The Investigation Begins

POV - Thessara*

The machines beeped around me, it was less than twenty-four hours had passed. Since I woke up, I was still trapped in Claire's body, my head hurts. From her memories.

Two sharp knocks came at the door, Kieran looked up. From his coffee. His tired eyes met mine. We both knew this would happen. The police wanted answers. About the accident.

"Come in," Kieran said. His voice sounded tired.

Two people walked into my room. They wore dark suits. The woman was tall. She had gray hair. Her partner was shorter. He was younger. His brown eyes looked sharp. They both carried notebooks. Their faces were serious. My stomach twisted. With fear.

"Mrs. Mitchell, I'm Detective Morrison," the woman said. She pulled a chair next to my bed. "This is Detective Hayes. We need to ask about your accident."

Kieran moved closer to me. He wanted to protect me. The detectives noticed this. Detective Hayes stood at the foot of my bed. His pen was ready.

"I know you've been hurt," Detective Morrison said. "But we need to know what happened. Other drivers saw something strange."

My mouth went dry. Claire's memories flashed through my mind. They came in broken pieces. I saw that night clearly now. Headlights in the dark. Rain on the windshield. Something moving. In the trees.

"I was driving home from work," I said. I was careful. I tried to sound like Claire would. "It was raining hard. The roads were wet."

Detective Hayes wrote notes. "What time did you leave?"

I searched Claire's memories. For the answer. "Around eight-thirty. Maybe quarter to nine. I stayed late. For reports."

"Did you see anything strange? Any cars following you?" Detective Morrison leaned forward.

The memory hit me hard. Claire had been driving. Through the forest road. Something huge stepped into her headlights. It didn't step. It came from the darkness. Like it lived there.

My breathing got faster. "There was something in the road."

Both detectives sat up straight. Kieran's hand touched my shoulder. He wanted to comfort me. But his touch reminded me. I was living a lie.

"Tell us what you saw," Detective Hayes said. His pen was ready.

I closed my eyes. Claire's terror filled me. The creature was massive. It stood on two legs. But it wasn't human. Its shape was wrong. Too long. Too bent. Like a wolf. I learned to walk upright.

"It was big," I whispered. "Bigger than a person. It had fur. Dark fur."

Detective Morrison wrote. Quick. "How big exactly?"

"Seven feet maybe. Maybe eight." The words came from Claire's memory. "It was hard to see. In the rain."

"Did it move like an animal?" Detective Hayes asked.

I nodded. Slow. "Yes. But also like a person. It was wrong. All wrong."

The memories came faster now. Claire had slammed on her brakes. The car slid. On the wet road. The creature turned. Toward her headlights. That's when she saw its eyes.

My blood went cold. Those eyes weren't wolf eyes. They weren't human eyes either. They were black. All black. Like staring into hell itself.

"Its eyes," I said. My voice shook. "They were black. Not normal black. Empty black."

Kieran squeezed my shoulder. "It's okay. You're safe now."

But I wasn't safe. None of us were safe. This creature wasn't one of my kind. It wasn't a werewolf. It was something else. Something worse. Something that shouldn't exist.

"What happened next?" Detective Morrison asked.

"I tried to stop. The car slid sideways. The creature jumped." I could see it all. Through Claire's eyes. "It moved so fast. Faster than anything should move."

The beast had leaped. Toward her car. Not in the car. Toward it. Like it was hunting. Like it wanted her.

"Did it attack your car?" Detective Hayes looked up. From his notes.

I waited. Claire's memories showed claws. Scraping metal. Teeth like knives. But how could I explain that? Without sounding crazy?

"I think so. Everything happened so fast. I hit a tree."

Detective Morrison studied my face. "Mrs. Mitchell, we found strange scratch marks. In your car. Deep ones. What kind of animal could make marks like that?"

Fear shot through me. If they tested those scratches, what would they find? This creature wasn't natural. Its claws might not match. Any known animal.

"I don't know," I said. "I've never seen anything like it before."

That was true. Even as Thessara. Leader of my pack. I had never met such a thing. This creature was wrong. It was wrong on every level.

Kieran frowned. "She needs to rest. This is hard for her."

Detective Hayes ignored him. "Did the animal make any sounds?"

More memories flooded back. The thing had made noise. Not howling like a wolf. Not roaring like a bear. It sounded like screaming. Like human screaming. Mixed with animal rage.

"It screamed," I whispered. "Like a person in pain. But also like an animal."

The detectives looked at each other. They knew this wasn't normal either.

"We're going to need you to come to the station," Detective Morrison said. "When you're released. We want you to look at some pictures."

Pictures of what? Other attacks? Other creatures? My heart raced faster.

"What kind of pictures?" Kieran asked. His doctor side was showing.

"Similar things. Animal attacks in the area." Detective Hayes closed his notebook. "There have been three others. In the past month."

Three others. My blood turned to ice. This thing was hunting. It was killing people. But why? What did it want?

"We'll be in touch," Detective Morrison stood up. "Get some rest, Mrs. Mitchell."

They left the room. The door closed behind them. Kieran turned to me. Right away.

"Claire, what aren't you telling them?" His eyes were sharp now. Like a doctor. Studying symptoms.

I met his gaze. "What do you mean?"

"Your answers. They don't sound like you." He sat on the edge of my bed. "You're hiding something."

Panic filled my chest. If Kieran thought something was wrong, others would too. I had to learn to be Claire. Perfect. Every word. Every move. Every memory had to be hers.

"I'm scared," I said. It wasn't a lie. "That thing was horrible. I don't want to remember it."

Kieran's face got softer. "I know. But the police need the truth. Other people could be in danger."

He was right. Other people were in danger. But not from what they thought. This demon-eyed creature was hunting wolves. I was sure of it now. It had picked Claire. Because she lived near our territory.

"I told them everything I remember," I lied.

Kieran watched me. For a long moment. His medical training told him something was wrong. With his wife. But he couldn't figure out what.

"Okay," he said. Finally, "But if you remember anything else, you have to tell them."

I nodded. "Of course."

But I wouldn't tell them anything else. I couldn't risk it. Showing my kind. If humans learned about werewolves, they would hunt us all down. They would kill every last one of us.

The demon-eyed creature was already hunting us. I couldn't let the humans join that hunt.

I had to protect my pack. Even if it meant living this lie forever. Get