Arryn ducked outside and came back with a few sections of metal pipe. “Here’s the flue. I think you can set this up yourself, can’t you?”
“Yes, I can,” Ash replied.
Ezra set a cloth bag next to the stove. “Good. Then you don’t have to come down to breakfast at all. You can cook for yourselves here.”
“But who will take care of you and Arryn?”
Arryn set his hands on his hips. “I can cook as well as you can.”
“Now, honey,” Ezra chided, “you’re married now. You don’t worry about me and Arryn anymore. You concentrate on building a life with your man here. Maybe we could have you over for Sunday dinner sometime.”
June couldn’t take her eyes off that stove. It filled up the room, but it made the cabin into a real home.
Ezra smiled and kissed her on the forehead. “You two have a pleasant evening. I promise we won’t come back again.”
Ash shook his hand for probably the millionth time that day. “Thank you.”
Ezra and Arryn vanished into the dark, and Ash closed the door a second time. June murmured under her breath. “I can’t believe it.”
Ash sat down next to her, but she didn’t turn. He kicked off his boots and stretched out on the bed. He rubbed her back. “Hey, darlin’.”
She turned around, but she didn’t see him right in front of her. “They didn’t have to do that.”
He drew her down on top of him. “Lie down here with me.”
She rested her head on his chest, but her eyes still darted around the room. She couldn’t relax. “It’s really true, then, isn’t it? We’re married—for real.”
He breathed into her hair. “Yeah.”
“You’re here, and you’re staying here.”
“I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.”
She closed her eyes and buried her face in him. “I never thought this day would come. I never thought I’d be lying here, in our own house, with our own stove, and our…”
Ash’s laughter interrupted her. “That stove! What did you think they would give us—a matter replicator?”
Her head shot up, and she frowned at him. “A what?”
“Forget it. I’m just being stupid. It’s an old joke. You wouldn’t understand.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Are you making fun of me?”
“No, darlin’, I’m making fun of myself. You people really pulled a fast one on me, thinking you were hillbillies or something. You walking around in your bare feet and living in a dirt shack. You must have been splitting your sides while my back was turned.”
“No one laughed at you.”
Ash chuckled to himself. “It seems so outrageous in hindsight. You sure had me fooled. You could have knocked me over with a feather when you took me downstairs and I saw that train.”
June’s frown softened until she smiled. “Were you really amazed?”
He smacked his lips. “What do you think? No one has that kind of technology, not even the humans. You’ve been around it all your life so you’re used to it. Here I was, thinking you were poor and unfortunate country cousins. Turns out it’s us who are poor and unfortunate compared to you. And you let me go on about how well off we were.” He clucked his tongue. “You really know how to play the game, don’t you?”
She laid her head down. “I feel bad now that we had to lie to you.”
He petted her head. “Don’t feel bad. You did right. You’re the best showmen on the planet.”
She lifted her head. “No more shows. No more secrets.”
He kissed her, and their eyes locked. “No. No more. Just you and me and this.”
She sank into his embrace. He rolled sideways, and their bodies fit together in perfect harmony.
20. Chapter 19
Arryn slung a battered canvas backpack onto his back. Ash looked him over. “You look all right. Do you have everything?”
Arryn patted his pocket. “I have all the names and numbers you gave me, and the map of Bruins’ Peak so I can’t get lost. I’m going to your uncles first, and we’ll take it from there.”
Ash smacked his lips. “Man, I wish I was going with you. I would make sure you had the time of your life.”
“I’m already having the time of my life. I’m going where no NightShade has gone before.”
Ash laughed. “You remember what I told you. Make sure you don’t get mixed up with Rhys Dodd. He’ll make trouble for us, for war or for peace. That guy has serious issues, and he doesn’t think much of me or Foicks. If he finds out you came from me, he’ll fight you no matter what.”
“Yeah, you told me a million times.”
Ash shrugged. “Sorry, man. I just want you to be as prepared as you possibly can be.”
