After running through the forest, I reached the dock over the lakeshore. Kevin and Salina stood on the dock next to a motor raft, which I assumed they rode on across the lake.

Kevin wore a red and black plaid jacket over blue jeans. He carried a backpack, and his shoes were hiking boots.

Salina wore a black sleeveless T-shirt with a glittering guitar image below her white cleavage. Gray jeans with holes on her knees and black sneakers on her feet. Same long black hair except she has black circles around her eyes. Maybe some sort of eyeliner for goth girls. Her lips gleamed in black lip gloss and dark blush lined across her cheekbones, giving her face a chiseled look. A total goth boy's wet dream.

I blinked at them. "Are those your costumes?"

"Yes," Kevin answered with a small grin.

I studied his outfit. "What are you supposed to be?"

"A lumberjack."

I chuckled. What a cheap costume.

I gazed at Salina's wear. "And you?"

"A rockstar." Salina pointed her black-painted fingernail at her chest. "See?"

I glared. "Yeah, right. It's the same outfit you totally keep wearing. And a lumberjack? I'm totally sure they wear helmets and carry axes too."

Salina sent me a sharp look. "And what is your costume, Barbie girl?"

I growled. "For your total information, my costume is back at the castle. And nobody is going to see it until tonight."

Yeah, I left my backpack in the ball. I wouldn’t carry it back to the dock and risk losing it in the forest. That would totally suck.

"We didn’t have time to buy costumes for the party," Kevin explained. "So we gathered what we could find at home."

"And we needed to wear something to explore the island," said Salina, shaking her head. "Duuuuuuuuuh!"

God, Salina loves pushing my nerves off the cliff. If she wasn't a witch, I could totally push her into the water. But I wouldn't let her drown. I may be a monster, but not a heartless monster. If I wanted to fight monsters to protect my father and friends, I needed to keep my humanity in check. 

I glanced at Kevin’s backpack and Salina’s duffle bag. "What is inside those bags?"

"Our duffle bags?" Kevin looked down at his bag. "Oh, I brought some research books and weapons."

I crossed my arms. "What kind of weapons?"

"Stakes, crosses, garlic, and a bottle of holy water. In case we run into a vampire."

Salina held up her bag. "I brought my hocus pocus gear in here." She grinned. "And some candy for the horny boys tonight."

I raised my eyebrows at her. "Did you bring drugs?"

The witch laughed. "Chill, Barbie Girl. They are only candy corn. My favorite."

Geez, I almost got a heart attack. Alcohol was one thing, but drugs could make everyone go totally berserk at a party. My dad would totally kill me if he found me at a party with mountains and mountains of drugs.

I bit my lip. "So where do you want to check out first? My squad is hanging out in the castle."

"Salina and I planned to study the forest first before we explore the castle," said Kevin. "There might be unusual abnormalities here to find." 

"Well, I didn't sense anything unusual out here. The island is just totally peaceful and quiet."

"Not until darkness falls." Salina smiled. "That is when the real spookiness starts."

I gulped. Spookiness doesn't affect me, but my other friends were a different thing. All of them would panic and run, or worse.

Protecting them might be a pain because I didn't want them to see my transformation. That would totally freak them out. How could I protect them without revealing my werewolf form?

I just had to totally try.

"Okay, let's walk through the forest, and then we will explore the castle next," I said. 

The forest could be clear in the day, but what about at night?