About ten minutes after Sally, Karl, and Alice sat down in the lounge of Carly’s place with her, Kevin, and Maria, Carly put down her cup on the coffee table before her.
“We don’t have an alpha amongst us four – we prefer to make decisions democratically!” Carly stated, beaming, barely pausing for breath as she chatted on. “We can introduce you to the werewolf support group and its wider network, Sally. There’s lots of lovely people there – some of who have been children of the moon for years, whilst there’s some who willingly got bit in the last few months. Maria here works at an abattoir, and she makes sure that we get in enough meat for the full moon nights…”
“Personally, I’m looking forward to the opening of those hunting reservations that the government is setting up for us. I miss the thrill of the hunt, the moonlight, and the feel of the night breeze blowing through my fur,” sighed Maria.
“They don’t have enough reservations in place – and there ain’t one going up near here. We should be allowed to hunt where we please,” Kevin muttered tersely.
Karl felt a shudder of pleasure run through him at the imagery. Something within him stirred, wanting to feel the same sense of exhilaration and freedom that Maria and Kevin were describing…
He was shocked out of his thoughts by a sudden commotion. A black-clad individual, wearing a motorcyclist’s helmet, barged into the lounge through the doorway leading to the kitchen. Then there was another figure, similarly dressed. Smoke-emitting and gas-seeping canisters were thrown into the room – whilst the first intruder fired the tranquilizer gun in their hand. Even as he shot to his feet, Karl saw Sally yelp as the bolt hit her neck. Alice screamed.
Confusion and panic reigned. Karl heard somebody fall to the floor, as he tried to grab Alice and escape, his vision starting to spin as the smoke filled the room. But someone intercepted him, delivering a punch to his face that sent him crashing against the seat he had been in. Just before he blanked out, he felt Alice collapse against him as she wheezed and tried to overcome the knock-out gas that she was succumbing to…
* * *
The next thing Karl was aware of was a slap to his face. That was followed by a sneer. “Wake up, human!”
He gradually came to. Karl tried to rub his bleary eyes – only to discover that his hands and feet were bound together with rope. He squinted against the light of the naked light bulb, and as his eyesight adjusted, he gasped. Alice and Sally were close by, alert, but identically bound – and all three of them were lying on the floor, their backs against the brick walls of a place that Karl recognized.
It was the cellar of his aunt’s house. They were being held as prisoners in the very building he and Alice had made a sanctuary of for Sally…
Two men were now standing in front of him – one of them was a leery-looking man in his late twenties, who sported a pistol in one hand. He had a goatee, and was still wearing the black biking leathers that he had on when he stormed into Carly’s house. The second man was the smirking Kevin, who was flexing his knuckles...
“You…! I knew there was something wrong about you,” Karl growled. “So what’s this all about? You’re punishing me and Alice because we accidently exposed the werewolf race to the world?”
Kevin stared down at him, and momentarily pressed his foot on Karl’s leg, making him cry out in pain. “As far as I’m concerned, you’re just a bonus, Mister Hurtz,” he grunted. He turned as someone descended the stone steps from the ground level floor.
“This was never about you, you pathetic human – it was about her.” The newcomer – the other leather-clad biker – shot an accusing gloved finger at Sally as her face became visible to the slumped prisoners. The auburn-haired young woman was immediately recognizable to Karl and Alice as Danielle Schvett. But as Karl squinted, he thought he had seen her face somewhere other than in person…
“Oh, god…! Roxanne Dahmer…,” Sally breathed a horrified whisper.
“That’s right, Sally! After leaving me for dead, I’ve caught up with you! First of all, you nearly killed me – and then after making me a werewolf, you make my life a misery again because of your stupidity. Getting caught on TV when the full moon sneaked up on you! Now I can’t enjoy the perks of this life you forced upon me, because we have to be…tagged…and confined…and treated as lepers! You stupid bitch!” Danielle – or rather, Roxanne – kicked Sally in the head.
“Stop it! There’s no need for this!!” yelled Alice. She paused, seeing that there was only the six of them around. “What happened to Carly and Maria?”
“They’re still at Carly’s place – but we took the opportunity whilst they were out cold to take their cash,” Goatee man declared.
“I get it… You used them to unwittingly lure me into a trap. You were trying to track me down – and their hospitality was just a stepping stone for you, as you crossed the country,” Sally guessed. “And Kevin? How does he fit in?”
Kevin grinned. “Roxanne and I are now mates. When we first met at the werewolf support group a few months back, we came to realize that we both shared a desire to see you punished for putting the human race onto us, Sally Yeller! Carly and Maria though… They’re stupid and soft-headed – but after hearing from Karl here on TV about how you had suffered, their bleeding hearts gave Roxanne and me the key to ensnare you, via Karl!”
Karl groaned. Despite all he and Alice had done, Sally was in danger after all. So Danielle was the missing Roxanne Dahmer who P.I. Sammy Cornetto had been looking for. In the photo her hair had been black – but probably a dyed black. But who was the murderous werewolf he was tracking…?
“Sally… Did you attack Roxanne?” he croaked.
Sally forced herself to look at both Karl and Alice in the eye. “Yes… And I was afraid I had killed her. That’s why I never told either of you. My only remaining secret. My shame.”
