Speaker 1: Welcome to micro Terrors, scary stories for kids where it's
always the spooky season, full of chills, thrills, and.
Speaker 2: Spine tingling spooks.
Speaker 1: Micro Terrors are family friendly frights for those ages eight
and up, and while our stories are for younger years,
we are still talking about things that go bump in
the night, and some children may not be able.
Speaker 2: To handle what others can.
Speaker 1: Parental consent is recommended now for tonights micro terror.
Speaker 2: The Grove City Werewolf written by Scott Donnelly, August was
in full swing in Grove City, Ohio. A late October
chill creeped through the night air, stirring up leaves and
rustling the naked branches of the trees. And Andrea Cordle's backyard.
Sitting by her crackling fire pit and wrapped tightly in
an Ohio State football hoodie, she typed on her laptop,
putting the final touches on her Trick or Treat safety
tips article for the Grove City Messenger, the local publication
she worked for. Her phone rang, silencing the crickets in
her backyard, and she answered it. Hello, She said, Andrea,
I just wanted to check to see how the werewolf
article was coming, a man's voice said. Andrea sighed, I
told you I'm not doing the werewolf article. I don't
believe in things like that. And I feel like this
town has gotten itself worked up into a little panic
over nothing. It's the spooky season, she said. Of course
something like this would be trying to make headlines around town.
It sounds like a fluff piece to me, Andrea. The
man said, I think we need to cover it. There's
a curfew in effect. The police don't put a curfew
in effect for fluff pieces. Andrea sighed, but before she
could respond, she heard something in the trees her backyard.
Hugged to the edge of a small wooded area. Hold on,
she whispered into the phone. Andrea held the phone down
by her side and tried to focus her eyes on
the dark tree line ahead of her. Everything went silent
aside from the crackling fire. Then, without warning, a vicious
arcane howl erupted from the woods. Andrea panicked and jumped
to her feet. She ran for the back door of
her house. That's when she heard the heavy, persistant gallop
of a large animal behind her, clamoring through the backyard
after her snarling wickedly, she blew through the back door,
and he lamb it shut. As Andrea tried to settle
her nerves and catch her breath, she heard the haunting
howl of the unseen beast again, echoing in the cold
night outside. After the forty five minute trip, Sean Dyer's
family car finally came to a stop. With his father
behind the wheel and his mother and the passenger seat.
They pulled into the driveway of a small little house
off Kingston Avenue in Grove City, Ohio. Shawn's dad turned
the engine off and opened his door. His mother did
the same, but Sean remained seated, strapped in with his seatbelt,
nervous to leave the comforts of the family car. You coming,
his dad called back, in a cool rush of the
crisp autumn air. Slipping in through the open door, Sean sighed,
even though he didn't want to, Even though he wanted
to go with his parents to North Carolina for the
weekend instead of staying with family that he barely ever saw.
He knew it was a lost cause. The plane tickets
were already paid for only two of them, and his
aunts and uncle were expecting them. Chances were. They had
probably already noticed the car pulled into the driveway. Shawn
glanced out the window.
Speaker 1: And up to the house.
Speaker 2: His aunt and uncle, who he hadn't seen in about
two years, were standing on the porch, waving with huge
smiles on their faces. Yep, they already knew. It didn't
take long for Sewan's parents to get him settled in, unpacked,
and re acquainted with his dad's brother and his wife.
Uncle Curtis was a good man with a good job.
He liked bad movies, even worse music, and still favored
the video games of his youth to the ones of today,
well into his thirties. His wife, Aunt Jade, was as
friendly as someone could be. Sean hadn't been in their
home for two minutes before Aunt Jade had offered to
make him hot chocolate and homemade pumpkin cookies. As much
as Sean one wanted to feel comfortable, he struggled sullenly
for the weekend. He told himself, Then mom and Dad
will be back and I'll be heading home just in
time for Halloween. Sean's parents had been gone for only
an hour when Sean felt the first nervous butterfly in
his stomach. It was like the butterfly was lost, tying
aimless knots inside of him. He was homesick. Sean found
his way outside and sat on the porch steps. He
breathed in the cool autumn air, watched the leaves trickle
down from the trees, and took a gander at the
Halloween decorations his aunt and uncle's neighbors had on full display.
It was the first time he felt like smiling, but
still couldn't muster up the energy to do so. The
front door behind him opened and Uncle Curtis came out,
sitting down next to Sean with a cup of steaming
hot shy tea in his hands. Do it okay, he asked,
Yawn nodded. Uncle Curtis took a small sip from his
tea and looked around the neighborhood. I love this neighborhood
at hallowed time, he said, looking at the blowing spider
web decorations across the street, the inflatable vampire bluey next
door to it, and the skeletal spider that had been
fastened atop a nearby mailbox. It provides me of the neighborhood.
Your dad and I grew up in Uncle Curtis looked
down to Sean and, after another sip of tea, said,
I still can't believe he's moving you all the North Carolina,
and I wish he wasn't. Sean said, I like Ohio.
