“Call Bill. He’ll know what to do,” he grated out between clenched teeth.
“No, I need to call an ambulance. You need medical attention!”
“Call Bill,” he said again.
“Okay, but then I’m calling an ambulance,” she said, picking up her cell phone and dialing information. Of all the arguments she thought she might have in her life, this was never one she thought she’d have. Why wouldn’t he want medical attention? Why does he just want his boss?
“Information,” a bored sounding man answered.
“I need the number for Bill’s Bar in Lilly Town, Delaware,” she said.
“Would you like me to connect you?” he asked in the same monotonous voice.
“Yes, thank you,” she answered.
“Hold please,” he said. Lucy hit the ‘speaker’ button and set the phone down beside her, wanting to put more pressure on the wound.
“Hello?” she heard a man say in a gruff voice.
“I need to talk to Bill,” she said loudly, making sure he could hear her clearly.
“Speaking.”
“It’s Lucy. Mike’s hurt and he told me to call you. He told me not to call an ambulance,” she said hurriedly.
***
“Don’t,” Bill said into the phone. “Give me your address and I’ll be there as soon as I can.” She gave it to him and he wrote it down as quickly as he could, wanting to get there quickly. “Try to get him comfortable,” and he hung up without another word.
Fuck, this wasn’t good. How was he going to explain it to her? Why he was the one coming and operating or doing whatever needed to be done. This was not how his day was supposed to be going. It was supposed to be an easy day: he had the day shift, Mike was going to close for him, and he was going to actually have a night off from everything.
“Emily,” he yelled into the back.
“Yeah.”
“I have to go. Cover the bar,” he said, and grabbed his medical supplies before leaving. He’d never been happier he decided to keep a kit at the bar.
***
He watched as a woman tried to stop the bleeding, but it wasn’t working. Bullet wounds weren’t exactly the kindest injuries, at least silver bullets in a shifter weren’t. Maybe if she didn’t get him help fast enough, he would die. Hell, if she took him to the hospital, he’d probably end up dead because they don’t know how to treat his kind. They wouldn’t know about the damage the bullet causes. Maybe this would work out.
“Sir?” Paul said from behind him.
“Yes,” he said. He’d heard him walk up a minute ago but hadn’t said anything. With his job, you had to have good senses. Those bastards could sneak up on you and kill you before you knew it.
“Do you think he’ll survive?” Paul asked after a moment. He must have been taking everything in as well.
“I don’t know. I hope not, but we’ll have to wait and see,” his boss said with a sigh.
“What’s our next plan of action?” Paul asked.
“We ask around town tomorrow, see if we can figure out who’s missing. It’s a small town; it shouldn’t be too hard.”
“Yes sir,” Paul said, and walked deeper into the woods, presumably to the SUV.
He turned and followed Paul. There wasn’t anything else he could do, and he didn’t want to be seen by anyone. One part of his job was anonymity, and if someone figured out who he was, then he was screwed. He liked being the faceless person behind the organization.
***
Lucy very carefully helped Mike stand. There was a lot of grunting by both of them, but she was finally able to get him on two feet and leaning against her.
“Can you walk like this?” she asked him. She knew she couldn’t carry him. The man was big, and she most certainly wasn’t. He nodded, but she could see the strain on his face from the pain. “Okay, let’s go.”
They started the slow walk into the house. She didn’t know who had shot him, or why, and she didn’t really care, but she didn’t want to be out in the open like they were. Whoever it was might try again. Getting him in the house was easier than she thought it would be. Mike was able to walk; he just needed her to steady himself on, and with a little pointing from her, they made it to the guest room. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as she’d originally thought? Lucy helped Mike get in the bed and grabbed some towels to put more pressure on the wound. Looking at it again, there was a lot more blood. Okay, maybe it was as bad as she thought; he was just really good at hiding it.
“You have some explaining to do,” she said, as she held the towels down.
“I know.”
“First off, why were you in my back yard?”
“I hadn’t seen you in a while and I wanted to make sure you were okay,” Mike answered.
“Well, why didn’t you call me or come see me at my front door instead of spying on me?”
“I thought you didn’t like me. I was afraid you’d slam the door in my face, and I don’t have your number.”
“Well, for your information, I’ve been wanting to see you again. I’ve just been busy with my book.”
“Damn,” he mumbled.
“What?” she asked, starting to panic. Was something wrong?
“Bill was right. The bastard is always right.” Lucy let out a little laugh. “I read your book,” he said with a smile.
“You did?” she asked. She didn’t think he actually would. It didn’t seem like his thing, and honestly most people didn’t when she gave them a copy.
“Yeah, I actually read it in one day. It’s not something I would normally read, but I liked it. I ordered a few more of them.”
“I’m glad you liked it. I really didn’t think you would. It’s meant for teen girls. I mean, sure, adults read it, but generally not men,” she replied.
There was a knock at her door. It had to be Bill. There was no one else who would be banging on her door in the middle of her working on a book. They knew better.
“I’ll be right back,” she said, moving his hands to the towels. Lucy stood and opened the door to the bald man from the bar. It was the guy Lexi thought was hot. She would love to know he was standing in her house. “Bill?”
