“Gracie! My little Gracie!” Eleanor cried out. Eyes tearing, she knelt down. “My Little Gracie!” she shouted. She screamed so loud, everyone in the small town of Wysteria heard her. The constable walked up to her and said, “Ma’am, if you are talking about your daughter, I saw her going through the willows and into the forest. Now, the law states that you can’t just stand and do nothing in the town square. So get a move on!” Eleanor trudged to her farm. First, her husband had left her. Then, both her parents died. And now, her daughter, her only joy, had gone. This madness - it was intolerable. With nothing left, Eleanor did the unthinkable and took her own life.

                          ~~~ 20 YEARS LATER... ~~~

    Eliza knew that it would be a hopeless case. Looking for her older cousin Grace would be impossible. People would think that it was a joke. Yet, she fought through society. Finding her friends, she talked to them about it.
“Allan, Edgar, and Virginia,” said Eliza, “we have to do this!”
“You know I would support you,” said Edgar, “but don’t we all know that the forest is unexplored? Nobody knows what’s in there!”
“Precisely my point,” said Eliza.

    Allan thought about it. They were going to search for Grace. She was last seen in the forest. What horrors would be in there? Allan’s thoughts were quickly interrupted by Edgar. “We are at the forest at last,” said Edgar. “Now, we just have to figure out how to get in.” The forest was tight and thick with trees. On this side, the willows were sad and droopy. “I have an idea!” said Edgar. “We can use an axe to chop down these trees to get through the woods.”

    It was late at night. Edgar had told Virginia to get an axe from her father’s shed. Oh, the thought gave her shudders. Both of her parents had died in the forest while cutting down trees. No one knew how it happened, as only their heads were found. Virginia was 13 when that happened. She had a feeling they would all die. The only joy would be the fact that she would end up with her parents. Or was it her paranoia? Virginia snapped herself out of it and went for the shack. She passed the log cabin that once belonged to her parents. It was relatively small, with one floor and only two rooms separated from the living room and foyer. It was on the outskirts of the town, very close to the forest. Because of its distance from the town, its design was very distinguished and looked newer. She looked wistfully at it, where she now lived alone — in almost complete solitude.

    Reaching the shed, Virginia opened the door. Slowly, gently, carefully… “Ahh!” Virginia screamed as something grabbed her by the legs. They were arms, with the hands feeling somewhat like paws. The claws from those paws were digging into her legs. The screaming didn’t help, as she was at the outskirts of the town and at midnight. With no one to help her, Virginia was dragged into the darkness of the shed.

                            ~~~ THE NEXT DAY… ~~~

    Edgar pondered, but he still couldn’t understand it. Why had Virginia not returned? It wasn’t like her to do this. She was usually ready for everything, despite her pessimistic nature. Nevertheless, Edgar joined his friends. “We have to find a way to get into the woods!” said Eliza. “But what about Virginia?” asked Allan. “You don’t know what will happen when we’re one person short. And remember —” “Okay, you don’t have to go into that detailed of an explanation,” Edgar shot back, “but relax guys. I have a plan.”

    “We’ll just have to weave through the forest very quietly,” Edgar improvised. Later, Allan contemplated on what they were about to do. They were going into a deep, dark forest, the same one his parents died in. They were going for a walk on a full moon at the edge of the woods, and then Allan heard shuffling. A wolf jumped out of the underbrush, dealing two precise strikes at each of his parents’ jugulars, leaving them to bleed to death quickly. All the while, Allan stood there, mortified and paralyzed. The werewolf had ripped into his parents’ necks, getting all of the juiciest flesh. After chowing down, the wolf looked up at Allan. It had completely empty, black eyes, as if cursed. It then stood up. Wait — it must have been a werewolf. “Child!” the werewolf had said, “Childs has good meat.” Allan had quickly run away and informed the police. Allan had been scarred ever since.

    Allan shuddered. They had just reached the woods, and they walked in. The willows were hanging low, as if weeping for someone. Oh, the pain they entailed! The branches were sharp and the air — the air smelled strange. It tasted sour and smelled musty, like blood. The group held back for a moment: Three people venturing into the unknown. Nonetheless, they ventured onward. The ground was rocky with barely any grass. Edgar wondered how trees could survive here. Yet, on they walked through the mountainous terrain, sometimes having to climb up hills and accidentally falling  down them. They were even forced to climb through logs.

    After a few hours, Eliza found a clearing in the forest. There was no grass, and several holes in the ground. Eliza stepped closer and looked in the the holes out of curiosity. Inside, about two meters down, were the decomposing skeletons of human beings. Some of the bones still had meat on them, left to pick off by the rats. Several of them were broken, leaving dried marrow on the ground. All were covered in dried blood.

