The Whispers of water

It all started with anxiety. Dark thoughts invaded her like ivy running up a wall. A general malaise, as if she couldn't breathe.Little by little, Naomi isolated herself. She lost her taste for parties and outings, for the glitz and glamour of social evenings. She didn't see her friends any more, and her partner probably got bored of this gloomy attitude and cheated on her.That's why she's on the road today. It's a blessing in disguise, because she can't stand this life of appearances that she's been immersed in for years.This cold, dark world of big cities where nothing seems to be really alive any more. You consume, you swallow, but you don't nourish yourself, either physically or intellectually. You don't have to look good in front of her, you just have to be you.There's no judgement.She is particularly drawn to the white waters of rivers. It's where she feels at her best.And it's been a long time since she's been out in nature, since she's been able to recharge her batteries. With recent events and her growing sense of unease, she needed to return to the source.Her beauty enabled her to become an international model. The promise of travel, glamour and luxury. But in reality, she's just a doll to be dressed and made up as she pleases. It is transformed, sometimes even erased, to enhance the product. She no longer finds anything attractive or glorious about it.Her long brown hair and her large eyes, a rare and bewitching light grey, have made her a sought-after model. Her dream body, with its perfect measurements, has been sublimated by talented and renowned designers, and many nickname her the nymph.But in this business, nothing lasts and you quickly become obsolete.She became the face of her boyfriend Victor's brand. She met him at a party in Sofia. A rich, ambitious young man with Asian charm. He made his fortune in new technologies, and more particularly in solar-powered smartphones. An extravagant young man with the air of a yakuza and a daddy's boy. On his arm, Naomi was like a piece of jewellery that he displayed to the general public at trendy parties. So they continued to use her beauty to sell, to seduce potential buyers without worrying about what she thought or knew. Now that they were separated, he was going to have to find a new muse!

This is the least of Naomi's worries.

She has lost her zest for life and no one understands why. 

For her, everything is grey and dull. That fateful day when she discovered the affair Victor had been having for months destroyed what little joy she had left. It wiped out the last five years of her life together, and Naomi was still hoping just a few days ago for a marriage proposal, but it was not to be.At 28, she feels obsolete in this world, to the point of feeling like an outsider. Like a rare material that has been forcibly extracted from its natural environment to become a state-of-the-art smartphone, which will eventually be discarded when a better model comes on the market.Naomi feels caught in the middle. 

She needs to find a new place, a new path, catch her breath and find herself again.The only place she can do that is the Cabane.The Cabane is the name given to a wonderful little house lost in a vast forest, surrounded by a river, where she spent every holiday of her childhood. She has owned it for ten years, since her mother died, and ten years since she last went there.Naomi has invested in keeping the house in good repair, despite her absence, because as she often says, you never know, and circumstances proving her right, she has done well to rely on her mother's friends in the only village bordering the immense and majestic forest. They have taken over the upkeep of the house, which stands on an islet in the heart of the forest between the arms of the river.His phone rings non-stop and Victor sends him messages:"Where are you?" "I miss you" "I'm sorry" "Pick up the phone". She had no intention of answering and instead turned up the volume of the song that was playing at the time by Pat Benatar: Heartbreaker, to stop hearing the vibration of the messages and the attempted calls.

The further she drives, the wilder the landscape becomes.The closer she got to the forest, the more she calmed down. She had known for days that she had to go there.Nature doesn't judge you, it heals wounded hearts and lost souls.Seven hours later, she reached the village. Memories of her childhood and her games came flooding back like Proust's multiple madeleine.The village is ancient, the old stones, the moss, the smell of the forest - she feels at home in this medieval atmosphere.It was almost nightfall, but the sky was still blue.

She decides to stop off at the only restaurant in the village: "La Taverne". It's a place that's stayed true to its medieval roots, with shields, armour and background music. A few people were already dining.She takes a seat at a table and a few eyes turn to her beauty and natural elegance. It's not every day you bump into an international supermodel, especially in such a remote location. She has a huge following on social networks, and she's worried that someone will take her photo and tell Victor where she is.But the onlookers return to their plates. They don't seem to be part of the social networking generation.The warm atmosphere of the place soon made her forget the long journey she had had to make to get there. She was looking out of the colourful window when she heard the smooth voice of a man with a slight accent speaking to her.

 - Good evening Miss, here's the menu.She turned towards the voice and did not expect to see such a handsome and charismatic man. He had a slim figure, wore white linen clothes, looked gentle, and had long blond hair tied up loosely, letting strands fall in front of his bewitching pastel green eyes. She smiled at him as she took the menu.

- Thank you so much, I'm starving," she said, casting her light grey eyes into his. Naomi had always been a seductress, it was stronger than her and yet she wasn't ready to embark on another relationship.The current flowed between them, and he responded to her smile by holding her gaze, which he lowered to the apparent hollow of Naomi's chest as she wore a deep navy blue macramé summer dress, but the young man's gaze darkened when he saw the blue crystal she wore around her neck.- Let me know as soon as you've chosen. he says as he walks away.Naomi sensed his change of attitude, as she had inherited the crystal from her mother. She has worn it religiously since she was 16.This thought and the questioning of this handsome young man's attitude are interrupted by a high-pitched voice which cries out: 

"Oh, but I'm dreaming? is that you, Naomi?

Lili Lamarre.

She hasn't seen her childhood friend since her mother's funeral.

- Oh, that's great! What are you doing here? she says, sitting down opposite her

- I came to recharge my batteries at the cabin.

- I've been following you on social networks and I saw that you hadn't posted anything for a week, so I got worried.

