Dr. Elihu struggled frantically.
Nothing can stop me. Nowhere is safe from me. No one can save you.
The doctor thrashed so hard that he banged his own head against the floor. But he was no match for Shane’s strength, nor could he break eye contact.
I am the panther in the trees. I am the shark beneath the waves. I am the man with a knife.
The doctor began to scream.
I am the death you see coming. I am the fear in the dark. I am the nightmare turned real.
Dr. Elihu’s shriek of terror rose to an ear-piercing pitch, then suddenly stopped. His eyes rolled back in his head, and his entire body went limp.
Shane blinked in surprise. He’d scared the hell out a lot of people, but nobody had ever actually passed out before.
He got off Dr. Elihu, sat down on the floor, and took a second look. The doctor’s chest wasn’t moving. Shane touched the side of his throat. He had no pulse.
“I scared him to death,” Shane said aloud. “I didn’t even know I could do that.”
“Serves him right.” Catalina stepped up from behind him. “Shane, are you hurt?”
Whether it was the gunshot wound or the intensity with which he’d used his power or both, he suddenly felt shaky and weak. He could feel the bullet inside his body, jammed against one of his ribs like a burning coal.
“Yeah,” Shane said. “He shot me.”
“Oh, God.” Catalina’s hand closed convulsively over his shoulder. “I couldn’t see from behind.”
Shane covered her hand with his, trying to reassure her. He’d completely lost it when he’d thought she was dying. It was much easier to be on the other side. “Don’t be scared. I have shifter healing.”
Catalina took a few deep breaths, then regained her paramedic cool. “Sit tight and keep pressure on it. I saw a sign a little way back that said emergency supplies. I’ll fetch a medical kit. It’ll take two minutes, tops.”
“Wait!” Shane hated the idea of her going into danger alone, even for a minute or two.
He forced himself to his feet. Everything went black around the edges. Next thing he knew, he was kneeling on the floor again.
“Shane!” Catalina was clutching his shoulders.
His vision cleared. “I’ll be fine. Right here.”
Catalina frowned anxiously, glancing from him to the direction of the emergency supplies and back. “Now I’m scared to leave you alone.”
“Shifter healing, remember?” Shane put some force into his voice. “Just pass me Dr. Elihu?
??s gun.”
With a last worried look, Catalina handed it to him, then took off. With her astonishing new speed, she was out of sight in the blink of an eye.
“Keep a look-out,” he called after her, but his voice didn’t come out as loudly as he’d expected. His vision kept slipping ever so slightly out of focus. The gun, a lightweight Glock 22, felt heavy. He couldn’t stop shivering.
Shock, he thought. Internal bleeding. Stabilize the patient on-scene, then medevac immediately.
His mate could handle the stabilization, but medevac was another story. The base could be fifty miles from anywhere. Shifter healing alone would keep him alive for a few more hours, no problem. But not for a few more days.
Catalina returned with a medical kit, plus an armful of clothing she must have taken off the tranquilized security guard they’d left outside of the lab. Or maybe she’d tranquilized a different guard she’d happened to come across on her way to the kit.
“Lie down,” she said.
She put her arm behind his back and cupped his neck and head in her hands. Shane wasn’t so far gone as to need help lying down, but he let her ease him to the floor. Her hands were warm against his bare skin, and he felt colder than ever when she slid them out from under him.