Jackson glanced lazily to his partner, only one hand on the steering wheel as he drove down the dusted road. The shorter man was reading the reports again. “Two corpses found outside the city near the wounds… animal-like gashes in chest, pierced sternum and ribs. Wrists crushed, as if by cuffs… Body practically drained of blood. Found within one week of each other in same location. Wounds consistent with killed goats found month earlier… possible serial killer who has moved on from animals...” He folded the papers up and grabbed the warm plastic bottle of coke in the drink holder. After drinking and whipping his lips satisfactorily, the short Pete mumbled. “I still just can’t imagine a guy drinking another guy’s blood.”
Jackson smirked. “People do weird, weird things Petey. Of all the things I’ve seen, somebody drinking blood is probably pretty low on the list of weird shit.”  
“But what about poisoning?” He waved his hands about. “I don’t think you could just sit down and drink two gallons of blood or however much there is in a man without getting sick or something!”
“Maybe he didn’t drink it. Maybe he just put it in bottles or something.” Jackson shrugged and leaned on the breaks, slowing the old, tan cattilac to a stop along the edge of drying forest. He always preferred to drive his own car instead of the nicer, labeled police cars.  “We are investigators, you know.” The two got out of the car, stretching their legs and shoulders as they walked. Pete carried his big camera around his neck. Jackson walked into the woods. The bodies had already been removed, and the area directly around them searched. Their job was to go through the woods. He stepped over an arching tree-root, side pressing against some bushes.
“Jack!” Pete yelled harshly. “Look! Jackson, there’s something there!” The short, bald man’s face was white pale with budging eyes.
Gaining his balance against the ground, he looked up. For a split second, his eyes meet the glaze of some creature. It stood like a man, but was obviously inhuman, with golden reptilian eyes.  “What the…” Before Jackson could say the explicative, the thing began to run. “Hey!” He screamed. “Come on!”
The two police investigators ran in the woods. They could feel bugs and spindly plants slap against their face and ankles, heavy boots crushing the autumn leaves below. At the farthest reach of their eyesight, they could see the figure up ahead. It was much more nimble, bouncing and leaping against the trees. Jackson pushed forward, hand gripping against his gun. Pete followed shortly behind with his camera read.
The creature jumped against a tree. They could hear long, thick claws press against the bark as it began to pull itself up into the thick leaves. In reached a long limb out for a branch and grabbed it. The creature was too nervous, and grabbed to hard. The tree branch snapped and he fell down. Jackson caught up, tightly holding his gun toward the thing’s skull. “Freeze!”
Pete was short behind. Even before he came to a complete stop, he began to take pictures of the fallen beast.  It squinted its eyes, curling up and trying to cover its face.
“What the hell is it?” Jackson barked. He took a tentative step closer, still pointing the hand gun.
Pete lowered his camera. “Jackson… look at the claws.” The beast looked up slightly at the captures. It’s long, curling claws were tipped in dark-red stains. Blood. They could see its mouth too was tainted with the dry fluid.  
Jackson took another step forward. “It’s the killer.”
“Yah,” Pete said. “But what is it?”
The thing had fur and scaly, dry skin, long claws and pointed ears and bony spikes along its back. Yet, Jackson could see, that despite the yellow eyes, its face was human.  It was a face that as a police officer he had seen before- scared, frightful, anxious. It was also a face he had, as a human, seen before. The stern gaze of Jackson’s dark eyes meet long and cold with the beast’s quivering reptilian eyes. “…Dominic?”
Pete’s jaw slacked, turning to look at his partner. The pointed ears of the beast shook slightly with familiarity.
“Dominic Stanford…?” Jackson lowered his gun slightly, face confused.
The creature leaned forward, pressing its knuckles against the ground. He opened his mouth of sharp teeth and let out a growl. It was a raspy, coughing groan. Pete flashed another picture quickly, trying to intimidate it. “Jackson what are you doing?!”
He waved his hand at his partner.  “Its face… Pete, I think I know this guy.”
“That’s not a guy!” The short man protested.
The creature opened its mouth again. It groaned, long and breathy, throat rumbling. The beast coughed, and tried again. “Garrrrrrr...yarrr…. yessssss.”
“Did it just say yes?” Pete stared. He turned his head quickly at Jackson, who seemed petrified in confusion. “Jackson, did it just say yes?”
There was a rustle of leaves and bark, and the beast began to run. It lumbered on for legs, chest leaning forward. Snapped out of his still state, Jackson chased the beast hotly. His legs were faster with determination now.
The thing reached a small creek, leaping nimbly over. The human pressed his toes into the mud, digging his boots down. Jackson shot a loud warning near the feet of the creature. It stopped suddenly.
“Is that you, Dominic?” He held the weapon up, eyes determined and sure. Jackson shouted now. “Dominic, is that you?”
“Rrr…rrr… yes. Yes, Dom…inic.” He cringed.
The police officer took a deep heavy breath. “Did you kill those people?”
His long pointed ears folded backwards.  “Nro! No!” He cried out. “No! But… rrg… goat. Just goat.”
“You killed the goats?”
“Yes.” Dominic shuffled forward. “Not… not the man. I setted up.”
Pete shuffled forward, just now catching up with his partner. Jackson leaned his weight forward on the words. “You what?”
“I was set up, rr, framed!” He called out gruffly. He curled his feet, claws digging softly against the earth. “Made… to look like I, to take blame.”
Jackson couldn’t take the question anymore.  “Dominic, what the hell happened to you?”
The creature rubbed his wrist against his furred chest, trying to signal something. “Gift from God.”
The bald Pete looked impatiently at his partner. “You know this thing?”
“Yah.” He spoke softly. “Went to school with him… was a weird kid. Ate bugs. Kids used to make fun of him because he would, like, growl.” Jackson lifted his head, yelling across the creek again. “Dominic, can you prove you were framed?”
The semi-human waved his head around anxiously. “Yes, yes I can.” His arms and joints twitched.
“What did the person who killed the humans look like?” He shouted.
“Stop it!” Dominic jumped forward, bearing his chest, and roared. “Stop it! Stop making me remember!” He rumbled with anger, eyes glowing.  Jackson held up his gun again, pointing it directly at the creature’s head.
“Remember what?” Pete barked.
The long-clawed beast huffed in exasperation. His anger cooled quickly, eyes beginning to water. He turned his head to look at Jackson with a sympathetic face. “You know me… I wasn’t a good human. God let me be an animal.”
Jackson took a second to respond. “Dominic, you’re going to have to come with us. We’re going to need you to go to-“
“NO!” He roared again. His voice broke now, cackling with held back tears. “I don’t want to remember anything else. I’m… not human now. Please don’t make me go back.”
“Dominic…” He cooed, trying to sound supportive. The beast just blinked, flipping quickly on to its legs. He dashed off, too fast for them to capture. The two police men could see the creature propel itself into the trees and disappear. They didn’t even try to run.
Pete looked wearily to his side. “Jackson… what the hell, I mean… what are we going to say?”
Jackson let his arm fall down, tucking his gun back into the pouch on his side. “I… I don’t know. I just… I…” He didn’t complete his thought. They just let it be silent for a while.