“Catch your breath,” Caroline repeated. Her voice sounded different—low and hoarse.
“No. Come on. Hurry!” Danielle pleaded. “We can’t waste time.”
Caroline didn’t respond this time. Her hands felt heavy on Danielle’s back. Danielle heard a low, rumbling sound from deep in Caroline’s chest.
“Are you okay?” Danielle asked.
What’s that smell? Danielle wondered. She sniffed the air. It smelled sour. Like a dog that hadn’t been bathed in years.
Danielle shivered. “Caroline?” she whispered.
She spun around—and gasped. “No! No! It can’t be!”
Caroline’s blue eyes gleamed out at Danielle from a face covered in gray fur. The same bristly gray fur had sprouted over Caroline’s arms and legs.
Another rumbling sound rose up from Caroline’s chest.
And then her thick, purple lips drew back, revealing sharp yellow fangs. Fangs that glistened with saliva. Fangs that were meant to tear into flesh and rip it apart.
As the cold moonlight poured down, Caroline tossed back her ugly, fur-covered head and let out a long animal howl.
Chapter 26
WHO CAN SHE TRUST?
The long, wailing cry shattered the quiet of the night. It ended in an ugly animal growl.
Caroline’s eyes rolled wildly, catching the silver light of the moon. Thick saliva dripped onto the fur over her chin.
Her purple lips drew back again.
“Caroline!” Danielle cried. “You know me. I’m your friend. Please, Caroline!”
Caroline raised her fur-covered hands. The yellow nails had grown long and curled into ragged claws. Claws that could rip and tear.
Another inhuman growl started again, deep in Caroline’s throat. She grabbed Danielle roughly with both claws.
“Caroline!” Danielle shrieked. “It’s me—it’s Danielle! Caroline, please!”
The blue eyes were all that remained of Caroline. The rest of her had transformed into a grunting, drooling creature.
A wolf?
A werewolf?
Choked with terror, Danielle struggled to pull away. But Caroline held on to her with inhuman strength. Then, over Caroline’s shoulder, Danielle glimpsed two lights in the distance.
Headlights, she thought. A car. Somebody to help me.
Danielle shrieked as loud as she could. “Help! Over here! Help!”
An engine roared. The headlights loomed closer.
Caroline uttered an angry snarl and snapped her head around. Her grip loosened.
Danielle tore free and sprinted toward the bouncing headlights.
“Hey!” she shouted, waving her arms above her head. “Over here! Help!”
The lights blinded her for a moment. Then they swung away, and she could see the car. Not a car. A van.
The band’s van, with Billy and Mary Beth inside.
The van squealed to a halt. Mary Beth and Billy leaped out and sprinted toward Danielle.
“No! Go back!” she cried. “Go back! We’ve got to get out of here!”
Billy and Mary Beth didn’t seem to hear her. As they left the shadows of the trees, the icy moonlight washed over them.
Their faces writhed. Their eyes glittered in the light, and their lips twisted back, revealing sharp, pointed fangs.
Danielle gaped in horror as fur sprouted on their faces, their arms, their hands.
Werewolves! Danielle realized. Billy, Mary Beth, Caroline—they’re all werewolves!
Danielle screamed again and whipped around.
Caroline loped toward her on all fours, thick saliva running from her snarling jaws.
Behind her, Billy and Mary Beth tilted back their wolfish heads and uttered shrill howls.
Nowhere to run! Danielle thought, her heart pounding, the blood throbbing at her temples.
“Get away!” she screamed. “Please! Please—get away from me!”
The three wolves moved in front of her, blocking her escape. Backing her up, snarling and growling.
The sickening sour smell rose up in front of her.
The wolves snapped their jaws. Pushed forward.
Backing her up. Backing her up . . .
Until cold water splashed around her ankles.
Danielle cried out. They had backed her into the narrow river.
What did they plan to do? Drown her? Then tear her to pieces?
Tear her to pieces like Joey? Like Dee?
Her foot came down on a smooth, slippery rock.
