When had he shifted into a man? Once again, the change had been seamless. This form was easiest for communication, so he became a man. The other form was no longer expedient.
“Stay back, Becca,” he ordered. “The last thing we need is another patient.”
“He’s been shot,” she said, a near hysterical edge to her voice. She had to get that under control now, so he looked at her calmly.
“He’ll be fine if he turns human. The shots will fade.” Well, the arm one would. He wasn’t so sure about the shoulder. But a human boy would be easier to control and certainly easier to haul into the nearest ER.
Becca nodded, then pulled herself upright. “Theodore Weitz, you turn human this instant!”
A good try, as the young’s eyes shifted, focusing on Becca. It’s possible the rational was gaining control, but it was hard to tell. All they could do was keep talking and hope that they reached the human mind underneath the immediate pain.
“Remember what it’s like to be a boy, Theo,” he ordered. “Eating cheeseburgers and skateboarding.”
“Video games,” Becca chimed in. “Playing Warcraft with Tom and Willy.”
“Come on, Theo!” Carl barked. “We’ve got pie at home. Picture yourself sitting and eating it. With ice cream. Think of the cold, wet sweetness of it all.” Food had always been a great way for him to mentally shift back to human. At least when he was that age. And where the mind went, the body usually followed.
“That’s not the way to do it,” a female voice said from behind them. Tonya’s voice was dry as she stepped past the sprawled bodies and waved Carl aside.
“Tonya,” he said. “He’s been shot. We need medical?—”
“Theo!” she interrupted. “Look at me! Look at me right now!”
Theo did. His grizzly eyes swerved and then focused on her. Carl watched the young bear’s eyes widen and his ears go back. And then suddenly, the snout started shrinking and the fur started receding. Becca gasped and murmured, “Thank God,” but that was all she managed. No one wanted to interrupt the shift back to human.
A moment later, Carl heard two dull pings as the bullets slid from the grizzly onto the floor. Soon afterward, there was only a naked adolescent boy cringing at a seeping wound in his shoulder.
“I’ve got you,” Becca said as she rushed forward. “You’re safe now.”
He was, though damned if he knew how Tonya had done it. He turned to ask and only then realized she was smirking. Well, he realized she was naked and smirking.
“You have to give him a real reason to be human,” she said. Then she gestured to her body. “This is what motivates teenage boys.”
He couldn’t argue with her there. He also knew that Tonya was absolutely, completely not the woman for him, because his only thought was for Becca. He barely even noticed Tonya’s nudity.
“Let’s get out of here,” he said. “Who knows how many others might still be hanging around.”
“We can’t leave Caleb,” Theo said, looking down at the cage he’d been sprawling on. Inside was the unconscious werewolf boy.
“Police are on their way,” Tonya said. “We can hole up here until they arrive.” Then she glanced at Carl. “I’ll get your clothes.”
“Get yours, too.”
“You sure?”
“Yes,” answered all three of them at once. Which is the exact moment that he finally caught Becca’s eye. She was pale and shaky, but he saw strength in her as she tried not to fuss over her boy.
“You okay?” she asked him.
“Only if you are.”
“Yup.”
“Then I’m fine.”
“How many times did you get shot?”
He frowned and tried to take stock. Now that he focused, he could feel the raw burn of pain across one thigh and another high in his belly. Oh, hell. That was going to suck. The thing with shifting back to human is that sometimes the wound healed with the bullet inside. Fortunately, they knew a surgeon who was clued in to the whole shifter world. He’d take care of it.
