Mythical Link ▸ Link Neal {Book One}

Eighty Four

     "I understand that you and your friend were thrown into this world by accident, and now that you're in there's no turning back. I want to answer any questions that you may have. I'm done with my questions, now you may have a turn." 

     Rhett was shivering, his lips trembling. He reached for his mug that was now lukewarm and held it in his hands. "What made you become a hunter? How did you find out about this world, as you put it." He would be stupid not to pick the sheriff's brain for valuable information. Information that was more trustworthy than google.

     "My wife," he said, and Rhett could swear that his eyes had begun to tear up. 

     Rhett was shaking his head. "Whoa man, you don't have to tell me if it's personal. I'm just... I'm just,-"

     "You're curious, and you deserve to know. Everything. I said it was your turn and I'm holding true to my word now. My wife worked as a nurse in Burbank Hospital, and she was very passionate about her job. She would take on any shift she could squeeze herself into, even if they were double shifts. We were living a fairly normal life, up until May 30th 2014. She had a patient come through the ER experiencing extremely bizarre symptoms. The patient was vomiting black blood, had a spiked fever over 105 and had just had a seizure." 

     Rhett's eyes widened and his throat constricted. He immediately felt like he wanted to vomit.

     "She was just checking this patient's vitals as she normally did day in and day out when he suddenly grabbed her by the wrist, screaming out as if he was in agonizing pain. He then sat up and she said as I quote, "he lunged toward me and took a huge swipe at my side with claws." 

     Rhett spit his coffee back into his mug, his entire body trembling. 

     "Not even 24 hours later, my wife started experiencing the same symptoms that this man had. She didn't make it," he choked, lowering his eyes to his desk. 

     Rhett's eyes stung with tears. "I'm so sorry," he whispered. He couldn't imagine losing Jessie to a terrible monster. Then a terrible thought struck him. "Wait a second. You said that he scratched her. I thought they could only be turned with a bite? I mean, she wasn't turning was she? I'm so confused." 

    Baker took a deep breath, breaking eye contact with Rhett as he looked out the window. "This is how it works. You can be turned by a bite, but you can also be turned with a scratch if the claws go deep enough. He managed to bust through several layers of skin, and she was infected with the werewolf toxin. It's actually rare for the toxin to take, and normally it ends up killing you. In very rare incidences does it actually turn you. These things go on killing sprees trying to form their packs, when they're really ripping families apart." 

     Rhett could sense the disdain in Baker's voice and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "So... those are the symptoms that means the person is dying?" 

     Baker nodded, looking into Rhett's eyes. "Yes." 

     Rhett felt like he had taken a knife to the heart. He leaned forward, resting his elbows against his thighs as he buried his face in his hands. Baker looked at Rhett curiously, and Rhett could just feel the burn of somebody gazing at him. He lifted his head to look up at Baker, his eyes watering. "Is there a way to save them?" He asked quietly, unable to contain the strain in his voice. 

     Baker felt his own sadness grip his heart when he thought about his wife. He sighed, still wanting to keep his word about answering all of Rhett's questions. "I've heard of a way, but I've never seen it actually work. Werewolves are susceptible to high volts of electricity, that could kill them easily. It could burn the toxin out of their system like radiation kills cancer cells, but obviously it could kill the human in the process. It boils down to a decision on how you want to die."