Uncle Colin nodded. “That’s a weed whacker. Have you ever used one before?”
“No. Not really,” I confessed. The handle shook in my hand.
“It’s pretty easy,” he said. “I need you to cut down all these weeds behind the garage.”
“Yeah. Okay,” I replied, feeling dazed.
“And be careful not to toss any weeds in the Marlings’ yard,” he warned. “I’m sure they’ll be watching your every move. Waiting to complain to us about you.”
“No problem,” I replied.
There are no Marlings! I wanted to scream.
“I’ll work with you,” Uncle Colin said, wiping sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. “Together we can teach these weeds a lesson they’ll never forget.” He grinned for the first time that morning.
Does he know that I know? I wondered. Is that why he’s keeping me here this morning?
My uncle and I worked in the yard all day. Whenever I would take a short break, I’d catch him watching me coldly, studying me.
I was so frightened. I wanted to drop my tools and run.
But I couldn’t leave without warning Hannah and her family. They had to know that they were in danger too.
I didn’t see Hannah until after dinner. She burst in just as we were finishing.
“Well? How do I look?” she demanded. She did a fast twirl in her rag-doll costume.
“You look wonderful!” Aunt Marta gushed.
Hannah frowned at me. “Alex, where’s your costume? Come on. You’re not ready to trick-or-treat?”
“Uh… it’s upstairs,” I told her. “It won’t take me long to get it together. Uh… come help me—okay?”
I practically pulled her all the way to my room.
“It’s a great night out,” she said. “Perfect for trick-or-treating. The night of the full moon.”
I tugged her into the room and shut the door behind us. “We’ve got a problem,” I told her.
She fiddled with the rag hat that flopped down over her forehead. “Problem?”
“Yeah. Uncle Colin and Aunt Marta are werewolves.”
“Huh?” Her eyes bulged. “What did you say?”
I explained everything. Speaking rapidly in a low whisper, I told her all that I’d seen last night. “They hide their wolfskins in the Marlings’ house,” I finished.
“But the Marlings—?” Hannah started.
“There are no Marlings!” I cried. “The house is empty. My aunt and uncle use it as a hiding place for their wolf skins.”
Hannah stared at me openmouthed for a long time. Her chin trembled. “But… what are we going to do?” she cried breathlessly. “Your aunt and uncle—they seem like such nice people. They’ve always been so nice to me.”
“They’re werewolves!” I cried. “We have to tell your family. We have to hurry away from here. We have to get help. Tell the police or something.”
“But—but—” Hannah sputtered, her face twisted in panic.
And suddenly I had another idea. “Wait!” I cried. “Hannah, what did Mr. Shein say about werewolves shedding their skin? Didn’t he say that if someone finds their skins and burns them, the werewolves will be destroyed?”
Hannah nodded. “Yes. That’s what he said. But—”
“So that’s what we’ll do!” I cried excitedly. “We’ll go next door, and—”
“But you don’t want to kill your aunt and uncle—do you?” Hannah replied.
“Oh. No. Of course not,” I told her. “I’m so frightened, I’m not thinking clearly. I just thought—”
“Whoa. Wait a minute, Alex!” Hannah cried, grabbing my arm. “I know what we can do. I have a plan that might work!”
29
I heard my aunt and uncle moving around in the living room. Outside the bedroom window, the white full moon was rising behind the trees. Wisps of black cloud floated over it like wriggling snakes.
Hannah tugged me farther into the room. “What if we hide the wolf skins?” she asked in an excited whisper.
“Hide them?” I whispered back. “What will that do?”
“Your aunt and uncle won’t be able to find them,” Hannah replied. “The night will pass. They won’t be able to change into wolves.”
“So maybe if they go a whole night without the skins, it will cure them!” I cried.
Hannah nodded. “It’s worth a try, Alex. It might just work, and—” She stopped. “No. Wait. I have an even better idea. We’ll wear the skins!”
“Excuse me?” I gasped. “Wear them? Why?”
“Because your aunt and uncle will search everywhere for the skins,” Hannah replied. “They’ll search every house, every garage, every yard. But they won’t look for them on us! That’s the last place they’d look!”
“I get it,” I replied. “And we’ll make sure to stay away so they don’t see us until after daybreak.”
I wasn’t sure whether the plan made any sense or not. Hannah and I were both too frightened to think!
