Jacob's van slowed once it cleared the Saint James Hospital. The silence inside felt unnatural. Both Marci and Gwen were still unconscious in the back. William slept in the passenger seat, while Bai sat cross-legged—levitating mid-air between William and Jacob, eyes closed, calm as if the chaos of the last few hours had been a dream.
Jacob couldn't stop replaying what he'd witnessed in the hospital. Since the night he'd been cursed, he'd wondered what other creatures walked the world. Tonight had answered that—and raised a hundred more questions.
"So you think Detective Stone and Ms. Brollachan made it out okay?" Jacob's voice was steady, but worry laced every word. Stone had helped him master his condition; even without seeing him, Jacob could sense that Stone was … different.
Bai chuckled softly. "I'm not sure if Stone can be hurt. As for Ms. Brollachan—she's fine, but it isn't like her to avoid a fight."
Jacob nodded. He had never met Ms. Brollachan, but he could feel her. The same way he could feel that Bai and William weren't ordinary. Yet never had he imagined the sheer power they wielded.
He gripped the steering wheel tighter. "We can't stay in the city. Too many eyes, too many chances for collateral." He glanced toward the rearview mirror at Gwen's still face. "I'm taking us somewhere safe … or at least away from everyone else."
He didn't add somewhere I swore I'd never go back to.
Morgan Reservoir. The place where, years ago, he'd stopped being human.
---
June 12, 2015 — 11 p.m. — Morgan Pond and Reservoir
Jacob and his high-school sweetheart, Stephanie, were laughing as they pushed through the brush. He'd been waiting all week to show her the old park-ranger cabin he'd found. It had been abandoned for years, a ghost of state funding cuts.
The two burst through the treeline into the clearing. The cabin's windows were dark, its door crooked, the smell of pine thick in the air. Jacob's heart raced—not from fear, but anticipation. Senior year, finally alone, finally together.
Stephanie straddled him on the narrow bed, laughing, brushing her long brown hair from her glowing caramel skin. The moonlight made her look almost ethereal. He couldn't imagine a safer place.
Then the door exploded.
Wood splinters shot across the room, embedding in the walls. A creature stepped through—grey and white fur, towering height, claws that scraped the floorboards. It wasn't a wolf; it wasn't a man. It was something else.
Stephanie screamed, pressing herself against the wall. The creature howled, a sound that felt like it clawed inside Jacob's chest.
Jacob lunged between them. Years of football practice flashed in his head—breakdown, wrap up, hip roll!—and he charged.
The beast dodged easily, its massive arm closing around his throat. Jacob's feet left the floor. His kicks landed uselessly against its chest. It leaned close, breath hot with decay, and bit down.
Snap.
Agony tore through his arm. His vision went white.
Stephanie's sobs snapped him back. She'd found an iron poker, scraping it against the stove for courage. The creature turned toward her, and she plunged the rod straight into its eye. The howl that followed wasn't of pain but rage.
Jacob was flung through the door like a rag doll. He hit the ground hard, stars bursting behind his eyes. Stephanie dragged him upright, sobbing, both of them running, bleeding, terrified.
They ran until the forest gave way to the road. And there, in the distance, was Jacob's beat-up neon under the moonlight. Salvation.
---
Present Day — 5 a.m. — Morgan Pond and Reservoir
Gwen now lay on the single bed in the ranger's cabin. Marci sat on the love seat, her leg bouncing uncontrollably, her eyes distant. She had woken on the drive but hadn't spoken a word. William, ever the caretaker, had conjured a steaming cup of coffee and offered it with a gentle smile. She ignored him completely.
Visibly hurt, he turned and walked to the bedroom. Bai noticed—the slump in William's shoulders, the small, quiet sigh. The old man still carried centuries of restraint, but the way he looked at Marci said more than words ever could. Her opinion mattered to him.
Bai turned to the window. Jacob stood outside on the porch, watching the treeline. Even from here, Bai could feel the turmoil rolling off him. Whatever happened here years ago still haunted him. When William magically repaired the cabin's broken door, Jacob had flinched—not from fear of magic, but from memory.
Jacob had swapped his burned uniform shirt for a black T-shirt and jeans. He looked human again, though the weight of what he'd seen—and what he was—hung over him like fog.
Bai floated higher, legs crossed, voice calm. "Maybe we owe you an explanation."
Marci snapped her head up. "You're damn right you do! What the hell is going on? When did my life turn into a B-rated horror movie!?" Her words were raw, her voice cracking halfway through.
Bai's eyes flicked toward William. The older man sat on the edge of Gwen's bed, exhaustion written in every line of his face. He met Bai's gaze and gave a weary nod.
Bai took a deep breath, turned to Marci, and floated closer until his eyes met hers.
"Marci," he began softly, "what I'm about to share with you … would have sounded impossible just a few days ago."
Her red-rimmed eyes didn't blink.
She just whispered, "Try me."
End Chapter 12