Chapter 3

Ethan texted the next morning while I was making breakfast.

[Everything's taken care of. Tell Owen his dad will be there this time. Promise.]

I read it, set my phone down, and warmed a mug of milk for Owen. At eight thirty, we arrived at the airport. He chose seats facing the main entrance and put his backpack on the chair beside him. “That's for Dad.”

At nine thirty, he jumped up whenever someone came through the doors.

By ten, he was asking whether there might be traffic near the hospital. I called Ethan, but he didn't pick up. Owen watched me end the call.

I could've tried again, but I didn't want him counting the times it rang or searching my face for an answer I didn't have. I put the phone in my bag and held out my hand.

We went through security and waited again at the gate.

At the first boarding announcement, Owen slipped the binocular strap around his neck so Ethan would see it when he came around the corner. “Five more minutes, Mom? Please?”

“Okay. Five more.”

When those minutes were up, Brooke sent a photo.

Mason lay in his hospital bed watching cartoons on Owen's new watch. Ethan's coat was draped over the foot of the bed.

[Stop calling him. Mason cries every time he lets go. He's not leaving.]

A second message appeared almost immediately.

[You two can still have fun without him. My son actually needs him here.]

Owen was watching the corner of the concourse, not my screen. I put the phone away and adjusted the strap behind his neck. He'd worn his favorite sweatshirt so Dad could find him in the crowd. I smoothed the hood where it had bunched beneath the binoculars.

At ten thirty-five, Ethan finally called. “Claire, I'm sorry. Mason needs another test, and Brooke can't handle this by herself.”

“Where are you now?”

“Still at the hospital. I booked a later flight. Go ahead and check in at the hotel. I'll catch up tonight.”

Owen tipped his face toward mine. “Is Dad here?”

Ethan heard him. The line went quiet for a moment before his voice softened. “Take lots of pictures for me, buddy. I'll come find you as soon as I'm done.”

Owen's fingers closed around the binoculars. He didn't answer.

“Claire?”

“Okay.” I watched the boarding light above the desk. “We'll go without you.”

Ethan let out a breath, sounding relieved. He reminded me about the hotel shuttle, told me to keep Owen's jacket handy, and hung up.

Owen took off his binoculars and carefully lowered them into his backpack. “Will Aunt Nora pick us up?”

“Yes.”

“Then let's go see her.”

I canceled the mountain trip and took him to the other terminal.

This time, he didn't look back at the entrance. He ate all his macaroni at lunch, then we sat in a café by the window and drew a seagull too fat to fly. When our boarding call came, he zipped his backpack without being asked.

At two fifty, Elder Graham called. “Claire, the withdrawal period ends at three. I need to ask one last time. Do you want to cancel the application?”

I looked past the glass at the baggage handlers loading our plane. “No.”

“The bond dissolution and Owen's release from the pack?”

“All of it. Please proceed as agreed.”

Graham paused, then said, “Have a safe flight.”

I switched off my phone and took Owen's hand as we stepped onto the jet bridge. Our boarding passes said West Coast. Ethan didn't know we were going there. He didn't know I'd never booked us a flight home.

Back at the hospital, Ethan checked the time for the third time and reached for his coat. “A nurse can stay with you through the tests. The driver and caregiver will be here in ten minutes. I have to go.”

Brooke caught his sleeve. “Mason can't cope without you today. Stay one more night. Claire won't really hold it against you.”

Ethan pulled his sleeve free. “She will. So will Owen.” Saying it made him realize how long he'd gone without taking that possibility seriously.

“I missed his play. I left them at the park yesterday. He spent all morning waiting for me.” He opened his phone to check the new boarding details. “Your husband saved my life, Brooke. I won't forget that. But I have a wife and a son.”

“If you leave now, Mason will think you don't want him—”

“I'll make sure he's taken care of. But I'm not his father.”

At exactly three, his phone vibrated. He opened the message immediately, expecting Claire's reply. It was an official notice from the elders.

[Your mate-bond dissolution agreement has taken effect. Claire Bennett and her son, Owen, have been granted release from Cedar Ridge.]

Ethan stared at the date, the color draining from his face. “What agreement?”

The last word had barely left his mouth when the mate mark on his neck burned.

Pain tore through his chest. He reached for Claire through the mindlink on instinct, calling her name, but there was nothing on the other end.

As he tried again, the bond between them snapped.

His phone struck the floor, and Ethan dropped to his knees.