Uncle Curtis took a deep breath. Me too, especially Grove City.
I've lived here with that Jade for nearly a decade now.
It's the perfect small, towed feel, but close enough to
everything big. It's the best of both worlds. Sean didn't
seem interested, and Uncle Curtis noticed. He smiled. I'll take
you for a tour tomorrow. Uncle Curtis said, just you
would be. Jade has some work stuff to do. Anyways,
I'll show you all the cool things around toud. There's
a comic bookstore, parks, some of the best pizza you'll
ever have. Uncle Curtis trailed off on his pizza comment,
and Sean couldn't tell if it was because he was
trying to think of other places to mention, or that
he now had a hankering for a pizza. Just then,
the sound of footsteps crunching through leaves caught Sean's attention.
He looked up and saw a mail carrier, a middle
aged man dressed in the standard blue uniform and carrying
a satchel filled with letters and small parcels, walking through
the neighbor's yard and into his aunt and uncle's Uncle
Curtis stood up. Good afternoon, Jeff. He greeted his neighborhood
mailman with a smile. Jeff the mailman briefly eyed the sky.
The sun was already heading toward the horizon, leaving a
bright orange glow in the sky. More like evening, Jeff said, Handy,
Curtis a handful of letters, just trying to get done
before dark. Shaw noticed something strange in Jeff's tone when
he mentioned trying to get done before dark. It didn't
seem to come from a place of work related distress,
but from somewhere else. Curtis's demeanor changed as well. His
friendly greeting trailed off, just as his pizza comment did
moments earlier. Be safe, Jeff, get back, you get home
as soon as you cand Jeff nodded with a smile.
This is my last street before I'm done, so I
think I'm in the clear, hopefully, Curtis smiled. See you
to borrow here too. Jeff smiled and then nodded in
Sean's direction before moving on to the next house. As
Curtis sat back down on the porch step, Sean kept
his eye on Jeff hurrying through the leaf covered yard.
Jeff's bid our bail carrier for years. Curtis said to Sean,
good guy. He just lost his brother a couple of
weeks back. He hasn't met himself since then. I can't
imagine losing someone that close to me. Sean didn't verbally respond,
but just watched Jeff cross the yard into the next one.
The neighbor's front door opened and a dog rushed out
to greet Jeff with a friendly wag of its tail.
A man appeared at the door next. He looked to
be in his late twenties. The man accepted a handful
of male from Jeff before the nervous mailman hurried on
his way again. The neighbor then turned and waved to Sean.
Sean hesitantly waved back, and Curtis noticed that's Reese. Curtis said,
he's lived there since before Jade did. I moved in.
Nice guy. He's doing some work at his attic that
he keeps asking by help with, but I keep finding
new ways to blow him off. Reese rounded up his
dog and the two of them disappeared back into their house.
He's got a nice dog, Sean said, Most dogs I
know hate the male man. Yeah, Bugo is what of
a kind? Bongo? Sean laughed, realizing that he had finally
broken a smile, and it felt good. Curtis, noticing this
as well, decided to capitalize on a craving that had
been building within him. What pizza for dinner? He asked.
There's a place on Broadway called Tabby's Pizza. It's the
best you'll ever have, I promise. Sean smiled again. I
could eat some pizza. Pizza it is, Curtis said, standing
up and swallowing the last gulf of his tea. He
looked to the sunset and his tone slightly changed again.
Oh we'd better hurry, though, it'll be dark, sued Sean
couldn't help, but wonder why did everyone seem so nervous
about the dark? Uncle Curtis pulled his car along the
curb a Broadway, right in front of Tammy's Pizza. The
establishment was much smaller than Sean would have predicted, but
he'd always been told, the smaller the place, the better
the food. I'll be right, Curtis said, turning off the
car and taking the keys with him. As soon as
he opened the car door to leave, Seawn could already
smell the pizza, and it smelled incredible. While his uncle
went inside to pick up and pay for it, Sewn
looked out the windows, getting his first real look at
downtown Grove City. He did have that small town feel,
like his uncle had said. Shops, restaurants, and businesses lined
both sides of Broadway. Festival fall flags hung on the
light poles, and Halloween decorations sat inside the glass windows
of the businesses. The orange glow in the sky had
become blinding for a moment and then dulled. The sun
had set and the lingering light made the sky look beautiful. However,
it wouldn't last long. It was just after six pm
and it would be dark very soon. There was a
knock on the passenger window, which startled a gasp from Sean.
He looked up and saw a uniformed police officer. Once
Shawn caught his breath, he cracked the door open, a
familiar knot of nerves running to his stomach. Yes, He asked,
where are your parents, The officer asked, my uncle's in there,
Sean said, pointing behind the officer to Tammy's pizza. He's
getting our dinner. The officer turned around just in time
to see Curtis coming out with two large pizzas in
his hands. Is there a problem, officer, Curtis asked, sun's setting.
