The frozen lake cracked beneath his feet; his head spun. How had he got here?


The last thing he remembered he was sitting in front of the fire of the log cabin, laughing with her. Her long, black hair framing her heart shaped face as she bashfully hooked a strand behind her ear looking at the ground and raising those large blue eyes to meet his gaze. The memory began to fade and where there should have been something, anything, that could give him a sense of what had happened, his brain curdled to fog.


His foot fumbled forwards and another large crack rumbled from underneath him, sending shudders up his spine and bringing his awareness to his surroundings. Everything was so bright. Light reflected off the ice underneath him and the white blanket that lay distantly on the shore glared harshly back in his direction. He raised his arm slightly to shelter his eyes from the sheer intensity of the glow. 


His face paled at the sight of the crimson beads fluttering from his hand to the surface below. For a moment the world slowed as he tried to place what this was; he had seen it before, this was a familiar sight but his mind was failing to grasp the reality of what these droplets could be. Still puzzled he breathed in deeply and his consciousness whirred awake with high speed as the coppery scent wafted through his nasal passage, blood. He looked towards his feet, the scarlet pool such a contrast to the frosted ground beneath him.


Another grumble of the ground sent his body into action and before his mind could contemplate his movements, he was racing towards the lakes edge. The ice splintering into jagged formations behind him, yet he dare not look back. He had to get to her. He could feel no pain as his muscles flexed in a flight response, the only thing he knew for sure was that the blood was not solely his.


The bleak world around him became denser as he drew closer to the lakes border. The darkened shadows took on colours of green and brown as the Sitka Spruce trees emerged before him. A thundering noise bellowed from behind him, willing his body to increase its speed. Shoots of blackened cracks materialized before his pounding feet and he lunged for the rolling white surface in front of him. He landed on the solid ground with such a thud that he winded himself. He whirled around to witness the ice he had just been atop, move with a crash, separate and disappear in places.


That could have been me raced through his thoughts as he clutched his chest, willing air into his lungs.


His legs burned and there was a fire pleading to pry his chest open, but his thoughts went straight to her. Her laugh echoing though his mind, through his every fiber. He had to get back. Had to find her.


Panting, he scoured the scenery for any indication of where he could possibly be. Then he saw it, to his left a small amount of smoke was breaking over the tops of the snow-covered trees. It must be coming from the cabin.


He had planned for it to be a romantic getaway for the two of them, they had been so consumed by their day-to-day lives that he had decided they needed a break from people, a break from the hustle and bustle of the city. So, he had chosen a remote cabin in the middle of nowhere so they could enjoy nature, each other and just be present; together. 


Persuading his body to move he hurried towards the smoke, desperately hoping he was headed in the right direction. Desperately hoping he hadn’t been trailed away miles from their vacation spot. The frost bit at his skin, the chill in the wind sank through to his bones, branches clawed at his face and arms and his footing stumbled in the deep slush of snow; yet he kept running.


A pathway cleared ahead of him, and he could see the outline of the cabin that lay before him. The rounded logs that made up the exterior, the little woodshed seated neatly behind the small building and the light of the fire as it trudged on dancing in the windows. He turned to face the front of the cabin so sharply he nearly skidded into his red Jeep Grand Cherokee.


Red. Red like the splashes of liquid coating his clothing.


Animal prints scuffed the soft white padding on the steps. The varnished wood under the roofed platform was lined with gashes so deep they would have taken a large animal to have crafted them. The front door hung ajar, whining and shuddering in the winter breeze.


Panic began to rise within him as he screamed her name ‘Jasmine!’


He blindly clambered up the steps, barging through the door and halting as he saw what lay before him.

The overturned chair with stuffing trailing out of it from the slashes laid into the fabric, broken pieces of glass and porcelain lay scattered along the floor where they had been enjoying a spread of luxurious food and wine. Tall, elegant lamps now lay mangled strewn across the rugs and deep scrapes trailed all through the wood on the floor and walls surrounding him. And there, in front of the fireplace, was Jasmine laying face down, motionless.


Tears streamed down his face as he cried her name again and rushed to her side, picking her up and angling her face to meet his.


The memories began to flash back quicker than he could keep up.


The fire lighting up her face as he had asked her to marry him. The glow of surprise she bore about her entire body. The ‘yes’ that had slid out of her beaming smile. Her giggle as he had slid the ring onto her finger. The joy dancing in her eyes as the full moon streamed through the clear window.


The terror that followed as his arm had lashed towards her with dark grey fur and long daggered claws. Her screams that filled the air, as he had her on the ground underneath him, claws buried deep inside her stomach, shredding her to pieces. The howl he had let out as his other claw had snapped her neck. The need for meat more substantial than the being that lay before him. The clawing to get out of the wooden cage. The feasting that had occurred on the large bear that had lost its fight against the monstrosity that was him. Then running across the lake in search of the distant howl that had sent his urges running wild…


The rabid wolf that had come into the vet clinic only days before their holiday that had bit him before he had euthanized it.


He roared with pain, anger and despair. Crying over her lifeless body, holding her so close to him screaming in angst. No. No. No. No. He had killed the woman he loved. He had lost control, and this thing had taken over who he was and ended every shred of humanity in him. This thing that was no longer him.


He was the monster.