Cedar Woman (176 page)

Lena
m
oved
t
o
t
h
e
l
ov
e
seat
b
es
i
de
t
h
e d
o
o
r
.
Head
i
n
h
and
s,
she
sa
t
, her he
a
rt
i
n
t
u
r
m
oil.
A
g
ain,
Ke
ll
y beg
a
n
t
o n
ud
g
e
her
I
n
a
’
s
ar
m
.

Kelly
loved
L
ena. She r
em
e
m
b
ered
wh
en
h
e
r
Ina
an
d
her
bo
y
,

Logan, ca
m
e
into the b
i
g place whe
r
e other dog
s
, so
m
e
cats and oth
e
r soul
s
,
w
e
re
living,
all
of
th
e
m kept in
a
s
m
all
space
that
the
p
e
ople
th
er
e called
a
ca
g
e.
S
h
e
h
ated
no
t
b
ei
n
g
a
b
le
to
r
u
n
a
n
d
longed
to
b
e
free. There were
f
e
w
pets,
ev
e
n
few
e
r
s
c
ratch
i
ngs
a
n
d
st
r
ok
i
ng
s
,
an
d
e
v
e
n t
h
o
u
gh
t
h
e
p
eo
p
le t
h
ere
were
k
in
d
,
t
h
ere was little l
ov
e in
t
h
e
b
ig
p
lace.

Lo
g
an
wa
s
t
h
e
firs
t
t
o
s
p
o
t
h
er
.
S
he
la
y
i
n
t
h
e
ca
g
e
,
h
er
n
o
s
e
b
e
tween
h
er
p
a
ws,
d
e
pressi
o
n
p
e
r
m
ea
t
i
n
g
h
e
r
v
ery bei
ng
, u
n
til
s
h
e
saw
Lo
g
a
n
’s face
light up.
Kelly
rose, h
e
r
ears
twit
c
h
i
ng
as
her he
a
rt
filled
with hope. “In
a
!
I
f
o
un
d
t
h
e
o
n
e
!”
L
og
a
n
h
a
d
c
r
i
ed.
R
u
n
n
in
g
t
o h
e
r, he
dr
o
p
p
e
d
t
o his
k
n
ees a
n
d
op
e
n
e
d
t
h
e ca
g
e.
Kelly
j
u
m
p
ed
i
n
t
o
h
i
s
ar
m
s,
tail
wag
g
i
n
g. She
k
n
e
w
,
she
ju
st
k
n
e
w
,
t
h
at
she
h
ad
f
ound
a
way
o
u
t
o
f t
h
e
b
ig
p
lace a
n
d i
n
to a
b
etter life
–
i
n
t
o
a f
a
m
i
l
y
.

W
h
en
s
h
e
came
h
o
m
e
t
h
at
d
ay,
h
e
r
heart filled
with
jo
y.
Her
bo
y
lay on
t
h
e
fl
o
o
r
with
h
e
r,
petting
a
nd
s
c
ratchi
n
g
b
e
hi
n
d
h
er
ears.
Kel
l
y t
u
r
n
ed o
v
er, e
x
p
o
s
i
n
g
h
e
r belly,
sayi
ng
,
i
n
h
er own w
a
y, “I
tr
u
st
y
o
u, B
o
y
.”
L
o
g
a
n
r
u
b
b
e
d
h
e
r da
p
p
led belly obli
g
i
n
gly and
w
h
isper
e
d,
“
I
l
o
ve y
ou
.”
Kelly
d
i
d
n
o
t yet
kn
o
w t
h
e words, b
u
t she recog
n
ized
t
h
e t
on
e
, and i
n
side, h
e
r
so
ul e
x
pl
o
d
ed w
i
th j
o
y
.

L
o
gan
t
o
o
k
h
e
r
o
u
t
to
t
h
e
b
i
g
wat
e
r,
a
n
d
t
h
ey
wa
l
k
ed
an
d
pla
ye
d
, Kelly
filli
n
g
her
se
n
ses with
t
h
e
sig
h
ts,
so
u
n
d
s
and
s
m
e
l
ls
o
f
h
e
r
n
e
w ho
m
e.
That d
a
y was
vivid
in her
m
ind.
Her elation
and h
a
pp
i
ness
since t
h
at
t
i
m
e
nev
e
r
left
h
e
r,
an
d
her
g
r
atitude to
h
e
r
I
n
a, a
n
d her
b
o
y
was b
ou
ndles
s
.

Ke
ll
y
n
ud
g
ed
Lena
’
s
arm
a
g
a
i
n.
Lena
loo
k
ed
u
p
f
r
om
her
cr
a
d
lin
g ha
n
d
s
i
n
t
o Ke
l
l
y
’s
c
h
o
c
o
l
ate,
b
r
o
w
n
e
y
e
s
.
K
e
ll
y chu
f
fe
d
,
“
Hu
m
pf
f
,”
as
i
f to
say,
“W
h
at
is
t
h
is
all
a
bo
u
t
?
”
S
m
i
li
ng
,
Le
n
a
caressed
Kelly
a
g
ain
as t
h
e
l
o
vi
n
g
c
a
n
i
ne
laid h
e
r
he
a
d u
po
n
L
e
na
’
s
kne
e
.