The officer said, there's a curfew in effect. Unless you
have to be on the road, you shouldn't be. I understand,
Curtis said, we're on our way home now. Actually, the
officer nodded. He looked back down at Sean and then
addressed Curtis. Keep your nef you safe, he said, I will,
Curtis replied. The officer then walked away, and Curtis sat
the pizzas in the back seat of the car. He
climbed into the driver's seat and started it out. Why
is there a curfew, Sewn asked curiously. Curtis didn't answer
for a minute. There's there's just bits of strange things
happening round here lately. He turned to Sean and faked
a smile. Nothing to worry about. Curtis faced forward and
stepped on the gas, He pulled out into traffic and
drove the two of them home. Oddly, he didn't mention
anything else about the curfew, which only made Sean more curious.
A little over an hour later, across town Grove, City's
coolest store, Skylarks Toys and Comics, saw its last customer
of the night leave. Darren Neff, the store's bearded, humble owner,
adjusted his ball cap, which sported the Skylark's logo, and
then locked the door. He peered out into the night,
but couldn't see much because of the glare from the
light inside the store. He turned off the buzzing open sign,
locked the door, and then retured turned to his place
behind the counter. The cash register opened and Darren began
to count the drawer. Then something in his peripheral vision
caught his eye. Ahead of him, down an aisle of
vintage Ninja Turtles and Power Rangers toys, and out the
front windows, a large shadow passed by. Darren waited to
see if whoever it was would walk back again, but
things out in front of the store seemed still. He
went back to counting his cash drawer. Suddenly he was
interrupted by a sharp, strident, scratching sound on the glass,
as if someone were dragging the ties of a metal
rake across it. Hey, here, you stop it, Darren shouted,
rushing out from behind the counter and to the locked
side of his door. The scratching sound had come to
an abrupt stop. Darren squinted and peered outside, but the
store's lights still made it hard to see anything in
the night. Suddenly, Darren watched us out of piercing yellow
eyes a knight on the other side of the glass,
and then narrow into a menacing lea. He saw a
flash of sharp teeth next, and then crash. The window
exploded inwards. A massive hairy beast plowed through along with
the shattering glass. It snarled, gnashed its jaws, and thrashed
its claws. The attack was quick. Afterward, Skylark's toys and
comics sat in an eerie silence. Only the scampering, galloping
footsteps of the beast could be heard fleeing from the scene.
Then it released a horrible howl into the night. Sean
awoke the next morning, having surprisingly slept soundly all night long.
His first thoughts were of Tammy's pizza. Could that pizza
have been so good that I forgot all of my troubles,
he thought. As he rolled out of bed, he looked
around the room he was in. It felt strange to him.
It wasn't his room. It was a spare bedroom at
his aunt and uncle's house in Grove City. The more
he thought about it, he didn't even have a room anymore.
His old one didn't count since his parents were in
North Carolina signing the final paperwork on a new house.
That's why he was forced to spend the weekend with
extended family that he didn't know very well. Sean heard
the muffled voices of his uncle Curtis and aunt Jade
down the hallway. He went to the door and put
an ear to it, but still couldn't make out much
of what they were saying, so he cracked the door
open about an inch. That was enough to catch the
last moments of their conversation down the hall. It's never
attacked anyone before. Don't you find this concerning, Jade quietly said.
There was silence from Curtis for a moment, but then
he responded, I can't believe this is actually happening. A
mounster it Grove City. Curtis let out a quick, nervous laugh.
Who would have ever thought, huh that, poor man, Jade said,
I know. Curtis responded, and I planned on digging Sean
to Skylarks today. Guess that will be happening. Uncle Curtis
and Aunt Jade went silent after that, So Shawn emerged
from his room and crept down the hallway. The floorboards
creaking beneath his feet gave him away, though. As he
turned the corner into the living room, he saw his
aunt and uncle sitting around the TV a drinking coffee.
On the TV was a news reporter standing in front
of a local Grove City business. At the bottom of
the screen were the words Grove City business owner attacked
by local legend police Baffled. Uncle Curtis was quick to
turn off the TV as soon as Sean made his
creaky entrance into the room, and Jade stood up and
put on a forced fake smile. Good morning, Sean, Did
you sleep okay? Yeah, Sean coldly applied. He quickly grown
tired of his aunt and uncle's secrecy and whatever it
was that had been going on in Grove City, a curfew,
a monster. Sean wanted answers. After breakfast in the shower.
Sean followed Uncle Curtis out the front door and was
immediately stung by the brisk temperatures of the late morning hours.
I was going to show you the Covic bookstore today,
but Curtis searched for the right words. They're closed. Sean
rolled his eyes. Did his uncle really think he was
that stupid? He saw the TV screen he heard his
and Aunt Jade's hushed conversation. Instead, I'll take you back
down to Broadway, Curtis said, jingling the car keys in
his hand. The library is amazing. We could get some
ice cream at Strauser's afterwards. Oh at the Grove City
Visitors Setter, That's where we should start. There's so much
local flame there. You really see what this tout is
all about. Oh you mean, aside from monsters and secrets,
Sean thought to himself. He just nodded along as his
uncle unlocked the car. Morning neighbor a man's voice shouted
from behind them. Sean turned around just as Curtis did.
