by K. Lyn
That night, Leon could not sleep again. It was as if Victoria's words were a choir in his ears. "Whether you like it or not, you are a very special man to me." He both liked it and disliked it. Some part of him longed to tell her what he was, that he was the hideous monster she spoke of, the one who had the potential to devour her and everyone he cared about. The thought made him sick to his stomach and made him slam his fist against the wall. He knew there would be no use going to bed again. When he went, he would dream of only one person – Victoria…Victoria with her sweet breath…Victoria with her arms around him. And then there were the nightmares. He oftentimes awoke in a cold sweat, imagining Victoria dripping with blood and her body having a seizure in his arms. How could he live with himself if that happened to her? And if Victoria knew the real him, he doubted she would care for him so much anyway.
As he swore, he shook his head to clear the negative thoughts from his mind. I should do Victoria's dishes, as I want to keep my hands busy anyway. Nights of reading had left his eyes tired.
He entered the hallway and turned right where Victoria's room was. Distantly, he could make out the loud sound of Dr. Manheim's snoring, and he grimaced. After opening Victoria's door, he crept inside and shut the door behind him to keep Dr. Manheim's noise as distant from her as possible. Once he was inside the room, though, the closeness to Victoria made his feelings even more intense.
The room was dark and she was on her side, her hand drawn up to a fist against her chest. Her hair spilled across her face like dark veins. Her breath left her chest in soft whooshes. As he gazed upon her lips in the secluded darkness of the room, his imagination ran away with him before he could stop it.
He imagined her in a wedding dress, her hair done up with flowers and a laugh on her lips. Naturally, he would be at her side, holding her close in a dance and feeling like the luckiest man in the world that she was his bride. But as Victoria let out a groan of pain, he was brought back to reality and realized that was something which would not happen. Yet it wouldn't hurt to touch her face, would it?
Though he knew it was inappropriate and that Victoria would frown upon his actions and likely see him as a frightening man who watched her while she was at her most vulnerable, he stepped in closer and touched her cheek. Surprisingly, her cheek was cool, far cooler than it had been before. She truly was getting well. The thought made him sigh in joy and relief.
As Leon's hand lingered, Victoria groaned, "Leon," and then rolled over onto her back.
While she lay there, her breath leaving her lips in calm gasps, he imagined kissing her and holding her. I shouldn't do this. I should be avoiding her, not doing this. But, even as he had that thought, he found himself leaning forward and touching her pale cheek. He shut his eyes and gently pressed his lips against her own, tasting her.
Heavens, she tasted good. He pulled away, staring down at Victoria and feeling shaky with pleasure and guilt all at once. After whipping around, he headed for the dishes, collected them, and fled the room before he did anything more that he would regret.
***
When Dr. Manheim removed the bandage from Victoria's room two days later, it was still red and swollen with yellow pus oozing from the top, but it was also noticeably better. The red had withdrawn and the yellow ooze had retreated. Victoria did not know whether it was the alcohol, the vinegar, or the herbs Dr. Manheim had placed upon the wound that caused the change, but she let out a sigh of relief regardless.
"Dr. Manheim, the redness." She smiled for the first time in days, despite the fact that her leg still throbbed and her head still ached. "It's retreating."
"Yes, there is a definite improvement in the state of the wound," Dr. Manheim said. "However, you must retain a logical standpoint on this. It has only been one day and the wound will take a long time to heal. Very easily the wound can go from getting better to getting worse."
Victoria nodded. The throbbing of her wound was a clear reminder of that. Still, it was a step in a good direction. If only Leon were here to share in her joy.
"Dr. Manheim, have you seen Leon?" she asked. "It's unusual for him to skip bringing me breakfast. Why did you bring it in his stead?"
"Yes, I thought it was rather odd myself," Dr. Manheim nodded. "I do not know where he is, but I believe he needs a checkup. He has grown paler over the last couple of days, and I am concerned."
She gasped and pressed her hand to her forehead. What was Leon doing? Why was he avoiding her? The thought made her feel more ill by the second.
