Page 30 of Salvation

“You’re sure it wasn’t one of the Blue Bloods?” Cody asked.

Todd gritted his teeth and searched memories he’d have preferred not to explore too closely. He’d barely managed to get Sarah out of the burning house in Black River when the Blue Blood wolves had come swarming at him. He’d pushed her toward his truck and stood guard while she got away, then fought like the warrior he’d been raised to be. But one bear was no match for twenty wolves, and they’d wrestled him to the ground. Some stayed in wolf form, while others shifted to human shape and battered his body with bricks and bats, howling at him the entire time. He could feel one rogue stomp on his hand and pin it against a rock while another smashed it again and again, shattering every bone, tearing every sinew.

Purity. Purity.Their triumphant cries echoed in his mind, louder and more clearly than any sound he’d caught in the past couple of months. He just about jammed his hands over his ears, but then another memory jumped out of nowhere and sang to him in a melody he strained to hear.

Stay with me. Don’t die. Not now. Not like this.

Wait a minute. He knew that voice.

Think of mountain meadows in spring. Thick of a clear, cool summer creek…

Anna. The woman who’d talked him out of dying was Anna?

Think of berries growing thick in the fall…

It was as if she’d looked into his mind, discovered all his favorite things, and written them all into a poem just for him.

Anna had been there at the beginning of this mess. And Jesus, Anna was the one who’d facilitated his escape from the cage he’d been kept in at the wildlife center.

But, wait a minute. Wasn’t he mad at her for tricking him into staying alive when he should have died? If it weren’t for her, he would have died a hero, and none of the suffering he’d endured since then would have happened.

But none of the good moments would have happened, either, he realized. Like meeting her in the park the day he thought his head would split. Like seeing her smile. Like getting to hold her after her nightmare.

How can I be mad at my mate?his bear grumbled.It wasn’t her fault. It’s fate.

He blinked a few times, trying to make sense of it. Wait. Maybe fate hadn’t been screwing with him. Maybe fate had given him a choice.

Die a hero, or live on and hold out for your mate.

His hands shook, because he knew what that meant. Fate never negotiated and it never offered choices — except in the rarest circumstances.

The truest heroes, the ones who serve most loyally — those who put others above their own good — sometimes, fate rewards them with something it doesn’t give anyone else.He remembered his great-grandfather’s ancient voice scratching out the words. He remembered it perfectly, right down to the gestures of the old man’s leathery hands and the crackle of wood in the fireplace on that winter’s night, a long time ago.

Fate gives them a choice,his great-grandfather had said.A choice that risks more suffering, but gives them the possibility of an even greater end. Their own destiny. One they fight for, if they’re brave enough to try.

His hands shook, and he gulped for air. Jesus, how could that possibly be him?

He wanted to grab Soren and ask him if he remembered that story, too. He wanted to race back in time and study his own actions, because he hadn’t been trying to be a hero. He’d just done what he had to do.

But everyone was staring at him now, so he rocked back on his heels and gulped. He could have cut through the tension in the room with his pinkie claw if he could coordinate himself to move just then.

Lucky thing Tina stepped forward, cutting the tension a different way.

“Such a hot day,” she murmured, handing him a glass. “How about a drink, everyone?”

She pressed something cool and moist into his hand — his good hand, bless her, so the chances of him dropping it were low.

“Lemonade,” she said casually, settling his nerves. “My Aunt Jean made it, and it’s really good.”

It was a cue for him to drink, and he obeyed. She even stood in front of him while he brought the glass to his mouth, helping hide the shake in his hand and the pale hue he felt come over his face.

Tina passed glasses around to the others, and it was all so smooth, so natural. Not so much a cover-up as a friendly little break.

Thanks,he murmured, directing the thought to Tina’s mind and no one else.

Tina winked.

I know something about big bad alphas needing a helping hand from time to time.

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