Stars Over Alaska (Wild River #4) - Jennifer Snow Page 0,7

Dawson’s death, and had thrown herself into researching these kinds of charities and applying for the appropriate licenses and aligning herself with the mental health institute of Alaska. She’d jumped in headfirst and it had become her new mission. Levi understood why. This was her way of coping, of not breaking down and disappearing behind a wall of despair. Everyone grieved in their own way. Karlene Powell planned and organized and felt better giving back to the world in some way in memory of her son.

Levi followed them to the table near the window. He pulled out both of their chairs and sat between the two women, doing his best to look and sound engaged, all in, but he was secretly hoping for an emergency call to get him out of there and back to keeping his best friend’s memory in his own way.

By remembering...

That kid was going to break his neck, but he’d be immortalized as the king of the playground.

His first day at Wild River Elementary, Levi stood at the border of the playground, watching all the other kids play. He knew this “new kid” routine well, having moved from one military base to another with his father for ten years. He never bothered to make a lot of friends or deep connections with the other kids, knowing he wouldn’t be there long.

This time was different. Or so his dad had said. This time, he’d be staying in the small ski resort town, living with his grandmother, who owned a bookstore on Main Street. Traveling around the country wasn’t right for a kid, his father had said.

Levi knew how hard it was on his father to leave him there, so he’d squared his shoulders, put on a brave face and shook his father’s hand as his dad left for another tour overseas.

Then he was desperate to keep up the brave act, facing yet another new school, another set of kids. Right now, he couldn’t take his eyes off the one balancing on top of the monkey bars—ten feet high, slick with ice so thick it glistened in the Alaskan winter sunshine. The boy looked about his age, but he was smaller than Levi. He’d removed his winter coat and gloves and was making his way across the bars, arms outstretched for balance. Not an amazing stunt during warmer months, but just then the entire metal surface was like a sheet of ice.

He was almost to the other side when his foot caught the edge of a rung and he lost his footing.

Instinctively, Levi dove and he didn’t exactly catch the other kid, but his body served as a crash mat beneath him.

“Hey, man, thanks,” the kid said.

“Yeah...no problem.” His ribs felt broken and the wind had been knocked from his lungs, but it was an easier way to make friends than having to actually walk up to a group and try to fit in.

“You’re the new kid, right?” the boy asked, getting to his feet and extending a hand to help Levi up from the ground.

“Levi,” he said.

“Nice to meet you, Levi. I’m Dawson,” he said just as a girl, tall and thin with short blond hair sticking out from under a purple hat, came toward them. She was the prettiest thing Levi had ever seen and he felt like his tongue had swollen.

“I got it,” she said, turning a small portable hand recording device toward Dawson. She eyed Levi and her piercing territorial look had him sweating. “Who are you?”

“This is Levi... He just saved my life,” Dawson said, glancing at the footage replay.

The girl scoffed. “You could have made the landing.” She shrugged. “No biggie. I’ll edit him out.”

Sounded about right. Wasn’t he always being edited out?

“See ya,” he said to Dawson as he started to retreat to the playground border again. He could take a hint. It was the same everywhere. By grade four, friendships had been formed, groups were established and no one liked to open their circle to the new kid.

“Wait... Come back,” Dawson called after him.

“What are you doing?” he heard the girl hiss.

“We could use him in the movie.”

They were making a movie?

“Hey, we’re making a movie about a stunt kid who learns he actually has superpowers and...”

“Shhh,” the girl had said.

“Come on, Leslie. He’d be great,” Dawson said to her.

Her cheeks flushed under Dawson’s gaze and she sighed as she turned to Levi. “Look, the only other part in the movie is the villain. We were going to ask my