"Don't worry about him, Victoria." Dr. Manheim patted her hand.
But she was worried. She was worried because now that she was getting better, the days she spent with Leon were numbered as he was still convinced that she needed to go. She knew the day she left his side would hurt her a lot worse than any wolf bite. She bit her bottom lip and stared at her wound, releasing a shaking sigh.
That night, Victoria could not sleep. She felt as though her limbs were fused with energy. She didn't know if it was because of the news that she was getting better or if it was because she was anxious about Leon and his lack of visits. As Victoria sat in bed with a book open in her lap, she saw a dark shadow linger along the bottom of her floor. She knew who the shadow belonged to because it was far too long and thin to be Dr. Manheim.
"Leon," she said after a moment when nobody came inside.
She heard Leon gasp at the other side of the door. She wondered whether he had intended to keep checking on her in secret. It was like he was a small child with his hand caught in the cookie jar.
When Leon opened the door and stepped inside, Victoria immediately knew what Dr. Manheim had meant about Leon needing a checkup. His face was pale, his eyes were sunken in, and his mouth was tense. How long has it been since Leon had any sleep? As Leon walked toward the bed, she had to fight down the urge to reach out to him and embrace him as tightly as she could.
"Why are you awake?" Leon asked her. "You should be resting."
"I could ask you the same thing." She smiled at him sadly. "You look as if you have contracted the plague. Have you taken ill?"
"No, I'm just tired." Leon yawned as if to prove his point. "I was just going to bed now."
"Wait." Victoria patted the bed at her side. "Sit with me for a moment. I’m becoming crazy in this room. I feel like I may never get out of it."
"You will be out of this room soon enough." Leon frowned. "I heard from Dr. Manheim that your leg is healing now."
Both of them silently assessed each other. Victoria inwardly begged, Ask me to stay. Tell me to be your servant. Please, please, please don't make me leave. I want to see your face every day. But neither of them spoke. Leon eyeballed the place by her bedside and did not move to sit down. Victoria began to get desperate.
"Please." Victoria patted the place by her bed one more time.
"Oh, all right," Leon sighed and sat down beside her. "Just for a moment."
The moment Leon sat down, Victoria smiled at him and longed to reach for his face. She wanted to spend all night caressing his cheeks and his muscles, feeling every inch of him. Though her leg still throbbed, it was a miracle that other things could be on her mind. Like being with Leon, for instance. She hesitated and then she touched his face. She saw his eyes flicker with concern and dart toward the door, but after she stroked his skin a couple of times he sighed and then relaxed. It felt good to have Leon back in her room again, good to have him around. If only she could convince him to let her stay.
When Leon had lost the urge to secretly steal a kiss from Victoria while she slept again, he did not expect her to be awake and reading one of his books. Now, as she stroked his cheek, filling his body with relaxation and his mind with a dull haze, he lost himself to her powers. Despite the fact that the room smelled like sickness and sweat, Victoria still had a sweet scent to her skin as she caressed him. The smell made him relax more and more. Soon he found himself seeking the one thing he had avoided over the past week – sleep. He so desperate
ly wanted to sleep and felt that he could.
As his eyes fluttered shut, he heard Victoria gently say, "Leon." Her soft call was like a butterfly kiss upon the lips. As her hand lulled him to sleep, he found himself leaning sideways. Before he could exhale again, he lay in Victoria's bed, facing her. That was what he had needed all along, he realized – her touch, her kiss.
Victoria pulled him into his arms and he balanced his head over her soft breasts and sighed. That was when his world went black.
The next morning, Victoria awoke and smiled down at Leon, who held her against his chest as if he was frightened of letting her go. His chest rose and fell as he slept, and his face appeared defenseless. Guiltily, Victoria ran her hand down his chest, enjoying the feeling of his muscles beneath her fingers. Once she had her hand around his waist, she tightened her grip around him and snuggled closer, desperate to spend all the time she could with Leon while he was still here.
As she curled up against him, a smile crossed her lips and a tear fell down her cheek. She finally found a place that felt like home, a first since her father had died. Would she be forced to leave if she got better?
