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  Red in Tooth and Claw

  Underdogs #4

  Geonn Cannon

  Supposed Crimes LLC, Matthews, NC

  All Rights Reserved

  Copyright 2015 Geonn Cannon

  Published in the United States

  ISBN: 978-1-938108-77-8

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  The wolf in you speaks

  To the wolf in me

  It’s the language of beasts

  We speak it fluently

  There are no words

  For what we need

  The hunger bites and burns

  The wolf heart beats

  It’s not like this

  For everyone

  Our wolves run wild

  They might just eat us up

  Wolf tugs at the leash

  Leads me astray

  Leads you to me

  Are we a pack

  Or running free

  How big our eyes

  How sharp our teeth

  - “Wolf Song,” Charming Disaster

  Chapter One

  Ariadne Willow didn’t have the luxury of going to a regular doctor for her check-ups. She didn’t get the fancy hospital waiting room where she would wait on a padded table in a sterile room while nurses made announcements over the PA system. Instead she went to a quaint suburban house with a garden next to the porch and a neatly-trimmed backyard. The garage doubled as an emergency room, but patients who were only getting a checkup stayed in the dining room.

  For the most part Ariadne was completely normal, with nothing to throw up a red flag. She could visit a doctor to get a flu shot. It was anything more invasive than a cursory examination that caused problems. Most of the bones in her body had minute, perfectly healed fractures that nonetheless showed up on X-rays. Those would be hard to explain without claiming she was a daredevil trapeze artist who wasn’t very good at her job.

  In truth she was a canidae, a werewolf in pop culture parlance, and every transformation required her skeleton to break and shift into a new position. Her spine became bowed, with a tail extending from the base of her spine. Her hands and feet snapped and folded to enable her four-legged stance, while the phalanges of her fingers became paws. The most telling evidence was her skull. Any doctor in Seattle would be alarmed at the roadmap of faded fractures across the front of her face. The human head didn’t easily reshape into a wolf’s snout, but Ari made it happen at least four times a month.

  So she, like every other canidae she knew, had a canidae doctor. Aaron Frost was also a wolf, and a former veterinarian. Even before he retired he’d kept a side business at his home for others like him who needed help. Ari had once compared it to being a mob doctor, patching up the aches and pains and bullet wounds that couldn’t be taken to a regular emergency room. He had considered the similarities for a moment before agreeing that she had a point.

  Ari sat on Dr. Frost’s couch after her most recent examination, staring at her hand as she flexed the fingers and then curled them into a fist. Her fingernails dug into her palm with a dull ache before she relaxed. Directly in front of her was a window seat with the curtains pushed open to let the sun in. The doctor’s neighbor had a cherry-red bicycle lying in their driveway. Next door to them was a basketball goal flanked by garbage cans. It was so ordinary, so mundane, that she felt as if it was another world entirely. She wondered what those ordinary people would say if they knew the kindly old doctor was running an off-the-books health center for werewolves.

  She looked down at her hands and the marks her fingernails had left in the palm. In the past few months, since the craziness of wolf manoth and the hunters, she had been experiencing moments of paralysis. Post-transformation pain had always been more acute for her than it was with most canidae, but lately the pain was different. Now it lingered in a way that alarmed her. And if she was alarmed, she could only imagine how Dale felt.

  Dr. Frost came in from the kitchen where he had been running a few tests, and he smiled as he joined her in the living room. She was amazed at how different he looked from the first time they’d met. His white hair was tamed and a razor had been employed to remove the silver fuzz from his jawline. A jaw which, it had to be noted, was sharper and more defined than she remembered. His clothes were crisp and freshly-laundered. Marriage was doing him worlds of good.

  “How’s everything look?”

  “Good, good,” he said. “You’re in perfect health for a young woman. Slightly better, in fact. You get more exercise than the average girl your age.”

  She smiled warily. “Perfect health for a young woman. What about for a young canidae?”

  He rubbed his hands over the knees of his pants. “Yes. Well, the good news is that I don’t see any indication that your condition is getting worse. You’ve stopped the half-way transformations, which helped. You’re putting more time between your transformations which gives your joints the opportunity to heal and relax.”

  “In January you told Dale that I might be paralyzed by the time I’m forty.”

  He nodded somberly. “That is a possibility.”

  “Doc, that’s less than ten years from now.”

  He nodded again.

  Ari put her elbows on her knees and covered her face with both hands. Most canidae didn’t have to deal with issues like this, but hers was a special case. Her birth was the result of an attack, her mother raped by a group of hunters. When she was born she lacked the ability to transform naturally due to her mixed blood. Her mother found a disreputable version of Dr. Frost and asked him to perform a wholly unethical procedure: he removed the blood from the newborn Ariadne and replaced it with a pure-born canidae. It worked and, when Ari reached puberty, she was able to transform like anyone else. When she complained that it hurt, her mother would say it hurt for everyone. She claimed it would eventually get easier and the pain would get less noticeable, so Ari just assumed she needed to toughen up.

