Erika’s POV
When I turned my head earlier and suddenly saw this painting, I thought I had been discovered.
For the moment, I broke out in a cold sweat.
On closer inspection, it turned out to be a portrait hanging on the wall.
I breathed a sigh of relief.
Curious, I stared at the painting. It was an oil painting of a beautiful young woman in her twenties with a bright smile. She looked lively and energetic. She was wearing a short skirt and holding a bow and arrow. What an odd pairing.
Would any girl choose to hang an oil portrait of herself in the bedroom? That was what happened in such an isolated pack.
But the longer I stared at the portrait, the more bizarre it became to me. Somehow, I felt that the girl in the painting looked quite like me. We seemed to have similar features, especially the eyes. The longer I stared, the more I felt I was looking at myself.
How was that possible?
I arrived at the Lumiere Pack by accident and went into an unoccupied, dusty bedroom. On the wall was a portrait of a woman who looked very much like me. I got goosebumps.
No. Maybe it was the dim lighting that gave me the illusion. Right.
But to my right was the switch. If I pressed it, I could see better and knew if she looked like me. But it would also expose me.
I put the fingers of my right hand on the button and considered whether or not to press it.
"I haven't found any useful information yet. Is it too early to expose myself?" I thought.
"But I want to know what this woman really looks like, and maybe the most valuable information I'll get tonight will be about myself!"
Suddenly I felt Derek’s presence. It was a very faint sensation, so faint that I wondered if I felt it wrong.
The next second, my wolf became restless as well. Did she feel it too?
That must be Derek!
I still couldn't mind-link him, but this feeling couldn't be wrong. He must be nearby. He was coming for me!
This time I pressed the button without hesitation.
The light came on.
The whole bedroom was lit.
The light was so blinding that it made my eyes uncomfortable. So I lowered my head and adjusted to the light as quickly as I could.
After a few seconds, I eagerly opened my eyes and looked at the painting.
I was frozen in place!
The woman's face in the painting looked exactly like mine!
We had the same almond-shaped eyes, the same delicate nose, and the same smile. Of course, she didn't have a scar on her face, but we still looked alike.
Why?
I wasn't in a hurry to turn off the light. On the contrary, I almost hoped to be discovered soon.
I wanted to know who lived in this room and why she looked so much like me.
I needed an explanation.
I sat down on the chair next to me and waited for someone to discover me.
I didn't know how long it had passed and I was getting a bit impatient. I got up and walked around the room, taking a closer look at the decor as I went. The room seemed to have been unoccupied for a very long time, so long that the way it was decorated looked outdated.
Suddenly, I heard the sound of tiny footsteps.
I went to the window and lifted the curtain to look out.
Two warriors were walking ahead of me. They were on patrol. One of them turned his head and saw me.
But his reaction was not what I had expected.
I thought he would quickly run over and grab me. But he did not. Instead, he froze for a few seconds, as if he had seen a ghost. Then he nudged his mate. His companion also turned to look at me. Again there was a look of disbelief. The next second they both burst out screaming at the same time. Then they simply ran off.
I walked back from the window, stunned. What had just happened was completely beyond my comprehension.
But the good news was that more and more lights were coming on. I heard the sound of many people walking.
Judging by the footsteps, they were surrounding the place. Good, of all these people, there must be someone who could give me an answer.
Three minutes later, the bedroom door opened from the outside. A middle-aged man with a beard entered quickly and looked around the house. Soon his eyes fell on me. For a moment his eyes widened. He stared at me as if something was frightening about my face. Then he stretched out a trembling finger and said, "How ... how is this possible?"
Then a young man came in and I quickly recognized him as the man who had injured my right leg.
When he saw my face, his jaw also dropped.
“Lucy?” The middle-aged man asked me tentatively.
I was now convinced that it was someone else they were seeing through me. The owner of this bedroom was supposed to look very much like me.
Was this a coincidence?