Chapter 3 - Shoulderblades

She wondered if her love was the root of her woes

If it was the reason for her unending sorrows

But deep inside she knew it wasn't so

For love was the only thing that made her glow

The Moon was explicitly bright that night, and despite the late hour, even single trees in the forest growing behind Victor’s mansion could be discerned from a larger distance. It was a full Moon that had a mysterious influence on everything basking in the cold light of the majestic rock. 

Rapid cracks of dried-out branches broke out the silence. It sounded like an approaching storm. Heavy breathing filled the air from all directions. The echo of the blood-freezing sound was spreading throughout the forest. 

When the storm-like phenomenon climaxed, complete silence covered the space again. But one place still vibrated from the presence of some wild animals, and that was almost tangible. 

Muffled growling and sighs floated in the air. At the same time, a cloud obscuring the Moon moved, and when it became crisply clear, silver light poured over the whole forest. 

It worked like a button. Ten wolves started to celebrate the power of the Moon. 

Exhausted after the race, they approached the clearing from which in the distance was seen a lit mansion, with Bianca inside awaiting their return. 

"I can’t believe we’ve scared her so much!" said Michael, gasping for a breath, his body pouring in sweat. "Or maybe it’s Jay’s fault. I’d say Jay’s shaky voice terrified her. Imagine getting married to such a chicken!" 

Everybody laughed except for Jay, of course. 

"You haven’t had enough of that, Michael?", said Jay. "It's getting boring, you know? All your jokes sound like a broken record." 

"Chill out, bro! I’m just trying to help you. We are werewolves! We must stick together in this human-filled world."

Michael replied in a mocking tone. He stood still for a second, pausing to sound like he meant what he said. The rest did the same. 

"If she chooses you, don’t worry. I won’t leave you without my help. I can even take over any husband’s chores awaiting you in bed." Michael winced at Jay, and to his satisfaction, everybody burst into laughter. However, Jay couldn’t resist smiling through his tightened teeth.

"Don’t take it personally.", joined Samuel. "When Michael finds his victim, he can’t help himself." 

"I’m not his victim!", shouted Jay with clenched fists. "But he can be mine if he really wants to!"

"Take it easy, bro! It’s just fun.", Ethan patted his back. "Let’s have a cold shower. It will do good for all of us." 

"Yeah, for sure! Jay, you don’t smell too good!"

Michael put a broad smile on his face and looked at Jay. He was undoubtedly full of himself. 

"Shut up, Michael! I’ve had enough of your stupid remarks."

 Jay moved first. After him, the rest of the group resumed their walk towards clothes lying on the grass. Their skin shone in the cold light of the Moon. Drops of sweat made them look from a distance like they were wearing glittering silver armour. They had already shifted from beasts into humans. Having picked their clothes, the werewolves were about to reach the mansion, interested if Bianca was already fine.  

Two black eyes were peaking through the golden bars. The crow wanted to look closer at the girl sleeping on the sofa. A crisply clear Bianca’s reflection filled these pristine black circles - the bird’s eyes. The colour of her clothes, skin and hair were even more vivid in the crow’s eyes than in reality. The locked crow was focused on the girl just as if she was its prey. 

It was quiet all around the place when Bianca opened her eyes. At first, she didn’t know where she was. Then, her fingers felt pleasant material under her body. It was as soft as velvet or ripe rosary petals. Bianca had never lied on such a comfortable piece of furniture before. The weight of her body ceased to exist - she was floating on the surface of the calm and warm water. 

Finally, the crow broke the silence. It gave a sound the meaning of which was known only to it. That ravaged all of Bianca’s feelings of blissfulness. The picture of the columns and ten men standing to each of them appeared in front of her eyes. But the view of the blackbird surprised her a lot - it was a crow again, identical to that which she saw on the hospital windowsill. 

"Was it you?" She thought to herself with mixed feelings. The bird came closer to the golden bars. Bianca was already on her feet and approached these bars, too. 

"What if I set you free?" Bianca put her finger on the handle, which was supposed to keep the bird locked. She didn’t know why, but she had the urge to open the small door of the cage. 

The black head curiously followed her hand. At some point, the bird took its head out of the cage through the bars. When Bianca was close to lifting the handle, the crow pecked her. 

"Ouch!" She shouted and jumped away from the cage. A few drops of blood fell on the bar. The crow quickly drank it, leaving a red stain on its beak. Bianca tried to squeeze her pointing finger as much as possible to stop the bleeding. But her trousers were already stained with blood. Dense drops were also on the marble floor. 

A surge of panic flooded Bianca’s body. The whole place was completely bare - there was not even a piece of cloth she could use to wrap the wound. 

"Oh, my God! What am I going to do now?"

It was so silent that she wasn’t sure if she had said it out loud or just in her mind. The vast space around her made her feel as if she was immersed in the void. 

"You don’t have to worry about it, Bianca." A soft voice reached her ears. She turned around to face the direction from which the voice was coming. At least, she thought so. But there was nobody behind her. 

"I will take care of your bleeding wound." Bianca heard the same soothing tune again. But this time, she also felt somebody’s breath on her neck. Bianca shuddered, and her heart started to race like a big herd of wild horses. 

