Frostbound Torment
Hands dashed to my right in the blink of an eye. I flinched with an audible gasp triggered by the coldness of the fingers against my skin. It was odd, werewolves were naturally warm-blooded yet whoever caught me was cold.
A chill overwhelmed me along with a growing apprehension in my gut. Who caught me?
“Easy there, love.” A thick hoarse feminine voice coaxed stiffly just as nails dug into my skin, holding on tightly to my right arm.
I let out a harsh cry falling to my knees. Before I could fully process my apparent situation, a frigid wave of pain had sheeted through my flesh with terrible intensity.
“Stand down!“ Abigail snapped over my screaming and grunting.
“Who are you to ask that of me?“ the voice scoffed in a sassy manner.
“Who are you to dare touch an ally of the Houndblood pack,” Abel retorted with a growl.
“Is that what you pack of fiends go by now?“ she asked, unamused.
I was failing to understand anything. The pain burned in a familiar coldness I recognized on winter days when I stayed in the snow for too long. It felt like frostbite but worse.
Craning my neck, I peered at my right arm, reaching for it with my other. My right arm was being held high above my head, with bluish hues of torn skin cradling the fingernails of a strange pale arm. I followed the sight of the limb to find its owner.
“Melbringer!“ Abigail stated coldly and like clockwork, my lips parted in terror. A bone-chilling scream tore out my lungs.
“Please stop,” I pleaded between my cries, shivering as I desperately tried to peel my arm away from the Melbringer’s claws. Tears streamed down my face and seemingly, the more I tried to pull away, the more the pain burned.
“Squirmish much,” she huffed out, slamming her free hand against my cheek. My hair ruffled out of place, scattering across my face. My cheek stung.
Heat flared up my chest and without thinking, I reached for her hand to break it off. However, another cold wave spread through my arm, simmering my anger into cold despair once again.
My crying filled up the store and the room only continued to drop in temperature.
“I wouldn't advise you move much,” the melbringer remarked with a clipped mocking tone.
I stared at her angrily through my teary vision. It was the redheaded attendant from earlier except her eyes had settled into an unnatural shade of grey that mirrored a clear crystal snowflake. She had on a menacing smile that promised every chilling horror that ran through my mind.
“Stop, just stop it!” I chanted incessantly. My stomach curled in tight knots threatening to spill out my mouth. My body quaked at the overwhelming intensity of the frostbite growing in my limbs. I feared if she didn't stop, it would push me to pass out leaving me more vulnerable to her attacks.
“I'll advise you to let go of her arm,” Tyler growled, his playful tone replaced by a dangerously harsher one that terrified me. However, the rouge-haired devil of a melbringer remained unfazed.
I sharply turned to look at Abigail, Tyler, and Abel for help. “Do something!“ I bellowed weakly.
They stood sparsely in the store space, eyes bright in vivid colors of fury yet they seemed helpless. The situation felt ridiculous. I was already in pain, she would do the worst if they wouldn't help me!
“Quiet you mutt,” the melbringer dug her nails further in but I bit down on my lip. I would not give her the satisfaction of another cry out of me. I grunted instead, coughing into my mouth.
I hated her, I hated the situation. What had I done to deserve being hurt like this? Where was Ethan? Why were they just standing there?
The Melbringer cackled, seemingly picking up what I already knew. I was helpless. She continued pushing her nails further into my flesh. “Don't worry, it's just Ice, surely you can grow an arm back.”
“Don't be ridiculous, you can't possibly make it out here by yourself. You're surrounded,” Abigail chimed in but frustration was evident in her voice.
Grow an arm back? The notion was sickening. She was going to freeze my arm off and she wasn't feeling a tad bit remorseful about it.
I couldn't shift into a wolf yet meaning I wouldn't be able to regenerate my arm back if she did break it off. I would most likely bleed out and die or the frost would spread and I'd die regardless. She could kill me.
“True but I could always take her with me, dead or alive, your call Houndblood,” her tone dropped two octaves darker.
My heart stilled for a second before jumping back up. She wanted to kill me. My breathing grew frantic at the thought. I was going to die!
“Whatever shall I do to the infamous hy-” The sound of a loud splatter cut her off and almost immediately I felt something moist touch my face.
The pain in my arm simmered into a slight cold buzz yet I could still feel the piercing claws clinging to my arm. A second passed, and another and another. I waited for her to finish her threat but it never came. Neither did anyone say more.
I raised my head to see the trio in the room. They looked less alarmed, however they remained stiff. “Shit!“ Tyler cursed under his breath but I caught it. The room had grown eerily quiet save for my sniffling and stifled crying, so It was hard not to hear him.
“Huh?“ I blinked, catching the overwhelming smear of red on the plush zebra carpet of the store. I hadn't even noticed the piece of floor decor was there until I saw the widespread of chunky red on its fur.
It was blood. Blood, and bits of...flesh. I recoiled back at the sight but my hand slipped on something moist. Almost immediately, my back hit the floor with a splat, both hands falling to my side. But despite falling, the fingernails remained in my arm.
Dread was crashing against the shores of my sanity. “W-what the...“ I stammered but the words could never leave my mouth. In its place, bile rose in my throat because I quickly realized what I slipped on.
The heavy rotten metallic scent had fully permeated the air and the thick feel under my fingertips confirmed my suspicions.
“Harlyn, look at me,” Abel gently urged but it was too late.