- Uh..... Yes, by the way, I'm here incognito, so no photos or Instagram posts to say I'm here, OK? Victor and I aren't together any more.

- Wow... I've got the exclusive news then!!!

- Glad you like my personal life so much as well as my love trials and tribulations. she sighs.I promise I'll keep it a secret, but what happened?

- He cheated on me, end of story, and I don't really want to talk about it.

- OK, I understand, and are you planning to go to the cabin tomorrow? Where are you sleeping tonight?

- Well, at the cabin, actually,

- Are you kidding? You're not going into the woods at night?Lili's gaze turned dark and worried, it was clear she wasn't joking.

- I know this forest very well and I remind you that I come from a big city where there are a thousand dangers for a woman on her own.

- No, you haven't been here for more than 10 years, Naomi, but strange things have been happening in the forest over the last few years. People have been disappearing, cattle have been mutilated in nearby fields.

- Really? wow..... It's the Bronx indeed, Lili, it's nature, there are wolves passing by, maybe even bears, nothing esoteric about it. Naomi beckons the waiter over.

- Have you made your choice?- Yes .....

- Orphel, Naomi wants to go to the cabin tonight! interrupts Lili.Orphel is the intriguing waiter. 

Lili obviously knows him well enough to bring him into the conversation.

- That's not very prudent indeed. he says gravely

.- No, but calm down, I'm a big girl, everything's going to be fine and I'm going to go home and get some sleep tonight. I'm not going to be terrified by a few wild animals. I was practically brought up in this forest.

- Come to my house and you can go to the cabin tomorrow. Lili enthuses.

- Lili is right. Orphel ventures.

- Are you here to take my order or give me lessons?Naomi's tone is dry. The waiter and Lili exchange worried glances

.- Orphel knows the place well, he helped renovate the Cabane and he's familiar with the forest and its dangers.

- I'll have a barely cooked salmon fillet and some salad on the side.Naomi prefers to ignore this remark. It doesn't matter how well he knows the forest, Naomi does too.

- Fine, Miss. If you like, after the service I can escort you home.

- Escort me? No, but I'm dreaming.Naomi is beginning to feel annoyed by these useless recommendations, for her they're just villagers' fears and nothing more.

- I'm going to leave now so, in the end, I won't be ordering anymore... My day and my week have been quite trying and I need some peace and quiet!

- Please stay. Orphel said gently. I'll buy you a meal and apologise for bothering you.Naomi takes a deep breath, she was probably a bit too harsh and felt ridiculous.

- No, I'll pay for the meal, I'm sorry I got carried away, but I'm a bit tired.

- Sorry Naomi, I'll let you have your dinner in peace. Lili said as she stood up.

- No, stay Lili and tell me the latest village gossip.Lili was happy with the offer, picked up her plate and sat down opposite Naomi.

- What do you want to know?

- mmmm... first of all, who is this Orphan and what kind of name is that, and what kind of way is that to talk? he's gorgeous!

- Orphel, yes, I can confirm that, a real village hunk. He arrived here 2 years ago and took over the restaurant after the death of Mme de Hautefeuille, he's apparently from her distant family and he's noble too. He has an accent, but I can't remember where it comes from. I've tried to flirt with him several times, but to no avail!

- Maybe he's gay.

- Orphel, no. I've never seen him with anyone, I don't think anyone finds favour in his eyes. He's nice and helpful, in any case. Maybe you'll manage to seduce him. He plays the harp and the violin divinely well, he does folk music concerts with his band from time to time here at the restaurant.

- Oh, I'm not ready to get into a relationship just yet. I need peace and quiet, nature and fresh water. So he lives in the castel of Hautefeuilles in the forest?

- Yes, and (she says softly) he's one of the activists who defend nature. They're a bit strange, I think, they only keep to themselves, we don't know what they do in the forest sometimes.

- No, no, I'd rather go on my own, it's much better!

- I'm really glad you came back here.

- Me too, you know. But tell me, is everyone freaking out about what's going on in the forest or what?

- Well, yes, there's a lot of talking going on.

She showed her newspaper cuttings on the internet about animals being mutilated, and sometimes even corpses found perched in trees at dizzying heights. 

A certain psychosis had settled over the village, with hikers mysteriously disappearing without a trace.

- I decided to come back and settle in the forest. I'm sure I'll end up there. I miss the river terribly. Where I was, there's nothing but concrete and neon nightclubs.

- I'd like to party once in a while, but there's nothing here at all! I know a club where we could go, if you like? 

At around 10pm, despite Orphel and Lili's recommendations, Naomi got into her car and drove off down the forest path. 

She turned on the headlights because it was pitch black and she didn't want to run into a wolf or a fox frightened by the noise of the car.

After 10 minutes, she reached the entrance to a tiny footpath that she couldn't take by car. She took her wheeled suitcase from the boot and, with a torch, went deeper into the forest. 

There's not a sound, no crickets, no evidence of any animals around. All she could hear was her breathing and the sound of the wheels on the suitcase as it trundled along over the grass and stones.Stupidly, she began to think back to Lili's stories. She even took the risk of pointing her torch at the treetops, fearing to see some horrible creature devouring a sheep. Then she hears creaking noises around her, as if something heavy is walking nearby. 

She stopped, pointed her torch at the noises, but saw nothing in particular. 

Cautiously, however, she continued on her way and after five minutes saw the end of the path leading down to the river.

 Small lights on the ground littered the path leading to a small wooden bridge across the white water of the river, and at the end of it the island with the hut. Orphel had told her that they had installed solar lamps so that she could find her way even at the end of the day in the darkness of the forest.