Chapter 4

"I'd ask you to stay for coffee or something, but I have a lot of unpacking to do," Melody subtly tried to tell Mehmet to leave; his presence was suffocating.

He somehow managed to make her feel feverish and anxious as the confinements of the living room suddenly seemed stifling.

"I can see that," he replied, observing the scattered brown boxes.

Melody shivered. His tone was masked by a chilling calmness that unsettled her.

"Perhaps another time then." He smiled but it didn't reach his eyes.

"Certainly," she forced a smile; the faux politeness she had to assemble during their walk was leaving a foul, bitter taste in her mouth and cheeks sore.

All she had discovered was that he has lived in Tensers his whole life and he knew everything about the place.

Melody led him out to the door and hastily opened it.

"See you soon, Melody." With her name being the last word, Mehmet left her home. His powerful strides crunched the hard layer of snow and undergrowth beneath his boots as he slowly faded away.

Melody slammed the solid door shut; her trembling hands ran through her hair leaving it a mess. She hadn't realised she had been holding her breath. Her fatigued body let gravity pull her down until she landed on the floor. Melody leaned against the door, closed her eyes tight as her she turned her head up to at the ceiling.

She was beginning to doubt living in this town as she listed off the sudden abnormalities and strange circumstances she's experienced in her head.

The wolves. The silhouette outside her house. Mr. Windchestly and his absurd warnings.

Mehmet...

Shaking her head, Melody tried to pin her irrational worries to her paranoia. Deciding to distract herself, she busied herself with mundane chores.

After unpacking the food, Melody got straight into unloading the full boxes sitting stacked in the small kitchen.

Once emptied and crockery was put away, Melody went into her room and began to unpack her belongings. Her mind was finally calm and settled due to the tedious labour.

It didn't take long, as she didn't have a lot of possessions or furniture. She placed her clothes in the cupboards and moved around some of her furniture. Melody filled them up with simple pieces that she had collected over the years.

Collapsing onto her bed, Melody exhaled as tiredness crept up to her. She was too exhausted now to unpack any more boxes; she'd leave them for her brother.

Melody craned her neck to glance at the vast collection of her cherished books aligned on a high shelf.

It ranged from historical romances to intriguing science-fiction to werewolves and vampires and even the odd collections of poems; she's read pretty much every genre of books. Old folklore and adapted fairytales were her favourites to pass time.

Melody was beginning to think that the real reason why she read so much, buried herself in so many novels, was because she was trying to solve a mystery of her own.

Herself.

Melody lived a relatively normal life, looked a normal person but she could help but feel that there was something abnormal inside her. She just didn't know how to find it. Her mind was elsewhere as the hot water glided down her bare, sore skin. The tense muscles in her back relaxed as the heat surrounded her in a welcoming embrace. Her brown eyes fluttered shut as the spray of water hit her face; she relished the feeling as her hands mechanically spread the scented soap over her stomach.

After drying herself from the long shower and finishing her nightly necessities, Melody checked the time on her phone. It was nine o'clock. She continued to gaze at the numbers, a grim frown began to form.

Mino was still not back yet. Several, horrid circumstances came to mind the more Melody thought about it

She immediately stood up from her bed and clicked his contact. She skimmed through messages, e-mails and missed calls but there was absolutely nothing. It was unusual for Mino; he would always check in. He was mindful of Melody's skittish and paranoid traits and understood why.

Melody decided to dial his number, but a shrill snarl echoed interrupted the task.

Her head snapped to the direction, hair flickering over her face as her doe-like eyes examined the area beyond the glass window.

In the dim light, two impeccably large, muscular wolves circled each other. Their hackles raised and bodies crouched low in attack positions. Their ears flattened against their skulls as they let out deep, threatening growls.

They were right near the fence line of the backyard, only twenty metres away from the house.

Melody flinched when the considerably larger patchy brown wolf wrapped its strong jaws around the grey wolf's thick neck. The former creature's body was littered in gruesome scars.

She gasped when she realised the grey wolf was identical to the one she saw last night.

The snarls and shouts of pain and aggression echoed; the grisly noises hauntingly familiar.

With her body finally snapping out of its shaken state, Melody ran up to the window and pulled the blinds shut.

Just what she needed.

She scoffed to herself, but the thought dissipated when a piercing whimper erupted from one the wolves.

Her bottom lip began to tremble as she crawled into her bed and pulled the thick covers over her head. She felt like a small child when she pushed the pillows against her ears. The pillows drowned out the feral snarls and thuds of muscular bodies colliding against one another.

Fast, flickering images of the attack when she was little appeared once again. Witnessing the wolves in their brutal, formidable state had triggered the memories.

