And the people bowed and prayed, to the neon god they made.

And the sign flashed out its warning in the words that it was forming,

And the sign said, "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls

And tenement halls," and whispered in the sounds of silence...

~ The Sound of Silence, Disturbed

Angelique stood in shock and awe at what she was seeing. “I cannot believe that Wulfric would keep such a huge secret from us!”

“Neither can I,” Rex said as he looked at the picture. Wulfric’s visage was clearly visible, beyond a shadow of a doubt. “That is definitely Wulfric, no doubt about it. The facial structure and overall attitude in the photo - or even how he’s carrying himself - matches to a tee.”

Brynn’s face screwed up in thought. “You’re right, Rex, it is, and it does.” This was strange. Why would Wulfric be in a photo from 167 years ago? “Perhaps this is something we need to ask Wulfric himself.” A determined look painted her features as she made the decision to confront their gracious host.

Rex looked at Angelique. “Would you like to come with us? You seem to know more about him than we likely ever will.”

Angelique nodded. “I can join you briefly, but I really should get back to Elias at some point.” She put a bookmark in between the pages they were looking at and tucked it under her arm. “Let’s take this with us; it will make it easier to interrogate him. ”

Brynn nodded. “Of course. Let’s go,” she said as she walked towards the doors once more. She couldn’t wait to confront Wulfric about this. There was absolutely no way he could have lived for that long without arousing suspicion, unless…

“This might seem crazy, but… what if Wulfric had an ancestor that he just happens to look like?” Brynn queried.

Rex nodded. “I’ll admit, this does seem weird. We should definitely ask him about this. Unless I’m very mistaken, there’s no damn way that a person could live for that long and still look the same for the most part.”

Brynn bobbed her head. “I have to admit, if he is hiding something, he’s doing pretty well.”

With their evidence in hand, the trio turned on their heels to confront Wulfric, Brynn leading with determination in her eyes and stride.

As they reached the door, it opened and a familiar face stepped though.

“Wulfric, how interesting that you would be here of all places, especially after dipping out at the morgue. You were acting strangely if I’m being honest,” Brynn stated as she crossed her arms.

Rex smirked as he crossed his arms in frustration as well. “In my years as Brynn’s partner, there’s been no one actin’ fishier than you did. No one just runs out after finding out that a wolfman potentially caused the wounds we saw on Elias. If there’s something you ain’t tellin’ us, I’d spit it out right now. Keeping secrets will only arouse more suspicion.”

“Doctor, are you sure about that?” Wulfric sighed, raising a brow. “This wolfman theory that you’ve cooked up is quite far-fetched if you ask me.” He shrugged.

Angelique stepped forward and held up the book they'd been looking at. “Then what is this?” she asked as she opened it, revealing the picture of Wulfric. “Why would you hide the fact that you’ve looked the same way since the 1800s?”

“Well? What’s the answer?” Brynn asked, her gaze metaphorically burning into Wulfric as if she had heat-vision.

Just as quickly as he had been shocked, Wulfric took on a shrewd demeanor. “You really want to know? Fine, but I want it to be known that I don’t know who or what mangled Elias in that way.” He sat down after striding to one of the tables.

Brynn sighed, rolling her eyes in annoyance. Was this guy for real? “Obviously we’d like to know. We wouldn’t have agreed to come here otherwise.”

Rex stepped forward to stand beside Brynn. “If I may say, you acted extremely shifty at the morgue earlier.”

Wulfric balked as if deflecting his true reaction and replacing it with something else. It was almost as if he was deliberately putting on a mask. “Wouldn’t you leave if someone began to accuse you of things you had no hand in?”

Brynn nodded. “I would, but this is different. Sure, you played the welcoming and gracious host in the wee hours of the night when Rex and I come to your home, but this photo is painting a completely different story if you ask me.”

“I agree wholeheartedly,” Angelique replied. “I have never seen you act this way, Wulfric. Perhaps if you explain what is going on, we can figure out how best to assist both you and the detectives.”

