Okay, I had to admit that going to a bar was probably not the best idea, considering that my system was still full of pain killers and God knew what was in those shots they had given me. But I couldn't rest. I went for a walk to calm down, but the city was too loud… Voices, televisions, radios, cars, pets, it was too much so I decided to stop at the Whisky Creek.

A loud cheer sounded the second I walked in. Everyone greeted me enthusiastically and asked about the wolf. I couldn’t blame them for being curious but their relentless questions just annoyed me. But the music finally drowned out the loud nighttime city sounds. The bar smelled of alcohol, smoke, and sweat more than ever. I scratched my nose and tried not to notice.

Alexei pushed a few men away from me and set a glass of whisky in front of me. "You drink for free today." He patted my back and turned to the crowd. "Everyone gets a free beer to celebrate Andrew and Simon!" he called out.

The crowd cheered. I thanked him, but I was way more glad to be left alone.

"Shouldn't you be resting?" Caroline, the deputy and my superior, sat down in the chair beside me, a bottle of beer in her hand. She wore no uniform. Just some ordinary jeans, a blue T-shirt and a brown casual jacket.

"I’m getting my medicine.” I grinned and took a sip from my glass. Caroline Webber has always had a very strict expression of the deputy sheriff. She devoted herself to work and she had a sharp tongue. But today her brown eyes just seemed… tired.

"Well be careful, I'd hate to lose my best cop." She laughed and tapped a bottle of beer on my glass.

"Oh no, who would organize the archives then?" I jabbed a bit since that was what I was doing the last time I’ve been to work. She laughed and returned an escaped strand of brown wavy hair behind her ear. She always wore them in a ponytail and trimmed above her shoulders. Today it lined her face free of any restraints. I had to admit she was attractive, but she was engaged to her job. Why had I never noticed how beautiful she was? Not that I wanted to start anything with my superior, that was out of the question. Somehow though it felt as if I was seeing her for the first time.

Though I couldn't tell why desire crept through my body. I reached out and stroked her hand in a gentle gesture. "I survived and that's all that matters." I smiled and couldn’t help but let my eyes wander on her body. The uniform normally hid her feminine curves but now… She looked at my hand in surprise, her skin warming pleasantly. Her perfume smelled pleasant, after some gentle herb I didn't know.

"You look good," I said and noticed that my voice suddenly seemed a little deeper. "Though the uniform is more impressive." I grinned and ran my fingers lightly over the back of her hand. This strange out-of-place desire somehow surprised me too. Why did she suddenly seem so fragile? Like a beautiful doe in the face of a predator. One part of me was afraid I would hurt her, and the other wanted her. Wanted her touch, the taste of her lips.

"Officer Cross, you're not trying to flirt with me, are you?" She laughed to herself and took a sip of the beer. I had to either let go or hold on forcefully. I pulled my hand away and realized that I felt a heavy pressure spreading through my fingers again. I was suddenly too aware of every part of my body. My teeth ached… My muscles felt tense…

Excitement slowly climbed up my spine. I clenched my fists. My heart was racing, I could hear my blood rushing through my ears, the desire and lust were making me almost breathless. And yet it felt so unfamiliar, so out of place, because I didn’t want Caroline. In all my years on the force, I have never seen her as anything else than my superior. What is going on?

I had to get out of here. Now. I downed the whisky in one gulp and staggered out of the bar as quickly as I could. Every inch of my skin itched while my muscles burned. I heard Caroline call after me, but her words vanished in the whirlwind of my scattered thoughts.

I called myself a cab, though the backseat just made me feel uncomfortable and claustrophobic. I dug my fingers into the seat and tried to breathe. Those stupid cramps in my stomach appeared again, making me ground my teeth against it. It didn’t hurt, but it left me feeling nervous and frustrated for some reason.

Getting home didn’t help me. I had some pills for anxiety from a long time ago, I popped about two but they did nothing to calm me down. I paced in the living room, my whole body aching dully, my skin crawling.