They saw Reyese, the young twenty something next door, raking
his yard. Boarded Reese. Curtis smiled and waved, I see
he got some company there, Curtis Reese said, taking a
break from his autumn chore. Bongo lay in the leaves nearby,
with his head up, alert as dogs always were. This
is my def you showed he stayed with us for
the weekend. Reese waved again. Hi, Sean, I'm Reese. Nice
to meet you. Sean nodded shyly, you too. I like
your dog, Reese laughed, Oh, Bongo here. Yeah, he's a
good boy, very loyal. That's the best quality of a dog.
Reese then turned to his attention back to Curtis and
changed the subject. You know I could still use a
little help in the attic, Curtis, think you have an
hour or so to spend this weekend. Sean watched his
uncle panic and scramble for an excuse. Uh uh, baby,
I'll let you know. I'm taking Sean around today. Not
sure what tomorrow's going to bring. Reese nodded. He wasn't stupid.
He knew Curtis was trying to avoid helping. It wasn't
very neighborly. Well, you guys had a good day, Reese said,
you too, Reese, Curtis said as he climbed into the car.
Sean got into and then they drove off. The Grove
City visitor Center on Broadway was smaller than Sean expected.
When his uncle said visitor center, his young mind immediately
went to the finale of Jurassic Park, but this place
was more like a gift shop. A woman on the
shorter side, wearing a sports jacket and a friendly smile,
greeted Sean and Curtis when they entered. Welcome, she said,
in a sweet voice. What brings you guys in today?
Curtis put his hand on Shawn's back. My diffew is
fromout a town. I'm just showing you what Grove City
is all about it. I figured this would be a
good place to start. Absolutely, I'm Teresa Breckinridge, she said
with a smile, shaking Shaan's hand and then Curtis's. She
looked down at Sean. Grove City has been named the
best hometown in Ohio two years in a row now,
so you're definitely in the presence of comfort, hospitality, and monsters,
Shawn impulsively said out loud, although he initially intended for
it to be an inner thought. The two adults went
quiet and just looked at each other. You will just
look around, Curtis finally said. Teresa nodded, I'm sure as
to how to continue the conversation. Let me know if
you have any questions. Curtis began to show Sean around
the store, completely ignoring the monster comments he had just
blurted out. They looked at Grove City t shirts or
made gifts, books by independent authors who lived nearby, and
local baked goods. It gave Sean an idea of the
tight knit community that Grove City was. By the pictures
on the wall and the books and pamphlets scattered about
the store, it looked like it was a town rich
in history. He also saw a blue and white sign
proudly displayed that read Grove City Best Hometown twenty twenty
three and twenty twenty four by Ohio Magazine. Curtis's cell
phone rang, and he looked at the screen. It's your aunt, Jade,
he said, give me a bit at Sean. Curtis answered
the phone and stepped away, speaking softly as to not
disrupt the quiet atmosphere of the store, even though there
was no one else in there. Teresa walked up to
Sean with her hands in the pockets of her sports jacket.
Monster huh, she said, Sean turned and faced her. Finally,
he thought someone actually acknowledged the elephant in the room. Yeah,
Sean said softly, so his uncle wouldn't hear him. What
is going on in this town. There's a curfew, weird secrets,
something about a monster attack last night. Well, what's it
all about? Teresa smiled and then whispered, don't tell your
uncle I said anything. She said, He clearly doesn't want
you to worry. But there have been some weird sightings
around town lately. People say they've seen a giant wolf
standing upright on two legs. A wolf standing on two legs.
Shawn whispered, back, you mean, are you talking about a werewolf?
Teresa nodded. There have been stories of were wolves in
Ohio for a long time, and it's always been speculated
that we had some here in the area. But lately
that speculation became more of a truth. People have seen
it in every part of town. Something seems to have
started up, rustled it out of hiding, and now last
night it attacked that poor skylark guy. It never attacked
anyone before. That would explain the secrecy and curfew. Sean said,
why will my uncle just tell me all that, then
he's just trying to keep you safe, to keep you
from worrying, Teresa said, she took a deep breath. We
just hope it doesn't get worse. We have no idea
why the sightings and activity have escalated so much lately.
A werewolf is a predator, Sean said, probably top of
the food chain. What would have it all riled up?
Teresa shrugged, leaving the haunting answer to the question lingering
in the air. Once Curtis was finished with his phone call,
he and Sean left the visitor center. They grabbed ice
cream across the street at Strawser's ice Cream, Pop and
Candy Shop, and then drove around town as Curtis pointed
out places he found interesting or worth showing off, but
Sean wasn't paying much attention to any of it. He
was focused on what Teresa Breckinridge had told him. Grove
City had a werewolf, and for some reason, that werewolf
had been triggered and turned into an aggressive, dangerous threat.
