The Lycanthrope Club - Indiscretion, Part II (Patreon)

The aroma of meat hit Melinda even before she opened the car door. It was melange of mouth-watering flavors - spicy, salty, greasy, tangy, rich and savory, with hints of cloying sweetness. She paused a moment to hold her breath and collect herself. Then, she stepped out of the car. A second or so later Lily emerged from the passenger side. Both girls squinted under the morning sun peaking over the roof of the strip mall. The parking lot was still, silent, and empty save for a pair of cars parked next to a nail salon. Every so often, a vehicle roared past them.

Melinda looked at Lily over the hood of the car.

"Ehhhh, we should have grabbed some breakfast before coming," said Melinda. "That smell is going to drive me nuts."

"Why don't we just pick up some food here?" said Lily, shrugging

"This isn't a deli, Lily. It's an honest-to-goodness butcher's shop. I don't think they even sell sandwiches. They just sell raw steak, chicken, lamb, hamburger..."

Melinda realized Lily was grinning at her.

"Okay, point made," sighed Melinda.

The two of them approached the shop. The storefront was around twenty feet long. It was mostly glass with a single brick support column. The words 'B&N Meat Suppliers' was painted on the glass in bright red font just above a vintage neon 'open' sign, which was on. The interior was dominated by large glass display counter stocked with just about every type and cut of meat imaginable. A set of electronic scales sat on top of the counter on the far end of the shop near the cash register. The walls and floors were brown and white ceramic tiles, respectively. Though the store appeared open for business, neither girl could see anyone inside.

"Oo-kay, here we go," said Melinda to herself as she opened the door.

Although she had been expecting it, the sudden intensity of the smells made Melinda stop in her tracks. She took a deep, long inward breath through her nostrils and sighed longingly. An all-too familiar craving stirred within her. Her fingers tensed. Her skin itched. Her face twitched and, for the briefest moment, acquired certain...inhuman qualities. Melinda didn't attempt to suppress these feelings; that never worked. Rather, she sublimated them, letting them flow through her while emptying her mind of errant thoughts, focusing on the task at hand. Gradually, the impulse to change dwindled to a dull, distant urge.

Having regained her composure, Melinda stepped inside, soon followed by Lily.

"Hello?" said Melinda, looking around. She sniffed the air but couldn't discern anything beyond the tantalizing aroma of meat.

A door behind the counter opened. A youngish looking man with a short boxed beard wearing a white butcher's coat emerged.

"Hey there, ladies," he said in a friendly albeit mildly surprised tone.

"'Morning."

"Good morning."

"Whatcha looking for?" he asked, gesturing at the display counter.

Melinda gazed down at the glistening rows of flesh arrayed before her - chicken breast, loin chops, spareribs, tenderloin, tri tip, hamburger, ground buffalo, filet mignon, ground lamb, brisket, bacon, kielbasa, chorizo, bratwurst, linguiça, porterhouse steak, chicken legs, oxtails, chuck steak, and some others she did not recognize. Though not all of the items were exactly fresh, nothing looked (or smelled) rancid or spoiled. And there were smells coming from the back of the store that were even richer, fresher - bloodier. Saliva pooled in Melinda's mouth. She could feel her canines lengthening under her tongue. She glanced over at Lily and saw she was covering her mouth and nose with her hand.

"Uh, everything alright?" inquired the butcher, leaning forward.

"Oh, oh yeah," said Lily, feigning a yawn as she lowered her hand. Melinda swore she saw a flash of fangs.

"Yeah, I'm still waking up too," said the butcher, grinning.

"...We'll take, uh...ten pounds of the flank steak," said Melinda, eyeing one of the red slabs. "And, uh...eight pounds of the pork tenderloin...?" she said questioningly, looking back at Lily.

"Nine pounds," said Lily eagerly.

"Nine pounds of the pork tenderloin," said Melinda, nodding.

The butcher whistled. "Holding a barbecue or something?"

"Something like that, yeah," said Melinda.

"Need any sauces? Marinades? We have a Honey Garlic Dijon that goes really well with pork."

