"You made it," she called, her voice low and warm.
Natalie didn’t trust herself to speak. She just nodded. They closed the distance between them in a few long strides, and then Olivia was wrapping her arms around her, tight and grounding. Natalie stiffened at first, her body not yet used to comfort but then she melted into the embrace, her forehead pressing against her friend’s shoulder.
"You’re here," Olivia murmured. "You’re really here."
There was history in their embrace. Years of friendship, late nights studying for exams with coffee-stained notes and laughter echoing off dorm walls. Summers spent on wildlife fieldwork together, ankle-deep in mud or perched in trees watching nesting falcons. The kind of bond that didn’t need upkeep to stay whole. When they pulled apart, Natalie saw the questions in Olivia’s eyes, but none were spoken. Not yet.
"Come inside," Olivia said, taking her bag. "I put you in the private guest cabin at the edge of the woods. It’s quiet and gets good sun in the mornings. I figured you could use both."
They walked together along a stone path that curved past a low enclosure where two foxes napped beneath a wooden shelter, their russet coats glowing in the light. A hawk circled overhead, wings spread wide, gliding on invisible currents. Every detail seemed heightened here, clearer somehow, the bark rougher, the sky wider, the light cleaner. Natalie felt like she had crossed into another world.
"This place is magical," she murmured.
Olivia smiled. "It saved me, too."
The guest cabin was small but lovely, with cedar plank walls, a covered porch, and a view of the distant ridge. Inside, itsmelled faintly of woodsmoke. A small bed sat beneath a wide window, a quilt folded neatly at the foot. There was a writing desk, a couch, a stoneware lamp, a shelf lined with paperbacks. A pitcher of water and a bowl of fresh-picked apples waited on the dresser, and a single framed photo of a fox cub peeked out from the nightstand.
"It’s beautiful," Natalie said softly.
"It’s yours for as long as you need," Olivia replied. "Unpack later. Come see the place first."
They walked together, the rhythm of it slow, natural. The sanctuary unfolded in gentle spaces. Pens lined with pine shavings, a feeding station nestled beside a thicket, an open-air aviary where barn owls blinked down from wooden beams.
Olivia showed her the clinic, with its modest surgery room and shelves lined with carefully labeled jars. Jars that held herbs, treatments, and tools. The scent of antiseptic mingled with cedar, and the walls were pinned with notes, feeding schedules, and Polaroids of animals who had come through and gone free.
"We get all kinds," Olivia explained. "Birds of prey, foxes, raccoons, even the occasional bear cub. Most come in injured or orphaned. We do our best to give them a second chance."
Natalie nodded, her hands folded in front of her. She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed this kind of work until now, the raw, essential care of living things. No bureaucracy. No practice board meetings. Just need, and response.
A white-tailed deer watched them from a nearby enclosure, her eyes dark and unafraid. Olivia leaned on the fence beside Natalie.
"She was hit by a snowplow in February. Broken hind leg. Took three surgeries and more than one argument with the vet in town, but she’s healing."
"What happened to the old vet, Martin?"
"Retired. The new one is young and textbook-smart, but he hasn’t quite learned how to listen yet."
Natalie smiled faintly. "I remember being that kind of smart."
Olivia chuckled. "Didn’t we all."
They looped back toward the main cabin, the sun now dipping low enough to paint the mountains in dusky lavender. The air had cooled noticeably, and the scent of wood smoke curled from the chimney above the lodge.
Olivia glanced sideways at her. "You don’t have to tell me anything. Not until you’re ready. But just know... I’m here. We all are."
Natalie swallowed hard, the kindness burrowing inside her chest. She wasn’t used to being seen like this. Broken at the edges, cracked down the middle.
"Thank you. I think I need a few days to settle."
"Then that’s exactly what you’ll do."
As they neared the cabin again, Natalie caught sight of a young man crouched near the aviary, coaxing a red-tailed hawk onto a glove. He looked up, nodded to Olivia.
"There’s Davey," Olivia said. "He helps out full-time now."
Natalie blinked. "Davey? That’s little Davey?"
"Not so little anymore," Olivia said with a wry smile. "He’s... had a few setbacks lately so he’s just finding his way."
