When Jack returned, he went straight to all the usual places Lilly would normally be. He checked the spots she often visited, the places she avoided, even the furnace, which had long since been shut down for the night. Yet no matter where he searched, he couldn’t find her. Not even a trace.
He even began asking around, questioning the Werewolves who road the area or guarded nearby posts, but not a single one of them knew anything.
“Lilly? I haven’t seen her since the afternoon.”
“No idea where she went.”
“No one passed by here.”
Each answer tightened the knot around Jack’s chest.
This can’t be a coincidence... it just can’t.
She wouldn’t have gone far, not this late, not alone.
And on the one day, THE one day, I leave the settlent... this happens?
Everything inside him scread that this wasn’t random. Sothing had been planned, maneuvered, manipulated. And now he didn’t know what he was supposed to do. His thoughts were clouded with fear and guilt.
He had just seen people infected with the sa condition Lilly suffered from, living like beasts, driven by hunger, and in the end... he had cut them down with his own hands.
If another knight, or worse, another Hero, found Lilly in the sa state, could he even bla them? Could he tell them they were wrong?
No... no, I can’t think like that. I have to find her. I have to reach her first.
Jack refused to involve the other Werewolves. If he asked them to help search, and they found her in a frenzied state, they might attack her imdiately. They might treat her the sa way he had just treated the infected villagers.
He was the only one who could do this.
He was the only one who should do it.
Jack took a breath, closed his eyes, and tried to find any lingering trace of Lilly’s scent. It was easier than he expected. Because lately... Lilly had developed a new, distinct sll. One strong enough that even in panic, Jack could pick it up imdiately.
He followed the trail through the settlent, weaving between houses, past the outer residences, and then,
His heart sank.
The scent led out of the city.
She left the settlent? Why would she go out of the city? Did she... did she go hunting in the forest again?
anwhile, Lilly herself was wandering through the forest in a near-silent trance. Her feet moved without thought, without hesitation, as if pulled by invisible strings. She had been walking for over an hour, and though her steps were steady, her mind was blank.
Occasionally she lifted her hand and dragged her nails across the bark of passing trees, leaving long claw marks behind. She wasn’t even aware she was doing it, her body moved as though soone else were controlling it.
Then, suddenly, she stopped.
Her legs locked in place. Her shoulders stiffened. And then, slowly, the dullness in her eyes faded. A shiver ran through her as consciousness returned.
Her vision focused on the forest that lay ahead.
“H... how did I end up here?” Lilly breathed. Her voice trembled. “I’m... I’m out in the forest? But I was, I should be back at the settlent.”
She spun around, searching for any familiar landmark. But the Red Wing Kingdom was nowhere in sight. Not even the faintest glow of distant torches. She had walked far. Much farther than she would ever willingly go.
“All I rember... soone grabbed . Those red eyes...” Her breathing grew shaky, shallow. “Did it happen again? Did I... did I change again?”
Panic rushed through her, tightening her throat. The last ti her mind had gone blank, she had woken to find herself surrounded by destruction, blood spilled, bodies torn apart. Jack had found her that day. And now...
A new scent reached her nose.
Thick. Heavy. Sweet.
Blood.
Lilly’s eyes widened as she looked down.
A body lay at her feet, an adult man, his chest and neck ripped open by claw marks. His face frozen in an expression of terror he never had ti to escape.
“Oh no...” she whispered, stepping backward. “Did I do this? Did I...?”
She tried to breathe, but her lungs barely responded. Her hands trembled violently as she stared at the corpse.
“Why would I do this? Why...?” she asked herself, voice breaking. “Jack said he found before, like this... but this ti, am I really responsible?”
Real fear pierced her heart. If she truly was the cause of this... then she was dangerous. A danger to the Red Wing Kingdom, to Jack, to their children, to everyone who had shown her kindness.
If she hurt them... if she killed soone she loved...
She couldn’t allow that to happen.
Just as she turned to run, ready to flee deeper into the forest if she had to, she heard footsteps crashing through the underbrush.
Two figures dropped down from the trees, landing with the practiced agility of trained fighters. They stared at Lilly, then at the body, and their expressions warped with shock and rage.
“It’s Guy!” one man shouted, voice cracking. “He’s... he’s dead!”
Both of them clearly recognized the man on the ground. And from their expressions, it was obvious they believed Lilly was responsible.
“Wait!” Lilly raised both hands defensively, stumbling back. “I didn’t do this! I swear I didn’t do this! I just found him, I was trying to see if I could help!”
But one of the n nudged the other sharply.
“Look at her,” he hissed, pointing directly at Lilly’s face. “Do you see it?”
The second man’s eyes narrowed, and then widened in horror.
“Yeah... she’s just like the ones that attacked us before. Look at her eyes, red.” He inhaled deeply, his nostrils flaring. “And her sll... she slls exactly like them!”
They looked at each other, then at her.
“She’s one of them.”
“We have to take her. Steve needs to see this.”
*****
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