I found the stump halfway across the top, tucked myself inside, and waited for the second whistle. At the ten-minute mark there was a faint noise from below and in a few moments came the shouts as the first of the Wolves were routed from their hiding spots.
I was snug in my stump when I heard the sounds of feet approach the top of the flagged area. "See anything?" I heard someone whisper.
"Nope. They must be lower," another voice replied. Hunters. I held my breath as they passed close by me, but my hiding spot was perfect. From the outside it didn't look like anyone could fit inside the stump, and they walked on without even slowing down.
When they'd gone I breathed out and lay against the wall of the stump to await the end when I would be declared the victor. I idly glanced up at the sky between the canopy of trees. The sun was setting and soon the whole hillside would be enveloped in darkness. I hoped I wouldn't have to wait too long for the others to be captured.
After a half hour my hopes were dashed. I peeked out of my rotten stump. Nothing stirred around my hiding spot. Everyone else must have been caught and marched down to the road. That meant I was the winner, and a lonely one. The area was as quiet as a graveyard until an ill-omened wind blew through the brush and trees. It stirred the forest enough to cast a foreboding shadow over my thoughts.
I decided it was time to go back to the road, Hunters be damned. Winning wasn't worth scaring myself silly.
Unfortunately, something had every intention of scaring me silly as I heard a scream from above me. It was from a man, and by the sounds of it he was in a lot of trouble. Naturally I did what any person would do: I looked around for someone else to go up there and see what was wrong. There was still no soul in sight.
"Hello!" I called down the hill. No answer. Not even a stir of a leaf. I guessed they'd forgotten about me. That was understandable. I didn't have family waiting for me at the road, and Olivia was distracted managing the whole affair to focus solely on me.
There was another cry, and this one sounded strangled. It cut off and there was silence. I pursed my lips and dove into the thick brush above the flags. Most of the paths stopped at the flagged area, but there were a few that climbed up to the old logging road. I scrambled up those and in a few minutes reached the logging road. There was a tall lip that needed scaling, but I clamored over it and looked around. It was a cleared path in the trees that wound around the hill. Sprouts of trees twenty feet high grew in the path, but for the most part it was easy to see up and down the road for about twenty yards each way. By this time it was dark and the only light was from the twinkling stars in the sky.
"Hello?" I called out.
"Help! Help!" a voice called out. It came from up the road.
I hurried up the path and around the bend. I skidded to a stop when my eyes fell on a figure lying in the road. It was Steuben, and he cowered beneath a large shadow that hunched over him on four long, muscular, fur-covered limbs. It was covered in dark fur and I could hear its heavy breathing. It was some sort of large dog, but nothing like I'd ever seen before. The creature froze and its head whipped around. I gasped when I beheld a pair of yellow eyes that glared at me like an intruder. This was no dog. This was something more supernatural, and angry.
I stumbled backwards as the creature stepped off the terrified man and sauntered toward me. My heart beat like a drum and my eyes widened in horror as the creature stood on two legs and snarled at me. The monster was silhouetted against the bright night sky and I could see its fangs drip with drool.
I hoped Steuben would help me, but he scrambled to his feet and took off up the road. In a few seconds I was alone with the beast. It dropped back to its four legs and circled me.
I couldn't think of anything better to do than to pick up a stick and treat it like a giant dog. "S-shoo! G-go away!" I yelled at it.
I waved the stick at its face, but the creature batted it out of my hand. The stick clattered to the ground a few yards away and the thing snarled at me. In a flash the creature jumped on me and pinned my shoulders to the ground. Its horrible breath washed over me as it stuck its face into mine. I turned away and felt the locket slide across my shirt. The creature froze. It leaned down and sniffed me with its long snout. I shut my eyes and held my breath. I flinched when the thing pushed its nose against the locket. It paused and I creaked open an eye.
The monster's expression had changed. Gone was the anger and hunger, to be replaced by confusion and shame. It whimpered and stepped back off me. I raised myself to a sitting position and watched the thing sit back on its haunches a few feet away. Too close for comfort, especially as it watched me with those unblinking, golden eyes.
