Page 25 of Awakened By the Guardian

Margaret frowned. “You’ve already shifted once. Could she explain why you didn’t immediately walk? How you could feel things then couldn’t?”

He shook his head. “No. That’s the confusing part. It may take a couple shifts, or it may be that my mental picture is still in flux. Part of me thinks I’m able to walk, part of me doesn’t.”

She remembered how he’d looked last night after collapsing, the thick muscles in his legs and his tight bottom. He’d looked like an athlete. “You played basketball at the University of Michigan, didn’t you?”

“On the club team, yes. It was how I blew off steam. And I want to play again.” He stared at her. “Dr. Sherilyn thinks the more I shift, the more I can reform those nerve endings. But I have to do it soon if it’s ever going to work. This is a now-or-never thing. Something about nerves, energy, and the cumulative effect of magic.” He stopped speaking as his gaze slid back to Vic, who held up a finger in a just-a-minute gesture.

Mr. Baldner spoke up. “It’s a risk, son, but I trust Dr. Sherilyn.”

Gary glanced at him. “She said you guys have some concentrated serum? She created it after the first wave of the Detroit Flu using notes from a cougar shifter. She sent it before the quarantine so that the Griz could compare it to what’s in the water.” His knuckles were white on the arms of his wheelchair. “She thinks I will shift again if I inject it straight into my blood.”

Margaret gasped. “You want to inject a concentrated poison?”

“It’s a serum, not poison,” Gary argued, though that made no sense to her. “And if it works…”

“What if it fries your brain?” She took a breath, feeling her asthma increase from the stress. “Did you also tell her how tired you are? Did you discuss how much of a strain shifting is on a body?”

He gave her an irritated look. “Yes. She said it’s a miracle I’m awake given that my first shift was last night and me to rest up before I did it again. And to make sure there’s people around to help if it goes bad. But that was obvious!”

Margaret crouched down in front of Gary, taking his hands in hers. “Yes. We know that you’re wiped out. It’s stupid to take an unnecessary risk when you’re exhausted.”

His gaze softened, and she saw exactly what his father had warned: love. She returned that love a hundred-fold. But hers wasn’t a sexual love, and Gary shouldn’t have to settle for anything less with his romantic partner. No one should.

“You don’t have to be afraid,” he whispered. “Not of me as a bear.”

“Oh my God!” she snapped, irritated by his stupidity. “I’m not afraid of you. I’m afraid for you.” She pushed upright and did her best to tower over him. “You can’t walk if you’re dead. So tell me the risks. I know you asked.”

He grimaced, then admitted what she was afraid of. “There’s not much data either way. Maybe the serum kills me, maybe it doesn’t. Maybe shifting kills me, maybe it doesn’t. Maybe I get what I want, maybe I end up worse off. No way to know unless I try.” He matched her glare for glare. “She just said if I’m going to do it, I should do it soon.”

“So, try,” said Vic from behind them. “Life only gives you so many chances. It’s bad if you screw them up—trust me, I know about that. But it’s worse if you don’t even try.”

Gary nodded. “Exactly what I was thinking.”

Margaret wanted to scream. Talk about bullshit male bonding. Though neither man moved, Margaret felt towels snapping and locker room high-fives as if they were happening before her eyes. In this one affirmation, Gary had found a brother.

“Okay…,” she said slowly, as if they both had head wounds. “Maybe you should try, but after you get some rest. That’s only logical.”

“And not at home,” Vic added. “It’s got to be here, where we can contain things if it goes bad.”

Margaret shuddered. She didn’t want Gary “contained if it went bad.” She wanted him helped. She wanted him whole. She wanted him happy.

“It’s okay, Margaret,” Mr. Baldner said. “We know how to take care of our own without hurting him.”

Vic chuckled. “We’ve got tranquilizer guns.”

God, Margaret didn’t even want to think of them shooting Gary.

“Let’s come back tomorrow,” she said, but Gary shook his head.

“Too long. I’m not waiting⁠—”

“Yes, you are,” interrupted Vic. “Last thing I need is to accidentally kill our newest shifter. Why don’t you take a nap upstairs? There’s a guest bedroom. It’s pretty basic, but it’s quieter and more private than down here.”

Gary shook his head. “I⁠—”

Vic squatted so that their eyes were level. “You’re part of the clan now, and you need to understand we’ve got a command structure. Simon’s on top—he’s alpha and you’ll meet him later. I’m his beta. That means we give the orders and you guys obey. Always.”

Gary looked mutinous. “I’m not joining a paramilitary organization. I’m just⁠—”