Death?

Pugsley could only watch as the demon tortured his brother. She crushed his bones and tore skin away with the lightest touch. Thankfully, Zane passed out after a few minutes. His voice cracked as she pulled his unhurt leg out of the socket. Pugsley didn’t want to imagine that kind of pain.

How could Monika have fallen in love with this thing? Pugsley knew better than to be fooled by appearances. His species was the living proof of that folly. But he couldn’t see what would drive Monika to choose Janice over anything else. Is this how demons grieve? She’s barely looked at Monika’s body and…

A sudden chill crawled up his spine and wrapped around his heart as his eyes widened in realization. “You… you let her die… She came to save you… But you just watched her die!”

Janice turned, still holding Zane by the neck. Blood and bits of flesh and bone spackled across her face and the front of her clothes. Pugsley flinched when her eyes met his, but he couldn’t stop. “Why? She loved you. You were her world. How… how could you treat her like that? Doesn’t she mean anything to you?!”

What did Monika see when she looked at her? Pugsley knew Zane’s plan to increase their numbers was farfetched at best. Wolves mate for life, and he knew claiming Monika would be hard, if not impossible, but he’d convinced himself that he would be good to her. He’d always treat her with respect and hopefully earn her love.

But that plan had fallen apart even easier than Zane’s remains as she let him drop before turning on Pugsley. He watched her come, unable to do more than weakly strain against the car. His inner wolf whined, knowing death was approaching and neither of them could do anything about it.

Pugsley stared into Janice’s eyes, hoping to see something in them. Not remorse at what she was doing to them. No, they didn’t deserve that. They were the ones who attacked her and killed Monika. Perhaps Janice would have let them be if Zane had accepted the new status quo. But Zane had never been good at submitting, even to their parents.

And now the pack was without an alpha. Pugsley wanted to laugh at the irony. Zane always believed he was the best and deserved whatever he wanted. Including women. Especially women. If Zane didn’t already have a mate, he would have broken down Monika’s door the night she joined the pack.

Janice studied Pugsley’s face as if he were a new species of bug or a strange piece of art that she wasn’t sure how to look at properly. He tried to appear calm, to act like he was in his classroom with an unruly student or overbearing parent. But Janice’s next words rocked him to his core.

“You’re wrong about Monika.”

“What?” Wrong in what way? Was Monika pretending to be in love with her? Janice held up the hand that she used to torture his brother and patted his cheek.

“You’re wrong. Monika didn’t die for me…” She leaned in, stinking of blood and some kind of fake flowery perfume as she whispered. “Monika… my puppy… Is very much alive. All your brother did was break her, but I’ll fix her soon. Don’t you worry. She’s such a good girl… A little stupid… but cute in her foolishness.”

“What are you talking about? Zane ripped out her throat. There’s no coming back from that. She’s dead, and you don’t even care!” Janice lightly slapped him, tearing half the skin of his face off before sighing.

“Why do men always feel the need to yell? Don’t you realize it's too late for that? You’re done, mutt. You and those two mongrels over there are going to keep me going for some time… And once Monika is fixed, she can help me track down the rest of your pack… That was my original goal. To feed on you and yours while living peacefully with my pet…”

Janice’s eyes shifted to gold as she smiled softly at Monika. “It’ll be difficult. We’ll both have to go through some changes. I can’t do much about her scent, but Monika barely attended the pack meetings to avoid you, so that shouldn’t be too much of a problem. And changing appearances is my specialty.”

She waved the non-blooded hand across her face, changing the black hair to brown, and her skin darkened until it took on a rich cocoa complexion. Her eyes flashed a deep green before returning to their normal red hue as she chuckled. “Well? Don’t be shy. How do I look? I want to make sure Monika approves. My puppy is fond of saying love is blind, but she’s only seen me in one other form!”

That was a good day. The silly thing was reluctant to transform back into a wolf. It took me hours to convince her that she looked beautiful in fur… Pugsley didn’t know what made him do it. He was already dead. Nothing would change that, and his pack was just as doomed. But before he could rethink his last choice. Pugsley spat in Janice’s face.

The demon wiped it away, a small frown forming as he laughed. “You… you’re pathetic… I thought demons were supposed to be strong, but you’re taking advantage of a girl who didn’t know what she was until a few weeks ago… I may not be the right person to say this, but you’ll get yours. You’ll see. You can’t fool her forever. And once she wakes up, she’ll”-

Janice pressed all five of her fingers into Pugsley’s face, uncaring of his futile attempts to escape. Her fingers eventually touched the car on the other side of his head. The body twitched for several minutes but finally subsided once she grew bored and ripped his heart out. Janice bit into it, scanning for any sign of more werewolves sneaking around, but she soon gave up once she heard some police sirens.

I guess I had a little too much fun… Or some of the ones Monika let escape decided to call the police… Monika… Janice clapped her hands, making the three bodies disappear through a small portal before kneeling in front of Monika’s body. “You… look so small… like this… Very small.”

She picked her up, not paying attention to the broken leg and tail, as she summoned another portal to take them away. The physical remains of the fight were left for the world to see. It didn’t matter to Janice if the humans found out about her existence. She’d kill them either way.

The space that made up Janice’s home could be described as many things, though she liked to call it cozy and practical. The chains dangling from the ceiling matched the pillows scattered across the bed, and the curtains would bring out little gold flecks in Monika’s eyes. She’d bought them as a gift for her puppy, and she wouldn’t be satisfied with anything less than Monika’s complete and utter devotion.

It was only natural since she was being so careful in fixing her broken limbs. I love the way her fur feels. It's always so soft and silky… Janice shuddered as she remembered Zane stomping on her puppy before firmly shaking her head. “None of that. He’s in the pot, and I’ll be able to feast on him for weeks if I get my recipes right…”

Monika didn’t respond. Janice didn’t expect her to. The poor thing was still broken. Janice smiled softly and stroked the newly repaired tail. “I’m sorry, puppy. You must be in pain, and here I am making you wait… It should only take a few more minutes, though!”

Janice bit her thumb and drew several symbols into the air above Monika’s body, smoothing out the final traces of the battle and forcing her body to transform back into a human. Janice cupped Monika’s cheek and sighed. “I’ll never understand why you hate your wolf form so much. Don’t you know that it’s just as lovely as this one?”

What would she say if I told her that? Would she blush and deny it, or maybe she’d attempt to hide like she did the first time I said it? Either outcome was preferable to the current silence. Janice would never reveal it to Monika, but she’d grown fond of her puppy’s voice. Hearing her innocent declarations of love was a fine way to pass the time.

She smiled, placing a final drop of blood onto Monika’s tongue before breathing life back into her. Monika’s eyes remained closed for several seconds before blinking open to stare at Janice. “Jan?”

“Hello, puppy… Did you have a nice nap?” Monika sat up, touching her lips in wonder as she noticed her lack of clothes. Monika eeped and covered her chest, but Janice grabbed her hands and smiled. “What’re you doing, you silly girl?”