CHAPTER 5: HORRIFYING ENCOUNTER

ROXANNE

Arranging my things on my desk soon after my best friend and colleague went to do her shift around the hospital in the rural town of Chevalier de Sang. It was one of the selected rural towns that managed to participate in the aiding program of the city's hospital where we work.

“Got a minute, Dr. Morison?” I heard Dr. Ruby Jade Kim's boyfriend, Henry politely asked while peeking on the adjacent door of the doctor's office.

“Sure have a seat.” I smiled and offered a seat but Henry shook his head making me look at him confused.

“Well, I think it’s better if you see it for yourself. So, want me to show you?” His shyness caught my attention. I had never seen a man blush before but I'm grateful that RJ short for Ruby Jade found him.

“Hm, the way you shyly asked made it intriguing. Brief me on the way.” I teased and wore my doctor’s coat as we headed to wherever Henry was taking me.

***

The hospital here in the small rural town of Chevalier de Sang was neat and very much well-functioning but unusually quiet compared to the busy city hospital. As we walked the quiet halls, we were greeted respectfully by nurses and doctors which I think Henry held a prominent position here.

“Dr. Morison, the patient we’re going to meet was someone who had a rare case.” I was in my thoughts when Henry decided to cut the silence on our walk.

“Rare case?” I wondered since I felt the heaviness when he mentioned the patient that I was about to meet.

“Yes and hope this case won’t scare you.” Hearing that, Henry’s voice might be gentle but they were steady but heavy which got me curious.

I was about to speak when the atmosphere in the hall shifted. It was like we entered another dimension yet, it was still the same hall but the eerie vibe was thick and surely shooing anyone trying to pry into whatever lies in this hall. We kept walking further until the certain ward became clear to my eyes. It was an isolated VIP ward that made me even more cautious.

“We’re here. This patient has been behind this door for years and is still asleep.” Henry held the door knob but didn’t open the door yet as he gave me a startup about the patient.

“Coma?” I guessed and he nodded as he opened the ward’s door.

“Okay, and the status?” I wondered as she understood how severe the case lies beyond the closed door.

“She’s stable but barely making it since we’re not sure if our supplies would be enough to sustain her when sometimes, the pack – I mean, the town’s people came in with wounds and injuries. So, we came up planning to wake her up which made me think of someone who could help me with it. ” Henry’s voice held seriousness and hope as he shared with me what they wanted for the special patient that I was about to meet.

“Hm, sounds like you heard me from someone.” Although, I knew where he heard my name from I still teased him which made him blush.

But what I didn’t anticipate was something might remind me of something that I’ve lost and caused me to be a workaholic these past few weeks.

***

‘You’re not entirely human.’

‘Mom, you’re funny.’

Cold and thick mist welcomed me when Henry opened the door. I gave him a stern look which made Henry smile shyly before he guided me further inside the huge cold room. The entire room was filled with dry ice like we were inside a fridge of frozen goods or corpses but this one held a certain patient that needed a below-zero temperature. I was so confused and intrigued as I had never handled any patient who needed this kind of treatment before.

“Here’s the VIP patient, her name is Rose Ann Orlok.” Henry pointed the patient in a spacious box with medical equipment attached to her body. It was making the pain go less and kept her alive.

Familiar but hearing the name of the patient, I was taken in a plane where everything turned into a slow-motion picture that passed my sight. My heartbeat started to throb hard which made my ears go deaf and my hands started trembling at what sight was about to reveal before me.

“She’s been here for twenty years. She’s alive but there was no sign of waking up. The coldness of this room made her burned wounds less painful as I made sure that I and my grandparents were fully sanitized before checking her closely.” Henry’s voice faded in my background and only matters what lies before my sight.

I gasped as soon as my eyes fell on the painful sight of the patient. The patient’s face was beautiful but the burned part made it difficult to see and had a couple of cuts there were some stabs which everyone could have died but this patient didn’t. I covered my mouth as I tried to control the tears that were threatening to fall from my eyes when my mind began playing a gruesome scene that I’d rather forget but couldn’t.

‘Remember, I love you.’

Enormous blood was all over the place in a certain part of the house that particular night in my memory. Everything filled with blood as I recalled the bruises, three gunshots, multiple stabs, and a couple of deep cuts from head to toe from the gruesome scene of the death of my adoptive mother in their house. I might want to puke from the gruesome recollection and the patient’s status before me but it also served as a reminder about what I’ve just lost on that very night.

“Rox, are you okay?” Henry noticed my sudden uneasiness as he worriedly asked me. His worried voice and gentle hand on my shoulder snapped me from my recollection.

“I need some air.” I jolted a little as I tried to remain composed yet, the sight of the patient reminded me of someone close to me. Someone close to my heart.

“Oh, okay. Let’s get you out of here.” I know Henry wanted to ask but he was kind enough that he didn’t continue and just took me out of the isolated ward.

