Alex was in the Nevermore Academy dormitory, in Enid and Wednesday’s room.

He was lying on one of the beds with Enid, and they were watching an old comedy movie, trying to pass the time. In the background, the steady, almost hypnotic clatter of a typewriter echoed through the room — Wednesday sat at her desk, focused and undistracted, continuing her work on her novel.

While the movie played and Enid cuddled comfortably against him, Alex’s thoughts were far from the room. He remembered that today Marilyn would decide to finish what she had started — to finally kill Mayor Walker. The very same man who, by some miracle, had survived after she ran him down with her car.

Alex understood perfectly well that in this timeline, Mayor Walker was in much better condition than in the original one. But Marilyn herself was far more unhinged, unpredictable, and dangerous here. No one could say what she might do to see things through to the end.

The two patrol officers Sheriff Donovan had assigned to guard the mayor’s hospital room were nothing more than a formality. Against Marilyn, who could wield the power of darkness, they wouldn’t last even a minute.

After thinking it over, Alex decided to act preemptively. He needed to bring the mayor back to consciousness and explain everything to him.

He was certain of one thing: if Marilyn failed to silence the only person who had begun to piece together the truth, she wouldn’t become more cautious. On the contrary — she would accelerate events and attempt to complete the ritual immediately, before anyone could stop her.

After all, she needed only one thing for that — Wednesday’s blood. And then Joseph Crackstone would be able to return to life.

Alex glanced at Enid, who had her head resting on his chest, lazily following what was happening on the screen. Then his gaze shifted to Wednesday — focused, composed, as if the rest of the world no longer existed for her. The rhythmic clacking of the keys helped her organize her thoughts.

Making sure neither of the girls was looking his way, Alex discreetly created a clone. It appeared on the other side of the large, round stained-glass window.

The only one who noticed its appearance was Thing, who had been standing on the desk beside Wednesday all this time. Seeing the second Alex, he twitched and immediately shifted his gaze to the real one, still lying on the bed.

Alex slowly raised a finger to his lips, making it clear that this was better kept quiet. Thing signaled his agreement with his fingers. Alex smiled. The clone already knew what to do and, without delay, went off to keep watch over the mayor.

Alex knew that Walker was destined to die anyway. But that didn’t mean he had to die for real — it was always possible to stage the mayor’s death so everything looked the way it was supposed to. However, if Marilyn accelerated her plans, that would no longer be by his rules. He liked long chess games, preferring to watch villains make their own moves, cornering themselves step by step.

Besides, Alex wanted to further strengthen his bond with Wednesday and Enid. He needed to be sure that one day he would be able to share the truth with them — about himself and everything connected to him.

Closing his eyes, he began thinking about other places he still had to visit and cleanse. At the same time, he had to continue playing the role of a hunter, helping the Winchester brothers in their fight against Amara.

Alex knew perfectly well what would happen next: Dean and Sam would argue again. Dean would insist that Amara was not evil, while Sam would claim she had to be stopped at any cost, pointing to his visions. Visions that he believed were sent by God… though in reality, they came from a false Lucifer, locked away in a cage in Hell.

Thinking about the false Lucifer, Alex realized that even such a “fake” could be useful. All of this was part of the plan to deceive Chuck.

He almost reached up to massage his temples as a headache began to creep in. In the original timeline, the fake Lucifer had managed to escape the Cage with the help of Castiel, broken by depression and guilt.

But here, things were different.

Castiel had pulled himself together, returned to his duties, and given Lucifer no chance at all. Which meant Lucifer would not leave the Cage, would not reclaim Hell’s throne, would not put Crowley on a leash, and would not stage that farce with the takeover of Heaven.

According to Chuck’s plan, the overconfident Lucifer was supposed to attack Amara and realize just how insignificant he truly was. And then — to fall into Amara’s hands while she was wearing Castiel’s body, knowing that the Winchesters would never abandon a member of their family.

