No Choice Read online

  "Get your piggy ass out here or I cap the kid."

  Dammit. I can’t let that happen, I can’t.

  She didn’t want kids, they terrified her, but she remembered all too well being one, with no power, no ability to get adults to listen, and letting them get hurt wasn’t an option.

  "There's no way either of us can take a shot, not from here, without risking the kid. A sniper on the roof yes, but our angle sucks."

  JD's voice was icy calm, he snapped into a Zen state whenever shit when down, though later he'd throw a fit, McKenna had been there for one or two of them. They were worse when kids were involved, but then so were hers.

  "Cover me." Her voice had slipped into a flat tone as she prepared to do whatever needed to be done. "I'm coming out."

  McKenna stood slowly from the cover of the car, her gun in front of her.

  The man grinned, a big wide grin that she could see even with the baklava on. It hid details, but not the methamphetamine rotted teeth or the wild look in his eyes.

  "Meth users," McKenna muttered directing her voice towards JD and he cringed as he caught her words. It meant dangerous and unpredictable. She refocused on the man.

  "Let the kid go. We can get you help."

  "Drop the gun or I see if kiddie here can live without an intact brain." The man snarled his entire body jittery with either the drug or the need for the drug.

  "Okay, okay." She bent down slowly, and put the gun on the ground, kicking it back towards JD, who still hid behind the car. If they were very lucky maybe the bad guy didn't know about him being there.

  "Strip," the voice was harsh, and the kid whimpered as the bad guy held the child tight, hand wrapped around the kids throat to help keep control.

  McKenna blinked and looked at him. "What?"

  "You heard me, get rid of all that cop crap, the belt, vest, pants.” He paused as if listening to something. “I want to make sure you aren’t wired. If you’re naked, then I can make sure. Plus if I decide to put a bullet in you, I don’t need to worry about no vest.”

  Joy, a moron and a paranoid pervert.

  McKenna shrugged and started to strip, slowly. Every minute she delayed gave back up time to get here, and being naked on TV… her mind stuttered a bit and she glanced at the crew. Sure enough they were obviously filming though most of them were hiding. With a mental growl she had to force herself to continue. She put her hold out piece located at her ankle on her uniform, each piece folded neatly, stalling as much as she could.

  Great, every bit of fat, cellulite, and stretch mark I have is going to be on TV for the world to see. I'll never get laid again.

  The dark humor kept her moving, even as she reflected that of course today would be the day she had worn her comfortable functional undergarments. Beige bra, worn and stretched out a bit, and the microfiber gray panties that were comfortable with no lines, but created negative effects to any sex appeal. Being without any weapons at all made her more uncomfortable than she would have been stark naked.

  The waves of dizziness weren't helping either.

  Dammit, I don't have time for this.

  She pushed it down and instead focused on the kid and the idiot holding the child.

  "Oooh, maybe you aren't such a fat pig after all." The excitement in his voice was all the more disturbing as he held the child as a human shield.

  "Why don't you let the kid go, and I'll let you touch." McKenna focused on the man, walking forward slowly. Her eyes darted to the sides to take in the other men, now ogling her also.

  I've never hated being a woman more than at this moment.

  Her skin all but crawled, but she moved forward her hands up, and stumbled as the world tilted on its axis.

  "Hey, pig. No funny stuff." The man snarled as he stepped back a bit into the bank. "Come on in, so we can have some fun with a slut pig."

  Keep it together, Kenna. You can get sick as much you need once back up is here and everyone is safe.

  Her world narrowed down to walking into the bank, glad they let her keep her socks on as she crunched through the broken shards of glass. Pieces cut her feet, but not to shreds as she always wore thick boot socks. McKenna looked for something large enough to use as a weapon, but all the glass had broken into pieces no bigger than her fingernail, or a sheet that was too unwieldy to even think about using.