The day came to an end, and once the sunset,
the curfew took effect. Storefronts displayed there closed for curfew signs,
Shoppers scrambled for their last second purchases, and a heavier
police presence patrolled the streets. Teresa Breckinridge walked out of
the visitor center and closed the door. After arming the
security system, she made sure the door was locked. She
pulled her coat tightly around her body and slung her
purse over her shoulder. Broadway was silent. A cold breeze
blowed down the street. Dead leaves scratched across the road.
The festival fall flags and the light poles fluttered gently.
Teresa felt a chill of unease. Something made a noise
behind her, and she spun around. There was nothing, no
one on the sidewalk in either direction. A police car
turned off of Broadway and onto Park Street, only a
block away. Other than that, there wasn't another car in sight. Hello,
she called out, knowing that she heard something. That A
howl erupted in the night and it was close. Teresa's
heart dropped. She turned and ran, cutting down the narrow
alley between businesses. Suddenly, the howl ripped through the cold
night air again. Teresa stopped at the end of the
alley by a public parking lot. She looked up, perched
upon the top of the building with the full moon.
At its back was the werewolf. It stood on its
hind legs, arched its back and howled again. Then it crouched,
locked its hungry eyes on Teresa, and pounced. There was
no hiding it now. Neither Uncle Curtis nor Aunt Jade
could ignore the questions and quote unquote elephant in the room.
There was a werewolf in Grove City, and it had
attacked another person, Teresa Breckinridge, the sweet woman who worked
at the Grove City Visitor Center. Sean and Curtis had
just seen her the previous day. So when Sean woke
up again to a deja vu image of a reporter
on TV talking about a vicious attack the night before,
he was naturally unnerved, scared, and worried. You're not leaving
the house again, Jade insisted, when she noticed Sean creep
into the living room. Not until your parents get back
tomorrow morning. Even though Jade acknowledged Shawn's presence, Curtis hadn't.
His attention was glued to the TV, never wavering. They
couldn't even try it to hide it now if they
wanted to. The madness was too public. Over an easy
breakfast of brown sugar, oatmeal, and milk. Curtis and Jade
finally filled Shone in on everything they knew. There had
always been rumors and sightings. Just as Teresa had indicated,
there were reports of eerie howells in the night, some
of which were even caught on security footage and ring
cameras around town. They'd become more frequent lately though. People
were scared. Parents were afraid to let their kids outside,
especially at night. That's why the curfew had been put
in place. Now the sightings and scary sounds had escalated
into brutal attacks. The humble comic store owner and the
friendly face at the visitor center had fallen victim to
the werewolf. The big question now was why why had
the werewolf become so violent and enraged. Something must have
happened to trigger it. The legends always describe werewolves as
men or women who have been cursed. Jade said, they
transformed into the beast. Otherwise they look like normal, average people,
so the werewolf could be anyone, Sean concluded. Curtis nodded, yeah,
absolutely it he would. What could have stirred the creature
into a rage, though Jane wondered, Up until now, It's
always just been rumored to be around. Nothing aggressive, just
alleged sightings. Why the sudden change to violence. It must
feel threatened, Curtis said, something ye town must have changed.
Curtis couldn't help but look up at Sean. The attacks
didn't happen until Sean went cold. There was no way
his uncle was about to blame him for the attacks.
He was innocent. Whatever was happening was a Grove City thing.
It had nothing to do with his arrival. It couldn't.
There was a knock on the front door, startling all
three of them at the breakfast table. Curtis caught his
breath and stood up, crossing through the house and opening
the front door from where Sean and Jade still sat.
They couldn't see who Curtis was talking to. Then Curtis
and the man at the door both appeared in the kitchen.
Sean stood up, Hey, Sean. The man said it was Reese,
the next door neighbor. Sean hesitantly waved. His uncle stepped
in and said, sids to police are urging people to
stay inside today. Reese was wondering if you'd like to
help him clean out his attic. It'll give you something
to do. It'll also give you fifty bucks, Reese added,
with a generous smile. Fifty bucks, Sean mumbled. He thought
about it for a moment, and then the fifty bucks
that bounced around inside his head won him over. He
sure Sean agreed. A little while later, Curtis walked Sean
next door, saw he'd made it in side safely, and
then returned home to do whatever it was that Uncle
Curtis was going to do. Reese stood in his living
room with his hands in his pockets. Bongo sat next
to him, panting. Is it okay if I pay you
when we're all wrapped up? Reese asked. Sean nodded great,
follow me. Reyese led Seawan down the hall and then
directed his attention to an attic hatch on the ceiling.
Reese pulled the cord and a wooden ladder unfolded, lowering
to the floor. After you, Reese said, Shawn never realized
attics made him nervous until this very moment. He swallowed
and took a deep breath before he ascended the wooden steps.
The attic was messy. It didn't take Sean long to
realize why Reese was so needy for his uncle's help.
