’s massive claws came down.

Aleric let out a growl that would have done the banshee boy proud. The sound reverberated off the walls and ground. The demon dropped it claws, the officers forgotten. It spun to face Aleric and let out another roar. Aleric growled and backed up one step at a time with the intention of getting the demon as far away from the officers as he could.

The demon took the bait. When Aleric turned and ran, the demon followed close on his heels. The alley split. Aleric guessed and took the left branch. He galloped with the sound of the creature following close behind. The deep gouging scrapes, the scuff of claws on pavement, and the throaty huff of the Dark fae’s breaths spiked Aleric’s adrenaline. Instinct bade him to turn around and fight, but he had battled the demon twice. Something deep down told him that he wouldn’t be so lucky a third time.

Aleric’s plan was to get the demon as far away from the center of the city as possible. If he could reach the outskirts of Edge City, maybe it would give him time to figure out how to return the demon to Blays. At the very least, he could reduce the civilian casualties if the demon got out of hand.

Unfortunately, Aleric didn’t plan on the alley coming to an end. It seemed to happen far too often in Edge City. Somebody seriously needed to redesign the city layout.

Aleric spun around halfway to the ending wall. The demon grinned a wide, toothy grin at the sight of his prey with nowhere to go. Aleric crouched, his muscles bunching. He prepared to make the leap for the demon’s throat. The demon’s claws lifted in preparation.

It knew its weakness; the demon anticipated exactly what Aleric needed to do to stop it, and it would make Aleric pay. Aleric couldn’t escape the alley without going around the demon, and the creature’s shoulders brushed the bricks on either side.

The thought of the wounded officers lying a few alleys back lingered in Aleric’s mind. If he didn’t attack, the demon would be able to hurt more people in Edge City. If he did attack, the demon’s claws would tear through him. Aleric had two choices; either wait for the demon to kill him, or take the demon down with him and end the Dark fae’s ability to hurt anyone else.

Aleric gritted his teeth and sprang.

A strange thwack sounded in the alley. The demon stumbled forward, lowering its claws. Aleric grabbed its throat and let go again in surprise when the creature fell forward without a fight. He leaped to the side as the body slammed to the ground. A dart protruded from the back of its shoulder.

Aleric looked past the creature. Dartan leaned against the wall. The vampire breathed heavily and tufts of smoke rose from his scrubs. Several places where his skin was visible on his arms and face were black and bubbling. He lowered the gun as though it weighed a hundred pounds.

He shrugged at Aleric’s surprised look.

“What? I couldn’t let you have all the fun.”

He tossed the clothes he carried to Aleric’s feet and turned his back.

“Get changed. I’m not lugging that beast back alone.”

Aleric phased and quickly pulled on the clothes. He looked at the motionless demon.

“Thanks,” he said. “I didn’t expect that.”

Dartan glanced back. “Don’t mention it. I told you I didn’t want anyone else to get hurt.”

“I had you pegged wrong,” Aleric told him. “You could have let him kill me before you shot him.”

“Tempting.” Dartan grinned; the wide smile turned into a grimace at the pull of the expression across his burned face. “You could have been a little easier on me, but I don’t know many werewolves who would give a vampire the time of night, let alone a bag of blood.”

Aleric crouched next to the demon. “Should we shoot him again?”

Dartan shook his head. “As much as I would like to, he’s already changing back. We should save your girlfriend’s darts until we need them.”

Aleric shook his head and fought back a smile. He could have his stomach ripped open as he attempted to tear out the demon’s throat at that moment. He would tolerate a little ribbing if it meant he was alive to hear it.

The demon was back down to his pale, human form. The lack of claws and sharp teeth was reassuring. Aleric glanced at the vampire’s burned arms. The charred skin cracked, showing pale cords of muscle beneath. It looked extremely painful.

“I’ve got the demon,” Aleric said.

“I’m not going to argue,” Dartan replied. “I’m already dreading the walk back.”

Aleric looked at the end of the alley. The sunlight was bright and bold beyond the shadows. Given the vampire’s already burned state, Dartan would truly be risking his life to make it back to the hospital.

“I have an idea,” Aleric told him. “Wait here.”

He jogged up the space between the buildings.

“If the cops find me, I’m telling them I’m a burn victim,” Dartan yelled after him.

“You are a burn victim,” Aleric called back.

Aleric reached the alleyway where the police officers lay.

“How is she?” he asked when he reached them.

“Unconscious. That monster threw her against the wall. I’ve called for help.” Officer Ling watched him as if unsure who he was.

“Have them take her and the other officer to Edge City Hospital instead of Memorial. They’ll be ready.”

The officer gave him a curious look. “Will do.”

Aleric hurried around them and grabbed the door to the refrigerator. He gathered his strength and pulled. At first, it felt like the door wouldn’t budge. Aleric yanked harder and the hinges tore free. He ran past the staring officer back up the alleyway.

“A fridge door?” Dartan said. “That’s your great idea?”

“I didn’t say it was a great idea,” Aleric replied. “But the alley was all out of cardboard. You can’t be picky.”

“I can,” Dartan replied.

Aleric gave him a skeptical look. “Then walk out there without any protection.”

Dartan sighed and held out his hand. Aleric gave him the door. To the vampire’s credit, he acted as though it barely weighed anything.

Aleric ducked beneath the demon’s arms and threw the creature over his shoulder.

“This demon’s heavier than he looks,” he said with a grunt.

“Maybe you need some blood,” Dartan replied, walking past. “It always picks me up.”

Aleric’s lips curled in distaste at the thought. “Ugh.”

“No, blood,” Dartan corrected. He turned around to look at Aleric. “You really need to work on your enunciation.”

Aleric rolled his eyes.

“There it is. Now I recognize you as the wolf of my nightmares. You have a very pessimistic outlook on life, my friend.”

“Are you really giving me life advice right now?” Aleric asked as he hauled the demon behind the vampire. “You do realize how ironic that is given that you’re dead.”

Dartan glared at him over his shoulder. “Not dead. That’s an often mistaken belief regarding vampires. Our cells are very much alive, they’re just a bit on the cannibalistic side; if we don’t continually resupply with blood, they’ll devour our bodily fluids from the inside out.”

“So you’re like the living dead,” Aleric said.

It was Dartan’s turn to roll his eyes. “That’s an oxymoron. You can’t be living and dead at the same time.”

“I can’t,” Aleric shot back. “But you are.”

They reached the corner where the officers waited. Aleric glanced at Dartan. He looked ridiculous with the refrigerator door held over his head, burns making a patchwork of his scrubs, and blood staining the corner of his mouth. Aleric doubted he looked much better hauling the unconscious demon on his back.

“Let’s go this way,” Aleric suggested.

“It’ll be longer,” Dartan pointed out.

Aleric shrugged to get the demon up higher on his shoulder. The bruises from their fight were beginning to make themselves felt.

“I’d rather go a longer route than explain ourselves to the officers in the next alley.”

Dartan paused. “I ran right past them and barely even noticed.”

Aleric shook his head. “Come on. They’re probably sending officers this way as we speak.”

The trek back to the hospital was slow going at best. By the time they reached the back doors, the bottoms of Dartan’s pants had burned from the contact of the sun to his skin, Aleric felt like his arms were going to fall off, and they had to shoot the demon with the tranquilizer gun again because he started to revive.