Jacky growled. “Don’t threaten her, Rickard.”

He let out a chuckle. “We both know that all I’m threatening is your plan.”

The group pressed in on them from all sides, surrounding Maria and Jacky. Rickard was the lone member among them not to move. He looked smug and confident. Maria couldn’t blame him for that. There were at least eight of them. He had an army. She had a Jacky.

She looked at Jacky. She had already wedged herself between her and Rickard. Without even a moment of hesitation she had placed herself between the biggest threat and herself. It was a selfish act, and it broke Maria’s heart because she wasn’t worth such an act of devotion. Her body trembled, but she knew what she had to do. Whatever was going on revolved around her. If she just offered herself up as a sacrifice then Jacky wouldn’t be hurt over her.

With shaky feet, she approached Rickard and placed herself between Rickard and Jacky. She threw out her arms in a defensive gesture. “Let her go. You can do what you want with me. If you kill me then whatever terrible thing she supposedly has planned can’t happen, right?”

Rickard arched an eyebrow. “Look, sweetie. We don’t want you. In fact, we want you to move on and have a long healthy life, far away from us. Our problem is with your friend here. Has she even told you what she is yet?”

“What do you mean?” Maria looked to Jacky for answers. “What does he mean?”

Jacky let out a frustrated grunt, and her face twisted into a snarl. “It’ll be better to show you. What do you say, pup?”

The phrasing confused Maria. What did she mean by pup? He didn’t look dramatically younger than her. What other reason was there to call him that?

“Will someone just tell me what is going on?” She whirled around, gesturing to anyone who made eye contact with her, but no one as much as acknowledged her. “This is psycho. Someone just point out the hidden camera so we can end this charade already. This isn’t funny.”

Several long moments of silence fell over them. One at a time the kids encircling her let out a howl just like the ones she had heard earlier. The noise was inhuman. It was both too loud and too animalistic for humans to make. Rickard was the last one to join in. He made a show of taking a wide stance and throwing his arms out. His howl was deeper and more fearsome than the rest. Maria’s stomach dropped. What the hell had she gotten herself into?

She stared at him in horror as his howl faded into angry growls. A subtle change flowed over him. At first Maria thought he was convulsing. Maybe the effort of forcing such a large sound out of such a tiny body was bringing on a seizure? She wasn’t sure, but it seemed more than that. Sections of his body changed. His muscles bulked up, and his face elongated into a canine like muzzle. His entire body contorted and bent in inhuman ways as the change came over him, replacing his human features with those of a wolf. Last, his clothes faded away and were replaced by thick layers of fur that covered his entire body. It was all over before Maria could even let out a terrified scream.

Panicking, Maria stumbled backwards and grabbed onto Jacky. There was a real live monster sitting in front of her and she was trapped with it. This wasn’t how she’d imagined herself dying. Even earlier when she thought there was a monster in the warehouse this prospect hadn’t crossed her mind. She turned into a gibbering mess of fear, clinging onto Jacky almost unable to perceive the outside world.

A firm hand thwacked her on the ass and she pulled away from Jacky, yelping. Jacky pressed forward, wrapping one hand around her waist and another around the back of her head. She pulled Maria into a kiss. When she pulled away, she was smiling with a glint of mischief in her eyes. “Don’t worry. He’s only a pup. I won’t let him hurt you.”

Maria didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. There was a literal werewolf standing in front of them, and Jacky wanted her to not worry?

Jacky didn’t wait for Maria to get a hold of herself. She walked around her and rolled her shoulders like she was gearing up for a boxing match. The werewolf towered over her, a low guttural growl steadily pulsing from its throat. He was a wall of sinew painted with fur. Jacky was little more than a bowling pin to something like that.

The beast knelt down and prepared to charge. Maria looked at Jacky, hoping her body language would give her some idea of what to do, but she just stood there smiling recklessly. She wasn’t the least bit tense. It was suicidal nonsense.

With a slow casual grace that resembled more of a cocky taunt than anything else, Jacky took something that resembled a martial arts stance and winked at Rickard. “Afraid pup? If you’re not, then you should be. Sure you don’t want some backup?” She inclined her head towards the others. “Five of you should make for an interesting fight.”

