Chapter 9: The Howl of the Wolf
I struggled to lift my head, the effort was monumental. Through the haze of pain, I managed to ask, “Why? You had Scott‘ s love. Why target me? Even without your games, he would have done anything for you.”
Winona–no, the creature that had once. been Winona–sneered, baring sharp, elongated teeth. “He did love me. Once. But then you came along, and everything changed. He acted like you meant nothing to him, but I saw the truth. He cared for you, even if he didn’t realize it. Even if he refused to admit it. Why else would he be so distracted when we were together? Why else would he sometimes… call me by your name?”
Her voice broke, a snarl escaping her lips. “I tried to push him away from you, tried to make him see you for what you were.
But no matter what I did, no matter how
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much I made him despise you, it was never enough. He defended you, even when he didn’t realize it, even when he was
shouting at me. Ariana, he already cared more about you than he ever did about me. So, why shouldn’t I target you?”
Her voice was rising, a growl laced with rage. “Why shouldn‘ t I make you suffer?”
The blade pressed into my flesh again, and I screamed, the sound torn from my throat. The pain was unbearable, every nerve in my body was on fire. She had lost her mind, driven mad by a love that had twisted into something monstrous, something inhuman.
“There,” she said, stepping back to admire her handiwork. “Now your face is perfectly symmetrical.”
She tossed the dagger aside as if it had served its purpose, the metal clattering on the concrete floor. Then, with a satisfied
smile, she turned her attention to the two
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men who had been lurking in the shadows, their eyes gleaming with anticipation.
“I’m tired,” Winona said casually, her voice eerily calm. “You can have her now.”
I was bound, helpless, as the men approached, their intentions clear in the hungry look in their eyes. Panic gripped. me, squeezing my heart like a vise. “Winona,” I gasped, “you‘ re committing a crime…”
Winona clapped her hands together, laughing softly. “Crime? My father cleans up my messes all the time. This is nothing.”
The men were close now, their breath hot on my skin, their hands reaching out to claim what they believed was theirs. The fear was overwhelming, paralyzing. I was powerless, trapped. The flesh on my face, already mutilated, throbbed with every beat of my heart.
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One of the men slapped me hard, and 1 tumbled to the ground, the chair I was tied to clattering beside me. I could feel myself slipping away, consciousness fading, but the pain, the fear, held me in this nightmare.
I prayed to the moon goddess, shouting in my head. I think he heard my prayers as I felt my body trembling, and stretching its bones and muscles. It was a fulfilling feeling until my bones started breaking and moving on their own, freeing themselves from being bound and I heard my wolf s voice and my own voice screaming simultaneously.
“Don’t let her take her wolf form!”
In my head, that was what I heard, and a loud ringing in both of my ears after that.
The rogues changed to their wolf form, ready to tear my clothes, their claws sharp. and brutal. I wanted to scream, to fight, but I was too weak, too broken. My body shrank back to my human form, but my
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wolf was fighting and trying to protect me; lessening the wounds that the rogues would do to me.
I want it to stop because my wolf’s pain is also mine. Even though werewolves have healing abilities, the process will always feel the same. It is extremely painful than any human can handle.
If this keeps going, I will either become a rogue or die. The thought crossed my mind that maybe this was it, that maybe death was a release, a mercy.
I let the pain consume my thoughts and body. Everything went dark until I saw my body in its wolf form. She was mad and
fought the other rogues. She bit the other one s neck and slashed the body of the second rogue using her claws.
The moon goddess heard and answered my prayers. I am prepared for whatever the consequence this transformation brings.
The rogues healed fast and lunged at me
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again. My wolf pinned one on the floor and ripped its neck, making sure he wouldn’t heal. Then, she ran to the other rogue to do the same. As she was busy fighting, we
forgot about Winona, who then showed her presence by stabbing my back with a silver dagger. I turned to her and saw her pretty fur with dead brown eyes in her wolf form.
My wolf whimpered and my body went back to its human form quickly. The silver dagger is still stuck at my back as I crawl away from Winona’s wolf.
She turned to her human form and walked to me slowly, laughing. Then, through the haze of pain and despair, I saw him. Scott, bathed in light, his eyes full of concern. It couldn’t be real, couldn’t be true. But as his voice called my name, as his hands. reached out to lift me from the ground, I realized that maybe, just maybe, this wasn’t the end.
“Ariana!” His voice was urgent, pulling me back from the brink. “Ariana, wake
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up!”
I forced my eyes open, struggling to focus,
and there he was. It was Scott.
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