“So, what do you think of this place so far?” Damon said, smirking at me as I lightly sipped my hot coco.
“It’s good,” I said then.
After my events with the… cold. When I woke up, Damon decided that in order for me to be truly warm enough for me to go home would be to take me to a hot coco place.
I mean… it was really good here. I had a feeling he was just trying to show off that he knew more about this town than me.
But my argument was—despite my license—I couldn’t drive with a car, and everywhere I went had to be in walking distance.
I wasn’t a werewolf, and I wasn’t really fond of running this far out of the way for hot coco.
But... it was good hot coco.
“We have school tomorrow,” Damon said then, setting his cheek in his hand again. “Can you handle it?”
I gave him an annoyed look. “Yes.”
“Well… after I saw you crying, I just wanted to make sure.”
I looked back down at my drink, avoiding eye contact.
But a sudden voice broke me out of my numb state:
“Jerry! Hurry! Hurry!”
A man suddenly got up from a booth. “What is it?”
“Outside! There’s a—a… just come look!”
The girl rushed out the door, and the guy followed.
I looked out the window then, finding a group of people huddled around a small area on the beach.
I stood then. “I’m curious.”
Damon just gave me an annoyed look. “Have fun watching waves.”
I just left him, walking outside and down the porch steps before making it out to the beach.
“When did you find it?” a girl whispered.
“It was Max who found it…” another said. “I don’t know where he is, though.”
I stepped forward then, peering over the hundreds of shoulders before I stood on my tip toes.
I couldn’t see a thing.
“Hey, uh…” I said then. “What happened?”
A guy suddenly moved, and I squeezed through, making my way toward the front to see what was happening.
I suddenly froze, entire body stilling.
A corpse lay face-down on the sand of the beach… his body so bloated and disfigured I could bare tell it was a human.
I breathed uneasily, staring at the corpse as it remained unclothed and covered in seaweed.
“It just washed up out of nowhere!” a bystander said. “It’s insane, right?”
“It looks so gross!” a girl said, rushing out from the crowd. “I’m going to be sick!”
“Somebody call the police!” a guy said, rushing out from the crowd. “I’m going to get my phone to call them!”
“Good idea!” another one said, rushing after him. “If two people call, then they’ll come faster!”
A women just covered her mouth. “I have to get away… it makes me sick.”
She then turned and walked off, the other people followed suit. Only leaving me and a couple other curious bystanders.
I breathed uneasily, scanning the form.
Until my eyes settled on a brand under her right arm… a brand that looked as if it was burned on with hot iron… like a stamp.
I could barely make out the shape with how bloated and blue the corpse was, but I could tell there was a snake with other heads and some kind of…
My eyes immediately moved back to the snake.
I froze.
Memories flooded my mind, burning through my sight like I was suddenly invaded with probes.
“Daddy! Daddy!” I sobbed. “Daddy, wake up!”
“There seems to have been a brand on his bicep,” the officer stated to my mom. “It was a snake with three heads… does that mean anything to you?”
“No…” she said then, brows drawing together, “I don’t know what that means.”
I was brought back into the moment.
“Dad…” I whispered to myself, “he killed again.”
My bones chilled, my soul crushing, and I felt a sudden euphoria invade my senses.
Before I could step to the body, my arm was suddenly caught, and Damon spun me to face him.
“Step away,” he said then, shaking his head. “Don’t look at it.”
“Look, Damon!” I said then, glancing down at the body. “He killed again. That mark was on my father, too!”
“Winter.”
“We can find him!” I said then, breathing shakily as I suddenly started trembling. “We can finally find him!”
“Winter.”
A sudden blaze of euphoria consumed me, and I scanned the form. “Look, we can investigate. You see? The same mark!”
He caught my chin and turned my head to face him. “Winter, look away from it.”
“No, it doesn’t bother me!” I said then. “I mean… it’s a little bloated and gross, but it doesn’t bother me!”
Damon just caught my hands. “Winter… step away from the body.”
“No, look!” I said then, gasping as I turned back to the body. “The same mark! Look!”
He turned my chin to face him again. “Winter, keep your gaze away from it.”
“Why?” I said then, getting irritated. “It doesn’t bother me!”
“Yes, it does,” he said then, eyes darkening. “You’re crying.”
I stilled then, bones chilling as I blinked, but I gazed down at my hand, lifting it and running a finger under my eye.
I pulled back to find tears staining my skin.
“But…” I said then, sirens wailing as police cars skirted to a stop at the parking lot, “I don’t understand….”
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