The Wereing

by Rodman Philbrick

  Cautiously I sat up. The parking lot was surrounded by high electrical fences, like the rest of Wolfe Industries. And I was finally inside.

  But the ride over had taken too much out of me. I’d lost my nerve. I’ll just stay in the car, I thought, until Mr. Parker comes back and drives home—somebody else can fight the monsters.

  But suddenly the dark night was split with a terrible sound.

  “AAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

  The howling got into my blood and turned it to ice water.

  Chapter 29

  The howling was horrible, but it made me realize I had to keep going—I couldn’t quit now. I had to find out what the werewolves were planning.

  Rolling into the front seat, I opened the door just enough to crawl out of the car. The parking lot was dark and no one was in sight.

  I crouched low and zigzagged toward the building. The werewolf howl was coming from somewhere deep inside. I concentrated on finding a way in. If I let myself think about what might happen after that I’d lose my nerve again.

  Reaching the building, I leaned against the wall to get my breath. I hadn’t realized how scared I’d gotten just crossing the parking lot. The wall seemed to vibrate from the hum of big machines. Taking a deep breath, I crept along until I came to a steel door. I tried the knob. It wasn’t locked!

  My knees began to tremble. My brain filled with cobwebs of nightmare creatures waiting on the other side. I pushed the images out of my mind and made myself open the door. It was so dark I couldn’t have seen a werewolf if it was right in front of me. I shut the door behind me and stood there, letting my eyes adjust.

  I was in a hallway with doors along either side of its length. To my left the hall was completely dark, but a faint patch of light shone to my right. The howling had stopped. The building was eerily quiet—nothing but the dull rumble of machines somewhere.

  Heading for the faint light, I noticed the rooms along this hallway seemed to be offices. They all looked identical—new and unused—with a computer on every desk.

  As I crept down the corridor the light grew brighter. It was shining from around the next bend in the hall.

  My footsteps slowed as my heart began to race. I listened hard, expecting to hear the sound of people working. But only silence rang in my ears. Where were the people?

  But when a sound came, it wasn’t human.

  Claws ticked and scraped along the polished floor as if an animal was running.

  It was coming my way. I ducked into an empty office and slipped behind the open door.

  The sharp clicking of claws on the floor made a stark picture in my mind. But I didn’t dare put my head around the door to see. The sound of heavy panting grew louder then abruptly faded away. The creature had bypassed this section and headed for the lighted area.

  I took a deep breath and went back out into the hallway. Like it or not, I had to follow the sound of the scuttling claws. That’s the only way I’d discover what the werewolves were planning.

  I rounded a corner. This hallway was similar to the others, except that it was brightly lit. Overhead tubes shed glaring light onto the stark white walls and gleaming floor. More light spilled from all the offices and rooms along the hall. Some doors stood open, some were closed.

  I couldn’t go any further. There was no place to hide. Someone would be sure to see me.

  But as I stood peeking around the corner, I realized something strange. I hadn’t heard a sound. Not a voice or a person shifting in a chair or anything. The place felt deserted even with all the lights. I dropped to my hands and knees and scurried along the hallway.

  When I came to the first office, I glanced in. There were papers tossed around and a cup of coffee stood steaming on the desk. But no one was there.

  It was the same with all the offices. I turned into another corridor and it was the same. Offices lit, doors open, not a soul around. Where was everybody? Rising, I continued down the hall, pressed against the wall, peering into the rooms. Trying to figure out what kind of work went on at Wolfe Industries.

  “Ooomph!” I tripped over something soft and squishy. My feet tangled in it and I almost fell.

  I looked down. It was a bundle of dark cloth. Cautiously I bent to peer at it. It was a security guard’s uniform. It had burst at the seams. There was something sticking to it. I picked it up for a closer look.

  There was hair on the torn uniform. Werewolf hair.

  Chapter 30

  With a cry of disgust, I dropped the torn clothing. A tingle of danger electrified my spine. Had anyone heard me?

