Carl groggily woke up with his head pounding as things came into focus “J-Joe...?” 

“It’s ok, Carl. I found you passed out on the road after your daughter called me. We’re at my house.” Joe explained as he capped the bottle of ammonia “How do you feel?” 

Carl winced and looked down at his hands as he sat up “Wrong! I’m hallucinating! I need my medication! My hands are abnormally hairy even for me! And what's my nails and my palms!” 

Joe reached out and took Carl’s shoulders “Carl, I need you to listen very carefully and to take it very seriously. You are NOT hallucinating. What you are seeing and experiencing is real.” 

“What are you talking about? You mean... you see my hands like this too?!” Carl was confused. 

“It’s not just your hands.” Joe directed Carl towards the full-length mirror. 

Carl felt like the floor disappeared from beneath his feet. He was hairy and bulky all over, his nose was like that of a dog, his eyes were yellow, his ears were long and pointed, and he had fangs. He touched his face, limbs and fangs several times while shaking his head when a canine like whimper escaped his lips causing him to cover his own mouth. 

“WHAT HAPPENED TO ME, JOE?!! WHAT DID MY MEDICINE DO TO ME?!!” Carl grabbed Joe lifting him up a bit. 

“Carl, put me down!” Joe commanded and Carl complied “Carl, this is not a freak side effect from your medication. In fact... this is the result of NOT taking your medication. After examining your syringe, and it seems like you’ve been taking sedatives.” 

“Sedatives? But... how? Where did they come from? And what do you mean I’m like this because I did NOT take my actual medication?! What’s wrong with me, Joe? What do I REALLY have?” Carl went on. 

His friend took a deep breath “To answer your last question first, the truth is, you have nothing. You’re just not a human. You’re a Wolfman.” 

Carl was stunned “... What?” 

“You’re a Wolfman. A person who is half-beast specifically half-wolf. Just like your brother and your father.” Joe paused a moment “The medication you’ve been taking is an upgraded version of what your brother took to keep you from ever transforming because once you do, you can never live as a human ever again. Once your body adjusts, you will be able to transform at will or sometimes on instinct as well as use the wolfen abilities that come with it.” 

Carl stared at him as he sat back down slowly onto the bed as the memory of what happened that fateful night when Harry first went missing finally resurfaced. When Carl got to the top of the ladder to the treehouse, he saw Harry as a Wolfman and it frightened him so terribly that he jerked back nearly falling to his death. However, his older brother managed to grab his arms and pull him up into the treehouse saving him, but Carl was in so much shock that he fainted. 

“Joe, what really happened to Harry? Is he really missing?” he asked while rubbing his head. 

Joe hung his head for a moment “Yes and no. After he transformed and found out the truth about your lineage, he was furious and moved out without telling your parents where he went. Since then, he has not had any contact with your family though there have been rumors of werewolf sightings across Canada and some parts of the United States.” 

“Let me guess... the REAL reason dad decided to go on this road trip is because he hopes to find Harry, isn’t it?” Carl sighed and Joe replied with a nod “... How long has your family known about my family’s secret?” 

“Honestly, since the first settlers and actually my entire tribe who knows. Your ancestors were the Wolfmen who saved these lands. In return, my tribe swore an oath of secrecy and protection to never tell anyone.” Joe went on. 

Carl took it all in while shaking his head “Can’t say I blame Harry for ghosting the family. I’m torn between wanting to face dad for lying for years about this and never wanting to see his face again!” 

“Carl, please. Don’t be hard on your father. He didn’t do it to be cruel. He did it because he wanted you and Harry to have a chance to be normal. Your generation is the very first of your lineage to leave this town and you only could because the medicine my father concocted kept you human. Can you imagine what your life would have been like living in the city while being a Wolfman? Or turning for the first time automatically in front of a crowd? And like I said, you sometimes do wolfen things or transform on instinct usually as a defense mechanism.” Joe went on as Carl just pursed his lips growling “I’m not saying what either of our fathers did was... saintly, but it’s not black or white either. The reality is that humans are not renowned for accepting those who are different with open arms. Look at how they treated my people who are other humans. With that, those horror stories humans hunting anything that isn't human have some truth to them if you know what I mean.” 

“He could have at least told me. I should have had a choice and been ready. And then there’s Katie... Katie! My wife and daughter are still at the cabin, and those maniacs might be back, and they had cut the power! We need to--- I mean YOU need to get to the Sheriff’s department and-” Carl jumped up, but Joe raised his hands. 

“Carl, about that, I already called the Sheriff’s department after I got a strange call from Katie after you called, then your wife called.” Joe explained. 

“They called? But we had no cell service.” Carl was confused. 

His friend took a deep breath “Let me take it from the beginning... I got your call just before I was about to contact the Sheriff, but then Veronica called me on her cellphone which was very much working to let me know that it was a false alarm and you were just having an episode. Then the next night, Katie called me on your cellphone which was very much working too to tell me that Veronica had lied to her and you about there not being any cell service and she had hid your cellphone from you for some reason. Just before she got cut off, Katie told me you were on your way to me, so I went to find you right after calling the Sherriff’s department.” 

“... Veronica did that... and she lied to us?... And... and she replaced my medication with sedatives.... Why?!” he paced around. 

“That’s not the worst of it. The Sherrif called back and told me that it really was a misunderstanding. Everything looked fine.” Joe confessed. 

“Everything looked fine?! Joe, everything was literally scratched up or broken! Anyone who went there would know that something happened!” Carl growled and then stepped back taking a deep breath “Joe, I need to go back to my family. I need to know what is going on, why the Sherriff would say this, and why my wife said and did the things she did.” 

