She smiled. “I love you. No matter what happens…”
“Come to me, Dani.”
* * *
Ethan gazed around the small cabin, positive he’d stripped the inside clean. No proof of his stay remained. He’d called this area home for the last six years, and yet, he didn’t feel as if he was losing a part of his past, but forging into the future. Drover had always been home to him even when he’d turned his back on everything he loved. His heart remained in the territory he’d once claimed.
He had fallen comfortably into his job as a county forest ranger. He’d hid from his troubles, finding sanctuary within the cabin and the surrounding woods. It had been a good life, satisfying to an extent. Only when Dani had showed up had he realized how lonely he’d been and how wrong he was about staying away.
The pack needed him, and he’d do his best to make things right even if he died trying. Too many years had gone by. From what Dani told him, the safety and close-knit community from his childhood was long gone. The pack was in more danger than ever.
“Ethan!”
He dropped the backpack and hurried to the door. “Dani, what’s wrong?”
The door swung open, bouncing off the hard wooden wall. Dani stood in the doorway, a giant smile lighting her face. “You’ll never believe what I remembered coming back to the house.” He let his head fall back, stared up at the ceiling, and willed his heart to slow down. “Don’t ever yell like that. I thought you were in danger.” He straightened, inhaled, and grabbed her shoulders, tugging her close. “I can’t survive if something were to happen to you.”
“I’m sorry.” She pulled on his arm. “I didn’t mean to scare you, but I remembered something I overheard my father tell Butch Danielson. Do you remember him…he’s married to the human who runs the convenience store at Third and Alder?”
He nodded. “Yeah, I know him.”
“Dad and Butch were talking outside the house…I must have been around seventeen, eighteen years old.” She shook her head. “I’m not positive, but it was years ago—”
“And?” He clasped her upper arms to keep her from pacing. “What did you hear?”
“Dad said that the only way to bring Greggoire down was to get rid of Loren.” She scoffed. “I didn’t listen to anymore of their talk.
At the time, I didn’t concern myself with the way the pack was run, but I knew my dad was always unhappy with Greggoire and his family.
Do you know who Loren is? Is he important?” Ethan let Dani go, rubbed his jaw, and frowned. “That doesn’t make sense. Are you sure you were that old?”
Her brows drew together in thought. He waited, also remembering. But what she recalled wasn’t possible. There was no way she’d heard right, unless… He counted the years back. No, it doesn’t add up. It was before Dani was born.
“I was eighteen.” She nodded. “I’m positive.” His blood roared in his ears. He shook his head. “Impossible, little one.”
“It’s true. Why would I make something like that up?” She ran her hand along his arm.
He jerked. “Tell me what you were doing that day you overheard your father and Butch Danielson.”
“O-kay.” She felt his forehead. “You don’t look so well. What are you thinking? Do you think I remembered something important?”
“Please, Dani. Tell me what you were doing before you overheard.” He clasped her shoulder.
“Don’t leave anything out.”
“I-I had just arrived home from work. I worked at the bowling alley that summer after I graduated high school.” She swallowed. “Mom was somewhere else…I don’t remember. She was probably over at Butch’s house down the street.
Mrs. Danielson was her closest friend and lives down the street from our house. They’d visit each other almost every afternoon.” His hand tightened. My God, if this is true…
“Go on.”
“I grabbed an apple to eat out of the kitchen, and went back into the living room and sat down on the couch. The window above where I was sitting was open, because it was a really warm day. Butch’s voice rose, and my dad told him to quiet. That’s what drew my attention. I was curious to find out what was so secret that my dad would tell his friend to hush. The next thing he said was they’d need to get rid of Loren if they were going to succeed at bringing Greggoire down.” Dani wrinkled her nose. “My dad was easy going, he never got angry, but I could hear the frustration in his voice and it confused me.”