Somehow, David managed to get through the window with little more than a slight scratch on his arm. He quickly found Tasha holed up inside a wardrobe when she called out to him, her voice muffled through the thick wood.

David hefted the small couch that kept her trapped inside and moved it over, just enough for her to squeeze through. He took her hand and helped her maintain her balance while she slipped through the opening and climbed over the couch to stand near him.

Then the two of them pushed the larger piece of furniture that blocked the door that would lead back upstairs. "What happened here?" David wanted to know as they began to ascend to the upper level. "How did you end up trapped in there?"

"It was Hunter," Tasha answered. "David, he said he was trying to protect me from himself. I saw a strange, golden glow in his eyes when he trapped me down there."

"Golden glow?" David's mind snapped to an image of the way Sarah's eyes looked in wolf form…

Tasha nodded. "He has said some strange things to me, David." She paused, thinking back to something that had been said to her a couple days prior. "He said that werewolves have existed before Esben began conducting his experiments, and that Esben merely adjusted them to be the way he wanted."

A view of the full moon caught their eye as they neared a living room window. "David," Tasha breathed, "you don't think…?"

"I don't know," was all David said when he himself seemed momentarily transfixed by the clear, bright view of it. Legends were born from somewhere, weren't they? "Did Hunter say anything else?"

"He said that werewolves originated somewhere in Europe, though he said little else."

The wheels were turning in David's mind, even if some of it seemed unbelievable. "It would seem that he wanted to protect you from himself before he transformed… he clearly threw himself out the window after trapping you in the basement. That could indicate he cannot control himself while he is in wolf form."

"The only one who ever showed any level of self-control or self-awareness has been Subject Seven." Tasha placed her hand over her mouth when she realized her slip of tongue.

David's eyes narrowed a little at the ugly designation. "Tasha, Sarah is hurt. I just finished getting a silver bullet out of her. She has a slightly cracked hip bone and an incision that I stitched together the best I could. She needs food, but I would rather not move her and I am now uncertain if it would be safe for any of us to go out to the diner with a full blown werewolf on the loose."

"Then don't you think the diner might be the best place for us to go?" Tasha suggested. "There's a bit of a hoe-down going on a nearby town from what I understand, and that's why there's so many people there right now. It's an all-night diner, we could lose ourselves in the crowd, and, " she quickly added, as though just thinking of it herself, "shouldn't we go there just in case the werewolf shows up? It's the only place in the immediate area where a lot of people will be tonight, and if Hunter shows up while the full moon is still out, those people might need our help."

David sighed. Indeed… it might be better to go to the diner and help keep a knowledgeable eye out. He knew that he himself was apparently the one person he knew who was immune to werewolf venom, even if he didn't like the prospect of potentially subjecting innocents to the Hulk… not to mention the potential, unwanted publicity it could bring him.

Under the present circumstances though, what else could he do? At the very least, he needed to help Sarah get better… and they could proceed from there.

"When are you due back at Esben's lab?" David asked, trying to plan ahead a tad.

"He's not expecting to see me again until early tomorrow morning."

"Okay…" David was already thinking. "We can't use your car, so we're gonna have to hoof it to the diner. It'll be risky, but we need to get some food into Sarah and I'd rather chance it than staying here. After we get some food, you can call a cab and have it take you as close to the general location of the lab that's not too close, but will still allow you to walk there. Then you should return to your quarters before Esben is the wiser."

"And what are you gonna do?"

"I'll stay at the diner for the time-being with Sarah and monitor her condition. Now, we should get moving."

Sarah barely permitted Tasha to help her get dressed, then David wrapped the blanket around her once again and he instructed Tasha to put certain things into his duffle bag that he preferred to keep with them. This included most of the papers from the lab, a couple of extra sets of clothes, and what few medical supplies they had. Tasha was then tasked with carrying the duffle bag slung over her shoulder and a knapsack that contained whatever couldn't be squeezed within, while David focused on carrying Sarah.

Thankfully the hike to the diner didn't take too long overall, even if it was very tense all the way. Almost every shadow, every sound, every slight movement out of the corner of their eyes (imagined or otherwise) was enough to make them wonder if they were about to be pounced upon, shredded to pieces or perhaps eaten alive.

When they arrived at the diner without incident, they managed to secure a booth in the farthest corner away from everyone and David smoothly told a concerned waitress, when asked, that Sarah had the flu and they were on their way home from a doctor's visit. "We just came here to get something to eat because we're too tired to cook," David supplied.

Tasha had plunked David's duffle bag and her knapsack on the seat next to her and sat down. David had gently set Sarah down on the opposite seat and sat down on the outer edge.

Within minutes, they had a round of food of beverages consisting of coffee, scrambled eggs and bacon for Tasha and David, three rare burgers and water for Sarah.

It took a bit of coaxing to get Sarah to eat, but once she started eating it wasn't long before she eagerly requested seconds. And then thirds.

David was grateful that he still had a fair bit of cash in his wallet, and that said wallet always remained in his pants pocket even when he changed into the Hulk. Hunger had made itself known in girl he had temporarily accepted as his patient, which was probably a good sign in a way. Her body was demanding food to replenish energy and help itself heal. He could only hope that she was getting enough, and that his cash would cover it.

The last thing he needed was to get stuck washing dishes in the back…

After Tasha quietly finished her meal, she called a cab on the diner's pay phone and made a tentative agreement with David to try and meet him again the following night at the abandoned house.

David watched her go when the cab arrived, part of him not liking the idea of her going off into the middle of nowhere toward Esben, considering Esben's insanity and unethical ideals… not to mention the feral werewolf running out somewhere out there. David had his own reasons to distrust Tasha immensely, even dislike certain things about her and the things she had done, but… her son was innocent.

Plus there just seemed to be something about Tasha, too. He didn't doubt that she would turn on him in an instant if it somehow increased the odds in favor of her getting her son back. But…

But what, exactly?

Most of it was probably just that he didn't like the idea of a lady, no matter what she had done, going off alone when he couldn't be there to help watch out for her. But Tasha, it seemed, could handle herself within reason. The woman was a damn good manipulator. And Sarah was an innocent who needed him more… particularly if Tasha did end up turning on both of them.

In a way, when David watched the cab drive off, he wasn't sure if he was potentially throwing Tasha to the proverbial wolves (whether it was Hunter in his current state, or just Esben himself) or if he was giving a female snake back to Hansen to bite him later.

If he wasn't so concerned for the safety of a young child, he would have already started making plans to get himself and Sarah out of the state and someplace hidden and safe. But for now… he had already promised to keep a tentative eye out for the feral werewolf on behalf of the unknowing, unprotected patrons of the diner, and get Sarah food.

Besides, she was still ravenous… and he still had enough money to afford at least a few more burgers.

It was going to be a long night.