That one night had turned into three years.
Gray didn't remember if it had been after the first week or the first month that the Samuels had fallen in love with the idea of taking in the stray girl as a daughter, but it had happened anyways. It had been strange at first to of been taken into a family that had love to offer her, it was strange for Gray to be loved at all. But, in Hattie and Ed's eyes, Gray was a surrogate child for the one that they had lost. After all, they loved their little stray just as they had loved Danny. It had been rather difficult to adopt the girl, as she had no birth certificate or social security, so the Samuels had gone and fabricated one for the girl. She was, now, Gray Samuels; and Gray had no problem with that. It was spring, now, and she was walking along the premises of the old country home. Her dog, Bear- the Saint Bernard the Samuels had given her on her sixteenth birthday- lumbered beside her, his tongue flopping out. He was a huge dog, but Gray didn't mind. Wolf was seemingly the only friend she had, as the town residents stayed clear of her and the other kids thought she was a homeschooled freak. But still, it didn't bother Gray. She was safe, loved, and had a family.
She'd be turning eighteen on midnight, and Hattie and Ed had planned on taking her out for breakfast in the morning. She grinned, ruffling the dog's ears, as she decided to head back to the house. Bear trotted behind her, his tongue lolling out of his mouth. "Good boy," She grinned, glancing down at her faithful companion. For a second, the old scar on her collarbone throbbed painfully, dully, but she ignored it and walked on, glancing at the outline of the house in the distance. When she reached the old home, she slipped inside the backdoor which led to the kitchen.
"Hattie? Ed?" She called out, glancing around the room. Her red flannel kept her arms and torso uncomfortably warm, so she removed it, tucking it under her arm.
"Gray? Is that you?" Hattie called out, entering the kitchen. Her eyes instantly lit up upon seeing the girl she had adopted. "Look at you, getting so big." Hattie grinned. "You used to be shorter than me, now look at you."
Gray chuckled softly. "I'm not that tall."
"You're 5'8", that's pretty tall." Hattie chuckled, gently ruffling the girl's hair. "Hell, give it some time and I bet you'll be taller than Ed."
Gray grinned, glancing down. Sure, she was getting taller and stronger, but she'd expected that much. They all had.
"Full moon tonight," Hattie said wearily, moving to wash the dishes. "Are you ready?"
Gray nodded, grabbing a towel to help Hattie. "I'm ready. I'll be ready." She said, mostly to reassure herself, as she ran a hand through her hair. The dark locks, as always, were tangled and frizzy. But she paid no mind to that. She glanced at Bear, who was lying beside the door, his tongue still hanging out of his mouth. Gray wished she could be as ignorant and carefree as Bear. She bit her lip and dried off some old glass plate that Hattie handed her, leaning against the counter.
"Something on your mind, sweetie?" Hattie asked, handing her another glass.
"Is it okay if I take the truck for a bit? Drive around town, go get a bite to eat before I'm locked up for the night?" She asked, glancing up at Hattie.
"Of course, Gray." Hattie said, washing another dish, "But you know the rules. Be home by nine,"
The wind rushed through Gray's hair as she drove. She rested her left arm against the lowered window of the door, her right hand firmly gripping the leather steering wheel. Bear sat beside her in the passenger seat, his head stuck out the window, tongue still hanging out. Gray chuckled softly, pulling into a drive-thru for some burger joint.
"Yeah, uh, I'll have two plain hamburgers, a large fry, and a chocolate milkshake." She said, glancing at the ordering box through her aviator sunglasses. Despite it being around seventy degrees outside, Gray was still wearing a leather jacket and a torn pair of jeans. An old, faded rock band T-shirt lay beneath the jacket. It was, of course, dusted with white and brown dog hairs; but that was beside the point. She pulled ahead to the window, handing the cashier a wadded $20 bill. She shoved the leftover change into her pocket, grabbing the bag of food as well. "Bear, no. Wait." She told the dog, wagging a finger at him as she set the bag on the spot beside the two seats. Bear obeyed, resting his chin on the window ledge with a sigh.
