"The Curse of the Witchwolf" Ch. 1-2

                                                            ◊
                                                    Chapter 1

  "Aaahhh!" Lori Jacobson shouted, as she quickly sat up.  Beads of sweat dripped down her pale forehead.  It was just a dream, she thought to herself.  She looked over to her right side, where her boyfriend, Josh Powell, lay.  He was sleeping soundly, literally.  His obscenely loud snoring masked any chance he had of hearing her screams.  Lori paused for a few seconds, catching her breath.  She stared dreamily at her boyfriend of three years.  When he was erect, he stood about six foot two.  Josh's arms revealed to be from years of intensive weight-lifting.  His veins ripped out like an overweight person in tight jeans.  At 24, his slightly tanned torso carried a distinguished six-pack.  Lori smiled to herself, thinking of the great future to be with this man.  She truly loved him, and was waiting around for him to pop the question.  She debated in her mind whether to wake up her Prince, then decided she really needed to be consoled.
      "Baby?! Wake up baby!" Lori demanded, as she grabbed hold of his muscular pecs and shook him lightly.  "I need you baby!" she added.
    "What?" Josh responded, groggily.  He sat up slowly, pushing his pillow against the wall for back support.
      "I had a bad dream baby," Lori started to whimper.  Tears slowly trickled down her smooth complexion.
    "Again?" Josh asked in concern.  He placed his left hand on her right thigh and began to stroke her soft skin.
    “Yeah,” Lori confided.  She wiped the tears away with her sweaty palms.  “My dream was about Miss Meanie.  It was so real!  I really thought she was going to kill me!  I could almost taste the blood!" Lori stammered, breathing heavily.
      Even though Lori was now starting to bawl, she looked absolutely stunning.  Her long, golden brown hair gleamed in the stream of moonlight coming through the bedroom window.  She had acquired her distinctive pale blue eyes from her father's side of the family.  They always glowed mysteriously.  A soft pink tank-top covered her quite large, supple breasts.  Her nipples were stiff, purging through the cotton camisole.  She wore only a thong to cover her private area.  The thong matched perfectly to her tank.  She looked good in pink.
  "Calm down baby! It’s okay.  Here.  Have a cigarette.  It will ease your nerves,” Josh reached over Lori to the crimson red nightstand beside her.  He picked up her half-empty pack of Marlboro Lights and selected a cigarette.  Josh put the stick to his mouth and reached for a lighter.  Orange flames burst into the shaded room as he flicked the lighter with his thumb.  Josh took the first puff, inhaled, and slowly exhaled the intoxicating smoke.  He once again reached over Lori, and pulled the hanging string attached to the bedside lamp.  A pale light filled the room.  He then handed the lit cigarette to his girlfriend.
    Lori graciously accepted the cigarette and quickly inhaled her first drag, enjoying the rush of the nicotine.  She exhaled swiftly, and immediately took another puff.  As she blew out the enormous gust of smoke, she looked over at Josh.  “That’s what I needed.  Good idea baby.  I love you!”
    They continued to chat a few minutes about trivial topics.  Lori finished her cancer stick and smushed out the glowing combustion into the ashtray.  Josh looked her deep in the eyes and asked, “Will you be okay baby?  Do you want to talk about it?”  He felt genually concerned about his girlfriend. 
    “I’ll be okay.  I’d rather not talk about it now.  Let’s just go back to bed.  I love you baby!”  Lori answered, turning to give Josh a kiss.  She pressed her lips against his, enjoying the embrace they shared.  Lori reached to the nightstand and yanked off the lamp.  She hoped she could sleep the rest of the night peacefully.



