CHAPTER TWO-THE GENTLE KING

"Oh, God no! No!" Gretchen's eyes snapped open and her entire body trembled on her sweat drenched sheets. The memory of her nightmare was instantly gone, but the panic still remained as her heart thumped against her chest.

Gretchen looked around the room as she gasped for air, and she quickly realized that she was in unfamiliar surroundings. This wasn't Keith's bedroom or any place she had been before.

She wiped her hair from her sweaty face and brought her legs to the side of the bed. Gretchen raised her nose into the air and inhaled deeply as she closed her eyes and imagined herself in a library or an old church. The smell of old books and decaying autumn leaves surrounded her, and it made her feel like she was back in her parent's den.

The cold marble floor below her feet let Gretchen know that wherever she was, it was very real and not part of the terrible dream she just woke from. She was dressed in a simple, long white cotton gown and was wearing fuzzy socks, none of which belonged to her.

Shaking out her messy hair, Gretchen trilled her lips and shook her head." Where the hell am I?"

Gretchen pushed herself from her bed and walked to the stained-glass window along the wall. She peeked through the colored glass but didn't recognize the yard outside. As she pushed her face against the glass and peeked around the corner, it became clear to Gretchen that she was in some kind of stone fortress surrounded by forest and mountains.

Pulling down her brows in confusion and clicking her tongue, she tried to remember what had happened the night before. The last thing she remembered was she and Keith watching a movie in bed. As she continued to search her mind, a knock came to the door.

Gretchen cautiously walked to the rounded wooden door and crossed her arms. "Come in."

As the door slowly opened, a tall elderly gentleman with long white hair and beard stepped into the room. "Good morning, Miss Mason. How are you feeling this morning?"

Gretchen looked the man over and squinted her eyes. He looked harmless enough so she shrugged her shoulders. "I'm...I'm fine. Thank you... If you don't mind, can you please tell me where I am?"

As he clasped his hands together in front of him, the gentle old king sighed before he delivered the bad news. "You are in the realm, my child. I am Eliphas,"

As Gretchen realized what Eliphas had just told her, her heart started to thump in her chest and ears while her hands trembled. There are only two ways to get to the supernatural realm, and she wasn't able to travel by misting. Although she knew the answer deep in her heart, Gretchen took a deep breath through her nose and closed her eyes. "How did I get here?"

"What do you remember last?" he asked.

Gretchen's eyes went back and forth as she tried to remember any scrap of information that would help. "Umm...I...I'm not sure. I remember going to bed last night and...that's it."

Eliphas nodded as he realized she just wasn't ready to face the truth yet. "It's better that you remember on your own. Do you have any family here?"

As she continued searching for clues, Gretchen nodded slowly. "Family? Yes. My aunt and uncle live here...somewhere. Tessa and Logan Hexom."

Twisting his lips to the side, Eliphas shook his head. "Hmm...I don't seem to remember them. When did they come?"

Tessa blew out a breath through her mouth as she tried to remember. "About ten years ago, Haldir brought them."

"Haldir, yes, they must be in the North Woods then. I'll make the inquiries." Eliphas turned to leave until Gretchen stopped him.

"Sir?"

Eliphas turned back as he reached the threshold. "Yes, child."

She needed to hear it, needed to know she wasn't crazy and that this wasn't all some awful nightmare that she just couldn't wake from. "Am I dead, I mean...did I die?"

Eliphas gave a kind smile. This wasn't the first mixed up child he'd spoken with over the years. Suddenly being ripped from their nice, orderly world was a bitter pill to swallow. "Yes."

Gretchen's knees buckled, and she collapsed onto her bottom as she clutched her chest. Eliphas came back and knelt down beside her then took her trembling hand in his. "The hard part is over Miss Mason. You are here and you are safe and you will be with the people you love soon. There is nothing to fear anymore."

As tears poured from Gretchen's eyes and her lip quivered, she thought about her family and what they must be going through. "Oh my god, my parents. My poor mother. No!"

Eliphas pulled Gretchen into his embrace and said, "Shh. It's alright, I promise you. Everything will be alright."

As he stroked her hair, Gretchen sobbed into his chest. Although she didn't know Eliphas, he had a calming and grandfatherly aura about him. "Your parents know that you are safe now, and that you are starting your new journey. You will see them again someday, but right now they want you to live your life and be happy in the place that you are."

