Myra's POV...

There was a beast in my yard.

I hoped it was my imagination as I peered at the large wolf. I hoped it was just my madness playing tricks on my mind, but no matter how hard I stared, it didn't disappear.

Every step I took felt heavy, as if every vein in my body was pumping blood to my pounding heart; I bit back the scream rising in my throat and launched into a run.

I pushed aside my growing horror and didn't wait to see the beast's next move, racing back to my home with heavy steps. I reached for the door and then quickly jammed it shut, a shaky breath leaving me as I pulled myself away from the now-closed door.

But who am I kidding? If that beast had it out against me, my flimsy decade-old door wouldn't do as much to hold him back.

But I still clicked it shut. I quickly pushed my curtains closed, ensuring the room was dark enough to see if someone was inside, and then I checked again, and it was still in the yard's shed.

Perhaps I was going crazy, or my dad's madness was rubbing off on me, as he was known for being a mad scientist on the verge of a breakdown. It was a bit cruel to remember him that way, but it was true.

One of the reasons he lost his job was that, despite his mental health issues, Mom still stayed with him. I know it was a bit crazy to bring up the madness, but I had to confirm that the feeling and what I saw were real.

As I pinched myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming, I paced back and forth in my small foyer, my heart racing in my chest. It was alive and moving, and I felt compelled to call animal services, but I hesitated, fearing they might euthanize it, and I couldn't bring myself to do that.

"Myra, don't be stupid; that thing is at least 6 feet!" I warned myself. I did a double-take, looking back at the door and out the window to the backyard again, and it was still there! Damn it.

I muttered to myself as I walked to the storage closet, grabbed my father's old hunting bag, and retrieved what was now used to store part of my vet tool kits, which I normally used to help injured rabbits and birds that fell into my yard, but this was a wolf!

But never in my 22 years of living would I have expected to find wolves like this in a backwater town like this? I swear to God, if I'm eaten on my birthday...

'Just take a deep breath,' I tell myself, trying to calm down as I grasp the knob with trembling hands and step back out into the open yard. It was 2 am, with no neighbors awake, and all I had to defend myself were my wits and a bat.

I walk to the shed, I was surprised to see that the wolf was unconscious and had bled out. That meant I needed to work fast. It was his back hind legs that bled; maybe a fight among the pack? It had to be some wild fight because I'd never seen anything so grim and gnarly.

The musky scent of dense fur mixed with blood created a brutal scene, but I was used to it and immediately got to work.

"Hey, big boy..." I whisper, "I won't hurt you, I promise," but, damn, I don't have any tranquilizers. I just prayed he wouldn't wake up and bite my head off. I acted quickly, stitching and patching up its hind legs before I bandaged it, making sure the work was clean and fast.

I felt a rumble from the wolf's chest, and I backed away immediately. Okay, crap, I wasn't dead yet. I was relieved; I smiled in disbelief that spread even as my hands still trembled.

As I watched, the wolf instinctively curled up into a cocoon, still towering like a small hill, and I breathed a sigh of relief as I backed away from the weakened creature, racing back into the house and slamming the door shut.

I must have been crazy in my past life to have tackled that wild wolf with no experience, but I had expected to be scared; instead, I was feeling an adrenaline rush, and a smile spread across my face. I rushed towards my fridge.

I didn't have any raw meat, but I had leftovers from the whole chicken roast I ordered last night, which was missing only one wing. Do wolves like cooked food? I'm unsure, but I'm willing to try.

I warm up the food as if it were a chilly night, then transfer it to a plate before serving. I was careful on my toes, placing it gently before I raced back in. And now I felt the fatigue finally kicking in as I pushed myself into my room, took off my shirt and pants, and headed into the shower.

As I filled the bath, I needed a warm soak to wash my body and relax. Since tomorrow was a Sunday and we were closed, I relaxed a bit more, and before I knew it, I had fallen asleep, still partly thinking of a wild beast I just helped as my lids weighed down .

In my dreams, I'm back in the backseat of my father's old sedan, playing with coloring books as my parents argue. "Marcel...it's them..." As I saw fear in my father's face, yet bravery as he whirled the car around, my mom's voice echoed with urgency, but it was clear there was another obstacle blocking the road.

"What do we do..." she trembled.

