"Wake up, come on, wake up. We don't have all day."
"Sergeant!" Jensen screamed, reaching his hands out in the air, reliving the last memory he could recall. Soon that image began to fade as bright light bombarded his eyes. It felt like staring into the sun after being in darkness for so long.
Two men dressed in sharply tailored suits stood before him, staring at him without saying a word. He averted his gaze from them as he was more curious about where he was. The smell of medicine and cleaning products was the first thing to hit him like a bomb. Turning his head left and right, there were curtains on both sides. "I'm in the hospital, obviously," he thought to himself.
He tried to look above but felt a sharp sensation in his back like a hot towel wrapped over his spine. The memory of falling down the staircase returned, and the whole night came back to him. "Arthur, Hogan," he said to himself. He tried to ask the men in front of him about them, but his throat felt like he had been in a desert for the past week.
"W…water," he said, gesturing with his hands as if he already had a cup in them.
"Of course, sir. I'll get it right away," one of the two said, but instead, he gestured with his hands to his colleague next to him, who stared him down from the side of his eyes, standing for a good amount of time clenching his teeth before finally going to get the water. Jensen stared at him as he walked. His instincts told him they wouldn't get along.
"Don't mind my friend there. He's always so grumpy," the other man said, taking a seat in front of Jensen. "Thank you for your service to West brook, Mr. J. Churchill, and congratulations on being alive," the man said, smiling from ear to ear.
"That's a very fake smile," Jensen thought. "From his outfit and briefcase, he's definitely working a well-paying desk job."
"Now, I hope you can recall what brought you here," the man continued, leaning closer to Jensen. "But until my associate comes back with that glass of water you requested, I'll be speaking to your colleagues." The man stood up and drew the curtains on both sides of Jensen. On his left was Arthur, and on his right, Hogan.
"You made it!" Jensen shouted ecstatically, forgetting the pain he felt in his throat.
"Thank you, Jensen, for your bravery," Hogan said, using one arm to support his back and the other to hold onto the railing of the bed. There were dark rings around his eyes, and his pupils were dimmed. Seeing the terrible state Hogan was in, Jensen's heart grew heavy, his eyes teary. "I'm sorry I couldn't do more, sir," Jensen said softly, trying to reduce the strain on his throat.
"You did what you could," Hogan replied, dropping his head down.
"And Arthur, how's the wound?" Jensen asked him, smiling with the widest grin.
"That's enough mushy talk. You can get back to it when we're gone," the second man said, stopping Arthur before he could answer. He was much taller than the other man, and although their suits were of the same quality, he wore his with less care, which showed in his loosened tie.
"Here, catch," the man said, throwing a bottle to Jensen, which he caught right before it fell.
"Where are your manners, Butch?" The man sitting down said, frowning and shaking his head.
"I don't get paid for my manners, Zach," Butch said, not batting an eye to the man sitting down. He stayed standing, making sure his figure remained imposing.
"A day ago, the library was vandalized, public property destroyed, and you three were in charge of protecting the place. We want to know what happened," Butch said condescendingly.
"We already told you we…" Hogan replied quickly, but before he could say any more, Zach cut him off. "That was off the record. All participants of the event were not present."
"Jensen, is it? Tell us how it all went down," Butch said, squinting his eyes at him and folding his arms. Jensen could tell from the look in Butch's eyes that even if he were sitting, he would still be looking down at him. But the thought that clouded his mind more was how refreshing the water felt going down his throat.
"What's keeping you? Speak!" Butch shouted, slightly aggravated.
Jensen glared at him to show he wasn't scared and that all his intimidation tactics were getting him nowhere. He took a deep breath and let the effects of the water really sink in before speaking. Then he began explaining the events as he recalled.
Immediately after Jensen finished, the two men faced each other with a bit of shock on both their faces.
"Well, your story is quite different from what these two and the other one told me. What was his name again?" Zach said, unfolding his arms and leaning forward.
"It's Harrison," Hogan answered. His head was bent down, and his tone was lowered. This has nothing to do with the injury, Jensen thought, but he was more concerned about the difference in stories the man pointed out.
"And where is Harrison?" Butch asked, raising his voice and placing his palm out as if he were expecting to be given something.
"He's on his way," Hogan answered, increasing his tone as he felt he was being backed into a corner.
"It doesn't matter. He wasn't really present for most of it. He went to get help," Zach said, placing his hand on Butch to calm him down.
"Oh, is that what he did?" Jensen added, letting out a little laugh afterward.
"Well, yes. According to Hogan, he sent Harrison to go get help after you three saw the blood on the stairs," said Zach. "But you say he ran off, Jensen."
"What!" Jensen exclaimed. "With all due respect, sir, but did you hit your head?" He said to Hogan, pointing his finger to his temple.
"Last I checked, you're the one who passed out. You probably don't remember what happened," Hogan said, squinting his eyes and raising his eyebrow.
Jensen's jaw dropped and his eyes popped open. "That's not how it happened," he said to the two men.
"Jensen, running away while on duty is a federal offense. Harrison could be put in jail," Zach added, "Moreover, Mr. Hogan says you don't mix well with Harrison. I hope this isn't a personal thing."
"What's going on here?" Jensen thought. "Why am I suddenly the bad guy?"
"That's not all," Butch said, joining the conversation. "In their version, you weren't the hero who ran in while everyone was frozen. Hogan said you ignored his order to stay put and acted impulsively the whole night."
"What order?" Jensen asked, raising his voice at Hogan.
"He said we should wait outside while he checked what happened," a fourth and familiar voice said from the entrance of the room.
"There's our runaway," Zach remarked, looking at Harrison, who walked into the room with his head held high and shoulders back, carrying himself as if the events of the other day had never occurred.
"Look at him, walking in here like he owns the place," Jensen said, gripping the railing of the bed tightly. It was the only indication of his anger. "If only I could rip this thing off and whack him with it," he thought.
Harrison ignored Jensen's remark and sat down next to the sergeant's bed, facing the two men. "What's going on?" Jensen thought. He expected Harrison to respond, but instead, he remained calm, which was something he hardly ever did.
"We're going to take into account the fact that you're from the countryside and say you don't know how things are done here," Zach said to Jensen.
"I'm being lied about here!" Jensen shouted, waving his arms in the air.
"You country folk are always so loud," Butch said, frowning prominently and shaking his head in disgust.
"The only thing you said that made sense was that a man attacked you, not a silly creature. For some reason, your colleagues seem to think a werewolf attacked them," Zach said.
"I know what I saw," Hogan said, biting his lip in frustration.
"It doesn't matter what you think you saw. With all the recent murders, you ought to keep your mouth shut so you don't start any stupid rumors," Butch said, pointing at Hogan and raising his voice as if scolding a dog.
"We're done here. Let's go, Zach," he said as he stood up.
"Also, the captain wants Lieutenant Jensen and Harrison at the town hall tomorrow," Zach said before exiting the room.
"How could you do this to me? You made me look like a fool!" Jensen shouted, punching the railing of his bed.
"That's how it happened, Jensen. Believe it or not," Hogan said in a shaky tone that suggested he didn't believe his own words.
"You want to know why?" Harrison said. "Because you're an outsider, and you're not going to come to our city and embarrass us."
Jensen was boiling at this point. He clenched his fists and was ready to throw hands, regardless of his injury. "There's no need to fight," he thought to himself. "It'll only give them more things to use against me." So he got up with whatever strength he had left and headed for the exit glaring at Hogan, squinting his eyes and frowning, he said "I'm disappointed."