There were boxes, bags, piles of clothing, a tall antique mirror,
and a mannequin in a corner covered in a pretty
extensive collection of dust and spiderwebs. Man, there's stuff everywhere,
Sean said, secretly, disgusted by the mess. It was in
complete contrast to the neat and presentable way in which
Reese was dressed and acted. Rhys laughed, Yeah, i'n't trying
to get your uncle to help me for a little while,
but between you and I, I feel like he's blowing
me off. Sean didn't respond. He knew the truth, and
obviously Reese did too. How long have you lived here,
Seawan asked in Grove City, Riese pondered with a sigh,
A long time, Sean laughed, you know, like old enough
to have been anywhere for a long time. Rays didn't
respond to Sean's speculation. He just stuffed his hands in
his pockets and looked around the attic, finally landing his
gaze on the far corner there. Rees said, we'll start
by cleaning out over there. That's where I'm gonna put it.
Put what Yese smiled again. I have an important delivery
coming this afternoon. The mailman should be delivering it fairly soon. Actually, Jeff,
Sean remembered the mail man's name. Riese seemed surprised. Yeah,
that's right, Jeff. You have a good memory. Isn't today Sunday?
Sean asked, there's no mail delivery on Sunday. A good
memory and a keen sense. Reese smirked. Actually, the mail
does deliver some priority packages on Sundays. He patted Sean
on the back. Start moving some of those boxes, and
I'll grab a broom and dustpan from downstairs. We can
try to tag team this thing and get you out
of here a little quicker. Reese descended the wooden steps,
leaving Sean alone in the attic. He shuffled through the
hot mess, first moving the tall antique mirror out of
the way. Once that was settled along the wall, he
started moving boxes out of the corner. He lined them
up around the mirror first, and then just started putting
them wherever he felt like it. In the kitchen, Reese
opened the closet door and pulled out a wooden broomstick.
He reached dan further to find the dustpan. Once he
found it, he closed the closet door and turned around.
Bongo stood in his way. Ys could tell something was wrong.
What is it, boy, Reese said, kneeling down and petting
his nervous dog on the head. Bongo was shaking. Something
had him rattled. Yes, stood up and froze. He felt
it now too, Something was wrong. A cool breeze blew
through the house, letting him know that a window or
door was open. There was someone in the house. Reese
looked to his left, where his knife block sat on
a counter. If there was an intruder, he could reach
the knives. Their steel blades would certainly help fight off
an attack. They just wouldn't. Suddenly, the werewolf jumped up
from behind Reese, raging and mashing its teeth. Reese dropped
to the ground. Bongo skittered backwards, his nails frantically clicking
against the tile floor. Reese struggled to stand up, using
the wooden broomstick as leverage, but the werewolf yanked the
broomstick out of his hands and ferociously snapped it over
his hairy knee. Rhys's eyes widened as they focused solely
on the broken, splintered ends of the broomstick. The werewolf
lunged forward, with the broken ends of the broomstick stabbing downward,
but Reese was quick, too quick for the werewolf. He
rolled wildly until he was in the clear. He stood
up and faced the hulking, hairy beast. The monster, now angered,
tossed the broomsticks away and charged Reese. Reese backed up,
but the wall stopped him. The werewolf opened its mouth,
its teeth glistening with thick saliva. Reese had nowhere to go.
He had no time to scream. Sean had stopped working
in the attic. He cowered behind the tall antique mirror,
listening to chaos. Unfooled down the crashing sounds, the snarls
and growls, Sean knew it had to be another werewolf attack.
He closed his eyes tightly and tried to control his breathing,
thinking of poor Reese, as the house below it went silent.
He waited for what felt like hours but was maybe
only five minutes. He didn't hear Reese. He didn't hear Bongo.
He didn't hear a monster. He thought of his aunt
and uncle next door and wondered if he'd be able
to make a break for it, to make a push
for help, otherwise he'd be trapped in the attic. Sean
came out from behind the mirror and crept across the
attic floor. The wooden planks creaked beneath him as if
the house was groaning in pain. He slowly made his
way down the steps of the pull down ladder and
cautiously turned the corner and into the kitchen, where he
assumed the chaotic struggle had taken place. He was right
on the floor, bunched up against the far wall was Reese.
He was surrounded by broken glass and covered in deep lacerations.
Sean covered his mouth, trying not to scream or throw up,
and spun around, Rushing through the house for the front door.
He threw it open and was stopped dead in his
tracks by Jeff, the mealman, who was setting a large
package down on the front steps. Jeff, just as startled
as Sean was, jumped back and grabbed his chest. Whoo,
Jeff gasped, I didn't know you were I didn't expect.
He looked next door to his aunt and uncle's house.
Are you in the right house? Behind Sean, echoing through
the house was the sound of a door opening the
back door in the kitchen. Perhaps Sean looked back to
Jeff panicked. The werewolf is here, Sean exclaimed, it killed Reese.
