Curse of the Wolf: A Readers' Choice Adventure! Part 2

[mad_docs_of_lit]

As you head down Cheney Road in the bright sunshine, you realize that the old couple at the B+B weren’t wrong in their description of it as quaint. The library, when you stop in front of it, is a lovely old colonial brick building with an arched and pillared doorway painted white. You step through the heavy double doors and into cool and hush; it’s like stepping back in time – apart from the librarian wearing purple-framed glasses who smiles a greeting as you walk in.

Finding the horror fiction section you stop and browse the old-fashioned wooden shelves. You wrinkle your nose at the huge array of supernatural teen romance and quickly pick out a couple of books that interest you instead. You’re just reading the blurb on the back of a particularly exciting-looking anthology of stories entitled ‘Revamp!’ when something catches your eye.

Setting your book aside and crouching down, you look a little closer. Sticking out between the join of two shelves is a piece of folded, yellowed paper. Carefully you ease it out and unfold it. Realising it’s a page from a newspaper – and a very old-looking one at that – you take it to one of the reading tables and smooth the wrinkled newsprint out against the desktop.

June 12 1911. What a coincidence, you think: this newspaper is almost exactly a hundred years old! The headline reads: Wild Dog Attacks On The Increase. You read on. The spate of wild dog attacks on livestock in the area of West Hezelton has increased in frequency and severity. Farmers are being advised to keep close watch on their flocks until the beast responsible has been captured or killed.

“What do you have there, dearie?”
You jump as the librarian’s voice sounds at your shoulder. She peers at the newsprint and nods with interest. “Funny business, that. I remember my grandpa used to talk about it. Bit of a local legend that always fascinated us when we were kids. All the local kids really, seeing as it’s still happening today.”

The look of surprise on your face prompts her to continue. “Yes, strange isn’t it? They reckon that it was a pair of wild dogs, or maybe wolves escaped from a zoo, and they’ve had pups and continued the line right to this day. There was a particularly bad time in the ‘60s,” she looks thoughtful, “of course – there’re always the romanticists who say it’s a werewolf!” She laughs, and you laugh along politely, “The local council’s blaming kids these days – causing havoc and passing it off as animal attacks. They blame kids for everything though; I don’t believe a word of it. But just make sure you watch out if you go down those woods at the end of Tovey Avenue and hear something howling!” She laughs again at your blank expression and you realize that she’s joking with you and smile back at her.

Checking out your choice of books on a guest ticket, the librarian asks you what your plans for the rest of the day are.

[Poll #1727315]

Voting is open until 11:59 pm Friday 8 April, Pacific time.