Cycle of the Werewolf (AUGUST)

Cycle of the Werewolf

AUGUST

"Sure, I think it's a werewolf," Police Sheriff Neary says. He is speaking very loudly, and everyone in Stan’s Barber Shop stops talking and looks at him. August is almost over. It has been the hottest August anyone can remember in Tarker’s Mills.

Tonight the moon will be only one day past full. So everyone in the town is waiting, terrified, expecting the worst. Sheriff Neary continues speaking. He is speaking with authority about the subject. He is speaking as if he understands the situation. Sheriff Neary has only a high school education.

Neary is a large, fat man. And in high school the only thing he was really good at was scoring touchdowns for the high school football team, the Tarker’s Mills Tigers. His grades were terrible, in general - a few C’s and mostly D’s.

“There are some guys,” Neary tells the people in the barber shop, “who are like two people. They have two personalities, you know. I call them fucking schizos. Schizo - frenics. It’s all psychological.” 

He pauses and enjoys how the people are looking at him, as if he knew what he was talking about. He continues, “Now this guy, that’s what I think he’s like - two people. I don’t think he knows what he’s doing when the moon gets full and he goes out and kills somebody. He could be anybody in town.”

“Anybody. He could be a teller in a bank. He could work at a gas station on the highway. Maybe he’s someone here right now. Maybe he’s just an animal on the inside, and he looks perfectly normal on the outside. Yeah, that’s what I think.”

“But, do I think there’s a guy who grows a tail and howls at the moon…no. That shit is for kids.” “What about the Coslaw boy, Neary? Marty Coslaw?” Stan asks, as he carefully cuts Sheriff Neary’s hair off his fat head. His scissors go snip… snip… snip.

“That just proves what I said,” Neary answers impatiently. “That shit’s for kids.” In fact, he feels impatient about what happened with Marty Coslaw. Marty is the first person to actually see the freak who has killed six people in his town, including Neary’s good friend Alfie Knopfler.

But is Neary allowed to interview the boy? No. Does Neary even know where the boy is? No! Police Sheriff Neary has to use the information the State Police have on the case. And he had to almost beg them, plead with them, to get that information.

Neary thinks the State Police treat him with disrespect because he is only a small town cop, and that he is not able to “tie his own shoes”. And the report he received from the State Police! He should just use that to clean his own ass after taking a shit.

According to what the Coslaw kid said, this “beast” was about two and a half meters tall. It was naked. It was covered with dark hair all over its body. It had big teeth and green eyes. And it smelled terrible. It had claws, but the claws looked like hands. He thought it had a tail. A tail! Bullshit, thought Neary.

“Maybe,” Kenny Franklin says. He is sitting in a chair next to the wall waiting for his turn to get his haircut. “Maybe it’s some kind of disguise or costume the guy puts on. Like a mask, maybe, you know.” “I don’t believe it,” Neary says with force. He shakes his head from side to side to emphasize his point.

Stan, the barber, has to pull his scissors away from the back of Neary’s head. He almost stabs Neary’s fat neck with the scissors when he shakes his head. “No way! I don’t believe it one bit! The kid heard a lot of stories about werewolves at school.” 

“That’s what he said. You know how kids can invent things in their heads. Especially the Coslaw boy who has plenty of time just sitting in that chair of his. The idea just grows in his mind. It’s all psycho-fuckin’-logical, you see.” 

“If it had been you, Kenny, who came out of the bushes that night, the boy would have thought you were a wolf!” Kenny laughs a little, but he does not think it is very funny. “Nope,” Neary continues. “The kid’s story is just not believable at all.”

Neary had read the report from the State Police (they had spoken to Marty at his aunt and uncle’s house in the north of the state). He was disappointed with it, and did not believe any of it. But when Neary had read the report, he ignored a very important line that Marty had said: 

“Four firecrackers exploded on the side of his face - I guess you can call it a face. They exploded right next to his eye and I think his eye was hurt badly. It was his left eye.” 

