Cara descended the secret staircase from the pantry into the hidden room where Daniel had now spent most of the past few months, handgun loaded with silver bullets tucked in the back of her jeans. The lantern she had turned on earlier still shone brightly, and music was playing softly from the stereo she'd hooked up. John Lennon belted out, "Don't let me down."

Daniel beamed with that captivating smile as she walked in. He stood and joined in with the music for a few lines.

"I'm in love for the first time. Don't you know it's gonna last," he crooned for her. She beamed right back at him, giggling in spite of herself. She stepped up to the bars and joined him in the song.

"It's a love that lasts forever! It's a love that has no past!" they cried out together, laughing as the lines passed. She looked at those kind eyes and leaned into the bars to kiss him. She kissed him like it was the last time.

"I didn't know if you were going to make it down before I changed," he said, breaking his lips away just far enough to speak. "I'm glad I got to see you once more." She gritted her teeth. Once more. She felt the tears slipping from her eyes. God, she had wanted to hide it from him. She had wanted to wait until he changed, so she could hold him and kiss him one last time, and remember that smile. She didn't want their last moments together to be marred by fear.

But she couldn't hide it from him. He knew her.

"What's the matter?"

"I'm so sorry," she sobbed. "I really do love you. I want you to know that."

"I love you too. I think more than I've ever loved anyone," he said calmly, but fear was creeping into his voice. "What's happened?"

"We know why they were after you, why they're still after you. You're part of their plan, the key to it, to bringing about the end of the world."

"What?" Daniel gasped, a nervous laugh coming out.

"They're going to use you to raise the devil from Hell. The actual fucking devil, and it would be the end of all life. I..." She gently let go of him and took the gun out of her waistband. He eyed it nervously, breathing deep. "There's too much at stake. I have to do this Daniel. I'm so sorry."

He nodded, taking a deep breath and did his best to summon a gentle smile to his face.

"It's okay, Cara. I understand. You've given me more than I could have hoped for. Just..." He reached through the bars and took her free hand, holding it tight. "I love you, that's all you have to remember." Daniel let his eyes close. Cara looked at him and felt his hand shaking. She hated herself. She hated this world. She thought once Daniel was gone, maybe she would shoot herself too and be done with all the pain.  Perhaps.

Cara raised the gun, slipping her hand through the bars so that the barrel rested inches in front of his heart. She would say I love you, just before pulling the trigger. She wanted those to be the last words he heard. She took one last moment to study his face, to remember it. Cara prayed she wouldn't see his spirit afterwards, she didn't know if she could take that.

"I –" she began, but a claw slashed up. Daniel's free hand had sprung claws, which now whipped into the gun and Cara's hand. Blood spurted out onto Daniel's face, as Cara's hand between her middle and ring finger was sliced open. Her finger tapped the trigger and fired a single shot as the gun was knocked clean of her hand, but the bullet hit Daniel's shoulder instead of his heart.

Cara stumbled back and so did Daniel. His eyes had shot open and he gazed at Cara in terror, then back at his changing hand in horror. Cara knew in that moment it had not been intentional, it was not some scheme by him to hurt her and try and escape. No, the wolf had taken over, rapidly. It was a creature built to survive, and Cara had forgotten that.

"Cara, I..." Daniel began, but he was too far gone by that point. His throat constricted as his vocal cords began to change to that of the wolf. His limbs grew, and the claws lashed out, ripping the clothes he'd been wearing to pieces.

Cara looked around desperately for her gun, but it had been knocked to the far end of the cell. It was out of her reach. But she needed to put an end to this.

She reached over to one of the smaller blankets stockpiled on the chair in the corner, and wrapped it tight around her wounded hand. It stung horribly, but she'd have to deal with it later. She didn't want Daniel to suffer as this monster any longer than he had to. She made her way up the stairs to her bedroom to get her other gun.