"You're a monster. I hope you know that."

Silence.

"Hmph. Of course you know… why else would you enjoy it?"

…

"You put us through a lot of pain years ago… and now, because of you, one of my friends has become Public Enemy Number One, running through the outskirts of the city and killing anyone who crosses his path. That probably supported your plans- with him being a wild animal in everyone's eyes, you knew no one would defend him… hell, you'd probably offer to hunt him yourself."

…

"Makes sense… someone in town spots a werewolf, happens to have connections to your human trafficking business… According from our investigations, you two had worked together before- you send him a playmate, he sends you money… but his debts got a little high; when he spotted a werewolf, he struck a crazy bargain. Anyone else would turn him down, thinking he was insane…

"But not you, though. You had a hunch who he was talking about, and went along. Bring in a few traffic victims to use as bait… but you only needed one to draw him in. I looked over Vigor's examinations- no wonder you kept him around. Same blood type, short, black hair… fuck, you make me sick."

…

"That probably gave you some sort of thrill, didn't it? You get a sick kick out of reminding someone of their past- the harder the past, the harder you get, right?! Traumatize him further into his animosity, then everyone would see him as a monster, not realizing the real one conducting the events. You trap him, kill him, and strike it big… Then probably go on to destroy more lives with your sadistic fetish."

Silence answered. Nothing more.

The rookie smirked. "…but your plan backfired, more than you know. You not only lost your chance again, but ended up hospitalized and under police surveillance- and I don't know about the rest of the force, but every time I'm on the shift, I'm waiting for you to wake up. I know you won't say anything- I might as well pull the cord on you now… but I want you conscious when I kill you.

"Plus, I got news… Vigor is still alive. You failed."

"Rookie!" came a voice; officer Becky entered. "I came to relieve ya. …Any change?"

Biff looked at Cain; the man remained still, no signs of consciousness. "Nothing," he muttered.

She patted him on the back. "Head on home, Biff. It's time for your two weeks, remember?"

The rookie did a double-take. "W-What?"

"…Your vacation? You were scheduled for one after putting in so many hours. I thought the chief told you last weekend!"

Biff pondered. "Oh… yeah, he did…" It wasn't true. Bergens always pulled shit like this- if the rookie went in tomorrow, or returned before the two weeks were up, he would get a dock in pay… maybe even suspended, as corrupt as his boss was.

It was to get him away from Cain. Everyone on the force knew how much Biff despised the man…

"Don't worry, rookie, me, Tony, Julie, Rick and the others will be watching him like hawks; my brother works here, too, so he's going to be keeping me up-to-date." Becky assured.

Biff only looked at her. "What about the rest of the force?"

Becky frowned. "…they've been dispatched to keep an eye out for your old friend. Bergens is really taking this 'shoot to kill' order to heart," She looked at the calendar. "Hope the blizzard keeps him out of town- tonight's a full moon."

Biff flinched. "What?! …Shit!" he ran out.

Becky watched him go. "Biff…!"

…

While she had her back turned, a smirk spread on Cain's face.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Kim was helping Manny with his phonics. Over the last few days, he had improved greatly- perhaps now that he was around people again and hearing the human language, he was managing to get a bearing on his speech.

"When can we go see Mandy again?" Manny asked. Still learning, he couldn't say his cousin's full-alias, though Kim found it cute.

"Man-di-ble… and we can't go out today, there's going to be a bad snowstorm." Kim told him. "Hopefully it'll pass quick- I miss seeing clear, starry skies."

"It's a full moon," Manny continued to color.

Kim looked at him, bewildered. "How would you know that?"

"I can sense it,"

She bit her lip. "Do you ever feel… strange, during a full moon? Like, really hyper or wanting to hunt?"

He shook his head. "No. I like howling at it, but that's all."

This got Kim thinking. From what she recalled, Mandible never went insane during a full moon… until…

He tasted blood.

Manny- Fangpuss- tasted the blood of animals, but claimed he doesn't have the urge to hunt. Maybe it's because he's too young to understand…?Or… because he never tasted human blood?

Before she could ask more, the door flung open and Biff ran in. "Get your coats- we need to head out! Now!" he said in haste.

"What…? Biff! What's going on?"

"It's a full moon, Kim! You know what happens when-" Biff stopped, seeing Manny watching them in concern.

Kim turned to Manny, sitting him in front of the television to watch cartoons. "One moment, Manny- Biff and I need to talk in private,"

"Um, okay…" Manny responded, sitting down.

