Chapter 5 - Emma
Grace and I wandered through the streets of Silver Falls.
Grace’s mouth was a large O of amazement and childlike excitement as we explored the town.
It hadn’t changed much since I had last been here.
A few more shops and boutiques had opened up, and a chain grocery store was now right on the outskirts of town rather than a ten-minute drive away.
But for the most part, it hadn’t lost its small-town charm.
That had been one of the few things I liked most about Silver Falls before leaving.
I had loved the comforting feeling of walking familiar streets, of wandering into the general goods store or the homemade confectionery shop, where I could dig a large scoop into barrels of candies to drop into a plastic bag while waiting for a fresh batch of ice cream made in-house.
The streets were mostly straight, except where they wound around natural formations.
To the pack, the land here was sacred, and destroying it any more than necessary was effectively a sin.
Modernizing the town was one thing, but carving into any of the natural beauty or the large mountains nearby was a no-go without permission.
We meandered past the school where Grace would be going, and I pointed out the nearby park we could go to.
Silver Falls was a decent-sized pack, which was still small for a town in terms of population.
Only about a thousand people, enough for everyone to know everyone.
Trails for shifters and hikers alike wound all around the pack land outside the houses.
We did get the occasional tourist, but we were typically small and bland enough that they left after a couple of hours, more interested in Sedona or other similar touristy spots.
In a way, part of me loved this town still, despite myself.
What I hated, and what was still blatantly prevalent throughout the town, was the mentality of the people.
By now, word had gotten out that not only had I returned home, but that I was supposed to be the pack’s new luna.
I’m sure the gossip had spread like wildfire.
So while I was taking Grace around, pointing out Dewey’s Diner at the corner of town, or the restaurant with the best cactus fries near the center of town, or the clothing store I used to go to on a weekly basis, I was painfully aware of the stares at my back, burning me between my shoulder blades.
I saw people staring at me, leaning over to whisper to a friend behind a hand.
I did my best to ignore them, continuing to point things out to Grace as we maneuvered around. The entire time, I kept guiding her toward our final destination, a surprise that I knew she wouldn’t be expecting.
The sound of rushing water grew louder as we approached. I couldn’t help the small smile that crept over my face. Despite everything, despite the situation, I could help but look forward to coming back here.
“And here was my favorite place growing up,” I said, just before we rounded the corner.
Grace’s eyes grew wide as we turned, and the massive mountain at the edge of town loomed overhead. But what made Grace gasp, and what took my own breath away, was the waterfall cascading down the rocks.
The oasis beneath, a pristine blue where you could see the bottom, already had several people bobbing up and down inside, mostly children but a handful of older people as well. The area around it had been built up with stone platforms and seating areas, making it close to a swimming pool.
“This was my favorite place growing up,” I told her.
“Wow,” Grace breathed, her eyes as big as saucers. “It’s ginormous!”
Timidly, she looked up at me, the hope and excitement on her face unmistakable, and so eager that I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Go on,” I said to her unanswered question. “There’s a reason I had you wear your bathing suit.”
Grace’s face lit up with childlike joy, a giant grin spreading across her face. She seemed as enchanted with this place as I once was.
She managed to pause just long enough for a hurried, “Thanks, Mom!” before she ran off toward the oasis, jumping into the deep end without bothering to take off the clothes over her bathing suit.
I kept an eye on the still-rippling water as I slowly approached.
Grace had always been an exceptional swimmer, especially for her age.
A moment later, Grace’s head emerged above the water.
She waved at me before swimming away, clearly in her element.
It reminded me of how I had been when I was her age.
I had always felt most at ease in the water.
I had always wondered if that was because I could manipulate it, even if only a little bit.
In the end, it didn’t matter why. Not really.
I sat on the edge of the basin, my bare feet dangling in the cool water as I kept an eye on Grace.
She was currently chatting animatedly to two kids around her own age.
A tiny bubble of hope swelled in my chest as she laughed and the three started swimming around, chasing one another.