“Sven and I were perfectly happy together – until you butted into our lives! You tried to steal him away from me! And then you attacked me – turned me into a werewolf!” Roxanne yelled at Sally.
“NO! I told you at the time – Sven and I were friends as staff members at the last college where I served. After I unwillingly became a werewolf, I remembered his interest in arcane matters – and I wanted someone to shelter me during the full moon nights, and try to find a cure!” Sally cried out. “As for you, Sven found out about your criminal past and ongoing underworld links! He was going to break up with you because he was becoming more aware of your darker, violent nature. I didn’t want to come inbetween you two! And yes, I attacked you – but that was because you cornered me in Sven’s garage during full moon night, as I was about to change… I told you to get out – but your jealously led to you attacking me!”
“And so you encouraged the werewolf side of Sally to lash out, in self defense…,” Alice whispered, seeing the feral gleam in Roxanne’s eyes. “Only, after surviving Sally’s infection of you – becoming a werewolf made you worse. Most werewolves aren’t the monsters the haters make them out to be – but you are…” Alice shared a look with Karl, and Karl realized that he now knew the answer to his earlier, unspoken question…
“I ran away from Sven’s house, after you caused me to maul you…” Sally sobbed, her eyes locked on Roxanne’s. I was so hurt by Sven’s rejection of me as he investigated what I did to you… I went back home, and vowed to keep my nature secret. Later on, I found out that the police had investigated a death at Sven’s house a month later – but they covered up the facts. It…it was you, wasn’t it? You changed for the first time – and killed Sven!”
“When my wounds healed, I was horrified when Sven told me that I had become a werewolf. He offered to shelter me, but he didn’t love me any more…,” Roxanne’s voice was quiet now. Her eyes lit up with sudden anger. “He paid the price for refusing my attempts to win him back… He was delicious.”
“Your haulage driver job…,” Karl spoke up. “You’ve used that to get around the country, moving from state to state in your deliveries, whilst trying to track down Sally. And whilst in the countryside during the full-moon nights, you’ve killed again… Haven’t you? You delighted in the taste of human flesh, and you wanted it again…”
Roxanne gave him an intense look. “You are too clever, Karl. No matter. None of you is going to talk to the police! I want Sally to watch as we kill you both. Then I’ll turn my attention to her…”
“Now we’re talking…” Goatee man grinned. “Let’s get rid of them. Then you can pay me my fee and the rest of my bill for the canisters and the equipment I used to bug this couple’s car and track them to this place.”
Karl sighed. “So that’s how you know about this house! Why have you brought us back here, then?”
Kevin sniggered. “When Dwayne here showed us a photo of this old house, which he took after following your bugged car here, we just knew it would have a cellar for a werewolf to change in. And nobody knows that you’ve hidden Sally here. There’ll be time enough for Roxanne to take her revenge, and for us to scram before…”
“Actually, the local police do know about me being here…,” Sally spoke up. “And…they’ll soon ring in if they don’t hear from me tonight.”
“Liar! You expected to be out for the night!” Roxanne glared at her hated maker, before barking an order at her technical henchman. “Watch Yeller and the humans, Dwayne…”
He sighed. “I’m human…”
“Watch the prisoners, then! Kevin and I are going to…make ourselves ready…for dinner. ” Roxanne grinned at her mate. He grinned back, and the two rogue werewolves headed up the cellar stairs, and shut the door behind them - leaving the others alone in momentary silence.
“Sally, we’re sorry for our misjudgment…,” Karl croaked.
“Not your fault, guys. Blame Roxanne and her twisted mind…” Sally pulled at the cords around her hands and feet. “I really need to pee.”
Dwayne sniggered, fingering his pistol. “You’ll soon be dead, anyway, sister.”
Sally paused and gave him an intense look. Finally she flashed him a coy smile. “You find me attractive, don’t you, Dwayne?”
“Huh?”
“I can smell your arousal, you know. Don’t you want to see me…undress?”
Karl and Alice listened, eyes open as they watched the exchange between Sally and Dwayne.
“I’m not cutting you free, bitch! You’ll try to change if you could…”
“Are Roxanne and Kevin able to change on a night that doesn’t involve the full moon?”
“Only if they really work themselves up into letting their animal sides out! I ain’t making out with you…”
“Just a kiss for the condemned lady, then. That way there’s no way I can transform. But I do need the rest room as well. You’ll have the pistol at all times, after all…” Sally purred.
The prisoners saw Dwayne’s lips twitch. Making up his mind, he pulled out a knife from a pocket on his biking leathers and he slashed the ropes around Sally’s feet – but kept her hands bound, for the time being at least. He pulled her to her feet. “Alright! Let’s make this quick…” Dwayne grabbed hold of Sally and escorted her out of the cellar. Sally looked back and winked to her friends.
Now alone, Karl and Alice swiftly wiggled themselves to each other and met halfway. Maneuvering themselves into position, Karl tried to pull apart the ropes binding Alice’s hands – but he wasn’t succeeding. “Blast it!” he cried. “We might only have minutes left to live. It sounds like Roxanne and Kevin are preparing to wolf out and eat us up!” Still on his knees, he locked his eyes with Alice’s bespectacled gaze as she twisted round to face him. “I love you…”
She smiled back. “And I love you, Karl. But don’t you see? That’s the answer! We’ve got a chance to survive!”
Karl’s jaw dropped in realization. “I get it… We have to…”