Andrew knows someone is here and so does The Voice. Through his eyes, they had both seen the flicker of a flashlight through the window. And now, as the monster rips its way inside from one end of the house, he is being forced to run to the opposite end in order to prevent anyone from leaving through a back door.

He's never been put in this position. All day, The Voice has always instructed him to remain behind so he doesn't get in the chimera's way. But now, he no longer has the luxury of keeping his distance. She's demanding that he directly intervene, that he ensure that the monster is fed, even if it means that he'll have to kill its prey with his own two hands.

Before, this might not have bothered him. He'd watched so many people be killed so horrifically without any emotion whatsoever. But as he rounds the corner and sees a door open, he recognizes one of the women who emerges from it and suddenly feels the weight of his actions crashing down on him like an avalanche barreling down a mountain.

"Mrs. Wilson," he whispers to himself as he looks over at the horrified face of his freshman year history teacher. He's standing still now, rooted to the spot unable to figure out what his next move should be.

Inside his mind, The Voice screams. It demands that he attack the women, that he subdue them and call the monster to feast. But he can't bring himself to do what she's telling him. He can't hurt his former teacher, can't attack these terrified people running for their lives from something that they can't possibly understand.

Suddenly, he feels an incredible pain bursting inside his head. It's the first physical sensation he's felt all day and the agony of it brings him to his knees.

"I can't!" he yells aloud, "I can't do it! I won't!" He's trying to reason with The Voice. Trying to get her to stop screaming inside his mind, but it's not working. She won't stop, she'll make him do as she commands, even if she has to force him.

In horror, Andrew can see that his body is moving against his will, pushing itself out of the snow and start toward the women who are standing frozen, staring at him in stunned bewilderment.

"Run," he says, his mouth apparently the only part of his body he still has control over, "Run!"

------------------------------------------

His name is Andrew Whitefish, or at least that's what Grace thinks it is. She recognizes him. One of her students from a few years back, a lanky boy, friendly, but bad at history. For the life of her, she can't understand why he's here and why he's acting so strangely.

Beside her, Linda is also struggling to figure out why this kid, only a few years older than her grandson, has suddenly appeared. Though she doesn't know what he's doing here, she can tell that something is definitely wrong with him. Just a few seconds ago he was yelling about how he couldn't do something and now he's advancing toward her and Grace, pleading with them to run.

"Andrew?" Grace asks, wading through the snow past Linda and toward Andrew. She's keenly aware that the monster is tearing into the house behind her, that she's only got a matter of minutes before it reaches her. But that doesn't stop her from wanting to go and help her former student.

"Get away from me!" Andrew yells, as he staggers toward Grace. He's fighting as hard as he can, but no matter what he does his body keeps moving forward. He knows that if he gets ahold of her, he'll do anything to keep her from escaping, even if that means killing her.

Grace doesn't understand why Andrew is yelling at her like this, nor does she understand why he's moving so strangely, why he isn't walking so much as jerking toward her.

"Andrew, come with us, we can help you." She feels a strange calm wash over her, something about seeing a kid in need is making her put her own fears aside.

Without warning, Andrew lunges for her, leaping across the snow with startling speed. In an instant, the calm that Grace had felt so briefly vanishes, and panic envelopes her. She has no time to react, no time to get out of his way. She doesn't even realize that she instinctively pulls the trigger of her gun when she feels Andrew's icy fingers wrap around her neck.

As the sound of the shotgun rings through the air, Linda watches as both the kid and Grace topple to the ground. She's only a few feet away from them, but everything seems like it's happening a thousand miles away. She knows that she's got to get to Grace, that she needs to check to see if she's okay, but before she can cross the distance between them the wall of her house explodes in a shower of debris and she's sent flying across the yard.

Grace can feel the blood flowing from the gaping wound that she's inflicted on Andrew's chest, and the smell of it fills her nostrils. She can hear the monster bursting through the house, but the weight of his body is pinning her down and she can't move.

"I'm so sorry," Andrew says in ragged breaths, "so so sorry." Though his mind is going blank, he can feel his body pushing itself against his former teacher. The Voice won't let him die without fulfilling her final command.

In a daze, Linda looks up from the snow drift she landed in and sees the hideous beast closing in on Grace. This is the first time she's been able to get a good look at the creature and she can't take her eyes off of it. She's struck by how it manages to look both entirely familiar and completely foreign. Its body and head resemble those of a humongous bear covered in thick dark brown fur. But it isn't a bear. Not only does it have antlers jutting out from behind its ears, its arms are wrong. They're too long and bony and they end in gnarled, almost human-like, hands.

From underneath Andrew, Grace can see the gigantic creature towering above her. She's trying to push the boy away, but it isn't working. He's wrapped his arms around her like a vice and won't let go no matter what she does. All she can do is watch in horror as the monster bends over her and opens its bloody jaws.