Rickard snarled and bounded at her on all fours. Jacky stood her ground, and Maria watched helplessly as a wall of death closed the small gap to her friend. Maria recoiled in horror. She fully expected the beast to demolish Jacky with a single blow, but at the last second Jacky adjusted her stance. She stepped to the side with an unnatural grace and grabbed the wrist of the beast. His body barreled past her threatening to pull her away with it but she held her ground. She braced her legs and placed her other hand on Rickard’s elbow. The pair twirled briefly before Jacky released him in an arc over Maria’s head.

The werewolf curled into a ball midair, like a tumbling acrobat. He landed on his feet, using the momentum to coil his legs and spring back toward Jacky. His claws narrowly missed Jacky’s face this time. She danced around his strike and delivered a swift kick to the back of his knee that sent him to his knees yelping in pain. A second rapid kick to the back of his head sent him face first into the concrete.

He groaned as he tried to push himself up, but Jacky pressed her assault with several kicks to his ribs. He looked in severe pain. Each blow caused his body to tense, and he winced. With a sudden surge, he pushed himself to his knees. Jacky didn’t miss a beat. A quick series of kicks rotating between his face and chest set a new tempo for the fight.

It was a gruesome sight to Maria. Jacky’s high heels were pointed, and while not explicitly sharp they were penetrating the beast’s hide every so often. The amount of blood horrified her, but he showed few signs of wearying from the blood loss.

His arm shot up, clocking Jacky in the jaw. She stumbled back and lost her stance. Before she could recover, a second blow caught her in the stomach and sent her tumbling. She used the momentum to roll herself back onto her feet in a crouched position. There was a shift in her eyes. They were no longer the shade of brown from before. Instead, red and hungry like Raven’s had been earlier.

She bounded back at him before he could finish standing and dove at him. Her arm caught him around the neck allowing her to swing around to his backside where her momentum carried them back down to the ground. She scurried onto his back and punched him in the back of the head until he lay motionless beneath her. Seemingly satisfied that he was down for the count, she stood up. To Maria’s shock Jacky knelt down and picked the werewolf up and placed him onto her shoulders as if it were no heavier than a sack of potatoes. She grabbed his legs and spun several times before releasing him into the air. His body sailed through a nearby window and out of sight. For a few moments, everyone sat in stunned silence.

“Who else wants some?” Jacky said. She let her gaze settle on each of the others surrounding them.

A few looked ready to take the invitation. Others looked afraid. Some of them had to hold others back from charging in recklessly. But one at a time Jacky stared them all down and they backed away.

Jacky smirked. “That’s what I…” Her voice was cut short.

As the words were forming in Jacky’s mouth Maria had seen Rickard pull himself out from the window he’d been thrown through, and before she could scream a warning he’d bounded at Jacky. His claws gleamed like steel as they tore through her midsection. She fell to her knees with a look of horror, and with her last breaths she told Maria to run. Jacky’s body crumpled beneath her.

“No, no, no,” Maria said as she ran to her friend. She couldn’t be dead. No. She wouldn’t accept it. She placed Jacky’s head on her lap and caressed her cheeks. “Come on. Speak to me, Jacky. It will be all right. We’ll get you to a hospital.” She tapped on her face, hoping to draw a response. Nothing changed. “Jacky please. What about that second date you mentioned? We can’t do that if you’re dead.” She sobbed quietly as she closed Jacky’s eyes and kissed her on the forehead. She was dead, but this wouldn’t be the end of things.

Rage built inside of Maria. These monsters would pay. Her body shook with such an intensity that it made standing difficult. She clenched her jaw and steeled her muscles to steady herself. Blinking away tears, she turned her attention to Rickard. “You’re a monster.”

Rickard watched her with an idle curiosity. For a moment she thought he would say or do something. Maybe even apologize, or explain himself. Possibly attack her. Instead, he chose to ignore her. He was content leaving her be.

She wasn’t content with that. Tears flowed raging rivers down her face. “You’ll pay for this,” she screamed at him. She clenched her fists, barely able to hold herself back from attacking him.

A startled expression washed over him. Was that monster surprised she was angry? It was too much. She couldn’t hold back any longer. She charged forward and rained fists down on his chest. He flinched for a moment and then did nothing. He barely seemed to feel her attacks. Which each strike her resolve dwindled until she collapsed sobbing onto her knees.

Rickard let out a relieved grunt and changed back into his human form. He knelt down and placed a hand on Maria’s shoulder. “I know you won’t believe me, but I just saved your life.” He stood up. “Now be a good little girl and go home. Forget about this. You’ll thank me for all of this some day.” He motioned to his friends and walked away.