The Wisconsin Werewolf

by Alex Gedgaudas

  I tried to drown out my thoughts of Matt as I walked into the conference center. I took a few deep breaths, somehow finding relief in the strange scent of the carpet as well as the smell of fresh paint that always seemed to haunt the hallways. I slowly walked forward; my now too baggy pants had to be held on me by a very thick belt. Otherwise, I would have a severe wardrobe malfunction.

  I gave a small wave to the girl at the guest services desk as I entered the doorway to the servers’ hallway.

  “Ms. Davis,” said the familiar voice of Perry. He stood in a large doorway. Perry looked me over with a rather neutral expression. It was the look he almost always wore; you couldn’t quite ever tell what he was thinking.

  “If you’re here to see Mr. Hart, then I’ll be the bearer of bad news. He’s off today.”

  I knew from my times of reading the employee schedule that Hart was Matt’s last name. But that wasn’t normal. Not only was Matt almost always at the conference center, he was never off on Tuesdays. Even though I knew it was wrong to show any interest in his whereabouts, curiosity got the better of me.

  “Where is he?”

  Perry’s eyes didn’t look at me as he scanned the contents of the folder in his hands. “Not here.” He continued to read through a folder he was holding, walking away without giving me a second glance.

  I couldn’t help but feel nervous around my former boss. He looked to be the same age as my own parents. Perry knew what the boys were, he was one of them, but he didn’t give off any indication that he knew what the boys were. “I heard y-you the first time,” I said nervously. “But what does that mean?”

  Now Perry turned to assess me. “It means you aren’t doing him any favors by trying to find him. If anything, you’re making things harder.”

  He then began to walk away, inspiring me to find the courage I didn’t have to speak. “I’m here f-for a job.” My stutter seemed to come out specifically when I was nervous.

  Perry turned to me with a raised eyebrow. “Looking to transfer back to shipping?”

  “No, I’m looking to join your pack,” I said quietly. Nothing was said for a few long moments.

  Perry removed his wire-framed glasses to watch me soundlessly. “Is that so?”

  I didn’t say anything as I returned his blank stare. There was something off about Perry, something that seemed as though he didn’t believe me. “I’ll pass on the message,” he said mildly, returning to the papers in his hands. He began whistling a random tune, continuing on his merry way as if we weren’t talking about something serious.

  “That’s it?” I questioned in disbelief. I had to follow after him, avoiding knocking into a random server that came walking out of the kitchen with a cart. I waited for the young woman made her way down the long service hallway and out the doors before speaking again. “I’m giving you a way for all of these lies, secrets, and murders to end and you act as though I’m just putting in a s-simple request!”

  My voice going slightly higher than a whisper was what inspired Perry to turn to face me. “Let’s get something straight, Ms. Davis,” he said coolly. “If it had been up to me, you never would have joined us here in the convention center.” I didn’t blink as I watched him with wide eyes. The phrasing of the “convention center” was merely a cloaking word for pack. That didn’t offend me because it wasn’t surprising. No one had ever really drawn out the welcome wagon for me. The entire duration of my employment had been spent either trying to prove myself capable of the job or hiding from my weird coworkers.

  Perry took a step forward, his teeth almost gritting together. “Mr. Hart isn’t wrong; you never should have been a part of our group.” Perry clearly wanted to hammer in the point of just how unwanted I was.

  “Then we agree on something,” I said coldly.

  Perry gave a straight nod. He took a deep breath through his nose as he looked to be contemplating something. “Go home. I’ll pass on this information to the others.”

  “And then what? I’ll get a phone call?” My sarcasm was poorly hidden.

  “Or a visit tonight,” said Perry, almost thoughtfully.

  From the way he phrased it, I couldn’t tell if that was a random declaration or a promise.

