It’s past ten o’clock when I finally get home. I try to sneak in through the back door, but Mom is there waiting for me in the kitchen. I’m so BUSTED!

Mom doesn’t look happy. She’s got her scowly face on. Her phone sits on the table next to a cold cup of coffee. Bet she called the whole neighborhood trying to track me down. Maybe even called Dad at work. I tell some lame-o story about hanging with Sarah and losing track of time. Mom doesn’t believe me—I can tell. But she gives me a huge hug anyway.

“I was so worried,” Mom says. “My stomach was flip-flopping for hours.” Then she tells me never to do that to her again and grounds me for three weeks.

“That’s totally fair.” I hug her again like I haven’t seen her for a million years. Mom’s all confused. She hesitates a moment, arms hanging limp at her sides. Probably weirded out. After all, who gives their parent a hug after being grounded? But eventually she hugs me back, and it feels so warm and good that I don’t want it to end.

Later, I run into Emily in the hallway as I’m heading to my room.

“Hi Em,” I say. “What’s going on?”

Emily pretends not to hear me and hustles into the bathroom—not once looking my way. I hear the door lock behind her. Guess my little performance earlier at the gym spooked her. I shrug. That’s a problem for another day. Right now, all I want to do is crash.

I don’t even bother changing into pajamas. Instead, I kick off my shoes and belly flop on my bed. My arms and legs feel like they weigh a thousand pounds each. I lie there, not moving an aching muscle, until Bizbee scampers in my room, tail wagging like crazy. She licks my fingers. I laugh and scratch her behind the ears. And for a while, I don’t think about Killer Paw or the scary stuff I just barely lived through.

Bizbee jumps on the bed and curls up next to me. I fall asleep listening to her doggy snores.

***

Tap. Tap. Tap.

I snap upright in bed. Bizbee growls at the window, the fur on her back all bristly. Someone is out there in the dark, tapping on the glass.

My heart speeds up. Oh crap. I just can’t deal with any more horror.

But I know the tapping isn’t something I can ignore. So I go to the window and slowly brush the curtains aside so I can peer into the darkness. Instantly, I let out a relieved breath.

It’s Justin.

I push open the window, careful not to make a squeak. “What’re you doing out there?” I whisper. A nervous glance at my clock tells me it’s almost 3:00 am.

“Wanted to make sure you’re okay.” He’s changed clothes since I last saw him. Now he wears clean blue jeans and a hoodie. The hood is pulled loose over his head, giving him a mysterious look.

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“Guess I’m alright.” I stroke Bizbee’s fur, calming her down. She stops growling. “But I keep seeing Killer Paw in my head. I picture him crawling in the mind shaft. Getting closer and closer.” My lower lip begins to twitch just recounting the thought.

“Might take a while to get over that,” says Justin. “But at least you won’t have to worry about the werewolf thing anymore.”

I feel my eyebrows come together, all confused like—the same look I get doing algebra. “What do you mean?”

“It’s old werewolf lore. If you kill the wolf who bit you, the curse is lifted.”

My heart speeds up again. This time for a different reason. “Wait, you mean I won’t turn into a wolf anymore? No more long, gross hair? No more sneaking out on a full moon and eating raw meat?”

Justin cracks a smile. “According to the legend, you’re free of all that.”

“What about the wolf pack?” I ask. “Will they still hunt me?”

“I’ll make sure they don’t,” Justin says. “You just concentrate on being a nice, normal girl again.”

A nice, normal girl. I can’t believe how freakin’ good that sounds. Sure, I’ll miss being able to run super fast and beat my annoying sister at basketball. But at least no hairy psychos are out to kill me anymore.

“Thank God that’s over,” I say. “Can’t believe I’m actually happy to go to school. So, I’ll see you in art class?”

Justin bows his head for a moment then looks up at me. His smile is gone. “I’m afraid not. With Killer Paw dead, my job is done. I don’t need to pretend to be a schoolboy. I won’t be around anymore.”

“Wait, you’re leaving? Where will you go?”

“You might not be a wolf anymore Kat, but I still am. I’m going back to the woods where I belong. Maybe, I’ll make friends with the rest of Killer Paw’s pack. They could use a new leader. One that’ll keep them away from humans.”

A cold lump lodges in my throat. After all we went through, I thought Justin and me would become friends. I had so many questions for him. But now he’s leaving forever.

“Can I ask something before you go?” My voice cracks. “Why did you do it? Why did you risk yourself to save me?”

Justin pulls his hood off, so I can see his face. Looking at those eyes, it’s hard to believe I ever thought he was a kid like me.

“I’d been watching Killer Paw and his pack a while,” he says. “It didn’t take long to learn what kind of wolf he was. I knew sooner or later he’d start hunting humans. So when he bit you that night…”

“Wait a minute.” I feel my jaw go slack as a wave of memories suddenly comes crashing into my brain. I see flashes of that fateful night in the woods—images of the big black wolf attacking me… his fangs piercing my skin. But with all the fear and adrenaline pumping through me, there was something I’d somehow forgotten. There was another wolf.

“You were there,” I say.

Justin only shrugs.

“You were the golden wolf.” I struggle to keep my voice down. “You fought for me. If you hadn’t been there, he might have…”

A shudder runs through me, and I let the words trail off. He might have eaten me. His whole pack couldn’t have ripped me apart.

Justin looks over his shoulder, not meeting my eyes. “When you escaped, I knew you’d turn eventually. Then you might change into something like them. I couldn’t let that happen… Not to you.”

“Why not? What’s so special about me?”

Justin stares in my direction but he isn’t looking at me. His eyes go all glassy. “Werewolves killed my little sister,” he says. “I tried to save her, but I couldn’t. It was a long time ago. But you remind me of her so much.”

I nod. This is big stuff to deal with. But it makes sense. Justin couldn’t save his sister, so he saved me instead.

“Thank you,” I tell him. “For everything.”

Justin gives me a smile—but it’s a sad one. “Have a good life Kat Lupin” he says. Then he puts on his hood and walks away. A moment later, the shadows swallow him up and he vanishes, like he was never really there.