***

Breathe. I needed to breathe as my chest tightened once again. I didn’t wait for Henry and just ran as fast as I could away from the hospital. I need to. I have to get out of here. I needed a breather from the sight reminded me about the thing I just lost. Despite wanting to break free from it, the anguish and fury were overlapping making my resolve weakened until I bumped into someone. I muttered sorry as I leaned over the closed shop but the panic made me snap from my disoriented thought and looked around the street.

“What’s going on here? Why everyone is panicking?” I weakly took notice of the sudden rush of the people around the town. They were running in panic while the alarm echoed in the background.

“You better run and hide. Rogues are back.” One of the townsfolks and the person who bumped into me said in a hurry before running away, leaving me behind confused.

“Rogues?” I don’t know what to think as I’m very confused by the sudden turn of events that I hadn’t encountered before.

“PERSISTENT ROGUES! HIDE EVERYONE!” One of the security personnel shouted to everyone as one by one who were protecting the town began morphing into a werewolf.

They’re morphing?

I didn’t know how to react when men began shape-shifting into a wolf-like in a folklore that never existed in my life. I thought that they were just alive in fantasy books, and movies, not in real life. I gasped in fear as a series of movies or fictional novels that I had watched and read about began flashing in my mind. Horrified, I was horrified I quickly ran as fast as I could that almost made me stumble when I bumped into a rabid werewolf.

I’m going to die.

I quivered in fear making me freeze on my spot and when the rabid werewolf was about to take a bite, I closed her eyes tight, waiting for a painful bite yet, there was none.

“How’s…” I was confused since nothing painful happened to me and slowly, I took a peek to see what just happened I was not sure if I should be glad to witness a beautiful-handsome woman who emits power and command step in and manage to stun the wolf. She easily tackled the wolf a few feet away from us.

Astonishing and something warm feeling began passing all over my body, making me feel secure and protected and oddly, I wanted to be engulfed with it. But my fascination ended when I heard a very hard breaking of bones coming from the wolf. I gasped seeing the woman holding the wolf’s throat with an iron grip and snapping it like a toothpick. That sight alone made me recall the gruesome sight of what I’d lost and screamed in fear.

“Wha-what the h-heck is h-happening h-here?” Disoriented, I pulled my knees closer to my chest while my mind was all over the place as fear consumed me making my body immovable. I tried my best to be invincible to the sight that just unfolded before me.

“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU STILL DOING AROUND HERE?! GET INTO SAFETY!” I jolted and cowered in fear as I heard the woman who saved me roar in anger and I could feel that she coming closer but didn’t dare to look.

“I…” I tried to come up with something but I couldn’t form any words. I’m lost. I’m horrified.

“Are you deaf or…” I flinched when she was about to touch me but the worried voice made me look at her horrified.

I know that I’m scared and horrified to the things suddenly unfold before me but the way this woman stared at me held so much intensity. It was making me agitated since the intensity that it held was like I was the only person left in the world. It was warming me to the point I didn’t realize that my tears have fallen if she didn’t gently wipe it for me. I like the moment there but recalling what she just did earlier, I hesitate to be touched by her. I saw pain from my action but quickly masked it.

“Be my Luna.” The woman’s voice might sound raw, soft, and gentle but it held firmness when she subconsciously said that while our eyes locked onto each other. I wanted to agree for some reason that I don’t understand but I’m scared, horrified, and confused.

“L-Luna? W-what do you mean?” Fear was evident in my voice as I tried to distance myself from her.

“W-what’s happening here? Why does the wolf turn into a man after you break its jaw? How come you easily knocked it out when you’re just a human, right?” I was shaking my head in disbelief as I ran my quivering hand over my head as I questioned the woman who knew the answer to what I just witnessed.

I hadn’t met anyone who could morph into a huge wolf. I know it was just a supernatural creature that only existed in myth, legends, and fantasy fairytales. They never exist in real life. But everything that just unfolded before me, everything went blurry and everything I thought didn’t exist suddenly does. Their existences were real.

“Come and let’s get you to safety.” Her voice still held firmness as she carefully yanked my arms and she pulled me away from the chaos around the streets. I like the feeling of her hand around me but I’m still not over with everything that was happening.

“NO! Please, don’t hurt me.” With my protective instinct kicked in, I fought from the grip that she had as she pulled me out of the dangerous street.

The woman was surprised by my resistance but still held me and kept pulling me to take me somewhere which frightened me since I didn’t want to die. Not yet until I found someone who deserved to die in my hands. With the turmoil deep within me beginning to tick, I began fighting back trying to resist where she was taking me until subconsciously, my free hand landed hard on the woman’s face. We stopped and I gasped while she looked at me in surprise as if nobody dared to lay a hand on her face except me.

“I-I…sorry…” I could feel the heat over my cheeks as I tried to find the right excuse for the gesture that came out of the blue but sadly, apology was the only I could say.