ELEANOR
There was a time I believed in fairy tales and happy endings, when I was convinced that everything happened for a reason but I was so wrong.
Every time I try to do what's best for everyone, those decisions become the reason we fall. I slowly close my eyes and think back to my childhood.
I can see when everything changed, that day, that moment, it changed my life for good.
---
I had just turned fifteen, it was supposed to be a happy day for me. All I had in mind, as I cleaned my room, was what my parents had in store for me.
I grinned to myself and ran out of the room, I could hear their voices in the living room.
"Mum, Dad. You're back." I greeted.
"El, I need you to listen to me.." my dad started with a worried look on his face. It made my smile drop. Something was wrong.
"Go to your room and pack your things, just the necessities, okay? Do it as fast as you can. "
"Wait.. what's going on? Dad? "
"Listen to your father, please." My mum held my face and turned me towards my bedroom. I left without question.
'Maybe it's a surprise' I thought to myself as I grabbed a bag and stuff in some clothes and other things quickly.
"Eleanor.." my dad walked into my room and pulled me towards him slowly. "I know this is going to sound strange but... We may not come back here for a while."
"What's really going on, dad?"
"There isn't much time to explain. But once we get to safety, I'll tell you everything. For now, we need to hurry, okay?" I nodded and went back to packing. I have never seen him that worried before. That means we're really running from something...but what?
---
"Can't you go any faster?" I heard my mum ask. We were driving down the very lonely and snow covered road. No one was behind or ahead us for miles but my heart wouldn't stop pounding. I looked to my right and watched the tall trees pass by which was the only thing surrounding us.
"Are we in trouble, Mum?" I whimpered.
She turned to face me with a smile on her pale face. Her smile didn't meet her blue eyes though. As she assured me that everything will work out fine, I heard gun shots firing from behind us.
"Frank! Step on it!" My mum was suddenly holding a gun."Stay down El!" She yelled at me before shooting back at the car behind us from the window.
A million thoughts ran through my head. Why are people shooting at us? How is my mum handling a gun so well? What else are my parents keeping from me?
All I could do was cower in fear and cover my ears with my hands screaming.
"Whenever you're scared, close your eyes and slowly count."
Mum told me that when I was seven and convinced that there was a monster under my bed. It never worked but maybe..
"1... 2... 3... 4...5" I whispered to myself despite the loud noise and slowly opened my eyes. My dad was driving and checking on mum, she was shooting while dodging bullets. Her arm was already bleeding. My eyes shifted to the road ahead of us. Something was in front of us, it looked like a black wolf. My dad wasn't paying attention and when he did, it was too late.
He tried to avoid the beast but the road was too slippery, we ended up crashing into a tree by the side of the road.
---
Pain exploded through my head as I slowly opened my eyes. Everything around me was blurry and spinning. For a moment I couldn't remember where I was or what had happened.
"El! El! Baby wake up!"
My mother's voice cut through the ringing in my head.
I blinked several times and turned my head towards her. She was leaning towards me, her face filled with worry. Blood trickled down the side of her forehead, staining her cheek and dark hair but she didn't seem to care about her injury.
" Mom?" I whispered weakly.
"You're okay. Just stay with me", she said. Her voice shaking slightly. " You need to wake up, El."
My head throbbed as memories of the crash came rushing back. The twisting metal. The screeching tires. The impact.
I looked around the wrecked car, my heart pounding. Despite the blood on her face, my mother mother kept trying to stay strong for me. She reached for my hand and squeezed gently.
"El, I need you to stay awake."
I tightened my trip on her hand and tried to focus on her voice.
Pain shot through my body as I tried to move. My seatbelt was locked. I yanked at it desperately, but it wouldn't budge.
"It's stuck!"
Mom reached over and pressed the release button. The seatbelt immediately clicked open.
Before I could say anything, she grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the wrecked car. The freezing Ohio air hit me like a slap.
I looked around frantically. The huge black wolf that had been sitting in the road was gone.
Snow covered the ground on both sides of the empty highway. Tall trees stretched into the darkness, and there wasn't another car in sight.
"Eleanor, listen to me."
Mom gripped my shoulders so tightly it almost hurt.
"You have to run."
For a second, I thought I'd heard her wrong.
"What?"
"You have to run. Right now."
"No." I shook my head immediately. "No, we can still go together."
"We can't."
Tears filled her eyes.
"This is the only way to keep you safe."
My heart dropped.
Then I looked at Dad.
He had somehow gotten out of the driver's side. Blood was running down his forehead, and he was limping slightly.
He was holding the gun.
Not like someone who had never used one before but like someone who knew exactly what they were doing.
He walked over to me and placed both hands on my shoulders.
"You have to go, Ellie."
"Dad—"
"Listen to your mother."
His voice sounded strained.
"I love you. Remember that. No matter what happens."
Before I could respond, he pulled me into a tight hug. I didn't want him to let go. I didn't want either of them to let go.
But a moment later, he stepped away and turned toward the road. Gun in hand.
Waiting.
Like he already knew what was coming.
Mom turned me back toward her.
"Listen carefully."
She pointed into the forest.
"There's a large oak tree somewhere in those woods. You won't miss it."
I wiped tears from my face.
"When you find it, cut your hand and place it against the trunk."
I stared at her.
"What?"
"Do exactly what I said."
"Mom, what are you talking about?"
I watched her dry her eyes and then hold my hands tight.