Maybe… just maybe… we could cure Uncle Colin and Aunt Marta by keeping the skins from them until morning.
“Let’s try it,” I said.
“Okay,” Hannah agreed. “Quick—get into your pirate costume. We don’t want your aunt and uncle to suspect anything. While you’re doing that, I’ll sneak next door and slip on one of the wolf skins.”
She pushed me toward the old clothes I had tossed onto the bed. “Hurry. It’s getting late. Meet me in back of the garage. I’ll bring out your wolf skin for you.”
Hannah disappeared out the door. I heard her in the living room. She said good-bye to Uncle Colin and Aunt Marta and told them she was going to meet me outside.
I heard the front door slam. Hannah was on her way next door to get the wolf skins.
I quickly pulled on the ragged old shirt and torn trousers of my costume. I wrapped a bandanna around my head.
A sound at the bedroom door made me spin around.
“Aunt Marta!” I cried.
She stood in the doorway, frowning at me. “It won’t work,” she said, shaking her head.
“Huh?” I gasped.
“Alex, it won’t work,” she repeated unhappily.
30
My aunt moved quickly into the room.
I couldn’t move. No time to try an escape.
“It won’t work. That costume won’t work,” Aunt Marta said, shaking her head. “You need some makeup. Some black stains on your face. Something to make you look less clean!”
I burst out laughing. I thought Aunt Marta had overheard our plan. But she only wanted to improve my pirate costume!
It took several minutes for my aunt to apply the makeup. Then she searched several drawers until she found a gold hoop earring, which she clipped on one ear.
“There. Much better,” she said, grinning. “Now, hurry. Hannah is waiting for you.”
I thanked her and hurried out. Hannah was waiting for me. Behind the garage. Already in a wolf skin.
I gasped when I saw her. It was so strange seeing Hannah’s eyes peering out from above a fur-covered snout.
“What took you so long?” she demanded. Her voice was muffled inside the furry wolf head.
“Aunt Marta,” I replied. “She had to fix up my costume.” I narrowed my eyes at Hannah. “How does it feel in there?”
“Very itchy,” she grumbled. “And hot. Here.” She handed me the other wolf skin. “Hurry. Put it on. The moon is already high. Your aunt and uncle will be looking for these soon.”
I took the skin from her. My hand sank into the thick fur. I unfolded it and held it up. “Here goes,” I whispered. “I said I wanted to be a werewolf for Halloween. Guess I get my wish.”
“Just hurry!” Hannah urged. “We don’t want them to catch us.”
I pulled the wolf skin over my head. Down over the old clothes of my costume. It felt a little tight. Especially the furry legs. The face fit snugly over my face.
“You’re right. It’s itchy,” I g
roaned. “It’s so tight. I’m not sure I can walk!”
“It loosens up after a bit,” Hannah whispered. “Come on. Let’s get away from here.”
She led the way across the backyard. Then we turned and trotted along the side of her house and down to the street.
I heard voices in the next block. Kids shouting, “Trick-or-treat!”
“We might be safer with other kids,” I suggested. “I mean, if we find a whole group and stick with it….”
“Good idea,” Hannah replied. We crossed the street.
It was already getting really hot inside my wolf skin. I could feel the sweat running down my forehead.
We walked for several blocks. But most of the kids were younger than us. We didn’t find anyone good to hang out with.
We turned a corner and walked several more blocks, into the next neighborhood.
“Hey—look who’s there!” Hannah declared, bumping my arm.
I followed her gaze and saw a mummy and a robot carrying trick-or-treat bags across someone’s front lawn.
“It’s Sean and Arjun,” Hannah cried.
“Let’s trick-or-treat with them!” I suggested. I began running across the grass, waving my paw at them. “Hey, guys! Hey!”
They turned and stared at us.
“Wait up!” I called through my fur-covered snout.
They screamed. And dropped their bags. And took off, running full speed, shrieking for help.
Hannah and I stopped at the edge of a driveway and watched them run. “Think maybe we scared them?” Hannah said, laughing.
“Maybe a little,” I replied.
We both laughed.
But not for long.
I heard heavy, running footsteps on the pavement behind us.
I turned—and let out a gasp as my aunt and uncle came running furiously down the street.
“There they are!” Uncle Colin cried, pointing at us. “Get them!”
31
I froze for a moment, horrified by the sight of my aunt and uncle running toward us so furiously, so desperately.
