Was it a coincidence how the vampire king ended up in Lourdes? Or was it planned to distract everyone from more important things? After all, Lillian surely knew that since he had overcome all the established protective barriers, he could harm her people, so why didn’t she come to the rescue?

Why didn’t she interrupt the sabbath? Was there anything more important than her own people, whom she set up with such trepidation for the upcoming fight against vampires?

All these questions stung Nicole’s heart like a sharp needle, leaving a wound open.

But more than that, she was haunted by the disappearance of the young witches. Why did Lillian choose to hush up such a terrible fact? Why didn’t anyone go looking right away?

Her jaw clenched to a grinding of teeth, holding back the lump in her throat. Nicole has never been an overly open person, but this did not negate the fact that she could sympathize and empathize.

She lay there, wrapped tightly in her sleeping bag and pondered Eugene’s words about Thea. A cursory glance at the sleeping girl provoked another stream of thoughts. How could such a fragile, gentle girl bear all these trials on her shoulders and not break down? This was what inspired her, including of course her strength, which is why Nicole decided to follow her.

Not only was there a strong personality behind this fragile body, she managed to survive after meeting the vampire king. It was truly incredible. Was there some secret that she kept silent about, or was it her natural attractive aura?

She began to feel her eyes gradually closing, taking her into a sweet slumber. But before that, she got out of her cozy nest and, for extra security, laid out the crystals that Eugene had given her in the corners of the room. This helped hide their presence for magical creatures. Only then did she allow herself to turn off her brain and fall asleep.

As expected, early in the morning, Nicole barely opened her eyes, having not slept at all.

- You don’t look well. - Thea was worried, who couldn’t help but notice the dark circles under her friend’s eyes.

- Don’t worry, it’s not fatal, I just couldn’t sleep for a long time.

- I see. It’s good if that’s the case. - she said, gathering up the last things and throwing the camouflage crystals into the bag. - Seal this place after we leave so no one can track us.

There was no need to say it, because Nicole was too careful, but still she nodded, making it clear that she accepted her words.

Just before she left, she completely destroyed their temporary shelter and sealed the traces of their presence with a small ritual. After that, they set off.

There was already a spring atmosphere in the air, but it was still quite cool. Primroses were blooming all around, trees were waking up from their winter sleep, and fresh new grass was rustling under their feet.

The road through the forest was long and as they walked, Thea remembered the piece of paper she had received from Eugene. She took out the envelope from the inside pocket and tore off the sealing wax seal, revealing the paper in full turn.

- Um... - she mumbled, pursing her lips.

- What’s there? What’s there? - Adeline hovered around her, intrigued. – Show me.

- There’s nothing to show. There’s just some kind of pattern drawn here. - she held out the paper, showing that there was no text message.

Adeline cursed loudly, shaking the useless piece of paper in her hands.

- We should have opened it in front of Eugene. Otherwise, what should we do now if we absolutely do not know what this pattern means? It doesn’t make any sense. - Adeline grumbled.

- Calm down, Ada. - Nicole patted her on the shoulder. – In fact, if you hadn’t skipped classes, you might have known that this was a secret message. Or rather, it’s not even a message, but a kind of signal. These are used by different races.

- It doesn’t matter at all if we don’t know how to apply it. Or am I wrong?

- Of course, you are right, but this is not a reason to be indignant. Eugene sent us to the northern lands, maybe there we will find the answer. This pattern should react sooner or later and give us some answers.

Thea carefully folded the paper and put it back, continuing to listen carefully to Nicole.

- If she gave it to us, then it’s important. I agree with Nikki that we need to get to the werewolf pack and maybe they will tell us something about this pattern. We need to put the pieces of the puzzle together from the information we have.

Making her way through the dense forest thickets, Thea heard a terrible heart-rending scream and immediately turned around, noticing that Adeline was no longer in her field of vision. She immediately became alert and listened, feeling painful moaning nearby.

Nicole and Thea rushed to her friend’s aid and found her lying under huge burdock leaves. Her leg was firmly stuck in the hunting vise, which was usually used to catch animals. The ground around was immediately stained with blood.

- Oh, my God. How did it happen? -Thea panicked. – Don’t move. We’ll think of something to free you now.

- I’ll look for some stick so that I can use it as a lever. – Nicole picked up, wasting no time, starting to look for something with which to push the trap apart.

Soon Nicole returned empty-handed.

- Since winter, all the sticks have become wet and damp, it is unlikely that we will be able to use them.

- How about you use magic the same way you did when you created the house under the tree? - Thea asked.

- I’ve already thought about it, but I’m afraid I’m going to hurt Ada. Still, the space between the vise is too narrow, and my magic is not so spotty.

- But we can’t leave her like this! - Thea was indignant and immediately froze in her tracks when a huge gray wolf appeared in front of her eyes.

She had previously been hunting with her father, but it was a completely huge wolf compared to the ones that her father used as prey. This wolf was as huge as the one that had injured her in Abion’s palace. Too big for an ordinary wolf.

- A werewolf? - she backed away slightly, trying not to make sudden movements, because the wolf was watching her every move, growling and grinning.

- We won’t do any harm. – continuing to whimper and moan, Adeline stammered, throwing up her hands in defeat.

After she started dating Klaus, it seemed to her that any werewolf would be reasonable if they tried to talk to him normally, establish friendly contact. But this wolf, it seems, took the throwing up of her hands as a signal for action and immediately rushed at the defenseless wounded girl, like a maniac of the smells of blood.

A huge root immediately rushed to meet him, and Nicole clung tightly to her magic wand, without losing eye contact. She repelled every attack, defending Adeline.

- Thea! - Nicole gave her a desperate look and Thea nodded.

There was no more time to think, it was time to act decisively. She ran up to her friend while the other was holding the werewolf in the grip of the roots, and fell to her knees in front of her, assessing what she would have to work with.

A terrible howl and heart-rending growl could be heard nearby, along with the sounds of trees cracking and splinters flying to the sides. Nicole tried to be focused, but even that didn’t help her avoid an unexpected blow that landed on her shoulder.

Thea immediately turned around at Nicole’s scream and noticed that the werewolf was now running in her direction. In a panic, she returned her attention to Adeline and confidently placed her hand on her ankle, closing her eyes and concentrating all her magic in just one hand.

A frosty tingling began to envelop the soft tissues of the injured leg, relieving painful sensations, but at the same time making Thea tremble with tension. It was too difficult to control the flow of magic, which in case of failure could lead to the leg having to be amputated. And the wolf approaching from the side did not contribute to her better concentration.

Fortunately, Nicole pulled herself together in time, dulling thoughts of pain and immediately the roots, which came out of nowhere from the ground, entwined around the chest of the wolf, tightly squeezing it until the werewolf screamed with a heart-rending scream.

Applying the maximum of her strength, Thea pressed on the iron vise, opening them and freeing Adeline’s leg, after which the vise slammed shut again with a loud ringing crack.

Grabbing her friend by the arms, Thea helped her up and, having received Nicole’s unspoken consent, they hurried away. Thea knew that if Nicole didn’t have to be distracted, she could handle this werewolf.

But it turned out differently.