Girl In The Woods (16 page)

“So…all we have
to do is go to that direction?”

“I guess so.”

The horse gallops
with caution between the trees and the dense bushes. It’s not always easy to
keep our direction as there are trees and high vegetation blocking our way.

At a distance I
can make out the moonlight reflected on the lake, which only means we are close.

“There it is,” I
say to Ellard.

He helps me get
down as soon as we reach the hut. Where is Conor?

And then I see
him by the hut as a wolf, lying on the ground, blood still spilling from his
wound. It was a deep scratch. I freeze in terror. What if he is dead? I look at
Ellard in despair for a moment and dash to Conor. He is unconscious. With my
ear on his chest I sense that he is alive.

“So?” Ellard
asks me. “Is he alive?”

“Yes. Thank you
so much, your Highness. I will take care of him from now on. You can go. We
will be fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Certain.”

“If you ever
want to return to our world and you need anything at all, don’t hesitate to
find me.”

“Thank you. I
appreciate it a lot. You are a good man.”

“Well…I hope I
am lucky enough to find a love as strong as yours someday.”

“I am sure you
will. You deserve it.”

“Take care,
Calista.”

I nod and he
plants a kiss on my cheek. I watch him as he leaves. But I have work to do if I
don’t want my nightmare to come true.

Conor

I hear her
voice. This is what heaven must be like. But no. She is not alone. She is
talking to someone. A horse neighs. He must be the man who wounded me. What is
he doing here?

There is a
slight weight on my body, close to my wound. It’s her. I struggle to open my
eyes, to utter a word…but nothing. I am so powerless. She heads back to him and
they are chatting. I can make out that he is leaving. However, she is staying
with me.

I have to wake up, I have to wake up…

My mouth is
forced to open and water is trickling in it.

“Come on, Conor.
Please, drink it. This will heal you,” she says with apparent edginess in her
voice.

I presume it is
a kind of medicine diluted in the water. How did she find it? Perhaps the man
with the horse gave it to her. I coerce my throat to receive the precious
liquid. Why did she come back? She was supposed to be with her parents. How did
she manage to leave? Oh, Calista, you should have left me die. Why did you have
to disobey me?

I am in a cloud,
striving to find my way out of this hazy idleness. I drift in and out of
consciousness. Every time I come back, she is always there beside me, lying
next to my wolf body. I hate being vulnerable. I hate that I can’t turn into a
man, unless I have regained my strength. 

I am not aware
how much time has passed. She has been cleaning my wound and giving me water
with medicine. She presses her delicate body against my fur and she whispers
words of love to me. She is even singing to me in a low voice.

 I gave up on us
so easily. Yet, she never did. Nevertheless, what I wanted the most was for her
to have everything she deserved and that I couldn’t offer her.

She is
definitely not like the other girls. Sure, I have fallen in love before and
they were fascinated by me and by what I taught them. When it came to committing
to me though, they all opted to return to their comforts. I don’t blame them.
That is the life they had learnt and the way they were brought up. They weren’t
raised in the woods by wolves. Actually, I never expected any of these girls to
stay with me. That is why no matter how strong my feelings were for them, I
never allowed myself to attach to them. It was easier this way. It made the
pain of parting bearable.

With Calista,
even though I made every possible effort to keep my distance and not bond
myself to her, she had captivated my heart ever since that first night I saw
her dancing in the forest. She should be afraid of me. Instead I was afraid of
her. Such a beauty, roaming around alone, disappointed by her life. I needed to
capture that beauty, but in order to do so, I had to break her walls. Her fake
mold surrounding her that her family and society had built. And that scared me
to death. Because if I wanted to shatter that cast, I had to be cruel to her. I
had to be the wolf.

I am always terrified
when I let the wolf side of me take over. It’s hard to control him and maintain
a balance, even after all those years. Not that I didn’t enjoy every moment
with her, especially when she fought me. Every little fracture in her
protective wall was a conquest for me. The more she let her true self be
revealed, the more she was submitted to me. The more I felt her love and
loyalty. And that melted my heart. My worst nightmare was to hurt her during
the process. She was so fragile and dainty. I would never forgive myself. Yet,
I did make her suffer. She still stayed with me, always faithful and obedient.
And now she has proved to be stronger, protecting me.

If I get well, I swear I will never let her go again. No more fears,
no regrets. She belongs to me and I to her.

The sunrays
sting my eyes. It takes a lot of courage to open them and face the light. With
a sluggish motion of my head, as it feels heavy, I look around. She is not
here. She is probably in the hut or picking berries. My wound has successfully
closed, but not healed entirely. I must be able to shift now. I am not so
strong, but I believe I can make it.

As I finally
turned into a man, I head to the hut to put on some clothes. I stop breathing
when I see her. She is in front of the open closet, wearing only a pair of
white panties. She looks so good in white. It reminds me of her lost innocence.
Though she is a woman now, she will always be my little girl, who danced like a
nymph in the woods. Her long chestnut, curly hair shroud her back and her deep
green eyes stare at me with surprise. She has slightly opened her cute lips,
breathing in and out rapidly, in the way I adore. I can hardly contain myself
from taking her in my arms and kissing her tender lips.

“How are you
feeling?” she asks me, inert in her position.

“Much better.
Thanks to you. The wound still hurts and I am feeling a little dizzy, but it’s
nothing to worry about.”

