Dawn’s first pink smear touched the horizon. Alvarez exhaled. “You did it,” he said quietly. “He has a real chance now.” Noemi wiped her cheeks, feeling the dried tar crack and flake away. “We did it,” she corrected, then laughed—hoarse and incredulous.
Driving back toward her cottage, she realized her legs still shook, her heart still raced, but the dread that had haunted her for weeks felt distant, washed out by relief and wonder. Somewhere behind her, a wolf pup was alive because she refused to walk away.