Redhawk Caldera Handle With Care

how could she tell dwin that a child's story was making her feel worse? that all she wanted to do was pack up the kids and leave, or just leave herself. their legacy was blackthorn. bronco was their father. she couldn't drag them out of here, either; she had to stay until they were old enough and healed enough to recover.
and where did that leave her? a half-woman, a shadow hanging somewhere between bronco and somewhere between reyes. a wolf defined by the husbands she'd outlived, the daughter who had left her, the three who now suffered in agony the death of their father.
realizing she'd been silent for a long time now, teya inhaled and wiped the drizzle of tears from her face. "your mom is right. kids believing in things — it teaches rest of us how to believe so hard." did her children think he would come back? did frolic?
a tree, springing up overnight to stand in brecheliant and speak with that sweet voice.
teya laughed in spite of it all, in spite of herself.