Monster High: Season of the Witch

27. Hairy Business

"I'm listening," Beatrix said from the ground. She tried to sound confident.

Bram gave a mocking pout. "You shouldn't have lied to Bloodgood about us."

"Didn't mean to offend," Beatrix retorted. "I just didn't want to die, I'm sure you can understand."

Vilhelm's laugh pierced the air. "Gory was right, she's a spirited one."

Bram ignored Vilhelm. "Didn't your mother teach you that lying is wrong?"

Vilhelm chimed in, "Who knows if she even has a mother? Aren't witches raised by a bunch of devil-worshiping fan girls?"

"More like devil-worshiping cat ladies. Judging by her manners, she might as well have been raised in a barn," Bram snickered.

Usually, Beatrix would've partly agreed. Witch covens were ridiculous, after all.

But at that moment, she couldn't find any humor in it.

The boys spoke with an old-fashioned eloquence that didn't match their youthful faces.

They were predators frozen in time, ready to attack.

Vilhelm continued, "Why were you following us at the Halloween party?"

Autumn spoke up. "What are they talking about?" She stood a few feet away, trying to piece together the conversation.

"They're the vampires we caught feeding on those human girls!" Guillermo exclaimed.

Bram and Vilhelm gave Guillermo a chilling glare. Trembling, Guillermo hid behind the scarecrow and added, "Allegedly."

"What girls?" Autumn inquired.

"Beatrix didn't tell you?" Guillermo asked.

"Nope, but I'm not surprised," Autumn huffed. "Bea keeps everything a secret from me!"

Bram snapped his fingers, diverting Beatrix's attention from Autumn's accusation. "Why'd you lie to Bloodgood, witch snitch? Were you that desperate for attention? Feeling excluded at school and wanted your moment in the spotlight?"

"You've caused us a lot of trouble this past month," Vilhelm added.

"Maybe you should've thought about that before murdering innocent humans!" Beatrix snapped back, "and monsters!"

Bram and Vilhelm exchanged confused glances.

"That's right. I know what you did to Gilda Goldstag," Beatrix said firmly, adrenaline pushing her to be bolder than she should have been.

"You think we killed Gilda?" Bram snorted in disbelief.

Beatrix maintained her glare, convinced.

"Seriously? She thinks we did it!" Vilhelm wheezed.

"Well, if we did what you're accusing us of, then you've definitely messed with the wrong monsters," Bram sneered.

"Bloodgood can't save you out here, witch snitch," Vilhelm said.

The vampire boys took a step closer. Beatrix scrambled back.

Autumn threw a rock at the boys' heads. "Stop messing with her!" The rock missed its target by a wide margin, plopping softly a few inches from Vilhelm's black dress shoes.

Vilhelm kicked the rock away. The vamps took another step.

Beneath their facade of playfulness, another emotion brimmed under the surface: impatience. There was a primal glint in their expressions, like they were eager to use Beatrix as a blood bag and discard her lifeless body before she could even scream.

"Sorry, scarecrow. There won't be anything left of your witch friend once we're done with her," Bram taunted.

Beatrix was struck with horror. The surrounding trees seemed miles away. Escaping into the woods was impossible.

Even if she tried to make a break for it, vampiric speed surpassed all other supernatural creatures, except—

As if on cue, a shudder ran through Beatrix's body, shaking her from the inside out. It spread from her head to her chest, reaching deep into her bones. Her jaw trembled, not from the cold, but from a sickening sensation rising within her.

Each fingertip and toe tingled. Blood rushed in her ears and numbed her senses before bringing them back into hyper-focus.

Her vision sharpened, capturing every pine needle on the ground beneath her and the vampires' pale skin, which now appeared corpse-like with her heightened sight—a repulsive, zombie-like appearance. Bram and Vilhelm looked grotesque to Beatrix now, evoking a natural aversion with every whiff of her nostrils.

She now grasped why Orion and many werewolves despised these undead creatures.

Everything was happening too fast. She could hear every anxious breath from Guillermo, Autumn tugging at her seams in excruciating detail.

What if she hadn't consumed enough wolfsbane?

Beatrix reached into her pocket for more leaves, but her hands spasmed. The hairs on her arms and legs stood, waves of nerves coursing through her body like an intensified flu. Beatrix felt on the verge of vomiting, but she knew doing so would expel the ingredients that provided her with a dose of werewolf strength in the first place.

Voices echoed, but Beatrix couldn't distinguish any distinct words.

She opened her eyes and saw Bram closing in, sharp nails poised, hand reaching to strike. To her surprise, he moved in slow motion, giving Beatrix an opportunity to spring up and react.

She instinctively grabbed Bram's forearm and forcefully flung him away.

Beatrix heard a loud crash, a scream—Gory's scream?—and startled-voices from inside Draculaura's house.

Beatrix quickly turned and saw that the kitchen window was completely shattered. Glass shards littered the back porch.

She'd sent Bram straight through the window.

Suddenly, Beatrix was forcefully pushed against a tree, Vilhelm gripping her neck. The back of her head slammed into the trunk, causing her brain to rattle in her skull. Her werewolf strength was fading rapidly, the remaining trace of venom the only thing allowing her to endure the impact.

Beatrix clawed at Vilhelm's forearm, desperate to free herself, but he didn't flinch. Vilhelm's sharp nails, filed to points, dug into her neck, causing blood to trickle down to her collarbone. His grip—solid like concrete—tightened around her throat.

Then, Vilhelm's eyes lost focus, and his jaw relaxed, no longer tense with anger.

His blood-red gaze ceased to pierce Beatrix's own as her vision faded in and out.

Something crossed her mind, comparing Vilhelm's appearance to that of Manny the minotaur in the auditorium after Operetta sang him a distant lullaby.

That was the last thought Beatrix had before the world went black.