Alex clenched his teeth.

He wasn’t enough of a bastard to sacrifice his friends for a prewritten script. That meant only one thing: the chess game would have to be replayed. Or the board flipped over entirely and the game started anew.

Thinking about the future, Alex understood that until the final act of Chuck’s story, he had to act with extreme caution. He couldn’t reveal himself too early and allow God to run away with his tail between his legs.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Alex opened his eyes — and immediately met a piercing black gaze.

Wednesday’s face was just a centimeter away from his. She was staring straight into his eyes with her usual cold, penetrating look.

“I don’t mind you being this close,” Alex said with a faint smile, not looking away. “But what’s wrong?”

“Time,” Wednesday said, not pulling back even an inch. “It’s already dark enough to go to the Gates family house.”

“I see. Then we should go take a look,” Alex replied calmly, giving a slight nod.

“What are you talking about?..”

Enid murmured sleepily, cracking her eyes open as she heard their voices.

Alex and Wednesday both looked at Enid, who was drowsily rubbing her eyes.

She hadn’t expected to fall asleep so quickly, lying on Alex’s chest while he gently, almost automatically, stroked her hair. It had been so pleasant and soothing that Enid hadn’t even noticed the moment she drifted off.

Struggling to fully wake up, she rubbed her eyes again and looked questioningly first at Alex, then at Wednesday, clearly trying to understand what was happening and where they were even going. Her mind felt lightly blank — Enid had completely forgotten about the events of a few hours earlier. All because of how deeply relaxed she had been while resting on Alex’s chest.

“We’re going to the Gates family house,” Wednesday said in a calm, even tone, watching the still-sleepy Enid, who was now sitting up and continuing to rub her eyes.

“The dorm is already closed. We’ll need to leave without anyone noticing,” she added.

Enid let out a small yawn, covering her mouth with her hand.

“Tonight’s a full moon… I can say I’m ready to transform, and you’ll be taking me to be ‘locked up’,” she said sleepily, still not fully awake.

Wednesday raised an eyebrow and allowed herself a barely noticeable smile.

“I see you’re starting to take more and more after me.”

In response, Enid let out a quiet giggle, genuinely pleased by the praise.

Alex only shook his head, stood up from the couch, and, lightly stretching his shoulders and neck, headed toward the balcony, giving the girls time to get ready.

Stepping out onto the balcony and lighting a cigarette, he fell into thought. In the Gates family house, he would need to act with particular caution — in case Tyler appeared in his monster form. Alex needed that caution not because he was afraid, but quite the opposite: so that he wouldn’t accidentally kill Tyler and would give him a chance to escape.

Alex wanted it to be Dean who, using the Mark of Cain blade, absorbed the power of Darkness from Tyler’s body — and then did the same with the fragment of Amara’s power that Marilyn currently possessed. He was thinking in the long term, aiming to strengthen Dean as much as possible.

Ultimately, Alex planned to invite the entire Winchester family into the Guild — including Bobby Singer.

Taking a drag of his cigarette, he lifted his gaze to the moon, shining brightly in the night sky, and thought that the plan still had a long way to go before it could be realized.

Extinguishing the cigarette, Alex returned to the room. He was met with an unexpected sight: Wednesday and Enid were wearing matching scarves. Despite Wednesday clearly resisting the idea, Enid was practically glowing with happiness — she had finally managed to persuade her friend.

“Looks cute. Well, then, it’s time to go,” Alex said.

In the next second, he transformed into a black cat to avoid drawing unnecessary attention.

Enid immediately scooped him up in her arms. This made her even happier, despite the fact that they were about to head to a creepy house — the very place that had nearly claimed the mayor’s life.

Before leaving, Wednesday cast a quick glance at Thing, silently letting him know what was expected. Thing gave a thumbs-up, showing he could handle it and would distract attention.