Wulfric sighed. “Fine. But I’m only doing this to provide an explanation as to why I stand before you, even though I should really be buried six feet deep in the ground.”

“This should be very interesting,” Brynn mused as she looked at Rex in thought. “I can’t wait to hear whatever he has to say.”

Wulfric sighed. “I hate to admit it, but that book holds… bad memories for yours truly. I had nearly forgotten about it, truth be told.”

Brynn and Rex’s jaws felt as if they had disconnected from their skulls and dropped to the floor as they stared in awe. “What in the Sam Hill…?” Rex managed to breathe after gaining some composure. “So let me get this straight. You mean to imply that you were - with absolute certainty - as alive when Millard Fillmore was sworn in as president as you are today? Pardon me for seeming like a dense sonofagun, but the math just don’t add up here, Wulfric. And I pride myself on being very good at math, being a doctor and all.”

Wulfric looked at the out-of-towners. “This town is - to put it simply - steeped in the mysteries of fantasy. Though by now, you’ve likely figured out that the town itself is odd. I know my actions recently have left you to wonder about who exactly I am.” He went to the table and sat down, steepling his fingers and sighing. “Your wolfman - or more correctly, werewolf - theory is true.”

Rex gasped. “Well, I’m surprised, to say the least,” he said.

Brynn just sighed. She seemed to be doing that a lot, be it sleep deprivation, irritation at all of the new details in this case, or something else entirely.

Wulfric sighed resignedly and looked deep into the pair’s eyes. “Put your hands on the book. But do keep in mind what I said about it holding bad memories for me.”

Rex and Brynn nodded in acknowledgment as they complied and laid their hands flat on the book.

~*~

What they saw next was like something neither of them would have ever fathomed. Rex looked around, curious as to where they were. Luckily, there was a ‘Welcome’ sign nearby.

“Well, whaddya know, Brynn? We’re in Harrisburg. Though something seems off.” He pointed towards an old-looking car. “That doesn’t look like any car I’ve ever seen with my own two eyes.”

Brynn shook her head and draped an arm around her friend. “For a smart guy, you sure can be naïve, Rex,” she teased her friend. This elicited a raised brow from the male.

“Naïve? Whaddya mean by that? I mean, I obviously know what the word means, but why would you think-? Ohhhh….”

As Rex looked around, he finally realized what was going on. “When we get back to the present, I’m giving Wulfric an earful.”

Brynn sighed. “He sends us back in time and doesn’t even help us blend in,” she muttered. “I’m with you on giving him an earful. This is ridiculous.”

Rex looked around. “We need to blend in. We need to find a tailor. And then we need to find Wulfric, and find out what the hell happened and why he’s being so cryptic when he was so welcoming beforehand.”

Brynn nodded. “But I swear if I have to wear a fucking corset, we’re gonna have a bigger problem on our hands than a chain of murders.”

Rex’s face contorted with an expression of worry as he said “Uhhh, don’t be mad Bryn, but, um...”

Brynn frowned. “What?” she snapped. “Rex, you’re my best friend, but when you get fidgety like that it just irritates me when you pause or cut off your sentences like that.”

Rex shook his head. “Hate to say it, but I have bad news… We’re in the 19th century. If we wanna blend in, you’re gonna have to suck it up and wear one. Just long enough for us to figure out what the hell happened and what Wulfric decided to show rather than tell.”

Brynn nodded. “Alright, fine, fine. But as soon as we get back to the present, I’m getting out of it ASAP and giving Wulfric a piece of my mind.”

At the mention of Wulfric, a young man came up to them. “Did you say ‘Wulfric’? As in, Wulfric Blackthorne?” An expression of fear flashed across his features before he squared his shoulders and looked the pair over once with a different expression, one that asked ‘What the hell is going on?’. “You’re not from around here are you?” he asked, not waiting for an answer from either of them. “We need to get you into some different clothing. I’m not exactly sure what you are wearing, but that will be our first order of business. After that, I will gladly take you to see Wulfric… or rather, Master Blackthorne.” He then began to walk away.

