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Jake walks in, "You need soives him a look, "I need to put you on this table and you can biteup there"

Leo snarls but Jake ignores it He reaches around and grabs hi nips and snorts froe timber wolf I see a bit of blood on Jake’s arm He doesn’t even flinch

Leo lies down on the table, looking uneasy Star puts her hands up, "This you can handle I’ bit"

I stroke his face, "Hey, it’s rab some scissors and cut back the tufts of fur The bulletIt missed the bone cohs, "Yeah sure He’s already done his worst"

I start the cleaning and look at Jake, "I’ to trust et why you don’t trust hi but be your friend"

I nod, "I know and I’m sorry I wish I’d asked for help I had no idea ere walking into"

He nods, "There used to be a saying, Dad always said it whenThere is no ‘I’ in tearoup of individuals"

I sew the wound together Leo sits, letting Jake pet his face He doesn’t bite hiain

Will walks in, "Sarah is sleeping"

I look up at him, "Thanks"

He turns and walks out Jake ht kill you in your sleep"

I snort, "God, I hope so" And I do Because if he doesn’t, the cold hate is going to consume me and I’ll kill everyone until I’ve satisfied it

I understand why I never let anything in beyond Leo Things and people end They don’t take everything with theh; there is always a little bit left over that burns you inside

We finish with Leo and force ain We follow Jake to the living rooe chairs The house is quiet Anna and Bernie are snuggled into a chair Star is sitting on the floor next to the TV that doesn’t serve a purpose anymore Will is on the couch Jake sits beside him I sit on the floor and let Leo coets up and passes us so things thatdrink and feel the burn It feels good, warlass and wonder who is going to talk first

No one does for a long tiirl who ever toldsip of ice-cold water on a hot day’ I asked her when she’d ever had ice-cold water and she replied, never I just heard Mo the woods To Meg"

We all laughed and drank a huge gulp My head started to spin

Star held up her glass, "To Meg, thank you for showing me how to cook deer properly, since I couldn’t do it, even if the dahed harder and took back another big gulp

Anna whispered into Bernie’s ear He held up his glass, "This is froirl who told me to tell Emma to stick it up her kazoo, when I told her she wouldn’t let hed and nodded Kazoo was a weird word I swore she ined she , s so seriously" I drank it back, knowing it wasn’t funny but it was true She was always chewing a piece of grass and telling me tome to just love both brothers and let them sort out the details I drank back the last of my drink

"How did you meet her?" Bernie asked

I sniffled, "She savedbad"

Bernie looks surprised, "She saved you?"

I nod, "We ith the others, in cages I was about to be… next thing I knew, he was dead and there was little Meg cussing at me to hurry up and run away She’d stabbed hie She didn’t stop talking for days Momma this, and momma that, and Auntie Heather, and Leo was sort of useless for a pet He wasn’t as great as her precious hounds" My eyes gloss over and I finish the drink, "She was one of lance at Anna She sood person"

Jake laughs, "She was just crazy enough to be fun, but had h and hold "

I wake the next ry ly eleven-year old and walk to the bathroom I pull off my clothes and look at myself naked I’h and clis everywhere, but every time I think about the pain, my brain chi that pain The cold hate feels lessened by the people in the house

I cli in a corner in the bathroom I wrap myself with a towel and walk to her I drop to my knees, "You okay?"

She shakes her head, "I had a bad dreaain"