“Eric?” A male voiced asked. It wasn't threatening, actually a little familiar. Eric had heard it before, but where?
“You can put the bat down kid, I’m not going to hurt you.” The man said.
A flashlight was pointed up, and Eric saw a weredog approaching him. It was some sort of hound, maybe a beagle? And that’s when Eric realized it was Francis’ brother, Samson Carter. They’ve briefly met once before, when Samson came over to the Twist house for a visit. Of course he’d been in his normal form then.
“Officer Carter?” Eric asked, just to confirm his suspicions.
“The one and only. Glad to see you remember me.” Officer Carter said.
“I guess you’re here to take me home.” Eric said, a little upset he hadn’t been able to do anything. He’d never felt so useless, or so stupid.
“Don’t look so down kid, everything worked out. Bower’s down and out, and your, uh, friend’s alright. Well not alright, but…”
“What happened?” Eric asked, fearing the worst.
“Easy, Spencer’s going to be okay. Got a broken arm after she and Jeremy had it out but otherwise… whoa, Eric!”
Samson leapt forward to catch Eric as he legs gave out from under him. All he heard was “broken arm”, and then everything else went a bit fuzzy. Samson decided to take the opportunity to radio the others, and let them know he’d found Eric.
“Officer Carter here, I’ve got Eric Anderson with me.” he said.
“Is he injured?” The officer at the station asked.
“No, a little shaken but in one piece. I’m going to take him back to his house. Should I remain there, or am I needed elsewhere?”
There was a brief silence while the officer asked his superior what the plan was.
“…okay sir. Officer Carter?”
“Yes?”
“Orders are for you to stay head over to the Lawson’s residence after you secure the Anderson boy. Escort Maggie, and any other family, to the hospital. Warn them about the feds. Thankfully this all ended before they were mobilized, but they’re still in town.”
“Right. I’ll radio once I’m at the Lawson’s.” Samson said before putting his radio back on his belt. He looked back at Eric, who was still a bit out of it.
“Eric? Listen, I’ve got somewhere else to be, and I need to take you home.” Samson said. Eric nodded absently, and got to his feet. Samson was careful to lead Eric home within the cover of the trees. He couldn’t change back, he would be completely naked. Right now the only thing covering his genitals was the furry sheath that housed them.
----------------------------------------------------
“Samson’s got Eric! He’s alright!” Samantha announced. She’s just gotten off the phone with one of the police officers at the station. He’d called to give Samantha an update on events. And while the news about Eric’s well being was a relief, she was also worried about Spencer and Evan (currently en route to the hospital.
“Martin’s probably got his hands full right about now. How the hell is he going to explain this to the feds?” Samantha wondered. From what the officer had told her, Spencer and Jeremy had both done a number on each other. Wounds that couldn’t be explained away easily.
“Who’d believe that a wild cougar or bear just jumped out of the woods and attacked them?” Samantha thought.
Martha and William both sighed in relief when Samantha made her announcement. They’d been so worried, mostly because Eric was normal and… Eric. And they didn’t know this Bower person. If they had, William certainly wouldn’t have stayed at the house. He would have raced after his son like Evan Lawson had after Spencer.
Ben and Alex had retreated to Ben’s room. They weren’t in the mood to do anything other than lie in bed in each other’s arms. It seemed inappropriate to do anything more than that, given the situation. Francis and Samantha moved into their kitchen to give Martha and William some privacy.
“How are Spencer and Evan?” Francis asked, handing her wife a cup of coffee.
“Evan’s fine, he didn’t get there until the fight was over. Spencer’s got some pretty serious wounds, but nothing she won’t recover from.” Samantha said.
“Thank god for that. What about Maggie? Has someone told her?”
“They’re sending an officer over to let her know what happened. God what a day this has been.” Samantha sighed.
“Well, it’s over. The only thing left to do is get rid of those feds.”
“Which will prove to be harder than before given the suspicious circumstances surrounding Bower’s capture.”
“What do you mean?” Francis asked.
“I don’t have all the details, but from what the officer told me, there was quite a bit of biting and scratching involved. Can’t really lay blame on your average kitchen knife, or a wild animal.”
“That bad huh?”
“I suspect so. It’s just lucky Evan didn’t get to Bower before Spencer. He wouldn’t have stopped until the boy was dead.” Samantha said. Francis nodded, knowing that an angry werewolf was like a train. There was little one could do to stop either.
Everyone in the house stopped their respective conversations when the doorbell rang. Francis answered it, and found Eric, still clutching the baseball bat, and her brother in his weredog form.
“Nice to see ya sis.” Samson said awkwardly.
“Wish the circumstances were different, but it’s good to see you too.” Francis said, stepping aside to let the two in.
“Eric!” Martha cried, rushing to her son. She didn’t cry, she’d already gotten that out of her system. Right now she had a mixture of relief and pride in her body. Eric set the bat down against the couch.
“I don’t suppose you have a pair of shorts I could borrow?” Samson asked, his cheeks feeling rather hot. He was standing naked in his sister’s home, in front of everyone. Granted in his were form, but that didn’t stop him from feeling a bit uncomfortable.
“Ben, can you lend your uncle something to wear?” Francis called.
“Got a preference?” Ben shouted back.
“I’m going to be walked around town, something that’s right for the season. Don’t want the feds to think I’m off my rocker, walking around in swim trunks and a Hawaiian shirt.” Samson said.
Ben and Alex came into the living room, Ben’s arms holding a pair of pants and a button down shirt. Both of which he normally wore for more formal occasions.
“I think these will fit. Do you need shoes too?” Ben asked, handing the clothing to his uncle.
“Uh, ya. Sorry about this. Didn’t think I’d need clothing when I went out into the woods. Should know better by know I guess.” Samson said. Ben went to the door where he often kicked his shoes off, and offered a pair of slip ons to Samson.
“Bloodhounds aren’t known for their intelligence, are they?” Francis teased her brother. Samson stuck his tongue out at her in a very juvenile manner, then went into the bathroom to dress.
“How are you holding up Eric?” Francis asked Eric, her brain switching to “therapist mode”. The younger Anderson hadn’t said one word since he was returned to his family. And while he didn’t appear to be physically hurt, emotionally he must be having something of a breakdown.
“He obviously cares about Spencer. Why else would he have gone off into the woods?” Francis thought.
“Eric?” Martha asked, bending over to look at her son’s face. Eric was staring at the floor, not really seeing anything. The only thing he could think about was Spencer.
“I’m okay.” he finally said. The adults sighed at the sound of his voice. Samson came out of the bathroom, squirming a bit since Ben’s clothing was a tad too small for him.
“I’m heading out again then. I’ll try to keep you posted.” Samson said, kissing his sister’s cheek before leaving. Another silence fell over the house. All the anxiety and panic that once floated around the room was gone.
“Eric, is there anything I can get you?” Martha asked. Eric looked up, and knew of only one thing he wanted. But rather than tell his mom he wanted to run to the hospital and hug Spencer, he just said he wanted something to drink.