After a brief conversation with the dorm warden, Wednesday and Enid — carrying Alex in his cat form — left the building, lying that Enid was finally ready to transform into a wolf.

As soon as they stepped off the Nevermore grounds, Alex reverted to his human form and slid into the driver’s seat of Dean’s Impala. Wednesday took the front passenger seat, and Enid settled in the back.

Starting the engine without turning on the headlights, Alex steered the car toward the Gates family house.

“A thing of beauty, I know. Will never fade away. What you did to me, I know. Said what you had to say. But a thing of beauty…” he hummed softly as the Impala drove further and further away from Nevermore, disappearing into the night.

Wednesday watched Alex with a calm, attentive gaze as he drove the Impala, quietly drumming his fingers on the steering wheel to the rhythm of the music.

Enid, meanwhile, had already taken out her phone. She wasn’t about to miss the chance to record Alex singing — she remembered all too well how many views the last video had gotten. The opportunity to show off once again to her followers how well he sang was too tempting to pass up.

And even though the genre of the song wasn’t one of her favorites, Enid didn’t mind at all.

Wednesday glanced at Alex once more, then closed her eyes, letting him do whatever he wanted. It didn’t prevent her from enjoying his voice. After about half an hour, the Impala stopped near the old Gates family house.

Alex turned off the engine, idly twirling his keys around his finger, and got out of the car, heading toward the trunk. Enid still had no desire to enter the creepy house. Now, standing so close to it, her willingness to cross its threshold had decreased even further.

Wednesday silently observed the house, already preparing to approach the gates, when the familiar sound of the trunk opening echoed. Enid and Wednesday turned simultaneously.

Alex looked thoughtfully into the open trunk. As they stepped closer, the girls saw an impressive arsenal: stakes, crosses, firearms, and a full set of various ammunition.

Enid stared in shock, a silent question in her eyes — who the hell carries that much weaponry in a car trunk? The answer was obvious. Dean Winchester.

Unlike Enid, Wednesday carefully examined the weapons, already understanding their purpose.

“This is Dean’s car, right?” Enid began, pointing toward the trunk. “Why does he need a grenade launcher? That’s a grenade launcher, right? And… why carry so many weapons?”

“Yes, it’s a grenade launcher,” Alex replied calmly, still picking something out for himself. “Dean’s just used to carrying his entire arsenal with him.”

“A pretty useful set,” Wednesday noted, nodding. “I’ll have to tell Larch to make a similar weapon compartment in our family car.”

“Don’t even start, Wednesday…” Enid groaned and immediately tugged on Alex’s hand. “Alex, why did you even open the trunk?”

“Do you see me carrying weapons?” he asked. “I left everything at the hotel. I thought we’d just stop by to drop off gifts, hang out a bit — that’s it. Not wander around old creepy houses.”

He picked up a silver knife from the trunk.

“We need to be ready in case a suspect… or someone worse shows up.”

Enid immediately took a step back.

“Okay, got it,” she said with a tight smile. “But can you take another one? Not that one. Well… you know. Werewolf, silver, all that.”

Alex looked at the knife in his hand, then at Enid. And only then did he slap his forehead.

“Damn…” he muttered, smiling sheepishly.

He quickly put the silver knife away and grabbed another, then closed the trunk. Enid exhaled in relief.

Alex turned to Wednesday, who was already standing by the gates, examining the house. He noticed the lock — the gates had been open before, and now they were closed again. A clear sign that someone had already been here.

But neither Enid nor Wednesday seemed to notice.

Without a word, Wednesday pulled out a lockpick and, within seconds, unlocked the gate.

“Wednesday, maybe we come back here in the morning?” Enid suggested cautiously. “Right now, this house looks even creepier than it did during the day…”

“If you want to leave — go ahead,” Wednesday replied calmly. “I’m going to check the garage first.”

And without waiting for a response, she moved forward. Enid looked at Alex and let out a heavy sigh.