She fell. Cold water swirled over her legs.
Whimpering in fear, Danielle scrambled to her feet.
She glanced up at the van. Not that far away.
Could she get to it before the three wolves attacked her? Could she beat them to it?
She had to.
Sucking in a deep breath, Danielle plunged out of the water. Stumbling and slipping, she cut across the wet dirt.
Behind her, the snarling stopped.
She glanced back. They weren’t chasing her. Had they given up?
She struggled to see. But a heavy curtain of darkness had fallen over the woods. A large cloud covered the moon.
“Danny?” she heard Caroline call. “It’s okay now. You don’t have to run from us.” Caroline’s voice had returned to normal.
“She’s right, Danielle!” Mary Beth shouted.
“You’re safe now,” Billy added. “We won’t hurt you.”
Danielle hesitated. She wanted to trust them.
But she knew she couldn’t. The moonlight had transformed them into wolves. The bad moonlight.
It had vanished behind the cloud. And they had returned to their human bodies. But the minute the cloud passed, Danielle knew they’d turn into wolves once again and tear her apart!
“No!” she screamed.
And then a voice rang out behind her. “Danielle!”
She recognized the voice. Relief washed over her.
Kit.
“Kit!” she cried. She plunged through the dirt toward his voice. “Help me!”
“Hurry, Danielle!” Kit shouted, holding out his hand. “I have my car. Hurry!”
“The van is closer!” she cried breathlessly.
“I don’t have the key. Come on, Danielle, hurry!”
Danielle tried to run, but her legs suddenly gave way. Her muscles cramped. She couldn’t move. “Help me, Kit!”
“Danielle, don’t go to him!” she heard Billy shout. “He won’t save you. Kit is one of us!”
Danielle froze, unable to move, unable to breathe.
“Nice try, Billy.” Kit’s voice sounded tight with anger. “Don’t listen, Danielle. He’s lying. Billy is lying to you.”
“Kit won’t save you!” Billy repeated desperately. “Come to us, Danielle!”
In her panic Danielle turned from Billy to the others, then back to Billy.
“Billy’s the band leader—and he’s their leader, Danielle!” Kit cried. “Come to me and I’ll get you out of here.”
Kit inched toward her, still holding his hand out. “Come on, Danielle,” he urged.
Billy advanced on her. Caroline and Mary Beth moved beside him, urging her to come to them.
What should I do? Danielle asked herself.
Who can I trust?
Who?
Chapter 27
NO ESCAPE
“Trust me, Danielle,” Kit whispered.
“Trust him?” Billy barked out a sarcastic laugh. “We’re your friends, Danielle. Come to us—please.”
Breathing hard, Danielle glanced from one to the other. Billy and Kit glared at each other furiously.
Choose! Danielle ordered herself. You have to choose!
She glanced at Caroline and Mary Beth. They nervously watched the sky.
They’re waiting for the cloud to pass by, Danielle thought. Waiting for the moonlight to return and transform them into wolves again.
So they can tear me to pieces.
“Kit!” she cried. She
spun away from them and raced toward Kit.
He grabbed her hand. “Let’s get out of here. The cloud is rolling away!”
She and Kit lurched toward the woods. Danielle felt a surge of hope. We’re going to make it!
As they ran, the trees appeared to light up.
It’s the moonlight, Danielle realized. The moonlight is back. I can feel its cold light on my shoulders.
“Don’t look back!” Kit ordered.
Danielle heard a long animal howl close behind her.
She stumbled, almost pulling Kit down. He grabbed her around the waist and lifted her to her feet.
“Aaaaaagh!”
The wolf roar startled Danielle. She tilted away in time to see Billy leap onto Kit’s back.
Roaring and snapping his powerful jaws, Billy drove Kit to the ground.
“Run, Danielle!” Kit gasped hoarsely. “Get away while you can!”
Billy grunted and snarled as he and Kit rolled over and over in the dirt. Kit fought hard. But he was no match for the powerful wolf.
Danielle’s gaze snapped back to Mary Beth and Caroline. They crept closer to her on all fours.
