Deadly Desperation

On a Saturday night, Cassie Crandall was on the phone with her wife, Janine Templeton, who is the sheriff of their small town. They had been married for 10 years, but things had been contentious to say the least. Divorce was inevitable, and Cassie wanted out, feeling that things couldn't be repaired.

Janine wasn't willing to settle for divorce. She pleaded for one chance to repair things, and that led to the phone conversation. The subject: a meeting at a nearby park--the same park where they first met.

"Janine, you always do this," Cassie said warily, as she arrived at the park. "You always try to sweet talk and kiss up to get your way."

"I promise you, this isn't that," said Janine, who was leaving the station. "I want this night to be memorable, and hopefully, things can... change between us." As Janine spoke, she took a sip of a drink from a small vial. "I promise. See you there."

Cassie hung up, not knowing what to expect from Janine, but had known what Janine was all about. Control. Abuse, mostly emotional. It was often followed by sweet talk and promises that barely lasted a week. Cassie figured that Janine would do the same with this meeting at the park where they first laid eyes on her.

Unbeknownst to Cassie, Janine had her own plans as she stood alone outside the station, as she drank the rest of the concoction, and instantly, moments after dropping the vial, Janine let out a demonic fang-filled howl as her eyes glowed red. As Cassie had known, Janine's responses to Cassie's plan for divorce were quite unstable. Mocking at first, followed by insane threats. Finally, Janine decided to resort to a sinister and supernatural method. She visited a shop that dealt with the occult, and that's where she found that aforementioned vial: containing a potion that would transform Janine into a vicious and demonic hound with an immense thirst for blood.

As Janine went on her way, her transformation continued on, beginning with her uniform being torn to shreds by her black fur covered body. Her nails became claws that became part of her front paws, and the final piece of her monstrous transformation was her muzzle extending. Though she was a full canine on the outside, Janine's evil human mind was cognizant and clear as she rushed toward the park and found Cassie, who screamed in horror as she ran in fear for her life.

Janine would not settle for a divorce. Her strong name would be tarnished, and her pension would take a hit. In her demented mind, Cassie was an obstacle, and this was the perfect plan: Cassie would be mauled by a vicious beast, and Janine would play the grieving widow on the case, while avoiding suspicion. The monstrous Janine cornered Cassie to an alley, and moved slowly towards her prey, with Cassie fearing and expecting the worst. Just as Janine leapt to kill the woman she had been married to for a decade, she was suddenly taken down by an arrow right though what passed for her heart.

Cassie had her eyes closed from the moment Janine made her move up until the arrow was shot. Once she opened them, she saw two things: the demonic hound laying deceased in front of her, and a familiar woman holding a crossbow: Janine's deputy, Shauna Riley.

As Shauna walked closer to Cassie, both of them watched as the hound shifted to her human form, resulting in Janine laying dead with the arrow through her. Cassie expressed horror over what she had just seen, but Shauna?

"She made all sorts of threats about you," said Shauna. "Accused you of trying to ruin her 'good' name. I had a feeling Janine would try to pull something, but this..." Cassie hugged Shauna, showing a mix of immense gratitude and a vast amount of relief.

"Janine was a monster, inside and out," said Cassie. "All she did was unleash her true self."

Cassie and Shauna left together in the latter's police car, now bonded together by twisted circumstances. In regards to the details of Janine's death, explaining them was not on the minds of Cassie and Shauna at the time. Shauna was focused on the well-being of Cassie, who continued processing the fact that this was a night that would stay with her for the rest of her life, and that she would eventually persevere and remain strong in spite of the events.