The wanted poster promised a reward.

His eyes, unnaturally yellow, stared,
Daring the lens to capture him. Cutthroat.
Dull sheen of saliva on grizzled chops.

Three dozen victims, listed with their towns,
Added relentless pressure due to those
Parentheses — another noose he slipped.

If he has secrets, undiscovered, so
Do I. His hairiness is a disguise.
Perhaps that snout appears but once a month.
Despite what he hides, he's insatiable.

                                                I visited her tomb. “How fared your love?”
                                                His third wife sighed. “Skirt-chasing, ravishing
                                                Was all he dreamed of,” ghost said. “But you stayed!”

                                                “I wed this wolf, night anchoring his lust.
                                                The wilderness had given him to me.”

He strayed, one time too many, so I left.

Tonight I've packed protection: shiny, cold,
Indecently empowered by a vow.

I step between the gateposts of his realm,
Where grave-eyed children dare not to intrude.

Beyond the tree line, over a steep ridge,
I'm sensing my estranged, shape-shifting spouse,
A louse, predator, where harsh winds growled.

A pack has punched through fog like ten knuckles,
Loud wolfsong paving twilight with unrest.
Their howling beckons, telegraphs an ache.

This casanova of the canids has
Sharp fangs, a lolling tongue, an appetite.

I spin a woman tunnel, wrap myself
With soul's protection, ready to disrupt.

He's different from when I saw him last.
And not four-legged — but a lycanthrope!

My weapon gleams. His eyes look horrified
When arms emerge to grab his jaw, then thrust
His wedding band straight down his greedy maw.

The pack runs off as he transmogrifies,
Disruptive wolf adventures left behind.

Reward's collected. Interviews denied.
I won't apologize for my wild side.