  I hurried down the hall, deeper into the building. The corridor began to twist and turn at crazy angles. I passed an office and saw more shreds of torn clothing thrown all over the desk and computer.

  Then, turning another corner, I slid to a stop in shock. The floor was strewn with shredded clothing. A torn sleeve here, a pant leg there. A suit jacket in three pieces, an exploded shoe. The mess looked like the empty husks of body parts.

  I knew what it meant. A whole pack of werewolves had undergone the wereing, changing from human to monster.

  Farther on I found a deserted workstation. Over one high-backed stool a guard’s neatly pressed uniform was carefully folded. For some reason that gave me the creeps even worse than the rags flung everywhere.

  The trail of clothing led me deeper and deeper into the building. The rumble of large machines grew louder.

  Then I saw a large puddle of something red on the white floor. Horror washed over me like an icy splash. I edged closer, cold sweat trickling down my neck. Had the werewolves killed some human who resisted them? Or—I stopped short—an intruder like me?

  I wanted to run away, but I’d come so far through the twisting hallways that I didn’t know the way out. I had no choice—I had to keep going.

  As I got closer the red stuff changed. It wasn’t blood, it was just a red dress! I was so relieved I almost laughed. The bright red dress was split down the back and left tossed onto the floor.

  Suddenly the silence was broken.

  Voices! Grunting sounds! And heavy, hurrying footsteps. They were coming my way.

  Quickly, I ducked into the nearest room.

  It was a laboratory. A machine with glass tubing bubbled on a workbench. The liquid in the tubes was a sickly yellow color. Bottles and jars with weird things in them were stored on shelves. It was all very strange and interesting, but I didn’t have time to check it out.

  Outside the laboratory there were snuffling noises, as if an animal was laughing. My eyes darted around the lab, searching for a hiding place. I couldn’t find a safe spot, and the footsteps were getting closer.

  Closer.

  They were right outside the door.

  I spun around desperate for a place to hide.

  My sleeve caught on something. As I tried to get free a whole wire tray of test tubes tottered on the edge of a counter. I tried to catch it. Missed!

  CRASH!

  Chapter 31

  I dropped to the floor.

  WHAM! The door burst open. “What was that!” someone shouted.

  A vile smell rose from the spilled chemicals, making my eyes water and my throat burn. But no chemicals were strong enough to keep my human scent from the werewolves.

  Bits of glass fell from my hair, tinkling on the floor, as I skidded away from the mess. Under a lab table I spotted a cabinet. The door was standing slightly open.

  I flung myself at it, scrabbled at the door with my nails. I pryed the door open and squeezed myself inside the cabinet. It was too small for me. It didn’t matter. I was doomed anyway as soon as the werewolf caught a whiff of me.

  Heavy boots crunched on the broken glass. Boots? Werewolves didn’t wear boots.

  “I don’t see anyone,” said a hoarse but familiar voice. A human voice. It was coming from the door to the lab so it didn’t belong to big boots.

  “Rrrrr.” The boots kicked at pieces of glass.

  I tried to fit more
of me inside the cabinet. Even curled up with my knees against my forehead, an elbow stuck out and I couldn’t close the door. If either of them bent over they couldn’t help but see me.

  “That tray didn’t fall over by itself,” said a thick, mean voice. The boots began to walk toward me, stopping right beside the cabinet I was hiding in.

  Through a crack in the cabinet door, I spotted the uniformed legs of a security guard. “You know what we have to do if we find an intruder?” The guard gave an evil laugh. “Make it go away. Forever.”

  “There’s no place to hide in here,” said the other, familiar voice. It was Mr. Parker. He stepped a little way into the room and I could see him. He was still human but his face looked hard and wooden. “Better search the place anyhow,” he continued. “If our secret gets out it’ll destroy all our plans.”

  The guard laughed again. It was more like a growl. “Nothing can stop us,” he sneered. “But you better go. I’ll take care of this little problem.”

  “Okay,” said Mr. Parker. “They’re waiting for me. They don’t like it when anyone is late.”

