Finding Her Way Back

Chapter 7

I followed the woman for another two blocks before we stopped in front of a run down looking brownstone. Trash lined the stairs to the door and there was graffiti on the brick. It looked like it formed some kind of picture, I couldn't quite make out. It reminded me of those connect the dot drawings. The woman gestured for me to help her with the bags, but just as I was about to grab some, Nyla growled inside my head. Something was wrong, and just as I went to ask her, the door to the brownstone opened and a tall, muscular man walked out, his eyes on me as a look of something I couldn't quite make out, flashed on his face and then was gone.

"Grandma, who's this?" the man scoffed as he walked down the stairs and began grabbing bags from the cart before disappearing back into the brownstone. Nyla growled again, "I don't like him, we need to be cautious here" Nyla warned. "She is lost, I thought maybe you would be able to help her." The woman responded as the man walked back out to get more bags. "Dear, this is my grandson Nick" she smiled at me, "Nick, this is, oh my, I didn't get your name?" she looked at me questioningly. "Miranda" I answered with a smile. "Good thinking, not giving them your real name" Nyla complimented.

As Nick gathered the rest of the bags, the woman gestured for me to follow him inside. Upon entering the house, Nyla was on her hackles. The main hall was filled with animal rugs and mounted heads of wolves and bears, to say it was alarming was an understatement. I involentarly took a few steps back and bumped into the old woman, "are you okay dear?" she sounded behind me. I couldn't turn to look at her without alarm in my face so I just nodded "I find taxidermy to be rather creepy" I noted with a shrug.

"Ahh, yes, my late husband was a bit... obsessed" she simply said as she walked past me and down the hall, calling behind her "would you like some water while we work out where you need to go?" I hesitated for a moment, "that would be lovely, thank you" I responded as I waited at the door for her to return. She walked back down the hall with two glasses of water and motioned for me to join her in the next room. "Sit, sit" she said as she handed me the glass. As the two of us took a seat on the blue microfiber couch, Nick also joined us, taking the matching recliner across from us.

"So," the woman started, "how did you end up lost in a place like this" she asked. I was looking at the water in my hand as I watched the luke warm liquid release small air bubbles from the sides of the glass. "I was admiring one of the sho - ", Nyla interrupted my thought "Do not give them to much information, nothing that can give them any suspicion." I cleared my throat and took a sip of my water to make the drastic mid sentence pause a little less conspicuous. " Sorry, as I was saying, I was admiring shops with my mother for my birthday, however, the buildings caught my eye, and I must have gotten lost in my own world admiring the architecture of the older buildings that when I noticed my surroundings, I had no indication of where I was." I explained.

I took another sip of water, the liquid making me realize how dry my throat was, so I took another sip before setting my glass on the table. "Something is wrong" I heard Nyla say as she swayed back and forth a little. My eyes shot up in surprise and I used everything in me to fight the urge to run to her side. Nyla collapsed as I began to feel like the world was spinning. I sat further back on the couch, resting my head on the oversize cushion behind me. "Miranda dear, are you alright? I heard the woman ask as she touched my hand. There was a hint of humor in her voice, or maybe it was just my mind playing tricks on me because seconds later she yelled at someone to do something, but the world was spinning so much I had shut my eyes and couldn't open them to see who it was.

"Liquid silver grandma" I heard Nicks voice and my heart dropped as the old woman gasped. Their voices faded out as I crawled to my wolf. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have drank the water" I mumbled to an unconscious Nyla before drifting off into the dark myself.