Doctor Wolf’s Human Nurse (Fated To The Wolf #9)

16. Sawyer

16

Sawyer

S awyer answered his phone immediately when he saw Jason’s name and number pop up on his screen.

“Please tell me you have something so we can get this whole situation over and done with.”

“Hello to you, too. We aren’t ready to make an arrest yet. We’ve been tailing Brent and monitoring who he talks to, where he goes, and who he visits. We’re positive that he’s part of a bigger drug ring that we’ve been after for a while. We need just a little bit more time.”

“How much more?” Sawyer asked, exasperated.

“Not much, but I can’t give you a definitive timeline. We’re closing in. We know who is above Brent in the food chain. It’s a man named Mark Johnson. His boss is Fred Cregar. We want the next man up.”

“Just get this done and over with.”

“We’ll talk soon.”

Growling in the back of his throat, he sat back in his chair and stared up at the ceiling.

It had been a long week at the office, and Sawyer needed to blow off some steam.

“Hey, Sean. I don’t suppose you have some time to shift and go for a run. I need to relieve some of this stress before I explode.”

“Coincidentally, I was just about to call you and ask you the same thing, only I’m not under that much stress. Shall I pick you up?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

Sawyer told Sean about the drug issue as they drove to the mountain.

“It seems to me that if they know who the two middlemen are, they should arrest them. They at least know the next guy up. Then, they could arrest that person.”

Sawyer sighed heavily. “You would think. If you pull the foundation out from under a house, the whole thing will collapse. Apparently, though, they want to track the top guy themselves.”

“That has to be frustrating not to go to Brent, corner him, and rip a few chunks out of his hide until he tells you everything.”

Laughing, Sawyer shook his head. “That goes against the whole doctor oath of ‘first do no harm.’ Besides, if I did that, then I would just have to fix him.”

“I think that fixing him after you tear him up qualifies as doing no harm. He would be as good as new in no time.”

“You’ve never been a violent man.” Sawyer laughed. “But if the feds don’t hurry up and get their investigation done, I just might have to consider your approach.”

“Let me know if you need an alibi.”

They reached the base of the mountain and then hiked to the spot where a lot of the shifters liked to change forms. Both men carefully surveyed the area before stripping, folding their clothes, stashing them in plastic bags, and hiding the bags in the huge knot in the tree.

Sawyer sucked in a huge breath of the fresh air as they loped up the mountain. The air was cold and stung his lungs at first, but his wolf form quickly adjusted to it. The spicy scent of pine wafted in the gentle cool breeze that blew around them. Winter birds sang and talked to each other.

The snow on the ground didn’t bother their padded feet, because wolves have a special adaptation that allows increased blood flow to their feet, and Sawyer enjoyed feeling the sun that shone between the branches of trees.

He could feel the tension drip off of his shoulders, and he gradually relaxed as he soaked in the peace and serenity of nature.

They had traveled for about half an hour when Sean spoke to him telepathically.

Stop. Look at what’s in front of us.

Sawyer focused on the area that Sean pointed at with his paw. There was a heavy haze in the air as though some type of mist had recently been sprayed.

We need to get back to the office and get some protective gear. I want to see if we can get samples. It’s damp up here and a lot colder so it might not evaporate as fast, Sawyer said.

The two wolves ran down the mountain as fast as they could, screeching to a halt at the shifting tree. They bolted down the trail to Sean’s truck. He broke every speed limit on the way to the clinic, where Sawyer grabbed plastic gowns, masks, caps, gloves, bags, and vials.

Sean sped back to the mountain. Sawyer grabbed the oh shit handle on one particular hard turn.

Sawyer looked at Sean wryly. “If you ever get tired of bartending, you could try your hand at NASCAR.”

“Nah, that’s a sport for younger folks.”

Rolling his eyes, Sawyer said, “You talk like you’re in your seventies. You’ve barely topped thirty.”

They arrived back at the mountain in record time. This time, they packed their clothes and supplies in packs and carried everything with them when they ran back to the spot where they saw the mist.

Sean stopped suddenly when a loud moan echoed in the air. They cautiously approached the area where the sound came from. Sawyer’s heart stopped when he saw a naked man lying in the cold snow, curled up in a ball.

