Alex swayed on the floor of the car, her forehead hitting the bottom of the back seats at each pothole. Streetlights illuminated the inside of the vehicle for a few seconds at a time, moving over the body of the man stretched out on the seats above her. He looked like he was in his mid-thirties, had a square jaw, broad forehead and was very dead.

After moving her out of the alleyway, the Korovic siblings had shoved her into Peter's car which they drove into a side street off a deserted road towards the outskirts of town. After that, Katya left and came back in a small red Nissan, its hapless owner stretched out in the back.

When Alex tried to run at the sight of the body, they tied her hands behind her back and shoved her in to lie beside the corpse.

And she had been lying there since.

Alex swallowed hard and closed her eyes. She didn't know how much time had passed, she didn't know where they were going, but she knew from the way the Korovic siblings were talking openly about their plans that they didn't expect her to survive the night.

From what she could make out of their conversation, they were going to make it look like Alex was hitchhiking and ended up being picked up by a psycho who took her to a forest, where he killed her and then died himself. The reason why he died was the current topic of argument between the twosome in the front.

The dead vehicle-owner's arm shifted across the seat as the car swerved, his lifeless hand grazing her face and bringing tears to her eyes. Alex bit down on her trembling lip until she drew blood. She would not lose control of her emotions. She had to find a way to survive. She had to make sure the bastard who killed her parents suffered. She had to.

Her mind raced through ideas of how she might escape, but what could she do against two werewolves? Her martial arts was only useful for as long as she could withstand the pain she was dishing out. How then could she escape? How? Before Alex could come up with a plausible plan, the car rolled to a stop.

"Rise and shine!" Katya leaned between the seats, clapping with sick excitement.

The door to the car was yanked open on the side where her feet lay and Peter leaned in to pull the dead man out.

"You in the backseat, me reaching in...now this brings back memories, doesn't it sweetheart?" He winked at her.

A shiver of disgust ran down her spine as she watched Peter juggle the listless limbs of the corpse.

"All right so we are going to make it look like he strangled her, then slipped on ice and hit his head and died. It'll take me a few minutes to find a good spot and set the scene, you wait here and watch over her." Peter's voice carried from outside where he was speaking to Katya.

"You're so clever, brother," she giggled in response. "Because I keep watching you act like a simpering fool, I often forget how crafty you are."

"Just watch her and don't do anything stupid." Alex heard Peter's warning, then the crunch of his footsteps on the icy ground faded away.

The door on the other side of the car opened a moment later and pain rushed through her scalp as Katya latched onto her hair and yanked. "Come on out, little bitch."

Alex pushed backwards with her feet, but lost her balance and tumbled out of the car, landing on her arms. Her tied hands burned from the rough rope Katya had used to bind them, and her scalp was on fire.

"Tsk tsk tsk," the werewolf peered down at her, her beautiful face illuminated by the lights inside the car. "What the hell does Gabriel see in you? I just don't get it!"

This was it. With Peter temporarily away, this was probably her only chance for escape. The pitch black forest behind the werewolf wasn't particularly inviting, but it was her only chance. Alex looked at Katya trying to think of the best way to wind her up. People did stupid things when they got angry...

"He thinks I'm fun," Alex said, smiling slowly. As expected, Katya's face darkened.

"Fun?" She leaned close, then smirked. "Why don't you show me then, how fun you can be?"

Alex knew that goading the woman could backfire badly, but she couldn't think of any other way. From what she had seen so far, Katya Korovic regarded life as a game. She got excited easily, angry easily and killed without thinking. She was like a naughty kid; a dangerous and childish bully in a sexy woman's body.

Pushing up onto her knees, Alex smiled. "Gabriel doesn't like things to be easy. When it comes easy, it's no fun. Don't you feel like that too?"

"Maybe," Katya arched one thin brow, her arms crossing over her chest. "So?"

Alex softened her tone as much as she could, keeping her smile bright. "This waiting around is boring, right? Why don't you untie me and we can play a game? "

Katya watched her silently for a moment then burst into laughter. "Are you trying to trick me into untying you? Ahah! What a joke! And what if you were untied?" She reached down and yanked Alex to her feet. "What could you possibly do Human?"

Then in one swift move, Katya untied her and stepped back.

"Go on then, little rabbit, run!"

Alex blinked.

"Come now, I'll even be super nice and give you a head start. But, let me tell you this, too," Katya's voice suddenly got softer, the expression in her eyes turning hungry. "If you stay, your death will be relatively painless. If you run? Well, I'll have a lot of fun with you."

The theat was not lost on her, but Alex knew she had no choice! Without another moment's hesitation, she reached down, broke the heels off of her boots and ran, the sound of Katya's laughter following her into the darkness.

The forest was pitch black beyond the circle of light from the car. Katya was likely assuming Alex wouldn't be able to get far in the maze of thick roots, bushes and trees, but she used her sense of smell to avoid most of the obstacles as she pushed her legs ever faster. Branches scratched at her skin and the ice underfoot threw her off so she had to claw at the trees around her to keep her balance, but she kept pushing forward until she reached a clearing and stopped to catch her breath.

The clouds parted to allow a sliver of moonlight to cut through the trees. Alex reached a shaking hand into her bag. Katya was playing this game with her, because she knew a human couldn't outrun a werewolf. Alex would not be able to escape death, not in this form. Her fingers found the vile and she sighed in relief. It was still there.

Gabriel's blood was her only chance at survival now, but Alex had no idea how long the Turn would take. She needed a place to hide, somewhere where Katya couldn't catch her scent.

Alex took a deep breath and the smell of the forest came at her from all sides; red oaks, maples, white pines, hemlocks, blueberry shrubs and snow. So much snow and ice. She breathed again, reaching further until she found the scent she was looking for. There, to her left was moss and damp ground. She ran in that direction hoping that wet mud could help mask her smell, if only for a short while.

After running blindly through the dark for what felt like ages, the trees thinned and suddenly there was light. There, only a few feet away, was a clearing and beyond it a lake glistened with bright moonlight. Her legs burned from exertion when she reached the waters edge. Thin layers of ice swam on top of silent waters and Alex was reaching down to feel the earth when a small rowing boat caught her eye.

Yes! Finally a small respite! Her heart soared as she ran towards the boat which would gain her some time. She jumped in, settling herself clumsily before trying to work the oars with her frozen hands.

It hurt, everything hurt so damn much, but there was no time to worry about the cuts across her arms, her half frozen skin or the burning in her calves. Commanding her arms to work, she rowed until she was a good distance from the shore, pulled the oars in and took the vile out of her bag.

The moonlight caught on the dark liquid inside as she threw away the protective sheath and opened the lid. The metallic scent of blood filled the air.

This is it. Drinking this would complete her Turn and then, there would be no reversing the processes. A million questions came to mind, but Alex ignored them all. With her head blank and her heart pounding in her hears, she lifted the vile to her lips and swallowed the contents in one shot.

The liquid was strangely warm and thick as it went down her throat, coating the inside of her mouth with its salty taste. She opened her eyes slowly. The empty vile dropped from her numb fingers. Wind pushed gently at the rowboat. Nothing happened. Alex lay down on her back, partly because she was exhausted and partly because she didn't want to be seen from shore. Still nothing happened.

The moon was full above her, the clouds that had kept its light from the forest, having disappeared completely.

For a fleeting moment, she worried that the blood might not work and that she too would disappear forever.

Then, a scream tore at her throat.