When she didn’t appear right away, they walked into the living room. Carol hurried down the hallway, waving for them to leave.
“He’s sleeping soundly,” she whispered, looking vastly relieved.
Ryan took her comment to mean that Doc was still in his human form.
In the kitchen, the phone rang. Carol instinctively ran to get it, but Ryan grabbed her hand. “You’re not supposed to be here,” he said, his voice hushed.
“I don’t want the phone to wake Doc.” She paused as the answering machine came on.
“Hey, Doc. I called earlier but didn’t leave a message. This is North Redding, and we’ve got a bit of trouble here.”
Carol trembled, and Ryan put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close as if he was protecting her from the menace.
“We really could use your help. We’re no longer with Lelandi’s pack but started our own. If you could see your way to helping us out, we’d sure appreciate it. I’ll call back later to see if you’re agreeable.”
The connection disconnected.
Ryan rubbed Carol’s arm. “Was that one of the men who took you hostage?”
She nodded. “The one who carried me. He’d spoken to the others when he took me hostage the first time. I’d recognize his voice anywhere. He’s the same one who hit Tom when we were in the exam room. Doc identified him by name.”
Jake said to Tom, “I want you to stay here and watch over Doc. I’ll send others to help look after him in case North tries to take him hostage. Can you manage it?”
Tom nodded. “Hell, yeah.”
“North was sick, and maybe others in his pack are also. If they need our help…” Carol said, letting her words trail off.
“Why go after Carol and the doc? Why not contact either of the other nurses?” Tom asked.
“North and his men are reds,” Ryan reasoned. “Even though Doc is, too, I imagine they went after Carol first because they wanted to keep her in their pack. Then when they figured it was going to be too difficult to try for her again, they decided to solicit Doc’s help.”
“I’ll keep him safe,” Tom said. “Just let any of them try to break in.”
Jake slapped him on the back. “I’ll send Deputy Trevor and a couple of other men over to watch the outside. Let us know at once if anything happens.”
Ryan headed out to the truck with Carol and Jake, leaving Doc under Tom’s protection. “You might have someone posted to watch out for the other two nurses, just in case North and his men go after them, figuring they can’t wait for Doc’s help,” Ryan said to Jake.
“Hell.” Jake flipped open his phone and punched in a number. “Darien, we’ve got a new situation.”
“See you at the house,” Ryan said to Jake. Jake gave him the thumbs-up, and Ryan led Carol to his own truck.
When they were on their way to Darien’s home, Ryan asked. “Doc was all right, correct?”
“Yes.” Carol rubbed her arms and still appeared unsettled.
“Good thing you wanted to check on him. If we hadn’t learned of North’s interest in him, we might not have discovered what they were up to until it was too late. Whoever’s sick can be brought here. And none of the medical staff is going to them. Certainly not after what they pulled with you. Are you sure you didn’t have a premonition of the phone call? It seems odd that you were so desperate to go there, and we find he’s just sleeping, but then we learn of North’s interest in the doc.”
“I didn’t have a vision of anything. Just a strong feeling. And since the last vision I had was of Doc not being able to shift back, that’s what I feared this was all about.”
“I thought we established that you don’t see lengthy visions, that he could very well shift later on.”
“In his wolf form, he’s agitated. I can’t see where he is, but it’s like he’s caged in. Like he’s stuck.”
He could allow that she “felt” something. She was correct in assuming that he’d have a hunch about a situation and know danger was present, or that someone was lying to cover their illicit deeds. Nothing that he could prove in a court of law. Just that elusive feeling.
But he couldn’t help feeling that something more had triggered her need to be at Doc’s house at the right moment. Something that was a little more than a hunch. Something like a sixth sense that went beyond what he normally believed in.
Silence filled the air as he thought about Doc being in his wolf form, pacing and anxious, and what could bring that about. “Maybe he just does that normally, Carol.”
She turned to stare at him. “What?”
“Doc. Maybe he turns into the wolf and paces when he’s agitated sometimes. All of us handle situations differently. My Aunt Tilda likes to take a nap as a wolf. As a human, she feels she isn’t allowed. To her way of thinking, only children take naps. But as a wolf, she feels it’s acceptable. So maybe when Doc Weber is stressed, he shape-shifts. To an extent, it does change who we are for a while. It’s a different sort of freedom.”
“Maybe he does shift for that reason,” she said quietly, “but I wouldn’t have a vision of something that is perfectly normal for him.”
Silence stretched between them as Ryan mulled that over. “Do you see more pieces of the vision later on?”
“Sometimes. Mostly it’s just the same spot in time, the same image. Like with Mervin tackling me.”
Despite not having any confirmation that what she envisioned could come to pass, Ryan was beginning to worry for Doc, too.
Chapter 20
TWENTY MINUTES LATER, RYAN PULLED INTO DARIEN’S drive, unable to let go of Carol’s concern over Doc or his own worry that she might be right. He turned off the ignition and spoke to Carol as Jake pulled in behind him and parked.
“You sure you didn’t have another premonition about Doc that triggered your concern?”
“I’m certain. Why do you keep asking?”
He shook his head and opened his door. “I don’t know. Maybe your premonitions have… gotten me to thinking.”
“You felt something, too?” Her eyes were wide. “A hunch that maybe something wasn’t right?”
Or maybe her worry was feeding into his psyche. Almost as if her concern for a future unknown event had sensitized him to the possibility that it existed. He shook his head at himself, she sighed, and he closed his door. Before he could reach hers, Jake was already there again, helping her out.
Darien headed outside to speak to them. “I don’t want Lelandi to know about this latest development concerning North and his men. She’s to be under guard as usual until we settle this. But it appears that the hospital staff are most likely the targets this time. Tom called and said Doc woke to find him there, was coughing his head off, and decided to shift.”
“No,” Carol said, her voice hushed as her hand flew to her breast.
Ryan caught her free arm as she wobbled on her feet.
Darien frowned. “He thought he’d feel better. Sometimes our wolf halves can handle colds or allergies better. If it’s the flu, canines can’t catch the human variety. So it would knock it out. Anyway, if it’s any of the more common stuff, sometimes shifting will lessen the symptoms. But he’ll know before long and can change back if need be. ”
Carol looked pale and distraught.
“Let’s go inside,” Darien said, studying her. “Lelandi’s got supper on.”
His arm around her waist, Ryan walked Carol into the house and whispered to her, “You all right?”
“Sure… sure, I’m all right.”
“Is Tom staying the night with Doc?” Ryan asked Darien.
“Yeah. The sheriff is running by there to watch the area, too, and a couple of other men also. He’s well safeguarded.” Darien motioned for Jake to take Carol into the dining room. “I want a word with you, Ryan.” He walked Ryan back outside as Jake led a reluctant Carol into the dining room. “Have you learned how Carol is stopping the shift?”