    Eliza shrank back in horror and swore. Edgar threw up. Allan sobbed. “The werewolf is here!” screamed Allan. “How would you know?” said Eliza. “There are the same exact bite marks on those bones as the werewolf left in my parents!” retorted Allan as he broke down.
“But still, how would you know they’re not your parents?” said Eliza. “They would’ve decomposed by now. They’re long gone,” responded Edgar, “which means that this supposed ‘werewolf’ has been murdering people recently.”
    “You don’t suppose he killed Virginia?”
    “Maybe. But Eliza, I have something in Allan’s defense.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “The ‘werewolf’ is here, and I know it.” Edgar pointed and said,     “Look.” Eliza and Allan looked to where Edgar was pointing. It was a log cabin damaged with years of wear and tear. A chill went through the group as they saw the claw marks and old bloodstains on the outside of the cabin. Something told Eliza to hold back, but she was determined to find an answer. She took a deep breath and opened the door. Its hinges creaked. “What are you doing, Eliza?” shouted Allan. “Well, how bad can this be?” asked Eliza as she walked in, trying to keep them all optimistic. “Ugh!” Edgar sighed with exasperation, as he and Allan followed. The group walked in, wide-eyed and on their guard.

    Inside, it was very dreary. Allan thought he heard shuffling. He felt warmth and could see an eerie glow coming from behind him. “Ahh!” Allan screamed. “Relax, Allan. I just managed to strip off some wood and rub it together to make a torch,” said Edgar. “Remember? The constable taught us how to do that in our twelfth year of schooling.” “Oh — yeah,” said Allan.

    Now, with a slight glow illuminating the corridor, the three friends marched on. The musty smell grew and grew until the whole group could smell it - it was the putrid stench of raw, human flesh. Allan stopped in his tracks.
    “G-g-g-g—”
    “What is it, Allan?” asked Eliza.
    “GHOST!”
    “What ghost?” asked Edgar.
None of them could see the ghost, except for Allan. It was that of a tiny girl, completely translucent with a white and gray complexion. The ghost screamed and then disappeared.

    Allan stuttered as he explained to his friends everything he had seen in that moment. He told them what she looked like. Suddenly, a man walked up to them. He had Allan’s stature: he was tall and athletic. Allan looked down. He saw Virginia. Virginia was begging and pleading, firmly held by the hand  of the mysterious man. There was a knife at her throat. “If you try to escape, she will die,” said the man. His voice was high-pitched and angry. “Leave now,” said a gentle, yet booming voice behind them. The group sprinted for the door. A knife shot through Eliza’s back. She fell to the ground. Edgar and Allan turned around. “You can't leave,” said the man.

    Virginia sobbed as her heart pumped fast. There was a knife at her throat. For a split second, she felt like cold water was being dumped on her. She could feel her memories being sifted through. And then, as the blade touched her throat, eternal torment, in a split second.

Edgar shivered as Virginia’s throat was slit. But just as that was happening, something peculiar occurred. Her eyes turned completely white for a split second, and then turned back. The man ran off with Virginia’s dead body.

    From behind them the source of the voice showed itself to Edgar and Allan as a ghost.
“Why, hello.”
“Is it you, Grace?” asked Edgar.
“Who are you, and how do you know about me?” questioned Grace. “I’ve seen your portraits and heard your story. By the way —” Edgar sobbed.
“What?”
“Eliza, your younger cousin, is lying dead right next to me.”
“Escape this place before you die,” warned Grace.
“You don’t want to suffer the same fate as I did.”
“But we need to get him.”
“Why?”
“REVENGE!” screamed Allan.
“Well, in that case, follow me.”
Grace led them to a torture room. Oh, the horror… there were several torture machines. Every single one held a dead body. Each one looked like it died screaming. The man was standing there. “You all will never escape, so I might as well tell you my story. I am Grace’s father, Albert.” “That’s it?” said Allan, relieved. “Not at all.” The man began a horrid transformation. His nose and limbs grew longer. His hands and feet turned to paws. His nails turned to claws. He charged at them, knocking them out.

    Allan woke up strapped to a board. He fumbled around, and then realized it was a torturing machine. “Oh you people, so gullible…” said the man as he pulled a lever. A jolt of pain coursed through Allan. “You wanna know who I am? Yes, I was Gracie’s father. Yet, my wife left me.” Allan felt more pain. “She said I was too cruel for being a cannibal. Well I showed her.” More pain… “I drove her insane by killing Gracie.” Even more… “And yes, I did kill your parents.” “AHHHHH!” Allan screamed. He couldn't handle it. He died that day. The same thing happened with Edgar.

    The Werewolf of Wysteria never stopped his cannibalistic murders. He only died when the police found and executed him. Now, it is I, Grace, that tells this story. I sifted through the memories of everyone right as they died. I am tortured by the fact that I must wander the physical realm forever as a ghost. Forever alone. And tormented by the fact that I could do nothing about it.