Who was Paul, Jack wondered, but then Nicky was jumping up yelling, “Dad! What are you doing here?” A tall, thin man strode forward, his arms outstretched. Father and son gripped each other tightly, so tight Jack could see muscles bulge from the base of Nicky’s neck like thin ropes. Two other men waited just outside the door in the shadows, both wearing long, dark overcoats that looked out of place in Denali, where everyone else wore parkas. The men’s faces bore no expressions at all.
“I’m here, Son,” Paul said, his voice husky. “I’m through testifying. I’m—I’m so sorry I put you in so much danger.” His dark eyes filmed with tears as he looked around the room at the others and said, “I apologize to you all, from the very bottom of my heart, for endangering the lives of these children.” Since emotion seemed to overcome him, Jack wondered if everyone else should leave the room so Nicky and his father could have some privacy.
“Dad, we’re fine,” Nicky told him eagerly, his words muffled by his father’s deep embrace. When he pried free, he went to where Ashley stood, took her hand in his and said, “Ashley, I want you to meet my father. Dad, this is Ashley.”
“Hi,” Ashley said shyly. She gave a tiny wave, and Paul smiled at her.
Then, almost as an afterthought, Nicky added, “Oh, and this is Steven and Olivia Landon, and their son, Jack. Olivia is like, this animal guru, and she can take you all around Denali and tell you anything you want to know about the animals.”
Olivia reached out to take Paul’s hand. “I think that’s a slight exaggeration. But welcome to Denali.”
“And Steven is a photographer. When we’re back in Jackson Hole, you’ll get to see some of his pictures—they’re hanging in a gallery. And this is Jack. He’s the one who knew all about the snow cave—did anyone tell you about the snow cave we were in, Dad? We would have frozen to death for sure if Jack hadn’t known how to build it.”
“Yeah, but we also got pretty sick from the carbon monoxide poisoning,” Jack added modestly. He didn’t want to take too much credit—not after he’d almost killed them.
Paul looked different from what Jack had expected. Even though his clothes seemed expensive, his face was worn down and used up, as if life had weighed hard on him. Jack had imagined anyone working for the mob would have a broad barrel chest and a neck as thick as a tree trunk, but maybe he’d been watching too many crime shows on TV. He’d also expected to be afraid of this man, this former criminal. Yet Paul just appeared like any other father who might have shown up at his son’s soccer practice in Jackson Hole. Maybe, Jack decided, that was even more frightening.
Nicky’s father shifted uncomfortably when the two men in overcoats cleared their throats. His eyes flicked over to where the men stood, and the men gave back the barest nod. Nicky was in the middle of telling about the wolverine breaking into the snow cave when Paul interrupted quietly with, “Son, we have to go.”
Nicky froze. “What do you mean ‘go?’ You mean go now?”
Paul nodded slowly.
“Are we going home to Jackson Hole?”
With a smile that seemed like more of a grimace, Paul said, “No, we’re going to a new place. It’ll be great. We’ll be out in the country, with plenty of open space. This time I think you’ll be able to have that horse I promised you. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
“But I want to stay in Jackson Hole,” Nicky answered firmly. “I have friends now. Jack and Ashley.”
“I know, and I understand, but we can’t go back.”
“Dad, no!”
“Listen to me and try to understand. Chaz—that guy who took you—he was a hit man. Trust me, there are more where he came from. There are always more.”
“But—”
“Starting over’s the only way. It’s dangerous for us if we don’t do that.”
“So we’re leaving,” Nicky said with resignation. “When?”
“Right away.”
Nicky sagged. He looked over at Ashley. As if on cue, Olivia and Steven got up quietly, and Olivia said, “I’ll make some coffee. Would you like to join us for a cup, Annalie?”
Annalie slapped her thighs and stood, then walked toward the door. “How about you two fellows coming into the kitchen and joining us?” she suggested. “You have time for a cup of coffee, don’t you?”
The men looked at each other, then nodded. “Sure, we can do that,” one of them said. “Just a cup, though. We’re on a tight schedule.”
They accompanied Annalie to the kitchen. When Jack and Ashley started to follow the group as well, Nicky stopped them. “No, I want you guys to stay here with me. If this has gotta be good-bye, I don’t want to waste a minute.”
“Sure,” Jack told him. “We’ll stay if you want us to.” He felt awkward as he and Ashley perched on the edge of the sofa. Paul dropped down onto an overstuffed chair and dangled his thin hands between his knees, moving his fingers nervously as if he were used to holding a cigarette. Nicky sat in a chair directly across from his father.
It took Paul a moment to speak. “Do they understand about me?” he asked, pointing a finger toward Ashley and Jack.
“Enough.” Nicky’s tone made no apologies. “I’ve never told anyone before, Dad. But this was different. I wanted them to know who I was.”
