“Then get him to shift or get outside.” That came from Nero, but everyone was looking at Bruce as if he were a dirty toddler who’d messed his pants.
Bruce looked back. With every fiber of his being, he wished himself human. He’d been trying before, but this was like a wish to live, a need to breathe, a hunger for power or respect or any fucking thing he’d ever wanted in his entire life all rolled together in one desperate plea.I’m a man!
But he wasn’t. He remained a stinky, useless, mute dog.
The woman snorted. “Typical.” Then she lifted her phone up and snapped a picture.
Bruce bristled. Did she think he was a show dog? Would she pass his picture around to her friends and laugh at the wolf who smelled like fairy cheese?
“Did you just catch a Pokémon?” Josh asked as he looked over her shoulder at her cell.
“Don’t judge,” she said as she pocketed her cell. “It’s the only way I get my mother out of the house. I won’t trade with her unless she catches a few of her own.”
“I’m not judging,” Josh answered, his voice filled with admiration. “I wish I’d thought to do the same. Anything cool out here in Wisconsin?”
“I just got a Gyarados. What have you got?”
They wandered off together, talking Pokémon in the same way Bruce and the other firefighters talked about sports. Nero followed behind, grumbling good-naturedly about geeks and their games. Meanwhile, Laddin was on his phone, doing his job coordinating with someone. Yordan and Bing were shuffling off together to their beds, though it was more like Bing was walking and Yordan was shuffling.
And Bruce stood there, completely ignored. Hell, he wasn’t even cutting it as amusement. Cara had been playing Pokémon Go, not taking his picture. Never in his life had he been so completely dismissed. As a kid, he’d been big and could fight. As an adult, he had valuable skills and an imposing presence.
But what was he now? A stinking dog.
The humiliation of it all burned in his gut and came out as a low whine. Laddin heard it, of course, but he was on the phone. All he could do was turn and give Bruce a sympathetic smile—the kind given to kids and very frail elders.Sorry you’re helpless, but please be quiet while the useful people work. We’ll get to you as soon as we can.
He’d never hated himself more.
No! God damn it, he was not going to drop into self-pity or self-loathing. That was not his style. Maybe he didn’t have hands or instruments, but he could see and smell. There was a ton of stuff he could notice with those two senses. And if there was a problem, he could bark.
That was what he’d do. He’d be useful with the ability he had. So he padded away from Laddin, who was busy on the phone.
The first thing he did was look in on Yordan and Bing. Yordan looked pale and exhausted, but he was waving away a healthy Bing with a weak hand. “Lie down yourself. Magical healing is still exhausting. You may be pretty again, but I’ll bet you’re dreaming about taking a nap.”
“If you do the same,” Bing answered. Then he turned and wrinkled his sharply etched nose at Bruce. “God, it’s true. You Americans stink.”
“It’s not me,” grumbled Yordan as he collapsed on a bed. “Get out of here, mutt.”
Then, before Bruce could muscle his way in just to prove he could, Bing shut the bedroom door right on his nose.
Fine. They didn’t look like they needed anything other than rest. He’d make himself useful with Wulfric.
It was hard turning the doorknob with his paws—in fact, he couldn’t do it at all, so he tried with his mouth. All he managed to do was to slobber all over the thing. He was about to ram the door in frustration when someone opened it from the inside.
He hopped back only to stare at the most ethereal beauty he’d ever seen. She was a pale brunet with dark mahogany eyes, small bones, and fair white skin. She said something in a language he didn’t understand, and damned if she didn’t look like an elven queen as she held her hand to her nose and waved him back.
He tried to muscle past her, but he didn’t want to hurt her, and she wasn’t budging. She seemed to have a vein of steel inside her, for all that she looked light enough to ride a stiff wind. And then came the ultimate insult, as she backed him up enough to shut the bedroom door behind her. Damn it, there was no way he could check on Wulfric now. He needed hands!
“You belong outside,” she said firmly. “You’re going to make everyone sick with that stink and—” She abruptly quieted as Wulfric coughed from inside the bedroom. She waited in tense silence to see if it would repeat. It didn’t, so she turned back to him. “My son needs his rest, and you’re only making things worse.”
So this was Wulfric’s mother. Wow. She looked even younger than Wulfric. And they were both supposed to be more than two hundred years old? Way cool, except he was a paramedic. He needed to check on Wulfric. He yipped at her, irritation in the sound.
“Yes, I know you’re a werewolf,” she said. “But you’re a problem with that smell, and we need solutions.” Then she grabbed him by the ruff in a vise-like grip. He tried to shake her off, but he didn’t want to hurt her. That meant that biting was out too. And hell, she was strong as she dragged him to the front door.
He tried to dig his heels in, but he had paws on a hard floor, and he slid despite all his efforts.
Then Laddin looked up from his phone. His eyes widened at the sight, and Bruce had a moment of satisfaction. Laddin, at least, would explain. He’d tell this woman Bruce was a paramedic and—
Laddin opened the front door for the woman, and Bruce was unceremoniously shoved outside. The moment his ruff was released, he turned back. Now he was really pissed and frustrated. He’d be damned if he sat outside like—
