Lauren felt herself being roughly shoved aside as the others reached her. She slipped to the damp grass, numb and unable to speak. A rushing noise had invaded her ears and she felt arms grab her and pull her close, but she barely noticed. All that was in her head was a recurring and frightful thought.
Not Eric. Not Eric, please.
“Oh, God!” Beth said, her hands covering her mouth in shock.
Mike stared into the distance, at the depths of the surrounding forest “Whoever did this couldn’t have gone far. We’ll go after him.” He muttered and tapped Lia, indicating that she should follow him. They both ran into the forest in pursuit, morphing into wolves midway.
Axel rushed to Eric’s unmoving body and held him, cradling the boy’s head in his hands. Lauren watched as his dreadlocks swept the grassy floor. His eyes were staring at the sky eerily, and his skin looked pale and bloodless.
Axel placed an ear to the boy’s chest and listened for a few seconds. Then he raised his head and looked at them. “His heart is still beating.” He said. “Help me get him inside.” He added and Beth rushed over to give him a hand.
Together they raised the boy: Axel carrying his arms while Beth lifted his legs, and moved him into the house. The choking metallic smell hit Lauren again as they passed her and she felt bile rush to her mouth. She doubled over and retched, but nothing was in her stomach. All that came out was salty saliva.
Her mother gently pulled her up, murmuring words of consolation, and steered her towards the house. Her legs felt like sticks of jelly; they couldn’t hold her body up. She felt like falling back to the grass but her mother gently pushed her and she took a step, then turned to her mother.
“Mom,” she whispered, a frantic look in her eyes “Not Eric. He can’t die!”
“He won’t.” Katherine cut in, looking into her daughter’s eyes “I promise. Axel and Beth would fix him up in no time.”
Lauren whimpered and let her mother lead her back into the house. The living room was empty, but sounds were coming from upstairs. Lauren’s legs became solid again and she ran towards the staircase.
Another wave of vertigo hit her as she climbed the staircase and she stopped, closing her eyes. The same weak feeling she had felt hours ago was back and she panted as pain enveloped her body. She felt herself moving slowly to the floor and hands grabbed her again. Her mother was calling her name over and over but all she could do was whimper and shake.
The bracelet was tightening around her wrist again and she gasped in agony. Something was pounding in her ears and she raised both hands to cover her ears. Something liquid trickled down her wrist and she opened her eyes slowly. Her vision was blurred but she could see red on her hand and arm.
Your friend is going to die, a voice whispered in her head.
Lauren screamed, a high guttural ear-piercing sound and pushed her mother aside, curling in agony on the staircase and screaming incoherent words. The pain was almost as much as her first full moon Change. It bent her bones and burnt her skin, rolling her eyeballs into her head.
Then suddenly, the whole episode stopped as quickly as it had started. She gave outa gasp of relief and opened her eyes wide, taking heavy breaths. Her hair was lank with sweat and her clothes clung to her like a second skin. She sat up and a piercing headache hit her head. Her mother quickly grabbed her and helped her up.
“What just happened? Are you okay?” Katherine asked.
“Mom,” Lauren whimpered, clutching her mother “What’s wrong with me?”
She couldn’t fathom the reason behind these periodic bouts of extreme pain. They were as confusing to her as the rabid werewolf’s appearance at her cabin. What made the episodes even more confusing was the fact that she couldn’t predict when they would happen. They came and went like lightning flashes, invading her body, then leaving her spent and tired to her bones.
She desperately wanted it to stop. Sue was
Footsteps sounded above their heads and Axel appueared at the top of the stairs. His black dress shirt was soaked at the front with blood and his sleeves were rolled up.
Lauren raced up the stairs to him and grabbed his collar “Where is he? How is he?!”
“Relax, girl. He’s fine now. Beth is stitching him up. We-” She did not wait for him to finish his sentence. Releasing his collar, she pushed him aside and ran up the rest of the way. The guest bedroom door was ajar and Lauren stumbled towards it.
What she saw made her stop abruptly. Eric had been stripped to his underwear and laid on the bed. His arms and legs were splayed carelessly and his chest was moving with erratic breaths. The bedsheets were soaked with his blood, a vivid, sickening red that turned Lauren’s empty stomach.
The wounds from which the blood was flowing from were long deep gashes that ran from his chest to his stomach. Beth was by his side, closing up the wounds with stitches. She looked up as Lauren appeared at the doorstep and smiled comfortingly.
“Come on in.” She said “He’s all fixed up.”
Lauren shuffled uncertainly by the door. Now that she was here, she realised she didn’t want to see him just yet. The whole room smelled of blood and antiseptic.
“He’s far from dead, Lauren.” Beth added, turning to look at the girl “Whatever or whoever did this to him didn’t leave any permanent damage. He’s only lost a lot of blood.”
Lauren nodded and stepped into the room gingerly. She held her breath as the blood reached her nostrils and moved towards the bed. Eric’s eyes were closed and his eyeballs were moving rapidly, as though in a nightmare. He was mumbling under his breath and she strained her ears, trying to pick up his words.
Beth stopped the stitching and looked up at Lauren “What’s he saying?” The boy continued to mumble and roll his eyes, twitching at intervals.
“Him… Him…” He murmured unintelligibly. Soon he began turning from side to side. Beth dropped the stitching needle and held him down with her hands, trying to prevent the stitches from coming loose.
Lauren leaned forward till her ear was in front of his face, ignoring the sickening smell of blood. The bed was starting to shake with his movements and she grabbed the bedpost, trying to steady herself.
“Him… Him… White hair.” Eric muttered and with a last great shudder, he took a deep breath and went frighteningly still.