When Leon awoke, he couldn't remember where he was. Why am I in a different room? Did I transform and not realize it? Did I sleep walk? He was hard pressed to remember what had happened the night before and was shocked that he had slept soundly without a single nightmare. Also the sun which shone through the window wasn't dim like the morning sun. It was bright and high, like that of the afternoon sun. He must have slept late.
That was when Leon heard somebody shift beside him and let out a soft sigh. He glanced around in shock and saw who was at his side. It was Victoria who lay in bed next to him, holding gently onto his arm. He gasped and flew out of the bed so fast he almost fell over.
"Victoria," he said, and the memory of last night came rushing back.
He had been so tired, tired enough that he had fallen asleep all because Victoria had stroked his cheek. He couldn't believe how stupid he had been. Asleep? With Victoria? That was exactly what he did not need to do in order to become more attached to her.
"You slept well," Victoria smiled at him slyly. "Dr. Manheim came to give me my treatments a couple of times, but I had to turn him away because you were still asleep and I did not wish to wake you. It appears the sleep has done well for you. You don't look sick anymore."
Well, maybe he didn't appear sick or feel physically ill, but he felt horrible mentally. What if, by some turn of fate, he had changed in the middle of the night? Sure, it hadn't happened in all of his hundreds of years as a werewolf, but it could. He groaned and ran a hand through his hair. He should have fought away the urge to come and see her, but he hadn't, and now look what happened.
"I've got to go." Leon shuddered and whirled around. "I have to make you breakfast."
Victoria let out a gasp. "Leon, stop."
Leon froze.
"Leon, I have affections for you," Victoria said. "Can you please tell me why I can't stay here with you? You are unmarried and your body favors me."
Heat filled his cheeks. What kind of lady would refer to carnal passions so easily? Maybe she wasn't as innocent as he had thought.
"What makes you say that?" Leon asked nervously.
"Oh, Leon, it's obvious." Victoria sighed and glanced pointedly at his waist.
Sure enough, his cock was far harder this morning than it normally was when he awoke. It caused a tent in his pants and he realized there was no way Victoria would have not noticed it, even if she was innocent. He swore, charged toward the hallway, opened the door, and then slammed it shut behind him. He charged for his bedroom and slammed that door behind him, too.
Once inside, he pressed his hand over his face, breathed deeply, and tried to maintain his calm. Meanwhile, though, his head screamed, Victoria, Victoria, Victoria, over and over again. Leon began to realize what he feared had come. He wasn't sure he was going to have the strength to send Victoria away when she got better, but not doing so could cost Victoria her life.
For three days, Leon did not enter Victoria's room, though her leg had healed and the swelling went down. She should have been overjoyed at her healing, but it only made her miserable. There was only one cure to her misery – Leon – and he was being even more stubborn than her father had been. She crossed her arms, shook her head, and glanced at Dr. Manheim, who was putting away his bottles of alcohol and vinegar, which still made her leg burn with pain every time he doused the wound with it.
"Dr. Manheim, how much longer must I stay in this room?" Victoria longed for a walk, a change of scenery to distract her from Leon and his current desire to stay as far away from her as possible. "May I go out? Just for a little while? I long to see the moon and get some fresh air. I know Leon is taking care of Stormy, but I want to see him, too. The horse did save my life, after all. He deserves my affections."
Dr. Manheim regarded her with intelligent eyes. "How does your leg fare?"
"It pains me little," Victoria said eagerly, sensing his weakness. He might just let her leave her room today.
"Fine. I suppose I can understand your need for exploration. I do not understand why you can't wait until tomorrow morning when I can guide you." Dr. Manheim shook his head. "You may do light physical activity. Light. That means you may go outside to walk, but do not leave the yard and do not stay outside for long. I still do not trust that leg of yours."
She nodded and bit her lip. "I wouldn't stray far outside the estate anyway."
"Wolves." Dr. Manheim nodded. "It would make sense that you fear them. I am sure, however, that Leon managed to get rid of the rest of them while you were ill. Normally he frightens them away, but I believe your injury has angered him greatly and he has taken to spilling blood."
