Chapter 5
EVERYBODY LOVES WULFRIC
LADDIN WATCHED as Bruce tried to straighten up, something that was hard to do in slouchy sweatpants and a too-tight T-shirt. The guy was big, that was for sure. He had shoulders that could lift a car and probably had, given that he was a firefighter. But he was also a grouchy sourpuss who tended to look on the dark side of life.
Laddin knew the type. Bruce had probably been disappointed too many times by people who had promised something and failed to deliver. Welcome to the club, buddy. But going through life with a growl was just a waste of energy, and Laddin had no time for people who wasted anything that could be put to better use. His mother had taught him that the first time he’d whined about his messed-up hand. Every time he grumbled, she made him do chores until he discovered that he could do twice as much as people with two normal hands, simply because he didn’t waste time complaining.
“Your clothes are in there,” he said to Bruce as he gestured inside the van. Then he did his own bit of getting ready.
He checked his cell for messages from Captain M (none), reported via voicemail on Bruce’s progress (wolf back to human), and then prepared to meet the most awesome man in Wulf, Inc. history. Because the car that was pulling into the barn had Nero and Josh in the front seat and Wulfric, the two-hundred-year-old founder of Wulf, Inc., in the back.
Laddin didn’t know much about Wulfric except that he was incredibly reclusive, everyone wanted to be his friend, and he only came out when the world was ending. He and his witch mother had deployed to Wisconsin when the lake had turned to poison, but he’d been as ineffective as everyone else at finding the demon. And now Laddin was going to get a chance to meet him, all because he was at the pizza farm along with the other members of Wulf, Inc.
It wasn’t until Nero had thrown the car into Park that Laddin realized Wulfric, the man of shifter legend, looked like he’d been chewed on by an ogre. Half his face was swollen, and the other half was ripped into shreds. There was blood everywhere, and he’d slumped sideways in the car with his mangled face pressed up against the window.
Laddin rushed forward, intending to open the car door, but stopped, realizing the guy would fall onto the ground. So he stood there looking awkward, his hands hovering uselessly near the door handle. Meanwhile, Nero and Josh both got out. A closer look showed that they too were worse for wear. Or at least their clothes were, given the tears and blood splatter. They, on the other hand, appeared completely healthy despite their anxious expressions.
“What happened?” Laddin asked.
“Hellhounds,” Josh said as he opened the back door and gently reached inside. “Don’t trust your eyes with him. He’s got a fairy glamour that makes him appear beautiful.”
Laddin frowned. Wulfric looked anything but beautiful right then. More like a special effects monster gone bad.
“We got Wiz to dispel the magic for now,” Josh continued. “But if he suddenly looks like the picture of health, it’s an illusion.”
Got it. “Why didn’t Wulfric shift?” That was the fastest way to heal.
“Too exhausted,” Nero answered. “He should be in a hospital, but they’re overrun with regular human casualties right now. Besides, he’s better off resting here and waiting for one of the clerics to magic him better.”
Laddin swallowed. Wulfric the Legend looked like he was about to lose his lunch as Josh gently shook him awake. “How long will that take?”
Nero’s expression turned grim as Josh helped Wulfric straighten up and move away from the window. “He’s got a freaking death wish. He ran in front of the entire hellhound pack—as a damned human—to buy time for people to get away. And before you ask, no, I don’t know why there were hellhounds running around the lake. They were probably attracted by the mystical shitshow we’ve got going. Wulfric was there doing some sort of seeking spell for the demon. Luckily, we were looking for him. If we’d been a few minutes later, he’d have been lunch meat.” Nero rubbed a hand over the back of his head, and his eyes were haunted. “It’s a mess up there, Laddin. Everyone is trying to figure out why Lake Wacka Wacka is poison. We got military, scientists, reporters, and the paranormal everywhere. It’s a real fucking apocalypse.” He added those last words in an agonized whisper as he bent to help Wulfric out of the car.
“Don’t open that door!” Bruce snapped as he moved around the car. “Josh, get out of my way.”
Nero’s head snapped up. “You don’t issue the orders around here.”
“I’m a paramedic. Hate me all you want, but I’m your best shot of keeping him alive.” He grimaced as he looked inside the car. “Short of a hospital.”
Josh backed out of the way, his expression completely locked down. “He’s really important, Bruce.”
“They’re all really important. Now get me a med kit. Whatever you’ve got.”
Laddin leaped to obey, but Nero was closer. He got to the van first and peered inside, but he obviously didn’t remember where everything was. So Laddin elbowed him out of the way, grabbed Bruce’s empty cage and passed it to Nero, then crawled inside to grab the kit. And while he was maneuvering, Nero grumbled a question at him.
“Is he stable?”
It took a moment for Laddin to realize he was referring to Bruce, not Wulfric.
“Good job getting him human and all,” Nero continued. “But how freaked is he?”
“Not freaked at all,” Laddin said as he passed the basic kit over to Nero. He still had to grab the defibrillator and anything else that might be useful. “He chose this, remember?”
“Which makes him really untrustworthy,” Nero said before he rushed back to the car with the
