EMMA JANE SANK INTO the warmth of the hug offered to her by Vanessa and felt her mind slow down. It had been so long since anyone had touched her in any way that she wasn't sure how to process her feelings. She felt the ever-present loss of her mother and brothers, but for the first time in what seemed like forever, she also felt a spark of warmth where her heart was. It had been so long since she'd felt it, she almost didn't recognize it for what it was. The last time she'd felt it had been before her grandmother died. She'd lived a long life, but one day, it had been her time to go to the ancestors as well.
Emma Jane had buried that warmth with her kokum, over ten years ago now. She realized she hadn't really even had friends during all her years of hunting, preferring to be alone inste
