Your Prey Your Obsession

Chapter 05

Stella Hart

The bathroom was empty.

I just… stood there.

My hand was still clutching the doorknob, but my body wouldn’t move.

“No…”

The word came out as nothing more than a sigh.

That wasn’t possible.

He was right there.

Curled up against the wall, under three towels and the oldest blanket I owned.

I remembered checking dozens of times to see if he was still breathing.

I remembered talking to him.

I remembered...

I furrowed my brow.

What exactly did I remember?

Slowly, I stepped inside.

The floor was... spotlessly clean.

There was no blood or mud.

Even the soaked towels that had been scattered across the tiles were no longer there.

Nothing.

The blanket was gone.

My coat was gone.

Even the bathroom smelled clean.

As if someone had scrubbed every inch of it while I slept.

“…That.”

I nodded.

“That doesn’t make any sense.”

I checked everywhere, even behind the shower curtain.

Why?

I haven’t the faintest idea.

It wasn’t as if a wolf could magically shrink and hide behind shampoo bottles.

Still…

I looked.

And I found nothing.

The linen closet.

Empty.

The hallway.

The living room.

I searched every room on the ground floor as if an animal the size of a horse could somehow be hiding behind the couch.

Nothing.

Every room was exactly as I’d left it before the storm.

Almost.

Everything was far too spotless.

I stopped in the kitchen.

“No...”

I whispered again.

“He was here.”

Somehow, I knew it; I was sure of it.

My pulse quickened.

I opened the fridge for no reason at all, stared inside for three seconds, and then closed it again.

All right.

I’m definitely going crazy.

I rested both hands on the kitchen counter and breathed slowly.

Think.

For God’s sake… think.

What do you really know?

I found a wolf.

I brought him home.

I called the veterinary clinic.

I…

Did I really do that?

My head was throbbing.

Fragments floated through my mind like pieces of a dream.

Then came that sensation that still sent shivers down my spine.

Warm hands.

Someone lifting me up.

The faint scent of rain and pine, mixed with… blood.

Then a voice, low and soft.

So close, as if it were whispered right into my ear.

“…finally…”

I froze, in shock.

“…what?”

The memory vanished before I could grasp it.

I closed my eyes tightly, trying to force it back.

But nothing came.

Goosebumps ran down my arms, and I laughed once.

“I… I must just be making this up.”

It had to be.

Those damn dreams always did this to me.

They borrowed bits of reality, mixed them with impossible things.

In the morning, I never knew which parts had actually happened.

And this must be one of those mornings.

It had to be.

I opened my eyes again.

Something caught my eye next to the washing machine.

The towels...

Neatly folded inside the dryer.

I picked one up, so carefully it seemed as if I were afraid it might bite me.

It was clean and soft, smelling of laundry detergent.

I turned it inside out, looking for any trace of the previous night.

But there was nothing—no blood, no stains.

I furrowed my brow.

“…Could it be that I…”

No.

I didn’t remember washing anything.

I didn’t even remember taking a shower.

My eyes turned to my clothes.

I was wearing a clean sweatshirt.

Dry sweatpants.

Clean socks.

I looked at my hands—there wasn’t even any dried blood under my fingernails.

There was nothing!

The last thing I remembered was sitting on the bathroom floor, with my phone on my lap, watching a wolf breathe.

Then…

Darkness.

That was it.

I reached for my phone almost instinctively; the screen lit up.

One unread message.

Mom.

I opened the message.

1:30 a.m. — Mom: I’m so glad you made it home safely. Let me know tomorrow if everything went well with the animal. Please be careful. I love you. ❤️

I stared at the message.

Then, at the time it was sent.

1:30 a.m.

Had I… replied?

2:10 a.m.—Me: It’s okay. I called a veterinarian who specializes in wild animals. Everything will be fine; you don’t need to worry. I’ll text you in the morning. I love you.

I blinked a few times, even more confused than before.

I didn’t remember sending that message.

But I had.

That at least meant… the wolf was real, right?

I wasn’t imagining that part.

“…It’s okay.”

I nodded slowly.

“It’s okay!”

The wolf existed.

That was true.

So where the hell did he go?

I ran outside without bothering to grab a coat.

The morning air was cool, carrying the scent of rain-soaked earth.

My car was exactly where I’d left it.

The backseat still had faint reddish stains.

There weren’t many, but they were there.

A sense of relief washed over me.

“I knew it.”

At least I wasn’t going completely crazy—I really had hit that wolf on the road.

Then something else caught my eye.

On the floor, next to the driver’s door.

I crouched down to get a better look.

There was a paw print.

A large paw print, imprinted on the damp floor.

The edges were stained with blood.

I stared at it for several long seconds.

“…No.”

That wasn’t possible.

I hadn’t brought it all the way here.

He hadn’t even set his paws on the ground—I’d dragged him inside the house.

So how…

Slowly, I looked toward the front door.

No blood or tracks.

Nothing connecting the house to where I was standing.

It was as if he’d simply…

Appeared out there.

I rubbed my temples.

“What the hell is this?!”

“Don’t start making up ghost wolves now.”

I grabbed my cell phone and called Mom before I could change my mind.

She picked up on the second ring.

“Stella?”

“Hi.”

“Are you okay?”

“Yes...”

I looked out at the forest.

“I just wanted to tell you...”

I hesitated.

“...the wolf... is gone.”

“What?”

“He must have recovered enough to leave.”

“I thought you said he could barely breathe.”

“I know.”

“That doesn’t make much sense.”

Nothing else made sense either.

“I know, but he’s gone.”

A sigh of relief came through the speaker.

“Well… thank God.”

“Yeah.”

“Less work for you.”

I gave a somewhat awkward laugh.

“…Uh, definitely.”

“Well, I have to hang up now—the car’s a mess after the rain…”

I looked back at the car and saw that it was practically clean, unlike how I’d left it the night before—just like the house.

“…I have to… clean it…”

“Have some breakfast first. Try to get some rest—yesterday must have been crazy.”

“Yeah… you’re right… I’ll have some.”

“And promise me you’ll rest today.”

“I promise.”

We said goodbye.

I put my phone back in my pocket.

For a while, I just stood there.

The forest was still.

Silently beautiful.

But… I couldn’t shake the feeling that, if I kept looking long enough…

I’d see him again.

I almost expected it to happen.

That thought should have scared me.

Instead…

it felt strangely comforting.

I shook my head.

“Are you going to be okay?”

The only answer I got was the wind blowing lazily through the trees.

I grabbed a bucket and a sponge from the garage; there were still a few marks on the back wall that needed cleaning.

Halfway back to the garage entrance, my phone vibrated.

Unknown number.

I almost ignored the call, but I answered it.

“…Hello?”

“Good morning.”

It was a deep, yet calm, male voice.

I’d say it had a somewhat professional tone, actually.

“May I speak with Stella Hart?”

I felt something strange well up in my chest as I listened to his voice.

“That’s me.”

“My name is Rowan Blackwood.”

A pause.

“I’m returning the message you left last night about an injured wolf.”

Every thought in my head vanished in that instant.

For reasons I couldn’t explain...

And for some reason... his voice sounded more and more...

Familiar.