Chapter Seven

Nelson

When I opened my eyes, I couldn't see the sky or even the trees above me that were there when I'd passed out. Instead, I stared at the mud and straw ceiling of one of the huts in the village. At least, I thought I was still in the Enchanted Forest. I hadn't yet woken up to realise it all to be an elaborate dream.

Not ready to move, I listened to the conversation happening nearby. One voice was definitely that of Banir, the head of the forest council, whom I did not want as my mate or anywhere near me. The other sounded familiar, someone I'd met since arriving, yet I couldn't place them. Neither of the voices belonged to Holden though. I may have just met him, but I longed to be with him rather than any other being I'd met during my tour of the village. Why couldn't I be his mate? If I was stuck in the forest for the rest of my life, and they needed my help so bad, I should, at least, get to choose my mate.

"Ah, it's good to see you awake again." Rauh, the healer whom I'd met in passing during my tour of the village, rubbed a cold, wet cloth over my forehead. "I was beginning to think you weren't going to wake until the morning. Thought maybe you'd fallen asleep instead of passed out as Holden claimed."

"Where is Holden?" I scratched out, my throat completely dry.

"At the pond." Rauh picked up my hand and placed a clay cup filled with water into it. "He has other responsibilities to tend to. Now, drink up."

I took a mouthful simply to ease my thirst, quickly realizing it wasn't water in my cup.

I nearly spit out the concoction that tasted like a mixture of mint, vodka, and ginger with the thick consistency of cough syrup. But the healer gave me a threatening look as if he knew what I was tempted to do with it, so I swallowed right away. The drink did relieve my parched throat and helped to clear away the brain fog that came with waking up. But it left the worst aftertaste. My stomach heaved, ready to dispel all its contents though I'd barely eaten in the last twenty-four hours. That was, if time worked the same in the Enchanted Forest as it did in my world.

I managed to stomach another mouthful before I handed the cup back to Rauh. "I'm good. I feel better. Can you show me to the bathroom?"

The healer pressed his palm to his forehead. "That's another thing we forgot in the plans. There are a lot of things we forgot you outer-worlders desire." He tapped his finger to the side of his head. "We have an outhouse though. I'll take you there."

Rauh held me around the waist to support me as I got to my feet. Once I stood on my own, he let go and motioned to Banir. "I'm taking him to the outhouse. We'll be back shortly."

Banir simply waved his hand, dismissing us as if he didn't care. All the more reason I didn't want him for a mate. He hadn't shown any concern for my health and still hadn't spoken a single word directly to me. I was glad to leave the hut, yearned to run as far away as possible, but I did need to use the washroom. And hopefully that time would help me come up with a plan to shake my escort. Rauh had been nothing but kind to me, but he would take me back to Banir, too. As Holden had done.

My chest felt hollow without the turtle shifter's presence. I thought I might have been able to learn to live in the Enchanted Forest with Holden by my side. But he'd left me, shredding all possibility of me wanting to stay.

The outhouse was less of a bathroom than I'd expected. Instead of the plastic booths I was used to seeing at outdoor events, or even a wooden shack, the washroom Rauh escorted me to was a hollowed-out space in the trunk of a tree with a wooden bench positioned above a hole in the ground. And the stench brought the medicine Rauh had given me back up my esophagus to my throat.

I looked at him then back at the space. "Um, this is it?"

The healer nodded. "I told you we forgot some infrastructure for you outer-worlders. There was a time when we didn't have huts. But Walter made do with this since he arrived."

I gulped, not having met Walter when Holden took me for a tour of the Enchanted Forest. Did he keep me away from him on purpose? Was Walter confined somewhere to pop out babies for these shifters? But I hadn't seen any young children, either. Maybe he couldn't bear children, and they locked him up for that reason. Or worse. I really needed to return to my world. I couldn't stay there. Not as their prisoner. "Hey, can you give me some privacy? I'm not used to having an audience when I do this." Rauh didn't need to know about the public urinals in my world.

"Sure." He turned around and started down the path the way we'd come. "Let me know when you're done."

I nodded, though he likely didn't see, and I had no intention of returning with him anyway.

I had to duck to fit into the alcove, and, luckily, I relieved myself quickly. But I wasn't prepared to leave. I had to recall images of every place I'd been in the forest and figure out a way to get to the meadow where I had first arrived.

Leaving the trunk, I got on my hands and knees and drew a map in the dirt with my finger. The huts, the gardens, and where the beavers were busy building. Though I couldn't be sure of the accuracy of my picture, I had to try to escape anyway.

I stood and dusted off my knees. Then I ran. Trying to avoid the village, I dashed in between trees, over fallen logs, and through various ground vegetation. I wasn't quiet. And loafers weren't the best footwear to run in, but I had no choice. I had to leave.