Brynn clenched her fists and followed him, jerking her head as to indicate for Rex to follow them. “Let’s get this over with,” she said under her breath as soon as he was in range.

Rex just nodded. He didn't like seeing his best friend upset, but unfortunately, this was the nineteenth century and certain conventions were to be followed, such as women wearing a corset and men being calm and composed at all times, far different from how they seemed to act in the twenty-first century. He strode ahead and whispered “I hate to seem rude, Brynn but please just grin and bear it. And who knows? Maybe we’ll even impress Wulfric with what we - or in your case, what we’ve learned - about Victorian-era America.”

Brynn nodded. “Alright, but I’m only sucking it up because you’re my friend and we need as much information as possible.” This made Rex chuckle as they followed the stranger, eventually catching up with him.

“So,” he asked, “may I ask who you are? I don’t feel comfortable with my lady friend and me following a seemingly random person if you get my meaning.”

The young man nodded. “My apologies, good sir, it completely slipped my mind to introduce myself. I am still being taught the ways of a gentleman myself.” He held out a hand as he proceeded to introduce himself. “The name is Winston Turner. My family is closely tied with the Blackthorne family, as my sister Emilia is to be wed to Wulfric.”

Brynn blinked. “Well, isn’t that interesting...” she mused, walking next to Rex, who flanked Winston’s right side.

Rex smiled at Winston. “Since you were so kind as to introduce yourself, allow my lady friend here and I to introduce ourselves.” He put a hand to his chest to indicate himself. “My name is Terrance Snow, but you can just call me Rex. I’m a doctor by profession, with expertise in forensics and human biology.”

Winston nodded. “It is a pleasure to meet you, sir. And who might your lady friend be?” He looked past Rex to Brynn, who was analyzing the scenery. This definitely didn’t look like the Harrisburg she knew.

Brynn looked at Winston after he inquired as to who she was. “Brynn Frost; it’s a pleasure to meet you, Winston.”

Rexx beamed as Brynn spooky. “Brynn and I share a keen interest in the paranormal. Has anything strange happened recently that you think that we would be interested in?”

Winston stopped in his tracks as they reached a tailor’s shop. “Well, a strange man came into town recently. I asked around, but no one seemed to know who he was. The way he carried himself was as a king or an emperor would.”

Brynn nodded. “A creepy man doesn't sound good. And like Rex said, we like all things creepy or otherwise spooky.”

Rex observed the interaction between Winston and his partner, opening the door to the shop in front of them. “Are we going in, or are we just going to linger here?”

Winston snapped out of looking at Brynn. “Of course, right this way,” he said as he went in, the pair following.

Later on, they came out, Rex and Brynn wearing period-appropriate clothing. Rex strode out of the shop confidently, while Brynn kept fiddling with the corset that was currently making it hard for her to breathe.

Winston sighed. “If you fiddle with your corset, Miss Frost, you won’t look very ladylike.”

Brynn sighed. “Alright. But just so we’re clear, I’m not wearing this for long.”

“Alright. We both know I can’t change your mind anyway,” Rex said as he watched the situation before noticing a familiar face. “Hey, look who it is.” He pointed to a side street, causing the other two to look over in the same direction.

Brynn tried to run after the familiar face, but her heels prevented her from getting very far before she tripped. Rex was thankfully there to catch her, smiling as he helped her up.

The stranger they were following, who proved to be Wulfric in the flesh, looked back briefly, but even at that moment, it was obvious that he had one emotion painted on his face - fear. Brynn looked at him and used Rex as an anchor, slowly advancing on the man before being scooped up by her friend and partner, the doctor running after Wulfric with Winston on their heels.

The chase led them to a back alley, where they saw Wulfric backed into a corner by a strange man, the same fearful expression on his face.

The next thing they knew, Wulfric was slashed across the face as the man transformed into a gigantic wolf and attacked. They could faintly hear him saying “May the curse of Lykaon forever plague you and your descendants, Blackthorne,” before a bright light flashed in their eyes.