When I awoke I noticed two things. First, the kindly voice that had been comforting me for days was gone. The pain I had gone through had been excruciating, but I had learned long ago, it did no good to scream. No one ever listened to my pleas for help. In fact often it had made the pain worse, so I no longer cried out when I was in pain. The other thing I noticed was that it was bright. I opened my eyes and it was beautiful. The sunlight coming in through the door of the barn I lay in was the most lovely thing I had ever seen. I could see every sparkling aspect of it. This was amazing! Is this what the sunlight looked like? I couldn't remember seeing anything so glorious...but wait...what could I remember? I thought about it briefly. Nothing. A voice...kind and gentle...soothing me. Before that, nothing. What had he been saying? Ah, yes... "It will be alright now Alice, I am so sorry, I know it hurts, but it was the only way to make you safe. To keep him from finding you. It's alright my sweet girl."
Alice. That was my name. I think. It sounded right. I looked around, almost afraid to move, afraid the burning might come back, it was gone now, except for a burning in my throat. I was so thirsty, my throat felt like I was breathing in the heat of that beautiful sunlight, and it was baking my throat from the inside out. I had to try to move, I had to find a drink, but if nothing else, I was cautious. I had learned to be careful. I listened. I heard birds singing, the wind moving softly through the trees, and more. I could hear rustling in the hay loft above me, soft, and furtive. Small. Mice. Wait...MICE? How can I hear mice? But I could. I could even hear their fast little hearts racing in fear. Somehow I knew this was right. What else? Breathing, slow but no heart beat to accompany it. And, a smell, sweet, blew through the doorway to me and I knew it had something to do with the breathing I heard. Someone was watching me. Suddenly I was crouched behind the wall of a stall that had surely been 15 feet away from me only a second ago. How had I moved so quickly? I was confused, but at the same time this felt very comfortable. Like I knew about this. Like someone had explained this to me while the fire had been burning me, while I had suffered in silence.
Then suddenly there was a face in front of me. I didn't know this face but it looked smug, so sure of itself, but it was furious as well. He stood and sighed in disgust. "What a waste. She smelled so delicious! Oh, well. At least I got rid of the old one." he chuckled softly and turned and walked away.
Then the barn was around me again.
