Page 36 of Moonlighting with the Werewolf

Sabine reluctantly followed my instructions, and I stepped around Conall to study the arrow he’d dug out of the trash. Sure enough, the shaft was hollow, and when I shook it, liquid splatted the counter in tiny droplets.

Conall raised an eyebrow.

I gathered my hair in a makeshift ponytail so it wouldn’t drag through the mystery substance, leaned over, and sniffed. “Um, I’m not exactly sure what it smells like or how to test my theory. Like I said, it was a random case study I saw online, so...”

With a shrug, Conall pressed a fingertip to one of shimmery globules. He jerked back his hand with a hiss, and I snagged his wrist and studied the tip of his index finger. Bile rose at the scent of charred flesh, and I guided his hand under the faucet and turned the water full blast.

Then I studied it again, sticking out my lower lip at the large blister that’d formed.

“I appreciate that you worry about me, Doc, but I’m fine.” Conall’s eyes met mine, leaving my head pleasantly swimmy.

Movement caught my eye—Sabine rubbing at her eyes. She yawned. “Sorry. My sleepless nights are catching up to me. It sorta hit all at once.” She blinked watery eyes, her lids and chin drooping before she jerked herself upright.

She could say what she wanted about my priorities, but my two-fold plan was falling into place. She’d left Conall and me for long enough to discuss the possibility of silver poisoning,and I needed her out of the room as I thought up experimental treatments that might counteract its effects.

“Why don’t you go rest?” I suggested in a low, singsong voice. “This will take a while, but I’ll stay by Justin’s side the entire time. It’ll make it easier to move around in this small room anyway.”

“That’s o?—”

“I’ll have Sasquatch escort you home.” Conall flung open the door, and suddenly I was grateful for the whole alpha thing she’d scolded me for not considering. Since shewasrespectful, she literally couldn’t refuse.

As soon as the door closed, Conall spun to face me. “What can we do?”

“Nitric acid dissolves silver. Problem is, it’s also poisonous.”

“What if we gave him just enough to flush it out?”

I leaned a hip on the counter and racked my brain. “It’s like giving someone a battery acid cocktail. Even inhaling it is enough to cause acute respiratory distress, which doesn’t bode well for his organs. It’s also not the easiest to get a hold of, although the chemistry teacher at the local high school would likely have some in stock.”

“If Justin can rid his body of the silver, he might be able to heal his lungs.”

“But if he stops breathing before he can do enough healing...” I exhaled and paced the room, which was only about five steps one way and five back with Conall taking up the space near the door. “We’d better consider that the nuclear option.”

Justin snagged both of our attention with a hacking, liquid cough. His body convulsed, and he dry heaved until he puked a puddle of blood.

Desperation besieged Conall’s expression. “Is there anything else we can do?”

My mind raced through several scenarios, and only one survived the pros versus cons test. “Blood transfusion.”

Conall yanked up his sleeve and sat on the chair, the vein in the inside of his elbow presented and ready to go.

“Do you know if you’re the same blood type?”

“Yeah. We’re both werewolf positive.”

Time was of the essence, and with Justin’s convulsions growing worse by the second, there wasn’t time to test blood and go through the usual protocols. Not that there were any forwerewolf poisoned by witch magic and liquid silver arrows.

Originally, I worried I’d overpacked, but now I was glad I’d decided it was the better option, as opposed to constantly having to retrieve supplies from the office and vice versa. I added a sedative to the IV to help Justin cope and fished my car keys out of my pocket. “I’ll be right back. I’m not sure if Sasquatch is as quick at his tasks as Sabine was to get hot water, but perhaps you should mention that he shouldn’t bother stopping me this time.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

The past twotimes Kerrigan had been standing over me performing surgery, everything had been hazy, and I hadn’t particularly appreciated it. Coming to in strange places did that to a guy. Especially one who craved control and dominance over every situation.

As she drew my blood, her movements deft and precise, all in the name of saving a werewolf she’d only met in animal form, I marveled at her adeptness and intelligence. At how strongly she cared. At everything I’d learned about her, and I couldn’t wait to discover more. “Thank you. I know this is above and beyond.”

She paused, her cleavage inches from my face, and I totally deserved extra points for maintaining eye contact. I could use them after the points I’d already lost drinking in the sight of her while she jabbed a needle into my vein. It’d been a legitimate distraction tactic, but I’d milked the opportunity for all it was worth.

“Just doing my job,” Kerrigan said, shrugging off the compliment as if it were no big deal.

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