  Mr. Parker went out and the guard’s boots moved away. “Come out, come out wherever you are,” he snarled. Things clanked and banged together as he moved stuff clumsily, as if he was more used to paws than hands.

  “Come out! Right now! If you don’t come out right now something terrible will happen!” he roared. “I’ll find you even if I have to change to do it!”

  He knocked over a glass jar and growled out of his thick human throat. “I’m getting mad,” he muttered, coming into my view.

  RIIIIP!

  His arm started to bulge. Wiry hairs poked out of the rip starting in his jacket. A rumbling sound came from his chest as he messed around with the equipment. His anger was making him turn into a werewolf. When he did he’d find me for sure. And there was nothing I could do to stop him.

  Suddenly he let out a triumphant yell.

  “GOTCHA!” he shouted, pouncing on something.

  When he stood up he had a large brown rat struggling in his meaty hands. “Miserable rat!” the guard cackled.

  A rat! A rat had saved me. At least so far. I felt grateful to the poor quivering creature.

  “Ha!” said the guard, lifting the animal up so he could look into its little beady eyes with his big evil eyes. “Think you can wreck our lab, is that it, Mr. Rat? I’ll show you how we treat visiting rodents around here!”

  Then, as I watched in horror, the guard opened his jaws wide and popped the rat into his mouth.

  CRUNCH!

  His throat rippled as he swallowed. A small curl of tail twitched at the corner of his lips. He snaked his tongue out, snagged the last inch of tail and slurped it into his mouth. He gulped and smacked his lips. Then he opened his mouth again and out came a long, loud belch.

  “Mmmmmmm,” he muttered. “Good.”

  Then he burped again and ambled out of the room.

  Chapter 32

  My stomach heaved and I crawled out of the cabinet onto the floor. My whole body trembled in violent spasms. I heard moaning.

  The moaning was coming from me. Clamping my lips shut, I held onto my stomach until I was sure I wouldn’t throw up.

  After a while—I couldn’t tell how long—I got shakily to my feet. All I wanted to do was get out of this horrible place before they found me. I started shaking again, thinking of that poor rat. I knew they would do the same to me and enjoy it even more.

  Wolf-boy, they’d howl, licking their chops, mmmmmm gooooood!

  On rubbery legs, I started for the door. But which way would lead me back to the parking lot? I turned the way I had come but I couldn’t remember all the twists and turns.

  All the corridors looked the same—silent and empty and blazing with white light. It was like I was in a maze.

  Fear crawled around inside my chest as I realized I was headed deeper and deeper into the huge building. Maybe I should turn around. But I couldn’t shake off the feeling that if I turned back I’d find that guard waiting for me, grinning with his bloody teeth.

  I slumped against the wall. I’d accomplished nothing and now I couldn’t even find my way out. Tears burned my eyes. I brushed them away, angry with myself.

  Suddenly I froze. What was that sound?

  “GRRRRoooooooooooooooooooooooowl!”

  “Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.”

  “RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRggggurrrrr.”

  I’d found the werewolves!

  Behind me that guard was lurking somewhere, lying in wait for intruders. Ahead of me were monsters—a lot of them. Plotting.

  Which way should I go?

  Chapter 33

  I moved forward like a sleepwalker. “They’ll scent you!” my brain screamed. “Then they’ll eat you like a rat!”

  But my feet kept going forward. What had I come here for? Why had I already gone through so much danger if I was just going to run away when my chance came to find out what the creatures were planning for Fox Hollow?

  I poked my head around the corner. The hallway was dark. But light spilled from a large room at the end of the hall. The room glowed with soft silvery light, like moonlight. As I stared, a large shape flickered along the wall.

  It was the shadow of a werewolf.

  I needed to get closer. I couldn’t see or hear anything from this far away. There were darkened offices on both sides of the hall near the big room. If I could reach them I could hide inside one of the offices and spy on the werewolves.

  Crouching, moving as soundlessly as I knew how, I crept into the little office next door to the werewolves.

