5

“Running through the woods as fast as I can. My own thoughts scare me, they are terrible. What just happened is a red herring. I feel it in my heart, in my gut. How scary it is to realize that you made a mistake, and this mistake can cost a dear person his life. Never been so scared before. Did they get to her?

  Finally, having reached the house, he carefully examined the inside. Hanna is not here. The repulsive smell of lugaru is everywhere.

  Suddenly, he heard a scream. The sister calls for help. I was on the second floor, so I jumped out of the window so as not to waste precious time. Glass shattered and scattered on the ground. Injured, but did not pay attention to the wounds and rushed to the voice of Hannah. 

  I ran, but I was afraid of being late. She's human and it's easy to kill. When I ran out into the clearing, I saw my sister standing clinging to a tree, monsters surround me from all sides. There are only four of them here, but I'm sure the rest are somewhere nearby.

  One of the four swung at Hannah. Pounced on him before he could strike. There was a crunch of a broken neck. The others turned away from their sister and rushed at me. Going into a frontal attack is a huge mistake on their part. I'm in human form, and this gives some advantages. Crouched down. Two of them collided with each other, and the third flew over us.

  He looked at his sister, she was still standing, clinging to a tree. Horror in the eyes.

- Hannah, run! I shouted. My voice brought me to my senses.

  The sister nodded and ran towards the river. The Lugaroos are bad swimmers, and Hannah was a champion swimmer in our school. Water is an opportunity to get out alive.

  A growl from behind her warned of an attack. The wolf demon rushed straight at me when he was near, grabbed him by the neck and threw him over him. Lugaru flew into a tree and, whining, fell on the grass. The monster's ribs were broken from the impact. With lightning speed he turned to the remaining two. They seem to be confused. Frightened by the ease with which he coped with the other two. Naturally, I will take advantage of their confusion and attack first.

  Rushed at the one closest. The enemy opened his mouth, trying to cling to me, and he almost succeeded. With difficulty, he managed to dodge, leaned his hand on the face of the demon and flew over it. Once behind, he immediately jumped on his back and twisted his neck. They fell to the ground together. The monster pressed down with its weight, the second decided to take advantage of the chance and rushed towards me. He barely managed to throw back the dead carcass and grab the beast by the jaw. Teeth sunk into his hands. He felt blood running down his wrists, but now was not the time to worry about such trifles.

  Suddenly there was a cry from her sister, and this time not for help, but a heartbreaking cry of pain. Everything inside shrank. I looked at the lugar who was trying to free his mouth from my grip. Without thinking twice, he broke his jaw. He thrashed about on the grass in pain. Finished off with a kick, breaking the skull.

  Wasting no more seconds, he rushed to his sister. By the cry it is easy to guess that she is not far away. Frightening thoughts swirled in my head again. And thoughts, unfortunately, were justified. The terrible picture that opened up to the eye was that neither is real.

   Hannah just missed the river. Just a couple of steps left. Towering over her stands Christopher, the faithful dog of Velius. The sister lies bloody, wounds all over her body, there is no living place left.

  I was trembling, I could hardly restrain myself so as not to spill over into the Lugara. Anger burned from the inside, pain with force fettered the heart. Only her sister's weak heartbeat gave her hope. As long as there is a chance, must fight to the end.

  The next moment I grappled with Christopher, this creature is undoubtedly strong, but at the moment he cannot defeat me. Plus, he's in human form.

  He clenched his teeth and pressed harder on the monster's arms, he buckled. Then he quickly released him and grabbed his head with the same speed. It was not possible to break the neck, the beast fought with all his might. Then he threw it at a tree. The sound of broken bones meant that the bloodthirsty dog ​​was unable to attack again. I know there are more lugars in the forest, but that was the least of my interest.

  He ran up to Hannah, lifted her up and put her on her knees. Seeing how much blood she had lost, he realized that there was no way to save her. Powerless and powerless causes so much pain. I couldn't save my sister's life.

- Hannah, don't leave me. I beg! - tightened his grip. Tears ran down her cheeks.

 Forgive me Elian! - she could barely speak, blood flowing from the corners of her mouth. “Sorry for not being able to escape, and for leaving you alone. I love you.

- You can't die. Brandon will die without you, you know how much he loves you. The words stuck in my throat. Tears were choking.

- Tell Brandon that I loved him with all my heart. - she began to cough, blood got into her throat, and did not let her speak. Breathing is very weak.

- You yourself must tell him.

- Sorry! she whispered. A quiet heartbeat followed, and the sister stopped breathing.

- Hanna! All he could do was scream her name. The heart was torn to pieces. He held his lifeless body tightly, rocking it like a child.

