«You can get up, I’m opening it,» the bearded man said in his stern manner.
Kanny got up and wagged his tail happily. It was strange for him to smell that the master had a feeling of fear for him, although he suppressed it, since he smelled both.
«How can he be afraid of me? He knows that without him I can’t return to a human?» he thought, as far as one could think in his state.
The chain rattled, the door swung open, and the master ordered sternly:
«Come to the place. You know where. Wait for me there.»
Holding tail between his legs, Kanny darted past the man and went to the door at the end of the corridor. It was unlocked. He pushed her with his head and went into this mysterious, devoid of any glimmer of light room.
However, he did not need light for orientation. His scent told him every detail of what was inside; the dimensions of the room, which was the largest in this house, all its contents, including every piece of furniture, every figurine on the shelves or in specially made niches, every drawing, on the walls, or on the ceiling, or on the floor, and that very image, in the center on which he now had to sit, expecting and wishing with all his being a speedy deliverance from the wolf nature.
* * *
The mosquitoes bit mercilessly. Lera very soon realized that there could be no question of any dream. She was constantly slapping herself on all parts of her body, trying to destroy obsessive insects.
«I wonder how I’ll look like tomorrow morning?»
The brother chuckled.
«I think that after such a night, the morning will seem to you a happy deliverance in any case.»
«Yeah. That’s for sure. How did we get so far?»
«We already discussed it. What’s the use of talking about it now?»
«But after all, it was your duty to put notches on trees?»
«Yeah! And what? I did to a point. And then: „Oh, Andriushka! Look how pretty! Help me collect them soon. Oh, look again! What a clearing!“ Well, I got carried away. Are we going to blame me now?»
«Alright. That’s enough. Oh! How painful! What a bastard! Such a huge bite!»
«That’s so you don’t yell at me.»
«Like I said, that’s enough.»
For a while they sat in silence, and in the darkness only the slapping of the palms on the exposed parts of the body could be heard.
After some time, the moon, which had already been risen for a long time, apparently came out from behind a cloud, and in its silver light the surroundings became more or less visible.
«Andryush?»
«A?»
«What if we never find a way home?»
«Oh, come on! Don’t start it again!»
«Ok, well…»
She took a deep breath.
«I’m freezing.»
«Me too. And what?»
«Nothing.»
«It’s not winter. We will endure it.»
Somewhere in the distance, a lone wolf howl sounded.
After some time, another one, but a little higher in tone answered it, cutting through the darkness of the night and running unpleasant goosebumps down the girl’s back.
She looked around, and suddenly it seemed to her…
«Look, Andrey. What is this?»
«What exactly?»
She looked again.
«Over there.»
He turned to where she was pointing.
«Strange. Really. Like something is shining.»
«It does not shine. It burns. It’s clearly a light in the window.»
«Come on!»
«I’m telling you.»
«Do you have better eyesight than me?»»
«I don’t know.»
For some time he carefully looked in that direction, and then abruptly unbuckled his belt and began to descend.
«Andre-ey?!»
«Let’s get down!» he commanded in a tone that brooked no objection.
* * *
The master came inside, and all the images on the walls, on the floor and on the ceiling, as if in response to his presence, immediately came to life, starting to emit a dim phosphorescent light. At the same moment Kanny smelled that familiar bitter smell coming from the drawings.