  Later on that evening, twilight was settling in. The sky was dimming; stars were becoming visible. There were no cars in the conference center except the few that I knew belonged to the boy band. The Prius, Ford, the dilapidated Honda Civic, and the other shabby vehicle that was so outdated I couldn’t tell what brand it was. The overhead lights of the parking lot were the only lights except the faint glow of the guest services desk from the windows of the conference center. Next to the center was one of the outdoor water parks. After Labor Day, all of the outdoor pools in all of Wisconsin Dells were closed for winter. All of the summer tourists went home come early September. There would no longer be a need to stay open. At The Forest Resort, at least four acres of area was dedicated to the outdoor slides and lazy river. Named Lost Destination, the park was smack behind the hotel beside the conference center. The only way to get to the hotel from the convention area was walking at least two miles from entrance to entrance or walking across the skywalk connecting the conference center to the hotel.

  I sat in my car for most of the day. I kept in contact with Simon via phone, but I didn’t go home, contrary to what my brother was encouraging me to do. I just couldn’t go through with his plan. I wanted the alpha dead probably more than anyone, but Simon and Erik’s plan was too dangerous; it would be two teenage boys against a fully grown werewolf capable of massacring half a dozen people alone. As soon as the alpha caught wind of my little brother’s plan to kill him, I couldn’t guarantee Simon and his friend would come out of tonight alive. We would all be dead. Then what of Miranda? I couldn’t guarantee even she would be left alive after the wolf discovered we’ve been plotting to kill him.

  As I sat in my truck gently drumming my fingers against my steering wheel, I realized Miranda’s earlier assessment hadn’t been wrong. I was different. That’s why I was here tonight, all alone.

  I really didn’t hold too much fear as I sat in the driver’s seat of the truck. I didn’t come unprepared on my probable suicide mission. A shiny, brand new revolver sat nicely placed in my oversized jacket pocket, loaded and ready to go.

  My plan, although not thought through and probably asinine, was simple. Stay in the parking lot of the place the werewolves worked. At some point or another, the alpha would come for me. That much I felt certain of.

  Scarily enough, you didn’t need a license to purchase a gun in Wisconsin. To my dismay, all that was required was a background check. My ultra-liberal parents would have gone nuts had they known what I drove forty-five minutes to purchase this afternoon. Then they would have probably died of shock knowing I walked out of the store with a loaded weapon after spending barely a half hour there. The background check had been an easy enough process to pass. I had lived a vastly uninteresting life and had never gotten even a speeding ticket before. The gun now sat in my pocket, prepared and ready to go. The funny thing about this minor preparation was that I wasn’t really sure it would work. My phone buzzed as Simon started calling me. I hesitantly answered.

  “Yeah?”

  I didn’t bother with simple pleasantries.

  “Why aren’t you home yet?” he demanded. He soon launched into a long-winded explanation of how we were running out of time. Now was the time to tell him. I had managed to evade his questioning for the last few hours, saying that I had things to do before we cornered the alpha.

  “Because I’m not going home,” I finally admitted. My voice sounded as I felt: beyond tired, utterly exhausted.

  “What do you mean you’re not going home?” Simon exploded in protest. “We spent all day revamping the house in preparation!”

  “And then what?” I quietly rebutted. “Cross your fingers and hope that a net and a rusty old bear trap succeed in catching him?”

  I was met with sile
nce on the other end of the phone. I just mocked my little brother’s entire plan. I couldn’t find myself feeling too bad; not only was the plan very flawed, it was almost childish even. There was no guarantee it would work. My plan, although not entirely thought through, was simple enough. When I come across the alpha, shoot him in the head. Maybe I would get lucky and he would die. I was talented at shooting targets after being friends with two girls whose father had been in the army. Our sunny California Saturdays had been spent firing at cans at a shooting range. I was still friends with those girls on social media, so I made a mental reminder to thank them for the practice if I somehow managed to live through this night.

  “Everly, just come home. We’ll think of something else.”

  My brother sounded worried.

  “If this doesn’t work, then we’ll do that.” My voice was dull.

  “If what doesn’t work? Everly! What are you planning?”

