Death in a Forest
Tales from the Kingdom of Tyndall #5
It had been three days and it had been three long nights since Josephine had washed up on the shore of this island. She still had not been able to remember what had happened to her and how she went from riding a horse on her parents’ lands to being stranded on an island.
The nights were the worst part of it. She had spent the nights sleeping under whatever tree looked the most inviting on that particular evening. It had rained one night, and it took her the whole next day to dry out and for her body to stop feeling chilled to the bone. The days hadn’t been so bad. She would walk around exploring the island and listening in on conversations when she was able.
Her second day on the island she did almost get hit by a falling tree. The man who had pushed her out of the way had seemed nice enough. Emerson was it? He had offered to help, and she had almost taken him up on it. But who could she trust? What if someone on the island had something to do with her being left for dead on the beach?
It was that same day that she had learned where she was. She had been close enough to listen to two gentlemen talking about the different lords on the island and she quickly realized where she was. She was on Pride Island, the new island the King recently declared as part of the Kingdom of Tyndall and ready for colonization. She was relieved to learn where she was. But it made her all the more desperate to find out how she got here. And, of course, any time she spent too much time thinking about that, she would send herself into a panic again.
Josephine struggled to stand and she propped herself up against the tree that she had been sleeping under. She was hungry. Thirsty. Weak. Exhausted! She had resisted the urge to ask for help. But her body had reached its limit. She needed to find food, water, and somewhere warm and dry to rest. Tears threatened at the edge of her eyes, what was she going to do?
She clung to the tree like it was her only friend. And the tears came in a flood. Where would she turn? How would she survive? Tears turned into panic and it grabbed hold of her like a crushing weight. She slumped down to the ground again. Didn’t even have the energy to cry anymore. Fear and exhaustion took over, and all went dark.
When she awoke, she had no idea how much time had passed. She was laying flat on the ground, the rocks digging into her back. Her body hadn’t even noticed them while she was sleeping. She pushed herself up to her knees and raised her eyes to the sky.
The trees above her had an impressive array of leaves, but she spotted a break in the canopy and focused on it. She stared up through the opening as a cloud moved, almost as if she willed it to do so. The sun splashed down on her like a wave of energy. She stretched out her arms as a wind gust came and threatened to knock her over.
She resisted it. Her focus remained on the gap in the branches. Time passed and she didn’t move, just stayed, transfixed. Continued to soak up the sun, the moment. Finally, she lowered her arms as the clouds took away the sun once again.
With renewed purpose, she stood. With her mind clear, she started to work through the problem. She needed help. There were lords on this island who knew her family. She tried to recall the names of the lords whom she had heard were moving to the island. Names like Wedgewood and Swift came quickly to her, but she knew so little about them.
Then she thought of another name. Ambear. The late Lord Ambear had been a dear friend of her parents, and she herself was acquainted with Lady Ambear. That was perfect. Lady Ambear was somewhere on this island. She would take pity on Josephine, a woman lost on an island of men. She just had to find her.
With no other options, Josephine picked a direction and set off on her way. It was late in the day but she was determined to make the most of her renewed energy. As she walked she came across some people toiling in the dirt, making ready to plant crops. She asked them, and others she ran into along the way, for directions to Lady Ambear’s holdings. Some were helpful, some were not. Some just completely ignored her.
She looked down at herself. What a mess. After four days of wandering, she looked rather unkempt. Dirt and grime clang to her clothing and her hair was, well, a disaster. I would ignore me too, she thought to herself.
She tried to run her hands through her hair as she walked, trying to tame the unruly mess her unattended hair had become. Her thoughts drifted back to her parents as she thought of what her mom would think of her appearance right now.
Two thoughts came to her. Did they miss her? Would they be trying to find her?
Of course they would. Right? If she was honest with herself, she wasn’t sure. She was sure they loved her, but was she worth the trouble? She always caused them so much of it. The rebellious teenager who wouldn’t be put in a box of what she was supposed to be. The one who wanted more. The one for whom being a wife of good character to some lord was not enough. The one who had turned down tea to go for a ride… and then disappeared.
The day turned into night yet again and her hopes of finding Lady Ambear seemed to die along with the light. The energy rush she had received earlier was all but spent. Well, this is it, she thought. This is where I will die. On the King’s island of Pride. And no one will know. No one will know what happened to her. Will anyone care? With that thought, the tears came back and started to roll down her dirt ridden cheeks.
She leaned her back against a tree, her last act of defiance in the face of her unfortunate end, not willing to collapse yet. I choose when, she told her body. She looked up, taking in the surroundings of her last steps on this world. And there! She spotted a small cabin in the distance, with a man walking nearby.
She wanted to scream for his help. Wanted it more than anything else in this world. But she couldn’t do it. Couldn’t force the words past her dry throat and parched lips. Finally, she managed something, but it was only a whisper. Frantic, she took one step away from the tree and immediately collapsed to the forest floor.
As the darkness took her, one last thought came to her. If a girl dies in the forest, does anyone feel it?
