Chapter 7: A theory and at the police station

(Third Person)

Around the same time Fred told Shaggy of the developments, over at the Dinkley residence, Velma and her sister Madelyn were busy preparing dinner with their mother.

By that point, the vegetables were washed and their mother Cassandra was directing them to cut the broccoli and carrots.

"Now, make sure you girls cut the pieces in similar sizes so they will be cooked faster and more evenly." Cassandra was saying when the living room telephone rang.

Velma and Madelyn both nodded just as their mother head out of the kitchen, and the sisters resumed chopping the vegetables.

"So what were you doing yesterday evening over at the Fred Quimby Park, Velma?" Madelyn asked.

"Oh, it was just for hanging out with friends." Velma shrugged nonchalantly.

"You never struck me as the type that would hang out with friends." Madelyn remarked. "What did you guys do?"

"Took a hike around the trail and meeting at the bonfire." Velma replied.

"And those friends were with you the whole time, right?" Madelyn raised an eyebrow as she turned towards her sister.

"Of course." Velma nodded. "With that mysterious wolf out there lurking in the streets, we didn't take any chances and stayed together in a group."

"And the fact that you're back here with no scars whatsoever means that you guys didn't encounter the wolf." Madelyn spoke.

"Pretty much, yeah." Velma said. "The last thing I'd want is to end up as wolf chow, so to speak."

"You don't say." Madelyn murmured. "In any way, we really need to be careful going out, especially after sunset."

"Of course." Velma agreed as she turned towards her sister. "With that mysterious wolf still on the loose and the authorities no closer to finding it, we definitely need to be on our guard."

"Especially since word has it that the killer wolf has been snatching girls from their bedrooms as well." Madelyn nodded. "Not to mention...Velma, watch out!"

Before Velma could heed Madelyn's warning, she suddenly felt a sharp pain on her index finger, and she let out an instinctive "Ow!" as she quickly put down the knife.

Madelyn immediately put down the knife she was holding and rushed to Velma's aid, during which it can be seen that the knife Velma was using had some blood on the blade.

"Jinkies, we shouldn't be chatting while chopping the vegetables, Maddie." Velma said as Madelyn examined the cut on her finger.

Madelyn nodded as she examined the cut, and then she said, "Doesn't look too bad, Velma. Nothing a simple Band-Aid can't take care of."

Velma nodded thoughtfully as she looked at the cut on her finger, then suddenly an idea hit her as the cut reminded her of the descriptions of the crime scene Fred provided to her while they were waiting for Shaggy, Scooby and Daphne to show up.

VELMA'S MIND EYE - One Day Ago

"Long story short, from what I understood, the whole living room in the victim's house was completely smashed up." Fred's voice echoed as an illustration of the smashed up living room appeared.

Velma frowned as she paused her lips, during which she illustrated the struggle between the wolf-like intruder and the victim.

As the wolf-like intruder threw the victim towards the coffee table and the sofa, smashing up the former in the process, Velma echoed, "Signs that are consistent with that of a struggle inside the house."

She then turned towards Fred as she continued, "As if the victim tried to fight off the intruder."

It was then that she illustrated the wolf-like intruder using its claws trying to claw at the victim, who managed to duck out of the way just as the intruder clawed right onto the wall, leaving claw marks.

However, the claws immediately detached from the intruder's paws, and just as the victim delivered a kick to the intruder, a knife was suddenly pulled out.

As Velma illustrated the victim fighting off the intruder, who was now armed with a knife, Fred echoed, "It was clear that the victim had put up quite the fight, and so the intruder resorted to other measures."

With the illustration of the intruder leaving behind knife marks on the wall, which was evident that the intruder kept missing the victim as she ducked the knife attacks and kept moving away from the intruder.

Eventually, Velma illustrated the part where the intruder managed to catch up and used the knife on the victim, resulting in the blood splatter Fred described.

"Clearly, though, the resistance the victim put up wasn't enough to stop the intruder." Velma echoed.

"Especially with the blood splatter at the scene." Fred nodded. "The intruder must've used its claws on the victim before taking advantage of the cries of pain and knocked her out cold."