                                                ◊    Chapter 2    ◊

    “Lori?  Lori!”  a voice questioned stridently.  “Are you okay?”
    Lori shook her head, coming out of a daze.  She looked up to see her best friend, Jennifer Smithers, standing over her.  “Oh, hi!  I’m okay Jen.  Just thinking.”  Lori responded, biting her already half-eaten, unpolished fingernails.  Lori had worked at Child Protective Services (CPS) as a Special Caseworker for almost four years now.  She had a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice, with a minor in Psychology, from the University of Texas.  Lori had always dreamed of working with children, even though her father pushed her into law enforcement.  After graduation, Lori had entered the police academy, but quickly dropped out when she saw an opening with CPS.  Her father was unhappy with her decision, but Lori decided to go for CPS.  She had been there ever since, and loved every day of it.
    “Wanna talk about it over lunch?”  Jen asked.  “I’ve been craving Chinese food all morning!”  she rubbed her pregnant belly, smiling.  Jen had short, platinum blond hair and dark hazel eyes.  Her great natural tan accented her practically white hair.  She was currently seven months pregnant with her second child.  Her and her husband, Mike, had been married for about eight years now.  Lori and Jen had been good friends since Lori first accepted the job at CPS.
    “You and your cravings Jen!  You make me laugh!”  Lori snorted, finally letting loose and relaxing.  She chuckled hysterically.  “I need a laugh after last night!”
    “What happened last night?  Something with Josh?”  Jen pushed, looking concerned.
    “No, he’s fine.  I had a recurring nightmare.”
    “About what?”
    “Promise you won’t laugh?  Please!  This is serious!”
    “I promise Lori!  I’m here for you honey.”  Jen declared.
    “Okay.  Well, I’ve been having nightmares for about two weeks now.  It’s always the same thing.  I keep dreaming about this creature my parents made up when I was a child.  Miss Meanie.  They used to scare me with stories about how she kidnapped bad children in their sleep.  My dreams about her seem so real.  I am running away from her trying to kill me.  But she never goes away!  It’s just so real, it’s scaring me!  And then, when I wake up, I taste blood.  Am I crazy, or what?”  Lori finished, looking over at Jen, who was eagerly listening.
    “Wow.  That sounds frightening!”  Jen placed a hand onto Lori’s shoulder to console her.  “It’s okay sweetie.  Let’s go have lunch and discuss this more thoroughly.  Okay?  Come on,”  Jen released her hand from Lori’s shoulder, then grabbed Lori’s clammy hands placed neatly in her lap.  She motioned for Lori to stand up from her grey computer chair, and guided her to the exit door.  “Food always clears my head.  So does a nice glass of wine!”  Jen giggled, as she led Lori to the employee parking lot.
    They climbed into Lori’s perfectly washed, silver Mitsubishi Montero Sport.  Lori had the car since college, and never found the time to upgrade.  She had her heart set on the newest model BMW, but her bank account didn’t agree with her choice.  So she just decided to wait and save up some money to buy her dream car.
    They pulled into the parking lot of Le Panda, the hottest Chinese restaurant in Dallas.  Lori rolled her vehicle up to the valet station, and they both exited the car.
“Hi Lori!”  a young man greeted her.  “I’m glad you’re here! You light up my day!”  the teenage boy blushed, as he handed her the valet ticket.  Lori slightly grinned at this awkward boy looking her over like a model.  She rushed over towards the passenger side of the car, meeting up with Jen.
    “I’m hungry!  Let’s go inside!”  Lori piped, eager to get away from the crushing adolescent.  Lori and Jen waltzed into Le Panda like they owned the place.  They were frequenters of this upscale, chic bistro, and were treated impecibly by the staff.
    “You usual table, Mrs. Smithers?” the maitre d’ proposed, bowing to the pregnant goddess.
    “Please.  Thank you Walter.  You’re so kind,”  Jen smiled broadly, loving the attention.  Even though she was bulging pregnant, she still believed she was sexy.  And she was!  She knew how to accentuate her round belly, and wore her maternity clothes well.  Most men were attracted to Jen, but she was very faithful to her adoring husband.  They were high school sweethearts, and married at a young age.  But, after eight years, the marriage is still burning strongly.
    The duo followed Walter to their usual corner booth.  They liked the privacy of the far corner, it was easier to talk quietly.  They sat across from each other, ready to begin their deep conversation. They were interrupted by a dark figure approaching.
    “Hello girls!”  a voice chirped.  They both turned their heads, and were greeted by their favorite server, Pierre.
    “Hey Pierre!  How are you?”  Jen exclaimed.
    “Things are wonderful!  Thanks for asking ma’am.”  Pierre countered.
    “Pierre, we need some private time please.  Lori will have a Pinot Grigio, and we’ll need two waters with lemon.  I’ll have the spicy orange-glazed duck with the roasted baby carrots.  Lori?  Your usual?”
    “Yes please.  The apricot-glazed duck with the steamed rice.  And also, a hot tea with sugar.  Thank you Pierre.”  He walked away to ring up the girl’s orders.
    “So, Lori… Let’s chat.  Tell me more about this Miss Meanie.”  Jen quiered keenly.  She sat up and leaned across the table, looking intently into Lori’s blazing eyes.
    “Well,”  Lori started.  “When I was a little girl, my parents created this fictional character, Miss Meanie, to scare me into being good.  And it worked!  I was so scared of her, I was a perfect angel growing up.”
    “Do you know what she looks like?”
    “Yes.  I remember her description very vividly.  She was a witchwolf,”  Lori continued, but was abruptly interrupted by Jen.
    “Witchwolf!  What the hell is that?”
    “It’s a female that is part witch, part werewolf.  A witchwolf.  Her face was like a witch, dark forest green with a long, pointy nose.  She had a disgusting wart on her left cheek with hairs like cat whiskers growing out of it.  Her hair was silver and scraggly, defintely unwashed in weeks.  But, her body was like a werewolf!  She had long, curly nails with blood red polish.  Brown hairs covered her entire body, like a werewolf!  She was like a man-beast!  Or a woman-beast!”  Lori chuckled quietly, shivering at the mental picture.
    “That’s a pretty descriptive narrative of her.  And your parents made all this up?”  Jen asked bemused.
    “So they say,”  Lori replied.  “When I see her in my dreams, she’s so real and life-like!”
    Pierre dropped off the drinks for the ladies and quickly tampered off.  Lori took a big gulp of her chilled wine, then chased it down with a splash of water.  She loaded up her hot tea with sugar and waited for it to cool.  “Aahh, that’s good!  Refreshing!”  The girls continued chatting about the previous events, pausing every so often to take large sips from their beverages.  When their food arrived, they both ate graciously, enjoying every bite of the succulent, sweet duck.