"So Mayor Stovall, what can I do for ye today?" Police Chief O'Hara asked as the two men shook hands.
"I'm worried about the town," he admitted, while taking a seat in front of O'Hara's desk.
"You and me both, but my officers and I are doing our best to—"
"Of that I have no doubt. What concerns me more is the potential consequences of any reveal."
"How so?" wondered O'Hara, taking his seat behind his desk.
"Whether or not were existence is ever revealed, if it's intentionally now or by other means someday in the future, I want to make sure Moon Lake's status as a were sanctuary remains a secret."
"Agreed. But how?"
"I'm forming a private subcommittee to do just that," announced the Mayor.
"You can count me in. Who else is on board?" asked the Chief.
"Just the two of us and Samantha Twist at the moment. Our goal is to come up with a plan to achieve the objective without interfering or aiding whatever the Town Council does."
"That's a mighty tall order. I can certainly give the matter some serious thought, and maybe even come up with a couple of more candidates to be on this subcommittee, but can't you stop the Town Council from developing, let alone implementing any reveal plan?" asked O'Hara.
"It's complicated, and even if I say no, they could still overturn me and do so anyway. Besides, what if they're right? There's been too many close calls lately and technology is improving to the point that someday..."
"Aye," agreed the Police Chief. "It was much simpler back in me grandpappy's day, which is how the Mandatory Were Law was developed*. Or at least, so he claimed. When do we meet?"
"Why don't you stop by my office sometime tomorrow. Then the two of us and Samantha can discuss whatever thoughts have come to us between now and then and go from there," suggested Mayor Stovall.
MEANWHILE...
Eric Anderson walked as fast as he could without drawing any attention from fellow students or any teachers, his hand keeping a tight grip on his fiance's as Julie Stovall kept pace with her beloved.
The moment they were outside, they started looking frantically until they spotted their target.
"WAIT!" Eric shouted.
"Hey Eric. Julie," Ben Twist said, as he unlocked his car door. "What's up?"
"Glad we caught you. Can we get a ride home with you?" Eric asked.
"Sure. No problem. But I thought you guys were going to walk home for a little... privacy, if you know what I mean."
"With all after school activities canceled for today with the commotion over the potential reveal plan, our meeting with the faculty adviser to discuss the possibility of starting a book club and a chess club were canceled too," explained Julie. "So we thought better safe than sorry."
"I get ya. Nate didn't say anything to me about this, but I've got plenty of room if the two of you don't mind being a little cozy in the back seat," said Ben.
"We don't mind," Julie replied, moving a little closer to Eric as he started to blush.
"Have you seen Nate and Alex?" Eric asked. "I would have said something to either of them in the halls, but with our class schedules that's a rarity to begin with."
"Not since the last class I had with them. But they know after school practice for the Thanksgiving Exhibition Flag Football game is canceled, so they should have been out here by now," realized Ben, staring back at Moon Lake High School. "I wonder what's keeping them?"
TO BE CONTINUED...
_____________________________________________
*One member of every family new to Moon Lake must become a were so that all had to help protect the town's secrets.—tmw.