Dustin held his brother’s hand. Hawkins was very still while things were explained, but he wasn’t fooled by it. He was afraid, just as the rest of them were. But they weren’t going to be the one that was going to be taking on what Hawkins was.
“The poison has been slowed down in the process of taking over his body because of what he is. If he’d have been human, or even a weaker shifter, he’d be dead already. Some of the effects of it are already making themselves known to him.” Mackenzie explained how he was weaker and had lost his ability to stand up for very long. “As I’ve said, I don’t know what Jon’s blood is going to do for him, other than more than likely heal him, but it’s better than the alterative.”
“I’ll say.” Dad looked around the room as he continued. “And if this doesn’t work, we’re going to go with plan B, right?”
“Yes, but plan B will have to wait until we can get him into the other rooms of the house. The equipment is there and set up. Everything is ready.” Dustin had been both terrified and happy that Jarvis had made sure that they had whatever they had needed in the event this didn’t work. “Are you ready?”
“Yes, but I’d like to say one thing.” Mackenzie nodded at Hawkins. “I wanted to tell you again how very sorry I am that I hurt you. And to also tell you that I love you. As much as I do the rest of my family. And if this goes south, then you—”
“No. We’re not gonna talk about that.” Hawkins tried to speak again, but Dad cut him off. “No. Please. I need to think positive on this. If you don’t believe, then how can the rest of us? We’re going to say when this works because I need to believe this as much as I need my next breath.”
They settled down again and Jon came to stand beside the cot that had been set up in the living room. Dustin wasn’t sure who had decided that this room was large enough to hold them all, but after the furniture was moved back, he could see that it was. They needed to be close.
“You ready for this?” Hawkins told Jon as ready as he’d ever be. “If you grow boobs or something equally weird, it’s because I had a burrito for lunch. If you get to craving something strange, that’s not my fault either.”
“I won’t blame you. However, if I have a kid after this is done, I’m totally having it call you Dad.” The humor was stale and dirty, but it did break the tension a little. Hawkins squeezed Dustin’s hand and waited for Jon. “Give it to me, buddy.”
Jon cut his own wrist, but not deeply. Mackenzie had cautioned him to be careful not to do it too deeply, or too long. They wanted Hawkins to receive the blood slowly, so that in the event something unknown happened, they could stop the flow quickly. Dustin wasn’t sure what the unknown could have been. No one seemed to know what was going to happen. However, they were all okay with the unknown on this. Whatever happened, they’d work around it. They were family, after all.
It didn’t take long for something to occur. Hawkins had been hooked up to heart and brain monitors. When the beeping started to take on a high whine, Dustin was reminded of when his mom had been hurt. Squeezing his brother’s hand tighter, he was glad when he returned the tightness.
Mackenzie kept taking Hawkins’ blood pressure, and Boyd was monitoring the machines. It looked like neither of them were upset about the noises that were occurring with this, so he tried his best to relax as well. It wasn’t until Mackenzie told Jon to stop for a moment that he realized that she was nervous too.
“Hawk, we’re going to draw some blood, but I’d like for you to see if you can shift your hands. I know that you can become a cat, but if you could—I don’t know—let your hand become a hawk’s talon, like your name would suggest, then we can see if it’s working.” Hawkins held out his free hand and nothing happened. “Just a little more than—”
“No. Wait. I’m thinking about it. I’ve never seen a hawk before. Not up close, anyway.” Everyone waited, and it wasn’t until he had a slight headache that Dustin realized that he wasn’t breathing. Hawkins grinned at them all. “Look at that. I’m part bird.”
They were good claws. And when he flexed them, Dustin felt the bite from them. Letting his brother go so that he could nurse his wound, he watched in fascination as Hawkins shifted and turned into a great bird of prey. As Hawk was flying around the room, Dustin was shocked when a drop of blood hit the small wound on his hand. Looking at Jon, he thought the younger man winked at him. The wound, a small tear in his flesh, healed immediately. Faster even than if he had done it on his own.
“Come down here this minute.” Dad was laughing hard, but trying his best to be stern. When Hawkins landed at his feet, Dad sat down on the floor with him. “How you feeling, son? Better? Worse?” Hawkins shifted from beast to man in seconds, with his clothing on and no apparent wounds.
“I feel fantastic.” Boyd asked if he could take a sample of blood. “Yes, please do. But I have to tell you, I’ve not felt this wonderful in years. Maybe my entire life.”
The blood test was going to be quick. Again, thanks to Jarvis, the needed equipment was there for them to see if this had worked or not. It would take time for the results, but all of them could see that things did look good. After his brother shifted into other animals, his body trembling with newfound energy, he said, Mackenzie took the sample.
