Untamable Matriarch: The Witheridge Witches

Chapter 11

George

After Maggie dropped me off, I walked into my apartment up the stairwell to my apartment. I groan as I run a hand through my hair, making it disheveled. She'd turned me down, but who could blame her? She was busy, and who was I to someone like her?

No one. How could I be anything more when she'd lived so long? I was inconsequential.

I climb the stairs two at a time to the third floor where my apartment is. There were only two units up here. Just me and a college student who stayed in his apartment for days on end. I was going so fast that it took me longer than it should have to clock the drops of blood that periodically littered the stairway leading straight to my apartment. I didn't stall my steps as I kept going, ripping off my jacket to give me more range of motion for whatever awaited me when I got to my floor. Someone was hurt up here, but who or what had hurt them? I turned the corner and made it to the clearing in front of my door. That's where I saw Marcello sitting, legs straight in front of him, leaning with his back up against my door. He was doing his best to apply pressure on his shoulder while at the same time using his jacket to mop up the blood he had smeared all over the ground.

I survey my surroundings and when I see it's safe for the moment, I lean down and assess how bad off he is.

God, was that a bite? He'd been bitten by something - my guess was by a werewolf. He barely notices me as he groans out, "George. These freaks, man. I swear I'm not on something. I swear. But this guy turned into a dog."

"I believe you." I say as I grimace, looking at the mostly congealed bite. I hope Maggie isn't too busy tonight because there was only one person I knew who would be able to deal with this.

"You do?" he asks, surprise lacing his voice.

"Yeah, buddy. I do. But let's put a pin in that and get you somewhere safe."

Relief floods his face as I plop him up against my door frame and grab my keys to unlock it.

"How did you even get here?"

He mumbles, "Car. Outside."

"Hand me your keys."

"Can't. Left the car running."

Great. That wouldn't draw any attention to us at all. Let's just hope he closed the car door.

I click my tongue and run into my apartment before grabbing some paper towels and a first aid kit. I rip open a gauze pad, jab it into Marcello's hand, and make a mock movement, telling him to put pressure on the wound. I race down the steps and wipe away any major trace of blood from them before running back upstairs to my apartment. With one look at Marcello I saw he was quickly bleeding through the gauze pad and I knew I had to hurry.

I change in record time and grab my Reaper go bag before locking up and throwing Marcello's arm around my shoulder and book it downstairs. When I made it to the back parking lot, I found his car parked haphazardly in the fire lane. I throw my friend in the passenger seat and sit in the blood stained driver's side. I was dressed in all black so it wouldn't show, but the sticky sensation of my clothes and the drying blood sticking together was one I didn't like being familiar with.

"Where are we going?" Marcello asks as I pull out of the lot and onto the road.

"To a friend's place who will know what to do." I answer as I drive with one hand, reach into my first aid kit with the other, and throw him another gauze pad.

"That friend of yours from the diner, huh?"

I shake my head yes in answer.

I didn't know what a werewolf bite did to a human. There were some books and movies that said it would turn you into one or poison you. Maggie would know. She'd done more than enough already for me. So I could only hope her willingness to help me would extend to my friend.