Panicking, she pressed the call button and pressed the phone against her ear. Her breathing began to quicken, her body felt flushed and hot.

"Pick up, pick up..." Melody chanted in a pleading tone.

"Mel?" Mino picked up on the third ring; his voice settled her for a moment.

"Oh my Go!" She let out a breath of relief. "Mino, where—where have you been? I've been so worried—" Her choppy, panicked sentences got worse as Melody continued stuttering from the lack of air reaching her lungs. "It's night and you never texted me. I'm sorry, I know you said you'd be late but it's nearly ten and today was a really bad day. There are these wolves outside fighting a..."

Mino could barely register his sister's mumbling ramble of words. "Mel, please stop. I'm fine. I'm really sorry that I didn't call you earlier, they have bad service here and I was held up in some interviews."

"Y-You got a job?"

"Yeah I did," he answered slowly, making sure Melody's breath was under control. "It's just on the other side of town. I'm going to be working at the local bar; it'll be good pay—"

Another menacing, animalistic growl reached Maggie's ears; the sound sent chilled shivers down her spine. "Hold on... Holy shit—" Mino swore furiously at the ferocious sounds coming through his phone's speaker. "Melody, did you say there are wolves fighting outside?!"

Her body jolted at a pained whine and the hard, worried tone of her older brother. She closed her eyes, her vision going black, "Y-Yes. They're really close." Her free hand clutched the duvet over her head tighter.

"Jesus Christ, I'll call the sheriff—"

"No!" She cried out, her eyes opening. The wolves scared her but hurting the endangered animals was the last thing she wanted. "I'm just scared that's all... a-are you coming home soon?"

"I'm getting in the truck now."

She could hear the keys jingling and a door slamming shut.

"Try and focus on your breathing; keep them slow. You'll be alright, Mel. I promise."

The ignition started as Mino swerved recklessly out of the car park. "I'll be fifteen minutes." He mumbled before ending the phone call. He threw it at the passenger seat with frustration and stepped down the acceleration, careless about the rough conditions. His cold hands clutched the wheel firmly as he hoped Melody would keep her head together before he got there.

Melody placed the phone on her bedside table wincing at the vicious growls and ear-splitting roars as their huge bodies clashed together in a lengthy brawl.

She desperately tried to focus on her breathing and block out the disturbing noises. Melody brown eyes squeezed shut as she swallowed harshly; her throat painfully parched and dry.

For the past year, Mino had suggested her going to see someone. The panic attacks and painful memories had been troubling her for a long time. They did not occur as often when the siblings lived in Anchorage and when she passed through the foster system, the suburban homes were far away from any forests.

Tears welled in her eyes, as an emotional tidal wave crashed on her; the overwhelming feeling left her chest feeling tight.

Minutes passed by until Mino burst into her room and peeled the blankets from her shivering figure. Mino tugged the curtains closer together, covering the window completely.

The noises from his rumbling truck must have scared the wolves off to sprint back into the forest.

His eyes raked over her with grave concern. Her head was tucked in between her bent knees and hands covered her ears to mute the previous strangled, wild racket.

"Melody..." Mino trailed off, at loss for words. He decided to help her out of bed and guide her out of the dark, suffocating room. The noises had faded away completely as he settled her into his bed. Melody drowsily realised that he hadn't slept on it yet.

"Mino—" Melody attempted to argue when she noticed the familiar expression on his face and crossed arms over his chest.

He shook his head and sat down on the bed. "Mel..." He started, exhaling her name. "This is getting out of hand. You're lupophobic and you need help, it's the only way to make you better."

Melody frowned and opened her mouth, "It's just where this house is, if we could go closer to town—" Mino interrupted her by putting up a hand.

"You've isolated yourself for years now since the attack. Get skittish at any mention of wolves and living so close to a forest triggers the memories. You've had panic attacks since we got here and always had them when you were younger. I've checked and I want you to see someone about it."

Melody remained quiet; she knew this was all true. She turned and lied on her back. "Thank you."

"I'm sorry I wasn't always there for you," he added sombrely, his hand laid gingerly on the side of her face for a moment. "And this was the only house I could get—the other one is a few miles out of town, in the forest. I tried my best, okay?"

She nodded at him with a tired smile.

As Melody blinks became slower and body relaxed, Mino quietly lifted himself off the bed and flicked the lamp out.

"Goodnight, Mel." He whispered before closing the door shut behind him.

"Mino?"

Mino halted and answered, "Yes?"

"Your room's bigger."

He shook his head silently before shutting the door. The smile fell from her lips as soon as all light left the room.

Fatigue overcame her swiftly. She let herself succumb to it, too exhausted to battle the feeling. Soon, her mind slipped into a dreamless state.