Outside I saw a woman with untidy hair. She was holding her hands over her heart, and she looked as if she had been running hard. She was leaning against the corner of the gateway, but when she saw my face at the window she jumped forwards. She shouted in a voice which was filled with menace, "Monster, give me my child!"

Then she fell to her knees, and lifted up her hands. She said the same words again, but this time, the emotion in he voice almost broke my heart. She pulled at her hair and hit herself on the chest. Her feelings seemed to be so strong that she could hardly think. Finally, she ran forwards. Though I could not see her, I could hear the sound as she hit her hands against the door.

Then I heard the voice of the Count. He was somewhere high above, probably in the tower. He called out in a cruel whisper which sounded as hard as iron. It seemed as if the his answer to his call came from wolves, which seemed to be everywhere, howling. A few minutes later, like water from a broken dam, dozens of them came running through the wide entrance into the courtyard.

The woman did not make a sound, and the wolves did not make a noise for long. Soon they ran away, one after the other, licking their lips.