  My heart banged against my ribs. I waited for the werewolves to scent me and come hunting. There was no escape.

  But nothing happened. At last the fear roaring in my ears began to subside and I could hear again.

  Next door the werewolves were growling among themselves. Fragments of words began to appear in my head. That was how werewolf speech worked. The monsters couldn’t use human language but one werewolf could understand another, hearing the meaning right inside its skull. It made my brain crawl.

  But why didn’t they scent me? I peeked around the door. The werewolves—about 12 of them—were gathered around a large table. They all had huge, elegantly padded chairs to sit in. Along the back wall were two wide picture windows looking down over the twinkling lights of Fox Hollow.

  And along with the werewolves there were two humans scurrying around, handing out sheets of paper. That’s why they didn’t notice my scent! There were already humans in the room.

  My heart seemed to slip back into its proper place. With other humans around, I might even have a chance to get out of there!

  “All right,” growled a huge werewolf, rising to stand at the head of the conference table.

  Some of the werewolves were drooling horribly as their blood-red eyes followed the movements of the two humans in the room. But they jumped to attention when the big monster brought his clawed fist down on the table.

  BANG!

  It was the leader of all the werewolves—the beast called Ripper! His thoughts were powerful, echoing inside my head. “Let’s bring this meeting to order. Parker! Give us your report.” Ripper’s eyes blazed as he dropped back into his thronelike chair—a bigger, fancier chair than the others.

  My eyes widened as a vicious-looking werewolf rose on its hind legs. Could that horrible thing really be nice Mr. Parker?

  It was.

  “You all have a copy of my report,” barked the Parker werewolf, licking its fangs. “And as you can see”—he waved a clawed hand at several of the other werewolves—“the formula works. Now even new werewolves, like myself, can enjoy the advantages of the werewolf physical form on any night without having to make the commitment to full-blooded status. Unfortunately, there seems to be no possibility of making a formula that can transform human into werewolf without that special werewolf bite.” Mr. Parker fluttered his claws apologetically.

  Ripper sc
owled. “That’s too bad. But at least there will be plenty of strong new werewolves now so we can work through the night. And as I suspect we’ll have to be ready in time for our big surprise, is that right?” He nodded at another werewolf, and Mr. Parker dropped back into his seat with apparent relief.

  The werewolf beside him rose. “We are a little behind schedule.” The werewolf cringed as Ripper’s eyes blazed at him. “But we’ll be ready,” he added in a squeak that hurt my head. “At least the adults don’t suspect a thing. Some of the children are jittery but we managed to bite several kids, and the ones we couldn’t get to, well, no one believes them.”

  “Uh, about the children.” Parker sounded hesitant. “Maybe a couple of them—”

  “What?” bellowed Ripper. “Don’t you LIKE being a werewolf, Parker?”

  “Yes, yes, of course I do,” whined the Parker creature.

  “Then why shouldn’t your children like being werewolves, too?” Ripper pinned him with his fiery eyes.

  Werewolves can’t turn pale but it almost seemed like the blood drained from Mr. Parker’s monstrous face.

  “And if you like being a werewolf now you’ll LOVE it once you’ve made your first kill,” growled Ripper. “Which you will get to do at the very next full moon. Tomorrow night.”

  My heart leaped in hope. Maybe all wasn’t lost. Mr. Parker hadn’t made his first kill! He was like me! There was still a chance to save him. And what was it he had been going to say about the children? Did he want to spare Kim and Paul? Was there a human part still inside him?

  “Enough!” growled Ripper so loud that it hurt inside my head. The excitable murmurs of the other werewolves cut off instantly. Ripper rose up again, towering over them.

  “You all know our mission. You know your places and your roles. We will not fail! Tomorrow night as the full moon rises we will turn every human in Fox Hollow into a werewolf—all those we don’t want to eat, that is!”

  A chorus of cackles erupted but cut off abruptly when Ripper raised his paw. “One kill you leave to me. And we all know who that is.”