As Fred made the remark, the illustration showed the part where the intruder tied up its latest victim, where prior to taking leave, it grabbed the detached claws from the wall and tossed them onto the now-damaged coffee table, where the victim was stabbed by the knife held by the intruder.

The claws rolled over to the blood splatter and stopped as the viscosity of the victim's blood prevented it from rolling further.

END VELMA'S MIND EYE

At that revelation, Velma glanced up in realization and turned towards Madelyn, who had just finished applying the Band-Aid onto her index finger.

"What's the matter, Velma?" Madelyn asked when she saw the weird look on Velma's face.

Velma glanced towards the kitchen entrance, just in time to hear her mother hang up the phone.

With their mother walking back to the kitchen, Velma swiftly turned towards Madelyn and said, "I just remembered something about a school project that I have yet to discuss with my classmates."

She then made her way out of the kitchen as she added, "Just need to make a quick phone call."

"Don't you think that your friend would be having dinner by now?" Madelyn asked, though Velma was, by that point, out of earshot as she rounded the corner.

Daphne was seated at her usual spot at the dining table with her family as the family butler Jenkins places the main courses onto the table.

Watching Jenkins placing the meatloaf onto the middle of the dining table, Daphne kept her hands on her lap before she glanced at her father George and her other sisters like she always does.

The plates and utensils were already positioned, and Jenkins was soon joined by Elizabeth as she arrived with a tray of stir-fried vegetables.

As soon as the food was set on the table, George glanced at his daughters and nodded firmly, a signal for them to start loading up their plates.

Just as Jenkins and Elizabeth joined in and loaded up their respective plates, the telephone rang, and the butler immediately paused before making his way to the telephone.

"Who could be calling at this hour?" George wondered as Elizabeth helped fill up Jenkins' plate with mashed potatoes.

Elizabeth and their daughters all shrugged just as Jenkins stepped back into the dining room and said, "A call for Master Daphne."

Immediately, Daphne arched her eyebrows as she stood up from her seat, during which her parents and older sisters turned towards her.

"Were you expecting a call from someone, dear?" Elizabeth asked.

Daphne shook her head as she stepped out of the dining room. "No, though I won't be surprised if it's someone calling from the paper about an article I've edited and have some questions to ask before the deadline approaches, Mom."

George only grunted as Elizabeth nodded thoughtfully, and Daphne swiftly made her way to the living room and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" Daphne asked.

"Hi, Daph." Velma answered on the other end. "It's me, Velma. I hope I'm not calling at a bad time."

Daphne glanced over her shoulder briefly before saying, "Well, I was just about to start having dinner when you called, Velma, so it's fine. What's up?"

"It's about the case, Daph." Velma explained. "I was thinking about something about the latest victim."

"Right, right." Daphne nodded. "Whatever it is you've thought of, you better be quick, Velma, because my parents can get picky over me using the phone for too long."

"Of course." Velma nodded. "In that case, all I can say is that there's a very good chance that the victim was attacked with a knife by the culprit. If you remember Fred's description of the wounds on the first victim's body, they could've been from a knife, not from an animal."

There was a pause from Daphne's end of the line, and Velma figured that the redhead was thinking it over.

Finally, Daphne said, "Okay, that's good to know. We're gonna have to figure out how did you reach that conclusion, but for now, it's a solid theory, Velma. I was thinking if you would like to meet up tomorrow afternoon at the library so we could talk this over?"

"Sounds good to me, Daph." Velma replied. "I'm free tomorrow afternoon, so it works with me. Would you like me to tell Fred and the others about meeting at the library tomorrow afternoon?"

Daphne winced briefly before she shook her head. "Let's hold off on that end until we get a better lay of the land on your knife theory, Velma. We're gonna need to take a look at the police files on the Werewolf case, specifically the crime scene reports, before we can know for sure if your knife theory holds up."

"Are you sure you wanna go down that avenue of the investigation, Daph?" Velma frowned.

"Like I said, this is just for me to confirm this outright." Daphne said. "After all, I'm sure it would be of great resource for us to see what the cops are thinking at this stage of their investigation, stuff that wouldn't be read on the paper."

