1

Night fell heavily on the small town in the Colorado countryside. The cold wind whispered between the deserted streets, where only a few streetlamps struggled against the darkness, casting wavering shadows on the facades of the old wooden houses. The clock on the church tower ticked over two in the morning, and the town seemed plunged into a deep, undisturbed sleep.

On the edge of town, a remote house, almost swallowed up by the forest, stood in silence. The windows were dark, except for a single room where the pale light of the moon came in shyly through the ajar curtain. There, in the middle of a hand-carved wooden cradle, a little girl with snow-white hair slept peacefully. Her serene face contrasted with the restless night outside. She was only three years old and her name was Mia.

Suddenly, the silence was shattered. The bedroom door burst open with a bang and a woman rushed in, her face filled with urgency. Elisa, Mia's mother, moved with desperation, her eyes scanning the room for anything she could carry. Right behind her came her parents, João and Tereza, carrying half-open backpacks into which they had hastily stuffed clothes and belongings.

Elisa opened drawers and cupboards, pulled out everything she could find of Mia's and threw it into the backpacks. João and Tereza helped, picking up small shoes, dolls and blankets while the house seemed to vibrate with haste and fear. Time was the enemy, and they knew they only had seconds before everything collapsed on them.

When everything that could be taken was packed, Elisa ran to the crib and scooped Mia up in her arms. The little girl mumbled, her eyes blinking sleepily as she snuggled into her mother's lap.

“Xii, child... we have to go,” whispered Elisa, trying to calm her down. “The bad men have found us. We need to go now.”

João closed his eyes for a moment, took a deep breath and then, in a voice full of tension, said:

“Come on, Elisa! Make her be quiet or we'll be dead.”

Elisa squeezed Mia against her, feeling the little girl's heart beating against her chest. She looked up at her father and, even with fear etched in every line of her face, replied:

“It's going to be okay, Dad.”

Without looking back, holding tightly onto the hand of her mother, Tereza, Elisa left the room with Mia in her arms. Everything that didn't fit in the backpacks was abandoned. The little house that had once been a home was now just a place condemned to darkness, one more memory left behind in the incessant flight.

As soon as they passed the bedroom door, Mia wriggled restlessly in her mother's arms. Her little eyes opened wide, revealing an intense green hue, frightened and wet with tears. Then she saw something that made her throw her arms back, whimpering with despair.

“Triad... Triad...” she murmured, her voice trembling as she cried.

Elisa knew what her daughter wanted. The little white stuffed wolf, who always slept next to her in the cradle, had been left behind. Mia's gaze was fixed on him, abandoned between the sheets, and she struggled in her mother's arms, trying to reach her little stuffed friend.

“Mia, please...” whispered Elisa, holding her tighter as the little girl sobbed. ”We can't go back. We have to go.”

Mia buried her face in her mother's neck, still crying softly, but there was no time to calm her down. João opened the door of the house with a strong push, revealing the darkness outside. The sharp wind brought the smell of the damp forest, mixed with the bitter feeling of farewell. The starry sky seemed indifferent to their despair.

The old pick-up truck, with its paintwork peeling and its headlights off, was waiting for them in the driveway. João ran first, opened the door and helped Tereza up. Elisa ran right behind, holding Mia tightly against her chest, trying to protect her from the cold that seemed to want to swallow everything around them. As soon as they got into the truck, João started the engine. The roar of the engine filled the early morning silence like an ominous roar. They were getting away, but where? Elisa didn't know. All she knew was that she needed to keep Mia safe.

The city lights began to fade in the rearview mirror as the pickup sped down the deserted road. Elisa looked back, watching the house become a small silhouette on the horizon, until it disappeared altogether. That city, that state, were no longer theirs. Once again, they had to start again. Once again, they had to abandon everything.

The silence inside the car was almost as heavy as the night outside. Mia's crying had subsided to small, spaced-out sobs, and her little head rested against her mother's shoulder. Elisa ran her hand through her daughter's hair, wishing she could comfort her.

João looked in the rear-view mirror, his face hardened with worry.

“We have to drive until dawn and avoid the main roads. They could be looking for us right now.”

Tereza nodded, clasping her trembling hands in her lap.

“Where are we going, João? We can't just go on without a destination.”

João kept his eyes on the road.

“We're going south. To New Mexico, maybe. We need to disappear for a while.”

Elisa closed her eyes, exhausted. Every thump of the engine felt like a reminder that their lives would never be peaceful. But as long as Mia was there, warm and safe in her arms, she found the strength to keep going.

And so, the truck drove off into the unknown, carrying a family broken by fear but united by the need to survive.

Minutes after the truck disappeared down the road, silence once again dominated the abandoned house. The moon, high in the sky, cast a cold, pale light on the now empty wooden walls. The night seemed unchanging, but then the air around the house changed. A dark presence made itself felt, and in the next instant, shadows moved with superhuman speed.

The first to cross the threshold were three slender figures, their red eyes glowing in the darkness. Their fangs flashed when the leader of the group - a man with pale skin and short, dark hair - frowned and sniffed the air.

“They weren't here long,” he growled, his eyes scanning his surroundings.

Another vampire, shorter and with a cruel expression, kicked one of the drawers that had been left ajar. Children's objects fell to the floor, scattering across the wooden floor. He crouched down and picked up a small piece of clothing, squeezing it between his fingers.

“It's still warm... we almost got them.”

The leader, frustrated, punched the wall hard enough to leave cracks in the wood.

“Damn! We're too late!”

The other vampires began to rummage around, looking for any clue, any evidence that might help them track down the fugitive family. But before they could continue, a sound came from outside the house.

Twigs snapped in the dense forest, and a deep growl filled the air. The vampires turned at the same time, their heightened senses picking up on the impending danger. Glowing eyes began to appear between the trees, and then they emerged.

Wolves.

Gigantic, imposing, moving with deadly precision. Their sharp fangs glistened in the moonlight, and their golden and silver eyes were fixed on the invaders. Ahead of the group, a colossal black wolf advanced, its fur bristling with pure hatred. It growled, a low, menacing sound that reverberated through the night.

The vampires responded with hisses, curving their bodies into attack positions. The air became charged, the moment of silence just a brief lull before the storm.

And then chaos erupted.

The black wolf leapt first, launching itself at the vampire leader with brutal force. Its claws tore into the cold flesh of the enemy, who screamed in fury and pain. In response, the other vampires attacked, but were immediately confronted by the pack.

The wolves advanced like furious shadows, leaping and biting, their fangs penetrating the vampires' bodies. Screams echoed in the night, mixed with roars and growls. The ground became a battlefield, a maelstrom of blood, dust and falling bodies.

The vampires fought fiercely, their claws tearing at the wolves' flanks, but they were outnumbered. The wolves were numerous, powerful, and moved with an ancient fury. The vampire leader tried to retreat, his red eyes blazing with hatred, but the black wolf charged again, this time digging its jaws into his throat.

A snap echoed, and the vampire fell dead.

The rest of the vampires, realizing that the fight was lost, tried to flee into the forest, but the wolves wouldn't let them. One by one, they were hunted down and slaughtered, their bodies falling lifeless to the blood-stained ground.

When the battle finally ended, only the wolves remained, breathing heavily, their eyes still glowing with ferocity. The black wolf stepped forward, sniffed the air and raised its head to the moon, letting out a long howl of triumph and mourning.

The night became calm again. The wind blew gently, carrying with it the metallic smell of blood.

And the fleeing family, now miles away, had no idea what had happened in the house they had left behind.