a Primal Pursuit

sixty two

"Does she have to be asleep?"

"It is when the mind is most relaxed, I can navigate it better." She shrugged.

"How long will it take?" Asra wondered.

"Depends on the magic, or how well Ailia has hidden it." She frowned, her features marring. "Anywhere from twenty minutes to a couple of hours."

Asra nodded, looking back at me. "It would give you a lot of answers if she can navigate those memories."

"I'm not tired." I shook my head.

"I can put you to sleep. Don't worry about that."

My horror only deepened, and Asra sighed, taking my hand.

"This may be your only chance to know what happened that day. You say they did not find two bodies. What if this man is your father, Ailia? All those wonderful memories, all those secrets waiting to be unlocked. This could be the first step." He squeezed my sweaty palm.

I shook my head, struggling for words. I felt scared. I was scared.

I didn't want to be put to sleep to have a witch wander my mind. She would see things that I have locked away for years, and years, that not even Asra knew about. Things I didn't want myself to even remember.

"You could have your father back."

But what if he didn't want me anymore? If this was all true, what if he faked his death to escape me?

Asra noticed my turmoil, sighing softly. "You don't have to do this, Ailia. It is your life, your past. I will not force you to do anything. This is all your choice."

He was right.

Of course, he was, dammit. This was Asra.

He would never force me to do anything. Maybe eat my veggies, but that was just him being a pest. Asra was not my past, he was my future, much like this all could be. I just had to take the step and discover it myself.

It was my life. It was my past. I had every right to control it, to navigate it. The witch would just be a spectator.

"How will you put me to sleep?" I whispered.

She beamed. "It's a simple spell. Drops you straight into your deep sleep part of the cycle when your brain waves are most quiet. It will be easier for me to see the cause of your...blockage."

"How will we know you are not lying?" I probed.

"I can still feel your mind even when you sleep, Ailia." Asra muttered.

I didn't realise I was chewing on my lip until Asra shifted his grip from my hand to grab my cheeks. His thumb pried my lip from between my teeth, frowning at me.

"I will let nothing happen." He promised.

"I know you won't." I whispered.

"Want to take it to the sofa?" Evangeline grinned, waggling her eyebrows.

I gave Asra a look before rising from my chair. The witch giggled, clapping her hands as I rounded the desk. She took a chair, moving it to the end of the sofa. I hesitantly sat in the middle, my hands falling to my lap. Asra hadn't moved, remaining on his side of the desk as he observed me. His saw was tense, flexing when we locked eyes.

"If you lay down, Ailia, we can begin." Evangeline's cheerful voice broke our eye contact.

I nodded softly, shifting to lie down. My head hit the pillow she had placed there, eyes blinking up at the white ceiling. I shifted my attention to one of the many golden sculptures Asra had hidden in this pack house, the golden teeth and jaw open wide with a snarl.

Asra shifted, his chair sighing with relief as he rounded his desk. I turned to watch him, only to smile softly when he brought me both my towel and a blanket. Placing the blanket over my lower body, his fingers traced my body. He then forced me to raise my head, wrapping the towel around the ends of my hair before settling it back on the pillow.

"Will it hurt?" I wondered.

"It may sting." She nodded. "I'm practically shutting your brain waves down. Like switching something off at the plug."

I cringed, not like the sound of that. But having no other option but to endure it, I mumbled an okay. Turning to Asra, I found him leaning against the front end of his desk. His hands were clasping the wood, legs crossed at the ankle as he watched. Eyebrows furrowed, he intently watched as the witch positioned my head upright. Her touch was warm as it pressed into my temples, and I blinked back up at the ceiling.

"What if you find things I don't want to discover?"

"I won't find them unless you convey as much." She shook her head. "Don't think of it, and it won't happen."

"Easier said than done." I muttered.

She smirked. "Think of something else, Ailia Thorne. What were you doing before I found you?"

"Swimming." I stated, and she took hold of my head.

Her hands coiled around the sides of my head as she hummed. "Just swimming?"

"I was diving. Trying to see how deep I could do and how far I could go."

"Why?" she probed, her thumbs gently pressing into my eyebrows.

"To beat my record." I mumbled as my eyes closed.

"What record was that?" Her voice whispered.

"I bet I can brush my tummy against the floor with one dive!"

My voice echoed around the open space, light like a child's. I gasped, jolting, as it threw me into another world. Looking around, I found myself in a familiar place. I wasn't sure where this was. The lake and river attached to it was not the magical lake I now called home.

This was one smaller, its water less blue. There were no trees around it, however, just tall shrubbery full of various berries. It was a sunny day; the rays burning my damp shoulders.

"I told you she couldn't do it!"

Arabella?

Turning to my right, I wiped the water from my eyes as I came to find my tiny sister paddling in the lake's shallow. There was a booming laugh from near her, and my gaze flickered to the large man. I couldn't see his face. No matter how hard I tried to picture it, to see it, my eyes couldn't focus.

"It was her first try, Bella. First steps are just the beginning."

That voice was my father's. I knew it as much as my own heartbeat.

That only meant that I was back in my past.