Jon sat next to him at the table. Dustin had been working on this room for a couple of weeks last summer, putting in new windows, laying hardwood flooring, and new cabinets. Now they wanted to expand more. He was excited to start on this project for them. Jon poked him in the ribs.
“I helped you with Mac.” Dustin frowned. “You had to be the same. I didn’t want her to be without you.”
“I don’t understand.” Jon took his hand and looked at the small scar there. “You didn’t do this. Hawkins did when he was working on shifting.”
“Yes, but my blood is in your body as well. It’s all it took, a single drop of it, to make Mac into what she is. And that, apparently, is all it takes to give you life.” Dustin started to ask him what he was talking about when he looked at Mackenzie. “You and she, you’ll live forever now. The same as me. You’ll grow older, of course, but you won’t die from health issues or old age. Removing your head will kill you, but nothing to your heart. It’s safe too.”
“You did this to us? Why?” He said that he’d had to, for Mackenzie. “Does she know? I mean, you did tell her that you made her an.... Holy shit, Jon, Hawkins is as well.”
“Yes. And so are your parents and mine. The babies were easy to help along. Not the others as yet. I believe that Boyd has figured it out and has been avoiding me, but I’ll catch him. But to be honest with you, it wasn’t until I gave my blood to Mac that I realized what it would do. Then I’ve been going about making you all immortal. And in answer to your question, no, Mac does not know. Not yet. I wanted to be sure first that I could catch you.”
Dustin tried to think of the implications of being immortal. There were a great deal, too. His parents were...they’d be around forever instead of dying and leaving them. The kids, their children, would.... He asked Jon about that.
“I’m not sure. I mean, if you’re asking me about your children, I don’t know what they’ll get from this. If nothing, then I can help them as well. I’d like to say I have all the answers, but I don’t. Like you, I’m just figuring this out.” Jon grinned. “There are perks as well as bad things that could happen, Dustin. Like being around forever means that you can see your family grow up. See them have children and on down the line. Not to mention, the knowledge that you can give them. Growing up as an immortal will be easier for them, as they won’t ever have to think of dying. And I need you, all of you, here with me.”
“What will other people say? I mean, the town’s people. Won’t they notice that we’re still hanging around long after everyone around us is dead?” Jon said he was borrowing trouble. Vampires did it all the time. “This is a lot to take in…you know that, don’t you?”
“Yes. But your brother is going to be fine. You all will live for a very long time, and I won’t ever have to be alone. Neither will you.” He looked over at Hawkins as he held one of Colin’s children. “He will have his own someday. And his will have the blood that he has. I gave him much more than I did even Mac. And when his mate comes, she will be special too.”
“How do you know?” When he didn’t get an answer, he looked at his nephew. “Jon, what do you know about his mate? Is she here now?”
“No, but she is coming. Not soon. She has her own set of problems. And when she gets here, there will be a time when you will thank me for what I have done for you.” Dustin thanked him for what he’d done now. “You’re very welcome. But there is trouble coming. Today, as a matter of fact. Walton, he will come to your home, and you must let Mac deal with him. No matter your frame of mind.”
“Will she be hurt?” He nodded, but said she’d not be killed. “I don’t want her hurt. I want her healthy and happy.”
“Happiness will come to her. But a little pain for it isn’t so bad. She needs to deal with him on her own terms. Confidence is a terrible thing to lose.” Dustin knew that, but he was still nervous about this. “Trust me when I tell you, Dustin, she will be a much better mate when this is done. She needs to finish this with Walton or it will linger in her mind for decades.”
“I trust you. Right now I’m not sure what to think about this, but I do trust you.” He watched Mac as she played with one of the twins. “She’s happy now. I’ve never seen her so happy.”
“She is in love. With you.” Dustin felt the words settle in his heart. Yes, he’d told her that he loved her and she him, but to hear someone else say it, to have it out there, it made him feel as if he could handle anything. And anyone. “The results are in.”
The timer buzzed when Jon spoke. He didn’t ask him; Dustin had a feeling that not only had it worked, but that Mackenzie was going to tell them about the additive that she’d located in Hawkins’ blood. When she came back in the room she was dancing, and that alone told them all that it had been a success. The rest? Well, he’d deal with it when it came.
~~~
Walton could barely breathe around the pain. His dick was so swollen that it looked like he had a permanent erection. But the thought of touching himself, or even to have someone else do it, made him ill. And he’d not peed since the day before yesterday. He was going to die if he didn’t get help soon. Making his way to where he knew Mac was living, he held his gun tightly in his hand, knowing that if he let it go, he was going to gouge at himself again. Bending over, even to tie his shoes, had nearly had him putting his gun in his mouth and ending his miserable life.
