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cat half covered with snow and newspapers. As the papers moved, Grace realized there were at least three kittens huddled next to their mother, all of them half-frozen in the snow. If someone didn’t help them, they were going to die. She knew it without question.
    Anger made her hands clench. Had someone dumped a pet here to avoid unwanted kittens? Had they hoped that the storm would solve their problem? In Oregon she had seen that kind of callousness too often. She knew the fear and pain of abandoned animals only too well.
    But there was no time to be lost. The temperature was dropping and she needed something to hold the shivering animals. They wouldn’t survive the storm that was already pounding the outskirts of D.C.
    The big cat’s eyes were dusted with snow and she seemed to struggle to move, nudging one of the kittens closer to the shelter of her body. When she saw Grace lean down, her eyes pricked forward. Then she purred softly.
    Grace’s heart lurched at the sound of trust andhope. “I’ll find a warm home for you, sweetie. I promise. Let’s get you somewhere safe.” Grace scanned the Dumpster with her light, looking for a box. But most of the trash was gone; only newspapers remained in one corner. How was she going to bundle the strays back to her car, which was four blocks away?
    Frustrated, she leaned down into the Dumpster and rooted through the papers inside.
    â€œHello?” Snow crunched behind her. “Are you okay, ma’am?”
    Grace shot to her feet. A man stood at the mouth of the alley. He wore a black leather jacket and his dark hair was dotted with snow as he walked toward her.
    She cleared her throat, suddenly aware of how isolated she was here surrounded by shadows. “I’m fine.” She turned around and headed toward the back door of the restaurant at the other end of the alley.
    â€œAre you sure?”
    â€œAbsolutely.” She didn’t look back. She wasn’t taking any chances on a stranger in a dark alley.
    But the cat’s low cry made her stop short. It was so cold, so lost. How could she leave them out here, even temporarily?
    â€œIs that a cat I just heard? Out here in the snow?” The man bent down and lifted the piled newspapers, frowning at the wriggling shapes underneath. “Hell. She’s got four kittens here. They’re going to freeze if we don’t get them inside.” The man stood up, frowning. “I’ll go get my car. I’ve got towels and a blanket in the trunk. I just hope it’s not too late.”
    The concern in his voice was real. Grace knew she had to trust him. “If you can find a box, I’ll cover them with my coat. Please hurry. The mother cat looks very weak.”
    â€œKeep your coat. I’ll use mine.” Carefully he shouldered off his leather jacket and added his thick wool sweater. Hand knit, Grace noted. Someone had taken great care in working those intricate cables and ribs.
    She wondered if it was the work of a mother. A sister.
    A wife?
    Shivering, she watched him slip one leg over the Dumpster. “Do you have a box?” she asked.
    â€œJust found one.” Leaning lower, he pulled his sweater over the pile of papers, not quite touching the cat. “That should help. Now I’m going for my car. It won’t take me more than a few minutes. Will you be—”
    â€œI’ll be fine. But it’s getting very cold and those kittens are so small. Just hurry. ”
    Â 
    A N ETERNITY SEEMED TO PASS as she waited.
    Grace heard the distant sound of sirens and passing cars. Her feet were nearly numb as she hovered over the cat, talking in a reassuring tone through teeth that chattered.
    Finally, car lights flared red at the front of thealley. Grace felt a wave of relief when the man appeared, carrying a big raincoat with a towel folded inside it.
    â€œYou okay, ma’am?”
    â€œF-fine. Just a little c-cold. This mother cat is