"That's okay," said Melinda.

"Any spices? Dry rubs?"

"No, we're good," said Melinda somewhat more forcefully than she had intended.

"Do you want single cuts or should I divide them into smaller pieces?"

"One big cut is fine for both," said Melinda, managing a wan smile.

"Utensils? Napkins? They're free wi-"

"No, we're good."

"Need any charcoal or briquettes? We acut-"

"We're good!" said Melinda, almost a yelp. "Just the meat, okay?"

"Got it," said the butcher. "This shouldn't take too long." The man turned and disappeared into the back of the shop.

Melinda groaned and turned away from the display case. Behind her, Lily dipped a hand into her pocket and retrieved a small plastic tube. She popped the cap open and decanted two small white tablets from the tube onto her palm. She then tossed both tablets into her mouth and started chewing. An intense aroma of cinnamon briefly overwhelmed the omnipresent smell of meat.

"Do those things really work?" asked Melinda, glancing back at Lily.

"Not really," said Lily, shaking her head. "It just gives me something else to smell for a while."

Melinda chuckled weakly.

A couple minutes later the butcher emerged from the back room carrying two large plastic bags. Each bag held a tightly wrapped brown paper package about the size of football. He set the two bags on the counter next to the cash register.

"Aright," he said absently, tapping away on the cash register. "Ten pounds, flank steak..."

"Uh, get a lot of large orders like this regularly?" inquired Melinda conversationally.

"What? Oh, yeah, sort of," said the butcher, looking up at her.

"Sort of?"

"Well, I mean, we supply a bunch of local restaurants," said the butcher. "They're our main customers. We also get a lot of people looking for specialty items you can't buy in grocery stores."

"Makes sense..." said Melinda in a tone carefully crafted to invite elaboration.

"We get some folks like you with big orders for parties or get-togethers," said the butcher. He frowned. "There, uh, are also one or two regulars who buy a lot of meat every time they come in. Must have big families."

The butcher looked down at the register and read the bill. Melinda winced inwardly at the steep price but dutifully handed him her debit card.

"What do they usually buy?" asked Melinda.

"Hmm?"

"The regulars?"

"Oh, this and that, slight preference for tri-tip, chuck steak; they also have a predilection for variety meats like sweetbread," he said, handing Melinda her receipt. "Quantity over quality, you might say, but the truth is some of the cheapest cuts can be better than the prime if you know how to cook them."

"Oh yeah, no argument there," said Melinda, reaching over for the bags.

"Thanks for stopping by!" said the butcher cheerfully.

Bag in each hand, Melinda walked towards the exit. Lily held the door open for her and the two girls left the shop.

The smell was far, far less intense outside. Melinda sighed with a mixture of relief and anticipation.

"So, what do you think?" asked Lily as they walked towards the car. "Here, or the woods?"

Melinda gave this some thought. "Well..." she began "There's a chance we could find the rogue out there, yes, but-"

"Wait, what?" said Lily, perplexed. "What does the rogue have to do with it?"

"Huh" said Melinda, confused.

Then, realization dawned. "

You were asking about where we're going to eat," she sighed

"Yeah!" said Lily eagerly.

"We're going to eat this right away in the car. Obviously." Melinda hesitated. "As long there isn't anyone else in the parking lot. A bunch of girls chowing down on raw meat...yeah, it'd draw attention." She cleared her throat. "I thought you were asking me whether we should wait for the rogue in the woods or here in the parking lot."

"Oh...yeah."

"The full moon is tomorrow," continued Melinda. She put the two bags on top of the hood of the car and started digging around her pockets for the keys. "There was barely anything to hunt around that forest so I doubt our friend plans on catching his dinner. They could have some food stored up for the full moon, but let's face it - it's better to buy fresh," she nodded at the twin packets sitting on top of her car. "Preferably the day before or the same day. But tomorrow's Sunday so the store will be closed."

"So you're thinking the rogue is going stop by the store today?" said Lily.

