Chapter Text
“You found them all then?”
“We just located the last of your friends. Your information was invaluable.”
“Nick too? You found him? Was he ok?”
“He was the last we found. Physically he is fine. Your friends are on their way here, with the exception of Jacob Custos and Dylan Lenivy. We are transporting them to the nearest hospital for medical treatment.”
“Why? What happened to them? Were they attacked?”
“Dylan is missing a hand; they are treating him for the problems associated. Jacob stepped into a bear trap. They believe that he had a shattered ankle. They both should be just fine. Apart from them, it appears your friends only had minor injuries. Or were perfectly intact.”
“Good. That’s good.”
“You’re not…surprised or concerned about them?”
“I mean…I didn’t know about Jacob, but that’s not the worst that happened this evening.”
“I wont lie to you Mr. Erzahler, the situation doesn’t look good. Your friends were either barricaded in a lodge, covered in blood, in a state of shock, injured, or a combination of the above. After you and Ms. Kearney were found, again, covered in blood and sporting a shotgun, we found two bodies in the forest nearby. One of them being the sheriff of Northkill. The police are conducting a search of Hackett property. We need to get a statement from you and your friends to try and understand what happened last night.
“You’re not going to believe what I tell you. I don’t know if I believe it. But, we all did what we had to to survive.”
***
“So, what happened to your hand?”
“Oh, um, this thing? Well um…bears. Bears…um, there was a whole lot of bears. The bears bit it off.”
“It’s really best, Mr. Lenivy, that you tell us the truth. Your friend Ryan…”
“Ryan?! You spoke to Ryan? So he’s alive?! Is he hurt? Is he…”
“He was found with a woman named Laura. They were the ones that sent us to find you. He was in a questionable state, but he was unharmed.”
“Questionable? What does questionable mean? Did the…did the…the bears get him?”
“Your friend Ryan said, rather insistently, that he shot your hand off because it was infected. By a…”
“Bears. It was bears.”
“By a monster. A werewolf. Not bears.”
“…”
“Mr. Lenivy…?”
“…A werewolf…It just…I don’t…Look, if I say it’s a werewolf…I mean it sounds crazy right? Bears are real. Isn’t it just a lot easier to say it’s bears? I don’t want to think about them anymore…I don’t want to think about my friends getting torn apart. I don’t want to think about how I almost…How I could have…Look, the hand needed to go. Ryan did what I asked.”
“Did you think that you were going to become one?”
“Look…my lack of an arm really hurts. Can I please see Ryan? Or Kaitlin? Or Abby? I would even take Jacob…Wait…did you find him? What about Nick?”
***
“Mr. Furcillo, it would really help if you would talk to us.”
“…”
“Just give us a quick statement. Then we will get you a shower and some food.”
“…”
“Let’s start with an easy question. You have a decent amount of blood on you. Is it yours or someone else’s?”
“…I don’t know.”
“You don’t know. Do you know how you got covered in blood?”
“…Is Abi…Are my friends ok?”
“Mr. Furcillo, we really need to…”
“Please. Please tell me that they are ok…”
“We have located the 9 camp counselors, including yourself. All alive, and only a couple had injuries that needed to be attended to.”
“Thank God…thank god. I didn’t hurt them…I didn’t hurt them…”
***
“He asked about you Abigail.”
“Nick did? So you found him? Is he ok? Did he turn…um…was he…um…”
“He appears to be in a state of shock but otherwise unhurt.”
“Ok…Ok…”
“We weren't able to get any information from him. Ms. Blyg…did Nick hurt you or anyone else?”
“…”
“You can tell us Ms. Blyg. You’re safe here.”
“It…it wasn’t him. I mean, he didn’t mean to hurt me. If he wasn’t infected then….um…”
“Infected how?”
“…There were monsters in the forest…and they…they bit him, attacked him. I saw them attack him, and they almost got me too. Nick…he was infected. He couldn’t control himself. He couldn’t control what he said…what he did. He pushed me away and the way he looked at me…the way he looked at me…”
“Have a tissue Ms. Blyg.”
“I had to shoot him. I had to. I was so scared. I hurt him…I…I’m the reason he changed…I’m the reason…”
“You shot him?”
***
“Abi had to shoot him. That was not Nick that came after her.”
“What was it then?”
“I think you know perfectly well what we think it is. I know you’ve had time to talk to Ryan and Laura.”
“Werewolves, correct?”
“Don’t say it too enthusiastically.”
“Ms. Ka…”
“I know you don’t believe us. You don’t have to. We are the ones that experienced this, and now we have to live with this nightmare. We all had to do things last night that we have to live with for the rest of our lives.”
“We just need to get the story straight.”
“Werewolves. That was, that IS the story. There were werewolves in Hackett’s quarry. And they, the Hacketts, allowed us, allowed KIDS to stay there.”
“Can you give us more detail?”
“I don’t know what else I can say. Last night was the worst night of my life. I was hunted by monsters, and shot at by hillbillies. I saw a friend lose his hand, another lose his sanity. Abi…poor Abi should never have had to hold a gun in the first place. I never should have had to use a shotgun for more than target practice. All because of a stupid mistake. A dumb, stupid mistake.”