She lowers her
gaze in that endearing way that makes my whole being craving to love her. I
want to feel her close to me. But not yet. First, I have to know how she came
back.

I clear my
throat.

“I thought I had
ordered you to go back to your parents and not return. Why did you disobey me,
Calista? Look at me.”

She raises her
eyes in alarm. I am sure it is the last thing she expected to hear from me
right now. But I have to know what happened. And since she came back I need to
know it’s for good and not just to save me.

“I am sorry, my
Lord. I had to disobey. I saw a dream that you were dying. I had to come to
you.”

“Is that why you
came back? To save me?”

“Yes, my Lord.”

“What happened
after you left with him?”

It’s a risky
question, no doubt, as she could tell me that she just came back to make sure I
was alright and that she will continue her life as a lady at her parent’s nest.
I have to face the truth, however. Having her so near and not being able to
touch her is an intolerable torture. And it only gets worse if I have
expectations.

“He was the
King’s son.”

“The prince?” I
ask startled. Of all the men that ride their horses in the forest we had to run
into the prince. That’s ironic.

“He took me to
the palace, where he summoned my parents to come. We all had dinner, along with
the King and the Queen. Afterwards, I had a private discussion with my parents.
They told me that the prince had asked for their permission to marry me.”

I clench my
teeth. How could that bastard propose to my girl? How can I ever compete with a
prince?

“And?” I ask
raising an eyebrow arrogantly.

“I refused,
Conor. What did you think I would do? I love
you
.”

“Go on,” I
mutter.

“I talked to
them about you, but they couldn’t understand. They thought that being a
princess would be the best for me.”

“Isn’t it?”

“You hurt me, my
Lord. You break my heart by saying this.” Her face contracts into a distressed
expression.

“I am sorry. Do
continue.”

“I told my
parents that I wanted true love and not to become a princess. After everyone
went to bed and the palace was quiet, I went downstairs in order to find a door
to the back garden. It was the only way I could escape. At that moment, the
prince found me and prevented me from making my escape. As a result I clutched
a sword hung on the wall and threatened to kill myself if he wouldn’t let me
leave.”

“You did such a
thing? Calista, that was very dangerous.”

“As I told him
as well, I was dead already without you. I didn’t have much to lose.”

I bite my lip
not to smile. I cross my arms to resume my imposing and controlling position.

“Then what? Did
he just let you go?”

“In fact, he
did. He was touched by our love and I guess he understood that I would never
agree to marry him. He even escorted me. Fortunately, I had stolen a bottle of
pills before I left, that helped you heal faster.”

“Thank you.”

Thank you? She
just told you she loves you more than she loves her own life and all you can
say is thank you?

“Why didn’t you
go to your friends?” she asks and tears the embarrassing silence. “They could
have healed you. Why did you stay here on your own?”

“Because I
wanted to die,” I reply instantly.

“Why?”

“Because I can’t
live without you.”

Her eyes fill
with tears.

“Then don’t.
Live with me forever,” she pleads.

I finally crack
a playful smile.

“Oh, trust me,
baby. That is exactly what I intend to.”

My blood
scampers hot in my veins as I stride to her, taking her by surprise. I hold her
back of her neck tightly as I dig my tongue inside her sweet mouth. Her dear
moans only make me want her more.

“Oh, Calista,
what are you doing to me? I am infatuated by you.”

Her eyes widen
happily.

“Me too, my
Lord. But you are still wounded.”

“I don’t care. You
are mine. Forever mine. And I am going to prove it to you right now.”

We don’t need any foreplay. I carry her to the bed and swiftly bury
myself in her. She arches her head back to relish in the sensation of us being
one. Her ecstasy to my every touch, my every thrust leads me to a consuming
climax. I rest my body on hers, still inside her, as she caresses my back. All
is well again. Our world is as it should be. Her and me, to eternity.

5 MONTHS LATER

“Hurry,” I shout
in excitement.

He stops
hammering and gawks at me.

“Hurry, you will
miss it!”

He drops the
hammer on the ground and darts to me.

“What is it? Are
you in pain?”

“No, no. It
kicked. Here, you can feel it, too.” I take his hand in mine and gently set it
on my engorged belly. I am sitting on a tree trunk opposite the hut.

“Oh, my…I felt
it. Calista, this is amazing.”

He is apparently
moved. Ever since we found out I am pregnant, he treats me like I am made out
of porcelain. He is still my Lord, though. Respect and obedience is expected at
all times. Not that he would punish me anymore. I obey him out of love, not out
of fear.

The baby
suspended my training. As well as the winter that has already made its
appearance visible. All those months he was busy, building a small bathroom
next to the main room. His friends are quite good handymen and with their
skillful assistance he was able to finish it a few days ago. I have a shower
now, as it has gotten quite cold for me to swim in the lake. And I have a
toilet. It’s not like the one I had in my house. It’s actually pretty
primitive, but it works and at least I’m not obliged to go out into the woods
every once in a while. Particularly since the forest will be covered in snow
soon.

At present, he
is building a room for the baby. His friends will provide us with a crib, toys
and everything we need. Their children have grown up and they no longer need
them. I have acknowledged by now that this is the way their little society
works. They share between them all their possessions.

Some of the wolf
– girls have become dearest friends of mine. They spend a lot of time here,
while their men are working on the hut’s extension. I feel safer being among
women who know how my body functions and can answer my every stressed question.
They all have children and of course, they will be the ones who will help me
give birth. They seem quite experienced and they ease my anxiety.