Sawyer and Sean quickly shifted, dressed, and pulled on the protective gear before approaching him.

“That’s Sam Gifford,” Sean said. “He’s a bear shifter.”

Sam’s teeth were chattering and his lips were turning blue.

“Take him down to your truck and get him warmed up. I’m going to take some samples and I’ll be right behind you,” Sawyer ordered.

Sean scooped up the man and tossed him over his shoulders in the traditional fireman’s carry, hurrying back down the mountain as fast as he could safely go.

Sawyer studied the pine needles and saw that some of them had a congealed substance sticking to them. He carefully pulled off the branches and put them in his bag. Spying a discoloration in the snow, Sawyer scooped up as much of it as he could and carefully placed the sample in a bag, hoping that the water from melted snow wouldn’t alter the substance too much.

He looked around the area but didn’t see a canister or other delivery system.

“That would be too easy,” he muttered to himself. “How in the world did we see the mist without someone spraying it directly at us? Is the cold affecting it somehow?”

Although he wanted to stay and investigate the area, he was worried about his new patient so he hurried down the mountain after Sean. He stopped at the shifting tree and felt around the knot hole, hoping the man’s clothes were stashed inside. They were.

Sean had just loaded Sam into the back seat of his truck and covered him with a blanket when Sawyer ran up to them.

Luckily, the engine was already warm, so it didn’t take long for the cab to heat up.

Sawyer called Beth on the way back to his clinic. “Two things. First, I think I might have collected some samples of the mist. It seems to react differently in the cold, but hopefully, it will give us some good clues. Second, I have a shifter who might need your healing touch.”

“On my way,” she promised. “I’ll meet you there.”

Beth and Taryn pulled up in their car just as Sean careened into the parking spot.

Taryn looked at Sean and just said, “Sheesh.”

Sawyer opened his eyes wide in mock terror. “Tell me about it. He’s been driving like that from the mountain to here, back to the mountain, and back again.”

“NASCAR much?” she asked.

“What’s with you guys and NASCAR? I thought that was a hillbilly, redneck, country thing.”

“Dad does the rodeo. He fits that definition,” Taryn retorted.

She touched the man in the back seat. Instantly, he stopped shivering and moaning. After a few minutes, Sam sat up and looked at her.

“How did you do that?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Taryn said. “Just know that you’ll be okay, except that you aren’t going to be able to shift again for a while.”

“I got the virus?”

“We think so. Let’s get you into the clinic and dressed. Keep the blanket wrapped around you because we don’t want the cops called on you for indecent exposure,” Sean said.

They walked into the clinic and Sawyer locked it behind them. Sean handed Sam his clothes, while Sawyer went into the lounge, returning a few minutes later with a cup in his hand.

“Here’s some coffee. It should help warm your insides. Drink it slowly. Tell us what happened.”

Sam took a couple of sips and sighed. “I needed to get out and run. I paid attention at the meeting, so I was on the lookout for any strangers, whether they were in human form or shifter form. I didn’t see anyone. I saw the haze in the air, but at first, I didn’t think anything about it. I figured that it was just the sun hitting the snow and all that. I knew instantly I was wrong as soon as I hit it. The scent that you describe clung to me like a spiderweb. My entire body burned, and I was instantly shifted back to human form. I felt like all of my muscles had cramped up and I couldn’t move. Thank heavens that you guys arrived when you did, or I would have been in some major trouble.”

“Why was the mist hanging there?” Beth asked.

“My guess is that it was because the chemicals and natural agents in the spray reacted to the cold. I have some samples. I’m going to keep some here to study, but I got plenty for you guys to try to decipher.”

Sawyer handed a bag of pine needles and a bag with a sample from the snow to Beth.

“I’ll call Savvy and we’ll get to work on this tonight,” Beth said. “We’ll let you know as soon as we know anything worth knowing.”

“Spoken like a real woman.” Sean laughed. “Alright, Sam, Sawyer and I will take you back to your car. Sawyer will drive you home so you can have your vehicle.”

After they dropped Sam off, Sean took Sawyer home.