I’ve got to save Kit, Danielle thought frantically. But I can’t fight all three of them. I have to get help.
Have to get to the van.
Kit and Billy groaned and grunted, wrestling in the dirt. The other two wolves advanced on Danielle.
She bent low. Scooped up a handful of wet mud.
The two wolves growled, thick saliva dripping from their open mouths.
Danielle sprang up, heaved the mud at their eyes—and took off for the van.
The van was angled sideways, toward the woods. The driver’s door had been left open. A glint of metal caught her eye.
The key! The key dangled in the ignition.
With a cry Danielle dived into the driver’s seat, pulled the door shut, and slammed down the lock.
Snarling angrily, Caroline and Mary Beth flung themselves against the side of the van, rocking it violently.
With a trembling hand, Danielle grabbed the key.
Turned it.
The engine groaned, started to catch, and died.
Chapter 28
A SURPRISE AT HOME
The headlights beamed toward the trees.
Was the battery dead?
Trembling in fear, Danielle clicked the lights off and grabbed hold of the key again.
Mary Beth and Caroline hurled themselves at the van again, rocking it under their weight.
Danielle’s hand, slick with sweat, slipped off the key.
Mary Beth’s wild-eyed wolf face pressed hard against the driver’s window. Her claws scrabbled at the glass.
Danielle turned the key. The engine groaned. She stopped, pumped the gas, and turned the key again.
At last! The engine roared to life.
Danielle shifted into reverse and stomped on the gas. The tires spun in the wet dirt. “Go!” Danielle yelled. The van jerked backward. “Yes!”
Mary Beth clung to the side mirror. Danielle hit the brake and shifted, then hit the gas. As the van jumped forward, Mary Beth toppled off, all four fur-covered paws flailing wildly.
In the rearview mirror Danielle watched the two wolves chasing after the van on all fours, snarling and snapping.
She jammed the pedal to the floor and screamed with relief as the van shot forward, leaving the animals behind.
“I made it!” Danielle cried aloud.
But what about Kit?
Please, Kit—please. Find a way to stay alive till I get back.
Guiding the van over the bumpy wooden bridge that led to the street, Danielle took a deep breath and tried to think clearly.
Billy is the leader. Does that mean he killed Joey and Dee?
Why?
She suddenly remembered the animal howls she had heard from her hotel window. Wolf howls. My so-called friends. Howling at the moon.
Danielle remembered her own fingernails lengthening and curling into claws.
She remembered lapping up Cliff’s blood. Her furious desire to kill Dee.
Were they trying to turn me into a werewolf too? she asked herself with a shudder.
But it didn’t work, she assured herself.
I’m still me. I’m not a wolf.
It didn’t work.
Don’t think anymore, Danielle instructed herself as the van rocketed down Fear Street, her street. Just get help.
Danielle glanced nervously into the rearview mirror.
Nothing but darkness. No one following.
Her breath caught in her throat. Would she be too late? Would the police find Kit’s body, slashed and torn like the others?
“Hang on, Kit!” she murmured.
At last her house came into view. Danielle shoved the driver’s door open even before the van bumped onto the curb.
The breath rasped in her throat as she raced up the sidewalk. She stumbled on the wooden front steps. A splinter cut into the palm of her hand. She ignored the pain and scrambled up.
The front door was locked.
“Aunt Margaret!” she cried, pounding with her fist. “Aunt Margaret, open the door! Hurry!”
Silence.
She pounded again, harder this time. “Aunt Margaret! It’s me, Danielle! Hurry and open the door!”
Off in the distance an animal howled. A dog?
Or a wolf?
“Aunt Margaret! Cliff!” She hammered at the door. “Hurry!”
She started to run around to the back when she heard footsteps in the front hall. The porch light snapped on and the lock clicked.
The door swung open. Danielle burst inside and fell against her aunt.
Aunt Margaret wore a light blue summer robe. Her red hair stuck up in spikes, and her eyes were pouchy from sleep.
“Danielle? What’s wrong?” she demanded.
