Louisa’s POV
The walk to the cottage was dreadful.
I had never walked to the heart of the forest before.
Tree branches trees were getting denser, twisting and covering sunlight and scratching the sky, like they were there at the beginning of time.
My old nanny used to tell me bedtime stories, saying that in the deepest part of the forest, where time has no meaning, the incredible waterfall descends endlessly over the rocks. In the distance, the songs, clicks, and whistles of birds give approval to the gentle rain.
But the forest where I was walking in reminded me nothing of a tranquilizing scene from a bedtime story.
It was completely silent and the silence was slowly eating me alive.
Finn was walking next to me. He must have detected my anxiety and used his nose to poke my hand.
"Is that normal for a forest to be this silent?" I whispered to Finn.
Finn shook his head. He didn't look worried, but he wasn't relaxed, either.
I could tell something was wrong. But with Finn on my side, I didn't feel worried at all.
He was obviously the top predator in the food chain. No creatures dared to cross him.
Darren was walking in front of us, using axes to cut off branches for us.
I picked up my pace and wanted to catch him. But suddenly, he turned back and said, "Stand there and don’t move, Lisa!"
I froze and looked down.
I couldn’t see the ground very clearly.
The path was covered by moss and layers of fallen leaves.
Darren walked towards me and lifted me by my waist. Then, he kicked a stone to the front. A series of iron traps were triggered, then jumped up and closed up in the air like some sort of piranhas.
"They’re traps set by hunters. You have to be very careful." Darren said.
"Thank you, Darren," I said.
Finn approached us from behind.
He was sniffing around just now.
One moment he wasn’t around me, I was about to step on dozens of hidden traps.
I felt a bit awkward.
Finn wasn’t quite happy about the fact that Darren was holding me. So, he grunted something.
Darren replied immediately, "Yes, Master."
Then, he put me up on Finn’s back.
"I can walk by myself." I protested.
Finn grunted and looked away.
Darren said, "Master Finn said he has traced the smell of the vampire around here. He's lurking around here somewhere. We need to be extra careful."
"A vampire in the middle of the day?" I exclaimed and covered my mouth, "That can't be it! Vampires are nocturnal."
"It's dark in this forest, Lisa. And evils dwell in the darkness." Darren said.
Talking about evil, I immediately saw a pair of eyes in my mind again.
That pair of fierce blue eyes, gleaming with greed and desire, loathe and disgust.
It was Alpha Lucas' eyes.
I couldn't help but start to shiver.
Finn noticed the tremor, so he grunted something at Darren.
Darren took off his coat and wrapped it around me.
"Here, Lisa, so you won't be cold," he said.
I could see the whip marks and bruises all over his bare chest.
"I'm not cold. I'm just..."
He didn't let me finish my sentences.
"We'll be at the cottage soon. Please stay with Master at all times." He said and walked ahead.
I pulled his clothes around me and felt the warmth of his body temperature.
I'm so useless. I thought to myself and felt so vexed.
I can't even walk on my own in this dark forest. How am I going to survive in a forest that is full of darkness, traps, and a vicious vampire lurking around? I'm obviously the liability of the group. What's more, Alpha Lucas' soldiers are probably for me. If they find us, Finn and Darren will get into trouble. They're strong and capable men, but Alpha Lucas has more people.
As I was having the most terrible thoughts, Finn suddenly stopped.
At almost the same time, I saw a carcass on the ground in front of us.
It looked like a hUman’s cavity.
"Where’s the rest of it?" I gasped and buried my head into Finn’s neck.
"It must have been devoured by some scavengers." I heard Darren's voice.
I peeped between Finn’s ears and saw Darren walk closer and crouch down next to the carcass.
"It’s a hunter’s body. The blood’s drained. The organs, limbs, and head are all gone." he said.
"Is the cottage far away from here, Finn? Could we please just go?" I grabbed the fur on his neck and whispered in fear.
Finn turned back and licked me.
He must have sensed my fear and tried to comfort me.
I didn’t like the idea of Finn fighting against a ferocious creature with a thirst for blood.
Finn would definitely win the fight, but he would also be terribly hurt.
I wrapped my arms around his neck.
Nobody will hurt my big paw. I won't allow that. I thought.
"Let’s go." Darren looked back and snapped his fingers to get the flame on his fingertips. Then, he picked up a branch from the ground, used his finger to lit it up like a torch, and walked ahead.
"Warlocks are so cool. They can summon fire just like that." I snapped my fingers and said.
Finn's ears moved a bit.
"Have you imprinted him?" I asked.
Finn nodded and snorted.
"Could you please transfer the imprint to me?" I asked.
Finn turned his head and looked at me.
His eyes were full of concerns.
I stroked his head and said, "Hey, big paw. Don't worry. I don't know why he's in tremendous fear of you. You come across as a really nice guy to me. You and Darren are both of my friends. I don't want to see him being tortured like this."
Finn turned his head away from me.
I could tell that he wasn't quite keen on my suggestion.
I totally understood. Darren was, after all, his possession.
Warlocks were extremely expensive commodities on slave markets. Finn must have paid a lot of money for him.
I shouldn't have just asked him just like that. I crossed the line. It wasn't fair.
"We’re here." I hear Darren’s voice.
I looked up and saw a small cottage in the woods.
It was built with a chimney, a door, and several windows.
There was even a makeshift wooden mill attached to the side of it.
Darren pushed the door open and walked inside.
Then, he came out of the cottage and said, "Master, would you mind staying here for a while? It’s a mess inside. I have to clean it up first."
I jumped down from Finn and said, "Don’t worry. I’ll help you with it."
Darren pulled my sleeve and stopped me, "Please, Lisa. Wait here and let me take care of it. It’ll only take a while."
At that time, I thought it would be awkward to stay alone with Finn, so I said, "It’s OK. If we do it together, it will be faster."
I pushed the door open and was almost stricken by waves of oncoming stench.
Then, I saw the other half of the hunter’s body that was scattered everywhere on the floor.
Flies and maggots were having a fiesta on the remains.
The sticky slimy liquid was dripping down from the bones, accumulating into a small pond.
I covered my mouth and started to retch.
Darren shut the door and patted my back.
"Do we have to stay in here?" I retched again and asked.
"Master has picked this place because this is where he saw the vampire killing this hunter. Normally, he won’t revisit his killing scene. So, this place is relatively safe."
I looked back at Finn, he was busy sniffing around.
I knew I had to do something to make some contribution to this team.
If Finn decided that this was the place we were going to stay, I would clean it up. I was determined to change this abominable crime scene into a nice and cozy place for us to stay.
I took off Darren’s coat and covered my mouth. Then, I tied up my hair into a knot and pushed the door open.
"Let’s do it," I said and walked into the cottage.