Eve squinted as Blackwater Lake flashed mirror-bright in the afternoon sun. She pushed her sunglasses higher and glanced at Jon. “Hey, you need me to drop you anywhere?”

They were nearing Blackwood, and the pines had thickened along the road. Jon leaned back comfortably in his seat. “Nah, I left my bike at your place.”

“Where have you been staying, anyway?” Eve asked.

“I’ve been camping out in the parks.” “The parks” being the Henge Parks, a network of parks spread out around Blackwood and Blackwater Lake, connected by hiking paths and swaths of forest.

Ezra looked up from the backseat, frowning. “I’m not sure that’s the safest if there’s a werewolf around,” he said. Eve sighed.

“I’m not concerned until the full moon,” Jon said. “And if it is a problem, I’ll be prepared.”

Ezra stared at him, mouth open. “Are you at least near other people?”

Jon looked back and smiled at him. “Thanks for being concerned for me,” he said, making Ezra flush a little and look away. “But I do this all the time. I set up camp somewhere off the trail and sneak into the paid campsite to shower,” he said. “The lands are public, and if I’m being responsible, I should be able to use them. I do have a park pass, so I don’t feel too bad about it.”

“What?” Ezra said, sounding even more appalled than he already was. “That’s not allowed.”

Jon shrugged. “Yeah, but I don’t have the money to pay $20 a night for a legit site.”

Eve quickly looked over to glare at him. “But you were gonna let us pay you in food for your help?”

“It’s fine,” he said. He leaned back and beamed at them. “I’m having tons of fun. Plus, this gets me off of my friend’s couch, and I’m sure he’s happy about that.”

Not wanting to sound like a mom, Eve didn’t say “Fun doesn’t pay the bills,” but she did think it. She met Ezra’s eyes in the mirror, and he was thinking it too.

“Well, now we’re going to at least pay you something,” she said. Jon looked like he was going to politely refuse, but Eve steamrolled right over him. “I’ve already made up my mind. Get over it.”

Jon shut his mouth and smiled. Then he opened it again. “When’s the next full moon, anyway?”

“Tomorrow,” Ezra said. His teeth clicked as he quickly shut his mouth.

“Great! Then we can set something up quickly to investigate the werewolf idea.”

“I don’t think we need to investigate the werewolf idea anymore.” Ezra wrapped his arms around his middle. “Since we know that Kyle isn’t a werewolf.” Jon turned to look at him, and Eve waited for a stoplight to do the same.

“You were the one pushing werewolves,” Eve said.

“Your parents said Kyle probably isn’t one,” Ezra said. He seemed to be aiming for a calm and analytical tone, but it came off as nearly desperate. “And since you’re sure Kyle is the killer…”

Jon cupped his chin. “Just because Kyle isn’t a werewolf doesn’t mean nothing will happen on the full moon. I think we should do a stakeout. Set up cameras or a trap. Whether there’s a werewolf or not, Kyle’s invested in making people believe there is one. I think he might try to set something up during the full moon.”

“And then later point at it and go, ‘see I told you a werewolf killed her.’" Eve tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. “Okay, I’m down.” She could feel Ezra staring at her. Then he turned to the window and swallowed again.

After an awkwardly quiet several seconds, he cleared his throat. “Hm. Where, uh, would you set up your stake out?” he asked.

Jon tilted his head. “We could just stake out Kyle’s home,” he said. “But that leaves blind spots; what if he isn’t the killer after all? Or, what if there really is a werewolf?”

Ezra forced a little fake laugh.

“And,” Jon continued, “if there is a real werewolf, they might be able to help us prove Kyle’s involvement.”

Eve sighed. “As dumb as I think the werewolf theory is, I agree with you.” She pulled into the alley behind Pearson’s and parked, but the three of them made no moves to leave the car.

“But you—“ Ezra’s voice cracked a little. “We could get hurt,” he said.

“We can take precautions,” Jon said. “Set up our stakeout somewhere that’s guaranteed safe.”

“Guaranteed safe?” Ezra asked.

“My dad did say a werewolf wouldn’t be able to enter hallowed ground.” Eve crossed her arms.

Jon nodded. “Hallowed ground is usually a Christian cemetery that’s been consecrated. But any holy ground should do, and while there’s a cemetery here in Blackwood, this isn’t the best place for a stakeout.”

“Would the henges work?” Ezra asked.

Jon nodded. “The henges would be perfect. They might not be as potent as hallowed ground since there aren’t as many people who still consider them holy, but they still have a lot of power.”

“The fucking henges again,” Eve muttered, and Ezra looked appalled.

“So we’ll spend the night in one of the henges, set up bait by the cameras, and wait for our werewolf.” Jon nodded once, looking pleased with himself. “What’s the weather going to be like tomorrow?”

“Clear,” Ezra said, voice soft with distraction. He was looking down at his lap, hair falling forward to hide his face. He clutched his wrist tightly with his other hand.

Jon nodded and pulled out his phone, opening the map. He leaned over the center console to show Eve and Ezra his phone, but Ezra didn’t look up. “We can put cams here,” he said, zooming in on a few spots: the roads leading into and out of Blackwood, a random residential street, and Eve’s alley.

“Sure,” Eve said, her eyes flicking over to Ezra briefly. He hadn't moved.

Jon also glanced at Ezra. “We can pick up some dog treats or meat or something for bait. Would a werewolf like dog treats?”

Eve glanced back at Ezra again. “I dunno, maybe? We can try it.” She paused. “Which henge do you think we should set up at?”

“Well, not the north one,” Jon said. “It’s pretty busy. If we’re hoping to draw someone out, I think we’ll want to go to a different one.” Shrugging, Jon tapped his fingers on his thigh. “What if we used ourselves as bait?”

Eve squinted at him and looked at Ezra like she expected him to protest. He still wasn’t paying any attention, so she squinted harder at Jon.

“You don’t even think there is a werewolf,” he reminded her. “And Kyle seems to be fixated on you, maybe because you're immune to him.”

“Fine,” Eve sighed. “Then we shouldn’t be holed up in a henge all night.”

“No,” Jon agreed. “But we should keep close to one in case there is something out there.” He pressed his lips together while he thought, and then turned to Eve with a sunny smile. “I’ll find the perfect spot for us to set up camp.”

“You’re the expert,” Eve said, tilting her head.

Ezra finally looked up. “Okay,” he said. He seemed to have gathered his determination again. “We’ll have until sunset tomorrow to prepare.” He noticed Eve looking at him strangely and swallowed. “Um, that is, a werewolf probably wouldn’t, uh, turn until the sun was down, even if the moon was up before then…”

“That sounds right,” Jon offered. “We’ll be fine while the sun is up, but once it sets…” Jon paused. “Well, we’ll see what happens, I guess.