Velma sighed, but then she nodded reluctantly. "Point taken. In that case, I'll see you tomorrow afternoon."

October 12, 1968

(Shaggy's Point of View)

I still can't figure what could've possessed me to answer a knock on the front door and open it when a view through the peep hole revealed Daphne Blake to be standing on the other side of the front door this morning.

Is she attractive? Of course she is, like, I'm sure there's no way a guy wouldn't turn into a wolf with his heart thumping out of his chest and steam rolling from his ears at the sight of Daphne.

Is she beautiful? Of course yes. Even without makeup, I'm sure guys would find themselves under her spell at the sight of her.

Is she arrogant, annoying and pushy? Well apparently, lady doesn't seem to be able to take "no" for an answer when I answered her this morning against my better judgement.

"You know, I could really use your help here, Shaggy." Daphne said as I stood at the front doorway with my hand leaning on the frame.

There she is, standing in front of the front door to my house as if it was no big deal, as if someone like her has a chance of fitting into this predominantly-middle class neighbourhood even though her father makes pretty much ten times the amount of money most people in the neighbourhood makes.

I glanced around as she stood in front of me. I could've slammed the door in her face, as a way for me to rectify my mistake of opening the door without looking through the peephole first.

However, I knew better than doing that. After all, slamming a door in a lady's face is no way to be a gentleman, no matter how much of a royal pain in the neck she is, plus I don't suppose Mags is gonna appreciate the way I did that, not to mention it really doesn't solve the problem.

So instead, I just stared back at her and folded my arms.

"Aren't you gonna say something?" Daphne asked.

"Why?" I asked.

"Why what?" Daphne asked.

"Why should I say something when you need to get a firm grasp of the obvious?" I frowned. "Like, this particular neighbourhood isn't exactly fond of your godfather who's running for Congress, and I'm sure you've got better things to do right now instead of standing here in front of my house."

I wasn't lying when I made that remark. I knew for a fact that many of my neighbours, most of them lower to middle-middle class, aren't very fond of Barty Daggett, much less the mayor as well.

Daphne huffed, then she frowned as she said, "You know, I really shouldn't be surprised you'd be dismissive of the advice I've given the other day at the radio station. Guess when you're full of yourself, you'll be in the habit of shutting me down before I even I have the chance to explain why I'm here."

"Seems like it takes one to know one." I countered. "But I digress, what brings you here?"

Daphne glanced around before she said, "Do you mind if I come in, Shaggy?"

"Are you okay with sitting in the porch?" I nodded towards the lawn chairs on the porch. "Like, I don't think you'd be impressed with the way our house looks inside if I let you come inside."

"Porch is fine." Daphne replied. "I was just concerned about how it would look to you if your neighbours walked by and saw me here, and that's on top of how it wouldn't bode well to either of us if any of the neighbours overheard what I am about to speak to you about."

Point taken as I nodded, and now it was my turn to step out and glance around. Thankfully, there was no one around outside.

"Very well." I said as I moved out of the way and gestured her to come in. "No need to take your shoes off, though I would advise you to keep it down, for Scoob is still sleeping and I don't wanna wake him up."

As Daphne came in and I closed the door behind her, she asked, "Is it just you and Scooby at home right now?"

"Yeah." I nodded and lead her into the kitchen, where there were two chairs with a small table at the side. "My sister Maggie is out with her friends, and my Dad is at work right now, so it's just me and Scoob. Oh, and please excuse the mess, I was just trying to set things up for supper."

Daphne nodded, and figuring she might be curious about Mom, I quickly added, "Before you start, would you like something to drink?"

Daphne looked on as I opened the fridge, and then she asked, "You mind if I get a glass of milk?"

I shrugged as I grabbed the bottle of milk. "You got it."

Once I poured the milk into a glass and handed it to Daphne, she immediately sipped away. Sheez, she must've been thirsty.

"Alright, so fire away." I said once she put her glass on the table as I stood in front of her.

"So this is something that I thought would be an interesting route for the case to go through." Daphne began. "And given that it was my idea, I'm sure it doesn't hurt for me to run through it, right?"