  “I’ll talk to you later, Simon…you’re the b-best little brother anyone could ever have.” I hung up the phone and then placed it on silent. Immediately, Simon began calling back. There was no point in picking up the phone; there was no guarantee I would be coming home tonight. As the harsh realization caused a few stray tears to fall from my eyes, a loud knock sounded on my window, startling me.

  There shouldn’t be anyone here. The hotel was barely at five percent capacity. All major parking lots were cleared out. There was such a small percentage of hotel guests it would actually make more sense to shut down certain attractions rather than keep them open in the dead fall season.

  As I looked out my window, surprise overtook me. There wasn’t a hotel guest, security guard, or member of the boy band outside by my window. Instead, Erik stood under the intense beam of the parking lot light, watching me with a glare. I gaped at my brother’s teenage friend, unable to understand why he was here of all places.

  I was so startled by his sudden arrival I motioned him to move as I quickly exited my truck. His beat-up green Sentra idled just a few feet away. “What are you doing here?” I hissed in a whisper, my eyes darting to the employee parking lot across the vastly empty lot of the conference center.

  “Looking for you,” said Erik unkindly, his beady eyes unblinking as he watched me.

  “I don’t understand, how did you find me?”

  “It really wasn’t hard trying to piece together where you would go,” said Erik dryly, still watching me strangely. “You’re becoming predictable.”

  It was then that I noticed a very large crowbar was in his hands.

  I didn’t know what to make of this sudden exchange. “You really need to go home, okay? I got this.” In one pocket, I had the revolver. In the other, I had a small squirt gun filled with holy water. It was filled and ready to go when I took it from Simon’s bedroom hours earlier. What was once a typical bedroom of a teenage boy with nothing but a bed, TV, gaming consoles, and bean bag chairs perched around it changed into a warrior’s den. Battle plans coated Simon’s desks and walls; he possessed bear traps, hooks, knives, and plenty of holy water. I couldn’t be sure whether holy water would work against werewolves, but it was worth a try.

  “Is that so?” Erik challenged, sounding very unlike his usual self. I was so used to my brother’s best friend being shy and gawky in all the time I had known him. When he wasn’t showcasing these traits, one could typically find him snacking at our breakfast bar on leftovers or eating a random bag of chips. This sudden snark was unnerving and uncharacteristic. There was an edge to Erik, almost as if he silently knew something I didn’t.

  Then it dawned on me. “You’re him,” I breathed, not figuring it out until just that moment. That was when the pieces started shifting together. That was how the alpha was always one step ahead of us, why he always seemed to be around even though we never saw him; he was right beside us all along. I fumbled to remove the gun from my pocket, but Erik was too quick for me.

  When I went to grab it, he lunged forward to strike me with the crowbar. The harsh blow to my left side caused me to lose my breath and fall against my truck. All too easily, Erik stole my gun as I then fell to the hard ground, struggling to catch my breath. Removing my squirt gun from my pocket, I weakly started to squirt Erik’s face with it.

  Any other situation, this would have been laughable. The holy water was useless against him.

  Before I could even pull myself up, Erik gave me a harsh kick to the ribs. The impact caused me to crumple with pain on the hard ground. My head bounced off the pavement roughly. The side of my temple was now scraped and beyond bruised. It felt like there was blood.

  “Life would be easier for you if I was dead, wouldn’t it?” demanded Erik before another harsh kick was delivered to my ribs. I spluttered a cough, agonizing pain ripping through my body. I didn’t know what to do. I knew I needed to fight, but I was outmatched. Overpowered. Erik was taller and stronger than me; there was no way I was going to win this. Mine and Simon’s only ally had in actuality never been an ally at all.

  It seemed as though a small act of fate knew my thoughts, for a familiar sound occurred. A menacing snarl ripped through the dead silence of the empty parking lot.

  I knew that sound; I knew that familiar growling. I knew the owner. Hope filled me. I lifted my head up to see Matt’s black truck idling a few feet behind Erik’s Sentra. He wasn’t dressed in his uniform; he wore jeans, a cream pullover, and ratty ball cap.

  “What the hell are you doing?” he shouted at Erik before moving toward me.