He smiled quietly and stroked her hair, trying to comfort her. Then he took her hand and led her forward — following Wednesday, who had already covered half the distance to the garage.

Approaching the garage, Wednesday pulled at the doors, but they were secured with a thick iron chain. Without a word, Enid let go of Alex’s hand and stepped toward the lock. She gripped it—and with no effort at all, tore the chain and lock off. Alex couldn’t help but clap his hands.

“I’m a werewolf, by the way,” Enid said with a proud smile, lifting her chin. “And no matter what, I’m pretty strong.”

“Yeah, yeah. You’re strong,” Wednesday replied, slightly pushing Enid aside to open the garage.

“Hey! You could at least say thank you!” Enid protested when she was nudged aside.

Wednesday merely shot her a brief glance and swung the garage doors open.

Inside, they illuminated the room with flashlights. Alex felt around for the light switch and flicked it on. The bulb on the ceiling glowed dimly, casting light across the garage.

Looking up at the light, Alex couldn’t help but note an obvious fact: someone still lived in this house. Or at least, was paying for electricity.

Wednesday immediately noticed a car covered with a heavy cloth. She stepped closer and, with a sharp motion, pulled the cover off.

Beneath it was the very same blue car that had hit Mayor Walker. A deep dent and a dark patch of dried blood were clearly visible on the hood.

“That’s the car that hit the mayor,” Wednesday said coldly, inspecting the damage closely.

“This… I don’t like this at all,” Enid said nervously, feeling panic rise in her throat. “Maybe we should leave? What if the killer is still here? We should call for help.”

Wednesday slowly turned to her.

“For what? So the criminal has time to clean everything up and cover their tracks?”

“What if they really are here?!” Enid’s voice trembled and nearly broke into a scream. “Isn’t that dangerous? Remember what happened last time? Alex and Dean were seriously hurt and still haven’t fully recovered. The mayor got hit by a car! What can we even do?!”

“Okay, Enid, enough,” Alex intervened calmly, gently stroking her head. “The killer is definitely not here. Hiding in a place like this would be far too suspicious. Everything will be fine.”

Enid looked at him and felt some of her anxiety subside. His touch was soothing.

Wednesday, however, observed the scene with her usual cold gaze, then silently headed toward the house.

Through the garage door, Alex, Wednesday, and Enid stepped inside, illuminating their path with flashlights. The house looked exactly like a long-abandoned mansion should: peeling walls with cracked paint, old wooden floors rotting and creaking under every step.

Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust, and old cobwebs stretched across corners and under the ceiling.

Alex followed Wednesday while Enid held his hand tightly, quietly whimpering at every creak of the floorboards beneath their feet.

Moving further inside, they entered a room that looked like an office—probably where the head of the Gates family once worked. On one of the walls hung a large painting depicting all the family members.

“So this is what the Gates family looks like,” Wednesday said, shining her flashlight on the portrait and pointing to the figures. “Not bad-looking for a family of psychopaths.”

She paused the light on one of the faces.

“That’s Gates, the one my father was accused of killing. And this must be Ansel—the head of the family and a fierce hater of Outcasts. And Laurel Gates.”

“Looking at this painting, it’s immediately clear,” Alex noted calmly, “a typical family of racists. The kind where the same slogans are repeated at dinner every night: ‘They took our lands,’ ‘They stole our homes,’ and so on.”

“Maybe we should move on?” Enid said quietly, squeezing his hand even tighter. “This painting gives me the creeps… There won’t be any ghosts here, right?”

She looked at Alex with wide, frightened eyes.

“There aren’t any ghosts here,” he replied after a short pause. “Possibly.”

“Phew… that’s reassuring,” Enid exhaled, placing her hand on her chest. “Wait. Did you just say ‘possibly’?”

She stared at him sharply, hoping he had just misspoken—that the ghosts of the Gates family wouldn’t appear from the shadows of this house.