  Once fully inside, it felt like her vision narrowed or maybe just going gray on the sides, she took in the three men. All young, two were white, but the third she couldn't tell, he stood too much in the shadow and wore gloves so she couldn't figure it out. But if they were over twenty-five she'd write all the reports.

  "Okay, so now why don't you let the kid go. You've got me."

  The man blinked and glanced at the kid in his arms as if surprised to see a child there. The child had gone deathly quiet and only the vivid green eyes locked on her reassured her there had been no harm done.

  "Oh yeah, I don't need the rugrat anymore." And with that he dropped the kid and lifted the gun, aiming at the child.

  "No!"

  McKenna's scream mixed with a scream from the woman she assumed to be the mom and then everything changed. Her body felt like it had been wreathed in fire and for a second she felt like she was being boiled alive. Her vision went black then came back, blurry and odd, but the room reeked with smells that she knew had meaning, though the only one she recognized immediately was fear.

  Her point of view had lower, and she felt like she was on all fours, but the man in front of her snapped into immediate focus. His wide eyes and trembling hand had the gun pointed at the kid on the ground in front of him. The kid seemed to be grabbing his leg in pain. Everything else in her world ceased to exist. She exploded forward, legs propelling her towards the target, and a glimpse of paws with needle sharp claws leading the way in the front of her vision as some resistance across her chest snapped and she noted a piece of fabric falling to the ground.

  Part of her mind gibbered in terror, but for now she locked it down, nothing mattered but the kids and the rest of the hostages, you don’t hurt civilians. And you protect kids at all costs. With that thought it was as if her body reacted to an imperative and she only added the intent, she had to do her job.

  Claws swiped across the man’s arm as teeth clenched around his throat and closed with force. Hot, salty blood flooded her mouth and it tasted good. She wanted to rip, and tear, to sate her blood lust on him, but there were still more prey to deal with. Her jaws opened without actual thought dropping the dead man. She turned to where the other one, the one in the shadow had been, and she charged. She heard screaming around her and the man lifted his gun, aiming it at her. Part of her mind, the part that was sitting back watching, confused and fascinated noted he seemed to be Hispanic and filed it for the report that this would generate.

  His hands shook so badly that even though he pulled the trigger the bullets sprayed everywhere and before he could focus enough to aim, her body had leapt at him, knocking him down and hind claws ripped through the jacket and t-shirt like it had been tissue paper, ripping open his abdominal cavity even as front claws shredded his chest. The gun dropped from flailing hands as he grabbed at the organs spilling out of his body and screamed.

  Dismissing him as no longer a threat, McKenna turned, stalking over to the third gunman, noting another big cat curled around two children. Its posture defensive but not threatening. Her mind noted this, but focused on the man, his breathing rapid and hands shaking with palsy as she stalked forward, and awareness that she existed in the body of a cat clarified.

  "I give, I give, don't kill me." He dropped the gun and fell to the ground in a ball, the scent of urine acrid in her nose. She turned looking at her prey, her kills and then movement at the window caught her attention.

  A man with a camera stood there looking at her eyes wide as the camera panned all over the bank.

  "Holy shit, I'm going to get the Pulitzer for photography for this."

  The words wer
e a whisper but she heard them as if he had shouted, and a weird screaming sound came out her throat and the humans in the bank whimpered in terror. The cameraman went even paler but his hand remained steady as a rock.

  "Officer Largo, do you remember me? I'm Clay, one of the camera men for Police!?"

  The name, the words, caused a cascade affect and suddenly the different parts of her mind, the animal, the human, and the part that just wanted to freak out, all snapped together, overlapping and merging into a coherent whole.

  Oh, holy moly, what just happened?

  She turned to look at the jaguar curled around two human children, ears back, glaring at her, but it didn't attack or even hiss. There was a sound from another side and her head whirled, noting that all the windows had been shot out by the wild shots, and a bear shambled up to the window, remains of a police uniform hanging from it. It huffed at her, and the scent of it wrapped around her. Her mind matched it to JD. Confused she blinked, memories of him working out, the scent of his sweat, the subtle cologne he wore, all combined to scream JD, layered with bear.