"Almost positive, actually," said Melinda, finally retrieving her keys. "I mean, the receipt is a pretty solid lead. I didn't want to push that guy in the shop - might get suspicious - but based on what he said, yeah, I think we got a winner here." She unlocked the car and opened the door. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'd rather sit around in the car for a couple of hours than search the whole damn forest or wait for the full moon tomorrow night. The quicker we find the rogue, the better."

Lily lips slowly curled into a smirk. She reached over and grabbed one of the bags and held it aloft.

"Sooo...what you're saying is-" began Lily.

"Don't say it," warned Melinda, already sensing where she was going.

"Well, I mean, this means we're going to-"

"Lily, no!"

"...We're going to have to have a steak-out!" exclaimed Lily triumphantly, gesturing at the packet of flank steak.

Melinda groaned.

* * *

"Hey, Melinda."

Melinda glanced up. A glob of raw steak dangled from her lip.

"Someone's pulling up."

Melinda set the chunk of torn flank steak back on the paper wrapping on her lap and peered out the car window. A brown sedan had just pulled into a parking spot in front of the butcher's shop. It was the only other car in the strip mall lot now. Melinda wiped a trickle of juice from her lips and looked closer. The sedan had seen better days but it wasn't an outright junker either. The exterior was marred with a few scratches and dents and it could have benefitted from a wash. She glanced down at the license plate and committed the characters to memory. Then, the driver side door opened. A man - young, brown hair, wearing blue jeans and a green sleeveless shirt - stepped out.

"I'm going to roll down the windows a bit," hissed Melinda, already reaching for the button. "See if you can catch his scent."

"Here's hoping he doesn't smell us," said Lily, leaning closer to the window. "If he is...you know."

A soft hum filled the otherwise silent interior of the vehicle as Melinda lowered the passenger side window. Lily poked her head out the window, shut her eyes and sniffed the air. Melinda, realizing that the sight of them both sticking their nose out the car would look too obvious, hung back. Several, tense seconds passed. Melinda watched as the man walked into the store. She turned back to Lily, who had stopped sniffing and was staring out the open car window.

"Well?" said Melinda impatiently.

Lily didn't respond at first.

"Did you get a whiff of him?" asked Melinda.

Lily slowly turned around. Her expression was solemn.

"Yeah," she said softly, nodding.

Melinda's eyes widened.

"So...he is a werewolf," breathed Melinda.

"Yeah," said Lily uncomfortably.

"...Shit."

"Yeah, shit."

There was a long, uncomfortable silence.

"First one, too," said Melinda.

"Yeah."

"I figured we'd be here most of the day. Guess we lucked out."

"I wouldn't say finding a rogue werewolf is lucky, Melinda," said Lily, almost sourly.

"I'm not going to say I told you so, Lily..." began Melinda.

"You just did."

"...But we have a job to do," said Melinda firmly. "We have to deal with this guy."

"Deal with him? How? How are we going to deal with him, huh?"

"By talking," said Melinda. "Figure out how became a werewolf and try to trace it back to the club. I'm not going to attack him or anything. Jeez."

"Sorry," said Lily, frowning. "When you said..." She cleared her throat. "Look, how'd you think he's going to react when we....no, when he smells us and realizes what we are? I...I gotta admit, Melinda, I haven't thought too much about how we should handle this."

"Good thing I have," said Melinda. She started wrapping up the steak. "Hold back somewhere near the shop. You don't actually have to hide, but try to stay out of sight. And downwind of him. I'll wait until he comes out and then approach him. He'll probably be less freaked out if there's only one of us. If he does make a run for it we can both chase him."

"You want me to, like, tackle him?"

"Maybe," said Melinda, shrugging. "Don't do it unless it looks like he's going to get away. Or...attacks us or something."

"What if he changes?" said Lily uneasily.

"I really hope he isn't that stupid," sighed Melinda, tucking the package of half-eaten flank steak in the footwell. "If he does...I have no idea. We'll improvise."

"Glad you've thought this whole thing through," groaned Lily as she reached for the car door.

