18 Chapter EIGHTEEN

Once she had finished her meal, she heard a crunching sound behind her. Amelia instantly tensed, wondering if her parents had truly followed her. Or worse, if a werewolf had spotted her.

She slowly turned, hearing movements coming from the dense forest trees. Soon, two silhouettes came into view.

It was a man and a woman who looked to be in their twenties. Amelia did not mean to stereotype, but the two looked like spies from movies, having donned on black shirts and army-green jeans that were loose around their legs. Moreover, the air around them felt menacing.

She unconsciously scooted back.

"Hello," the man spoke with a fake smile, his deep voice not helping matters. "It's okay. We won't hurt you."

'Hurt me?' Amelia thought. When did she give them the idea that she thought they would hurt her?

Amelia instantly realized they were bad news. She stood up, leaving her bag as she ran for the forest.

"Shit," she heard the woman curse, and soon, two sets of feet were charging after her. Amelia felt her heartbeat increase, adrenaline pumping into her blood as she sought to increase the distance between her assailants. She was afraid of what would happen if they caught up to her, and so her mind was filled with horrific thoughts of what they could do to her.

However, focusing on her thoughts had her tripping over a protruding tree root.

She cried out in pain, falling on the ground and hitting her face hard onto the earth. The footsteps that had been approaching slowed, and soon, amused laughter echoed around the area.

"What a stupid cunt," Amelia heard the man say before he laughed again. "Did you see how she went? She's like one of those stupid damsels in distress in a fucking horror movie!"

Amelia did not like being made fun of, but she could do nothing. She felt powerless, just like she did every second she spent in Wolverstone. She did not like it, and she wondered how she would get out of the mess she was in.

"1000+ Years of Werewolf History," the woman announced as she walked toward Amelia's front. Amelia stiffened because that was the book she had been reading during the months that had passed. She raised her head up, seeing the woman approach with the large book in her hand.

Hands delved into Amelia's hair and grasped tightly. She winced, tears forming in her eyes as the person forced her to stand on her knees.

"Tell me something," the woman started. "Where did you get this book? No. Better yet, what are you doing with it?"

Amelia took some time to formulate an answer as she forced herself to be calm. The two people stared at her, patiently waiting for her to speak.

"Nothing," she replied. The look the woman gave her made her realize that lying was a mistake.

"Wrong answer," the woman yelled, backhanding her with the book so hard that she saw stars. Amelia felt a ringing in her ears as she struggled to maintain consciousness.

"Tell me the truth."

"Nothing!" Amelia tried again, receiving a gut-wrenching punch that had her collapse back onto the ground. The woman's hands delved into her hair, forcing her to stand on her knees. Amelia started crying by then.

"Ugh. I hate it when they start crying," the other guy commented.

"I'm warning you, girl. I don't like it when people waste my time. I'm sure you don't want to find out what I will do to you if that happens. So start. Talking."

Amelia whimpered, feeling blood pool in her mouth as her cheek throbbed from the former hit she had received. She forced herself to gulp it, cringing at the metallic taste before she started speaking.

"I know there are werewolves here," she started. "I saw two shift in front of me, and so I started to investigate more about them."

The woman's hand clenched into the roots of her hair, nails digging into the skin.

"Ouch! That's it. I swear that is all I've been doing!" Amelia confirmed, sobs starting to escape from her mouth.

"Stop crying!" the woman said, slapping her and making her cry out in pain.

"Haven't you had enough of her?" the man asked the woman. "Stop dragging this and get it over with."

The woman glanced at her partner before turning to face Amelia.

"Ssh," she said with a smile that Amelia did not buy. "You must be in so much pain. Don't worry, it will be over soon."

Amelia did not like the tone the person used. She started moving back, but the woman had a strong hold on her head.

"Please, let me go," Amelia pleaded. The woman did not listen, withdrawing a dagger from her back. Amelia spotted it, and she whimpered in fear.

