Judy Westland - Judge

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"Beware of the Shadows"

The Messengers
Even from a young age Judy knew that her family life was different. Her father rarely spent a night at home, and many nights her mother cried herself to sleep. It wasn’t until she was in her early teens that Judy realized that her father was actually married to another woman who lived in Billings. He even had another daughter that Judy had never met.

Judy resented her half sister Maggie for years. She felt that Maggie had gotten the best of their father because he was home with her to read bedtime stories, to tuck her sister in to bed and Judy wanted that for herself. She tried to win her father over in hopes that he would leave his wife and come live with them, but it never happened. Eventually Judy realized that her father was never going to leave his wife.

When Maggie moved to Helena with her boyfriend Judy made a point to seek her out and introduce herself. She didn’t like seeing the pain in her sister’s eyes, and it made her realize that Maggie wasn’t to blame for their father’s behavior. Finally Judy was able to move on emotionally and build a life for herself.

She went to college and got a degree in Library Science and went to work for the Louis and Clark Library in Helena. For years she lived a quiet unassuming life. She didn’t date much and kept to herself. Then one night her life changed.

Judy was walking home from work when she heard a commotion going on in an empty house down the street from hers. Instinct told her to investigate, and when she did she almost couldn’t believe her eyes. Two men were fighting, and one of them just looked wrong. To Judy’s eyes they guy was unnaturally pale, and although it was cold there was no fog from his breath so he wasn’t breathing.

She helped the other man defeat the monster, and learned that her fellow hunter’s name was Matt Richardson. Over the next few months they became good friends, learning a lot about their new powers and meeting other hunters like Mark Barrister. Matt came often to the library to study, as did Mark.

Mark was everything Judy’s father was not. He tended to think about things in the long term and he was very dependable. Judy was drawn to these characteristics in him, and he was drawn to her ability to differentiate the good monsters from the bad. Although they became lovers, there was something about Mark’s behavior that she knew would bear watching.

Judy heard that Matt and another hunter of their circle were pursuing a werewolf when they were killed on a mountain. She tried to investigate, unwilling to believe that Mark had been involved in her friend’s death, but suspecting that he had.

After she learned about Mark's death, Maggie was able to help her through her grief. Judy began living for the hunt, vowing that she would never watch another hunter sacrifice others the way Mark had.