Ajax's POV
Ajax didn't remember falling asleep on the couch, but when consciousness returned, sunlight was filtering through the window. For a brief moment, it felt like any ordinary morning.
Then the memories crashed back. The blinding flash of light. The cruel laughter echoing through the trees. The acrid stench of poison contaminating the creek, and Sally's protective arms wrapped around him when he'd stumbled home.
He remained still for a moment, attempting to calm the frantic pounding in his chest. Sally was still asleep beside him, curled close with her breath warm against his throat. Her hand rested over his heart, and he could feel how erratic it still beat beneath her palm. She didn't stir when he shifted slightly, but the comfort of her touch settled him in a way nothing else could.
Hours earlier, when he'd stumbled into her embrace, shaking and barely in control of his wolf, he'd expected her to freeze or pull away in fear.