If Sheriff Neary had used his high school intellect to analyze that line (and no, he had not analyzed that important line), he would have understood why the State Police treated him like an amateur cop. Because in that hot August, there was only one person in the whole town who was using a patch over their eye.

And it was impossible to think that that person was the killer. Of all the people in the town, it was impossible. Neary would have believed his own mother was the killer before he would have believed the person wearing the eyepatch was the killer.

"There's only one thing that'll solve this case," Neary says. He points his finger at the four or five men waiting for their Sunday morning haircuts. “The one thing that will solve this case is good police work. And I intend to be the guy who does that good police work.”

“When I arrest that lunatic, those State Police pukes are going to think again about us small town cops.” Neary imagined the scene in his mind. He smiled. “It could be anyone,” he says. “It could be a bank teller… a gas station worker… just some guy you have beers with at the bar.”

“But good police work will solve this case. You just watch!” But Police Sheriff Neary’s good police work comes to an end that night when a hairy, moon-silvered arm reaches through the open window of his car. He is parked out on a dirt road at the end of town. It is a road where young people come to race their cars.

The arm takes him under his chin. There is a low, snorting growl. And there is a terrible smell, like something you would smell at the lion house in a zoo. His head is pulled towards the car window and he looks into one green eye.

He sees the fur. He sees the face that is long and furry, like a wolf’s face. And then the lips on the face move back and Neary sees the teeth. The beast runs a claw along Neary’s face, almost playfully, and one of his cheeks is ripped away, like a slice of meat. 

Neary’s teeth are exposed through the hole in his cheek. Blood flies everywhere. He can feel it running down the front of his shirt. It is warm. He screams. He screams out of his mouth and out of his cheek.

Over the beast’s massive shoulders, he can see the moon. It is full, fat and white. Neary forgets all about the gun he keeps in his car. And he forgets about the gun he keeps on his belt. He forgets all about how this thing is schizo-frenic, psychological. He forgets all about good police work. 

Instead, he remembers something Kenny Franklin said in the barber shop that morning. Maybe it’s some kind of disguise or costume this guy puts on. Like a mask or something. You know.

And so, as the werewolf closes its claws on Neary’s throat, Neary reaches for its face. With both hands he pulls on the fur of the wolf’s face. He hopes desperately that the mask will come off, and the elastic band holding it in place will break. Then he will see the killer.

But nothing happens except for a roar of pain and anger from the beast. It swings one of its hands with its claws and yes, Neary can see it is a hand. It is not human and it is not animal, but it is a hand. The boy was right. The claw-hand opens Neary’s throat to the bone. 

Blood jets over the car’s front window. The blood falls into a bottle of beer that is sitting between Police Sheriff Neary’s legs. The werewolf’s other claw-hand takes Neary’s recently cut hair and pulls him out of the car window.

The werewolf howls once, in victory and triumph, and then it sticks its long, furry face into Neary’s open neck. It feeds while the beer spills out of the bottle and makes a puddle on the floor of the car. So much for schizo-frenics. So much for psychology. So much for good police work.

AUGUST

---

Cycle of the Werewolf
Ciclo do lobisomem

AUGUST
Augosto

"Sure, I think it's a werewolf," Police Sheriff Neary says.
"Claro, acho que é um lobisomem", diz o xerife Neary.

He is speaking very loudly, and everyone in Stan’s Barber Shop stops talking and looks at him.
Ele está falando muito alto e todos na barbearia do Stan param de falar e olham para ele.

August is almost over.
Agosto está quase acabando.

It has been the hottest August anyone can remember in Tarker’s Mills.
Foi o agosto mais quente de que alguém se lembra em Tarker's Mills.

Tonight the moon will be only one day past full.
Hoje à noite a lua terá apenas um dia de cheia.

So everyone in the town is waiting, terrified, expecting the worst.
Então todos na cidade estão esperando, apavorados, esperando o pior.

Sheriff Neary continues speaking.
Xerife Neary continua falando.

