It had been two days since Biff began his search, finding no evidence.

His only suspect was in the hospital; the doctor said he had fallen into a coma.

Just. Fucking. Great.

He sat in his kitchen, drinking a third cup of coffee; he hadn't been sleeping well since the night Vigor had been kidnapped.

The chief said he and the rest of the officers were looking into it… but the rookie couldn't hang on his words. They had too much to do themselves- with the human-trafficking victims that still had to be identified, small-fry criminals stealing from stores, and a few animal attacks that had happened outside of town…

He scowled at that last thought.

He planned on going out there and questioning his old friend…

He wasted gas, driving towards the road, then turning back around.

He couldn't figure out what to ask. 'Hey, buddy, someone got mauled last night and a kid I found is missing- know anything about it?'

Biff sighed. If his friend hadn't changed, he would be a great help right now…

*Slam!*

The rookie gave a jolt, hearing someone come through the door; he relaxed when a familiar voice called out, "Biff, I'm home!"

He sighed with relief.

It was just Kim.

"You're back early. Is there a problem on-campus?" Biff called in response; his friend was in the hall.

"No, I took the exam early; I told my professors that it was important that I come home- I heard about what happened last month," Kim replied, entering the room. "Poor people… I hope you managed to catch the guys who-"

She paused, seeing his face. His expression was a mix of exhaustion and depression, dark rims beneath his eyes as if he had missed a week of sleep; he hadn't shaved, and his hair looked disheveled. "…we caught one. The rest were killed," Biff muttered.

Kim bit her lip. "…it was him, wasn't it?"

Biff sighed. "I wish I could say it wasn't, but the evidence was all over the place. …Thankfully, some of the victims survived- one of them came home with me. He was the only surviving one who wasn't traumatized into silence. Everyone called him Vigor."

Kim looked around. "Is he here, now?" Judging from her friend's dark expression, she found it was the wrong question to ask. "…What happened?"

"Two men broke into my house. I thought it was one, but while I was chasing after him a buddy of his managed to slip inside and catch me from behind. They took Vigor- but didn't get very far. I think they stopped in an alley, and were attacked… one of them is dead, the other is in a coma, and Vigor is missing," Biff explained, cutting to the chase- it was easy to do so with Kim. He could tell her anything.

Kim sat down, looking at her hands. "…so you think he took him?"

"I'm not sure, yet- but I can't stop thinking that's the case. It was a full moon when it all happened, and he's been coming further into town lately." He looked over at his gear, on the table; he was looking at his gun. "…Vigor was just a kid…"

"Want me to go talk to him? He'll listen to me,"

Biff shook his head. In the past, their friend listened to Kim- they all did. But these days… "I don't think you'll get through to him."

"I can try-"

He gave her a hard glance. "Kimberly. A year ago I told him if he came into town, he would be shot on sight. I kept reminding him of that order for several months. He won't listen. He doesn't care."

"He just forgot who he really is-"

"He didn't forget anything! Ever since that day…" Biff sighed. He hated thinking about that memory. "He's changed. He knows who he once was but he wants to forget. He does all this in order to push us away first, before he loses us."

"He's not going to lose us," Kim placed a hand on his shoulder. "And you're not going to lose anyone, either. …Now, get some rest, you won't find Vigor looking like shit,"

Biff scoffed a laugh; it was always funny when Kim swore. "Alright… but as soon as I'm up, I'm going back to looking."

"Fair enough- I'll help." Kim picked up her car keys. "In the meantime, I have to run to the store. I'll be back in a few minutes,"

Biff nodded, going upstairs while his friend went to run her errand.

Kim was lost in thought as she drove.

Every time she thought about their old friend, it put her heart through agony. Ever since the day she met him, she knew he wasn't a monster. She had to help him get that through his head, and stop torturing himself.

That's what she believed.

And it was her belief that led her out of town, towards the forest.

Sorry, Biff. But someone has to try. Kim thought.

Little did she know she was going to be in the woods longer than she realized.