Dr. Wolf, the Fae Rift Series Book 1- Shockwave Read Online Free Page A

door.
    “Demon,” Aleric said.
    The creature towered above the orderlies and nurses in the room. Its skin pulsed with shades of red like lava flowing across its body. It opened its mouth and let out a roar that made the humans around it cower in fear. The huge creature had Dr. Worthen by the throat. Nurse Eastwick tried to inject a needle into the demon’s arm. The creature backhanded her so hard she slammed into the wall and fell to the ground.
    There wasn’t time to second-guess his actions. Aleric phased to wolf form and leaped at the demon. He grabbed it by the same arm it used to hold the doctor. The demon let out a roar and dropped Dr. Worthen. Before Aleric could let go, the creature grabbed him in its huge claws and threw him across the room. Aleric landed on his paws and darted back across the tile floor. He dodged beneath the demon’s attempt to catch him and launched himself at its throat.
    Aleric bit down. The demon staggered backwards. The creature clawed at his back, but Aleric didn’t let go. He used extreme care to keep his fangs from piercing the demon’s skin, but he bit hard enough to shut off the Dark fae’s windpipe. It scrabbled, trying to pull him free, but Aleric’s jaw was locked. He closed his eyes against the battering his ribs were taking, but he refused to let go.
    The creature’s footsteps faltered. It took several steps backwards, fell to its knees, then collapsed onto its back. Aleric held on until he felt the demon change form. Its massive neck shrunk, its skin faded from pulsing red to pale, and the rest of its body contracted down to the form of a normal human. Aleric let go of the neck and took several wary steps backwards. The creature’s now-human head lolled back and the glowing irises of its partially closed eyes were blank.
    Aleric listened carefully as he watched the rise and fall of the demon’s chest. Its heart beat regularly, though with a deeper intonation than that of the humans cowering around the room.
    When Aleric met their gazes, the orderlies and nurses of the Emergency Room shrunk away from him. His heart slowed. They were terrified of the demon, that much was sure, but what he saw in their eyes was fear of him, the werewolf who had just saved their lives.
    Certain that the demon wasn’t going to rise anytime soon, Aleric paced back to the double doors. He grabbed the hospital gown he had torn when he phased and pulled it through the doors in his fangs. In the empty hallway behind the doors, it took several minutes for Aleric will the adrenaline to leave his body. Demons were dangerous. He had never, ever attacked one. Growing up in Blays, there was one rule. Don’t attack a demon. Those who do, die.
    He had survived. The pain of his ribs ensured that he knew very well that he was alive. His head pounded. He had forgotten about his injury. Being thrown around by the demon probably wasn’t the best thing for him. If he was a real doctor, he would tell himself to go lay down and stop fighting demons.
    Aleric’s body began to shake as the adrenaline left. He allowed himself to lean against the wall in wolf form. He had nearly died. Since awakening in the hospital in the first place meant a probable prior near-death experience even though he couldn’t remember what it was, fighting the demon proved to be the second time that day he had confronted death and survived. No wonder his body was telling him it was time to take a break.
    Wolves didn’t have nervous breakdowns. He toyed with the thought that perhaps he should just stay a wolf. The world was easier that way; plenty of other werewolves ran off to live in wolf packs and pretend to fit in with the wild animals. The thought was tempting, especially considering the world he was confronted with wasn’t even his own. However, he didn’t know if there were even wolves in whatever world Edge City occupied.
    Also, there was that small thought of demons and vampires threatening the safety of the nurses and doctor