Alex merely coughed dryly and looked away. He wasn’t entirely sure himself. Marilyn could very well try to summon the spirits of the relatives—using the Book of Shadows or a fragment of Amara’s power.

Without waiting for an answer, Enid whimpered even more, nearly clutching his hand. The last thing she wanted right now was an encounter with ghosts. Wednesday turned her head and looked at Enid, whose entire demeanor screamed that she wanted to leave immediately.

“Can you stop whining?” she said calmly. “They’re just ghosts. I’ve seen dozens of them. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

“It’s easy for you to say,” Enid protested, casting her a frightened look. “I’ve heard enough stories from Uncle about dealing with evil spirits.”

Wednesday merely rolled her eyes slightly and headed into the next room, thinking about why Goody had shown her this exact place in the vision that appeared in Joseph Cracklstone’s crypt.

Examining room after room, they eventually reached the Gates family library.

As soon as they stepped inside, Wednesday immediately moved toward the bookshelves, convinced that a hidden passage might be behind one of them.

Meanwhile, Alex looked around, considering what he could add to his collection from what he saw. But all that surrounded him were old paintings, furniture covered in thick layers of dust, and rows of books untouched by human hands for years.

Enid stayed as close to Alex as possible the entire time—the thought of potential ghosts in the house kept her on edge.

Wednesday methodically tilted one book after another, inspecting the shelves. She continued until her fingers found a small protrusion on the side panel of the shelf.

Running her hand over it, Wednesday pressed lightly.

A dry click echoed through the room.

Alex and Enid turned their heads at the same time. The sides of the bookshelf slowly slid apart, revealing a hidden space.

Behind it was an altar dedicated to Joseph Cracklstone. The surrounding walls were covered in blood-red symbols, and dozens of extinguished candles stood at the base of the altar.

“Nothing unusual…” Enid groaned. “Just a creepy altar in the middle of a library.”

“We have an altar in the living room,” Wednesday remarked calmly. “There’s more space there for celebrating the Day of the Dead.”

“And we don’t have one,” Alex added just as evenly, shrugging. “Just a bunch of cursed objects, ancient books, and other little joys.”

“Why do you even keep stuff like that?!” Enid asked, staring at him in fear.

“So it doesn’t fall into someone else’s hands,” Alex replied, gently tapping the tip of her nose in an attempt to calm her. “We even recently got a box with an evil spirit sealed inside. Likes kidnapping children.”

Enid looked at him and let out another pitiful whimper. Wednesday, on the other hand, showed clear interest. She turned away and stepped closer to the altar, examining it carefully.

When she came right up to it, she caught a faint but distinct smell—the candles had been used very recently. Wednesday touched one of them with her finger. The wax was warm and sticky.

“The candles are still warm,” she said, turning to Alex and Enid. “Someone was here very recently.”

“That means we need to leave… right?” Enid asked tensely. “If the candles are warm, then someone’s still in the house.”

“We need to check the second floor,” Wednesday said flatly, completely ignoring her words.

“I’ll check the first floor, just in case,” Alex added, pulling a cigarette from his pocket.

“Then Enid and I will check the second,” Wednesday nodded and immediately moved ahead.

“What do you mean, we will?!” Enid asked in confusion, looking from Wednesday to Alex.

He simply gave her an encouraging nod.

Pressing her lips together and softly whimpering, Enid followed Wednesday.

Alex lit a cigarette and listened to their footsteps as they went up the stairs. Exhaling smoke, he dragged a chair toward himself, scraping it across the floor.

Walking down the hallway, Alex placed the chair right at the foot of the stairs and sat down, continuing to smoke. His gaze was fixed on the front door leading outside.

He could clearly feel it—something was approaching the Gates house.

Pulling a knife from behind his belt, Alex held the cigarette in one hand and slowly rotated the blade in the other, never taking his eyes off the door.

Closing his eyes, he listened to the sounds from the second floor—especially Enid’s voice, as she tried to reassure herself but only made things worse. Alex let out a barely audible chuckle.