Gray grinned and decided to drive to a park, one where she could sit and eat and let the dog play. She found one, though it was right across from some school. She clipped Bear's leash to his old, woven collar; grabbing onto the bag of food. Bear eagerly sniffed at the ground, prancing around, examining every hydrant and lightpost. His enthusiasm made Gray chuckle. She sat on a grassy slope, watching the people walk around below. Bear sat beside her, panting, but was instantly distracted when Gray tossed him the second burger. He wolfed it down, then went back to panting, though he laid down and rested his head on his paws. Gray took her time with her food, slurping down her milkshake as she simply watched and lost herself to her thoughts. It wasn't until she heard Bear growl that she snapped back to reality. Bear took off, pulling Gray- who had looped the leash around her free wrist- with him.
"Bear! Bear, calm down!" Gray said, trying her best to keep up.
What happened next could've been a perfect Disney moment.
The dog caused Gray to run straight into some blonde, who was cute in a scruffy biker-girl way. Bear's leash tangled around their legs, crushing them together. The blonde was furious. Gray was flustered.
"What the-?" The girl demanded, frowning, "What the hell are you doing?"
"Oh, uh.. sorry, sorry," Gray started, trying to untangle herself. It failed, only causing her to continuously bump into the girl. "I, uh, Bear's normally not like this.."
"Sure, I bet," The girl's blue eyes burned into Gray, seemingly into her soul.
"Look, I'm sorry, okay?" Gray said again, frowning. "I'm Gray. Gray Samuels. I, uh, haven't seen you around here before."
The girl watched Gray carefully, scrutinizing every detail. "I'm Claire. I'm new here, crashing with Jody Mills."
Gray grinned softly, "The sheriff? I know her. Doesn't she have an adopted daughter? Alex or something like that?"
"Yep, that's the one." Claire said, glancing at her. "How do you know her?"
"Friend of my dad's. Or, well, my adoptive father. Edgar Samuels, lives right outside town."
"Jody might've mentioned him." Claire shrugged. "But I don't remember. Didn't know they had a daughter."
"Adopted daughter." Gray said, patting Bear's head. "They adopted me about three years back."
"Ah. Well, nice chat." Claire said. "See you around." She turned to go, but something deep inside of her was drawn to the blonde.
"Oh, uh, hey," Gray called after her, pulling Bear along as she followed Claire. "Since you're new here, maybe I can show you around sometime?"
Claire quirked an eyebrow, glancing at her. "Are you serious?"
"Well, uh, yeah." Gray shrugged. "Why?"
"I'm not the type of person that people are dying to be around." Claire said dryly, almost suspiciously.
"I'm just trying to be nice." Gray shrugged. "You don't seem too bad, you seem pretty cool."
Claire shrugged. "If you say so."
"Can I, uh.. have your number?" Gray finally asked.
Claire sighed. "You're not going to let up, are you?" Gray shrugged, smiling. Claire only rolled her eyes, "Give me your phone." Gray grinned and did as told, handing the device to the blonde. Claire typed something in, then handed it back. "That's my number. Text me if you're not joking about being friendly. Now, get out of my way so I can go home."
"Hattie? Ed?" Gray called out, glancing around. The sun had set, and the moon was beginning to rise up into the sky. Gray bit her lip anxiously, leading Bear upstairs and shutting him in her room. His anxious whines could be heard as Gray tried to find the couple. She saw and heard nothing, but began to smell the metallic tang of blood. Biting down on her lip, Gray inched towards Hattie and Ed's room, and shrieked at what she found. Her adoptive parents had been mutilated, torn apart. Gray fell to her knees, feeling emotions build inside of her- hate, guilt, fury.
"Gray?" It was Ed, his voice soft and raspy.
"Ed!" Tears slipped down her cheeks as Gray pulled him into her arms. "Wha-what happened?"
"She killed.. killed Hattie," Ed whispered. "She said.. she said you were next."
"What are you..?"
"She... told me to tell you happy birthday.."
"What? Who, Ed?!" Gray demanded, tears dripping onto the man's face. But it was too late, and the man had passed.
Gray let out a bloodcurdling scream, sobbing into Ed's chest. She was shaking uncontrollably, her bones and being aching.
Those last few moments were all that she remembered of that night.