I scrambled back and one of my hands met air. I'd reached the edge of the roadway and the drop-off into the forest. I tumbled backwards and the dog-thing sprang forward to catch me, but its clawed hands barely missed mine. My head hit something hard and I lost consciousness.
Chapter 15
The next I remembered was waking up on something soft and cushy, and there were voices around me. "She's coming to," I heard Will's voice comment.
"But will she be all right?" Olivia's frantic voice asked him.
"I'm sure she will. She took quite a tumble, but only her ankle appears to be injured," he replied.
I groaned and fluttered my eyes open. They were struck by bright lamp light overhead, and I blinked against the harsh brilliance. Will and Olivia's faces hovered over mine with Vuk in the background. He had a platter in his hands that held bandages, peroxide and everything else with which I'd treated him the other night. Judging by the ancient decor I was in Will's cabin. Will hung over the arm of the chair near my head and Olivia was beside me.
Olivia pushed her face to the forefront and she grasped my hands in hers. "Grace, dear, how are you feeling?" she anxiously asked me.
"I-I don't know. I think so," I garbled. I tried to sit up, but my left ankle told me it didn't want that. Pain shot up my leg and I winced. I glanced down at my ankle and saw my bare foot was bandaged.
"We realized you were missing and searched for you. You were found near the top of the flagged area," Will told me.
"Don't let him be so modest, Grace. Will was the one who noticed you were missing after Steuben came running down the hill yelling about something attacking him. Will shot up the hill and found you in just a few minutes. It was like destiny," Olivia commented.
"Do you remember what happened?" Will asked me.
I clutched my head and grimaced. "I don't know. It was dark and I heard someone-" My head snapped up as I recalled the confrontation on the road. "There was a monster! On the logger road!"
"A monster?" Olivia repeated. Her eyes flickered over to Will. "I think she needs proper medical care," she whispered to him.
"I didn't imagine it! The thing was attacking Steuben. I caught its attention and he ran away. The monster pinned me down, and then I somehow escaped and fell off the road," I explained.
Olivia shook her head and pressed our joined hands to her chest. "No, Grace, we found you near the top of the flagged area. You must have run from whatever it was," she replied.
"I know what I saw, and I saw a huge monster, or a dog-thing," I persisted.
"I believe you," Will spoke up. I turned to him in disbelief.
"You do?" I wondered.
"Yes, but whatever happened you shouldn't try to remember everything all at once. Take it slow and heal your body before you trouble your mind," he advised. He moved to kneel down at my feet and gingerly touched the wrapped ankle. I winced. "You have a bad sprain. We should see if you can walk on it," he suggested.
"So soon? Shouldn't she lie here until morning?" Olivia wondered.
"She could, but I don't believe Grace is the type of girl to take things lying down," he teased.
"I can try walking on it," I agreed. Olivia stepped back to give me some breathing room and I sat up. My ankle complained, but I swung my legs over the side of the couch and put some weight on it. It hurt,
but not enough to keep me from standing. My leg buckled and I would have fallen if Will hadn't caught me. I sheepishly grinned at him. "I guess this is a little too fast," I murmured.
"Nonsense. We'll get you to your cabin and give you a good night's rest," he encouraged me.
"She can stay with me," Olivia offered.
"I can manage," I replied.
"Why don't you get some rest and tell the good news to the rest of the cabins?" Will suggested.
The opportunity to spread gossip was too tempting, and I really wasn't doing that badly. A little woozy, but alive and kicking, just not with my left foot. "Very well. I'll spread the good news," Olivia agreed. She flew off to inform the other cabin folk, those still awake at this late hour, that I was going to pull through.
After she left Will set me back onto the couch. "You will sleep here tonight," he told me.
I blinked. "I thought the plan was to take me back to my cabin?" I wondered.
"It was only so long as Olivia was here. Now that she is gone you will stay here and tomorrow we will say you came over for breakfast very early," he explained.