“I am.”
“I wish you were taking a phone or something. What if something happens to you out there?”
Arryn patted his shoulder. “I’ll be fine. You’ve done more than enough to prepare me. Now come on. I gotta say good-bye to Daddy and June. I can’t stand around jawing all day long.”
The two men strolled down the sunny path. The winding trail cut back and forth between the trees to drop down the mountain. Ash and Arryn met Ezra and June on a patch of grass where the sun slanted between the trees.
Ezra shook hands with Arryn, but that handshake turned into a heartfelt embrace. “I’m proud of you, son. You’re gonna do our people proud out there.”
“Thanks, Daddy. I’m sure gonna miss you.”
Ezra sniffed. “Now don’t start that, or you’ll make me cry. Get on your way and carry our message.”
Arryn pushed his father back and turned to June. She kissed his neck and held him tight. “You take care of yourself out there and come back safe.”
“I will.” Arryn turned to Ash one last time. “You take care of these people for me. I’m trusting you.”
Ash squared his shoulders. “I’ll take care of them. You can leave them with me.”
“I know I can.”
Ash looked him up and down. “Do you have your money for the bus fare? Remember what I told you about the bus. Keep your stuff with you at all times.”
Arryn laughed. “Yeah, you told me.”
Ash’s shoulders slumped. “All right, man. I won’t ask anymore.”
Arryn grabbed him and pulled him against his chest. He thumped Ash on the back and kissed his ear. “Thanks, man. Thanks for everything. I wouldn’t be able to do this if I didn’t know you were here looking after the home folks.”
Ash wrapped his arms around the big NightShade. In just a few weeks, he came to love Arryn like another brother. Now that he made his home on Renegade Ridge, Arryn was the only brother he had left. “Don’t worry. No one is lifting a finger against these people as long as I’m around.”
Arryn pushed him back. He smiled, but tears sparkled in his eyes. “I’ll be seeing you.”
He strode on down the path. He stopped to wave where it turned into the trees. Ash, June, and Ezra waved back, but they couldn’t see his face well enough to see if he was smiling or crying. A moment later, the woods took him.
Ezra wilted. “There he goes.”
June put her arm around his middle. “He’s gonna be okay.”
“I know.” Ezra sighed. “All my children kept disappearing. Pretty soon, I won’t have anybody left.”
“We’re still here,” Ash pointed out. “We’re not going anywhere. You can always move in with us if you get too lonely.”
“You’ve still got Hazel, too,” June added.
Ezra shook his head. “Even she went to live downstairs, and I don’t blame her. She doesn’t want to get caught again, and what can we really offer her upstairs compared to the life she would have down there? Your aunt and uncle have all their kids around, and she can go to school down there. Maybe I should go downstairs, too.”
June cocked her head. “Why don’t you? You’d be a lot more comfortable. You’d have more people around. Why do you keep slogging up here?”
“Well, you know, honey, your mommy and I lived in that cabin for twenty years before she died. I don’t want to leave it behind.”
“Is that why you stay—because you miss Mommy?”
Ezra blinked back tears. “I miss her now more than ever. I wish she could see you all growing up and leaving home. She would be so proud of you.”
June eased her father around and guided him back up the hill. “Come on, Daddy. We’re going home.”
Father and daughter strolled up the hill to their own cabin. Ash hung back, and when June pushed Ezra inside, he stayed out in the sunshine. He surveyed the long line of peaks behind him. The sun sparkled on the granite spires.
June ducked back out. “Are you coming in?”
“Not yet. I want to go for a walk.”
She nodded up at the Ridge. “Up there?”
He shook his head and pointed. “Over there.”
June caught her breath. “You want to go over to Midnight Moraine?”
“I want to meet Jordan Faulkner. I want to talk to him.”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
“It’s the best idea.”