He is speaking with authority about the subject.
Ele está falando com autoridade sobre o assunto.

He is speaking as if he understands the situation.
Ele está falando como se entendesse a situação.

Sheriff Neary has only a high school education.
O xerife Neary tem apenas o ensino médio.

Neary is a large, fat man.
Neary é um homem grande e gordo.

And in high school the only thing he was really good at was scoring touchdowns for the high school football team, the Tarker’s Mills Tigers.
E no ensino médio, a única coisa em que ele era realmente bom era marcar touchdowns para o time de futebol da escola, os Tarker's Mills Tigres.

His grades were terrible, in general - a few C’s and mostly D’s.
Suas notas eram terríveis, em geral - alguns 7 e principalmente 6.

“There are some guys,” Neary tells the people in the barber shop, “who are like two people.
“Existem alguns caras”, Neary diz às pessoas na barbearia, “que são como duas pessoas.

They have two personalities, you know.
Eles têm duas personalidades, você sabe.

I call them fucking schizos. Schizo - frenics.
Eu os chamo de malditos esquizofrênicos. Esquizo - frenéticos.

It’s all psychological.”
É tudo psicológico.”

He pauses and enjoys how the people are looking at him, as if he knew what he was talking about.
Ele faz uma pausa e aprecia como as pessoas estão olhando para ele, como se ele soubesse do que estava falando.

He continues, “Now this guy, that’s what I think he’s like - two people.
Ele continua, “Agora esse cara, é assim que eu acho que ele é - duas pessoas.

I don’t think he knows what he’s doing when the moon gets full and he goes out and kills somebody.
Acho que ele não sabe o que está fazendo quando a lua fica cheia e ele sai e mata alguém.

He could be anybody in town.
Ele pode ser qualquer um na cidade.

Anybody.
Qualquer pessoa.

He could be a teller in a bank.
Ele poderia ser um caixa em um banco.

He could work at a gas station on the highway.
Ele poderia trabalhar em um posto de gasolina na rodovia.

Maybe he’s someone here right now.
Talvez ele seja alguém aqui agora.

Maybe he’s just an animal on the inside, and he looks perfectly normal on the outside.
Talvez ele seja apenas um animal por dentro e pareça perfeitamente normal por fora.

Yeah, that’s what I think.
Sim, é o que eu acho.

But, do I think there’s a guy who grows a tail and howls at the moon? No.
Mas, eu acho que há um cara que cresce um rabo e uiva para a lua? Não.

That shit is for kids.”
Essa merda é para crianças.”

“What about the Coslaw boy, Neary? Marty Coslaw?”
“E o menino Coslaw, Neary? Marty Coslaw?

Stan asks, as he carefully cuts Sheriff Neary’s hair off his fat head.
Stan pergunta, enquanto corta cuidadosamente o cabelo da cabeça gorda do xerife Neary.

His scissors go snip… snip… snip.
A tesoura faz um barulho de snip…snip…snip.

“That just proves what I said,” Neary answers impatiently.
“Isso só prova o que eu disse”, responde Neary com impaciência.

“That shit’s for kids.”
“Essa merda é para crianças.”

In fact, he feels impatient about what happened with Marty Coslaw.
Na verdade, ele está impaciente com o que aconteceu com Marty Coslaw.

Marty is the first person to actually see the freak who has killed six people in his town,
Marty é a primeira pessoa a realmente ver a aberração que matou seis pessoas em sua cidade,

including Neary’s good friend Alfie Knopfler.
incluindo o grande amigo de Neary, Alfie Knopfler.

But is Neary allowed to interview the boy? No.
Mas Neary tem permissão para entrevistar o menino? Não.

Does Neary even know where the boy is? No!
Neary ao menos sabe onde está o menino? Não!

Police Sheriff Neary has to use the information the State Police have on the case.
O xerife Neary precisa usar as informações que a Polícia Estadual tem sobre o caso.