I simply maintained the deadpan on my face with my arms folded, and Daphne sighed.

"Only problem is that for it to work, I need a dog, and since I don't have one-"

"That's where Scooby comes in." I interjected.

"Yeah, pretty much." Daphne nodded. "Anyways, I was thinking that since we don't have a clear picture of what the h*ll is going on with these wolf-related disappearances, I figured that the police could provide a better lay of the land for us to get a better grasp of the obvious."

"And how does Scooby fit into this plan of yours?" I snorted. I didn't like the direction this is heading.

"I'm sure you wouldn't mind using Scooby as a means of distraction at the station while I get the information I need for the case." Daphne replied.

I knew it. I thought as I looked away and digested what Daphne had just told me.

After some pacing back and forth, I turned back towards her and said, "Like, let's say that I agree to help you out. What exactly do you expect me to do in front of the cops?"

Daphne exhaled, and for a moment I thought she was going to be insulted by my questioning of her plan.

Instead, the redhead asked, "Scooby likes bones, does he?"

"Of course he does." I nodded. "Dogs like bones, don't they?"

Daphne ignored my last quip as she continued, "Then imagine a situation. You're a doctor and you normally take your dog out for walks in evenings, and you let your dog go out into the hills to play. The dog comes back with a bone, and you don't know where it is from. What would you do?"

I understood her message. "Like, I don't imagine anyone who died from natural causes would be buried shallowly, so there's a good chance that the bone came from either someone whose death is likely suspicious or is an animal. Therefore I'd go to the police to confirm."

"There you have it." Daphne said. "It wouldn't need to be all the police, you just need to speak to someone at the front desk about Scooby discovering a bone and you're not sure if its human or not. Would be enough time for me to obtain what we need from their files."

"Like, if you can be quick, it would be good, because a couple of problems." I said. "First off, I don't think the police would appreciate it if they find out that the dog and bone story I'll be giving is fabricated. And two, it just so happens that my father is a cop, and should he find out about the fabricated story, well-"

"I'll be quick, I promise." Daphne quickly said. "I caught a glimpse of the photo of your Dad in his police uniform at the living room while coming in, that's why I'll be quick. And you just need to identify the bone as an animal, I'm sure they've got a book on bones, so you should be good."

"Good to know." I nodded. "In any way, just curious, what led you to turn to me for this? I'm sure Fred and Velma could get it done without the need of a dog. In fact, for someone who thinks of me as a slacker, other than having Scooby, why me?"

Daphne sighed. "Well, for starters, Fred's got extra football practice, plus he doesn't know anything about what Velma and I discussed last night, and Velma's tutoring someone right now and I've promised to meet with her this afternoon at the library with the police's take on the whole case."

"And I suppose you both are holding off on telling Fred about it until you get a look at the police files and have a better lay of the land on the case." I responded before nodding. "I can see your reasoning for it."

"In that case, get ready to roll in half an hour." Daphne said.

"Can I help you, sir?" The desk sergeant at the Central Division asked me.

I glanced at the man's nameplate. McBride.

He's most likely the division's watch commander, judging from the three chevrons and rocker on his sleeve, not to mention Pops mentioning his name here and there when talking about work, that is, whenever he does talk about work.

"Uh...yes, Sergeant." I swallowed as I racked my brain for some of the plot elements I've went through with Mr. Kasem on the police radio drama he and I did a few times before. You know, to further splice up what Daphne has suggested as a cover. "I was, um, walking my dog at the Fred Quimby Park earlier and we, uh, spotted some bones near the trails."

The sergeant adjusted his glasses briefly before he nodded understandingly. "What sort of bones are we talking about here? Human?"

What's the right answer? I thought as I glanced around briefly. What's taking Daphne so long?

"Uh...can't say for sure." I quickly said. "They looked a little human to me, but I'm no doctor or scientist, so can't say for sure."

That's a relief, the sergeant seems to be buying into my story, and he raised an eyebrow.

"You wanna take a look at photos of samples of bones out there that are the most commonly found and reported by citizens?" McBride asked. "Then just give us a quick minute."

