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The melodic chanting grew louder as a feeling bore down on me, one I didn’t recognise, one that wasn’t my own. I sensed the presence of unseen others, and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up straight.
All I could smell was death.
“It’s time,” Amelia said. “Now, Dorian.”
My wolf whimpered, unsure and unsteady, but the human part of me pushed through. It had to be done. Amelia pointed at Margo’s wrist. I carefully positioned my fangs then bit precisely, firm but neat, to lessen the damage. I braced myself, but Margo didn’t react, though her blood spilled freely. An angry red flush instantly spread throughout the pale skin on her inner arm.
Instinctively, I licked at her wound. The taste of her blood made me panic. It tasted like death and otherness, like nothing I had ever experienced.
Amelia tapped my nose then pointed at the other wrist. I was supposed to hurry. I bit down again, and this time, Margo whimpered. Her breathing grew heavier. I licked the second wound, too, unable to stop myself, urged on by forces unseen.
Amelia had already begun to spread her homemade paste on the first bite. The foul odour hit me, and I wanted to throw up.
Margo was sweating and shaking, struggling to hold it together. The final bite killed me to even think about, but I nudged at her chin with my nose, partly to see if she was okay. She was still with me, still ready to continue because she lifted her chin to give me room to bite one last time.
I opened my jaw as wide as possible, careful to keep the punctures far apart. So I quickly bit her, licked the wounds, then held my breath and waited.
For a moment, there was only silence. Then Margo began to scream, an awful, wet scream. Her body convulsed. Nathan and Heddy struggled to hold her down while Amelia applied the last of the ointment.
Somebody banged on the door. I could hear Margo's mother crying. Byron held the door closed, refusing to let her parents in.
“This is too much.” Evelyn sounded shocked. “It can’t be this bad, can it?”
“It is.” Stephen Rivers knelt next to Margo, checking her vitals while Amelia continued to chant, only her words sounded pleading and desperate now.
“Death is here for her,” Vira said, her eyes blue.
But it wasn’t death, at least, not the death I knew. The scent had changed, and a warm breeze blew against me. There was no cold. Something was happening, but it had to be allowed to finish or all would be lost. Something primal in my heart understood. If the others were in wolf form, they might realise it, too.
“We should stop this,” Evelyn said urgently. “Get her to a hospital.”
“She’s weakening,” Stephen said. “I don’t like this. It’s already worse than what I went through.”
Nathan was panting with the effort of holding Margo’s limbs down. She was stronger. That had to mean something. “This is meant to be different. Dorian, should we stop?”
I growled, standing over Margo as I snarled, warning the others.
“Dorian, move out of the way,” Amelia commanded. “We need to keep an eye on her.”
“We need to stop!” Evelyn protested. “We need to help her.”
Heddy was watching me warily. “If we needed to stop, he would stop us.”
“Keep going,” Byron shouted from the door. “Look at the candles.”
They were flickering wildly in the wind. A wind that came from nowhere. I realised it wasn’t Amelia chanting anymore, yet I could still hear the words. Multiple voices, low but audible. The wind whirled around us in a cyclone, beating the others back, all but Amelia who clung to Margo’s hand.
“What’s happening?” Vira shouted.
Amelia held my gaze, gave me a brief nod, and then her eyes turned silver and her face went slack. She slid onto her back, but her hand never let go of Margo’s.
Whatever was happening, she was a part of it, and she had left me to defend Margo alone.
The wind kept whirling, people kept shouting, but amidst it all, I stood firm, protecting Margo. The ointment had stopped the bleeding, and she had stopped convulsing. The warmth around us was so comforting that I almost didn’t notice the chill approach.
I lifted my chin and howled as loudly as I could, warning everyone nearby to beware. I couldn’t help them, couldn’t do anything but stand guard over Margo.
Nathan hesitated, glancing at Byron.
