Redhawk Caldera The snuggle is real

Assessment time at school = not much free time for Kim, ugh!

The moment before Finley finally elaborated seemed to stretch on forever. Elwood watched her, reminding himself to breathe, fighting the feelings of anger and betrayal that were now rising in his chest. His disbelief faded away slowly as she began to speak, revealing Lucy's location -- the Heartwood -- and her physical condition -- healthy, but anxious. Relief flooded him briefly; this rapid succession of emotions was new for Elwood, who usually processed things slowly and thoughtfully, and the myriad of feelings left him exhausted.

Lucy had run from her mother, which didn't surprise Elwood. The girl had been on her own for so long and there was no telling what she had seen and experienced during that time. There was an inexplicable sharpness in Elwood's chest at the mention of a new family, and he nodded, his gaze slipping past Finley to stare out beyond her. He pictured Lucy in his mind's eye, or tried to; it was difficult to imagine her as any larger than she had been when she disappeared. She would always be trapped in a child's body in her father's memory.

He didn't reply for a long few seconds, but continued to nod. The biggest heartbreak that he felt wasn't that Lucy had refused to come back to Redhawk Caldera, but that Finley had waited so long to tell him. What if she hadn't ever revealed the truth? The web of trust between them was thin enough, thanks to their history, and Finley had just stretched it to its absolute limits. Elwood wasn't quite sure what to do.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" he asked quietly, looking her in the face with a calmness that belied his inner turmoil.