And he had to almost beg them, plead with them, to get that information.
E ele quase teve que suplicar, implorar, para conseguir aquela informação.

Neary thinks the State Police treat him with disrespect because he is only a small town cop, and that he is not able to “tie his own shoes”.
Neary acha que a Polícia Estadual o trata com desrespeito porque ele é apenas um policial de cidade pequena e não consegue “amarrar os próprios sapatos”.

And the report he received from the State Police!
E o relatório que recebeu da Polícia Estadual!

He should just use that to clean his own ass after taking a shit.
Ele deveria usar isso para limpar a própria bunda depois de cagar.

According to what the Coslaw kid said, this “beast” was about two and a half meters tall.
Segundo o que o garoto Coslaw disse, essa “besta” tinha cerca de dois metros e meio de altura.

It was naked.
Estava nu.

It was covered with dark hair all over its body.
Estava coberto de pelos escuros por todo o corpo.

It had big teeth and green eyes.
Tinha dentes grandes e olhos verdes.

And it smelled terrible.
E cheirava muito mal.

It had claws, but the claws looked like hands.
Tinha garras, mas as garras pareciam mãos.

He thought it had a tail.
Ele pensou que tinha uma cauda.

A tail! Bullshit, thought Neary.
Uma cauda! Besteira, pensou Neary.

“Maybe,” Kenny Franklin says.
“Talvez”, diz Kenny Franklin.

He is sitting in a chair next to the wall waiting for his turn to get his haircut.
Ele está sentado em uma cadeira perto da parede esperando sua vez de cortar o cabelo.

“Maybe it’s some kind of disguise or costume the guy puts on.
“Talvez seja algum tipo de disfarce ou fantasia que o cara coloca.

Like a mask, maybe, you know.”
Como uma máscara, talvez, você sabe.”

“I don’t believe it,” Neary says with force.
“Não acredito”, diz Neary com veemência.

He shakes his head from side to side to emphasize his point.
Ele balança a cabeça de um lado para o outro para enfatizar seu ponto.

Stan, the barber, has to pull his scissors away from the back of Neary’s head.
Stan, o barbeiro, precisa tirar a tesoura da nuca de Neary.

He almost stabs Neary’s fat neck with the scissors when he shakes his head.
Ele quase esfaqueia o pescoço gordo de Neary com a tesoura quando ele balança a cabeça.

“No way! I don’t believe it one bit!
"Sem chance! não acredito nem um pouco!

The kid heard a lot of stories about werewolves at school.
O garoto ouviu muitas histórias sobre lobisomens na escola.

That’s what he said.
Isso foi o que ele disse.

You know how kids can invent things in their heads.
Você sabe como as crianças podem inventar coisas em suas cabeças.

Especially the Coslaw boy who has plenty of time just sitting in that chair of his.”
Especialmente o garoto Coslaw, que tem muito tempo apenas sentado naquela cadeira dele.”

The idea just grows in his mind.
A ideia apenas cresce em sua mente.

“It’s all psycho-fuckin’-logical, you see.
“É tudo psico-porra-lógico, sabe.

If it had been you, Kenny, who came out of the bushes that night, the boy would have thought you were a wolf!”
Se fosse você, Kenny, quem saiu dos arbustos naquela noite, o menino pensaria que você era um lobo!”

Kenny laughs a little, but he does not think it is very funny.
Kenny ri um pouco, mas não acha muita graça.

“Nope,” Neary continues.
“Não”, continua Neary.

“The kid’s story is just not believable at all.”
“A história do garoto não é nada crível.”

Neary had read the report from the State Police
Neary tinha lido o relatório da Polícia Estadual

(they had spoken to Marty at his aunt and uncle’s house in the north of the state).
(falaram com Marty na casa de seus tios no norte do estado).

He was disappointed with it, and did not believe any of it.
Ele ficou desapontado com ele e não acreditou em nada disso.

