It's all Greta can do to not just pick the girl up, throw her over her shoulder, and march her right back home. But she can't; it would be a betrayal (and if she's not Saoirse's birth mother, the least she can do is not be one of those mothers: the wicked kind). Instead, she reaches out to run her fingers over the soft, white fur, then to brush away Saoirse's tears.

"I have to call Thomas," she finds herself saying. Her voice comes out a bit hoarse, and she clears her throat before briskly continuing, "I just... I want him to see you before..." She can't finish the sentence, so she squeezes Saoirse's hands, hoping she'll understand. She doesn't want her to leave without Thomas getting the chance to say goodbye. And she doesn't want to be left standing alone on this bloody beach; she doesn't think she could bear that.