Her eyes widened in shock. "Frighten? A wolf? How?"
Dr. Manheim's face tensed. "Oh, there are methods. Loud noises. Most wolves have a dislike of such things."
It did not escape Victoria's attention that Dr. Manheim's hands twitched nervously and he did not meet her eyes. If Leon can scare away wolves, what about that massive beast? And why do I sense that Dr. Manheim is hiding something from me? She pulled the sheets aside and slowly stood up. There was one other thing which did not fit the puzzle but reminded her of the wolves they discussed now because it was what she truly feared – the strange mammoth wolf beast.
"Dr. Manheim, do you know anything about the giant beast I saw the other day?" she asked. "I thought it was the Devil coming for me. It was massive, like a bear with the body of a wolf. I have never seen anything like it, but Leon appeared unconcerned. What would Leon do about frightening that away?"
This time, Victoria knew she didn't imagine the twitch that Dr. Manheim developed. He also did not look in her direction and he stared determinedly away from her, as if glancing into her eyes might lead to him bursting into flames.
"Sometimes it is common with a patient suffering from the heat to see images which are not present." Dr. Manheim still did not gaze at her. "Perhaps the wolf that bit you was actually under the command of a witch, and she cast a spell of images upon you. I do not know. All I know is there is no such animal in existence, nor will there ever be. If you continue with these odd allegations, I shall take back my permission for you to leave the estate and command you to return to your bed. I cannot have a patient with a jumbled head rushing about the estate with the potential of getting lost."
Silence fell. Victoria hung her head and then slowly nodded. Maybe she was being crazy, but she swore that Dr. Manheim had started acting odd at the mention of the beast, too.
"I understand." Victoria frowned. "I shall not mention that creature again."
"Good." Dr. Manheim nodded at her. "You would do well to remember that in the presence of Leon, too. It is no wonder he is tossing and turning, thinking about you."
After pivoting, Dr. Manheim walked toward the door, opened it, and then went into the hallway and disappeared. Victoria stared after him a momen
t before taking a tentative step forward on her bad leg. The moment she stepped on it, pain shot up her limb and the wound ached as the dry scabs pinched together. Still, she was determined to go outside, if only to clear her head about Leon and now her "imaginary" beast. Maybe this house had begun to get to her.
As Victoria groaned with every step, she exited her room and then lingered in the hallway. She stared at Leon's room and discovered that the door was ajar. She limped toward his room, glanced both ways, and then peered inside. The room was empty and his bed was rumpled and unmade. So Leon isn't around. I wonder where he is. Shrugging, Victoria limped for the nearest door, in pain with every step.
Leon's hard cock would not cease its stiffening. As he headed back to his room after his cool walk outside, all he could think about was Victoria naked, as had been the case after he had spent the night in her room. He could recall the feeling of her smooth thighs brushing against the head of his cock, her soft breathing as she pressed her breasts against his chest, and the way her ass was a perfect cup-full in his hand. She was perfection, and he longed for her body the way a starving man longs for food.
Finally, Leon reached his room while ignoring the sound of a door clicking closed some distance away. He moved past the door and entered his room. Groaning, Leon locked eyes with his bed, barely having the mind to push the door closed behind him. He waddled over to his bed and flopped backward.
As he lay on his back, he began to imagine the way Victoria's breasts would heave when she unlaced the top of her dress, revealing her perfect breasts as they spilled forth from the bodice. He wondered how large her nipples were and what coin size they would replicate. He imagined her thin stomach and her wide hips and curvy backside. It was easy to pretend that she slid her dress off in front of him, revealing her perfect cunt wet with her juices. The images were enough to drive his breathing to a harsh pant. As he dreamed about Victoria's perfect body, he pulled off his shirt and flung it to the side, grateful for the cool air on his sweaty body. He couldn't believe he had the strength and the carnal drive to pleasure himself for the third time that day. Victoria drove his blood to a boil faster than any woman he had ever seen.