  A cold chill passed through as she realized what was probably keeping back up away. A large tongue swept out licking chops covered in blood and it tasted good.

  Her stomach roiled with that knowledge and she looked at the two dead humans on the ground and a feeling of dread swept through her.

  I just killed two people. And as a…

  Her mind trailed off and she turned, twisting, looking, and there one of the glass walls was still standing. Moving with silent grace she padded over and froze, looking at the reflection of a cougar looking back at her.

  How in the hell do I fill out this report?

  Chapter 2 - WTF, Over

  Breaking news: We are having strange reports of animals being seen across the state. The theory is a zoo lost its animals. And from the sounds of it one of them found itself in the middle of a bank robbery. We’ll have more shortly, but if you see a wild animal, please remember it is probably more scared of you than you are of it. If you think you are in danger, call the authorities. ~ KWAK radio station

  She sat in the entryway to the bank, JD beside her. Eyes watching everything and growling at anyone that made a move in or out of the bank. The cameraman never quit filming, but he didn't act threatening so for the most part McKenna ignored him.

  The jaguar licked the two kids, but there was maternal action in that not food, so again she ignored it. She had to keep control of the scene, at least that was her excuse for the moment even as the squirrel part of her brain was running in circles freaking out. It seemed a valid option.

  You're a cougar. A freaking cat. And JD is a bear. What the hell is going on?

  Statement, statement, question. And she couldn't answer the question at all, or make the statements not true, no matter how much she really wanted to.

  The sound of sirens filled the air, and she almost sagged in relief, then growled as a thought hit her.

  How the hell am I going to convince them I'm me, and who JD is? I really don't want to get killed as a wild animal.

  The urge to flee, to escape, had her rising up, body bristling, but a glance at jaguar wrapped around the siblings halted her in her tracks.

  This is my damn job. And I'm going to do my job.

  She snarled and sat back down, tail twitching. She glared at the camera man, who gulped, but seemed to get it. And he walked out to the front of the bank, putting his back to them and stood there as the backup came screeching around the corner, lights and sirens creating a cacophony that hurt her ears.

  Ears laid back she tried to look nonthreatening, but from the reactions of the cops pulling up she didn't think she succeeded. JD huffed, and flopped down on his side, and she had to resist snapping at him with her teeth. He always acted so calm and cool.

  "Holy shit, there's more animals here."

  That comment confirmed her hunch, and she didn't know if that was a good or a bad thing.

  How the hell do I become human again? I don't want to stay a cat.

  The act of thinking the question provided the answer, information flooding into her brain. She could hear the cameraman talking, but pain and heat took over and a weird ripple of pain and resettling and she stood in front of the bank.

  "Huh," the human sound came out, and she patted her body down, noting she was stark naked.

  The camera man had an odd look on his face, he had been talking to the cops, but the camera was trained on her and JD. He swallowed hard and then hit a button on the camera.

  "Largo, that you?"

  "In the flesh." Her voice sharp as she looked around. "Can you get my gym stuff from the trunk of the car? JD's too."

  Jeff Simmons gaped at her. Not moving.

  "Did you not understand my request?"

  "But, but, you were…" he trailed off swallowed and nodded at the bear. "Is that thing safe?"

  Lord save me from morons.

  "That thing is JD. And I'd like to see you tell him that to his face."

  "Oh." His head bobbed up and down. "Yeah. Gym stuff got it." Gun no longer pointing at them, he backed slowly towards their still idling squad car.

  Mike Romero, an older heavyset cop, still standing behind the door of his squad car looking at the bank and the two of them spoke. "I will say, I didn't think this was how I'd get to see you naked, Largo."

  The normal deadpan voice made her smile and brought a sense of normality to her world. Romero had been her first partner when she got the job, and the tease made her feel less awkward. At almost retirement age, his teasing had nothing sexual in it.