Both girls stepped out. Lily looked around the strip mall for a few seconds before hurrying off towards a pair of concrete waste bins near the edge of the complex. She took a position behind the bins so her back was to entrance of the shop. Melinda took a deep breath, exhaled, and started walking back to the butcher's. She spared a quick glance over at Lily and noticed she had taken her camera out. Rather than texting or web-browsing, Lily had activated the front camera, allowing her to keep an eye on the shop while remaining inconspicuous. Melinda nodded with approval and then turned back to the shop. She could see the man through the glass talking to the butcher. She watched as the butcher handed the man a large plastic bag holding a package even larger than the ones Melinda and Lily had purchased.

Melinda found herself tensing up. She shook her head, rolled her shoulders and, despite everything, tried to think of something else. She stepped back, folded her arms and leaned against an outer support column. Her gaze kept drifting back to the shop but she didn't dare stare inside for too long.

After what seemed like ages, the man turned and exited the butcher shop. As he opened the door the air was briefly filled with the familiar, mouth-watering aroma of raw meat. Underneath, however, it was another smell, one also familiar to Melinda - musky, sour but not unpleasantly so. Melinda looked up at him.

He had, as Melinda had observed earlier, light brown hair and wore a plain sleeveless green shirt - the kind one might wear at the gym. His stubbly face was lean and angular, somewhat youngish and not unattractive in an odd, country-boy manner. Most notably, he sported striking hazel eyes that gave him an almost cat-like countenance. Firm, wiry muscles flexed beneath his arms as he moved - indicative of a toned and athletic physique. His blue jeans were worn and ragged but functional. Melinda guesstimated he was in his mid to late twenties - probably a decade her senior.

He walked past Melinda and then stopped, having apparently noticed she was looking at him. He slowly turned around.

"Uh, hey," he said, giving her a little wave.

"Hey yourself," said Melinda quietly.

The man sniffed the air and winced, more out of surprise than disgust.

"You okay?" said Melinda, deciding to ease into it.

"Uh, yeah," he said, albeit in an uncertain voice.

"Lot of meat you got there," she said, nodding at the package. "Got big plans tonight?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Or maybe tomorrow night?" said Melinda. "The moon's supposed to be really bright then."

"Uh..." the man gave her a blank look. Melinda sighed.

"Bit of advice," she said, unfolding her arms. "Unless you're going to eat right away, it's a good idea to bring a cooler with lots of ice. Even fresh meat can spoil pretty quickly at room temperature. It's still edible but the fresher stuff satisfies more. It's not just about the calories; there's a...psychological component. And fun fact: some butchers will sell you whole carcasses on request. Just say you're holding a big barbecue or own a restaurant. Not the same as a fresh kill but it's the next best thing."

The man's eyes widened.

"Yeah," said Melinda, smiling faintly. "I'm exactly what you think I am. Now, b-"

The man whirled around and started running.

"Goddamnit!" hissed Melinda angrily.

The man sprinted across the nearly empty parking lot, dropping his bag halfway. He leapt over a squat row of sickly bushes growing between the strip mall and sidewalk and ran out onto the street. An approaching truck slowed and honked angrily as he dashed across the road in front of it. Behind him, Melinda also vaulted over the short hedge and raced across the street, weaving slightly to the left to avoid the oncoming truck.

"Come back!" yelled Melinda. "I just want to talk!"

The man reached the opposite of the street and made a sharp right turn. He ran across the sidewalk, dodging between an astonished middle-aged couple, over a trash can and around a young woman in a pink sweater walking her miniature collie. The dog barked at him as he rushed by. Melinda, still on the street, turned to the right to intercept him but then the man made a sudden left turn down an alley between a coffee shop and a Mexican restaurant. Melinda hurried down the alleyway after him.

It was about this point that Melinda realized the man was moving at an astonishing speed. True, he had appeared to be fairly athletic but he had cleared the street in the span of two seconds. She could barely keep up with him. Then, Melinda spotted something small and fuzzy protruding from his backside just above his jeans.

"You idiot!" she screamed. "Don't change here!"

