I hope and pray that you will return with Ben in the spring and join me here next summer. During this dark chapter of separation, I will spend the winter helping those your bravery has helped to set free. Until then, I’ll be waiting for you and missing you.
Amarok
Emma pressed the letter to her lips. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, inhaling the traces of his scent that clung to the paper. Joy surged in her and threatened to bubble over. Amarok was alive! Somehow, he’d gotten his totems. Emma glanced out the hospital window at the white landscape, a strange mirror-image of the barren, white hospital. A thick layer of frost sparkled across fresh mounds of snow, glimmering in the sunlight. Icicles hung like sculpted crystal from sagging tree limbs. So much snow had fallen while she’d been asleep. And so many changes had occurred since she’d fled from home that dark night. She leaned her head on the pillow and gazed into the mountains where she knew Amarok waited, as loyal and patient as ever. Emma smiled and her thoughts turned to spring.
The End
Acknowledgements
To Kate Kaynak, Vikki Ciaffone, Kendra Saunders, and all the people at Spencer Hill Press for believing in Amarok. To my literary agent, Jill Corcoran of the Herman Agency, thank you for never letting me give up. And to all the women of Operation Awesome, my local critique group, Toni Kerr and Lorena Mann—I owe you so much! I would also like to thank Vivienne’s 5th Street Cafe for letting me write Amarok while I was tucked away in a quiet corner, enjoying a cup of delicious tea.
About the Author
Angela Townsend was born in the beautiful Rocky Mountains of Missoula, Montana. As a child, Angela grew up listening to stories told by her grandparents, ancient tales and legends of faraway places.
Influenced by her Irish and Scottish heritage, Angela became an avid research historian, specializing in Celtic mythology. Her gift for storytelling finally led her to a full-time career in historical research and writing.
A writer in local community circulations, Angela is also a published genealogical and historical resource writer who has taught numerous research seminars. Currently, Angela divides her time among writing, playing Celtic music on her fiddle, and Irish dancing. She resides on a ranch, in rural Northwestern Montana, with her two children Levi and Grant.
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