Hilda"Fifty-five... fifty-six... fifty-seven... fifty-eight... fifty-nine..."Ava's voice had gone hoarse from crying, but she kept counting, her small shoulders shaking with each number. I stared at her back while wrapping the last strip of cloth around Evelyn's torso, covering the cauterized wound. The skin around it was red and blistered, the flesh inside blackened where I'd burned away the infection. I'd done what I could with our meager supplies, but Ava didn't know that."Sixty... sixty-one... sixty-two... sixty-three...""Ava," I called, but she didn't respond, lost in her counting.I wiped Evelyn's blood from my hands onto my already ruined pants and moved toward the girl. Her voice had taken on a mechanical quality, like she'd forgotten why she was counting in the first place."Ava." I placed a hand on her thin shoulder.She stopped mid-number, her body going rigid under my touch."I'm done," I said into the sudden silence.She didn't move or speak for several seconds. "Can
Hilda"Miss Hilda? Is that working?"Ava's eyes fixed on me, expectant and hopeful. I stared at the useless first aid supplies scattered on the floor, then at Evelyn's wound with its black edges and purple veins spreading across her skin. The words stuck in my throat.What the fuck could I say? Her mother was dying and I had no clue how to fix it.I couldn't look at the girl's face. The weight of my impulsive promise sat heavy on my chest."Ava," I said, forcing myself to focus, "look around the cabin. See if you can find any firewood or something we can burn in the fireplace. We need to warm this place up."She nodded and scurried off, eager to help, to do something—anything—that might save her mother.I turned back to Evelyn, examining the wound more closely. The gash was deep, at least three inches long and gaping open to reveal wet, dark tissue underneath. The edges were blackened and dead, with thick purple veins spreading outward across her skin like spider legs. Yellow-green re
Hilda"Don't you want to save my mother?"I froze, Evelyn's weight suddenly heavier in my arms. The words stunned me, like I'd walked face-first into a tree."What did you just say?" I stared at Ava, unable to process what I'd heard.Her small face was set in determination, tears still streaming down her cheeks. "You heard me."This couldn't be happening. Not now. Not with Evelyn dying in my arms and rogues potentially tracking us. I glanced around at the dark trees surrounding us, anxiety crawling up my spine."Ava, we can't stand here right now. We need to find shelter first."But Ava wasn't listening. She stepped closer, her voice rising with desperation."Dr. Graham said she has friends at Wood Pack who can help us. She was sure about it." Ava pointed toward the distant cabin. "That place doesn't look like anyone lives in it. How can we get help there?"She walked forward with purpose, jabbing her finger toward Evelyn. "Look at her.""What?" I asked, confusion mixing with my growi
Hilda"Miss Hilda! Dr. Graham won't make it!!"Ava's scream cut through the night air. She was hunched over Evelyn's body, small hands pressed against the doctor's face. I dug the paddles deeper into the water, muscles burning with each stroke. We were close to the opposite shore, maybe fifty yards out. So close, yet with each labored breath Evelyn took, it felt too far.I could hear the wet rattle in Evelyn's chest from here. Her breathing had deteriorated in the last twenty minutes—shallow, forced, with that distinctive whistling sound that never meant anything good. The wolfsbane was working its way through her system, spreading from the wound that refused to heal.The smell hit my nostrils—putrid, sickly sweet. The wound was festering. Even in the moonlight, I could see the unnatural purple-black tendrils spreading from beneath her blood-soaked shirt."Keep her head elevated," I told Ava, not slowing my pace. The wooden paddles creaked against the oarlocks as I pulled harder.Ava
HildaI slumped against the black SUV, legs splayed out in front of me. Every inch of my body hurt. Blood—mine and others'—had dried into a sticky second skin. I tried to wipe my face with my hand, but it just smeared more blood across my cheek.Bodies littered the clearing around me. Some whole, some not. The SUV looked like it had gone through a meat grinder—claw marks tore through the metal, all the windows shattered. Blood painted the exterior in chaotic splashes of dark red.The chain I'd used lay a few feet away, bits of brain and hair still stuck to the links. Messy, but effective. I'd been efficient in my killing. Quick. They barely had time to scream.A deep gash on my ribs throbbed with each breath. Three parallel slashes where someone's claws had gotten lucky. My shoulder felt like it was on fire where one of them had sunk their teeth in, almost to the bone. Dozens of other cuts and bruises covered my body, but nothing fatal. Nothing that wouldn't heal.I looked toward the
EvelynI ran until my lungs burned, each step tearing the wound in my side open wider. Blood poured from where the machete had sliced through skin and muscle, soaking my shirt and pants. The gash was deep—I could feel the edges of my flesh pulling apart with every stride.Ava clung to my neck, her small body bouncing against my chest as I stumbled through the underbrush. The forest was dense here, branches slapping against my face, roots threatening to trip me with every step. But I couldn't stop. Not yet."Dr. Graham," Ava whispered against my neck. "The bad men aren't following us anymore."I didn't slow down. Couldn't risk it. My ears strained for sounds of pursuit—growls, snapping twigs, anything. All I heard was my own ragged breathing and Ava's rapid heartbeat."Just a little further," I gasped, pushing forward despite the burning agony in my side."You're hurt," Ava said, her small hand pressing against my blood-soaked shirt."I'm fine."It wasn't until I saw the glint of water