I smiled. "Trying to stay one step ahead of the rumor mill that is Olivia?" I teased.
"Precisely." Will sat down beside me and scrutinized my face.
I fidgeted beneath his gaze. "What?" I raised my hand and felt the mud that covered my face. My clothes were also filthy. "Let me guess, I look like the mud monster from the lagoon," I joked.
He smiled. "You look fine, but to be honest I have another reason for keeping you here other than your physical well-being. You spoke about a monster, as did Steuben. Did you happen to get a good look at it?" he asked me.
I shrugged. "I don't know. It looked like a large wolf or a dog, but it could stand up like a man. I think-" I stopped myself before I made a really ridiculous suggestion. It couldn't have been a werewolf.
"You think what?" he persisted.
I took a deep breath. "I think it was that wolf you told me would never attack a human."
Will pursed his lips and leaned back against the couch. He ran a hand through his hair which I noticed was frazzled beyond belief. Actually, everything about him bespoke haste and indifference to dress. One of his socks was on backwards, and the top two buttons on his shirt were undone and showed off his chest. I wasn't complaining about the last part, but I was confused and curious. There was a nudging inside me like I had most of the pieces of a puzzle if I could just arrange them into an unknown picture. There was just a few more questions I needed to ask.
"Olivia said you went straight to me. How did you know where I was?" I asked him. He turned away from me to stare straight ahead without answering. "Will?"
Will stood and paced the floor between the couch and the fireplace. His face showed his internal turmoil as reluctance, fear, and hope flitted across his features. After a few moments he stopped and turned to face me. "I didn't mean to break my word, but the creature inside of me has been growing stronger lately. I. . .I can't control it any longer." My first thought was whether he was going to jump me and have sex with me in my condition.
My eyes flickered to his waist. "I think every man has that creature inside them," I commented.
He shook his head. "No, you don't understand. My incident in Eastern Europe didn't just leave me with those three scars. The creature that attacked me was a werewolf, and it bit me." He pulled down the front of his shirt to show the scars of puncture wounds made by a large animal.
I sat there stupefied by his underlying meaning. According to legend and most werewolf movies once you were bitten you became a werewolf. "A. . .a werewolf attacked you?" I repeated.
Will gave a nod. "Yes. The wolf also passed on its curse to me."
I could see he was serious, but I couldn't help the nervous snicker that poured from my lips. "A werewolf. . ." I murmured. I stood and, though shaky, kept my balance on my sore ankle. After my fight with the wolf and with my ankle pounding with pain, this story of his being a werewolf was just too much for one night. "I think I need to go think about that," I told him.
A bitter smile slipped onto his lips. "Even after what you saw this night you still don't believe me?" he mused.
"It's not that I don't believe you, it's just that. . ." I couldn't think of any other reason to give him. I didn't believe what I'd seen, so I didn't believe what he was telling me.
Will shook his head. "I won't try to force you to understand. You're free to leave here whenever you wish," he invited me.
I didn't need to be told twice. I took a step forward and stumbled. He offered his arm, but I waved him off. I didn't think insanity was contagious, but I wasn't going to take any risks. "I'm fine." To prove it I hobbled to the door without falling and paused to turn to him. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow or something."
"Or something," he returned.
I hobbled from the cabin with heavier thoughts and an even heavier heart.
Chapter 16
I reached my cabin, limped inside and shut the door behind myself. The click of the clasp echoed through the lonely house and mimicked my dreary thoughts. My only comfort was the sheer exhaustion I felt, and that blessed me with the inability to think beyond going to bed. I slipped into my nightshirt and beneath the sheets of my bed for a long, long snooze.
I knew things weren't quite right when I woke up and found the time was noon. My internal alarm had shut off signaling something was amiss inside me, but I didn't care. I couldn't care. I was too exhausted, confused, and, yes, a little angry over last night. My mind kept replaying the conversation with Will and his ridiculous revealing. Werewolf? Really? How dumb did he think I was? Had he been dropping those hints of Eastern Europe just to fool me into believing him? Maybe those scars weren't even real. He could have had Vuk do some makeup magic.