  Her mother finally revealed the truth a few years later. Ari’s pain wasn’t normal and was, as feared, worse than what everyone else experienced. Because of the artificial way she had been “created,” and exacerbated by the fact her father was a hunter, her body was more reluctant on both sides of the transformation. She had been coping with the pain for years thanks to Dale, but now the pain was getting worse. She didn’t even want to think about the terrifying moments when her hand would be frozen and stiff. If that was an omen she would one day be unable to move at all...

  Frost patted her arm. “Have you been... medicating... as we suggested?”

  Ari pushed her hands through her hair. “You can’t smell that shit on me?”

  He smiled. “It is rather pungent. But you can cook it into food, there are pills and fluid extract...”

  “But I don’t like pills or pot cookies, and smoking is more convenient all around.” She sighed. “The stink, though. I smell like someone shit a skunk.”

  Frost laughed. “Have you tried heating vanilla extract on the stove?”

  “Yeah. It just makes me want cookies.”

  “So make some pot cookies.”

  She smiled. “Thanks, Doc.”

  He folded his arms in front of him and leaned back. “I won’t lie, Ariadne. This is a serious situation, and a unique one. I’ve never had a patient like you. That’s why I like you so much.” She smiled. “It could become life-threatening in a few years. But we’re catching it early enough that I’m confident we can do more than just manage symptoms. You’re health-conscious and determined to take care of yourself, so I think
we have a fighting chance. You also have a very good partner looking out for you.”

  “I’m not the only one.”

  Frost chuckled and self-consciously reached up to touch his hair. “Yes, Caroline... hm. Yes.” He shrugged and then patted her arm. “One way or another, we’ll find a way to work this out. Okay?”

  “Sounds good.”

  He patted his pockets, looked around, and spotted his prescription pad on the coffee table. He picked it up and flipped it open.

  “I’m writing you a prescription for Rimadyl. It will help any symptoms that might be manifesting when you’re in wolf form. Have Dale give it to you when you’re transformed. If you try to take it as a human, there will be issues.”

  “It’s an animal medication? Does that mean I can’t change back until it’s out of my system?”

  Frost shook his head. “No, no. I’ve done this sort of thing before. The transformation doesn’t affect the medication. Don’t ask me how the body knows.” He continued writing on his pad. “I’m also going to prescribe medical marijuana. Get whatever form of it works best for you.”

  “A lot of vets write scrip for pot?”

  He winked. “No one will give you any guff for it. They know me down at the pharmacy. Besides, it’s a legal drug now, Ariadne. They’re even giving the stuff to elderly dogs to alleviate pain. Besides, it does help, right?” She reluctantly nodded. “The smell, eh, yes. That can be an issue for us. But there are a myriad of solutions on the internet for dispersing the aroma. If there’s one thing that humanity has banded together on, it’s tactics to conceal the fact they’ve been consuming mind-altering drugs.”

  “Okay.” She took the prescription from him. “Doctor’s orders.”

  “Indeed. Now, how is Miss Frye?”

  “Dale? She’s doing really well.”

  Frost nodded, obviously waiting for her to continue.

  “Business is, uh, doing well, too.”

  “She’s giving you massages still?”

  Ari said, “Yeah. They help. They help a lot.”

  “How is she sleeping?”

  “Fine. I guess.” Ari furrowed her brow. “No offense, but why the interest. Dale isn’t canidae...”

  He chuckled. “I’m well aware. But she’s dating a canidae with a complicated health issue. Since she became your employee, Miss Frye has come to your aid. She puts together stashes of clothing and supplies and hides them throughout the city, she wakes up whenever you call to come pick you up, she gives massages, and now she monitors your condition post-transformation to make sure it hasn’t gotten worse. Caregivers have a nasty habit of not showing how much it weighs on them. You should be sure you aren’t making the mistake of taking her for granted.”

  Ari nodded slowly. “Yeah. Yes. I understand. Thanks.”

  Frost stood up and rubbed his hands together. “All right. That should do for now. I’ll see you again in a few weeks?”

  “Yeah, sounds good.”

  “Unless something comes up. You don’t have to worry about making an appointment in case there’s a... a...” He gestured vaguely at the garage. “I’m saying if any of your foreign friends come back and cause a ruckus, you can always come here.”

  “Thanks, Dr. Frost. I don’t anticipate anything like that happening again, but it’s nice to know we have options if it does.”

  #

  Even though Ari had offered several times, Dale simply wasn’t interested in becoming a licensed private investigator. She knew that it would make them equals in the business, but it would also change the dynamic of their work relationship. She liked sitting in the office and working on the computer while Ari was on stakeout or tracking people. Dale liked digging through computer trails while Ari seemed to have a good time following the real thing. She did appreciate the offer of promotion and what it indicated about Ari’s perception of her, but she was perfectly happy where she was.

  At the moment that was recovering cell phone records for a client who believed her wife was cheating on her. Dale hated cases like this, but they made up a majority of their workload. Everyone was jealous, and everyone was suspicious that their perfect world might not be so perfect after all. In this particular instance it seemed as if their client had reason to be suspicious. That was another reason Dale preferred staying on this side of the business; Ari would be the one who took the client into the office, sat her down, and found a way to reveal that her wife was indeed being unfaithful. She could keep that.

