* * *
Valerie
I couldn’t stop thinking about the story Chris had told me in the car.
The woman who transformed into a bird and flew away. Who escaped.
The image wouldn’t leave my mind as we pulled up to the resort—a charming collection of log cabins nestled among towering pines, with the mountains rising majestically behind them. Chris handled the check-in while I stood in the rustic lobby, my eyes drawn to the large windows that framed the wilderness beyond.
Somewhere out there was the sacred spring. The place where the woman had found freedom from men who must have wanted to use her body.
“All set,” Chris said, returning with a key. “Our cabin’s just down this path.”
I followed him outside, my heart beginning to race with an idea I didn’t fully understand yet. The cabin was beautiful—all warm wood and soft lighting, with a stone fireplace and a large bed covered in a thick quilt. But I barely noticed any of it.
“Chris?” I heard myself say, my voice sounding oddly bright. “Do you want to go on a hike? Maybe there’s a trail to that spring you mentioned?”
He turned to look at me, and I saw hope bloom across his face. Beautiful, trusting hope that made my stomach twist with guilt even as something darker stirred inside me.
“Really?” he asked. “You want to go hiking?”
“Yes,” I said, forcing a smile. “I think the fresh air would be nice. And I’d like to see the sacred spring.”
The lie felt strange on my tongue—exciting and terrible at the same time. Because I did want to see the spring, but not for the reasons he thought. Not to enjoy nature with my husband.
I wanted to see the place where someone had escaped. Maybe I could escape too. On some level, I understood that the idea forming in my mind made no sense at all. I didn’t have any use for rationality at that point, though: all I could think about was getting away, somehow.
“That’s wonderful, sweetheart.” Chris’s whole face had softened. He thought I was trying. Thought I’d overcome my anxiety about tonight. “Let me just change into hiking boots.”
As he rummaged through his bag, I felt a rush of something I couldn’t quite name. It was troubling and intensely exciting all at once—this feeling of deceiving him. Of having a secret plan.
Do I even have a plan?I asked myself.
I knew I didn’t—or part of me knew that, anyway. I definitely didn’t think I would change into a bird and fly away.
Somehow, though, this felt like a way to avoid what was coming. To delay the inevitable. To postpone the moment when Chris would push his cock inside my body and… and…
Fuck me.
Maybe I really am a naughty girl.The thought made my face heat and my pussy clench. Maybe I’d always been naughty, underneath all my attempts to be good.
Part of me knew I was being foolish. Acting without thinking. But I couldn’t seem to stop myself.
“Ready?” Chris asked, lacing up his boots.
“Ready,” I lied.
The trail began just beyond the resort grounds, winding up through dense forest. Chris walked ahead of me, pointing out different trees and birds, clearly pleased that I’d suggested this. His happiness made the guilt worse, but it also made that dark excitement grow stronger.
We’d been walking for maybe twenty minutes when I saw the trail fork ahead. There was a sign pointing right that said,Cree Woman Trail. The main path continued straight.
“Chris?” I called out. “I need to pee.”
He stopped and turned around. “Oh. Okay. There’s probably some bushes?—”
“Could you turn around?” I asked quickly. “And maybe I can walk ahead a bit? I’m embarrassed.”
His expression softened with understanding. “Of course, sweetheart. Take your time.”