“Fucking bitch is going to help me or die. But first I’m gonna make her suffer like I have been.” He walked like a man with a pole up his ass. The towel around his waist, the only thing that he could remotely stand to touch him, was soaked through with blood. And walking had him sobbing with pain.
Yesterday he’d gotten up screaming. His balls were seeping now…he’d scratched them so much that he was sure that he was going to lose them. And his fingers were raw. The way he’d been using them on himself had hurt him in more ways than he could have ever imagined. Mac was going to pay for this fucking shit she’d done to him.
Walton wasn’t entirely clear on how she was to blame. His mind was a jumble of thoughts, his body hurting too much, everywhere now, to have a single thought pause long enough for him to think on it. When he’d been in the bathtub again, where he spent most of his time—that or standing in front of the air conditioner unit with his dick gently in his hand—he thought of the phone call.
“She did something to me. That vampire.” He didn’t believe in them any more than he had before, but there was something about her. She had some kind of magic to make him do this to himself. As he walked, his legs wide apart so that he didn’t touch himself, he thought of the first thing he was going to make her do.
“Her?” He had also begun talking to himself. Confusion was making him do all kinds of things he’d not ever done before. “Which her are you speaking about?”
That was another thing. Even though he’d never seen this supposed vampire, he could actually see her face. A beautiful woman with large breasts and pouty lips. He had not a single clue why she invaded his thoughts and dreams, but he could see her as clearly as he could Mac. There were times when he thought of that woman, either of them, that they’d blend into one person. Mac’s hair with the pouty lips. Big breasted vampire with Mac’s eyes. Stopping to rest again, he leaned heavily against the building he was near.
Walton thought about the vampire…Victoria, she’d told him, was her name. When he went to see Mac, he was sure she was going to be there, and she’d kill him for not doing what she had told him to do and, stay away from the McCulloughs. At this point, he was pretty sure that he’d let her. But Mac, she’d fix him up and he’d be as good as new. Or he hoped so. Moving again, he thought of all the ways he was going to make the bitch pay. Either of them.
“Mac is going to make me better or I’ll kill that husband of hers. I will anyway, but I can hold him while she does her thing. Being a doctor, she won’t be able to not help me, right?” His mind answered yes, that was right. “I need something for pain too. No more fucking around with being a drug lord. I need something fucking good too. I hurt.”
The tears fell down his cheeks and he wiped at them, careful of his fingers. He sobbed a little more then, holding his gun tightly to his chest as he mumbled about the pain and aggravation of this shit. Walton was a mess. More than that, he was a horrible mess, and it wasn’t his fault.
“I’d been a good husband to her. I only hit her when she needed it.” Shouldn’t have done that, his mind told him. “But I loved it. I mean, my own daddy hit my mom and she took it. And for weeks after, she’d be giving him the best food. Making him all kinds of shit he liked. Why didn’t Mac do that for me?”
His mind had an answer for that too. Because she’s not your mom. And when you hit her like you did, you kept her from making a living. Besides, she never cooked your favorite foods. Ever.
That was right. She could put together a fine salad, but he was a man and men liked meat. Walton never really cared for beef. He thought it was because he’d grown up on a beef ranch. His daddy had been the foreman there, and they had red meat with every meal, including breakfast. Walton swore that as soon as he left home, he was never eating it again.
But she cooked it for you, didn’t she? Cooking something you must have told her a hundred times you didn’t like. His mind was making him angrier and he told it to hush. No, you need to be ready for anything when you get there. She’s not going to be all lovely dovey just because you’re hurting. You hurt her enough and she’ll come around.
“I don’t know about that. When I knocked her around before, she got all violent with me too. Do you remember that?” He told himself that he did. “I had to have fourteen stitches in my arm when she hit me with that wine glass. What the fuck was she thinking?”
Women. Yes, that about summed it up for him. They were nuts. And it didn’t matter about the subject either. They just were.
It was dinner time when he found the house. Blood was dripping down his leg. His cock wasn’t just painful now, but he could no longer feel his hips. Holding onto the tree, he breathed into his mouth and out of his nose for a few minutes, then did the opposite when that didn’t work. By that time, he was dizzy with not breathing right, and his belly was sick again. Moving slowly, he saw the man on the porch before he did the woman getting out of the car.
“Hello, Walton. Did you know that you’re bleeding?” He looked at his ex-wife and wondered what the hell she’d done. It had to be all that rich living to make her look like she was shining. “What do you want? I’ve told your cohorts that I’m not going to let them hurt me again. And you can take that to the bank.”