He opened his eyes at the exact moment Wednesday and Enid entered a room that apparently belonged to Laurel Gates. The dark presence was drawing closer.

Alex waited calmly for whoever would appear on the threshold—whether it was Tyler in his monster form or Marilyn, hiding her face behind a veil of darkness. Either way, it wouldn’t stop him from breaking one or the other if necessary.

Black mist began seeping out from beneath the crack of the front door. Alex stubbed out his cigarette, shifted the knife into his right hand, and froze. The mist thickened, slowly forming a silhouette.

A moment later, it took the shape of the Hyde. Its eyes were bloodshot, black veins stood out across its body, and that same mist streamed from its skin.

“You’re the one I was waiting for,” Alex said calmly, rising from the chair and gripping the knife in a reverse hold. “I was wondering whether anyone would come or not.”

He smirked.

“And as it turns out, Laurel Gates sent her dog. I wonder how upset she’ll be if I put her rabid mutt to sleep.”

In response to Alex’s words, the monster let out a low, guttural growl. Alex merely snorted and grabbed the chair he had been sitting on moments earlier. In the very next instant, the Hyde lunged forward.

Alex hurled the chair straight at it. The monster instinctively covered its face with its arms, and the chair exploded into splinters with a loud crack. Without slowing down, the Hyde leapt again, intending to latch onto Alex.

But when it landed where Alex had been standing a second earlier, there was no one there. The monster froze, snapping its head around and growling in irritation.

“Looking for me?” a voice came from above.

The Hyde jerked its head up. Alex was standing on the ceiling, clinging there as if gravity meant nothing to him. A calm, almost mocking smile played on his face.

He pushed off—and dropped like a stone, driving his knee straight into the monster’s face. The Hyde’s head slammed into the wooden floor with tremendous force. A loud crunch echoed as the boards cracked, and a furious roar rolled through the house.

A minute earlier, Wednesday and Enid had been in the room that belonged to Laurel Gates.

It was sharply different from the rest of the house—someone clearly lived here. No thick layer of dust, no cobwebs. Everything looked as though the room had been used very recently. A sudden crash from the first floor made them both turn at once. Then came the distinct sound of boards breaking.

“Alex! What’s going on down there?!” Enid shouted, panic creeping into her voice.

“Run! Where the fuck are you running to?!” Alex’s voice echoed from below.

The roar that followed made the girls instinctively step back. A shadow appeared on the staircase. Then came a clawed hand gripping the wooden steps. Next, the monster’s head emerged. And in the very same second, Alex’s powerful hand grabbed the Hyde by the head and yanked it back.

“Come here, you piece of shit,” Alex growled.

The Hyde tried to break free, but Alex slammed its head into the steps. The wood cracked. Wednesday and Enid watched, unable to move. Alex ended up behind the monster. Grabbing it by the hair, he began smashing its head into the steps with brutal force. Once. Twice. The third blow shattered the staircase completely.

Alex looked up at the girls.

“What are you standing around for?! Run! You’re just in the way!” he barked, pinning the Hyde’s head against the broken steps.

The shout snapped them out of their stupor. Wednesday sharply grabbed Enid by the hand and dragged her toward the lift. Sensing its target slipping away, the Hyde roared, hurled Alex aside, and charged after them. And in that moment, Alex understood—Marilyn hadn’t sent Tyler just to kill. His task was to grab Wednesday and eliminate the witnesses.

Wednesday and Enid dove into the lift. The door was almost closed when they saw the Hyde racing toward them. The metal door slammed shut at the last possible second. A dull impact shook the lift.

As the platform began descending into the basement, Alex was already pressing the Hyde’s face against the metal door. The monster snarled and clawed at the wall, trying to break free, but Alex’s grip was iron.

“Oh no, buddy…” Alex said calmly, turning the knife in his hand. “You and I are going to play a little now.”

