Page 52 of Before the Bond
Caleb then gave me a firm nod. “Everything for Jake’s care will be accessible. I can guarantee that.”
“Oh,” I said. “One more thing.”
“Hm?”
"Despite everything," I said. "I still care about this place. I want to see it… and everyone here… through.”
I picked up the book I'd left on the side table the night before.
"Jake will be glad," Caleb added.
"He's the one who matters.”
"Yes," Caleb said. "He is."
We both chuckled.
“Good,” I said. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve had a long day. I would like to resume my reading.”
Caleb gestured to my chair. “It’s all yours.”
I crossed over to the seat. My body eased into it the moment I sat, like the chair recognized me.
Caleb shifted in his own chair and pulled up a newspaper from the coffee table.
The fog outside had thinned. The moon shone on the flowers in the formal garden, making them glow in a pale blue that contrasted with the orange light coming from the fireplace.
I noticed the trees in the distance swaying in the woods.
A part of me still felt an ache whenever I looked at them. However, there was another piece to that story, too.
Amidst the pain and the past I hated facing, there was a man there who cared for me enough to save me.
A man, who was still here. Who never left to begin with.
After turning a few pages, I finally looked up. He was deep in thought as he read the business section of the dailies.
When he thought I wasn't looking anymore, I heard him.
"Thank you," he said. "For staying."
Chapter 11
Caleb
She stayed.
I ran the eastern perimeter at dawn and turned that fact over in my mind the way you turn a stone, looking for what’s underneath.
She knew what we were. She knew what I was. She had every reason to pack her bag and drive until Greyhollow was a bad memory, but she didn't.
I felt relieved. But it wasn’t clean.
It came back harder when I let it settle. When you pressed against the wound and finally let go, the pain doubled.
I prowled the grounds in my wolf form, listening for anything out of place. The moon began to descend as dawn made its way to the sky. The light made it easy to find any activity that shouldn't have been there.
Nothing moved.