"Daddy... "I'm scared," my small voice echoed. I could only watch, feeling like I had a front-row seat to my nightmare, as my father charged up the car with a look of resolve mixed with terror in his gaze and pushed on the steering wheel.

Suddenly, the glass shattered, and my mom's screams pierced through the car as I jumped out of the lukewarm tub. I was holding on to my chest and my loud beating heart. I was back to reality.

"Not this dream again..." I whispered, taking in sharp breaths to ease my cold veins. I hadn't had a normal birthday without the painful memory of my parents' death,

but when I heard a distant howl, it made me freeze, though it didn't sound close.

Was it the wolf's companion or his enemies? What if they were coming to finish the job? I rushed to my drawers and took out a silk nightwear set, a spaghetti strap top, and a shirt with a worn-out back. With my comfy shoes on, I take out my trusty bat and head outside again.

This time the plate was upturned and mostly eaten, but no wolf was in sight. As the air stilled, I felt a chill run through my body, and goosebumps rose on my back as I sensed movement and a heated snout behind me.

I closed my eyes and swung the moment I saw the fiery eyes: one was a crimson red, another a sickly white-grey, like a pool of lava, and the other a misty hue.

I was stunned by the enormous canine teeth as I tried to aim for its mouth, but I was too slow, bewildered by the incredible speed of this massive beast.

The beast lunged at me, grabbed the bat as I try to fight for my weapon but couldn't as I helplessly watched it being flung away. And now the wolf was on me. I could see the madness in its eyes as I tried to kick.

The wolf's abnormal rage, driven by bloodlust, targeted me, and I shielded my face with my hands as it thrashed as each primal growl caused my heart to pound ten times faster.

I screamed as I felt the intense pierce of its canine on my arm, just before it released me. I gazed at the wolf's sickly mist orb, which had faded into its crimson eyes that seemed almost conscious now.

It was as if something had snapped in the beasts, awakening consciousness, but as I cried out 'wolf,' my hands burned as if pierced by a thousand flames, and the beast fled.

But I couldn't care less, not with the searing pain in my hands. I'd never experienced such searing pain, as if it was consuming me from the inside out and pushing into my flesh, and I clutched my hand to my body, realizing what the wolf had done.

I'd just been bitten by a wild wolf beast.

MYRA's POV.

The moment I realized I'd been bitten by a wild wolf, a cry of horror escaped my lips. I cried through the excruciating pain.

It hurt, God, it hurt so badly.

As I watched blood gush from my bleeding arm, the pain was evident in every movement of my hand, but I didn't relent.

I rolled over onto my hands and knees, tucking my hand in, and crawled as quickly as I could towards the door, my eyes focused, using the last of my adrenaline. As soon as I reached safety, I slammed the door shut.

My head pounded at the same rate as my heart, my body warmer as sweat lined my back and forehead. I mean, who was I kidding? If the wolf wanted to return and finish the job, it would have easily broken down my door and attacked me by now, so what's been stopping it?

And even though I had doubts about my safety, I never heard any struggle or barrage from my door. I was safe, and now the adrenaline had dulled. I felt the raging pain eat through my eyes.

"It hurts..." I called out, "I need my phone." My voice was dizzy, and I could feel myself slurring my words as my body slowed down; the room seemed to double, and the whirling ceiling made me feel like I was going to throw up my barely eaten dinner, as if I'd been thrown into a flaming cycle.

No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't crawl or reach my bedroom to grab my phone and call 911 or Nate for help; my body had become paralyzed, and I slumped to the ground, my heart racing so loudly I feared it would burst at any moment.

"Someone...help me, Mom..." I thought, dying, and it was all my fault for being so stupid and trying to help a wild beast on my own instead of calling for help, ignoring my limitations.

I decided to do it on my own, and now look at me, on the verge of death. Maybe this was goodbye.

The most agonizing punishment I could have ever received was being killed on my birthday, which was also the day I got to meet my parents, who died on the same day.

My throat had seized as my vision turned black as I felt my heart and world stop.

+++*

Am I dead?

I didn't seem to be, especially given the pain that pumped through my veins as I felt my heart restart, like bones cracking back into place.

My eyes shot open as I jolted up from the floor, finding myself alone, with the sun's rays shining in; I didn't feel good, and it was a shock. I felt extremely hot, so I rushed towards my room.