He didn’t wait for her to reply, but set off running down the mountain. He could run twice as fast, now that he knew the terrain. In the weeks since he moved in with June, he explored the Ridge until he knew it as well as his own territory back home. He could never get lost out here.
The Earth beneath his feet seeped its power up through his legs and into his veins. He drew his strength from the rocks and trees. He grew out of the ground like the rest of the NightShade.
What would happen when he and June started having cubs? What would they be? Would they be big and brown and shaggy like Bruins, or black and compact and wiry like the NightShade? Maybe they would be something in between, something no one had ever seen before.
A new breed of bear shifter would grow out of this mountain. Those cubs would want to know where they came from. What would happen when they wanted to visit Bruins’ Peak? What if the Bruins found out about Arion? All bets would be off then.
Ash ran all the way down the mountain and all the way up the gully on the other side. He didn’t tell Jordan he was coming, but maybe he would get lucky and meet the Midnight in the same territory where Ash found him before.
That territory stretched between Midnight Moraine and Renegade Ridge. In years past, it served as a buffer zone to keep the two groups apart. It protected the NightShade from marauding Midnight. That protection worked both ways, though. The buffer zone ensured the Midnight got plenty of advanced warning, should the NightShade ever decide to retaliate.
The Midnight operated in this area with impunity before now. They couldn’t enjoy that luxury any longer. The sooner Ash found Jordan and passed the word to the Midnight, the better.
Ash still wondered at the irony of the situation. The NightShade’s decision to play for peace instead of war actually made them more dangerous to the Midnight than if they decided to fight back. Since the Elders made their decision, the NightShade wouldn’t roll over and submit any longer. They would stand up for themselves. They would defend their territory, and they would brook no nonsense from anybody.
Long before he entered the buffer zone, Ash sensed Jordan lurking there. The Ridge spoke to him now through the soles of his feet. He understood the danger as only a NightShade could. A panther prowled the treetops.
Ash leapt a stream, but he didn’t shift. He had to meet this threat as a man. Fighting wouldn’t accomplish anything. He covered half the buffer zone before he skidded to a stop.
No sound or smell alerted him, but something was out there. Not one, but two Midnight moved in on him. He scanned the forest in all directions and waited. Would they be friendly or threatening?
He smelled cat everywhere. He must have passed out of the buffer zone into their territory, but he wouldn’t budge. He came this far. He would see it through to the end.
A flash of movement caught his eye, and a tall whip of a man stepped out from behind a tree. Ash would recognize him anywhere. It was Riley Faulkner. “Hello.”
Ash clenched his teeth. Every muscle tensed to spring. “Hello.”
Just then, Jordan emerged from behind a different tree. He jerked his chin at Ash. “You two know each other, don’t you?”
Ash dipped his chin once. Riley broke into a grin. “We know each other. You’re the kid who tried to kill me.”
Jordan elbowed Riley. “Leave him alone, man. Can’t you see you’re antagonizing him?”
Riley shrugged. “I’m just trying to be friendly.”
Jordan turned to Ash. “Don’t pay any attention to him. When I told him about you, he wanted to come out here and see you. He wants peace, too. He’s been my right hand since this whole thing started.”
Ash narrowed his eyes at Riley. “How do you know you can trust him?”
“I trust him with my life,” Jordan replied, “and you can, too. He’s Melody’s mate, remember?”
The grin melted off Riley’s face. “I came to tell you Melody’s pregnant.”
Ash didn’t catch the reference at first. When he did, his head shot up fast. “She what?”
Riley nodded. “It must be some kind of gene mutation that allows Midnight and Bruins to mate. She’s pregnant and due in six months.”
“That’s not possible,” Ash spluttered.
“It shouldn’t be,” Jordan replied, “but apparently it is. That’s all the more reason our people have to make peace.”
Ash shook himself out of his stupor. “That’s what I came here to tell you. The NightShade have voted for peace. They don’t want to make war on you, but they’re standing solid together now. They won’t put up with any bear-baiters coming onto their land anymore. If any Midnight comes hunting on the Ridge, we’ll attack.”
