A werewolf. Was that the creature I had seen attack Brad that magical night, our date night? A werewolf? It kind of made sense, but in a weird way. I mean... it was strange but logical. I didn't know what to think.

"So, werewolves exist?" I asked him. Maybe he'd tell me more.

"You saw him at the Halloween party, didn't you?" He said.

"Yeah, but... I didn't think it was a werewolf... I mean... I thought those things were..."

"Fictional? Yeah, that's what they want you to believe, unfortunately, the legends are true. Werewolves exist and whenever they show their ugly faces in town they start killing in big numbers and turning other people into werewolves. If this Patrick guy or whoever starts to bite people and leave them alive, then we'll have a nest full of them in no time," he said. A nest of werewolves?

"What do you mean a nest?"

"I'm talking about at least a dozen of them roaming around the streets on a full moon. Werewolves have super strength and if they join together, we're going to witness a massacre of unimaginable proportions. We must kill him before he starts turning people," he said. Before turning people? Was he saying that Brad was... no way. Impossible.

"But I don't understand, how can he turn someone?"

"A bite will do," he said. A bite? Just a bite? Oh my God. Brad!

"But it's better to be bitten than killed, right? I mean..." I said.

"Do you know someone who's been bitten?" He asked me. I shook my head quickly.

"No," I replied. I knew it was a lie, but there was no way in hell that Brad was a werewolf, was he? He had said something about smelling my sweat a mile away from me the last time we spoke and he hadn't been going to school for a while, but that didn't mean he was a werewolf, did it? The police officer took out a gun and showed it to me.

"You see this? I'm going to kill him with this," he said.

"Are you even a cop?" I asked him.

"Not really. I'm a werewolf hunter. You can call me Jake if you want, although I warn you, it's not my real name," he said.

"Does somebody pay you to kill werewolves, Jake?" I asked him. He laughed.

"No, why? You're looking for a part time job?" He asked me. I shook my head.

"I already told the cops everything I knew, so I don't know, why I'm here."

"Werewolves change their territory once they're discovered. He's probably already moved out of the house, but he could still be in the area. I've been looking for him for a while, but I haven't had much luck. You're my lucky charm," he said.

"I can't be here. I have school tomorrow, I have a life," I said.

"I won't keep you here long Natalie. All I need is an identification on the guy and that's it. It won't take long," he said and soon we were back in that terrible house, but his Buick was gone.

"He's gone," I said.

"I told you. I'm going to get off for a moment," he said and got out of the car. This was such a nightmare. I pinched myself in case I was asleep, but I wasn't. Unfortunately it was real. I looked around the neighborhood. It seemed to be in calm. Nobody noticed the police officer enter the house. He was obviously breaking in, but nobody cared. A few moments later, he came out and walked back into the patrol car.

"There's a werewolf in there alright. Smells like werewolf crap," he said.

"How do you know?"

"Werewolves have to have a bunch of clothes with them and they have to be on the move. That's how I know. There was nothing in there, not even in the refrigetor. I assume he took the head with him for lunch," he said. I wanted to vomit and almost did.

"What?" I said feeling the bile on my throat. Something told me that I wasn't going to eat in a long time.

"This is an old werewolf though. Werewolves only eat humans in their werewolf form, but this is different. He's definitely been a werewolf for a long time. You see if werewolves aren't killed, they can live a long time. They don't age as us. Their ability to shift helps them retain some of their youth, for at least a century," he said.

"Okay, look, I already told you where this guy lived. It's all I know."

"I want to know why you followed him. How did you know him?" He asked me. How could I tell him the truth without getting Brad involved.

"I... I..."

"Spill it out already."

"I had a crush on him," I lied.

"You?" He asked and laughed.

"What?" I asked him.

"You girls are always looking for trouble. Let me guess, you're rebelling against your parents," he said.

"I just liked him. That's all. He spends his time at a Sportstore called Smith's. My driving tutor works there and I saw him there. I wanted to talk to him, but I didn't know what to say, then I saw the head in his refrigerator and obviously withdrew my attraction towards him," I lied.

"Obviously. Okay, so this guy spends his time at a Sporstore?" He asked.

"Sometimes. He uses a black, leather jacket and has a ring on his left ear. He's pale, dark hair and brown eyes, thin lips and thin long nose. That's all I know," I said. We were heading to the Sportstore as it began to darken outside.

"I have to return home. My mom doesn't want me to go out at night," I said.

"I don't blame her with everything that's been going on," he replied. Then, I saw Brad. He was leaving the store.

"Brad," I mumbled.

"What?" He asked me. I shook my head.

"Nothing," I replied. I saw Brad walking away from the store. Preston came out and locked it.

"Damn. They're already locking up," he said.

"Sorry," I replied.

"It's going to be a full moon tonight. I'm taking you home."

The full moon was bright. I hoped and prayed that Brad wasn't what I thought he was, but one plus one was usually two and two plus two was usually four. That was why Brad was acting so strange. He had been bitten by a werewolf on our date night. He had suffered the transformation and he didn't know what to do. The only thing he could do was to run away. That's why on our Halloween party he left and that's why he was half naked the day after at Valor Park. He must have transformed and ripped his entire clothes after the transformation. But could Brad be the werewolf killing and eating all of those people? I couldn't believe it. I had to talk to him, but what would I say? Hey Brad, how are you, are you a werewolf now? Was Mrs. Krasinski delicious? Shit. How could this happen?

I didn't think that I could sleep tonight. With everything going on, I tried my very best to act natural, but it just wasn't happening. I told my mom that I didn't feel very well and that I wasn't going to school tomorrow.

"I threw up twice," I said. It was kind of true, not because I was really ill or anything, but still.

"Oh honey. Then, maybe you should stay home tomorrow," she said. I nodded and disappeared into my room. I heard the wolf howl into the night and wondered if it was Brad. Around midnight I heard something in my backyard. It was a howl. I opened the curtains of my window and there, hiding behind the trees again, I saw something, a foot, a paw with bright white fur. I opened the window to my room.

"Brad?" I asked. It didn't move. I knew it was him, but I didn't know what to say or do. I wanted to comfort him, but at the same time, I was so scared. Then I did the stupidest thing I had ever done in my entire life. I put on my robe and walked downstairs. I opened the back door of my house and walked out into my backyard.