He leaned closer.

“I still haven’t forgiven your mistress for making me blow myself up just to clean up the mess she caused.”

His smirk turned cold.

“So this is going to hurt.”

Twisting the knife in his grip, Alex drove the blade sharply into the Hyde’s side. The monster howled in pain, breaking into a hoarse, furious roar.

Grinning, Alex grabbed the monster by the head and began smashing its face forcefully against the metal doors of the lift.

With each impact, the metal bent more and more until the doors were warped so badly that Hyde’s head was literally jammed between the twisted sheets. Realizing this, Alex let go and stepped back, assessing the result.

He crouched slightly, gathering momentum. Two quick steps—pushed off Hyde’s back—and a leap.

Alex slammed down onto the monster from above with such force that the cracking of bones echoed distinctly through the air. Hyde’s spine bent unnaturally, and his ribs snapped along with it. Broken bones tore through the flesh, protruding outward.

Blood dripped onto the floor as Hyde thrashed, struggling to break free.

Alex stepped back a pace, calmly pulled out a cigarette, and lit it, watching the scene unfold. He was not at all surprised as Hyde’s body began to rapidly heal: bones pulling back into place, wounds closing, flesh knitting itself together before his eyes.

Tyler, in Hyde’s form, was infected with Darkness—the same force that prevented him from dying so easily.

“Ah… how I love it when my toys can fix themselves,” Alex murmured with a smirk.

He pulled two black brass knuckles from his pocket.

“But whether you’ll last longer than the others—that’s another question entirely.”

Meanwhile, Wednesday and Enid descended in the lift into the basement. Even here, they could still hear dull thuds from above and the monster’s menacing growls.

Enid was breathing heavily. The weight of everything they’d been through pressed down on her, and the fear refused to leave.

Wednesday, in contrast, remained calm and composed. She knew that Alex could hold the monster off long enough to give them a chance to escape. She trusted him completely—and she knew he could do it.

Enid clenched her hands, trying to steady herself, praying for just one thing—that Alex would be okay. She didn’t want him to get hurt.

When the lift reached the very bottom, they cautiously stepped out, listening intently to the noises from above.

In the basement, the girls began looking around, trying to figure out a way out. Wednesday approached the lamp and flipped the switch.

Light flared, driving back the darkness, revealing rows of glass jars. Inside—parts of human bodies.

“These are the remains of the monster’s victims,” Wednesday said, directing her flashlight toward the jars.

“Wednesday, that’s enough!” Enid shouted sharply, glancing around. “We need to run!”

At that moment, another deafening crash sounded from above, as if the ceiling had collapsed. Something heavy slammed to the floor, followed by Alex’s voice, yelling at the monster not to dare escape.

Understanding that the fight was still ongoing, Wednesday immediately grabbed Enid and dragged her toward the window.

Amid the sounds of blows and dust falling from the ceiling, they managed to get outside.

“You’re okay?” Wednesday asked, looking at the trembling Enid.

“Do you really care right now?!” Enid snapped. “And Alex?! He’s up there alone! Unarmed! How are we supposed to help him?!”

Wednesday found no answer. The sounds of the fight still echoed from inside the house.

Then, in that moment, the window shattered with a loud crash.

Both girls instinctively jumped back, dodging the flying shards, and saw Alex shoot out of the window, sliding across the ground and leaving a clear trail behind him.

Rising to his feet, he looked at the window—and at Hyde, who growled in response. The monster’s entire body was covered in wounds, with pieces of broken wood sticking out of his flesh, slowly falling away as the injuries began to close.

Hyde let out one last roar—and then dissolved into black mist.

“Son of a bitch! Come back!”

Alex glared angrily at the empty space.

“That’s not my knife! Give it back!”

Only silence answered Alex’s words. He clicked his tongue irritably—the loss of Dean’s knife clearly annoyed him.