I crunched through breakfast with those bitter thoughts in my mouth and, seeing as I had nothing else to do, I limped onto the back deck and settled into one of the wicker chairs. The lake was alive with the sounds of laughter and talking, but the noise was eerily suppressed. The attack the previous night had dampened the joyful, innocent spirits of the cabin folk. They now glanced at the woods not with a promise of adventure and exploration, but in fearful suspicion. Every shadow was a beast waiting to strike. Every snap of a twig was a threat stalking them in the brush.
The fear permeated my thoughts, and memories of last night resurfaced. Those golden eyes attached to that hideously long face. The size of the claws as they held me down. I unconsciously clutched the locket around my neck. That was when I remembered I hadn't given it back. I'd broken our friendship, and didn't deserve to have it any longer. I needed to return it as soon as I had the energy and willpower to knock on the door.
"Grace! Grace!" a voice shrieked. I turned to see Olivia running toward me at the fastest speed her high heels would allow. She was winded by the time she reached the steps, and paused to clutch at her chest and catch some air. "Thank. . .thank goodness you're all right," she commented.
I frowned. "Why wouldn't I be all right?" I asked her.
"That terrible beast. I have news about it," she revealed. Olivia climbed the few stairs and plopped herself down in the wicker chair beside mine. She fanned herself with her hand and shook her head. "I just came from Steuben's small cabin near the front gate, and the tale he had to tell was awful."
"What tale? Didn't he tell you everything last night?" I asked her.
"Oh no, my dear. You see, he was in such a nervous state when he came down the mountain that one of the doctors on the lake gave him a seditive. Well, it certainly calmed him, but too much. He was out until just an hour ago, and you know a man has to eat first before he gets down to business, so I patiently waited for him to have his breakfast," she explained. I thought she stretched the truth about the waiting patiently part. "And then he told the most harrowing tale I have ever heard. He said a monster attacked him, just like you told me last night, and that you were the one to save him. You distracted it so he
could hurry off and find help." Is that what cowardice was called now? Finding help?
"What did he say it looked like?" I wondered.
"Oh, his description was terrible. He said it was some sort of giant wolf, and its eyes were red and its teeth gnashed and it drooled everywhere." She paused to shudder for dramatic effect. "Well, you can imagine what happened when I heard that story."
I don't know why, but my heart skipped a beat. "No, what happened?"
"Why, I called up those ranchers who had wanted to come on the lake property and told them to set those traps immediately," she revealed. "Traps aren't nearly as bad as a rabid wolf or coyote coming off that logging road and eating us." She set a hand over mine that lay on the arm of my chair and smiled apologetically at me. "After hearing Stuebens' description of the beast I can understand how you mistook it for a monster. The size must have been enormous, and I'm sure you've never seen a wolf before."
My free hand clutched harder at the talisman and my heart thumped in my chest. Traps. The ranchers were setting traps to catch the beast, and Will told me he was the beast. Whether or not I believed him, he certainly believed himself. That meant he'd go out there in bare feet and get himself caught in those traps, or worse. He might get shot.
I stood and wobbled a little on my injured leg, but found it was a little better since I sat down. "I just remembered I have something to do inside," I informed Olivia.
She stood and nodded. "Certainly, my dear, and I can't blame you any for wanting to go inside. The sun will be setting soon." She was right. I'd wiled away the afternoon watching the world wander by and the sun was on its last hour of life for the day. "I also wanted to warn you that some of the ranchers may be out hunting the creature tonight, so it's best to stay inside," she advised me.
That meant I had to hurry. "All right, I'll go inside and rest a bit," I hastily mumbled as I hobbled toward the door.
Olivia followed me. "Did you need anything before I leave?" she asked me. I wished for her to leave, but I wouldn't be that blunt. It might rouse her curiosity, and that would never get her away.