CAROLINE

I found myself way up in a large oak tree, laying back against a larger limb that cricked upwards leaving a perfect spot to rest. My breathing heaved and my head ached. I felt somewhere between terror and mortification. Werewolves were real. William was real. This blood spotted all over my arms and legs is real. I wiped my hands and arms against my shirt, only helping the red clear marginally. And if all that is real, if William is real, I'm pretty sure that meant my lucid dreams were actually real too.

Oh

My

Gosh

What have I done?

The pain buried me like boulders dropped from the sky.

Yet the lines blurred between 'omg I really did that with William!' 'wtf would I have really walked up to some random dorm person naked?' and 'dang that was hot!'

Can one even lose their virginity if they just thought it was a dream?

I needed to hide my face for the rest of eternity.

Goodness. And I couldn't even blame being drunk! I was just stupid!

But...

But, he was my husband right? Real William even said we were married at the dance. So it wasn't all that bad to do that, right? You can do that with your husband!

Right?

Right!?

Holy cow, he's so hot.

Also, I think I'm moving to China.

Speaking of, where was I now?

I searched through the tree tops and looked out over the valley where I could just see the eastern most edge of the lake peeking through the miles of aspen trees far below. This lookout spot was serene and peaceful, and if I wasn't dying inside, I'd feel perfectly at ease to sit there for hours.

Either way I might have to, because I was now lost in the center of some mammoth forest. And heaven knows I'm not screaming for help from werewolves. I know I ran from the lodge, and it was up the mountains higher, but I wasn't sure how far I had ran before I even realized I was running. So could I make it back to the lodge? My eye darted to the lake. How many miles away would that be? Could I point myself that way and walk down to the touristy shops, find a ride from there? Sighing, I pulled my phone from my back pocket as a last resort.

But it was as I thought, still barless. It was too far away from civilization for a signal, and I must be too far from the lodge for theirs. I took a few pictures of the scenery, focusing in on the lake, so having a phone wasn't a total bust though.

A noise from just below me shot my eyes in that direction, my phone camera still poised at the view. A shock flashed through my being as Neck-Smeller Eric's head popped up next to mine as he climbed to the wide limb beside me.

I stared at him a moment with cautious eyes.

He smiled and sat back against his curved branch, staring out at the lake. "I forgot how nice the view is up here."

My phone went back to my pocket and I peeked to the ground, nearly thirty feet down.

"Don't think you can jump it without your wolf abilities showing first." He told the view calmly.

I moved my ankle around, vaguely aware that a few minutes ago I couldn't move my leg. "What are you doing here?" I asked warily.

Eric looked over and let a grin pull his face. He answered my question with his own. "Better question is, what are you doing here?"

I sighed heavily and looked at the long valley before us. "I don't know. Running away from werewolves I guess."

A slight laugh fell from him. "No, I mean why this tree?"

I looked at him confused. "What do you mean, this tree? Because I could climb it? Maybe I didn't think werewolves would climb trees." My voice turned annoyed. "Who thinks of wolves up here in the branches?"

He smiled at me. "I think it's because you remember this tree. We used to play here, Kara."

"Don't call me that."

"That's your name isn't it?" His head tilted.

"Well," I stammered, "kind of... No. I'm Caroline."

"Ah yes, you go by Caroline now. But when you lived here you went by Kara. I knew you as Kara."

My eyes pressed in unbelief. "I don't know you and I'm from Seattle."

"Really?" He asked in fake surprise a scarred hand sliding through his dark beard. "And where did you live for the first eight years of your life?"

"Huh?"

"You moved to Seattle when you were eight or so. Where did you live before that?"

"Seattle." I had an overwhelming urge to stick my tongue out at him like a child, but resisted. "We just moved into a smaller place after the rest of my family died. Thank you very much." Jerk.

"Ah, right," His hands threaded behind his head as he leaned back comfortably. "In the 'car accident', right?"

"Yes," I folded my arms and sat back against the limb I was on, but there wasn't a chance of getting comfortable like Eric. The bark was itchy and poked painfully into my back. Not that I was going to admit it.

"Are you sure you don't remember them passing in a fire Kara?"

"It's Caroline," I growled.

He shrugged. "Caroline then. Don't you remember the fire? The fire that was here when you lived at the pack?"

"I live in Seattle!" I sat back up leaning to glare at him, my feet falling over the edge of the large limb.

He followed, sitting off the limb across me. Dark eyes fixed on mine. "Caroline, I'm just trying to get you to remember who you are."

"I'm not a werewolf." I challenged.

"I'm not saying you are. You are a healer. But you lived here. We were friends Kara."

I stiffened, staring him over. "No we weren't."

"Yes we were Kara. And I know you remember it."

"No."

His eyes bore into me, the power causing goosebumps to edge up my arms. "Yes you do Caroline. You knew exactly how to get to the Beta's office. How do you think you knew that? I mean you even knew where the key to the lower levels was hidden! We both saw that footage. Most of the people who live here don't know that. You have been here before. You lived here! Don't you think it makes sense?"

I stammered, looking around wildly. "I... I don't know."

"And that book. You didn't grab any others. Just that one. And William, you gave him the absolute submission! You knew what you were doing. Caroline, remember. Remember me."

I shook my head and put my face to my hands. "No, I don't know what you're talking about."

He continued stronger. "If you don't remember then why are you in this tree Caroline? Out of any tree in this whole messed up forest. Why this one?"

I looked up, my eyes glancing around it nervously. "It's just a tree."

"Caroline, it's our tree."

"We don't have a tree," I threw at him.

His arms then reached around me and lifted me to the branch he was sitting on, caging my back to his chest.

"What the! Stop it! Let me go!" I tried to move but couldn't around his hold.

"No. Not until you remember. Look!" He angled us toward the large trunk and broke a small branch out of the way.

My struggling halted as I took in the letters that were carved into the bark.

Casey Eric and Kara Day