  Everything around has lost its meaning. I'm falling into nowhere. Pain kills. I can't take my eyes off the bloody face. Wounds, wounds, only wounds everywhere. Noticed three identical cuts on the neck. They were left on purpose, a message. Hannah was brutally murdered because of me. The Lugarus enjoyed her torment. And I will gladly kill them. What I saw awakened in me a sleeping monster, cruel and bloodthirsty.

  Wolf demons surrounded, only their shadows are visible among the trees, but by the sparkling eyes I could count their number. Eight. There were nine, but Christopher ran away, leaving the others to take care of it. The grief did not ease. Velius did not expect that the pain would make me what he wanted at the beginning, namely a monster.

  He growled furiously. The body was doused with a wave of heat, turned into a lugara. Demons rushed at me. In turn, he did not retreat, but was waiting for the battle in anticipation. He tore the first one to pieces. The second bit his throat. The rest he killed quickly and bloodthirsty. He tore with fangs, savoring the taste of blood in his mouth, like a vampire enjoying human blood. He looked at the shreds of skin on the claws and palms, as if there was no more beautiful sight. I tore and tore until body parts and pools of blood covered the ground around me. All covered in blood. Words cannot express the pleasure that I experienced during the very process of the murder. I rejoice in the death of every creature.

 Previously, such a thought caused horror and self-loathing. But now he wished death for all of them without exception. Even upset that so easily coped with the enemies.

  He returned to the form of a man and began to examine the torn corpses of wolf demons. Nobody has to survive. After confirming that everyone was dead, he again looked at his hands with satisfaction. He smiled quite a bit. The monster in me woke up. Roared triumphantly." jumped up on the bed. A dream, just a dream. The body was still trembling. Why did this nightmare happen again? Why? After all, so many years have passed since the death of her sister. He leaned back in bed and stared up at the ceiling.

  Many years have passed, I remember everything to the smallest detail, as if it happened yesterday. I remember how I pressed my wounded body to myself, I sat motionless for a single hour, trying to accept reality. I remember buried by the tree where she and Brandon used to hang out. I remember the all-consuming pain, to this day it does not leave my heart. I remember being afraid of my friend's return, knowing that losing Hannah would kill him. I had no right to look him in the eyes, because I could not protect my own sister and his beloved. He was not strong enough, he overestimated his strength. Shouldn't have left her alone.

  Brandon returned the next morning. As soon as he saw me, a friend began to rush around the house and look for Hannah. Not finding his beloved, he approached me and demanded an explanation. He saw fear in his eyes, how he hated himself at that moment. Couldn't utter a word, so he took him to his sister's grave.

  The friend knew immediately who it belonged to. He fell to his knees, unable to believe what had happened, then crouched down on the grave and sobbed. That was the first time I saw him cry. Until that day, I thought that vampires did not cry, but tears flowed down my cheeks. Was unable to calm him down. Unable to lessen my pain, how could I help him.

  The only thing he could do was leave him alone with his grief. Brandon spent several days at the grave. He never screamed in excruciating pain. I wanted to plug my ears and run somewhere so as not to hear the scream.

  One day the screams stopped. I spent all these days without sleep and therefore immediately felt something was wrong. Rushed to a friend. The fear was justified. Brandon sat in the sun, the skin on his face, neck, hands was covered with burns. He dragged him into the shade and began to shake. Lost my sister, can't lose my only friend. Shake until your eyes open. He breathed a sigh of relief, he was alive. But that didn't change anything, as soon as the wounds healed, Brandon disappeared. Left alone with his guilt, pain and grief.

  Living with guilt is a heavy burden, it is better not to live at all. And I am guilty of twins, I did not save my sister and deprived my best friend of my beloved. 

  Since the day of Hannah's death, he has not lived, but rather existed. Thoughts were occupied only with revenge. I craved it so much that revenge slowly killed the man in me, leaving only the demon.

  I killed every Lugar that got in my way and killed brutally, sometimes even too brutally, I liked to take their lives. He was merciless and bloodthirsty, a real beast. He was looking for death, did not want to live and did not want to exist, but, unfortunately, he always defeated the enemy. The vengeance burning from within made him invulnerable.

  Destroyed so many lugars that I lost count. The goal was to wipe out their entire race from the face of the Earth, including himself. But I was wrong, there are a lot of them and I can’t cope with them alone. Brandon appeared out of nowhere. At a time when help was desperately needed. A friend still returned, although a lot of time had passed. No longer felt alone. Brandon fought with me shoulder to shoulder. He, like me, killed indiscriminately. The loss of my sister is our shared grief. He loved her, Hannah was his half, maybe destiny. The shared pain brought us closer together. Brandon became not just a friend, but rather a brother. I thought I would never see him, but after his return, he never left me.