It's suddenly. Jeff was attacked from behind, but it wasn't
from the sharp claws, razorlike teeth of a werewolf. It
was from Reecee smacking him over the back of the
head with a splintered, broken broomstick. Jeff crumbled to the ground,
and Sean watched the mailman fall unconsciously. Sean looked up
at Reese, who was smiling maliciously. The deep lacerations that
covered his body all healed before Sean's very eyes, like
a magic trick. Sean fell weak, faint. It was all
too much for him. His eyes rolled into the back
of his head and he collapsed to the floor just
inside of the house. When Sean opened his eyes, he
was back in the attic, laying on an old mattress
atop a pile of musty sheets and blankets. His eyes
opened in heavy blinks, his surroundings coming back to him
as blurry images and muffled noises, almost as if he
were underwater. He heard something metal flanging. He heard scampering
and thrashing, Sean rolled over, opening up his vision to
the entirety of the attic, and what he saw bade
him sit up as quickly as he could and press
his back against the wall. It was the werewolf, the
vicious beast that had been terrorizing Grove City. It paced
back and forth, puffing angrily within the claustrophobic confines of
a shimmering silver cage. Next to the cage on its
side sat the box that Jeff had sat on the porch.
It was open, with smaller boxes and instructions from inside
of it pouring out. Sean could see that the instructions
were on how to put together the large silver cage
that now took up a good portion of the attic,
in the exact spot where Reese wanted Sean to start
cleaning up. The werewolf, noticing that Sean was now awake,
lowered its head and leered at him from across the
attic with its piercing yellow eyes. It snarled, thicked saliva
dripping from between its teeth. Oh stop it, a voice said.
Reese stepped out from the shadows from behind the antique
mirror and stood in front of it as he smacked
the silver cage as hard as he could. Bongo, his
loyal dog, was at his side. The werewolf cowered and
slunk back into a sitting position. Sean stood up slowly
and stepped off the mattress. You were dead, Sean trembled.
I saw you in the kitchen. I been dead for
a long time. Rhese said with a sarcastic chuckle, hearkening
back to their earlier conversations. Undead to be exact. The
word undead bounced around briefly in Shawn's head before we
landed on another word, vampire. Sean now noticed something else.
Rees didn't display a reflection, and the tall antique mirror
he now stood in front of Shawn's heart skipped a beat.
Of course, he thought were wolves and vampires, one of
the world's oldest rivalries, was playing out right here in
Grove City. You look like you have a lot of questions,
Reese said, don't worry, You're not in danger. Jeff, on
the other hand, hes turned back to the beast. It
cowered lower and then began to transform. Its fur receded,
as did its snout and teeth. Within seconds, Jeff was
the one within the silver cage, crouched and afraid in
torn clothing. He stood up and gritted his teeth, taking
a step forward but careful not to come into contact
with the silver bars of the cage. He glared at Reese.
You killed my brother, Jeff growled. Breese smirked. I wish
it could have been sooner, but I must give credit
where credit is due. You and your brother were hard
to track down. Nice choice by staying in the shadows
all these years. If it wasn't for Bongo, wouldn't have
had the help needed to really narrow you guys down.
A dog can always track a dog. Jeff's breathing picked up,
his eyes narrowed. I didn't realize losing him would send
you into this sort of animalistic rage, though, Ese laughed.
It's a good thing I'm stopping you now before you
hurt someone else. How many people would have to lose
their lives because you're upset, Jeff. Jeff slunk back further
into the cage, shadows crawling over his face. We both
can't live here, Jeff, wear wolves and vampires. We just
don't miss you, know that, Reese said. But after striking
up a relationship with my loyal Bongo here, who effortlessly
helped me to snuff you two out. I began to wonder,
what if? What if a vampire could domesticate a were
wolf and use it to his advantage. What if, under
the right circumstances, a vampire and a werewolf could be
the ultimate team up of horrors. Sewn just stood back,
watching and listening. At first, he believed Reese when he
told him he wasn't in any danger. But now as
he watched Reese discussing teaming up two monsters for a
reign of horror, he wasn't so sure. What would those
horrors consist of. Sean was convinced now that he was
in danger, just as all of Grove City was. Sean
tried to quietly shuffle himself toward the attic door, but
stopped when he cackle from Reese sent a cold shiver
through his body. You might not be able to see
me in the mirror, but I can see you, Reese said.
He spun around and faced Sean, now bearing a set
of fangs and black eyes. He hissed and raised his
arms up. It was now or never. Sean bolted for
the open attic door and dropped down into the house.
He didn't stick the landing and crumbled to the floor.
Scrambling to his feet, he raced for the kitchen, but
a heavy gust of wind whirled up beside him, cutting
him off and manifested itself as Reese, his fangs is
still showing, his eyes still as black as night. Sean
stopped and looked around for a weapon or anything to
defend himself, but came up empty. Sad, I've lived here
a long time, Sean. This is my town, g reecee hissed.
And now with the werewolf population and Grove City under
my control, I don't see why I can't help myself
to a celabratory feast. Rays raised his hands up limply
in front of his body. I think I'll start by
tapping your neck, he malevolently said. That's always a classy move.
As Reese took a step towards Sean, a knock on
the back door shattered attention. Sean prayed it was salvation.