"What should we do?" the woman asked nonchalantly at the guy behind her. "Stabbing her feels too easy. How about we cut off her hands? Torture her up a bit?"

"Damn it, Eve. She's a kid!"

"She's a smart kid," the woman emphasized. "What if there are others who know about us in the town? I should make a warning to them in case they find her."

The man glared at her.

"What?" the woman asked.

"Just make it quick and painless," the man insisted. The woman sighed.

"You're no fun," she said as she moved to stab Amelia.

Amelia yelled in fear, her hand going to reach for the woman's arm. The moment she made contact, the woman released a piercing scream. Amelia watched in horror as flames erupt from her hand, quickly engulfing her attacker.

The fire traveled along the woman's arm and quickly all over her body as she continued screaming. She jumped around, quickly patting her form to no avail.

"Eve!" the man screamed.

The woman fell and rolled on the ground, trying to put the fire out. The man event went to help her, urging her to remove her clothes.

But it was too late. The smell of burning flesh permeated the air, and it made Amelia want to vomit.

'Oh no', she thought, seeing the scene unfold in front of her. 'Did I do that? How-- What have I done?'

Fortunately, the grass had not caught on fire as it had rained earlier that morning. If it hadn't, it would have been an entirely different story.

The man continued looking at his partner's burning body. The clothes had burnt up, showing charred, red flesh as the fire continued consuming it. He turned his eyes to Amelia who tensed in alarm.

"You killed her," he growled. Amelia stood still, staring back at him. She opened and closed her mouth, not knowing what to say.

He yelled, charging toward her. Amelia screamed, going to shield herself from whatever was going to happen to her by raising her arms to her face.

She stood frozen, waiting for the hit. A couple of seconds passed with nothing happening to her, and she opened her eyes, screaming when she saw how close the man was to her. He was mere inches away from her, and his face was contorted into one of primal rage. She tensed, noticing he was frozen in motion and how close his dagger was to stabbing her head.

"Amelia!" a feminine voice called out. Amelia tensed for another reason, looking around and not finding a silhouette of an individual around her.

"Who's there?" she asked, voice trembling as an aftereffect of her near-death experience.

To her shock, a person slowly materialized out of thin air. It was a woman who wore a lime gown that softly blew in the air. She had caramel skin, and her black, straightened hair floated, making it look like she was in a magazine shoot.

"I need your help," she said, her form fading in and out of focus.

"What?" Amelia expressed her puzzlement. She questioned if she was hallucinating. No, she was sure she was hallucinating at that point. A part of her wondered if the guy was not actually frozen, but had killed her and was currently ripping her body apart.

The thought made her shudder.

"Read this spell," the woman said, stretching out a hand to give Amelia a thin piece of paper. Amelia's hands trembled when she reached out, and she was shocked when the item landed on her fingers and stilled into focus.

"Read it now!" the woman yelled, shocking Amelia into action. She inspected the piece of paper, eyebrows furrowing at the language that was used. It was filled with symbols; nothing resembling the English language.

"I can't read this," Amelia said, shaking her head in disagreement.

"We do not have time for this, girl. Just read it!"

Amelia's eyes rolled to the back of her eyes at that moment, lips moving in a frenzy as she produced words that sounded foreign in her ears. Something seemed to have been unleashed inside her, helping her access a power she had not known existed within.

She stopped seconds later, almost sagging to the ground. She was surprised by the energy it had taken her to speak out the foreign words.

"What just happened?" she asked, expecting no reply. She turned, and she noticed that the woman had stopped phasing in and out of focus. She had fully materialized in front of Amelia, and she was busy looking at her hands to ensure she was really there.

"Thank you, Amelia," the woman replied. Amelia nodded, then she stopped when she realized something.

There had been a woman phasing in and out of focus; she was probably a ghost, and at that moment, she was staring at her, looking perfectly human.

avataravatar
Next chapter