“Don’t be at the lab too late. You don’t want to miss anything important because you’re tired,” Sean said.

“How did you know I was going there?”

Sean grimaced at him. “Because I know you.”

Sawyer hurried back to the clinic and put a tiny sample under the microscope. He was able to identify the isotopes of alcohol and eucalyptus. However, as suspected, there was a compound that he couldn’t figure out.

After several hours, he sat back in the chair and rubbed his eyes. He needed to take a break. Sawyer stashed the samples in the lab’s fridge and locked it. The last thing he needed was for someone to get ahold of it, either accidentally or on purpose.

His stomach rumbled and it was still early enough in the evening that Abby might not have eaten. Deciding to chance it, he gave her a call.

“Are you busy tonight?”

“No. What’s up?”

“I thought I would grill some steaks and potatoes and wondered if you would like to join me.”

“That sounds perfect. I was just trying to figure out what I was going to do for dinner. When should I show up?”

“Give me about an hour. I need to shower and get everything going.”

“I’ll be there with bells on.”

Sawyer laughed. “Bells are unnecessary.”

She showed up at his door wearing a jingle bell bracelet and a smirk. “I couldn’t resist.”

He kissed her, pulled her into the house, and laughed. “I should have expected something like this.”

Sawyer told her about his day while he grilled the steaks. “Hopefully, we can figure out what’s in the spray. If we can isolate everything, then we can possibly find an anecdote or cure.”

“Here’s hoping.”

They sat on the couch and watched Star Wars – A New Hope. She snuggled up against him. His arm was wrapped around her, holding her close. He started to ask her a question when he realized that she was snoring softly.

He touched her face and gently woke her up. “Hey, Sleepy Head.”

Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at him.

“Good morning, Sunshine.”

“Oh, wow. I did not mean to fall asleep.”

“It’s quite alright,” he said, smiling at her.

“I guess I should go home. I am pretty tired.”

Sawyer hesitated for just a minute and asked, “Why don’t you just stay here? You’re sleepy and I don’t want you falling asleep on the way home. I have an extra toothbrush.”

Abby looked up at him for a few seconds and then nodded. She stood up and swayed on her feet. He took her into the bathroom and gave her the toothbrush.

“See, straight out of the package. I haven’t used it on any dogs or anything.”

She laughed.

Several minutes later she walked into the bedroom after brushing her teeth and hair and washing her face. She pulled off her clothes and slid between the sheets. He quickly undressed and laid down beside her. Sawyer gently kissed her neck and realized that she had already fallen asleep.

Laughing softly, he pulled her close to him. She instinctively cuddled against him with her head tucked under his chin.

“Good night, Sweetheart,” he whispered.

The next morning, after she went home, Sawyer thought about Abby and how he felt about her. There definitely was something there, although he wasn’t ready to call it love.

We might be working our way toward that, but not yet. I would like to take our relationship to the next step. Back in the day, they would call it going steady, but we aren’t in the 1950s. Is saying we’re officially dating or seeing each other too old-fashioned or corny?

He had some errands to tend to and stopped at the jewelry store. Sawyer picked out a dainty necklace with a tiny wolf head pendant with a diamond for the eye. Reluctantly, he went back to the clinic. The last thing he wanted to do was spend the day squinting through a microscope, but he had to figure out what was in the spray. He didn’t get far, except to discover trace amounts of wormwood, which was used to negate magic.

Sawyer sent a quick text to Beth and Savvy, warning them.

Beth replied, We picked up on that. Thanks for the heads up, though.

After several hours, he went back home, frustrated. He thought about calling Abby but decided not to.

I think I’ll just have leftovers, a beer, watch the game, and drool on myself until it’s time for bed. My brain is addled, and I’m pretty sure I’m not fit for company.

He fell asleep on the couch and woke up when the buzzer sounded, signaling the end of the game.

The next morning, they arrived at the clinic before anyone else.

“I have something for you,” he said awkwardly and handed her the box.

She opened it and smiled. “I love it. Thank you.”

Abby threw herself against him and wrapped her arms around him.

“A-hem.”

They both turned to see Martha standing in the doorway, her arms crossed over her chest.