  Another siren came rushing towards them as Simmons approached bags in hand. Before McKenna could start pulling on her clothes, a car marked with captain came tearing up to the bank, and her stomach clenched tight.

  Great, just what I need.

  Even in her own head the sarcasm was dripping from the thought. She pulled out her gym shirt first, pulling the t-shirt over her head. Captain Greg T Kirk was a weasel of a man in every sense of the word. Lean build and wiry with a sharp face and light brown colored hair. He always seemed to be looking for a way to get ahead, to make himself the focus of everything. He hated anyone addressing him Captain Kirk, due to the old TV series, and tried to come across as a good old boy. She thought he usually came across as a used car salesman.

  "Largo, why the hell are out of uniform?" his bellow came bouncing over the other sounds as the car door slammed and the Captain stalked towards her, then froze as JD stood up. "Dear god in heaven, there is a bear behind you!" His voice had risen, and he started to pull his weapon.

  Still trying to pull on shorts to cover herself McKenna hopped a bit to the side blocking his view. "That’s JD, so don't shoot. Besides, I'm pretty damn sure your 9mm won't do anything else but piss him off." At that JD rose up on his hind legs, which put him at over 8 feet tall, and even McKenna flinched back.

  "As to the nudity, that would be because up until 5 minutes ago I seemed to have been a cat. Well, a cougar to be exact."

  "You, what?" Captain Greg Kirk stammered as he looked around. His eyes widened and McKenna figured he must have caught sight of the jaguar in the bank. He took a deep breath and turned to focus on her. "Largo, what the hell is going on here?" His voice cold and calm as he holstered his gun, fully under control.

  "I have no idea, Captain Kirk. Give me a minute please." McKenna was too exhausted and confused to worry about placating the captain. She finished slipping on her sneakers, leaving them untied, for the moment and managed to cross back over to JD, who had dropped back down onto all fours.

  "Hey. Not going to say this will work, but I asked how in the world to become human again and the answer flooded into me. Try it?" She knew it was weak, damn weak, but she didn't have anything else to go on.

  His massive head tilted one way, then the other, then heat shimmered from him and his body shifted, flowed, fur pulling back in as bones moved, tilted, skin thinned, and his body changed, leaving a nak
ed JD panting on the sidewalk.

  McKenna looked at him her mouth open. She had lived through it, but watching it brought all in too sharp reality.

  "I'm not sure if that was the most disturbing thing I've ever seen or the coolest." Her voice sounded hollow, but she swallowed, ignoring the metallic taste in her mouth.

  He stood a bit woozy rising up to his full height, he looked exhausted and like he'd run a marathon.

  Which means I probably look the same.

  "I'm tossing you to the wolves…" her voice trailed off for a moment as the possibility of that now being a thing crossed her mind and she shook her head. "Deal with Kirk before I get fired. I'm going to go talk to the jaguar."

  "The wha?" JD slurred a bit as he blinked his eyes trying to focus, his face pale as he tried to think.

  "Her." McKenna nodded towards the cat in the bank, and all the humans had inched away from her, terror on their faces as their gazes kept drifting back and forth between the black cat and the dead bodies on the floor.

  I have no idea what I’m doing, or what is going on. One foot in front of the other. Protect people, do your job. You can freak out later.

  "Kay," he muttered and walked towards the captain who stood there with his jaw open.

  She watched long enough to see him grab his gym bag and the captain start to make odd sounds out of his mouth, then entered the bank.

  The smell of blood rich and coppery assaulted her and saliva pooled up in her mouth as it wrapped around her. She had to swallow it down, fighting not be sick. Not at the smell of blood, but at the intense desire to lick it up, feel the warmth of it flowing down her throat.

  Not now, I'll deal with that later.

  She moved over to the jaguar who curled up tighter around the two kids who were white and frozen, glaring at her. Jeans lay tattered around her body, and a bra hung oddly off her, making her look a bit ridiculous. One of the kids had light red indentations on the neck.