She was answered with a guttural snarl. The man staggered momentarily as he ran. Melinda saw that his shirt was growing tighter around his body. Dark brown fur had sprouted along his arms and neck.

Melinda grimaced. He had a good lead on her but the change would slow him down, maybe even force him to stop. But then she'd have to deal with a fully-transformed werewolf. And although she couldn't see or smell anyone else in the alley, all it would take would be one inconvenient pedestrian or one waiter popping out for a smoke and suddenly her job would get even harder than it already was. She wanted to scream at the man again but didn't dare risk drawing more attention than they already had.

The man had slowed to a drunken limp. He reached down, tore his shirt off and, after a second or two of hopping, managed to wiggle out of his blue jeans. However, there wasn't much he could do about his tennis shoes. They were now little more than painful impediment clinging to his lengthened insteps, his clawed toes having long ago pushed their way out of the front of the shoes.

Melinda finally caught up. She circled around to face him. The man had almost completed his transformation. Even while prone it was clear he had gained a foot, maybe a foot and a half in height and had packed on many pounds of thick, sinewy muscle. Light tan fur covered his chest and abdomen while his back, arms and legs sported a thicker chocolate brown coat. His hands had changed into dis-proportionally large paw-like approximates tipped with claws. The only articles of clothing left on him were a pair of tore socks, two mangled shoes and a very, very strained pair of red boxers.

Melinda gazed down at him. She swallowed, but not out of fear. The werewolf looked up at Melinda. His lupine face contorted into a menacing scowl. He rose, unsteadily, to his feet, now towering over her.

"Okay, big guy," said Melinda, raising her hands. "Calm down. I didn't mean to freak you out bu-"

"Who are you?" growled the werewolf, his voice now noticeably deeper, almost baritone. There was far more fear than anger evident in it.

His scent was now twice as strong - rich, musky, masculine. It brought Melinda to mind of Phillip. She shook it off and replied.

"You already know what I am," she said. "As for who, well...for one, someone who thinks it's fucking stupid to transform in the middle of the day out in the open like this!" she growled, some of her frustration boiling over.

"What was I supposed to do?" snarled the werewolf. "You were chasing me!"

"You ran first," snapped Melinda.

"Because you were about to attack me!"

"No I was-...what the hell did I do that made you think that?" exclaimed Melinda, equal parts bewildered and exasperated.

The werewolf met her look of confusion with one of his own.

"Because I...didn't we...I mean..." he stuttered. Then, he shook his head. "Forget it. Doesn't matter." He gave her a baleful look. "Just get the hell away from me. I'll morph back once you're gone and we can go our separate ways."

"What? No way in hell! We need to talk."

"I've got nothing to say to you!" barked the werewolf so loudly some nearby pigeons fluttered off.

Melinda winced and looked around nervously. Again, the alley seemed deserted. She glanced up at the windows on either side and prayed no one was looking down at them or worse, filming the whole scene on their phone.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry," continued the werewolf in a quieter, calmer voice. "But it looks like you've gotten your shit together. Let's just stay out of each other's way for now and call it even, okay?"

"What are you talking about?" exclaimed Melinda.

"Go. Now!" growled the werewolf, taking a step forward. He stared down at her through his glowing yellow eyes. His lips peeled back, revealing rows of needle-sharp fangs.

Melinda met his gaze with calm indifference. Then, she sighed.

"Ah, screw this," she said.

Her foot flew up between the werewolves legs with the speed and force of a comet. A sound of ripping fabric filled the alleyway. The werewolf's expression briefly turned to shock. Then, it twisted into a mask of agony. Howling in pain, the werewolf crumpled to the ground, clutching his groin.

"Melinda!"

Melinda turned to see Lily running towards them. When she arrived she stared down at the werewolf in shock.

"Holy sh-...Melinda, what happened?" she said, goggling.

Melinda looked down at the werewolf. He was rolling back and forth on the ground, occasionally cursing.

"Did you bring that wolfsbane tincture?" she asked, still gazing down.

"Um, yeah."

"Get it out," said Melinda. "Before he starts regenerating."