My legs felt like jelly with each heavy step as I made my way to the bathroom door, turned the doorknob, and then reached for the shower knob before tumbling into the cool tub and turning the water to ice cold; I stayed under the water until I felt my sides freezing.

I didn't care that I was shivering, because my body felt like it was pumping with eternal heat. I stayed under the water flow.

I don't know how long I stayed before I trudged out, my body still aching, and my stomach growling with hunger, as if it were burning. It felt like my stomach was closing in on itself, and I needed to eat.

Like a rabid animal, I rushed into my fridge, my blurry vision fixed on the box of caramel donuts, their sweetness exactly what I craved. I devoured the dozen baked goods, then moved on to the second layer, where I found the half-eaten chocolate cake and the chicken.

What the hell was happening to me? Why was I having such insatiable hunger? I closed my eyes, trying to recall what had happened last night. As the recurring image of a black wolf attacking me surged back up, I touched.

I turned to my arm in panic, my eyes shooting open, and wondered what the heck? There was nothing there, no bite mark, so was there blood? Had I imagined it all? Or was it my father's madness that plagued me once more?

No, I swore I saw a wolf yesterday, and that pain was all too real last night for it to be just a dream. It felt too real.

As I walked towards the backyard, I saw that the tree was still lying on the ground, and my shed was a mess with bones. There was indeed a wolf, but how did it get there? I could have sworn I was dead yesterday; I was certain my heart had stopped beating.

I had an unexplainable itch in my bones and a strong desire to do something, but I couldn't figure out what I craved, so I retreated to my small office in my childhood bedroom. I tried turning on the computer, but it was busted.

So I reached for my smartphone and used the internet and Google to research wolf bites and their symptoms, something I'd never learned about despite being a veterinarian, and it wasn't supposed to feel that way, even considering it was an attack by a wild animal, based on all the studies I've read and conducted.

I press the first icon, leading me to a website on ancient stories and creatures, as the world with the bright icon that shows 'werewolves' 'What the hell...," I mutter under my breath.

My hunger, the ache in my bones, and afternoon jitters were all the result of a wolf bite? Are these people stupid or what? It just can't be, or can it? I wondered.

I had seen a message pop up from Beth, a nurse, that read, "Myra, have you seen this?" With a blurry photo attached, and just before I could touch it to load the photo, my screen turned black.

Just my rotten luck, my phone had turned off, and when I quickly realized I had no power in my home, the tree had crushed the energy outlets, dooming me with no internet or connection, but I still needed an answer.

So I rushed toward my dress closet, reaching for a navy blue tank top and shorts before I walked out of my house with a mission. Though I was clocked in today, I needed to reach the clinic. Nate would know what to do. Yes, he can help me understand. What's going on with me?

I take my keys to my scooter and rush towards the road that leads back to the clinic, my eye still a blur that had cleared bit by bit as the wind helped me wake up.

I jumped off my scooter, hit the ground, and rushed into the clinic with an aching skull. I jerked back, slamming my hands to my ears as my senses went haywire.

I could hear the incessant and loud buzzing of the crickets as I climbed the stairs; it felt so fucking close that it drove me mad.

But I shake my head to push away my delusion as I push open the back door, an easier route in as it didn't have the bell to disturb any visitor.

But then I saw Beth, a sad look on her face as she turned off the screen of her phone. Everyone had been looking at me weirdly as she rushed to my side.

"Hey, it's not that bad, and ok, everyone has their days and temptations... You wanted that role badly... and being suspended isn't the end," Beth says to me, the middle-aged nurse and an encouraging face as she pats my arm, leaving me so confused.

"What are you talking about? Beth...let me see your phone," I ask just as she hands it to me, and my heart sinks to my stomach as the shame spreads to my face.

I was looking at the picture in my lingerie that I'd taken last night, something so intimate that I'd sent it to Nate, that asshole.

I rushed to Nate's office with my heart in my throat as I reached for the door that was left half ajar and stopped in my tracks when I heard a giggle and a moan.

"Oh, Nate, this necklace is so beautiful; you know me so well... Ngh ugh!" Tania's moan echoes. I glanced to see the pendant, identical to mine, that had a grey moonstone; hers had sapphire crystals.

