Page 71 of Salvation

Soren looked concerned, but he nodded slowly. Safety was his main concern, and Todd’s, too. But a couple of bear cousins from the East Coast were keen to come out and help him get the Black River lumber mill running again, along with a few other shifters who’d contacted Twin Moon Ranch for help after the spate of Blue Blood attacks. They were ready for a new start, too, and that brought their numbers to twenty.

A ragtag group of twenty, led by him.

Him, alpha of a whole new clan.

He took a deep breath and nodded at Soren. They’d never let down their guard, but it was time to go home and live without fear again.

“Can I hold them one more time?” Summer asked. She’d spent the past two weeks helping everywhere and working herself to the bone in a desperate effort to prove her distaste for the Blue Bloods. When Soren offered her work in the café and saloon, she’d jumped at the chance, ready to build a new life among the bears and wolves of the Blue Moon Saloon.

Sliding little Ben into Summer’s arms left his empty, so Todd took a deep breath and turned to Sarah, who was holding Teddy.

“I need to say good-bye, too,” he said.

Sarah bit her lip and nodded slowly. Yeah, they both knew Teddy was going to scream — he always did when Todd came close — but Todd had to hold him one time. Just this one time and then good-bye.

He took little Teddy as carefully as he might handle a crystal vase, tucked him gently up against his shoulder, and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath, pulled together all the love he’d ever felt in his life — from his parents, his cousins, his sweet old grandma, and yes, even his grouchy cousin Soren — and pushed them gently into the baby’s mind.

All that love, Teddy. It’s all yours. You might not be mine, but a big part of the love is.

He braced himself for the baby’s wail. But surprise, surprise — it didn’t come. Little Teddy just looked up with big, trusting eyes, tightened his tiny little fingers around Todd’s pinkie, and hung on.

Todd held his breath and slowly hugged the child closer. He put his chin on the baby’s head and counted every miraculous second that passed. One. Two. Three. Then he took a deep breath, kissed the baby, and handed him back.

“Here you go. Back to Daddy.” When he whispered the words, his voice cracked, mirroring the scars on his heart. But some scars were good ones. Some scars, you wore with pride.

Soren locked eyes with him — eyes that were hard to meet, they were so full of emotion. Relief. Gratitude.

And respect. Sweet, sweet, bottomless respect.

Anna put a hand on his shoulder, checking if he was okay.

Well, yes and no. Letting Teddy go made his heart ache, but it felt good, too. To wrap up one thing before launching into another.

“Hey,” she whispered. “Someone else needs you.”

He turned just in time for her to pop Fay into his arms.

“Hey, who’s my girl?” he asked, swooping her up high.

Fay squeaked with joy and kicked at thin air, showing off her strength.

Just as quickly as he’d lifted her up, he dipped her down and smothered her with a smooch that made a ridiculous amount of noise. Well, he figured it did, anyway. Some things, you didn’t need to hear to know they were there. Kind of like theI love youin his mate’s eyes, or theYou done good, manin his cousin’s squared jaw.

Fay grinned her adorable, toothless smile, and Ben mewed for his attention, which meant that Anna was the one who had to pack the last of their bags into her overstuffed hatchback. Finally, she waved the keys in the air.

“I guess that’s it.”

She hugged everyone in turn — Jessica, Janna, Simon, Cole, Summer, and even Soren, who blushed. Then she stood in front of Sarah and took her cousin by both hands. Both of them looked about to burst out crying, though neither could summon any words. They finally broke into a huge, rocking hug that said it all.

“Promise to visit soon,” Sarah whispered at last.

Anna’s face glittered with tears, and Todd had to swallow away a lump in his throat, too.

“We will. But you have to visit us, too.”

Todd looked at Soren, who nodded solemnly.You bet we will, man. You bet we will.

He looked at Anna. Time to go before he started shedding tears — or worse, before Soren did, because he’d never seen his cousin come that close. They maneuvered the kids into their car seats, took one last look around, and got in, ready to drive.

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