“You did this to me.” Mac asked him how he had come to that conclusion. “You cursed me or something. You have to fix my pecker. It’s going to come off if I don’t get some relief soon. It.... I’m fucking not kidding you, Mac. Fix my dick.”
He pulled out his gun and pointed it right at her. Then when she just stood there, he pointed at the man on the porch. Walton wasn’t sure that he could hit him, but he could surely scare the shit out of him and make her do her duty toward him.
“What did you do to yourself? Jerk off one too many times?” He didn’t hear a drop of concern in her voice for him, and he told her to come to him. “No. You’re not going to order me around again, jackass. I don’t have to listen to you.”
“What if I kill that new husband of yours? I’d bet you’d be Johnny on the spot then, wouldn’t you?” Mac just stood there. “I’m telling you, Mac, I fucking hurt and I want something for it. You have to fix me. I ain’t peed in two fucking days.”
“Let me see it.” She wanted him to expose himself? In front of her husband? “Either you show me what you’ve done or you’re shit out of luck.”
“Mac, I swear to Christ, I hate you right now. I ain’t fucking showing that man my dick. Get over here and fix me.” She asked him if he knew what would happen if he didn’t pee soon. “No, I don’t fucking know. And I don’t care. You did this, now fix me or so help me, I’ll fucking kill you both.”
“Yes, you go on ahead and do that, you moron. Let’s see who fixes you then. You are the dumbest mother fucker I have ever encountered.” He fired a shot at the man, but he didn’t move. Nor did Mac. But she did laugh, and he fired the gun at her.
He wasn’t sure who had moved first, Mac or who he thought was her husband. But they came at him like he’d fired them from his gun, not a bullet. Walton felt himself falling backwards…his head hurt, but not nearly as badly as his dick did when the towel touched him. Then there was a fucking huge cat, a jaguar, sitting on his chest.
“What the fuck is this? The zoo let out? Please, I beg of you, kill me right now. If I’m gonna die, I want to do it because you tore my throat out and not because my dick explodes.” The man from the porch moved up by his head. “Help me. I think this thing is gonna kill me.”
“No. Not yet, at any rate. She did it well, don’t you think? I didn’t even know that she could shift into a cat yet. But she’s beautiful, isn’t she? I’m Dustin McCullough, by the way.” Walton told him he didn’t give a fuck who he was. “Well, you should. I’m the husband you just threatened to kill. And this cat is my wife.”
Walton looked at the large teeth. He supposed there was more to the cat than that, but all he could see was how sharp and lethal looking they were. When the massive number of teeth moved closer to his head, he whimpered. Walton also felt his pecker let go of whatever it had been storing up. And it didn’t release gently either.
He cried and screamed until the cat dug its sharp claws into his chest. Walton hurt. More than that, he was sick once more. Turning his head to puke, he cried again, telling himself when this was over, he was going to go on a big safari hunt and kill every cat within miles of him. And any kittens, they were dead—
“Walton, you’re babbling.” He snapped his mouth closed when Dustin laughed at him. “Now, as I was saying, Mackenzie said to tell you that you’ll leave here and never return or she’ll just let you die here.”
“No. She has to fix me. I’m hurting.” Dustin told him that she didn’t care about that. That he’d hurt her a great deal too. “My dick is gonna fall off. A man cannot live without a dick. Tell her that.”
“She can hear you.” He didn’t care. Walton wasn’t sure if the stupid animal was Mac or not, but if she could fix him, he’d believe anything they wanted him to. “Tell her that I need her to fix me or so help me, I’ll kill her.”
The gun. He felt it in his hands just as he was begging for help. Moving slowly, he pulled it to his chest, and as carefully as he could, he pointed it at the cat’s chest. Begging her once more, he cried when he told her that he was gonna kill her if she didn’t help him. Dustin told him she wasn’t going to do a damned thing.
“Fuck you then.” Pulling the trigger, he felt satisfaction for the first time in a long time. The sound was incredibly loud, but when the cat leapt off him, he knew a sense of peace. Then the pain in his body just floated away.
In a very movie like quality, he saw his body lying there, his dick exposed and bloodied, his arms stretched out from his headless form. The big cat was there, staring at him with blood all over her fur, its face covered in it. But she wasn’t hurt. There wasn’t any blood on her chest where he knew that he’d shot her.
Getting weaker, he knew that he was dead. And on some level, he knew that he should be upset. But the agony in his dick was gone. His body no longer pained him. Walton closed his eyes and knew that he’d not hurt like that again. And that Mac had killed him.