  That was the wrong thing to do. My revolver was used against me. Erik too easily undid the safety and fired at Matt. His having a background in hunting made this all too easy for him.

  It all happened too quickly; it felt like things were moving in slow motion. I saw the shot; I saw the bullet penetrate Matt’s body. It entered through his stomach. A bright ruby red began to saturate the cream shirt. It didn’t stop his advance toward Erik, but another bullet neatly placed into Matt’s chest stopped his movement entirely. It caused him to fall to his knees, his bright blue eyes never leaving my direction even as Erik slowly approached him. I released a strangled cry of fear. No one would come upon the sound of bullets being fired. I had taken precautions and spent extra money purchasing a silencer for the revolver. I worried over the idea of killing the alpha and then having people or police arrive after hearing shots being fired. Little did I know the silencer would actually be the worst thing I could have purchased; it meant that no one would be coming to the rescue.

  I heard a noise, but I couldn’t place what it was. My eyes and concern was solely on Matt alone.

  “Run,” encouraged Matt, speaking only to me. That was when I heard it again. The growling. Only this time, the sound wasn’t issuing from Matt. It was a very distinct, animalistic growling that I only remembered from once before. It put the little hairs on the back of my neck on end; it made my palms start to sweat. I first heard it on the side of the road the very first time Simon and I gave in to the belief that werewolves could possibly exist. I lifted my sore head off the pavement to see that there was not one but two extremely large creatures on the far side of the parking lot. They weren’t what one would expect a normal animal to look like. These were large, humanoid monsters that looked at least six feet tall. Fur covered every inch of their muscled bodies; long, hideous snouts covered their faces. Tattered pieces of clothing covered them, almost as if they burst into fur and their clothes exploded in the process. Their feet were as long as skateboards and their long furry hands were covered with sharp, claw-like talons where their fingernails should be. They were monsters.

  But it was the noise they made that terrified me to no end. The low, breathy growls as they stalked closer and closer, no doubt coming to their alpha Erik’s aid. One was pitch black in color; the other was a more reddish color.

  Exiting the conference center was the familiar ball cap-wearing Jamie in monster version. His body was still human, although his face wasn’t. It was hideousl
y deformed, enlarged dog-like eyes while his nose transformed to that of a wolf. His teeth grew into long, menacing-looking canines. His body started hunching and shifting as if his bones were breaking in the process. He was coming to join the impromptu party.

  I didn’t look at Erik. I didn’t look back at Matt. I didn’t think of much before I reacted. I suddenly pulled myself off the ground and did the only thing that seemed even remotely rational. I followed the advice I was told and I ran as fast as I could in the opposite direction.

  Common sense would have been to run toward my truck, but Erik still had my gun; I had no guarantee he wasn’t going to shoot me dead by the time I reached the truck or tried to pull away. My cell phone was still in the cab; I didn’t have it on me. I ran as fast as I could, and I didn’t look back. I ran to the second set of doors to the conference center only to find that they were locked. I took off in a mad sprint toward the empty outdoor water park. If I somehow made my way across the park and around the back of the hotel, there was a good chance I could find a landline. I made the long run past the employee lot and down the hill to the locked gate. I got lucky; there was a large gap in the fence. I tried not to cry as I slinked my way through it and tried to ignore the intense sound of growling now not too far behind me. The water park was spooky when empty. No lights lit up the dead park. Darkness haunted every crevice. I tried running but nearly fell into an empty pool that was five feet in depth. The lack of water made the pools look spooky. Behind the fence where I had just come from, there was one of the werewolves lurking closer. My breathing was becoming erratic; I hid behind a very large body slide and out of sight as the monster stalked closer. My hands flew up to cover my mouth as I tried to ease my frightened breaths. The lighting of the parking lot allowed me to see the outline of the reddish werewolf analyzing the fence before him. He was less than ten feet away. Using a large, furry hand, the monster gently nudged the small crevice I managed to sneak through to get into the park. The color of the fur reminded me of someone I knew, someone I disliked as much as he disliked me. Cale.