SECRET OF THE WOLF By Susan Krinard

Johanna went to fetch Mrs. Ingram herself. Quentin never learned what passed between them, but May’s mother came flying down the stairs in her dressing gown, and a moment later mother and daughter embraced in a flurry of endearments and joyful sobs.

Quentin couldn’t steal so much as a second alone with Johanna. But he watched her—he never tired of doing so—and saw her mingled sadness and pleasure in the family reunion. His heart swelled with the same mixed emotions. She had much to be proud of, and much to let go. He swore to make up for every one of her losses.

“Reckon that’s the prettiest sight I ever did see,” Harper said, coming to stand beside him.

“Yes,” Quentin answered. “I reckon it is.” But his eyes were only for the sturdy, practical woman who gravely received Mrs. Ingram’s breathless thanks.

Harper smiled. “You have a lot of catching up to do, brother.”

“And a lot of living,” Quentin agreed. “For both of us.”

“In that case,” Harper said, “I reckon we’d better get started.”

The gate to the Haven stood open, as if in welcome. On every side the vineyard, woods, and orchards held steadfast in spite of the travails of men.

Mrs. Daugherty came out onto the porch, shading her eyes and looking ready to let loose with a terrific scold.

Oscar ran ahead of everyone and charged up the stairs, bursting with news for the housekeeper.

Johanna stopped at the gate and let the tears come. Quentin put his arm around her and nuzzled her hair.

“Glad to be home?” he asked.

“No,” she said, wondering if this tendency to weep at the drop of a hat was a temporary affliction. She sincerely hoped so. “I’d much rather be back in San Francisco, battling monsters.”

He chuckled and kissed her temple. “I wonder.”

Mrs. Ingram cleared her throat and came forward to join them. May clung to her arm, as she’d done ever since mother and daughter had been reunited in San Francisco. The girl was radiant, as if her recent experiences had shocked her out of the remnants of the old troubles. Johanna could not envision her suffering from hysteria ever again—as long as she was given a chance to grow up well outside her father’s pernicious shadow. Mrs. Ingram intended to do just that.

May wasn’t the only one to benefit from adversity. Lewis Andersen seemed to have experienced an epiphany during his confrontation with Irene in the vineyard. Although he remained fastidious and vigilant, he had actually removed his gloves during the ferry and train ride home. He had been seen to smile, with nary a word of sins or sinners. Instead, his quotes from the Bible were those of hope and inspiration.

Though he continued to regard Quentin with nervous suspicion, he didn’t seem inclined to expose Quentin’s secret to the world. Gradually he was allowing himself to touch and be touched—especially with Irene, who was sober and quiet and changed in ways Johanna expected to find most remarkable.

What precisely had changed Irene remained to be explored, but Johanna suspected that she, too, had been forced to see herself clearly for the first time in many years. Johanna hoped to make Irene’s transition to reality as painless as possible. She and Lewis might be sufficiently recovered to leave the Haven in a matter of months.

As for Quentin…

She glanced up at him shyly, amazed all over again at the strength of her passion. She tried very hard not to let him see it. She’d accepted his support on the journey home, needing it more than she had any other man’s, glad enough to let herself be a little dependent for a few brief hours.

But she did not deceive herself. The Quentin who stood with her now was not the one who had left the Haven a mere few days ago. Oh, the alterations were subtle enough: They lay in his unflinching carriage, the challenge in his eyes, the assurance in his walk—the way he spoke, as if a real future existed, and the way he gathered everyone he cared for under the cloak of his protection. He was no longer afraid.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164

Leave a Reply 0

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *