Chapter 3

The blade on the meat cleaver gleamed sinisterly under the lights.

Suzy was usually very kind to me, always smiling and cooking my favorite meals.

Yet, there she was, sharpening a meat cleaver against a sharpening block while humming gaily under her breath.

The tune was a very weird one, and it wasn't something that we humans had ever heard before. The lyrics were in Wolfish, and I could barely make out the words as they emanated from her throat.

"Oh, the missus' skin is soft and tender. To bake, or not to bake? To steam, or not to steam?

"Oh, the missus' leg is fleshy and supple. To brine, or not to brine? To cure, or not to cure?

"Oh, the missus' fingers are light and crunchy. To pickle, or not to pickle? To deep fry, or not to deep fry?"

I quickly covered my mouth with my hands, barely able to suppress a scream. I felt my stomach churning in fear and discomfort.

Suzy suddenly stopped, her nose and ears twitching a few times.

Werewolves had an incredibly sensitive sense of hearing and smell. I didn't even dare to breathe out too loudly, but she still turned her head around and caught sight of me behind her.

And to my shock, her eyes were a bright green color, and the shape of her pupils was long and vertical in a slit!

When she finally realized that it was me, the expression on her face changed instantly, and her eyes changed back to black. Her usual kind, disingenuous smile was now plastered on her lips as she exclaimed, "Luna Ariel! You're awake!

"You should have rested for a while longer. Why did you get up so early?"

She quickly hid the meat cleaver behind her, her guilty conscience palpable.

Her hands were wet, so she wiped them on her apron.

"You must be hungry. Let me go and make some breakfast for you. What would you like to eat?"

I recalled everything I overheard her saying while I was on the stairs, and the last thing I wanted to hear was the word "eat" from her.

I forcefully suppressed the rising bile in my stomach and dug my nails into my palms.

"I… I don't feel like eating," I said. "My stomach still hurts. I'd like to go to the hospital for a check-up instead."

Suzy's eyes glimmered slightly.

"You want to go to the hospital? But Alpha Felix specifically instructed that you were to stay at home and rest today."

"It really hurts a lot, Suzy. I can't stand it any longer," I said, feigning an ill look on my face while leaning weakly against the wall. "Can you please tell Ezra to get the car ready?"

Suzy stared at me for quite a long while, like she was trying to figure out whether I was telling the truth or not. Finally, she nodded and said, "Alright. You should perhaps change out of your clothes first."

Ten minutes later, I grabbed my bag and stood at the entrance of the villa, waiting for the driver, Ezra Talbot. He drove over and stopped at the gate in a black car.

He rolled down the windows and smiled politely at me.

"Luna Ariel. Which hospital would you like to go to?"

I opened the door and got into the backseat. "To Grand City Hospital," I said.

The car then pulled out of the villa's driveway and slowly went out of the neighborhood.

I watched the scenery outside the window gradually recede, feeling my heart pounding loudly against my chest in a mix of anxiety and excitement.

I knew that I would be safe as long as I could get out of the villa and into a crowded place.

The car turned onto the highway and began picking up speed.

I drew my lips into a tight line, afraid of giving anything away lest they notice something amiss.

Ezra grabbed the wheel and drove steadily, his eyes fixed on the road ahead.

Suddenly, I heard a low, buzzing sound in my ears. It wasn't the sound of my phone vibrating. It was my mind-link!

This was the pack's internal communication method, and I could also hear everything clearly.

I could hear Ezra's excited voice as he spoke in Wolfish.

"Alpha Felix? The prey's about to escape from her cage! We're on the highway now! Should I finish her off in the car?

"There aren't any surveillance cameras on this stretch of the road. I can ram the car right into the guardrail and stage a car accident instead."

My bag fell to the floor with a thud. I could literally hear my heart stopping in my chest.

Felix's voice then sounded in the mind-link. It was cold and emotionless as he replied in Wolfish, "No. Her flesh won't taste as good when smashed. Bring her back. It's going to be very hard to get stains out of the car if it's dirty."

Ezra clicked his tongue regretfully and replied in Wolfish, "Got it."

He then glanced at me in the rearview mirror. He looked at me like I was an animal at the slaughterhouse.

"There's roadwork ahead, Luna Ariel, and the traffic is rather congested there. We'll be taking a detour instead."

The car made an abrupt turn and left the highway, then made its way back to the villa.

I grabbed the door handle tightly and spoke in a trembling voice.

"This isn't the way to the hospital, Ezra."

He chuckled lightly and said, "Luna Ariel, Alpha Felix just called earlier and said that he'll be getting a private family doctor to look at you instead. You won't need to trouble yourself going to the hospital anymore.

"After all, the doctors at the hospital can't possibly be any better than the ones we have at home."

The car doors were tightly locked, and so were the windows. I was trapped in the car as I was forcefully brought back to the villa, where every werewolf was waiting to devour me.

I felt my heart sinking deeper and deeper into the pits of my stomach.