Joe just gave him a look“You do realize that right now, you can’t go out in public for the next day or two.” 

“But I gotta do something, Joe. Even if I am a Wolfman, I’m STILL responsible for my family and they could be in danger.” he countered. 

“Then I'll go and I’ll call you when I’m there. For now, you must stay here and hidden, Carl.” Joe instructed as he took his cellphone and keys. 

“... Just please let Katie know I’m fine when you see her and if it is still dangerous out there, bring her and Vernonica someplace safe.” Carl requested. 

“I shall.” Joe nodded before leaving. 

When Joe arrived at the Crescent family cabin, he saw the vandalized state of the property and car. He rang the doorbell, but there was no answer. 

He knocked “Veronica? Katie? It’s me. Joe Whitehawk... Hello?” 

“Joe? Is that you?” Katie’s voice could be heard faintly beneath him. 

He looked down and saw her peeking through the barred basement window which she had managed to open just a bit “Katie, what are you doing under there?” 

“I got knocked out somehow when I called you and woke up in the basement. I can’t get out. Mom locked the door and told me to be quiet down here or I’d wind up like that dad.” she whimpered. 

Joe frowned for a moment “Where is your mother now?” 

“I don’t know. She left hours ago with some men. They talked about looking for dad, but not finding him yet though saying he was probably dead now.” she looked like she was going to cry. 

He gestured kindly with his hand and leaned close “It’s alright, Katie. Your father is fine and safe at my house. Now, I’m going to get you out of-” 

“LOOK OUT!!” Katie screamed too late as Joe got hit behind the head with a baton by a tall burly and mean looking Sherriff who chuckled sadistically. 

After a while, Joe awoke in the basement with hands handcuffed behind him, and Katie repeatedly calling out for his name. 

“K-Katie...? What?” Joe sat up groggily and before she could say anything, the big burly Sherriff with his deputies stood before them making Katie run and hide behind some crates “Sherrif Brick? What are you doing? Why are you doing this?” 

“’Cause I’m tired makin’ peanuts and frankly, I HATE my job. Nothin’ to do around here except write out tickets for parkin’ or litterin’, or lookin’ for missin’ cows, so as soon as the boys and me were offered a deal to make some big money, we grabbed it.” Brick bellowed shamelessly. 

"And it’s enough money to retire early from this dead-end job.” one of the deputies chuckled. 

Joe just shook his head giving them a look of disgust as Brick got in his face with the cellphone “Now, if memory serves me correctly, Carl Crescent’s holed up at your place. Unlock this here thing and call him over.” 

He frowned “No!” 

Brick forcefully lifted him up and glared at him from behind his dark aviator glasses “You’d best do as I say or I’ll tear you a new one and make the girl watch!” 

It was then that a fourth man came down the stairs “Now, now, Sherriff. There’s no need for that. All we need is for him to unlock the phone. I’ll make the call myself.” 

“If ya say so, Mr. Woodsman.” Brick forcefully used Joe’s finger to unlock his cellphone and then handed it to Woodsman. 

He went to the contact list and dialed up the number labeled as ‘home’ and Carl answered it eagerly “Joe?” 

“Hello, Carl.” he greeted him calmly. 

“Richard Woodsman...? What are YOU doing with Joe’s cellphone? What happened to him? And my family?!” Carl was in shock. 

“Carl! The Sherriff and his deputies are crooked! Call 911 in-” Joe shouted, but was cut off by Brick punching him in the face then throwing him onto the floor. 

“Joe! You dirtbags... If you do anything-” he growled. 

“Hey, hey. No need for theatrics. Joe will live and your family is fine. And everyone will stay that way if you do as I say.” Richard explained. 

Carl growled for a moment then calmed down “What do you want?” 

“First, you will not get 911 involved or anyone else, or else. Second, you will come here alone by midnight. Understand?" he grinned confidently. 

Carl paced around looking at his reflection when suddenly, his mood flipped entirely "Understood. I'm coming." 

"I knew you would. It's the one thing I respected about you, Carl. You're always agreeable. See you then." Woodsman snicked. 

Carl closed the line "Oh, you will." 

He looked at the mirror again. 

So I have wolfen abilities, do I? 

He closed his eyes and focused. For the first time, his hearing was abnormally sharp and on purpose. He could hear the wind outside the padding the cat walking on the porch, a woodpecker pecking, a deer trotting around and the electricity flowring through every lightbulb. 

Ok. That will help. Next... 

He picked up Joe's cardigan and awkwardly smelled it. The scent was that of Joe, but also the faint aroma of the vanilla frabric softener, the chamomile tea he drank frequently, the cat, and something else that Carl could assume was the fabric itself. 

"Whoa!" He put the cardigan back "Let's see what else is fact and what else is fiction." 

Carl when up to Joe's couch then lifted it up with ease before setting it down gently. He then felt a strange sensation before grabbing something in between in his index finger and thumb. It was a bee. He smirked and released it through the window feeling more confident. He then proceeded to go arm himself, but quickly realized that the oversized paw-like hands of a Wolfman were not fit to use guns. Instead, he took some tranquilizer darts and a taser. Once it was completely dark at 9:45, he stepped outside onto the porch. 

One last test... 

He focused with his pupils dilating and suddenly, the hue and saturation of the world changed. Everything looks predominantly bright blue and green while also looking very bright. He shook his head and everything went back to normal as the cat settling itself into the chair meowing. 

"Daddy's coming, Katie." Carl took a deep breath and ran out into the woods.