curse of the alpha - episode 03 & 04 by Tasha Black

coming!”
    Ainsley’s bright voice sawed through the fog of pain that was drawing him out of the
    forest and into his own head. He heard her splashing through the water toward him, but he was too tired to look up.
    When her face appeared before him he was struck by the seriousness of her
    expression. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes wide.
    How had he never noticed what a nice face she had?
    “What hurts?” she asked.
    He closed his eyes again and took inventory.
    “Everything. My legs, especially my left leg.”
    “I’m going to get you out of the water. Try to let your left leg float.”
    He nodded. She sounded like such a grown-up.
    “Wrap your arms around my neck.” Ainsley moved in front of him. “I’ll carry you until it gets shallow.”
    Erik did what she said without thinking. She was so warm. He snuggled his face into
    the back of her neck.
    She pulled him through the water with surprising strength. He tried to keep his legs up but he was so tired and there were so many rocks waiting to bang his feet whenever he let them drift down. Finally they reached the shallows.
    “I’m going to stand up. Try and keep your weight on me until we figure out if you can stand on your right leg, ok?” She smiled a too-big smile that gave away her worry.
    He clung to her shoulders as she stood. The air hit his wet clothes and he started to shake.
    Gingerly, he put some weight on his right foot. It throbbed in a sinister way, but didn’t give out. Encouraged, he put his left foot down.
    A horrible grinding sound made him cry out loud. The pain was dizzying.
    “Don’t put your left foot down,” Ainsley instructed. “I’ll leave you right here and go for help.”
    “Please don’t leave me,” Erik said.
    Ainsley sighed and looked around. All the other kids were long gone.
    “Alright then. Let’s get moving.”
    Very, very slowly, they made their way up the slippery bank. Ainsley had her am
    around his waist and he leaned hard on her and kept his left foot off the ground. She was strong, but the effort was clearly taking everything she had.
    After what seemed like an eternity, they came out of the woods at her back door.
    “Moooooooooom!” Ainsley yelled.
    Mrs. Connor ran out the back door, wiping her hands on her apron. When she caught
    sight of the kids her face dropped.
    “What happened?”
    “He swung out over the creek on a rope and dropped in. I think he broke his ankle,”
    Ainsley said.
    Erik was eternally grateful to her for not announcing that he’d been bullied into it.
    “Erik Jensen,” Mrs. Connor said, more concern than scolding in her voice. “I thought
    you had more sense than that.”
    “I’m sorry, Mrs. Connor,” he managed.
    She stopped and looked into his eyes. Then she gave him a tight little smile.
    “Well, let’s get you into the house. We’ll call your mom.”
    She swooped him up in her strong arms and carried him in. Ainsley ran ahead and
    opened the door.
    Mrs. Connor set him down on the living room sofa and wrapped a throw around him
    while Ainsley hovered close by.
    “Ainsley, go get my First Aid kit from the kitchen.”
    Ainsley scrambled to the kitchen. Erik could hear her banging around in the cupboards.
    “Let’s have a look at that ankle.”
    The left ankle had swollen over the edge of his sneaker. Mrs. Connor carefully
    removed his saturated shoes. He tried not to wince, but when she peeled his socks off he whimpered a little.
    “I know that hurts,” she said soothingly. “We’ll have you fixed up in no time. I’m going to sing to you a little while I clean you up. It will distract you.”
    Mrs. Connor began to sing, but what she sang he couldn’t say. It was a song and it
    was not a song. The words were incomprehensible but images flashed in Erik’s mind as
    she sang. He saw a lush forest, a sleeping dog, a snowy mountaintop, a man pouring a
    creamy glass of milk for a waiting child, a peaceful lake, and a beautiful little girl knitting a blanket.
    When