“Of course. It’s all right. I’m just embarrassed.” Paul blinked hard. “It’s difficult to admit how much I’ve messed up my life. I’ve had to come to grips with that these past few months. And as bad as that was, the worst part is knowing that I’ve hurt my own child. You’re all I’ve got left, Son.”
Quietly, Nicky answered, “You’re all I’ve got, too.”
His father took a deep, wavering breath. “I’m going to promise you something, Nicky, and it’s a promise I’m going to keep. From now on things are going to be different. I’ve left that old life for good. Witness Protection’s giving me a new identity, and I’m going to make my fresh start count. You have my word.”
“I know, Dad, and that’s great, but—” he dropped his head into his hands and rubbed his temples. When he looked up, he seemed grim. “The problem is, when you trade in your old life, you trade in mine, too. I was just getting into a new life of my own, and now you’re taking it away from me. It’s not fair.”
Jack noticed the dark roots growing in Nicky’s hair. Maybe in his next home he wouldn’t have to dye it. Maybe he wouldn’t have to lie anymore. Nicky and his dad could start over, with crisp new government-issued identities. But once your life was erased, what was left? Who did you become? Did you get to choose?
“Son, I’ll spend what’s left of my days trying to make this up to you. If I could change the past I’d do it, but now all I can do is play out the hand I’ve been dealt.
My time here in Denali is already up. We have to go.”
Nicky didn’t answer. He stared at the carpet.
“Do you get what I’m telling you?”
After a moment, Nicky nodded.
“All right then. I’m guessing you want to say your goodbyes in private. I can give you that much.”
A flush crept up Nicky’s cheeks.
“So I’ll go into the kitchen with the others.” When Paul stood, he let his hand linger for a moment on the top of Nicky’s head. “Five minutes, and then we’ll leave. I’m—I’m sorry.” Moving quickly, he made his way to the kitchen.
Silence seemed to fill the room, and Jack searched his mind for something to say. Nicky kept his head bowed, and when he finally spoke it was as if he were talking to the floor. “So I guess I’m leaving,” he finally said. His voice was flat.
Ashley settled onto the floor next to the chair where Nicky sat. “Can you write me?” she asked him.
“I don’t think so. It’s not allowed.”
“Oh.” She began to pick up popcorn kernels that had fallen onto the carpet, throwing them one by one into the fireplace.
“It’s not fair!” Nicky shouted, finally raising his head. “I’ve never had a good friend—friends—like you guys. I mean, you know everything about me, and you don’t hate me. I really appreciate that. We’ve been through a lot together.”
“Yeah,” Jack agreed heartily. “We sure have.”
“Now I know never to make a snow cave without lots of ventilation. Although, with my luck we’ll end up in Arizona so I’ll never get to use that piece of information again.” He laughed, but it wasn’t a happy sound. “Look, the thing is—the thing is,” he started again, “I’m gonna call you guys someday. In a couple of years,” he promised, glancing at Ashley, “you can count on me showing up. Because good friends are hard to find. You know?”
“I know,” she answered softly. “But you’re like the fireweed, Nicky. No matter what, you’ll survive.”
“Thanks, Ashley.” Slowly, Nicky stood. “Well, I know the drill. I have to go pack now.”
“Need any help?” Jack volunteered.
Nicky just shook his head. “I’ve learned to travel light. Seems I’m always going somewhere.”
It was harder than Jack expected to see him go. He stood next to Ashley, waving at the shiny black Jeep as it drove away with the shadow men in front, Paul and Nicky in the back. They waved until the car disappeared beyond a bend in the road, swallowed by the spruce trees, and Ashley kept waving, even though there was nothing but the wind blowing back through the bare branches as if it were heaving a sigh. Jack grabbed the neck of his sweatshirt and pulled it tight. Neither of them had a coat on. He could feel his sister shiver.
“Well, there goes your first boyfriend.”
“He was not my boyfriend!” She punched his arm hard enough that it stung. “I’m only 11.”
“Eleven and half!”
“Whatever. Nicky’s just a friend. A really good friend.” She looked wistfully into the distance.
“It’s really strange to think about how he’ll change into somebody else. Can you imagine how it would be to wake up with a new name and a new life? Weird!”
Ashley hugged her sides tight. “I guess. But in a way, we change all the time, every day. I mean, look at us. We’re growing up. I’m different than I was yesterday, and I bet I’ll feel different tomorrow. It’s just the way things are.”
As Jack turned this thought over he realized what his sister said was true. Trying to stop life would be like trying to hold on to the northern lights—it couldn’t be done. But he didn’t have to like it.
“Remember, change is a good thing, Jack.”
“Yeah, I know. As long as it doesn’t come too fast.” He grabbed Ashley by the elbow. “Come on, we’d better get inside before you freeze to death.”
But his sister resisted his pull. “Nicky said he’d come back in a couple years. Do you think he’ll really do it?”
Jack paused. “If he does, I’ll be waiting for him.”
“We both will,” Ashley replied, smiling.