Jordan raised his eyebrows. “We?”
Ash blushed. “I’m…I’m mated to one of them. I’m staying on the Ridge. I’m NightShade now—as NightShade as anybody can be.”
Jordan stuck out his hand and pumped Ash’s arm. “Congratulations! It couldn’t happen to a better guy, and now we’ll be able to negotiate with each other whenever we want to.”
“Yeah.” Ash forced a laugh. “That’s what I said, too.”
Riley shook his hand, too. “Congratulations, man. I’m happy for you.”
“I should be congratulating you,” Ash replied. “You’re having a baby.”
“I have another message for you,” Riley told him. “Melody wants to see you. She misses Bruins. When Jordan told us you were here, she said she wants to come out here and see you for herself. I think she wants to send a message to her family.”
“Why doesn’t she use the telephone?” Ash asked.
Riley burst out laughing. “Now why didn’t I think of that?”
Ash fished his phone out of his pocket and handed it over to Riley. “Give her this. It has all my numbers in it, and I won’t be needing it anymore.”
Riley frowned. “Are you sure?”
Ash waved his hand. He couldn’t tell them the NightShade’s electricity operated on a different phase voltage from anything on Earth. Ash couldn’t charge the phone on Renegade Ridge. When the battery died, the device would be useless to him.
“Tell her to call my brother, Foicks,” Ash told him. “Tell her to let my family know what happened to me so they don’t worry. The NightShade sent an emissary to Bruins’ Peak, and he’s carrying the same message. I guess it won’t hurt for Melody to tell them, too, though. If anybody else comes here from Bruins’ Peak, I’ll be here.”
Riley slipped the phone into his pocket. “Okay. Melody would probably still like to see you, though.”
“We can do that,” Ash replied. “Would she like to come out here to see me? She could even come up to the Ridge. She would be safe up there.”
Riley looked around. “Here is probably better.”
Jordan listened to the exchange. “Well, that’s settled.”
“What about you?” Ash asked him. “Can you convince your people to stay off the Ridge?”
“Maybe. My brother Hunter and my brother-in-law Cole are the biggest problems. They’re desperate for another bear. They want the cash flow from the ring, and they still haven’t gotten any closer to figuring out Raven’s finances. They’re ready to do something rash.”
“Maybe if you tell them the NightShade are ready to defend themselves, they’ll back down.”
Jordan looked away. “I can tell them, but you better be ready to put your money where your mouth is. Don’t make a threat like that if you can’t back it up.”
Ash stiffened. “Don’t worry about that. We’re ready, and all the families on this side of the Ridge are armed. You can tell your brother these are all the families who wanted war. They’ve all lost people to the bear-baiters, and they won’t put up with it any longer. They got word from their Elders they’re free to fire on any Midnight who sets foot on our land.”
Jordan nodded. “I will definitely pass that on. It’s good to hear the NightShade are finally willing to stick up for themselves. It’s been too long coming.”
Ash muttered under his breath, “It certainly has.”
“What about your emissary?” Riley asked. “Will he be able to convince the Bruins?”
“He’s telling the Bruins what Jordan told me,” Ash replied. “He’s telling them about the Midnight are mating for life. He’s telling them the Midnight aren’t bear-baiting anymore—at least, not effectively. He’s telling them the NightShade are working for peace, too, so the Midnight don’t really pose a threat to Bruins’ Peak anymore. I warned the guy about certain, shall we say, disruptive influences. I think he’ll avoid them and convince the more reasonable Bruins around the place.”
Jordan nodded. “That’s great.”
“It really all comes down to your brother and his friends,” Ash told him. “If you can get him to stay home—maybe find himself a nice girl and settle down—we’d all be sitting pretty.”
Jordan laughed. “I’ll get straight to work on that. I know a girl he likes, but she’s not the mating kind. We might have to get creative.”
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