Chapter 1
Numb. Cold. That was all I could feel as I came to from passing out. The pain crept in slowly, one part of me at a time as I became more aware of my body.
A groan tries to escape my lips but comes out sounding more like a dry rasp.I taste blood as I lick my lips.
Blood. The memories of what had happened to me came flooding back. Running through the woods from my so-called family... my executioner.
I listen for the sounds of them looking for me as panic sets in. They had been chasing me, but all was quiet. Except for a bird chirping off in the distance.
Get up! I scream at myself.
It was futile. I can barely move. My blood was forming a sticky puddle under me. I'd been shot while trying to escape. Judging by the amount of blood I guessed, I was dying. Slowly bleeding out on the forest floor. My naked body covered in bruises and blood from my many wounds.
In a way, it was peaceful. Maybe this was a gift to end my suffering. I could think of worse ways to die. The torture and torment I'd endured most of my life was more painful than this.
I sighed and laid my head back on the blanket of grass. Accepting this fate was easier than fighting.
Snap!
Frantically, I look around trying to find where the source of the noise is coming from.
Then rustling in the bushes to my right. Panic hits full force. I can try and crawl away, try and hide in some underbrush, but my body won't move.
Dying peacefully on the forest floor is acceptable. Being finished off by my husbands goons or eaten alive by an animal is not. I had fought too hard to escape that death.
A small spurt of adrenaline surges through my system, allowing me to manage an ugly example of an army crawl.
I was not moving fast enough. The gunshot hole in my side made dragging myself torture. Pain singed through the very fiber of my being as the rustling gets closer.
I stare in disbelief as a creature emerges from the brush. An elk. She looks right at me. Her nostrils twitching as she sniffs the air around us.
I gaze at her in amazement. I have never seen an elk in real life. Only deer. Her big eyes seem to stare directly into my soul.
Slowly, she approaches me. I'm frozen. Not in fear but in wonder. She is captivating and her very easence seems to provide me with a sense of safety.
To my utter amazement, she starts sniffing my body. Lightly she nudges my side, an involuntarily hiss of pain escapes me. She pauses momentarily at the sound then continues on.
I can feel her warm breath across my skin as she inspects me. When she's satisfied with her inspection, she does the most unbelievable thing and lays down beside me.
Maybe this is a gift from the heavens.
One of mother natures children to keep me from feeling alone as I leave this world.
A small smile plays on my lips.
"Thankyou." I whisper to her.
We lay there in silence for what feels like hours. I know it hasn't been as the sun is still high in the sky.
She doesn't move. Doesn't touch me. Just lays there beside me occasionally looking around.
It is by far the most beautiful moment of my life.
My eyes grow heavy, my breathing slows. I'm so very tired. I feel myself slipping away into the comfort of sleep. As my eyes close I notice her ears perk up. She stands to leave me.
Not yet. Please. I'm not gone yet.
I can't fight the pull of sleep, though, and slip off into the unknown as I hear her run away.