As soon as the sergeant finished, he flagged down an officer getting coffee nearby and continued, "Douglas, mind if you grab the booklet of animal bones and show it to this gentleman here?"

"Right away, Sarge." The officer nodded before he took off, and I glanced at McBride, who turned his attention back to the chart he was holding.

It was then that I glanced around when I heard a pair of footsteps approaching from behind me, and I turned around.

There was Daphne. Perfect timing.

The redhead glanced at me briefly and nodded, then she swiftly made her way to the nearest desk manned by another officer and leaned forward.

"Can I help you, miss?" The officer asked her.

"Yes, my name is Daphne Blake and I'm with the Gazette." Daphne quickly explained. "The paper's planning to publish a piece providing an in-depth analysis on the initial investigation into the Alice May case, and my editor asked me to come down and talk to someone about the brilliant job that was done on the case."

In referring to the Alice May case, Daphne was referring to the first victim of the string of disappearances attributed to the Werewolf that is still at large to this day and has claimed several more victims. At least she was kind enough to tell me about what we were dealing with for these disappearances.

Must say she really knows how to get straight to the point right away, and the officer seemed to be catching onto her drift.

"And you would like to speak to the person in charge of the case." The officer said, prompting Daphne to nod. "In that case, I'd be happy to help you, Miss Blake. After all, I was on patrol that fateful night when I got the call to respond to the distress put forward by the victim's parents."

"Ah, perfect." Daphne smiled. "Is there any place we could sit down and discuss the case, Officer?"

"Of course." The officer said before nodding at a nearby conference room and continued, "We can discuss in that conference room over there."

As I watched Daphne following the cop into the conference room, I saw Officer Douglas returning with a binder in hand, and I quickly joined him at the front desk.

"Alright, then." Douglas said as he placed the binder down and opened it. "What did the bones you spotted at the park look like?"

I leaned forward to take a look at the binder and frowned. To me, the black-and-white photos of the various bones looked almost identical.

Blast! I probably should've paid more attention in biology class last year. I almost grumbled to myself. Nothing I can do about barely passing biology now.

As I began to flip through the pages, the officer added, "If you need the time to recall what exactly did the bones look like, by all means take your time."

I nodded, though I wasn't exactly listening to Douglas' remark, as my ears were more focused on the muffled conversation between Daphne and the officer at the nearby conference room.

Just then, a radio call burst to life and I almost jumped in shock.

"Code Two, Code Two." The party at the other end of the radio reported in, and immediately, the two officers accompanying me keyed in to listen.

With one eye on the booklet and the other glancing at the expressions of the officers, I saw the look on Douglas and McBride's faces darken as the party at the other end of the radio reports an armed robbery at Burns Side that has descended into a hostage situation and the request for backup.

Immediately, McBride nodded at Douglas and the officer swiftly raced towards the station's rear entrance, stopping by the locker room for his weapon and cap.

As that was happening, McBride returned to his desk and picked up the phone and punched in a three-digit extension number.

Flipping through the pages of the booklet, I glanced around just in time for McBride's phone call to be put through.

"Yeah, Lieutenant." McBride spoke. "We've got a hostage situation at the Neighborhood Grocers in Burns Side, sir. The guys are lookin' for someone who can defuse the situation before we get casualties."

A pause went by before the sergeant continued, "Yeah, sir. Obviously we don't want this to turn into another situation like the one in Austin two years back."

I began to perk up as the sergeant nodded. "Being a former Marine, I'm sure you don't, sir."

Oh drat! I think I just realized that McBride was speaking to Dad, and he's about to head over this way at any moment now.

As McBride hung up the phone and turned towards me, I quickly threw another brief glance at the conference room. What the devil is taking Daphne so long?

"You found anything?" McBride asked me, and I paused as I quickly glanced at the pages of the booklet.

With my mind racing, I quickly pointed at one particular photo.

"Like, the bones my dog and I spotted at the park looked like this, Sergeant." I said.

McBride leaned forward to take a closer look at the photo I was pointing at, and I swallowed as I waited for his reply, hoping that it's something that's not too serious.

