Page 26 of Wolf's Mark

I added cream, taking a deep whiff of the hazelnut scent. This day hadn’t turned out as expected.

A sound caught my attention. Steel against steel. That’s what it sounded like. Stiffening, I glanced at the door. It was broad daylight. Was it still possible someone had broken in? I cautiously moved to the door, placing my coffee on one of the counters.

There was a louder sound as if someone was tossing something against a wall. Where was it coming from?

My gut told me to move back to the computer. I could flip on the recording system in the examination room from the lab. As soon as I did, the focus seemed muddy. But I adjusted, panning out. I also hit record.

What the fuck?

The victim’s body wasn’t on the table where I’d left it. There was no chance it could have slid to the floor. None. A cold chill shifted all the way down my spine and I panned the camera around the room.

Of all the crazy things I’d seen in my life, including watching a guy beating up two men twice his size because he was hyped up on PCP, nothing had prepared me for the sight. I had to be losing my mind.

The victim was alive. Not only was he alive and tearing up the inside of the laboratory, but he was…

The only way my mind could process what I was seeing was to say he was no longer human. Every time I blinked, his bodymorphed, changing into something that was unrecognizable. There were no correct words in the English language to fully explain what I was seeing.

I tried to concentrate as the creature continued to destroy the lab. He was furious, tossing things around. He or it was trying to escape. My God. He was transforming into a…

A wolf.

Not possible.

Not fucking possible.

I was ready to contact the police when he managed to wrench the steel door leading from the examination room off its hinges. It would take superhuman strength to do that.

Even worse was the audio recording was going and I heard what could only be described as a howl.

A howl.

Rough and grotesque.

Like a werewolf would do.

I covered my ears, fear finally taking over. I slunk back to the wall, sliding down to the floor. What if the thing found me? I had no weapon in the room, other than sticking the jerk full of some chemical substance.

The horrible noise continued, but only for maybe two minutes.

Then all was quiet.

Completely dead quiet.

The fear remained, but I was a scientist and there was an explanation for this. There had to be. I forced myself to my feet, feeling sick as a dog inside. But I managed to glance at the camera then walk to the locked lab door.

Yes, I held my breath, not willing to become some statistic from a horror flick. But when I opened the door, I was certain I would have a panic attack. I didn’t, my fortitude kicking in. I took my time moving into the corridor. There was still nothing but eerie silence.

I moved to the examination room and swallowed hard before peering inside. While the place was wrecked, the creature hadn’t gotten into the drawers including where I had one body waiting to be picked up in the morning. But everything else was a complete mess.

Walking inside was difficult, but I managed, peering around as another cold chill trickled down my spine.

I noticed a dark spot on the floor and slowly crouched down. What I picked up nearly scared me to death.

Hair. No, not hair. Coarse fur.

I’d been transformed into the twilight zone or some kind of nightmare. I realized I was shaking as I placed it in an evidence bag, determined to get to the bottom of this. Where the hell had the victim gone?

I found out a few seconds later. The creature had also torn the hinges off the back door leading to the alley. Great. This was just great.

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