After Eliphas had convinced Gretchen to return to bed, he made his way to his study and began writing a note to Lord Nicholas, the ruler of the North Woods. When he finished, he handed the message to a Raven and sent it on its way North.

Eliphas put his finger to his mouth as he thought for a moment. He had a vision of Gretchen right before she arrived and knew that there was someone else who needed to be made aware of her arrival.

He promised the powerful warlock that as soon as the ancient spirited returned, Eliphas would send word so she could be retrieved in time for his plans.

Eliphas sighed, and then he wrote out another note and handed it to a Raven to be delivered to the Darke Kingdom.

The next morning, Gretchen peeked out her door into the long hallway. It had a shiny marble floor and it seemed to go on forever in both directions.

She quietly walked down the hall until she came to an open door then she looked inside. Eliphas was asleep in his old worn out leather chair with a book sitting on his plump, round belly and a lit pipe hanging from his mouth.

Gretchen took the pipe and sat it on the round glass side table beside the chair, then crept quietly around the room. The shelves were lined with ancient books in a language she didn't know.

Gretchen had been born on Earth and didn't bother to learn the old ways. She knew a little magic thanks to her father being a warlock, but having grown up in a Lycan pack, she just didn't care much about the old religion.

"You can borrow one if you like," said Eliphas as he sat up in his seat.

"I didn't mean to wake you," said Gretchen.

Shaking his head, Eliphas smoothed out his beard then waved his hand. "No worries, child. Would you like to read? I have plenty to keep you occupied."

Gretchen crossed her arms and smiled, "No Sir."

"Are you hungry?" he asked.

"Not really." Gretchen looked around the room then licked her lips. "Does everyone who dies come here?"

Eliphas nodded as he watched Gretchen. "They all pass through here, some stop and stay awhile but mostly they go on to see what's out there."

Over the years, her family had lost quite a few people. One of the dangers of their way of life. "My uncle Jacob, he died before I was born. He was a Lycan, do you remember him?"

Eliphas shook his head. "A lot of people come through all the time. I don't get to meet everyone, I'm afraid."

Gretchen nodded then asked, "Why am I so special? I mean, I got my own room and everything."

Eliphas leaned forward then took his pipe off the table and put it back to his lips. "People usually know what happened to them and why they came. Every once in a while they don't, and they need help to remember. When you showed up on my doorstep, you were very confused. You just couldn't quite piece it all together."

Gretchen's eyes teared up, and she tried hard to swallow down the burning in her throat. "It's like it's on the tip on my tongue and I just can't say it. I have these terrible nightmares and when I wake up, I'm so afraid, but I can't remember. I...I think something terrible happened."

Eliphas took a draw from his pipe and nodded his head in agreement. Traumatic deaths are always the most difficult to recall. The mind just can't wrap itself around the ugly truth of what happened. "I think you're right. It will come to you when you're ready Miss Mason."

"Do I need to know? I'm not sure I want to," she said.

Eliphas nodded as he took a puff of his pipe. "It's best if you do. It will help you on your journey so you don't repeat your mistakes."

"Hmm!" Gretchen took a deep breath through her nose and sighed. "So, how long will I stay here? You said my family is in the North. Can I go there?"

"Yes, of course, you can leave whenever you're ready," he said.

"How far is it?" Gretchen asked.

Eliphas shrugged his shoulders as he pulled at his chin and guessed. "It's about a three-week journey from here on foot."

"Three weeks?" Gretchen asked loudly as her eyes bulged in surprise. "Jesus, even if I do it as my wolf, it'll take so long."

"You have something better to do with your time?" asked Eliphas.

Gretchen chuckled at Eliphas and his way of looking at the world. She supposed when you were as old as Eliphas, there wasn't much point in being in a hurry. "No, I suppose I don't. Is it a dangerous path?"

"For a werewolf? No, I don't believe you'll have any difficulty at all," he said. "I've sent word that you'd be on your way shortly. They'll be expecting you."

As the memory of Tessa's voice came back to her, Gretchen remembered the last time she saw her family. "I've really missed my uncle and aunt. I can't wait to see them again."

Eliphas thought back to his vision. Gretchen's arrival in this world would set off a chain reaction of events that could not be stopped. "Yes, there will be many people looking forward to seeing you."