Fortunately, I seemed to have hit the jackpot, as the sergeant exhaled and said, "In that case, what you and your dog discovered was the remains of a deer that probably got mauled by a wolf long ago. Nothing to worry about."

I exhaled in relief. If it was human remains that I was pointing at, I could be in serious trouble.

My relief was short-lived, though, as it was that moment that everything collided.

Or more to the point, the moment where everything happened all at once and things got...a little confusing.

First off, a couple pair of footsteps approached me from behind, and I turned around and froze when I recognized Fred.

Fred, likewise, did a double-take when he saw me at the front desk, and he sputtered, "Shaggy?"

"Uh...hey, man." I quickly said.

"You know him, son?" The man accompanying Fred, who I assumed to be his father, asked.

The blonde nodded. "He's in a few classes with me, though we never spoke to each other."

Then, he turned towards me again and asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I-" I began, only for the conference room door to open in that same time, and out came Daphne, the officer and another man that I apparently didn't notice had walked into the conference room to join her and the officer earlier, probably at the moment that radio call came in.

"Thank you so much for your time, guys." Daphne was saying as she followed the two men out of the room. "It's greatly appreciated."

"Daphne?" Fred barked, and Daphne paused as she spotted me and him. "What are you doing here?"

"Uh-" Before Daphne could explain, another voice joined the fray.

"Neville, what the h*ll were you doing in the conference room?" The voice barked, and I froze as I recognized Dad.

Just then, I turned inwards towards the interior of the station, in time for Dad to pause and narrow his eyes when he spotted me.

"Norville." Dad barked, and I swallowed as he approached me.

Fred and Daphne almost immediately turned towards me, and I can feel McBride and Fred's father's eyes on me as Dad approached us. "What the h*ll is going on here?"

Before I could respond, McBride said, "He was here to report some bone sightings at the Fred Quimby Park, sir."

"Oh, is that right?" Dad asked as he glared at me questioningly.

"Uh...yes, sir." I replied meekly, and Dad grunted as he digested my words and McBride's explanation, though the frown on his face grew when he saw Fred and Daphne.

Dad turned around and barked at Neville, "Were you and Norton in that conference room speaking to that Blake daughter, Detective Neville?"

"Yes, we were thinking that it would be helpful if we lent her some information for the paper to be put out that could help us in the case, sir." Neville responded.

Dad twitched his eyebrows, and I could tell that he didn't like Neville's answer one bit. He also certainly looked like that he knew that I wasn't here at the station to report the bone sighting, and who was I kidding when it is suggested that I could get away with lying to him.

Thankfully, instead of blowing up like I expected him to do, Dad spoke to them in a clam but firm voice.

"Make this the last time you speak to members of the press without my approval, gentlemen." He said with a clear tone of authority in his voice. "Is that understood?"

"Yes, Lieutenant." Both men replied before they hurried off to whatever they were doing.

Of course, I'm not off the hook just yet, as Dad immediately turned towards me.

"I'm in a rush to get to a crime scene, so consider yourself lucky that I don't have the time to deal with whatever racket you had just cooked up, Norville." Dad said calmly before nodding at Fred and Daphne and added, "However, I want you to provide a full explanation on what were you doing here at the station with those two first thing when I get home tonight."

I could've sworn that Dad had just cooled the whole station down by ten degrees with that patented glare on his face as he asked, "Do I make this message loud and clear, son?"

I swallowed before nodding. "Yes, sir."

"Good." Dad responded before he marched out of the station without another word.

A short minute later, Fred's father looked at him firmly, as if to tell him to wait for him outside, before he walked into the station with his briefcase in hand, which leaves the watch commander accompanying me, Fred and Daphne.

"Is there anything else, or do you need me to direct you three outside before s**t hits the fan?" McBride asked, clearly not impressed. "If not, then get the h*ll out of here before I get a couple men here to throw you three out."

Immediately, the three of us raced out of the station without another word, and we stopped at where I've left Scooby.

For several long moments, there was an awkward silence between the three of us.

Eventually, Fred broke the silence as he turned towards me and Daphne and asked, "What the h*ll just happened?"

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