"Let me see it."

A strong hand grazed her arm. She couldn’t move. Frozen by the overwhelming fear, she was like an icicle too fragile to be touched. But the hand didn’t go back - just the opposite - it put more force on Bianca as if it wanted to fall her down and break into small porcelain pieces. She had to obey this force. It was much stronger than her fear. 

Finally, she realised that it wasn’t a ghost. Their eyes met - she had never seen a more intense look in her whole life. His eyes were magnetic, pulling her more powerfully than the Earth's gravity. Eventually, Bianca couldn’t stand it anymore. There was some wild element in him which made her scared. And to be honest, excited. 

"What a nasty cut. You shouldn’t have come up so close to the crow. It’s just its wild instinct, which it can’t control." 

Having the man just a few centimetres from her, Bianca couldn’t resist looking at his face. He was like a Greek statue representing the finest piece of art. More like an ancient god than a human. 

The man’s jawline was perfectly shaped, his lips had enticing proportions, and his nose and sharp cheeks gave him the scent of a fearless conqueror. But those eyes simultaneously made him look like someone hungry for life. At that moment, they focused entirely on Bianca as if she was the centre of his universe. 

"Probably you don’t remember my name. I was the last to introduce myself. So, I’m Michael." 

He smiled, showing the most impeccable teeth she had ever seen. His fangs drew her largest attention. They looked as sharp as a razor. Bianca didn’t say a word, but her eyes were telling everything. 

"You seem terrified. But remember, you are the one who makes a choice, not us. Michael’s voice was quiet, but he pronounced every single word immaculately clearly. She didn’t even notice that her finger was already wrapped in a tasteful old-fashioned handkerchief. On that tissue, there was a red emblem of Michael’s family. It soon absorbed Bianca’s blood. 

"Here you are.", said Michael rubbing his chin with three-day-long stubble. "You won’t bleed out to death." He smiled again in the most charmful way she could imagine. 

"Thank you." Bianca whispered, her cut finger pulsing in the rhythm of her quickened breath. 

"Not at all! Don’t tell anyone we’ve met. It’s not allowed." 

Michael put his finger on the lips confirming that he really meant what he said, and slowly moved toward the door, hidden behind the wall. 

Just a second later, other steps ambushed her from behind. 

"Bianca! You’re already on your feet!" Victor was coming down the stairs with his arms wide open as if he wanted to hug her. 

"We were afraid about you!" Having come down the stairs, Victor stood still - his eyes didn’t overlook the drops of blood on the marble floor. 

"What happened here?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. "Is it blood?", his voice almost broke, not knowing why. Bianca looked down at her finger pressing the wound. The handkerchief became red, but the blood stopped dripping. 

"Dear God! You’re hurt! How did it happen?" Victor didn’t even wait for the answer - he left Bianca alone again and returned with a dressing. 

"Oh, that’s a nasty cut. I should have warned you: the crow is far from being friendly."

After taking care of the wound, Victor paused for a second, keeping in his hand the handkerchief. He recognised the emblem of Michael’s family, despite being all sunk in blood. 

-Uhm, that’s a sly boy.", he thought to himself, moving his soundless lips a bit. Suddenly he snapped out of his thoughts and dressed the wound. 

"Now, have some rest." Bianca was already sitting on the sofa, having been led there by the wrinkled but exceptionally smooth-to-the-touch hand. "I will cover this beast before it dares to attack anyone else."

From under the table, Victor took out a shiny piece of fabric which - with a sweeping movement - covered the cage. The black crow disappeared under the golden cloth without any sign of objection. 

A minute of complete silence passed. Then suddenly, everything lost its shape and colour. Darkness fell around Bianca as if she stood alone as a small girl lost in the forest. At one point, she felt somebody’s touch on her skin. And that was not a human touch. Instead, it felt more like an animal’s fur. 

It smeared her neck, and she stopped breathing. Bianca was sure - somebody or something was standing right behind her. Any move on her side was impossible - the fear chained her with the power of a giant boulder dropped into the sea. 

Her feeling proved correct - that presence started taking off her jacket. Bianca shivered, still unable to turn around. She felt utterly defenceless with just a tank top on her, like a lily growing on the path of approaching lava. Now there was just a thin material of her t-shirt separating her from the invader. 

Instead of feeling cooler without a jacket, she felt a wave of heat evaporating from the beast. She was sure - it wasn’t a human leaning over her shoulder and smelling her body. It was a beast. 

Suddenly she felt some gust of wind. It moved so fast that she only felt a touch of its fur around her body. She screamed - some brutal force ripped her t-shirt from behind. Cold to the touch and wet nostrils sniffed her shoulder blades. Every breath made her tremble from head to toe, thrusting her fragile body's deepest cells. 

But the worst was yet to come. 

Standing in the complete darkness, half-naked, Bianca felt hot tears falling from her eyes. Her cheeks were becoming wetter and wetter when a fiery pain started to bite her back. The beast’s sharp nail scratched her skin from the left and the right side. The cuts had the shape of two opposite arrows stretching from her shoulder up to her breasts. After finishing it, it suddenly jumped on its four feet, leaving Bianca alone. She heard its steps receding behind her back. 

Was she alone again?