I awoke to a stifling silence in an unlit room. My head ached, and my thoughts felt jumbled and disjointed.
Where am I?
I took stock of my situation. I was lying on my back on what felt like rough, unfinished wood.
Perhaps a table of some sort?
I inhaled deeply. The rich smell of churned earth hung heavily in the surrounding air, along with another scent I could not seem to place. It was sharper, more metallic. I could almost taste it.
A garden shed? Why would I be lying atop a table in a shed?
I tried to turn my head but found that I could not. There was a restraint placed firmly across my forehead. Dread crawled over me like a starving beast.
I tried to move my arms…
Restrained.
My legs…
The same.
Someone had taken the time to ensure I could not move.
By the Gods, what is going on?
As I fought off the waves of panic that threatened to devour me, I tried to recall what I had been doing before I had woken in this dark room. Pain assaulted my head, forcing a whimper to escape my parched lips. I tried to lick them but my tongue felt swollen and dry, as if I hadn’t had a drop to drink in days.
I tried to call out for help, but all I could manage was a raspy moan. Another wave of pain washed over me, leaving me weak. Blinking away the tears as best I could, I noticed my eyes were adjusting to the darkened room. I could make out the rafters above me and from them, I could see the faint outlines of things hanging, slowly twisting and twirling.
The scraping of boots just beyond the room drew my attention from the hanging objects. The jangling of keys and the soft click of a padlock followed shortly after.
Should I try to reason with my captor for my release, or should I play dumb?
A sliver of light pierced the darkness as the door to the room creaked open on rusted hinges. At that moment, I saw what was hanging above me and I made my decision. I shut my eyes and hoped that my captor would not realise I was conscious. The horrifying imagery that hung above my head joined me in the dark recesses of my mind, taunting me with a doomed future if I remained captive.
I have to escape!
My captor shuffled around the room, muttering under their breath. Behind me, I heard them rummage through a drawer. Its contents sounded metallic, scraping against one another. They cried out in frustration, revealing themself to be a woman, and slammed the drawer shut before moving on to a different one to my left.
The rummaging stopped, and she purred in satisfaction.
“Ah, so this is where you were hiding!”
She cackled, and I opened my eyes an inch, dreading to see what she had found. The light danced wickedly along the edges of a pair of shears. My heart skipped a beat as she turned towards me and snipped at the air. She suddenly froze and glanced at me. I squeezed my eyes shut, hoping she had not caught me watching her.
I held my breath as I heard her take a step towards me. Her presence loomed over me. And I dared not move an inch. I heard her boots come to rest behind me. I felt the air shift around my head as she bent closer. Her hot, moist breath tickled my ear.
“Good, they are ready to be harvested and not a single trace of swelling left either.” She cooed. “Now to remove them.”
I felt the cold metal press up against the side of my head.
This is it, this is where I die.
There was a quick snip.
“There, done.”
I heard her turn away from me to put the shears down. A moment later, the tension of the straps that held me down loosened and fell away. I still dared not move an inch in case it was a trap. I heard her shuffle to the door and close it behind her. In the silence that followed, I listened for the sound of the padlock closing, but it never came. I waited for several minutes before deciding that she wasn’t coming back.
I sighed in relief and gingerly rose from the table. The pain in my mind was receding and it no longer hurt to think. I glanced about the room, still lit by the lantern that the woman had brought with her. An assortment of bits-and-bobs and alchemical apparatus that cluttered every usable surface greeted me. Musty books sat in piles on the floor, while dried herbs and other plants hung from the rafters. I could see nothing sinister or horrifying in the room at all. Had my mind just been playing tricks on me?
My hand brushed against something on the table beside me. Several exotic mushrooms recently cut lay there. I picked one up to examine it. I had never seen its kind before. Confused, I crept towards the door and opened it, revealing a small kitchenette. And there at a table, the woman sat, waiting.
“Ah, good. You’re awake.”
She smiled and gestured for me to join her at the table. “Care for a cup of tea?”
Unsure of what to do, I took a seat, and she poured some into a cup.
I opened my mouth to speak, but she silenced me with a wave of her hand.
“I know what you’re going to ask. No, I will not harm you. I’m not that kind of witch, besides you are the one who sought me out.”
She placed the teapot back down and folded her arms.
I blew on the tea to cool it and took a sip.
“But why did you tie me down?”
She frowned.
“Well, I couldn’t just let you move around in your condition, could I?”
She squinted at me.
“To make sure you couldn’t hurt yourself during the healing process, you understand.”
My fingers brushed against the fleshy stumps that were still rooted to my scalp.
“They will fall off in a couple of days. The best remedy I have for head wounds.”
“I… I can’t remember anything.”
I stared down at the cup in my hands. The swirling black concoction mirrored my mind’s state.
She took a deep sip from her own cup.
“That is an unfortunate side-effect of the mushrooms. Give it a day or two and your memory should return.”
I shook my head in disbelief.
“I don’t know how I will ever repay you…”
“That’s quite alright.” She eyed me like a cat with its prey. “In time, you will provide all the payment I need.”
An uneasiness settled over me. I needed to leave. I placed the cup down and rose from the table. Her eyes never left me. I bowed in thanks, all the while eyeing the front door.
“I… I must be on my way.”
I paused in front of the door, my hand resting on its handle.
“Than… thank you, truly.”
I exited the house, her cackling fast on my heels, and never looked back.
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