"If You Give a Werewolf a Wand"

PROLOGUE

6:00 AM - October 26 - London, England

  Aimee Lynell walked out of her flat, pulling her red, plaid scarf about her neck.  Even thought it was only October, summer seemed to have given fall the skip and had gone straight into winter.  Rain came steady and breezes constantly blew that threatened to bite your nose right off your face.  There really never was any snow during winter in England.  Just a lot of cold rain, high winds, and mud.  Lots of mud.

  She paused as a trolley rolled by, ringing its bell on its early morning route.  It continued over a hill and disappeared from sight.  Aimee dashed across the street, splashing dirty rainwater onto her legs.  Shivering, she began to make her way to the tavern for work.

  It was days like these that made Aimee hate her job- getting up early every morning to do "coffee duty" as Gabby, the tavern owner, called it.  It was days like these that made Aimee hate the way the tavern waitresses had to dress, in the short skirt that barely brushed their knees and the old-fashioned striped shirt that never got rid of the alcohol smell.

  Aimee arrived at the Lion and Unicorn tavern, next to the Leaky Cauldron, and walked inside.  The first thing she noticed was that the usual chatter and raucous laughter that filled the tavern wasn't there.  No tinking of glasses, no idle threats followed by laughter, no drunken strings of song... just the hum of the fans.  "Hello?"  She pushed her curly brown hair behind her ear, but since it was short, it popped right back in her face.

  "Hola to you too, Ay-mee-yah!"  LeAnna, the plump Spanish waitress who was Gabby's cousin, emerged from behind the bar counter, polishing glasses.  Aimee smiled weakly.  "You not know Gabriella is taking the day off? She went to see Senora... eh, Senora... something or other!"  She laughed. "Not important enough for poor LeAnna to remember, no?"

  Aimee smiled.  "I'm working the night shift then?"

  LeAnna nodded.  "By the way, that young Matt boy is asking about you again. I give him your number, ok?"

  Aimee giggled nervously.  "Oh sure.  You are a hopeless little matchmaker, aren't you?"

  "I try.  Now busy busy, off you go! Shoo!"  LeAnna shooed Aimee out the door.

  Aimee returned home and spent the afternoon huddled under a blanket (the flats had no heating) and got wasted on cigarettes and chocolate.  Around noon, she drifted off to sleep.  The hours flew by, 1...2...3...4...sundown...5... and then the full moon rose, round and silvery, in the clear sky.  In place of clouds was a low-lying fog that seeped through the streets like a parasite, ready to suck the nightlife out of the booming city.

  Aimee stirred as the light fell across her face.  She rolled over and hit the hard concrete floor, and grunted.  Glancing up at the clock, she saw it was now 5:15.  "Shit!" she exclaimed, and jumped up.  She smoothed out her ruffled outfit, pulled her hair into a messy ponytail, grabbed her scarf, and sprinted out the door.

  Running out of the front door of the building, she rounded the corner and started through the alley between flat buildings B and C.  She came to the fence at the end and proceeded to fiddle with the usually giving lock.  "Come on," she muttered.  "I don't have the damn time for this!"  She kicked the gate, but it only rattled angrily in return.  Suddenly, a trash can fell behind her.

  She whipped around.  "Hello?"  She narrowed her eyes against the fog.  "Who's there?"  Silence.  "Come on, I know you're there..."  Aimee started to walk slowly back up the alley, having second thoughts about her short cut.  About halfway back through the alley, something stirred behind her.  A light flicked on above her, but she was more interested in what had just taken place behind her.  The gate was open!

  "Ha, nice one!" she managed nervously.  "Thanks!"  She dashed through the gate and was tripped.  Turning around to cuss out the person who seemed to like playing with her mind, she froze in horror.

  A wolfish creature stood over her, but it had the stature of a man.  It looked at her with a ravenous hunger in its eyes.  It snarled, exposing long, yellow fangs.

  Before Aimee had a chance to scream, the hellish thing was upon her.