Before Alex could say anything else, Enid immediately rushed to him and began checking his body, running her hands over his shoulders, chest, and sides, making sure there were no injuries. She touched him almost frantically, trying to be certain.

“Are you okay? Really? You weren’t hurt anywhere?” Enid spoke quickly, without looking up.

“I’m fine, don’t worry,” Alex replied calmly. “You saw that monster. I think it got hurt way worse than I did.”

He pulled a cigarette from his pocket and held it between his teeth.

“Are you sure you don’t need medical help?” Wednesday asked, already pulling out a lighter to give him a light.

“Positive. I’m just a little dirty,” Alex inhaled and exhaled a plume of smoke. “And we better get going. The monster could still be in the house.”

Enid and Wednesday nodded simultaneously.

At that moment, a crack of a breaking branch sounded from behind.

Everyone whirled around and saw Xavier, who had suddenly appeared from the darkness. Wednesday immediately squinted—his arrival was far too timely, especially right after the monster had vanished.

Suspicion flared in her mind once again: too many coincidences.

Of course, Xavier himself had no idea that his presence was only adding to the tension.

Alex exhaled the cigarette smoke calmly, mentally deciding that Xavier was having a catastrophically unlucky day.

Without a word, he headed toward the Impala. The others followed. Xavier got into the car without protest, sitting alongside everyone else.

Once everyone was inside, Alex inserted the key into the ignition and prepared to start the engine.

“I don’t want to distract anyone…” Enid said in a trembling voice, breathing heavily. “But I think I’m about to have a panic attack. We need to get out of here before things get worse.”

“Deep breath,” Alex said calmly as he started the engine. “Think about something good. It’s all behind us now.”

“What exactly happened here?” Xavier asked, realizing that this was clearly no ordinary “walk.”

“Just that,” Alex replied lazily. “A monster attacked us. I beat it up. In return, it threw me out the window.”

“We also found jars with parts of the victims’ bodies,” Wednesday added, carefully observing Xavier’s reaction through the rearview mirror. “And the car that hit the mayor.”

“Then we need to report this to the police immediately,” Xavier said. “If you found something like that, you can’t stay silent.”

“That’s where we’re headed,” Alex said, glancing at him through the mirror. “But what were you doing here anyway?”

“I… wanted to apologize,” Xavier said, trying to stay calm. “And I thought it might be dangerous. So I came.”

Alex was silent for a moment, then spoke in a steady, almost emotionless tone:

“Xavier, I don’t want to stress you out, but doesn’t this seem strange? The monster disappears—and a few minutes later, you show up. I’m not accusing you of anything, just saying… your sudden appearances always happen to coincide with its appearances.”

“That’s nonsense!” Xavier almost shouted, clenching his fists. “I’m not the monster!”

“I know,” Alex replied calmly. “I said, I’m not suspicious of you. If I were, you’d be seeing me right beside you a lot more often. As it is… you’re just unlucky.”

Xavier visibly relaxed and nodded sullenly.

Wednesday, all this time, continued observing him through the mirror. Unlike Alex, her doubts hadn’t gone away. She still hadn’t told either Alex or Dean that Xavier had been painting images of the very monster Alex had fought just minutes ago.

Enid was still breathing heavily, trying to manage the rising panic. Noticing this, Alex reached his hand back, allowing her to grab onto him.

Enid immediately clutched his hand. Feeling his warmth and confidence, she gradually began to calm down, ignoring the fact that her claws had lengthened again due to her overflowing emotions.

To be continued…

(So, basically, I’ve been thinking about it. And I’ve already come up with an ending for Wednesday’s arc. But we still have to get there. I was also thinking that Alex would visit the Oldest House. It’s located in New York, after all, and that city is right next to the state where Jericho is located. As for what happens next, we’re slowly moving towards the end of Wednesday’s arc. If I remember correctly, there will be a couple of events, and then, I think, the end. I think. I don’t know. I don’t remember it very well.)

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