“Then we capture it.” The direction of the magic reversed, flowing into Frank’s hands as if pulling something from the meat itself. “Then transfer it.” He turned andthe magic again flowed from his hands into the bottle. The water inside the perfume glass became blood red.
I watched with my mouth open. He made it appear so easy. “That was amazing. You’re amazing!”
Frank groaned, leaning forward, his knuckles pressed against the table. At first, I thought he was worn out, but then I glanced at my phone, sucking in a breath. It was two minutes past 7:00.
I yanked the bottle of potion from my bag and ran my palm over it, muttering the last words needed to activate it. “Here, take this. Take it now.” I gripped his hand and pushed the possession potion into it.
His gaze flashed with uncertainty and fear, but his jaw clenched, and his shoulders squared. “Anything to keep you safe.” He downed the bottle’s contents.
Frank leaned against the workbench, clutching the empty bottle. His back was to me, but I traced the tautness of his frame. The full moon glowed through the top windows, casting long shadows on the polished wooden floors. A shift came in the atmosphere, something deep and primal, and my pulse quickened with every passing second.
He turned, his gaze locking onto mine, but they weren’t the soft brown eyes I loved. They were glowing—an intense, amber gold—and they seemed to pierce through me. He looked almost…incomplete, as if the man I knew was only a shell of something else. His fingers twitched, curling into fists, the first hint of change—a shimmer of dark fur sprouting along his arms.
My breath caught in my throat, my mind racing as I withdrew instinctively. But I didn’t look away. I couldn’t. There was a magnetic force about him, something that held me in place even as his body began to shift before my eyes.
His bones cracked, loud enough to echo in the silent factory, and his form grew taller, broader, fur covering his skin in thick waves of deep brown and silver. As his back arched and his face twisted in pain, my heart ached at the rawness of it—the rawness of the creature he was becoming.
His face elongated into the fierce muzzle of a wolf. His teeth sharpened, gleaming white against the shadowed light. Massive, clawed paws scraping the floor replaced his warm, familiar hands.
For a moment, he lingered there, towering over me, panting softly. His chest rose and fell with heavy breaths, but the moonlight gleamed off his fur. His form was strangely beautiful—raw, untamed, and powerful.
My heart beat wildly, but I didn’t run. Instead, I stepped forward, drawn to him.
When he turned to me, I paused. There was only a hungry thirst in his eyes. Frank was now a predator. A low growl escaped his lips, and he came toward me.
“Stop,” I said.
Frank stopped mid-step. He stood there growling but not moving.
There was a haziness flashing through my brain. I saw me, staring at my own pale features and large eyes behind my wire spectacles. But I also saw Frank’s snarling face, that was only a few feet from mine.
I tried to command him from my mind.Back up. Pick up the perfume.
He took a step backward, and then another and another, until he turned and lifted the perfume bottle from the table.
Take it out into Fairwood Forest and douse yourself in it. When the other werewolves come, run deeper into the trees, keep going and don’t stop. Avoid any people, any sign of civilization. Whatever you do, you can’t let the other werewolves catch you.
He released a long howl and then took off, bursting out the rear door of the facility and into the night. I sank onto the floor, my mind awash with the sensations of buildings and street lamps rushing by, giving way to the darkness of the forest.
The distant sounds of howls reached my ears, and then scenes of the woods came into my vision, along with the feel of the hot breath of other werewolves coming, running, racing, chasing.
It went on like this until the early hours of the morning, and instead of the animal instincts, I had the flash of a man’s hand. I whispered to the dark. “I release you from my power.”
Then the strange visions ended, and I drifted off into a fitful sleep.
“Mary.”
I was awakened by Frank’s gentle call. He stood in the doorway, nothing but torn pants cladding his body. My blood warmed at the sight of his shirtless torso, but I frowned at the scratches running across his upper chest.
“You’re hurt.”
“Another werewolf must have gotten too close.” He shrugged. “I barely feel it. I’m fine.”
He sat next to me, his warm arms coming around me and pulling me near. My pulse pounded, my whole body warming. Touching a shirtless man’s upper body was new to me, but with Frank, it felt like the most natural thing in the world. I leaned against his broad muscled chest, my fingers lightly tracing over the scratches.
“That tickles,” he chuckled.
“You don’t smell like raw meat and blood.”