“Why is he at your house?” he asked.
“Because he was shot in my back yard,” she answered just as curtly as he had asked.
“He was shot?” Bill asked as he pushed his way into the house.
“Yes he was shot. What did you think happened to him?”
“I thought he’d been in another fight. Why didn’t you tell me when you called?”
“Because I was flustered and dealing with a man bleeding all over me,” she said, getting angry.
“Where is he?” he asked, looking around the living room.
“He’s down the hall, first door on the left,” she said, pointing the way.
Chapter 9
How could she not tell him Mike had been shot? It was just a little bit important, seeing as he didn’t always carry bullet extraction equipment with him. He really hoped he had everything he needed.
“Hey kid,” he said to Mike when he saw him on the bed.
“Don’t you think you can stop calling me kid? I think I’ve outgrown it by now,” Mike said with a small smile.
“Yeah, I’ll stop calling you kid when I stop getting phone calls for me to come patch you up.”
“Hey, it wasn’t my fault this time,” he grumbled.
There were many, many times Bill had been called to give Mike a few stitches or set a few broken fingers. It was a good thing his dad had wanted him to follow in his footsteps and be a shifter doctor. His father had Bill follow him around from the age of eight. He could stitch anything like a pro at eleven, and could remove a bullet at fourteen. The only problem was he didn’t want to be a doctor. He didn’t want to have to do house calls at all hours of the night, but most of all he didn’t want to have to tell families that someone was dead. Yeah, he liked fixing people up, but he liked owning the bar more. And his othe
r work: well, he’d had to make the calls that someone was dead, but at least he was also saving people. He could as a doctor, but with the organization he ran, he was really making a difference.
“Okay, let’s take a look at what you did to yourself,” Bill said as he pulled the towel off the wound.
“Thanks for the warning,” Mike said, wincing in pain.
“I’m guessing you’re in a lot of pain,” Bill said, looking at the wound.
“Yeah? How could you tell? Not from the whole bleeding and grunting I’m doing, surely?”
“Very funny. No, they got you with a silver bullet. Whoever did this knew what to use,” Bill said, wiping away some blood.
“Great! Just what I wanted!”
“Is he okay?” Lucy asked.
Bill turned around and saw her standing in the doorway. Shit! He hoped she hadn’t heard that part of the conversation. How did he not know she was standing there? “Yeah, he’s going to be fine. I need to get the bullet out and get him stitched up, and then he’ll be fine. You might not want to be here for this, though,” Bill told her.
“I’m okay,” she said, standing a little taller.
“Lucy, I’m about to stick a knife in Mike’s stomach and fish out a bullet. Then I’m going in to repair any damage it’s caused. He’s going to be screaming in pain, and I don’t think he wants you to see that,” Bill said bluntly. Maybe she’d get the hint he doesn’t want her there.
She gulped and said, “I can take it. I want to be here for Mike.”
“Mike,” Bill said. He wanted the woman out of the room. If he could, he’d get her out of the house and out of screaming range, but he’d take what he could get. He knew she wouldn’t leave. She seemed to care about Mike just as much as Mike cared for her. Don’t people know that it takes more than two conversations to really start caring for someone? You don’t know anything about them. Hell, she could be a mass murderer for all Mike knew. Bill didn’t really think she was, but still.
“Lucy, I'll be okay. Bill won't let anything happen to me. I know what he's going to do and I don't want you to see it. It's not pretty. He knows what he's doing and I trust him with my life. He's patched me up more times than I can count.”
“Are you sure? I can hold your hand,” she said, starting to sound unsure. She was wavering, which was definitely a good thing.
“I'll be fine. Thank you for offering, though,” Mike said, giving her a smile.
Hell, Bill didn't know how the man was able to talk. The silver was burning him and he had a hole in his stomach. That wouldn't last long either. If he waited much longer, the hole was going to start closing for Mike's shifter genes, and he would have to make a new one. He was really hoping Mike would pass out from the pain soon. He couldn't really give him anything because of his metabolism. It wouldn't do any good.
“Okay, I'm going to be in the living room. If you need anything, just call me,” Lucy said, never taking her eyes off Mike. She was really worried about him. It showed that she was a good person, but she still didn't really know him.
“Thanks. I do need to wash up. Where's your bathroom?” Bill asked. He knew she wasn't talking to him, but he still needed to get cleaned up. He didn't want infection to set in because he couldn't wash his hands.
“Right through that door,” she said, pointing to a door across the room. Good, he wouldn't have to go far. He wanted to get this taken care of as quickly as he could.
***
Lucy watched Bill walk into the bathroom. She didn't like him very much. He didn't have to be crude; he could have just asked her to leave. She just wanted Mike to be okay. Was that so wrong?
“How are you holding up?” she asked Mike.
“I'm good, for someone who was just shot,” he answered, closing his eyes. She could tell he was really hurting.
“Can Bill give you something for the pain?” she asked.
“No. It doesn't work on me.”
Huh? That was odd. “Can I get you anything?” she asked. She was feeling helpless. She needed to do something, anything, to help him.
