“Whoa. Hold still there, Agent Franks. I’m not exactly good at this and you wiggling around sure isn’t helping me put you back together.” A head moved in front of one of the lamps. The man was wearing a surgical mask and glasses, but the thick red beard sticking out around the mask told him that it was one of the Hunters from MHI . . . something Anderson . . . Milo. “For the record, I’m not a doctor. In fact I only got a C in biology. Heck, I don’t even know how you’re actually alive right now, but I do know for sure that the human body only has one heart, so where the heck am I supposed to stick this little guy?” He held up a red blob. Due to the Elixir, it was still pulsing.

Franks recalled the dossier on the Hunter. Milo Anderson had been listed as an eccentric genius. He supposed it could be worse. “I’ll walk you through.” His voice sounded funny, and he realized it was because much of his breath was blowing out the gaping hole in his face. “You will need a skilled surgeon.”

“Good thing Earl sent up the Gretchen signal!”

Another head appeared over him. This one was wearing a full mask and mirrored shades. The feathers and small animal bones tied to her surgical gown suggested that she was an orc. She poked her fingers into the bite marks on his shoulder, grumbled something, and tsked disapprovingly.

“Yeah, good question, Gretchen. So what happens when you get bit by a werewolf?” Anderson asked. “Do you like turn into Frankenwolf?”

“No.” Franks had been bitten by just about everything over the centuries and nothing had ever changed him. “The Elixir of Life burns off impurities.”

“Speaking of which, we found that thermos of glowing stuff in your car. Gretchen said I should pour some into your chest cavity. It seemed to work like a jump start. That’s pretty nifty. Can I have the recipe?”

“No.”

“Aw man . . . Well, what if when we poured it in you, you started having a seizure, which surprised me, so I accidentally dropped the thermos and spilled the rest, and we really need to make some more in order to get you fixed?” Anderson looked hopeful, like maybe Franks wouldn’t be able to hit him since he didn’t have any arms. “Hypothetically speaking of course.”

Franks sighed. It made the loose flap of cheek flutter. “The alchemical instructions are inside a case in my trunk.”

“Sweet . . . Well, actually, Holly already searched your car and found it, and Trip knows chemistry and stuff so he’s already making some, but better to ask forgiveness than permission and all that.”