"It's the same as your beautiful eyes," he called, using the same line he said to me that night, while Tania was laid on the table while his drawers pulled to his feet while he thrust into her on the desk.

"And congratulations on your promotion." He says with a cocky smirk, "Tania, you are now the junior tech. I told you that you could trust me, since the head vet is my aunt," and my heart drops.

Was a position I had worked for being given to her? After struggling in this place and receiving encouragement from Nate throughout, the position has now been taken away from me!

"I can't believe that loser Myra thought wearing that lingerie to seduce you into giving her the position would work," Tania giggled with a moan as she kissed Nate.

"Neither did I; she is too naive and greedy. Nate replied. I don't know what took over me as I raged into the office, maybe the anger and disappointment that I thought I'd finally had someone who wanted me, only to see the lying scumbag.

"You fucking asshole." I rage, making them both stiffen from their actions as Nate tumbled over in surprise from hearing my voice as he tried to tuck himself back into his pants.

"M-Myra...wait...I can explain," he calls, trying to ease me like I'm an animal...but I only see red.

"Don't touch me!" I raged, not knowing what kind of strength came over me as I pushed his chest, but just a push to his chest had Nate crashing into the shelf and books toppling over him.

while Tania watches with her hand clasped in her mouth before she begins to scream. Howls of the small dogs and potions in the clinic filled my ears, but my senses were locked on my shaky hands.

I was still in shock as I peered at my hands. Did I do that? How?! I couldn't think right;. I was still in shock as I peered at my hands. Did I do that? How?!I wondered as my hands trembled-hands that had just sent a grown man flying. What the hell was I becoming?!

I needed to get away from here so I stalked away from the office, even as I heard my name being shouted back.

I hear Nate groan but still follow me. "Myra...wait, please," he hurled after me, his eyes desperate. "I wasn't the one that sent the picture, I swear," he pleads. His words had me raging.

"I know it was you! I trusted you! Yet you made me a laughingstock to the whole clinic!" His facade dropped. "You played me, proved to me, and showed me that I mean nothing to you, and the position I wanted was given to Tania! ...you spread such an intimate part of myself I gave to you. How could you?"

"Go ahead and say it's all my fault, but you can't blame me entirely; you were giving me signals, acting flirtatiously to get my attention." He reached to touch me, and I hated his touch. As Nate fell to the floor, I raised my knee, making sure it crushed hard into his groin.

"Agh! Fuck! You bitch!" He raged, reaching for me. "Yes, you deserve that, and I quit. I'm going to open my practice and achieve great success. Goodbye, Dr. Nate."

I called, flipping him off as my parting gesture. I sprint away with drying tears from the crouching male, racing towards the woods. I felt overwhelmed with anger, furious, and I needed to release it.

Something seemed to stir beneath my skin, beckoning me deeper into the woods. As I entered a clearing, my cry burst out of my body as I slumped over.

"I hate this, I hate this," I shouted, pounding my chest. I curled up into a ball with my knees to my chest and cried. I didn't know how long I was there.

The howl of a wolf jolts me back to reality to find myself deep into the woods; when I hear the howl again, this time twice, it's close, a chill runs up my spine.

It was near. "Is it you? After I helped you, you repaid me by biting me and infecting me with a virus or sickness that's causing this strange behavior, and now I feel wrong... What did you do to me?" I found myself asking, but the only response was a growl.

My body shivered when I saw clear white orbs shine towards me. As they emerged, the moon illuminated these unfamiliar malicious eyes, which gleamed with wicked intent.

They wolves with eerie white eyes. Not just wolves-monsters. Their eyes glowed like fogged mirrors, reflecting nothing but hunger.

My legs refused to move and before I knew it, I had stumbled into their trap and found myself surrounded by four wolves, their eyes drooling with bloodlust.

And now, I was their prey.

