Page 253 of Track of Courage

A beat. “You think this Thornwood fellow is really a Sorros?”

“Could be. He attacked a couple of the men at the community and tried to burn their barn down.”

“Seriously. You guys safe?”

He didn’t know what to say. “The sooner you can get here, the better.”

“I’ll let Deke know. He’ll look into it.”

“Anyone seen Wilder?”

“I dunno. Keep your head on a swivel.”

“Yeah. Did my mom make it to town?”

“She and your dad are out at his place.”

Interesting.

“Stay safe. I’ll get there as soon as I can.”

Static, then Echo’s voice came back. “I’ll talk to Dodge. We’re still grounded at Sky King Ranch, but if Moose can makeit to Woodcrest, maybe Dodge can pick you guys up at the outpost.”

“Thanks, Echo.”

“AL7SKY out.”

He turned off the radio, his heart thumping. His knee had started to thaw, to ache, but with the fading light, he needed to get moving.

His hands and face had at least warmed up. Retrieving snow from the porch, he doused the fire, then replaced the ham and closed up the place behind him.

The wind had died, the cold biting but not as savage as he clipped on his skis, grabbed the poles, and headed out on his trail. Easier going back with the trail already cut, and he found a rhythm for himself, moving above the riverbank, just outside the edge of the forest. His knee had gone silent again, his body working up a sweat as he raced the setting sun. It bled out fire along the river, long shadows stretching before him.

“Or what if we walked together,beyond the frozen frontiers? Could the warmth we found inthe cold be ours to keep?”

His own voice came back at him.“The sooner you can get here,the better.”Shoot. Probably for the best, but at least now he knew Sully’s place wasn’t a crime scene. Moose’s words about Sully made him ache, but at least they hadn’t been murdered, or something just as terrible, and the fact that was where his brain led him made him wonder if perhaps...

What if he made his leave of absence permanent?

And now the cold and the wind and Keely’s sweet goodbye kiss had infected his brain. All he’d ever wanted to do, tobe, was a cop.

He glanced at the river, listening to the soft swish of his skis. No...

All he ever wanted to do was protect the people he loved.

He could protect Keely. Maybe ... what if she said yes to becoming the guardian for her child? He could...

What? Be a dad? He could barely care for his stray dog. In fact, it seemed Caspian took care ofhim.

Still, the thought became an ember inside Dawson as he skied. He didn’t have to stay in Copper Mountain. And if his mother and father were somehow getting along...

Bliss wasn’t Keely—he knew that. He’dmetthe real Keely. Maybe they could find something real and true and forever off the stage, out of the limelight.

And if she decided to step back in, could he stand on the sidelines, watching?

But what about the tragedy and darkness and danger that seemed to chase him?

Or perhapshechased it.