But when Neary had read the report, he ignored a very important line that Marty had said:
Mas quando Neary leu o relatório, ele ignorou uma linha muito importante que Marty havia dito:

“Four firecrackers exploded on the side of his face - I guess you can call it a face.
“Quatro bombinhas explodiram na lateral do rosto dele – acho que dá para chamar de rosto.

They exploded right next to his eye and I think his eye was hurt badly.
Elas explodiram bem perto de seu olho e acho que seu olho estava gravemente ferido.

It was his left eye.”
Era o olho esquerdo.”

If Sheriff Neary had used his high school intellect to analyze that line
Se o xerife Neary tivesse usado seu intelecto de colegial para analisar aquela linha

(and no, he had not analyzed that important line),
(e não, ele não havia analisado aquela linha importante),

he would have understood why the State Police treated him like an amateur cop.
ele teria entendido por que a Polícia Estadual o tratou como um policial amador.

Because in that hot August, there was only one person in the whole town who was using a patch over their eye.
Porque naquele agosto quente, havia apenas uma pessoa em toda a cidade que usava um tapa-olho.

And it was impossible to think that that person was the killer.
E era impossível pensar que aquela pessoa era o assassino.

Of all the people in the town, it was impossible.
De todas as pessoas na cidade, era impossível.

Neary would have believed his own mother was the killer before he would have believed the person wearing the eyepatch was the killer.
Neary teria acreditado que sua própria mãe era a assassina antes de acreditar que a pessoa que usava o tapa-olho era o assassino.

"There's only one thing that'll solve this case," Neary says.
"Só há uma coisa que resolverá este caso", diz Neary.

He points his finger at the four or five men waiting for their Sunday morning haircuts.
Ele aponta o dedo para os quatro ou cinco homens esperando para cortar o cabelo no domingo de manhã.

“The one thing that will solve this case is good police work.
“A única coisa que resolverá este caso é um bom trabalho policial.

And I intend to be the guy who does that good police work.
E pretendo ser o cara que faz esse bom trabalho policial.

When I arrest that lunatic, those State Police pukes are going to think again about us small town cops.”
Quando eu prender aquele lunático, aqueles merdas de Policiais Estaduais vão pensar duas vezes sobre nós policiais de cidade pequna.”

Neary imagined the scene in his mind.
Neary imaginou a cena em sua mente.

He smiled.
Ele sorriu.

“It could be anyone,” he says.
“Pode ser qualquer um”, diz.

“It could be a bank teller…
“Pode ser um caixa de banco…

a gas station worker…
um funcionário de um posto de gasolina…

just some guy you have beers with at the bar.
apenas um cara com quem você toma umas cervejas no bar.

But good police work will solve this case.
Mas um bom trabalho policial resolverá este caso.

You just watch!”
Vocês vão ver”!

But Police Sheriff Neary’s good police work comes to an end that night when a hairy, moon-silvered arm reaches through the open window of his car.
Mas o bom trabalho policial do xerife Neary chega ao fim naquela noite, quando um braço peludo e prateado se estende pela janela aberta de seu carro.

He is parked out on a dirt road at the end of town.
Ele está estacionado em uma estrada de terra no final da cidade.

It is a road where young people come to race their cars.
É uma estrada onde os jovens vêm para correr com seus carros.

The arm takes him under his chin.
O braço o leva sob o queixo.

There is a low, snorting growl.
Há um rosnado bufando baixo.

And there is a terrible smell, like something you would smell at the lion house in a zoo.
E há um cheiro terrível, como algo que você sentiria na gaiola do leão em um zoológico.

His head is pulled towards the car window and he looks into one green eye.
Sua cabeça é puxada para a janela do carro e ele olha para dentro de um olho verde.

He sees the fur.
Ele vê o pelo.

He sees the face that is long and furry, like a wolf’s face.
Ele vê o rosto comprido e peludo, como o rosto de um lobo.

And then the lips on the face move back and Neary sees the teeth.
E então os lábios do rosto se movem para trás e Neary vê os dentes.

