It crossed my mind more than a few times that night to try and use the ring to bring all three of them back, but I resisted. There was no telling what chaos might ensue if I toyed with the power of life and death.
A couple of days later, I got the call that there would be a memorial service for Kyra and Arnold in town, at Phipps Funeral Home. Of course, it would be closed-casket. I didn't want to go, really. I knew their deaths were my fault, no matter what anyone else might think. I knew the real truth behind the sudden explosion of werewolves in our town, and in the world in general. I wanted my friends back, more than anything in the world...I didn't want to go,but I had to.
The memorial service started off normally enough, if you can ever classify something like that as "normal". There were roughly 50 people crammed into a fairly small room, which was lined with pictures and other memorabilia of the siblings' lives. The assembled crowd was a mix betwen friends of the children and their relatives.
A few people made small speeches about either Arnold, or Kyra, telling how they'd touched their lives. There wasn't a dry eye in the house, for sure. I know I was having trouble keeping my composure.
Then their mother took her turn to speak. "Thank..thank you all for coming out here tonight," she said, her eyes bleary from crying. "I..I don't know what to say; I can't really make sense of all of this yet, and I don't know if I ever will. My husband and I have spoken to many of you here in private since the incident, and thank you for all of your kind words. We wonder how we should remember Kyra and Arnold, many of you asked me that yesterday or the day before. Well, now I know how we should memorialize them...and so...I say..." she bowed her head, shaking, looking like she was having trouble keeping her composure.
Then it dawned on me...Arnold had mentioned infecting THREE people-his sister, his mother, and his father! I realized what was going on before I could do anything to prevent it. She raised her head to look out at us, and her eyes were glowing a baleful amber. "Eradicate the HUMANS! They will join us or DIE!" Her face was already lengthening, fangs erupting.
I looked around the room, and could see the humans here were outnumbered two to one. Next to me, a girl in blue blouse, who I recognized from school laughed and smiled at me, her pointed ears extending. An usher abandoned his human form, guarding the door now a hulking werewolf. The room was filled with the sounds of growls, shredding clothing, and the popping of bone. I leapt from my chair, seeking to find some way out.