Reese was annoyed by the interruption. Bongo, however, raced into
the room and wagged his tail vigorously at the back door.
Reese's entire body turned around as if he were on
a swivel and faced the door. After a moment of
unnerving silence, Bongo's tail stopped wagging and he backed away.
The door then lasted in off its hinges, crashing into
Reese and knocking him to the floor. Two large werewolves
stood intimidatingly in the doorway and then made their way in.
Sean backed up and hid underneath the kitchen table. One
of the werewolves, heaving its body up and down with
each massive breath it took, grabbed Reese by the neck
and slammed him into the wall. The second werewolf grabbed
the closest wooden chair and smashed it into a hundred
pieces on the floor, only keeping one of the splintered
legs in its grasp. Everything happened so fast Reese barely
had time to react. With one last hiss from the vampire,
the werewolf plunged the broken chair leg deep into Reese's chin.
As of course, a wooden stake through the heart was
the only way to eliminate such a threat. Teresa's body
turned black like ash and spilled to the ground in
a dusty cloud. Both were wolves then began to transform
back to their human forms right in front of Shawn.
When he saw who they were. He was stunned at first, surprised,
but then it all made sense. If you're bitten by
a were wolf, you become a were wolf. Teresa Breckenrich
stood in the kitchen along with a bearded man sporting
a Skylarks Toys and comics ball cap. Teresa extended her
hand and helped Shawn out from underneath the table and
to his feet. She smiled, you don't look that surprised,
she said. You both were attacked by a werewolf. Sean said,
now you are were wolves. Teresa nodded, as did Darren Neff,
the humble owner of Skylarks. I was pretty mad when
Jeff attacked me, but now I understand why he did,
Darren said. Being the lest of his kind in the area,
he knew there was a chance of permanent extinction. He
was recruiting help the future, and honestly, Darren said, looking
his body over, this is pretty darn cool. I mean,
who doesn't dream of being a werewolf. The Morga is
gonna realize our bodies are gone soon enough, Teresa said
to Darren. But also for Sean's sake, we need to
get Jeff and leave town to settle somewhere else, somewhere
safe where no one will recognize our faces. Jeff's locked
in a silver cage, Sean said, but I can help
get him out. Teresa smiled, Thank you, Sean, that would
be wonderful you saved me, Sean said, let me save you, guys.
A new mystery around Grove City began to spread like wildfire.
Two corpses from the Morgue, both victims of werewolf attacks,
had disappeared, and the locals now began to fear the
walking debck zombies. While others were closer than they thought,
suggesting the two corpses were now were wolves themselves. There
was simply just no sign of them, and Sean knew why.
Teresa Breckinrich and Darren Nef had left town along with
Jeff the Mailman. He wasn't sure where they would end up,
but he knew their goal was to live peacefully, somewhere
hidden away from any other vampiric threats. Uncle Curtis and
Aunt Jade remained oblivious to the horrors that had transpired
right next door to them, and although Reese's sudden absence
was certainly strange to them, they just assumed it was
another example of a young man moving on to bigger
and better things with his life. It's that Internet, Curtis big,
he said, without much explanation behind his re spanishing theory,
but it was enough to satisfy him and Jade. When
Shawn's parents picked him up, they thanked Curtis and Jade
for their hospitality and said their goodbyes. Shawn settled into
the back seat of the family car for the drive home,
before eventually heading down to North Carolina forever, planning to
keep the identities of the Grove City were wolves a secret.
After a couple of weeks in North Carolina, Seawn received
a copy of the Grove City Messenger and the mail
from his uncle with a handwritten note that said, thought
you'd like this to remember your time here in Grove City.
Fun fact, the sightings seemed to have stopped now there
was a front page article written by Andrea Cordle titled
Grove City Home of Monsters. Skimming through the article, Sean
read about the sightings, the mystery and intrigue that surrounded
the recent werewolf activity, plus a wholes slew of other
unknown horrors that may have lurked just beneath the surface
of the town, and it seemed that Andrea really did
her research on the local ominous goings on, because, based
on what Sean could tell from the article, Grove City
may have had even more than just a werewolf and
vampire problem. Now, Sean was very curious about the ghosts
that were said to haunt the Grove City Library after hours,
but that would have to be a story for another time.
Speaker 1: The end.
Speaker 2: Micro Terrers would like to thank Darren Neff from Skylark's
Toys and Comics, Teresa Breckinridge from the Grove City Visitor Center,
Andrea and Deborah Cordle from the Grove City Messenger, Mike
Strausser from Strauser's Ice Cream, Pop and Candy Shop, Tyler
and Heidi Walker from Tammy's Pizza, and Casey Cox and
Meredith wid from the Grove City Library for letting us
use their likeness and mention their businesses in our story.
By the way, there are no werewolves or vampires in
Grove City, Ohio that we are aware of. I'm your
micro Terrors narrator Darren Marler from me and Scott Donnelly,
we hope you have a very happy and safe Halloween.
Speaker 1: Thank you for listening to micro Terrors. Join us each
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