The beast runs a claw along Neary’s face, almost playfully,
A fera passa uma garra pelo rosto de Neary, quase de brincadeira,

and one of his cheeks is ripped away, like a slice of meat.
e uma de suas bochechas é arrancada, como uma fatia de carne.

Neary’s teeth are exposed through the hole in his cheek.
Os dentes de Neary estão expostos através do buraco em sua bochecha.

Blood flies everywhere.
Sangue voa por toda parte.

He can feel it running down the front of his shirt.
Ele pode senti-lo escorrendo pela frente de sua camisa.

It is warm.
Está quente.

He screams.
Ele grita.

He screams out of his mouth and out of his cheek.
Ele grita pela boca e pela bochecha.

Over the beast’s massive shoulders, he can see the moon.
Sobre os ombros maciços da fera, ele pode ver a lua.

It is full, fat and white.
Está cheia, gorda e branca.

Neary forgets all about the gun he keeps in his car.
Neary esquece tudo sobre a arma que guarda em seu carro.

And he forgets about the gun he keeps on his belt.
E ele se esquece da arma que guarda no cinto.

He forgets all about how this thing is schizo-frenic, psychological.
Ele se esquece de como essa coisa é esquizofrênica, psicológica.

He forgets all about good police work.
Ele esquece tudo sobre o bom trabalho policial.

Instead, he remembers something Kenny Franklin said in the barber shop that morning.
Em vez disso, ele se lembra de algo que Kenny Franklin disse na barbearia naquela manhã.

Maybe it’s some kind of disguise or costume this guy puts on.
Talvez seja algum tipo de disfarce ou fantasia que esse cara usa.

Like a mask or something.
Como uma máscara ou algo assim.

You know.”
Você sabe.”

And so, as the werewolf closes its claws on Neary’s throat, Neary reaches for its face.
E assim, enquanto o lobisomem fecha suas garras na garganta de Neary, Neary estende a mão em direção ao seu rosto.

With both hands he pulls on the fur of the wolf’s face.
Com as duas mãos ele puxa o pelo do rosto do lobo.

He hopes desperately that the mask will come off, and the elastic band holding it in place will break.
Ele espera desesperadamente que a máscara caia e o elástico que a mantém no lugar se quebre.

Then he will see the killer.
Então ele verá o assassino.

But nothing happens except for a roar of pain and anger from the beast.
Mas nada acontece, exceto por um rugido de dor e raiva da besta.

It swings one of its hands with its claws and yes, Neary can see it is a hand.
Ele balança uma das mãos com as garras e, sim, Neary pode ver que é uma mão.

It is not human and it is not animal, but it is a hand.
Não é humana e não é animal, mas é uma mão.

The boy was right.
O menino estava certo.

The claw-hand opens Neary’s throat to the bone.
A mão com garras abre a garganta de Neary até o osso.

Blood jets over the car’s front window.
Jatos de sangue voam sobre a janela da frente do carro.

The blood falls into a bottle of beer that is sitting between Police Sheriff Neary’s legs.
O sangue cai em uma garrafa de cerveja que está entre as pernas do xerife Neary.

The werewolf’s other claw-hand takes Neary’s recently cut hair and pulls him out of the car window.
A outra mão com garras do lobisomem pega o cabelo recém-cortado de Neary e o puxa pela janela do carro.

The werewolf howls once, in victory and triumph, and then it sticks its long, furry face into Neary’s open neck.
O lobisomem uiva uma vez, em vitória e triunfo, e então enfia seu rosto comprido e peludo no pescoço aberto de Neary.

It feeds while the beer spills out of the bottle and makes a puddle on the floor of the car.
Ele se alimenta enquanto a cerveja derrama da garrafa e faz uma poça no chão do carro.

So much for schizo-frenics.
Pode esquecer dos esquizofrênicos.

So much for psychology.
Pode esquecer da psicologia.

So much for good police work.
Pode esquecer do bom trabalho policial.