Nick had already been surprised that this man-eating spider called herself a "Black Widow" too. Her words made him pause. "I don't quite understand. Is there some kind of pattern to this?"
"To interrupt the process of decline, a female man-eating spider has to kill three people every five years. Three young men, all within one week."
A sorrowful expression crossed the little old woman Charlotte's face. "You don't think we're born cold-blooded killers, do you? This is a curse rooted in our blood, a sin every Black Widow has to bear.
"From the day we awaken upon reaching maturity, we begin aging rapidly. The only solution is to kill three young men every five years and drain their life force."
"You're saying you kill because you have no choice?" Nick instinctively glanced at Monroe. The Blutbad struggled with his bloodthirsty nature too, but he was nowhere near the point of having to kill.
"This isn't an excuse to ease our guilt." An inscrutable smile appeared on Charlotte's deeply wrinkled face. "Guess how old I am."
Judging by her appearance, at least seventy, maybe even close to eighty? Nick knew that since she had asked, the answer would surely surprise him.
"I'm twenty-six."
Even though he had braced himself, Nick couldn't keep surprise and pity off his face when she said that number.
"Oh, don't look at me like that. When I made up my mind a few years ago to defy my nature and stop killing, I was already prepared to end up like this."
Charlotte waved a hand in front of herself and avoided Nick's eyes. "What I want to tell you is that we don't do this of our own free will, and there's no pleasure in the process.
"Afterward, I can even hear my own heart