“A stupid mistake?”
“…Have you spoken to Jacob yet?”
***
“Look man, can I please, please just see my friends? I feel like I’m going crazy in here!”
“Mr. Custos, unfortunately all the other counselors are in another facility. All except for Mr. Lenivy.”
“Wait. Dylan? Dylan is here too?”
“He was the only other counselor found with a significant injury.”
“What happened to him?”
“He lost one of his hands yesterday.”
“…What? Dylan lost a hand? No no no no no. Fuck no...”
“…”
“Is Emma fine? Please tell me Emma’s fine.”
“Yes, Mr. Custos, Emma is unharmed.”
“Oh thank god. Can I please see her?”
“Again, they are not here.”
“It should have been me. Dylan didn’t deserve that. Gah…this is all my fucking fault. This is my fault. I just wanted one more night…Just one more night.”
“What do you mean it was your fault?”
“I should never have…Can I please just see them? Please?”
***
“He said what?”
“Mr. Custos claimed to sabotage the van meant to bring you home.”
“Let me guess. Now he is caught in a cycle of self-pity, and is begging to see me?
“…You’re not wrong.”
“He is the reason then we spent the night being chased by fucking werewolves then? The reason I nearly died on top of that tree house?!”
“So…werewolves then, Ms. Mountebank?”
“Yes…werewolves. *Sigh* Jacob…”
“…”
“…How is Abi? She was…We were so scared in that storm shelter.”
“She is shaken, but she is unharmed.”
“Good. That’s good. Where is my phone? I think I lost it somewhere in there.”
“Your phone?”
“Yes, my phone. When you’re watching your friends in mortal danger, you tend to lose focus on items like that. Aren’t you people in there looking for evidence?”
“I have not had any word on a found phone.”
“Well, make sure to hit up the hidden camera room in the lodge.”
“What is there Ms. Mountebank?”
“You don’t believe that it was werewolves. Fine. Look in that room. Then, once I get my phone, do I have a piece of evidence for you.”
***
“Look man, I’ve had a horrible night. I just need to find Laura and…”
“We have her here with us Mr. Brinly,”
“You have her? Oh thank God.”
“You are covered in blood. Can you tell us who that belongs to? How that happened? Then maybe we can get you some clothes that fit better.”
“Oh, um, this. I’m pretty sure it’s mine.”
“Are you injured?”
“Uh…no. How do I explain this…Just…Just it’s not anyone else’s, and I’m fine. Look, I don’t know if you talked to Laura, but we had a situation for the past couple of months, and I know she’s not going to take well to being held.”
“Unfortunately, we need to understand the situation…”
“I know…just…we had possibly the worst summer of our lives. Please. You wont believe what happened to me, what happened to her. Please…just let us go.”
***
“Ms. Kearney, we were just informed that 5 people were found dead in the Hackett estate.”
“You still haven’t answered my question.”
“Ms. Kearney…”
“I need to know when Max and I can leave.”
“Max should be fine to leave as soon as we get his statement. Unfortunately you and Mr. Erzahler might be here a little longer.
“You heard my statement. You heard Ryan’s. Those 5 people were the Hacketts. It’s because of them Max and I lost two months of our lives…!”
“Are you talking about how the sheriff allegedly locked you up?”
“Yes! He DID lock us up. We did NOTHING wrong. They were the ones who started this curse. They ran a summer camp with WEREWOLVES running around!”
“You have to understand how this sounds…”
“Heh…. You wont believe us will you? Nothing I say is going to convince you, is it? YOU didn’t have to be locked up for months. YOU didn’t see your friend explode into a literal monster. YOU didn’t get mauled by your boyfriend. He was a WEREWOLF, I was a werewolf! You never had to fear your own self, your own body! And it was all the Hackett’s fault!”
“Ma’am, I’m going to have to ask you to sit down…”
“…”
“…”
“…none of this is Ryan’s fault.”
“What?”
“I dragged him in there, in the Hackett estate. I am the one who shot the Sheriff and the boy in the woods. Oh, don’t get me wrong, I don’t regret it. Not one fucking bit. Travis Hackett is responsible for two of the worst months of my life. But Ryan…he was there, but he…but he wanted…He wanted to protect Chris Hackett. Please, just let him go. Let him and Max go.”
***
“What you’re saying matches what your fellow counselors are saying. At least most of them.”
“Most of them?”
“And it’s apparent that you and the others have gone through significant trauma last night. But unfortunately, amongst Hackett property, we have found nine bodies, and until we find evidence to support your claims, we don’t have a choice. We must keep you here.”
“Evidence, huh?”
“Yes, Mr. Erzahler. We need physical proof of your claims against the Hacketts at the very least. The whole…”
“…Werewolf?”
“Yes, the whole…werewolf…situation…I am not sure what we can do about that.”
“Hmm. You need evidence. I think…we might just have what you need.”