Kim and Biff went upstairs. "It's a full moon… Vigor's out there with Mandible, we need to head out there and-!" the young cop was whispering.

"And what, Biff?" Kim interrupted. "Remind him that we don't trust him?"

"KIM… Every month, he goes crazy! The cops have orders to shoot-to-kill for a reason!" He flinched when she raised her hand. "…I'm not saying I think he's a monster, don't slap me."

Kim sighed bitterly. "Biff. Manny told me all he feels like doing on full moon nights is howling. That's all."

"But he's still a kid, he doesn't know-"

"Maybe no one knows. Think about it- Mandible never went mad in the past, until that one night… When everyone started seeing him like the werewolves in movies, he began to believe it- hunting every full moon, living far from others… he lost sight of himself. But now he has Vigor! Ever since that boy came into his life, he's been getting better! I have hope that that's all he needed to move on. Plus, you heard how he helped him- he cares about him!"

Biff let out a heavy sigh. "Kim… I looked over Vigor's medical examinations at the hospitals. His blood type is Rh-null."

She looked at him, confused. "What does that mean?"

"Kim… Puggsy had the same blood type."

She stood there, stunned. Her face had gone blank, and a long silence hung in the air.

Biff, feeling as if he went too far, waved a hand in front of her face. "…Kim?" he snapped his fingers.

Quickly, Kim ran downstairs. "We're going out there. Not because I don't trust Mandible, but to prove there is no way he would repeat the past!" she snapped, no longer caring if Manny could hear or not.

"Kim, I'm just saying… with all things to consider-"

"Biff! Think about it- don't focus on what happened that night, but what happened all the nights before! How close they were- you think he wanted to kill his best friend?! You think he wanted to wake up in blood, realizing that after a horrible disaster, he lost someone he cared about?! He LOVED Puggsy, Biff! Sure, he had his moments where he would harass him, but… fucking dammit, do you really think he wanted to lose him?"

"No… but… you know how he used to-"

"I know what he used to do, Biff… but look at the progress he's made so far with Vigor in his life. He has a second chance- and I doubt he's stupid enough to fuck it up and put us all through this all over again!"

Manny looked at the two. Tears were in his eyes. "Why are you fighting…?" he whimpered.

Kim gasped, running over to him. "Oh, Manny… I'm sorry… Listen, we're going to go out and see your cousin after all, okay?"

"O-Okay, but… why do you think he killed his best friend?"

Biff sighed. "It's… it's a long, sad story, Manny. We'll tell you on the way there." He said. "Right now, we'd better get out there before it starts snowing."

"B-But don't bring it up around Mandible!" Kim added quickly. "It's… it's painful for him,"

"Alright…" Manny responded, the child still a bit confused.

Grabbing their coats, they got into the car and drove off.

…

The snow began to fall hard before they got to the edge of town.

By the time they were out in the country, the roads were getting too slick; Biff had no choice but to pull into the driveway of an old farmhouse, long abandoned after the last resident learned of the beast in the woods…

They entered the house; thankfully the electricity still worked.

As they spent the night, Biff stood by the window, anxious. In his heart, he had hope that maybe Kim was right… but his fear would not let him believe so. Kim, in the meantime, told Manny the story of that fateful night…

The child sat and listened quietly. "I still don't understand…" he whispered, confused. Kim only hugged him tight.

They all sat by a fireplace, slowly falling asleep.

…

By the next morning, the roads were covered in snow. They had to wait until noon before it started to melt, and it was safe enough to drive. Their secret detour was easier, with so many trees helping block the blizzard, the dirt roads were less slick… though they got stuck in the mud or a snow-drift a couple times. Manny turned into Fangpuss to help push them out, eventually pushing the car the whole way.

Once they reached the cabin, it was late in the afternoon. They entered through the back door…

Seeing red stains on the kitchen floor, the trail leading from the cellar. Fangpuss began to sniff around, but Kim picked him up; Biff walked towards the cellar, cautiously investigating.

Kim, meanwhile, held the small werewolf tight as she walked towards the living room… hearing familiar sobbing.

He sat there, sobbing… "I'm a monster… I'm a monster…" he cried over and over again, staring at the blood stains on his hands.

She shook her head, trying to block out the memory. Gathering her courage, she peered through the doorway…

The sight kept her frozen, as she saw the living room in shambles… and the werewolf sobbing in guilt.

"I'm sorry, Vigor…"