It was late, and the police station was mostly empty, but Officer Dale Brown was sitting in his office and studying evidence under the light of a lamp. He sighed, leaning back in his chair, rubbing his sore eyes and knuckled his mustache before he leaned in again.
As a policeman the only crimes that Brown had to deal with were petty offenses; stolen bicycles, shoplifters, and sometimes burglaries. But now he had this, a Missing Person case. Brown could still remember vividly the young women that arrived at the station a few nights ago.
She was sobbing, obviously traumatized, rambling about a monster, her boyfriend, and a murder. Officer Francine Strydom, Brown's partner, calmed the girl down and took her in for questioning. From there they got a better story, and the women told them a bizarre story about her boyfriend.
Approaching the end of every month, Arthur Tepper would show signs of aggression and would become extremely protective of her, right before disappearing into the woods, when the moon was full, for two days. He would then return, looking tired.
The women asked him multiple times why, but he would shift the subject every time. So far the story seemed rational, but then the women told them that she followed him into the woods and was attacked by a monster. She was there at the station to report a murder, believing that it killed her boyfriend.
Officer Brown and Francine were obviously skeptical about her story, but the girl was very serious, begging for their help. They sent her home and took up the case. Officers of the station, helped by a few members of the community, no doubt swept up by the worried women, went out to search for him. They couldn't find anything.
Unfortunately they couldn't rule it as a murder, for they didn't have sufficient evidence, but they could rule it as a Missing Person case. While the search was on for Arthur Tepper, Officer Brown and Francine went out to gather some information about the young man.
Their search led them to a old women named Tamara Anderson, who was Arthur's aunt and guardian. It was from there that they found out that the boy was home schooled by her, and that he was tragically left orphaned after his mother died and his father was no where to be found.
What made Officer Brown suspicious of the old women was that she didn't seem surprised, or concerned, when they told her that Arthur was missing. He had a hunch that she knew something.
The search continued, and they found out that he also worked at a local grocery store. According to the shop owner, he was a hard working, and loyal, employee. Though, he was rather reclusive and had few friends.
Time passed, and the two day time period that he was gone, according the young women, ran out. There was still no news of him, even though they set up a reward for anyone who saw or found him.
But the search teams had some luck at least; they found in the woods, in a small clearing, scraps of torn clothing they identified as Arthur's. Brown was fearing that this was a wild animal attack, for it happened at least ones a decade to hikers in this part of the state.
But if it was then they would have found the mangled body a long time ago, or at least bones. They did found, however, tracks of a very large wolf in the mud. Brown didn't want to admit it but he was beginning to believe the young women's story of a monster.
At this very moment he was studying the evidence they so far found, linking it up with another witness. Mr. Joe McClaren was a Irish immigrant that was a farmer, living a few miles out of town.
It wasn't the first time the man called the police station to report that his livestock had been attacked by some monster. Officer Francine, who was always dispatch to him, took up Joe's stories with a pinch of salt.
According to the residence of Stockhill, the Irishman drank quite a lot. Of course Joe had evidence of an attack - a ripped up carcass of a cow or sheep - but Officer Francine always concluded that it was a bear attack.
When Joe insisted that it was some sort of beast, Officer Francine would simply ask: "How much have you been drinking last night?"
At the question Joe would grow very thoughtful. "Well," he would say slowly, his hand touching his wrinkled face covered in stubble, "Not much, really. Just a mug or so."
Officer Francine would leave it there, telling him to lock his animals up better in the night, which he often forgot to do.
As Brown was studying the evidence, his cell phone rang. Without looking at it, he picked it up and answered it.
"Hello," he said, "This is Dale Brown. Who is it?"
"Hey there, Dale," came Francine's familiar voice.
Brown's head perked up. "Francine," he said, a hopeful smile appearing on his face, "Is there any news?"
"Yes," said Francine, "The dogs from the city has arrived."
Stockhill was a small town, and its police station didn't have the necessary equipment to battle large crimes. For this case they had to request help from a police station from the nearest city. They had sent them a dog squad, and with the bloodhounds it would be easier to track the missing man down.
"And have they found anything yet?" Brown asked.
"Yes," Francine confirmed, "They got a scent. They're also asking you to come down here."
"I'll be there in a few minutes," said Brown.
After ending the call, Brown jumped to his feet. He grabbed his flashlight, his hat, and jacket, then headed out the door.
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