And the desire. Gods, the lust that seemed to be swaying my whole body. I couldn’t practically breathe, all flushed, my clothes too tight to be comfortable. What the hell is wrong with my brain? In the end, I couldn’t handle it anymore and took a long freezing cold shower. I spent the whole night staring at my ceiling, feeling restless.

The next morning I decided to blame the alcohol and drugs for what happened. All that was left was this weird pressure in my joints and fingertips and for some reason my teeth hurt, making it almost impossible for me to even chew. Well, I did almost die… I guess I couldn’t just expect to feel great in a week.

I tried to just sit at home and take it easy. Ashley called again and we actually talked for a while about seemingly meaningless things. That was fine by me. It has been a long time since we’ve just talked like this. She told me that the story of the Wadena Beast was going wild, someone wrote a creepypasta on it and it had become a phenomenon. People just couldn’t help themselves but glorify violence huh? So many people have died because of this wolf. It made me angry.

The countless serial killers that went famous for such a horrible thing as murder… What has the world become, when the serial killers were more famous than the people that finally caught them? And now they worshipped this… demon that roamed Wadena and took lives as it pleased?

The restlessness hit me again full force. I couldn’t stay in the house. My chest felt too tight as I walked aimlessly through the streets, flexing every muscle that I could to get rid of this burning and itching that made my skin crawl and my insides clench.

I felt frustrated and anxious as if watching a glass full of water sway on the edge of the table, but the inevitable fall just wasn’t coming, it kept rocking, making me lose my damn mind.

I felt hot and a drop of sweat ran down my nape, making me shudder. I found myself gasping for breath as if my lungs were simply too small. I stopped abruptly, the world around me spinning. My heart pounded wildly and my stomach twitched in mild cramps. Not again, damn it!

I took a few steps forward, but my legs didn’t want to carry me anymore. I stumbled and leaned against a car parked at the edge of the street for support. I felt as if something was desperately clawing at my flesh from the inside.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" someone snapped angrily, grabbed my shoulder, and unexpectedly threw me to the ground. I landed hard on my ass. “That’s my car, asshole!” Anger and disdain shone in the man’s eyes. There was a bitter scent of something I didn't like coming from him. He clenched his fists while I just sat on the ground watching him intently. He glanced behind himself, where a group of other men like him stood, making sure they watched him and smiled.

Oh, the self-righteousness shining on his face, the obvious desire to satisfy the viewers of this scene, who were expecting nothing but fists and blood. He snapped something at me and spat, but I couldn't hear the words through the blood rushing in my ears. He suddenly kicked out at my face and all that restlessness and anger immediately turned into pure rage. I grabbed his leg, pulled him forward, and kicked him in the stomach. All air rushed out of his lungs and I jumped to my feet and hit his nose with my fist. It was strangely satisfying when I felt his bone crack under my strength. I hit him with my elbow in the chest and sent him to the ground.

Something about the easiness with which I sent him down excited me and I felt that excitement slowly trying to engulf my mind and body. My muscles twitched and tried to convince me to continue. I didn't have enough, I needed to feel the cracking of bones and the warmth of blood. I looked at my fist. There was blood on my knuckles, warm, shiny blood… I blinked and as if I had fallen out of trance, the excitement and rage had disappeared and got quickly replaced by horror.

Why did I do that? I couldn’t remember the last time I got into a fight like this on the street. Probably never, not even when I was a teenager and sure as hell not now. I looked at the guy who lay on the ground, curled up into a ball, holding his ribs and his broken nose. There were people standing around whispering and judging quietly… I left the place as quickly as I could.

The only thing that didn't stop was the damn pressure building up inside my body... My joints, bones, and muscles were begging for any kind of movement my skin felt as if electricity ran through it. Uneasiness and restlessness overshadowed my mind. I ran through the deserted streets. I could feel my every muscle working, the refreshing air filled my lungs and urged me on. I sped up more and more, and even more, faster and faster! Finally!

I ran down the street and into the forest as the sun slowly set, hiding me in the shadows of the night. Exhilaration spread through my body with every step. I felt like howling with happiness. The forest seemed to call to me as if offering a quiet haven, a place where nothing and no one would stop me, a place where I was safe...