Danielle raised her head. “There isn’t time to explain. Quick, we have to call the police!”
She started toward the kitchen, but her aunt kept hold of her arm.
“Call the police?” Aunt Margaret asked. “Why? Did something happen at the concert? You look as if you’ve been in a fight, Danielle!”
“I have!”
“And you’re hurt,” Aunt Margaret continued. “Come with me to the bathroom. Let’s clean those cuts and scratches.”
“No!” Danielle cried frantically. “I’m fine. It’s Kit who needs help! They’re going to kill him!”
“Huh? Kill who? Danielle, calm down and tell me!”
“Billy! And Mary Beth and Caroline!” Danielle gasped out. “They’re all werewolves!”
Aunt Margaret’s eyes grew wide.
“They tried to kill me too, but I got away. But they’ve got Kit—and they’re going to kill him!”
Tugging her arm loose, Danielle ran down the hall and into the dark kitchen. She knocked into a kitchen chair, flung it aside, and grabbed the telephone.
The kitchen light flashed on.
“Danielle,” Aunt Margaret said firmly.
Danielle ignored her. She knew her aunt didn’t believe her wild story. She’d make her believe later. She started to punch 911.
Aunt Margaret reached out and broke the connection.
“What are you doing?” Danielle shouted. “Aunt Margaret, I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true. They’re werewolves and they’re trying to kill Kit—right now!”
Desperately Danielle tried to peel her aunt’s fingers from the phone. “Why are you doing this? Don’t you believe me? Do you think I’m crazy?”
Aunt Margaret shook her head. “No, dear, I don’t think you’re crazy at all. In fact I know you’re not.”
“Then why—?”
“I’m sorry, Danielle, but you can’t call the police. I can’t let you.” A strange smile spread over Aunt Margaret’s face. “You have to go back to the others, dear. We’ve all worked too hard. You can’t spoil our plans for you now.”
Chapter 29
BI
G PLANS FOR DANIELLE
I didn’t hear right, Danielle told herself.
Aunt Margaret didn’t say that.
But what did she say?
Gently Aunt Margaret took the phone from Danielle’s hand and hung it up.
“You must go back to them, Danielle,” Aunt Margaret repeated. “They won’t let you escape. They’ll kill you first.”
No, Danielle thought. She can’t be saying that. This is one of my fantasies. If I just wait, it’ll be over.
She felt Aunt Margaret’s arm on her shoulder. She stiffened.
“Danielle!” Aunt Margaret sounded hurt. “Don’t be afraid of me. Come sit at the table and let me fix you some tea.”
Danielle shook her head and shrugged her aunt’s hand off her shoulder. “I have to get help for Kit!”
Aunt Margaret sighed. “You can’t, dear. Please listen to me. I can’t let you ruin our plan, Danielle. We’ve all been working on it for so long.”
Danielle gazed around the kitchen. The clock ticked. The refrigerator hummed. The plants swayed gently in the breeze from the window.
Face it. Everything is all real, Danielle told herself. It’s all really happening.
And . . . and . . . Aunt Margaret is one of them!
Her eyes moved back to her aunt’s face. She swallowed. “You’re my aunt!” she whispered hoarsely. “How could you help them?”
Aunt Margaret slowly shook her head. “I’m not your aunt, Danielle.”
“Huh? What do you mean?” Danielle shrieked. “I’ve known you all my life! Of course you’re my aunt!”
“You hadn’t seen your real aunt since you were a tiny child,” Aunt Margaret reminded her.
“But—but—” Danielle sputtered.
“I took her place,” the woman revealed.
“But what happened to my real aunt?” Danielle demanded.
The woman brushed back her red hair and sighed again. “You don’t have to know that, Danielle. The less you know, the easier it’ll be for you to—”
“Tell me!” Danielle demanded.
“Your real aunt is dead,” Aunt Margaret replied bluntly. “Just like your parents. All three of them died the same way.”
“What are you talking about? My aunt wasn’t with Mom and Dad when they had that car accident!”