I might not have enjoyed my time in Silver Falls, but if Grace managed to find some friends and some happiness here, then at least uprooting my whole life and being dragged back to the place I hated would feel as though it had some sort of meaning.
My fingers dipped into the water, and I swirled them around, watching the ripples forming on the surface as my reflection shimmered and warped.
When I was a kid, I had always felt a connection to the water here.
It was the place I had felt most comfortable.
I used to pretend the water was talking to me, that I would ask it a question, and it would respond.
Why am I here? I asked the water, my fingers swirling and creating rippling patterns. Just tell me what I’m supposed to do. I don’t belong here.
The roaring of the waterfall seemed to intensify. I glanced up, watching the cascade as the rushing sound formed into words.
You are here because this is where you belong, and they need help. Stay. Everything will make sense soon enough.
I listened to the sound as it subsided back into rushing water, trying to figure out whether I had only imagined that or if those words had been real.
Despite myself, deep down, I felt they were real.
What they meant, though, I had no idea. But if I was supposed to be here, if I really belonged, then maybe things would work out for the better after all.
As I thought this, a shadow loomed over me, blocking out the sun. I craned my neck upward, half-expecting to see a cloud covering the sun. With a sharp jolt, I saw Elias looking down at me, the sun behind his head, illuminating his dark, shaggy hair almost like a halo.
My stomach lurched at the sight of him, an old twinge from years ago. I stood up, the water sloshing with the movement, droplets halfway up my calves dribbling onto the hot stone and drying in seconds.
“Hi,” I said.
“Hey.” His eyes swept the oasis. “I didn’t know you liked it here.”
You don’t know a lot of things about me, I thought, though I kept it to myself.
“It’s pretty,” I said. “And I wanted to show Grace around.”
His eyes landed on Grace, who was currently dipping beneath the water, dodging one of the kids as they played what looked like water tag. “How is she adapting?”
The question took me by surprise. “Well. It took her some time to get used to the situation and her grandparents. But I think she likes it well enough. We’ll see what happens when she starts school. I registered her, and she starts next week.”
He watched her play for a long moment. My heart thundered, wondering if he had noted the similarities in our eyes and noses.
I hadn’t dared bring up the truth about Grace.
I hadn’t known how to approach it. I didn’t know how he would react to finding out he’d had a daughter I had kept from him all these years.
I didn’t feel bad about hiding it. He had abandoned me and thrown me out.
If he was willing to do that to me, I wasn’t going to risk him doing the same to my daughter.
Still, ever since seeing him again, a small smudge of guilt had started spreading through me, growing larger each day.
Not telling him when I lived in a different town was easy.
Keeping it from him at close quarters was something else entirely.
The train of thought charging through my head spun around and around, carrying me with it so intensely that his next words took me by surprise.
“And how are you adapting?”
I frowned, forcing myself to pivot even as his words didn’t make sense. They sounded almost foreign coming out of his mouth.
“How am I adapting?” I asked, sounding a bit like an idiot as I parroted him.
He nodded.
I wasn’t sure why the question caught me so off guard. Maybe it was because he hadn’t exactly given me much choice in the matter one way or the other, so it didn’t seem like he cared. Or maybe it was I remembered the spoiled kid I once knew, who would never bother asking.
Stalling, I glanced over at Grace as I chewed over the question.
Elias was still waiting for an answer, glancing from me to the small cluster of children playing what might have been Marco Polo or might have just been tag while I formulated some form of response.
I could at least appreciate him trying to give me space to gather my thoughts.
After a long moment, I sucked in a breath, then exhaled.
“I never wanted to be back here,” I said, surprising myself at the honesty. “It was never part of the plan. I thought I’d left this place for good. So being back here is a shock, to say the least.”
“It’s for the good of the pack,” he said.
I snorted. “I’m aware. You made that perfectly clear when you kidnapped me.”
“I didn’t kidnap you,” he shot back.
I raised my eyebrow, lips pursed as I stared him down.
“I’m just following pack tradition.”