" Eleanor. Once you find the Oak tree, cut your palm and place it on the trunk. That's the only way you'll be safe... I love you, El. Now go! "
Tears were running down her face now.
I couldn't stop crying.
I begged her not to make me leave.
I begged her to come with me.
Over and over again.
But she just pushed me gently toward the woods.
"Run."
"Mom, please—"
"Run, Eleanor."
That's when headlights appeared behind them. The two cars that had been chasing us finally arrived. They screeched to a stop. Doors flew open.
Men carrying guns stepped out.
Dad raised his weapon.
The sight terrified me.
"Don't look back," Mom whispered.
Then I ran.
I ran as fast as I could.
Snow crunched beneath my boots.
The freezing air burned my throat every time I breathed. Branches scraped against my arms and clothes as I pushed deeper into the forest.
Behind me, I heard shouting.
Then gunshots. Then something worse.
A howl. Deep and loud.
The sound froze my blood.
The wolf. It was still there. I ran faster.
I didn't dare look behind me. I couldn't.
Fear kept my legs moving long after they should have given out.
I don't know how long I ran.
Minutes.
Maybe longer.
Everything hurt. My lungs felt like they were on fire. My legs were shaking.
Then my foot caught on something hidden beneath the snow.
I stumbled.
The ground disappeared beneath me.
I rolled down a steep slope, tumbling through snow and dirt before slamming into something hard.
Pain exploded across my back. A cry escaped my lips. For several seconds, I couldn't move.
I just laid there in the snow, coughing and gasping for breath.
I was so scared and I just wanted to stay there. I wanted to close my eyes and pretend none of this was happening.
Then I remembered Mom's words.
The oak tree.
Find the oak tree.
Slowly, I pushed myself up.
Every muscle in my body screamed in protest.
I turned my head.
And froze.
Right beside me stood a massive tree.
Its trunk was wider than anything I'd ever seen. It's branches stretched high into the dark sky. Even covered in snow, it was unmistakable.
My breath caught in my throat.
The oak tree. I had found it.
For a moment, I just stood there staring at it.
My mother's words echoed in my head.
Cut your hand and place it against the trunk.
It sounded insane.
How was cutting my hand supposed to save me?
The howls behind me seemed farther away now, but they were still there.
I didn't have much time.
My eyes scanned the snowy ground until they landed on a jagged piece of rock sticking out of the earth.
It looked sharp enough.
My stomach twisted.
"Please let this work," I whispered.
I picked up the rock and pressed the edge against my palm.
The pain was immediate.
I sucked in a sharp breath as a thin line of blood appeared across my skin.
My hand trembled.
Then I pressed my bleeding palm against the trunk.
Nothing happened for a second.
Then everything happened.
A wave of dizziness slammed into me.
The forest spun.
I staggered backward, but my hand seemed stuck to the bark.
My vision blurred.
Images exploded across my mind.
Hundreds of them.
Thousands.
They flashed by so quickly I could barely make sense of them.
None of it should have belonged to me and yet somehow they felt familiar.
Like forgotten memories buried deep inside my mind.
"Wait!" I shouted.
But the vision swallowed my voice.
The images grew brighter.
Faster.
Until they became nothing but streaks of light.
Then I felt it.
A pull.
A powerful force drawing me towards the tree.
The bark rippled like water.
My eyes widened.
That wasn't possible.
I tried to step back.
Instead, my body moved forward.
The tree was pulling me in.
I wanted to scream.
I wanted to run.
But before I could do either, darkness swallowed me whole.
Everything vanished.
For a moment, there was nothing.
Then I opened my eyes.
I was standing.
Breathing heavily.
My heart hammering against my ribs.
The oak tree was still behind me.
But something was wrong.
Very wrong.
The snow was gone.
I spun around slowly.
The forest looked almost identical to the one I'd left behind.
The same towering trees.
The same winding paths.
The same distant hills.
But instead of winter, everything was green.
Fresh leaves covered the branches.
Wildflowers dotted the ground.
Birds sang somewhere overhead.
It looked like spring.
As though I'd stepped from one season into another.
"What...?"
My voice sounded small.
Impossible.
None of this was possible.
I started walking.
I didn't know where else to go.
I wandered through the unfamiliar forest for what felt like hours.
Questions raced through my mind.
Where was I?
What had the tree done to me?
Were Mom and Dad alive?
Eventually, the trees began to thin.
I stepped into a clearing and stopped.
A massive iron gate stood before me.
Beyond it stretched a long stone driveway lined with ancient trees.
At the end of the drive stood the largest building I had ever seen.
At first glance, it looked like a school.
Then a castle.
Then something in between.
Tall towers rose into the sky.
Large windows reflected the afternoon sunlight.
The entire structure looked centuries old.
My gaze drifted to the center of the entrance.
A gigantic statue stood there.
The figure was a man with both hands on a sword pointed toward the ground.
His clothing wasn't modern at all.
It looked ancient.
Royal.
As if he belonged in a historical book.
Curious, I stepped closer.
Words had been engraved into the stone pedestal.
I brushed away some moss and read them aloud.
"King Rufus... Slayer of the Merfolk."
A chill ran down my spine.
Beneath the inscription was a year.
I frowned.
Then looked again.
And again.
Because surely I had read it wrong.
There was no way that could be the date.
The number carved into the stone belonged centuries in the past.
Long before 2025.
Long before I had ever been born.
I stared at it unable to breathe.
Whatever had happened when I touched that tree... I wasn't in Ohio anymore.