A murder by the wolf.

MARCO's POV:

I didn't say anything to Aiden because I know he'll only make fun of me. He won't believe me. He'll think I'm joking. So, he kept asking and I maintained my silence throughout the the ride. I dropped him off at his house. But that one question from Aiden when he stepped out of the car, made me rethink a lot of stuff.

"Bro, if this is related to Hannah than you need to remind yourself one thing. She doesn't even know you and, she already likes Chandler." Aiden said after stepping out of the car. He turned around to face me and with a soft inhale he continued. "Is it even worth it? To like someone for more than a decade and not even being noticed by that person?" His voice was calm yet worried. I didn't reply. I looked up from the steering wheel to meet his eyes. Tried to put a smile on my face and failed miserably. "I never said anything because I thought you might get over her eventually. Seems like I was wrong. Quite wrong!" He said. His voice still worried. "You don't have to worry, buddy. It's fine. I'm fine. The thing is….the…the mark.…just forget it" I didn't complete my sentence as I talked him off. Without waiting for a response, I left.

I wasn't in mood to go home therefore I took route to the most place. The place I prefer to stay for hours when I'm sad. The mountain top. You have to drive past the jungle of huge trees to reach it. The road leads you to the mountain top through the jungle's route. That's the best part of it. The peace I feel passing the jungle is irreplaceable. There's this certain vibe about it that's too peaceful. More than the silent oceans. More than the sunsets, I think. I sometimes find it weird that I find peace at a place where people are the most scared. As I reached the jungle, I stopped. The peace forced me to drop off the idea of going to the beach. So I pulled over my car on the road and went into the jungle. It still had a handful of hours remaining for the sun to set, that's why I thought it's a good idea to roam around the jungle without getting lost.

I stepped in and the calming atmosphere took over my whole body. The unpolluted, serene and cold air brushing through my skin. I kept going in, in and in. I made sure I don't go too far in order not to lose the road's view. As I made my way into the forest, the smell somehow changed. It was no longer refreshing. It was a rotten smell. Like a dead animal was thrown here after being killed mercilessly. It couldn't be a rat or other animal. It had to be a huge animal. Something like a tiger may be. But tigers weren't really found here in Raccoon Hills. That made me even more curious. I didn't mind going farther into the forest because the strong smell was doing something to me. It was pulling me towards itself.

I found myself running until my legs stopped right before something. I was standing near the dead body. Not to mention, in middle of the forest. I was only about three feet away from it. The half-dried-half-fresh blood was all around it. On the withered, brown leaves fallen from the trees in last autumn. On tiny, lethal and not-edible mushrooms. On the branches that had become frailer by time, and recently fell onto the ground. Chunks of flesh were bitten, taken out and thrown on the surface -by whosoever animal killed it. It was quite clear that an animal did this. I took a couple of steps forward to make sure if it's really a tiger or something. But the reality didn't meet my assumptions. It was a human's dead body. A male, to be specific. I judged it by the ripped n wrinkled off-white shirt and a pair of walnut-brown dress pant. I was staring at the shiny Italian black shoes -now having stains of blood- when it hit me.

This is a human. A human I know. This is Dad! My Dad! He wears this shoes. God dammit! I panicked. My hands went to my dark-brown hair, then to the back of my neck. I lost my ability to think. I wanted to scream but couldn't. I couldn't breath. I was gasping for air. I was breathless in a forest full of green trees. I looked here and there but found no one. I bent down -near him- to find out if it really is Dad. My eyes filled with tears as I looked at my Father's dead body. His left arm wasn't here. His face was not at all recognisable. His stomach was wide open. His organs weren't there. I could peek into his stomach and as I did, I puked.

I took out my phone from my back pocket with my shaky hands and dialed 911. I told them my name and the whole situation. In about 4 minutes they were on the road, screaming my name. I could hear them from a far. I screamed, too -to let them know they're on the right path.

They came and asked me to move away from the body, I did the same. They talked to each other about an animal attack. One of the officers in his early 60s, said "I think it's a wolf attack" The other officers didn't believe him. They scoffed as they thought he's talking nonsense. However, I, believed him. Now, I knew who killed my father. A wolf. A freakin' wolf attacked him. But the real question is, what was he doing here? His car is no where to be seen and this road leads to the mountain top not to his office.

My mind was puzzled. I was biting my lower lip to calm myself down -at least a little. "Can you give us any detail? Why he was here or anything else that would help in this investigation?" A lady officer asked. Her voice calm and cautious. "I literally have no idea except what I told you. All I know is, I came here to relax and found him" I said, my voice trembling so are my hands. The lady officer only nodded and went to talk to her colleagues.

"Kid, we'll drop you at your place. But you'll have to visit the station with your mother when we call you. You understand?" The lady officer asked. I nodded fiercely, wanting to go home and take shower so I can feel better.

"We should give this case to Mr. Rodger. He and his wife are better at solving homicidal cases than anyone else in this valley" An officer -driving the van- claimed, when we were on the way to my home. It didn't take me long to recognise the name. It's Hannah's father. The famous detective of this valley. He and his wife are well known for solving homicidal cases. "I think I should talk to Hannah." I thought. But how? We never talk. She thinks I'm a stalker. Would she help me? I had truck loads of questions but there were no answers to any of those. First, I need to talk to Mother. And Aiden. I need to them the truth. About everything. About today. About the wolf. The old lady. Everything!