Across the Vanishing Sky (Starlight Grove, #1)
Catherine Cowles
For all those looking for belonging, for a true home.
Never give up hope. You might just find it in the unlikeliest of places.
PROLOGUE
BRAEDYN
ONE YEAR EARLIER
“If I get poison ivy on my hoo-ha, my revenge will be vast, Braedyn Winslow,” Nova threatened as we rounded a curve in the trail with an especially thick patch of underbrush. “I’m talking putting your hand in warm water while you’re sleeping, Sharpie-ing something distinctly inappropriate on your face, and possibly dyeing your hair purple. Peeing in the woods is not for me.”
I couldn’t help the soft laugh that escaped as I turned around to take stock of my best friend, who’d just returned to the trail from a mid-trek bathroom break. She’d committed to the hiking bit, seeking out secondhand finds at Goodwill that made her look like she conquered dozens of miles in the backcountry every weekend. Her dark hair was pulled into an artful knot atop her head, and her gray eyes had that tinge of silver that only came when her emotions were heightened.
Right now, I couldn’t decide if Nova was more annoyed or amused. It only made my smile widen.
Nova stopped mid-trail and pointed her colorful water bottle at me—the one she’d decorated with stickers that would’ve painted a picture of who she was to a stranger: A girl with her hands in a meditative prayer position in front of her chest with the words Namaste in bed scrawled below. A little chicken nugget with sunglasses that said Nugs not drugs. A pink cooler that read Don’t hate me because I’m a little bit cooler.
There were also more typical ones: one for both the yoga studio and coffeehouse she worked at in Oakland, a shooting star, a holographic butterfly… Each thing was a little piece of Nova’s sparkly personality, as was the gold, heart-shaped locket dangling from her neck.
“I don’t appreciate that smile,” she bit out.
It only made the curve of my lips grow. “Don’t worry, princess. I’m looking out for your delicate sensibilities.”
Nova scowled in my direction. “We live in a city. We grew up in a beach suburb. How did you get to be so at one with the woods?”
She was right. Oakland was about as far from Starlight Grove as you could get. Not in distance—that was only about four hours—but everything else about them was night and day. Our home, about thirty minutes outside of San Francisco—at least when it wasn’t rush hour—had a population of about half a million people. Starlight Grove, about an hour south of the Oregon border, had about one thousand.
It was one of the reasons I’d picked this spot for our girls’ weekend—the weekend that was supposed to be a thank-you for everything Nova had done for me these past seven years. But on second thought, the hike up Three Creeks Canyon might not have been the best gratitude gift.
Just the thought of seven years had me wanting to pull my phone from my shorts pocket to see if I had an update from the Cub Scout leader in charge of the camping trip not more than an hour from here. I’d gotten one this morning before we left for our hike, letting me know everything was great. Owen had slept well and was super excited for their fishing expedition that day.
But worry still niggled. This was his first time away from me for more than one night. What if he got sick or scared or—?
“Don’t tell me you conned me into this so-called adventure because of your Bigfoot obsession,” Nova grumbled and dropped her gaze to my shirt.
I knew exactly what she was looking at: the image of Bigfoot with a sunset sky behind him and the words Believe in yourself, even when no one else does.
I shook off my worries for Owen, picturing his blond hair in a shade so similar to my own. The slope of his nose with the smallest upturn was all me, too. Really the only thing that was his father were his eyes—green irises that felt like they could see right through you. But those eyes were the only thing Vincent had given our son.
“Earth to Braedyn,” Nova singsonged.
“Sorry, I swore I heard a Bigfoot call,” I teased.
Nova whirled around. “It’s probably a goddamned bear. And if I get eaten—”
“You’ll shave off my eyebrows and tattoo your vengeance across my forehead,” I finished for her.
She turned back, hands on her hips. “I will haunt your ass.”
I burst out laughing and pulled her into a hug. “I’m so glad because I’d be lost without you.”
I held on a little longer than necessary, and my action had Nova hugging me tighter. More like a sister than a best friend, she always knew when I needed a little extra something. Knowing each other since practically birth had given us that—the kind of bond that didn’t even need words.
Still, she gave me them. “What’s going on?”
I gave her one last squeeze before releasing her. “I don’t know. Owen’s first big overnight trip…it has me remembering everything you’ve done along the way. You’re the best friend a girl could ask for. That anyone could ask for.”
Nova’s face went soft as she squeezed my hand. “I didn’t do that much.”
I made a face. “Supernova,” I began, using the nickname my son had given her, “when my world exploded, you were the one who picked up the pieces. You moved across the country with me. You were my birth coach—”