“Don’t move!” Aunt Marta pleaded. “We need those skins!”
My legs refused to budge. But then Hannah gave me a hard shove. And we both took off.
We ran wildly, across lawns and empty lots. We cut behind someone’s house, then dove through an opening in their tall hedge.
My aunt and uncle stayed close behind, running full speed, and calling out as they ran, “Give us our skins! Give us our skins!”
Their breathless voices rang in my ears. Their words became an eerie chant.
“Give us our skins! Give us our skins!”
We must have run for blocks. It all became a dark blur to me. My heavy wolf paws thumped the ground. I struggled to keep my balance. Sweat poured down my face inside the heavy fur.
Another turn. More dark backyards. And then the tilting, tangled trees of the woods rose up in front of us.
Hannah and I dove into the woods, darting between the trees and tall weeds. And still my aunt and uncle came after us, chanting, chanting their desperate plea:
“Give us our skins! Give us our skins!”
We scrambled up a low hill lined with evergreens. Pinecones slid under my heavy paws and rolled down the hill. Hannah stumbled and dropped to her knees. She scrambled on all fours to the top.
“Give us our skins! Give us our skins!”
The cry grew shrill and breathless.
And then—suddenly—everything seemed to stop.
As if the whole world had stopped spinning.
As if even the wind had stopped blowing on top of that little hill.
I could feel the silence.
Uncle Colin and Aunt Marta had stopped their chant.
Panting, Hannah and I turned to face them.
“The moon—” Hannah whispered breathlessly to me. She pointed. “The full moon, Alex. It’s so high. It must be at its peak.”
And as she whispered those words, my aunt and uncle dropped to their knees. They tossed back their heads. As the white light of the moon washed over their faces, I saw their pain, their horror.
They opened their mouths in long, mournful howls.
Their howls became hideous screams. They tore at their hair with both hands. Shut their eyes. And screamed, screamed in agony.
“Hannah—what have we done?” I cried.
32
Tugging at their hair, my aunt and uncle screamed.
And then, they lowered their hands. And closed their mouths. And a calm seemed to sweep over them.
As Hannah and I stared down at them, Uncle Colin and Aunt Marta helped each other to their feet. They brushed each other off. Smoothed down their hair.
When they finally gazed up at us, I saw tears in their eyes.
“Thank you,” they both cried.
“Thank you for saving us!” Uncle Colin exclaimed.
And then they rushed up the hill to hug us, hug us so joyfully.
“You freed us from the curse!” Aunt Marta declared, tears running down her face. “The moon reached the highest point in the sky, and we didn’t transform. Colin and I are no longer werewolves!”
“How can we ever thank you?” Uncle Colin cried. “You are both so wonderful. So brave.”
“So hot!” I grumbled. “I can’t wait to get out of this itchy skin!”
Everyone laughed.
“Let’s go back to our house!” Aunt Marta cried. “We’ll have a real celebration!”
The four of us hurried back to the house. We laughed and joked all the way.
Uncle Colin and Aunt Marta made their way in through the kitchen door. “Homemade doughnuts!” Aunt Marta promised. “And big mugs of hot chocolate! How does that sound?”
“Sounds great!” Hannah and I agreed.
Hannah started to follow them into the house. But I held her back.
“Let’s dump the skins next door,” I said. “No one will ever need them again. Let’s dump them in the abandoned house.”
She hesitated. She seemed afraid to go back into that dark, empty house.
But I went running over to the Marlings’ house. I couldn’t wait to take off the hot, smelly wolfskin.
I pulled myself onto the window ledge, then lowered my legs into the open bedroom window. I stepped into the room. Pale moonlight washed over the bare floorboards.
Hannah dropped into the room behind me. “Alex—?” she called.
I started to tug off the heavy wolf skin.
But something near the closet caught my eye.
I stopped and walked over to it.
A folded-up wolf skin lay on the floor against the wall.
“Huh?”
I let out a startled cry. And turned to Hannah. “How can there be a wolf skin in here?” I asked. “There were only two of them—right? You put one on, and you gave one to me.”
Hannah stepped up beside me. Her eyes locked on mine. “I didn’t wear the one from this house, Alex,” she said softly. “I used my own. I just got it last night.”
“Huh?” I cried. “I don’t get it.”
“You will,” she whispered.
She knocked me to the floor with her heavy forepaws, and sank her teeth into my chest.
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