  She had just printed off the pertinent records when Ariadne came in. “Hey. I have cell phone records for the Bertram case.”

  “Good news?”

  Dale wrinkled her nose. “Mm.”

  “Damn.” Ari picked up the printout and scanned it. “Damn it. Okay. I’ll have her come in and break the news. Is that the last thing we have on the books?”

  Dale tapped her keyboard and opened the calendar. “I think so. We’re still waiting on final payment from Mr. Harris. Other than that we have a few days free. Why?”

  Ari came around the desk and turned Dale’s chair to face her. She got on both knees in front of her and took Dale’s hands.

  “Dr. Frost said something today that kind of freaked me out.”

  “Are you okay?” Dale immediately began stroking Ari’s knuckles, subtly seeking for signs that they were seizing or in pain.

  “I’m fine.” Ari patted Dale’s hands away. “It didn’t have anything to do with my health. But as far as that goes, I’m healthy. He told me I needed to smoke more pot...”

  Dale chuckled and Ari could hear the relief in her voice. “Okay, so what did he say?”

  “You’ve been taking care of me for years. Even before we were together, you were always putting me first. I know I’ve thanked you for that. I know you know how much I appreciate everything you do for me. Nothing is being taken for granted here. But lately you’ve been so on top of my health that I feel like it deserves a special reward. So I’m going to take the week off and take you somewhere special. Just the two of us. No wolf. No transformations, no middle of the night calls, no stashes to maintain, just you, hanging out with your partner.”

  “Whoa.” Dale leaned back against the seat. “That sounds awesome, Ari.”

  “And of course, my presence is negotiable...”

  Dale leaned in and kissed Ari’s lips. “No, it’s really not. That’s a really sweet idea, Ari. Thank you. But just so you know, I wasn’t feeling neglected in any way, shape, or form.”

  “I hardly ever say thank you.”

  “You do. Every day.”

  Ari brought Dale’s hands to her lips. “It’s sweet of you to say that, but... really? I mean, what do I do for you? I need a calculator to add up everything you do for me, but in return you get... what?”

  “I get you.”

  “Oh. Oh, you got boned.”

  Dale laughed and kissed both of Ari’s cheeks. “We’ve been through this before.”

  “And yet I haven’t gotten any better.”

  “You just need to learn that a relationship isn’t about doing things for each other or keeping balance. It’s not tit-for-tat. It’s a cumulative thing. You don’t know what you give me? Look at yourself, Ariadne Willow. You’re the strongest woman I know and you’re on your knees in front of me. You’re the most impressive, most amazing woman I’ve ever met, and you’re stressing about how to show me how much you love me. That blows me away, Ariadne. All you have to do is keep wanting me.”

  “But that’s easy.”

  “Just like taking care of you is easy for me.” Dale grinned wider and kissed the tip of Ari’s nose. “You need me. You want me. That’s enough.”

  Ari sighed. “Okay. Fine. If you want to let me off easy.”

  “I do.”

  “Fine.” She stood up and pecked Dale’s lips.

  Dale gripped two of Ari’s fingers to keep her from retreating. “Hey. Just so we’re absolutely clear. You gave me a life. You gave me a job I love. You gave me the mea
ns to stay in a city I adore. I probably would’ve had to go back home with my tail between my legs if I’d never met you. That’s what you give me. And if you’re not aware of that, then maybe I’m the one who has been negligent. I should say it more often.”

  “We’ll both try to be better, then.”

  “Agreed.” She bent down and kissed the middle knuckle of Ari’s index finger before letting her go. “I’ll start thinking of places we can go. Nothing too far away, I’m guessing.”

  Ari said, “Nah. We’ll save Paris for one of the big anniversaries.”

  Dale smiled. “Okay. I’m on it. Ari?”

  She stopped at the door of her office. “Mm?”

  “I love you.”

  Ari laughed. “I love you, too. Now get back to work.”

  “Yes, Miss Willow.” Dale smirked and glanced at Ari out of the corner of her eye before she went back to her duties.

  #

  Dale suggested they stop for groceries on the way home, but Ari pointed out they would most likely be away from home for most of the week and anything they bought ran the risk of being wasted. So instead they splurged on some fast-food and took it back to their new apartment. Ari’s home had been one of the casualties of wolf manoth, burned down by hunters after they realized she was a wolf. The material damage hadn’t worried her too much, although she did feel guilty about her neighbors, but she was actually grateful for the loss because it forced her to take the step of officially cohabitating with Dale.

  After a few months of searching they finally found a great place. It was a basement apartment in a Central neighborhood. Their landlady was younger than they were, a Duwamish woman in her twenties named Neka Teller who was studying to build boats. They were still trying to work out their relationship with her - were they friends who occasionally handed over a check? Was it simply a neighbor situation? - but everything seemed copacetic so far.

  They had an exterior entrance that led to the backyard, and Ari was able to use it to get in and out for the wolf’s nocturnal excursions. Dale had apologized in advance to Neka if their late-night comings and goings ever bothered her, but she said it was just part of living above a private investigator. She assumed investigations required a lot of unusual hours for stakeouts and whatnot. The cover was good enough that Ari let her believe it.