MYRA's POV.

~~~

I was surrounded.

My breath hitched as I watched four wolves appear out of the hidden shadows, white-mist eyes gleaming with gratifying intensity as I shuddered from their presence.

"What in the actual hell..." My lips were numb as I pulled myself up from the ground and leaned back on the tree. There was no escape; the four sides were covered, and now I was their prey.

They circled me, as if all were waiting for the right moment to attack, while I watched these monsters as my body buzzed, hands trembling and a pinch to my skin to break my frozen demeanor.

This wasn't like when I'd met the black wolf; I felt something close to a rush, and as crazy as I may sound, a connection treating him, but I could feel the bloodthirst coming from them as they watched me.

And even though the wolves weren't as large or as menacing as the great black wolf I saw last night, four wolves meant that I wasn't going to survive this in any way, well just my rotten luck.

And I knew no one was coming for me, especially after I just hit Nate in the groin and was quiet. I was on my own, at least my story would be a good documentary and I'd finally meet my parents.

So much for having my appointment with a realtor for my dream practice space in the city. It was never meant to be. It's over, I tell myself.

So why the hell was I charging into a fighting stance right now? Why was my will to live so strong? I had taken a large branch on the floor as my weapon, and the wolves looked rather amused at my predicament.

My voice cracked, but I bared my teeth. "Come and get me, you overgrown mutts You want me? Here i am," I muttered under my breath as the first dark brown wolf leaped, my branch did nothing to protect me as it gnawed off the wood while I scurried for safety.

It was a flimsy and piss-poor distraction I know but it was a buy for me to begin sprinting out of the woods, they were hot on my tail, but I didn't stop, pushing my face even as my bones ached and my teeth rattled.

I ran with all my might, but just as I came out of the open field, I felt a heavy weight blood to my torso, pushing me as my body slammed against the tree.

The attacker knocked a winded breath out of me as the sharp branches lodged themselves into one of my thighs, I screamed from the agonizing pain of the indented wood that rattled my senses with pain.

I screamed and thrashed, trying to pull the deeply indented wood off as they gathered me once more, and that was when I realized, they were playing with me and it was to them... a game.

I was screwed, and no way out as my wound bled, body weaker as I crawled away, throwing sticks and stones to no avail. "Someone, please...help me...anyone...please," I cried with a silent prayer as I bled out, closing my eyes to accept my painful fate.

But then I heard a roar as shadows tousled over me, and I was unharmed. The snarls, cries, and yelps of the wolf garnered my attention as I opened my eyes to see a bloody battle between the four wolves...no, five! One had appeared.

One that was very familiar, the same black beast that bit me, his fur as dark as midnight, and his eyes with a crimson power as he raged between the two wolves, his eyes and stature held so much power.

He went for the neck of a light brown-black wolf, gutting out its life from its neck as bone cracked; the familiar brown jumped at the opportunity while he was distracted to take him down.

But he failed terribly as the black wolf turned in time to land a damning blow to the wolf's skull, slamming to the ground as it landed close to me, its neck crooked and eyes far gone for me to know it was dead.

No, no, no, I needed to get out of here! I panicked, crawling just as another wolf was slammed next to the tree to my left, and my breath hitched.

Having to cover my mouth to stop the air from escaping, I was hyperventilating at this point as I watched the war between the two animals rage, and of all four beasts, there was one left.

The wolf bowed its head, backing away as it pleaded for mercy from the black wolf, but he didn't back down, howling out to the forest that echoed as he aimed for the wolf's hind leg, breaking it with a wicked crackle as the wolf cried.

But it seems the dark wolf had a scrap of mercy for the wolf or maybe a warning to the other and him as an example as the wolf limped shamelessly away with its tail between its legs.

And from those four wolves, he came out as champion. The battle was over; he'd won. And I was next. Fuck.

"You...you came back to finish the job, didn't you..." I called out, my breathing harsh and barely even awake, as I was losing blood, and from the battering on my body, I was slowly slipping away from consciousness.

I feel a cold snout touch my injured leg as I flinch, afraid of what it's going to do next. My face forms from confusion to fear and then shock when I begin to hear the crackle of bones.

This cannot be happening or real, but it was. The huge wolf shapeshift began to change into a human form, Bones splintered-not broke-reforming as midnight fur receded into skin and in seconds a fully grown and naked male stood.

He faced away from me, and I could only get a look at his back and his midnight-black shoulder-length hair, tousled and blown by the wind.

"This has to be a dream; it has to," I slurred my words just as I heard the crunch of the dry leaves and the sound of him walking closer, but I was already far gone as my consciousness slipped out of me, but not before I heard a husky voice by my side.

"There you are, human. I've been looking for you."