Lucía paled instantly once she realized that the hungry, savage gaze wasn't focused on her—but on Katherine. For the first time, her body felt heavier, and a fear she hadn't felt in years clenched her heart. She wasn't the prey. Katherine was. "How dare you?" The words came out as a guttural growl from her throat, her eyes flashing with murderous intent.
Ignoring the greater threat right in front of him, the werewolf had already chosen his prey. His muscles, filled with profane strength, flexed, his massive frame cutting the distance between him and the redhead frozen on the ground with lethal speed.
In a burst of motion, Lucía launched forward with the natural harmony and pure predatory grace of a panther. Squeezing every last drop of raw power hidden in her thighs, she leapt onto the werewolf. Her body rose into the air, a fierce expression on her face, her fingers tightening around the knife's hilt with more strength than she thought possible. And then she drove the blade in.
The silver edge pierced the creature's back. The werewolf howled—a torn, brutal sound—its pain echoing through every corner of the cemetery. Lucía didn't let go of the weapon. She clung to it with all her weight, her body jolted by the beast's violent thrashing as it tried to shake her off. "Katherine, run!"
Unable to check whether Katherine had followed her command, Lucía held onto the knife with every ounce of survival instinct. The werewolf convulsed violently, its back arching in pain, a ragged growl escaping its throat as the flesh around the silver blade began to boil. Its muscles tensed in furious spasms, expanding beneath the moonlight like a titanic shadow of rage.
Lucía felt the vertigo of riding something that should never be mounted. It reminded her of that time she rode a mechanical bull in a bar in Texas—only far more dangerous and difficult. Fortunately, she'd brought some experience from that trip, which led her to use her legs to grip the werewolf's lower waist, preventing it from throwing her off easily.
Unfortunately, as she had already seen, this werewolf possessed an intellect far beyond that of a beast. It leapt backward, slamming Lucía against a tombstone. The impact knocked the air from her lungs, and from the unsettling crack that came from her torso, she had probably broken at least one rib. But the werewolf wasn't finished. Its right arm rose in a brutal motion, its claw descending in a savage arc, aiming to rip her from its back.
Lucía reacted at the last second, barely able to push through the haze of pain and dizziness. She jumped off the beast's back before it could maul her. The air struck her face as she lost her footing. The claw whistled past her head, missing her chest by mere inches.
Lucía rolled across the hard earth, pain exploding in her ribs as her back scraped against fragments of rock and roots hidden beneath the cemetery's dense fog. A line of blood trickled from the edge of her lips. Her fingers still gripped the knife tightly. At least she wasn't disarmed.
Lucía breathed heavily, the thick air burning her lungs, adrenaline keeping her functional despite the damage she'd taken. Her eyes searched for Katherine. But she wasn't there. Lucía blinked, her mind freezing for a second.
Then she exhaled sharply. "Good. Looks like she listened and ran. For now, that's enough. Now I just have to get out of here alive," Lucía murmured under her breath.
The weight of Katherine's safety lifting from her shoulders made her feel lighter. And though part of the conviction that came from protecting the redhead had faded, her sense of duty and the penance she carried were more than enough fuel for her fighting spirit.
While Lucía fought for her life against the werewolf with nothing but a knife, Katherine—who hadn't run—was struggling to find a way to help. The fear was still there, gripping her chest like an invisible claw, her body trembling with every roar from the werewolf in the distance. But the image of Lucía leaping onto the beast's back, driving the knife in with impossible ferocity, changed something in her.
Lucía was putting her life on the line for her. And she decided not to be a spectator. Katherine then remembered the backpack Lucía had brought to the cemetery. There had to be something in it. Something that could help. Without another thought, Katherine ran.
The icy air tore at her throat as her feet moved over the uneven ground. Every sound of the battle struck her senses, making her want to stop. But she didn't. The image of Lucía fighting stayed in her mind, filling her with courage.
Katherine kept searching, her eyes sweeping the darkness, each second feeling longer than the last. Nothing. Desperation built in her chest, tightening like an invisible fist.
Behind her, the battle raged on. A clash of force. A growl of fury. The sound of Lucía dodging death by inches. Katherine swallowed hard. Time was running out. And then, she stumbled. Her knee struck something solid, her balance faltering for a moment.
The fear vanished in an instant. She had found it. Her hands moved immediately, tearing open the zipper of the bag without processing the chaos around her. Inside, she found an eclectic mix of items: tools, chains, pliers, sealed bottles with liquids she didn't dare analyze, a silver cross, and two weapons.
Her fingers closed around the first pistol. Her heart beat faster. But she didn't know how to use it. She didn't know if it would work. Her eyes searched for the other. Something Bigger, heavier, and Familiar.
For the months she had spent alongside Inspector Hertford, she recognized the design of the electric pistol.
She made the decision in that instant. The weight was heavier than she remembered. The frame of the weapon was more solid, more robust. But it didn't matter. Without wasting another second, Katherine spun on her heels and ran back toward Lucía.
In the distance, Katherine could see Lucía moving, her body dropping to the ground in a fluid sweep. The blade of her knife sank into the creature's thigh, the silver piercing flesh and muscle, tearing a guttural howl from the werewolf.
The counterattack came instantly. The monster's claw swung in a brutal arc, a backhand strike that hit her squarely. The impact tore Lucía from the ground as if she were nothing more than a worthless weight.
For a moment, Katherine could only see the flash of Lucía's jacket vanishing into the darkness. And then, something inside her shifted. All the fear within her turned into something else—fuel for her courage.
Without thinking, her feet moved. The redhead stepped between Lucía and the werewolf. Her hands tightened around the electric pistol. Her spring-green eyes burned with determination behind the dark frame of her glasses. With no breath in her lungs and no room for second thoughts, she pulled the trigger.
The air crackled with pure electricity the moment Katherine fired. A roar of pain broke in the werewolf's throat, its body convulsing under the brutal discharge. The weapon trembled in Katherine's hands—far more powerful than she had expected.
The creature staggered back a step, then another, its silhouette wavering as its muscles seized in violent spasms. Its once terrifying supernatural presence was now dimmer than ever. Katherine didn't look away.
And then, a shadow moved beside her. Lucía. Her breathing was still heavy, her body covered in dust and blood, but her eyes reflected pure resolve. The silver knife remained firm in her grip.
Without missing a beat, Lucía stepped closer to Katherine, her gaze flicking briefly toward her, during which she offered the redhead a warm, confident smile before turning her attention back to the werewolf.
The creature hesitated for a moment. Its breath was a ragged growl, its body still twitching from the remnants of the electric shock coursing through its system. Lucía tensed her muscles, readying for the next attack. The chance never came.
The werewolf straightened, its eyes—putrid yellow—fixed on both girls, rancor and madness gleaming within. And in the next instant, the monster spun on its hind legs. Then it ran. The dark silhouette vanished among the tombstones, its impossible speed carrying it out of sight in seconds.
Lucía stepped forward on instinct, but pain cut the motion short. She had taken more than a minor wound during the exchange, and with no long-range weapon at hand, she could only watch as the werewolf disappeared beyond the foggy boundary separating the cemetery from the forest.
For a moment, only the sound of Lucía and Katherine's ragged breathing floated in the mist. Katherine didn't move. She still felt the electric discharge vibrating in her arm, though she wasn't sure if it was from the weapon or the disbelief of what she had just done.
"Well… who would've thought? Little Red Riding Hood beat the Big Bad Wolf."
Lucía's playful remark pulled Katherine from her thoughts. The redhead felt her heart swell with pride, relief, and something unfamiliar as she met the gaze of those molten gold eyes looking at her.