  After spending several months looking for the killer, we have destroyed many wolf demons. Normally, I don't remember those months. Because, almost all the time I spent in the form of a beast, sometimes it seemed that I would not be able to reincarnate back into a person. But one day everything changed. Learned about the battle of Velius with the werewolves. About two chosen ones capable of destroying thousands of lugars at a time. But there was one, BUT! Demons could kill the wolf girl before conversion and win the battle. I decided to stop them at all costs.

  I remember the first time I saw Katherine. An ordinary human girl stood at the school and talked to one of the teachers. My goal then changed direction a little, now the life of the chosen one was important. Revenge still drove my impulses, but not as much as before.

   The girl did not even suspect that her father was brutally killed and that she was not like everyone else. Protecting the chosen one, as if he got out of the hell in which he lived. If this small and fragile girl has to devote her life to saving people, then I can do it too. She gave me hope, hope that I could overcome the demon in me and become the same protector as the werewolves. And I became one!

  I found meaning in life, which was so lacking. Now in the heart was not only revenge. When I saw the chosen one again, she was already the White Wolf. The girl conquered not with her indescribable beauty, but with her gullibility and faith in me. She believed, despite the fact that she saw for the first time. The chosen one was sincerely worried about me, she did everything to get out of the City of Wolves safe and sound. She even lied to Jason, the one she loves the most in her life. At some point, I felt a pang of jealousy. I regret that there is no such special person in my life. The guilt of Katherine's father's death still weighs heavily on my shoulders, even though she denies mine, but I know that. Protected the girl, completely forgetting about her family. The chosen one blames herself. Is it really her fault that she was born special?

  I was also at Jason and Katherine's wedding ceremony. My heart was shrinking, shrinking not because I was losing my beloved, no, it just seemed like I was losing a dear person. But when he saw the girl's eyes glowing with happiness, he remembered Hannah again. Our last meeting is still remembered as something important. Even after so many years, I have not forgotten her beautiful blue eyes and dazzling smile. Now I understand why I was instantly subdued. Not her beauty and intelligence, but kindness, tenderness, the ability to look into the depths of the soul and see what others do not see. The werewolves never recognized me, and the White Wolf saw me as an ally. Her wide-open surprised eyes did not show fear, but rather amazement and admiration. Ha, funny! The she-wolf admired the lugar. Most of all it was nice to see sadness and frozen tears in beautiful eyes, when he left. For her, without hesitation, I will give my life. The shamans are right, fate is fate, did not fall in love with Katherine, because she is not my half, but Jason. She is a person close to my heart.

 Many thoughts visited during today's almost sleepless night. After a nightmare and memories, it is not easy to fall asleep. Most disturbing is the smell of the sister's second killer. Christopher was then assisted by someone else, someone more ancient and dangerous. Thanks to the dream, I distinctly remembered the smell. With each passing year, it became more and more difficult to remember him, but not now. Glad to see the nightmare again. He taught me how to cope with pain, but not so much with the thirst for revenge. Now I just avenge and save at the same time.

  Only now the friend has not learned to cope with pain, I'm sure he, as always, spent the night sitting by the window. Good thing we're not in London, otherwise I'd spend my nights at Hannah's grave.

  This is our second year in Paris. I didn’t return to England on purpose, but the time has come, it’s time to go home. The dream was a dream. I feel in my gut that soon we will find out who the killer is. And my instinct never fails me. I just needed to remember the smell. This time the killer won't get away from us.

  He threw back the covers and got out of bed. He pulled out his everyday clothes from the closet, a black T-shirt, jeans and grabbed a towel. Went into the bathroom, took a shower. Drops on the body dried up instantly, so after getting dressed, I dried my hair, combed it and gathered it into a braid.

  The house is as quiet as ever. Brandon rarely breathes, his heart does not beat, it would be difficult to find him without knowing his smell, and where he spends his nights. All these years, a friend hardly slept. Only when he was already falling down from fatigue did he go to bed. And that happened very rarely. Brandon hasn't slept in about two weeks now.

  Going downstairs, I found a friend in the living room by the second window. The gaze is directed somewhere into the distance. Eyes empty and impenetrable, apparently again plunged into memories.

- Brandon! I called.

  He blinked, meaning he didn't notice me approaching.

- Eliane! Blue eyes shifted to me. The frightening emptiness is gone.

- How do you? - stupid question.

- It's okay, you can say it's good. A slight smile appeared on his pale face. Over the past two years, I have not gotten used to the fact that he began to smile occasionally.