Chapter 2

I crept toward the balcony, legs trembling. If my neighbors had an open balcony too, it would spell disaster.

I took a deep breath and braced myself to run.

If I saw that bear trying to get in, I would make a break for it. I'd bust out my door and run for my life.

It wasn't a great plan, but it was the best I had. Out there, I might die—but in here, I definitely would.

I kept hyping myself up, then threw my head out to look.

My reflection stared back from the glass.

Thank God. The neighbors had sealed their balcony. And the window frame wasn't even big enough for a full-grown brown bear to squeeze through.

I should've felt relieved I was safe but I wasn't.

Because I saw Sarah and her baby lying on the balcony floor, covered in blood. And that bear? It was praying to the damn moon.

When I was a kid, my grandma once told me, "If an animal starts praying to the moon like a person, it's not normal. It's turning into a shapeshifter, becoming human."

And right now, I watched the brown bear look up at the moon and pray, like it was worshiping it.

It was so focused it didn't notice me watching, nor notice Sarah twitch at its feet.

Sarah was still alive.

She stirred, startled by the sight before her. But she bit down her scream and stayed silent.

Bit by bit, she tried to crawl away.

She even made it halfway into the living room when she was dragged back by the bear, screaming her head off.

Sarah groaned in agony. The bear glanced at her, then turned back to the moon.

And then I saw something I wish I could forget forever.

The bear started eating Sarah alive.

It went for her stomach first.

Sarah's body spasmed. Her lips moved like she wanted to scream, but was too weak to.

I collapsed to the floor, scrambled backward on my hands and feet till I hit the living room wall.

I worked with tigers—I was their keeper at the zoo. I'd seen how tigers kill before.

Tigers go for the throat. They kill first, then eat.

That was how nature works. The animals made sure their prey was dead before feasting on it.

I'd never seen an animal eat something alive... except this bear.

My phone buzzed. A WhatsApp voice call popped up. I answered it without thinking.

"Why... didn't you save... me?" Sarah's voice was strained, and over the call, I could hear the chewing sounds.

Then I remembered Sarah and I had added each other on WhatsApp over some dumb building maintenance issue.

I whispered, shaking, "I just... I didn't have a way to help you. If I'd opened the door, we both would've died. I'm sorry, so sorry..."

"True..." Sarah coughed out a broken laugh. "It already ate... my stomach... I hate you... Lock your doors... and windows... Don't open up..."

The last thing I heard was the bear's furious roar. The call disconnected.

I sat there, crushed by guilt. Sarah hated me for not opening the door and I couldn't blame her. But even in the end, she warned me to keep myself safe.

Another call came in. It was Robert. I picked up.

His voice boomed with confidence. "Nicole, I'm here. I brought a team and we're in your complex. Where's the bear?"

I rasped, "Building 2, Unit 1804. It's my neighbor's place."

Robert didn't even question how a bear could end up in my neighbor's apartment. He just said, "We'll be right there."

Before he could hang up, I cut in, "Did you bring guns?"

Robert sounded irritated. "We've got tranquilizers, but I doubt we'll need them. Our trap nets are plenty strong.

"I've told you before, you need to be patient with animals. Love them, you know. If you hurt them even once, they'd never trust you again."

"No, I mean it. Real guns, the kind that kills," I emphasized.

"Nicole, what the hell kind of crap are you—"

"It ate a person."

"W-what?" Robert's voice shot up an octave. "Nicole, that's not something to joke about!"

"I'm not joking," I said flatly. I stared blankly at the balcony. "It's eating my neighbor right now.

"Come save her. She might still be alive. Maybe there's still time. Remember, bring guns."

Robert hung up. I believed that even Robert, who loved animals more than people, wouldn't defend the bear anymore.

Just then, banging noises came from the balcony.

I dragged myself over and looked. The bear was smashing the glass.

The glass eventually broke. The bear stuck out half its body through the shattered frame.

Like I thought, it wanted to get to me through the balcony.

I glanced behind it. Sarah's body was a mangled mess.

Sorrow bubbled up. I couldn't stop myself from grabbing a vase and hurling it at the bear's head.

Did it think it could come for me after eating Sarah? Hell no.

I grabbed every flowerpot on my balcony and chucked them all. The bear howled, backing off in pain.

One of the broken window shards sliced into its shoulder as it jerked back.

I watched it shake its head in agony. Got to admit, I felt satisfied.

The bear seemed to know it couldn't get to me through the balcony. So it stomped back to my front door and started pounding my door again.

Maybe it was the adrenaline or maybe it was knowing Robert was finally here, but I started yelling at the bear.

Me and that bear screamed at each other through the damn door—me cussing, it roaring. The whole hallway echoed with the noise.

A message came on my phone from Robert. [We're at your building.]

I paused to reply: [Take the stairs, not the elevator.]

The elevator was too small. And worse, the bear had probably figured out by now that it was where its food appeared.