Chapter 5

With my chest heaving, I slammed the cottage door shut behind me and secured it with the iron latch.

We were struck by the sound. A shake against the door that was powerful enough to dislodge the iron lock.

My sisters Amanda and Celina sprang to their feet, their hearts pounding.

We became still.

A further setback. With a deafening screech, the lock bent inward.

Although the relief was short-lived, I came to the conclusion that it was not a virelya.

The door blew out.

The doorway was blocked by a body that obscured the remaining twilight. Aside from its twisted horns and eyes—pools of ever-burning, endless green—it had an almost human appearance due to the dark mist that shrouded it.

It released waves of intense, oppressive magic.

The animal had to be the size of a bear, and his head was clearly wolfish, even though his body was a little feline. I was perplexed by the twisted, elk-like antlers that jutted out of his skull. Nevertheless, regardless of whether it was a lion, dog, or elk, there was no question about the potential harm that could be caused by his yellow fangs and sharp, black claws.

If I had been alone in the woods, I may have given myself up to my fears, knelt down, and cried for a clean, quick death. Even though my heart was racing in my ears, I couldn't afford to be afraid or give in to it at all. Somehow, even as the beast roared through a mouth full of teeth after rearing up on its hind legs, I found myself in front of my sisters:

Mira let out a little, frightened whimper behind me. The thread broke uselessly as Tess let go of her spindle.

The creature moved forward. Its voice sounded like the faint growl of a thunderstorm when it spoke.

"Who killed the Bound One?"

Bound One. The wolf. "Who murdered him?" I asked.

Those absurd wards at our door were no match for him, resembling cobwebs. I should have inquired as to how the mercenary murdered that faerie. However, my blade seemed to belong in the monster's thick neck.

I took a chance and peeked behind me. My father knelt in front of my sisters, who were screaming and kneeling against the hearth's wall. An additional body that I must protect. In an attempt to maintain the table between us and combat the trembling in my hand, I foolishly advanced another step toward the Witchwolf. The monster was in front of my bow and quiver, which were on the other side of the room. To get to the ash arrow, I would need to get around him. And give myself enough time to shoot it.

The monster roared, its hackles lifted, and I asked, "Who murdered him?"

Unable to bring himself to approach me, my father murmured from behind me, "P-please." “Whatever we have done, it was unwittingly, and—”

Celina raised her arm above her head as if that little iron bracelet would be of any use against the monster and said, "W-we didn't kill anyone," as she sobbed and choked.

I took another dinner knife from the table as the best I could do unless I figured out how to access the quiver. "Get out," I commanded the beast, waving the blades in front of me. I couldn't see any iron that I could use as a weapon, except if I threw my sisters' bracelets at him. "Get out, and be gone." It was difficult to hold the hilts in my shaky hands. A nail – if I could get my hands on a bloody iron nail, I'd grab it.

He screamed at me in response, and the whole house trembled, the plates and cups clattering against each other. However, it revealed his enormous neck. I threw my hunting knife.

He swung out with a paw at my face with his teeth, and it moved so quickly that I could hardly see it.

I jumped back, nearly tripping over my cowering father. Although the witches could have murdered me, the lunge was a warning. Amanda and Celina begged, sobbing, to any forgotten gods who might still be lurking around.

The beast approached us, asking, "WHO KILLED HIM?" The table groaned as he placed a paw on it. His claws pounded into the wood, one after the other, as they became lodged there.

The monster stretched his snout out over the table to smell us, and I took a step closer. His eyes were amber-flecked and green. not with their color or shape, not with their animal eyes. "Killed who?" I asked, my voice rather calm.

"The wolf," he said with a low, violent growl that made my heart skip a beat. Even though the roar had subsided, the wrath persisted, maybe even with a hint of regret.

The sound of Amanda's cry rose to a shrill scream. "A witchwolf?" I said, holding my head high.

"A big wolf with a grey coat," he snorted back. Would he be able to tell if I lied? All humans understood that witches could not lie, but could they detect lies on human tongues? We had no chance of getting out of this by fighting, but there may be other options.

"What compensation could we offer in return if it was mistakenly killed?" I asked the animal as calmly as I could. The beast responded with a bark that might have been an ironic chuckle. He stepped away from the table and walked in a little circle in front of the broken door. I was shivering from the extreme cold. “The payment you must offer is the one demanded by the Treaty between our realms.” "For a witchwolf?" I responded, and my father cautioned me by murmuring my name. I had hazy recollections of being taught the Treaty during my childhood classes, but I couldn't remember anything about wolves. The creature turned around and faced me. "Who killed the wolf?" I asked, looking into those jade eyes. I moved in between it and my sisters and said, "I—I did." "It threatened me," I said, even though my legs were shaking.