Chapter Seventeen

Holden

I stood in the meadow, waiting for a sign, for the ripple of magic in the air that appeared just before a being made the crossover from the outer-world to the Enchanted Forest. But it never came. No matter how many times I screamed or cried out for the wizard who'd brought my mate to me, Ahmed never appeared.

Helplessness consumed my body like a vice, and I slumped to the ground. The meadow used to comfort me, remind me of the day I'd first met Nelson. But with Nelson so ill, the area only brought sorrow. I would never wish I hadn't met my mate, but I wasn't ready for our time together to be over.

Suddenly, I felt the air swell before a pop indicated someone had crossed into our world. I glanced up, expecting to see Ahmed, desperate for his help. But, instead, it was an outer-worlder in a pair of boots that went all the way up his waist, gloves made of the same material covering his entire arm, and a large-brimmed hat with netting around the edge that hung down and covered his face.

The last thing I needed to worry about was a new outer-worlder. But, even with my mate so ill, I still had the responsibility to make them welcome in the Enchanted Forest. Chauncey had stayed on duty as long as he could but needed some time to sleep.

"Where am I?" The outer-worlder lifted the net from his face and glanced around with curiosity rather than the fear I'd seen in Nelson when he'd first arrived. "And how did I get here? This isn't the habitat I was assigned to."

I breathed in quick, ready to answer, but he spoke again before I got the chance.

"And who are you?" His facial features wrinkled in confusion as he looked me up and down. "I know we're all for leaving the environment as natural as possible, but aren't you worried about all the ticks and mosquitoes out here? You're barely covered. My workplace guide told me to keep every part of my body covered while out in the field."

"I'm Holden, and this is the Enchanted Forest." I reached into the pocket of the shorts I wore and took out one of Ahmed's cards. "And you wished your way here by using a card like this."

With a chuckle, he slowly shook his head. "You must think you're funny. I've never seen a card like that, and I never made any wish. I was just doing my turtle tally up at the South Arrow Conservation Park. I ducked around some reeds to see if there were turtles on the log on the other side, and I ended up here, this place you call the Enchanted Forest."

I stared at him, dumbfounded. How had he arrived if not by wishing on a card? Had Ahmed found some other way to send outer-worlders to our world? "Um, turtle tally?" Although I had many questions, that was the only one I managed to voice.

He sighed. "Yes, I count turtles as part of my co-op position with the Turtle Conservation Center, my summer placement while I study herpetology."

"You...study turtles?" There had to be some reason this guy had arrived in our world, but I had yet to figure it out. I was a turtle, though I wasn't the one who needed help.

"Yes." Another heavy sigh. "And I suppose you're going to tell me you're a turtle shifter since this is the Enchanted Forest."

"Actually..." With the sarcasm is his voice, I decided to show him instead of spending precious time trying to convince him to believe me.

Once I was in my turtle form, he took several steps back. When I poked my head out of my shell, his eyes were wide and his face pale.

"You...you really are a turtle shifter."

I returned to my human form to get the answers I needed. "Yes, and I think you were sent here to help me. What's your name?"

"Chelone." He slowly shook his head. "But I don't know how I can help you. I don't know anything about shifters."

"No." I gestured him to follow me. "But you know turtles, and I think you're Ahmed's way of telling me what's wrong with my mate." At least I hoped that was the reason for his arrival.

Nelson

I clutched my lower abdomen, sure my stomach was trying to eat me from the inside. Rauh had no idea how to help me and couldn't even give me pain medication to bear through it all. So, I passed out when the pain became unbearable. The next time I returned to consciousness, I awoke to find Holden gone and Rauh asleep. Must have been nice to be able to sleep or to leave. I would have left, returned to the outer-world, had I been able to stand. Though I had no one to return to and no job to pay for medical care to treat whatever I had.

"We're here!" Holden burst into the hut, frightening Rauh awake. He had someone with him. An outer-worlder. A much younger outer-worlder.

I tried but couldn't mutter a word as another bolt of pain stretched its way across my belly.

Holden kneeled onto the sleeping pod beside me and brushed hair off my forehead. "This is Chelone. He's a student studying herpetology and specializes in turtles."

"Great," I said through clenched teeth. "You've replaced me already."

"No!" Holden clasped my hand. "No, I would never do that. But I think Ahmed sent him here to help you."

I almost rolled my eyes but winced instead with a new slice of agony. "I'm not a turtle."

"No, but your mate is." The turtle kid moved closer. "And he explained to me on the way here what you're experiencing. I think you're egg bound."

"What does that mean?" I didn't have the patience or energy for an advanced lesson on turtles.

Holden squeezed my hand. "He thinks your body is trying to lay eggs."

"That's right!" Rauh jumped from the chair he'd dozed off in. "You wouldn't be pregnant the same as the other outer-worlders because your mate is not a mammal. It all makes sense now. Why didn't I see this before?"

"That's exactly what I explained to Holden." The kid kneeled by my feet. "But I fear you might have a stuck egg. That's why you're hurting so much instead of them coming out on their own."

I squeezed Holden's hand with another shot of pain. "Then please help me. I don't know how much more I can take."

Turtle dude shuffled closer. "May I touch your belly?"

I nodded, hoping he had a solution. That was all I wanted.

He pushed and twisted my stomach, never flat to begin with, but it had gotten slightly bigger since arriving in the Enchanted Forest. Never enough to make me think I was pregnant, I had always blamed it on the delicious stews the bear shifters made on their weekly visit to the village.

"Some turtles can hold onto fertilized eggs for up to two years," Turtle guy said. "I'm not sure how long you'll hold onto yours, but I'm sure you're egg bound now with all the symptoms. If you've never laid eggs before, it could be why these ones are stuck."

"How do we get them unstuck?" Holden asked before I could.

"I mean." Turtle guy shrugged. "I could stick a finger with some lube into your vent to see if I could get it unstuck."

If I hadn't been in so much agony, I would have laughed at the awkward expression on his face.

"But soaking in a warm bath for about twenty minutes could do the trick. My sister just had a baby, and I know that helped her. Though that was a slightly different situation, I know other students at my school mentioned doing the same for ducks."

Rauh jumped to his feet. "I'll get the beavers to build a quick trough. We'll start a fire and warm up some water and get it all ready."

With his departure, I had some hope I wasn't dying of some strange disease, and that I would be able to give Holden—and the forest—children. Whether or not my eggs were fertilized didn't matter, only that my body had changed, that the magic had worked on me. Though, with the amount of sex Holden and I had, I wouldn't be surprised if they weren't already fertilized and containing tiny turtle shifters. I simply had to get them out.