He took her hands and looked into her confused eyes. He brushed a stray tendril of hair off her face and tucked it behind her ear. This small intimate gesture and the soft touch of his fingers warmed her inside.
“It may be difficult to understand. But in time you will come to see it as my gift to you. I healed you.”
“You're a healer?” she asked in an incredulous whisper.
“Not really a healer, as such.” He cast his eyes downwards for a moment.
“But how? What do you mean?”
“I did something to help heal your body. As you were about to die. I had no choice.”
“You're scaring me now. What did you do to me?”
“It's best I show you. Come here.” He led her to the mirror on the wall in the bathroom. She gasped out loud at the sight of her lovely purple and black bruised eye.
Bruises didn't turn these vivid colors in four hours, did they?
The swelling seemed to be going down already, she could almost open it as wide as the other one.
“Look at your shoulder, where it hurts.”
She pulled her t-shirt over her shoulder and gaped. Her shoulder had large red marks on it. They looked like bite marks. She looked closely and rubbed her fingers over them hesitantly.
“Don't tell me you bit me, please?” She stared at him standing behind her, in the mirror.
“It was all I could do, believe me...”
“All you could do? What? How could biting me help mend a broken neck for crissakes? This is getting really weird. I must be dreaming.”
“My bite contains a special substance that can heal bone and tissue.”
“And now it's getting much weirder.”
“But the downside, if you look at it that way, is that you are now like me.”
“I'm a healer too?”
“No, I'm not a healer Maddy. That's only a very small part of what I am. Of what we all are here. We're all the same. A big family. And now you're part of it too, whether you like it or not, I'm afraid.”
“You know what? You're not making any sense at all. What family are you on about?”
“Let me put it bluntly. You're a werewolf. We are your pack and I am the alpha wolf.”
“Oh ha ha... that is so funny.”
“Not at full moon it isn't. The rest of the time it can be fun.”
“And you have just turned me into a werewolf, by this bite, have you?” She laughed loudly again, then ran her fingers over the large marks on her shoulder and peered at them in the mirror, examining the shape and size of them closely.
They were not like human tooth marks at all. A sudden chill ran up her spine, which she tried to put aside, dragging all her logic and reason to the fore.
“I'd give you a demonstration, but I think it might scare you. You need to let it sink in for a while. Let me tell you what to expect... you'll have dreams, weird intense animal ones... and hot flashes. You might see hair suddenly appear on parts of your body randomly, and ….”
“STOP. NO MORE. Aden. Please, the joke is over. It's not funny anymore.”
“It's no joke. Come with me, I need help in persuading you.” He took her hand and led her out of her room, down the corridor and into the kitchen. Shane was busy chopping up a mountain of potatoes for their dinner.
“Ah, there you are Maddy. Feeling better now?” he asked her kindly.
“Yes, a lot better, considering I broke my neck only a few short hours ago,” she blurted out in a rush.
“That's good love. Want some coffee?” he asked very matter of factly.
“NO! I mean no thanks. But I do want to know what the hell's going on here.”
He looked at Aden for confirmation.
“Go ahead Shane. She knows.”
“What's going on, well then... How about this? He bit you to save you from dying. You're one of us now. Welcome to the Carr pack of werewolves.”
“Is this some kind of sick conspiracy? Are you a weirdo cult or something?” she pushed.
“I think we're certifiably very weird, but not a cult, no. We're all quite normal most of the time... Just rather animal in between,” Shane guffawed as he continued chopping potatoes.
“I'm sorry, but I'm just not feeling it. Wolf-like, I mean,” she replied sarcastically, still very far from believing any of it.
“Oh you will, give it a few days and you'll be feeling it very strongly. Thankfully you have a whole week to become used to your new state of being before the moon is full,” Aden added with a knowing look at Shane.
“I so need to wake up now.” She pinched herself hard and left the kitchen, going back to her room alone.
She was suddenly overcome with exhaustion and a cool shivery feeling had overtaken the heat. Her shoulder was aching like hell. She slumped on the bed and lay on her stomach, shutting her eyes as the deep need for sleep overtook her. One thought remained firmly in her mind as she drifted away into oblivion. She needed to get away from here. As soon as she'd rested, she was leaving. They were all completely mad. Either that, or she was.