Mac stood up, something smartass ready to fall from his lips, but everyone’s phone started ringing at the same time.
Trevor answered his call from dispatch on speaker. “Lieutenant, we’re getting multiple reports of a, uh-a giant bigfoot and uh-exploding trees near Camp Huntley.”
Trevor looked up at everyone. “Let’s go,” he said. He pointed at Canyon and Timber. “You two are in charge of this vehicle. Take a squad from Chicago out to Camp Huntley and see what’s up out there, then check in with me.”
“Got it, LT.”
Everyone else filed out of the MCU while Canyon and Timber played rock, paper, scissors to figure out who got to drive. Canyon won. He climbed into the driver’s seat, poised to mow down a certain ‘bigfoot’ with his giant truck.
***
Twelve hours later, Canyon hadn’t run any demons over, but he was cut, bruised, burnt, and filthy. They’d spent the day running from emergency to emergency, and now were back in town. He was on foot, behind a row of burning houses, clearing people out of the area. Khain had come and gone and was now fucking shit up somewhere else.
From his left he heard yelling. Canyon swung that way, trying to see in the semi-darkness. The sun had been down for hours, but fires lit the night. He saw a knot of people in a yard and sprinted over.
The sight of his uniform caused them all to start talking at once, but he was able to piece together that they were worried about a bedridden neighbor in a nearby house. He promised he would take care of the neighbor and sent them to the van that would take them to the emergency shelter, then called his brother inruhi.
You available? he askedrunning up to the house.
I’m saving a cat and three ferrets.
Fuckin’ hero.
Not like Reynard though.
Never like Reynard… I’m going inside a burning house after someone. Head this way when you can.
Got it.
The back door was unlocked and not burning. Canyon pushed it open. Thick black smoke escaped out the doorway. Canyon got low and crept inside, breathing shallowly, shining a flashlight all around, heading straight up the stairs. He did a circle through the house and determined it was empty. He rushed back down the stairs and outside, taking in great lungfuls of fresh air.
I’m out. House is clear.
Canyon ducked behind a hedge and shifted in his clothes, man to wolf, wolf to man, healing his burns and cuts. He was stillfilthy though. He took his radio off his belt to call dispatch, but the battery was dead. He pulled his phone out of a cargo pocket, but its battery was dead, too. Predator was in the MCU which was parked two streets over.
Timber showed up. “I think this neighborhood is clear. I checked every house this way.”
Good,Canyon said.Too bad it’s going to burn to the ground.
“We need Graeme.”
Or at least some bears.
Something the size of a dragonfly buzzed in close to Canyon’s head. He jerked back and brought a hand up to swat it, but then realized it was Graeme, shrunk down to tiny size, but still a red and yellow dragon with strong leathery wings, which landed on his shoulder.
Looking fer me?
Hell yeah, Timber said.We cleared all the humans out of here. Do your thing.
The tiny dragon flew off to the center of the row of houses while Canyon and Timber booked it in the opposite direction. When they were a safe distance, they turned around to watch. Too quick for the eye to follow, Graeme exploded into a dragon big enough to touch several houses at once, and then he imploded back to tiny size, and all the smoke and fire went with him with a whoosh followed by a wave of heat.
In a moment, it was over. The air was clean and the night clear. Sirens wailed in the distance.
I’m oot,Graeme said.They’re calling fer me at the reservoir.
He flew away.
What’s next?Canyon said.