“I'm okay.”
“So, do you know why you were shot?” she asked.
“Someone didn't like my pretty face?” he said with a small smile, his eyes still closed.
“Very funny, but when you're feeling better, you need to explain what happened,” she said sternly.
“I know.”
“Okay, well, hold on to something, and no dying or anything,” she said, walking up to him and kissing his forehead.
“Thank you,” he said.
“For what?”
“For helping me. For being here. For everything,” he said, looking into her eyes.
She smiled and said, “No problem. Just don't do it again. I don't like seeing injured, naked men in my back yard.”
“But you don't mind seeing naked men there?” he asked jokingly.
“You know what I mean. No more getting shot here,” she said with a smile.
“I'll try my best,” he answered with a small smile before closing his eyes again.
Bill came back out and said, “Lucy, I'm going to start. He will scream, I'm telling you now. I don't want you coming in here and trying to rescue him. I have to get the bullet out.”
“Okay. Can you just let me know when you're done? I'd like to see him when you are,” she said as she walked toward the door.
“I can do that,” Bill said, and put on some gloves.
Lucy walked out of the room and went directly to her desk. She didn’t think she’d get any writing done, but she could try. She needed to keep her mind off of what was going on in her guest bedroom. Turning on some music, she opened her E-mail. She knew she was getting behind on them, and maybe some were important enough to keep her mind occupied. When she clicked open the first one, she heard Mike screaming. Maybe he would pass out? She couldn’t stand the thought of him being in pain.
The screaming continued for ten minutes before it just stopped. Over the past hour, she’d wanted to go check on him, to make sure he was still alive, but she knew she couldn’t. Mike trusted Bill, so she would just have to trust him and continue surfing the internet. The door opened and she looked over toward it, waiting for Bill to come out. When he finally emerged from the hall, he didn’t look too happy, but he didn’t look devastated. She hoped it wasn’t bad news. If he cared for Mike, he would look more upset if something had happened to him, right?
“He’s passed out. You can go see him if you want,” he said, and headed for the door.
“I… is he okay?” she asked.
“He’ll be fine. There was more damage than I thought so I had to do some repairs, but he’ll be back to his brooding in a few days.”
“That fast?” she asked.
“He’s a fast healer. I expect him to be out of bed and moving around by morning, probably sooner. Just make sure he doesn’t overdo it. Sometimes he forgets his limits.”
“Me?”
“I thought you were taking care of him since he was here. I’m sorry if I was wrong. I can get someone here in a few hours if you want. I just don’t want him moving yet, and he’s a little on the heavy side.”
“It’s fine. He can stay here.” She had a feeling there was more to this than he was saying, but she wasn’t going to question him. Maybe he didn’t want to deal with taking care of Mike, or maybe there were other reasons.
“Good. I’ll be back to check on him tomorrow. Just make sure he gets a lot of protein and fluids. He’s going to need it,” Bill said, and left. Protein? She’d never heard of that being part of the healing process. Maybe it was some new study or something. Shrugging her shoulders, Lucy headed for the guest room.
Chapter 10
Mike woke with a horrible pain in his stomach. It was worse than anything he’d ever remembered feeling. He needed Bill. He needed to be patched up. Not knowing where he was, he tried listening to sense where he was. He was on something soft and there was a blanket on top of him, so he must b
e in a bed of some kind. His sheets weren’t this soft, so he knew he wasn’t at his apartment. So the question was, where was he?
He guessed his best bet to figure it out was to open his eyes and look around. If he was in a bed, the threat couldn’t be that bad. The walls were blue and there was light shining through the curtains. Yeah, definitely not his apartment.
“Hey sleepyhead, how are you feeling?” he heard someone ask. The voice was familiar, but he couldn’t quite place it. Turning his head, he saw Lucy sitting in a chair next to the bed. She had a computer in her lap and some music playing softly. Seeing her brought it all back to him: the shooting, Lucy seeing him naked, Bill digging the bullet out. “Mike?” she said when he didn’t answer.
“I’m hurting some, but it’s not too bad. Where’s Bill?” he asked.
She looked hurt by what he said. “He left about an hour ago.”
“Okay, did he say when he’ll be back? I need to ask him something.” He wouldn’t look directly at her. He didn’t want to see more of the hurt look on her face.
“He’ll be back tomorrow to check on you. Do you need anything?”
“Can I get some water?” he asked.
“Sure, I’ll be right back,” she answered, standing up.
Mike watched as Lucy left. He was nervous. He’d promised to explain things to her, but what was he going to say? How was she going to take it? Was she going to run screaming from the room and call the police, or the hospital to have him committed?
“Here you go,” she said, walking into the room with a bottle of water in her hand.
“Thanks,” he said, taking it from her and opening it.
“Do you need anything else?” she asked.
“I’m okay,” he said after taking a sip.
“Okay,” she said, turning to leave him alone.
He guessed it was better to just get it over with and tell her. There was no reason to keep putting it off. “I owe you an explanation.”
“For what?”
“For earlier,” he answered.
Lucy's Wolverine (Lilly Town Shifters) Page 4