Ranger Drew

by Meg Ripley

  Knox placed a hand on my shoulder and I stopped my fist in midair. “Hey, hey…that’s enough, Drew. I think he got the message.”

  When I looked at the bastard’s face, I realized Knox was right. I had broken his nose for sure, and the skin around his left eye socket had split, gushing blood everywhere. My breathing was ragged as I stepped back and allowed Trent to haul him away.

  “Don’t worry, Trent will take care of it. I already sent a mental note to everyone, telling them he was the arsonist who started the fire, so everyone watching is with you.”

  I finally took notice of the crowd that had formed around me and realized they were my fellow bears, who had blocked the fight from everyone else’s view. People were nodding in approval and clapping as I caught my breath. My knuckles were bloodied, and my hands were tired, but I was filled with elation.

  “I would have done it myself it you hadn’t, big guy,” Knox chuckled, patting my back. The crowd slowly dispersed, and I could see one person still standing with her eyes fixated on me. It was Kathleen, and she was smiling, a tear gliding down her cheek.

  I walked over to her and held her, doing my best to avoid getting any of the prick’s blood on her.

  “Thank you, Drew. For saving me; for everything.”

  And in that moment, I knew she was the one. I would kill anyone who tried to lay a finger on her. She was mine.

  “I love you, Kathleen. I’ll never let someone get that close to hurting you again.”

  “I love you too, Drew.”

  Just then, Kathleen’s phone rang. She looked at it and she seemed afraid to answer the call.

  “It’s Hanson…”

  “My promise includes him, too. You don’t have to feel intimidated by him any longer,” I assured her.

  And I meant it. I would do everything in my power to make sure she wasn’t hurt again. I dared him to try.

  “Wait, when I hacked into the NCPD-CID’s systems to get the intel for you guys, I also hacked their security camera backup files and made a copy of the footage from when I was captured and threatened. I wanted proof in case you guys didn’t believe me. His technician was probably so busy addressing the message board hack that he didn’t realize I was hacking their video backups, too. The message board hack would have been the event that would set off the alarm. And if Hanson knew about it, he would have told me over the phone when he thought I was going to die. He gloated about everything except that, so he probably doesn’t know about it! I emailed it to myself, so I know I have it, and my email has some serious encryption, so I doubt he would be able to hack me.” Kathleen’s lips spread into a smile.

  “Use it against him! Threaten to expose him!” Her phone was ringing again, but this time, she answered it with confidence and put him on speaker.

  Hanson was fuming. “You little bitch. I will end you! No one will even know you ever existed. You can’t cheat death twice.”

  “You must have seen the news, then? Your awesome plan didn’t work. Acadia will be fine; a plane is on its way to put out the fire, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

  She smirked and I beamed with pride as I watched her stand her ground.

  “Oh, killing you will make up for that, so don’t get too comfortable with your boyfriend over there because I’m sending someone for you. Right now.”

  Hanson’s tone was menacing and it infuriated me. I wanted so badly to speak up, but I knew Kathleen could handle it.

  “Oh, please do. Because I have all the surveillance footage and audio recordings from our friendly little meeting in your office. Tell your rookie technician he should have been on his guard. While he was busy trying to handle my message board hack, I deleted every pixel of satellite footage that would expose these shifters and waltzed my way into your office camera’s backup files. Send someone to kill me, and I send that footage of you to every news network in the world. In fact, maybe I’ll send it right now for good measure. What do you think? That way, if I do die in the process, it won’t be in vain. Oh, I can just see the headlines now…‘Government Official Eric Hanson Charged With Kidnapping, Blackmail, Misappropriating Federal Funds And The Destruction Of Acadia National Park’…That would give your career a nice boost, wouldn’t it?”

  “Wait, wait! Don’t do that! We can work something out. Come on, Kathy; let’s not do anything rash!” Hanson had gone from angry and devious to a spineless piece of shit in less than a minute.

  Kathleen paused, her eyes narrowing.

  “I told you not to call me Kathy.”

  “Wait, please don’t! I won’t send anyone; I was just kidding—”

  And with that, she ended the call. As soon as she hung up, I grabbed her and kissed her passionately. This woman was amazing, and she was all mine.

  “Does getting payback turn you on?” she teased when we pulled apart.

  “Just a little.”

  “Well, then let’s go to the hotel room and do something about it.” She winked and ran to the exit of the airport and I chased after her, the happiest I had been in a long time.

  Epilogue – Kathleen

  “Come on, Kathleen! We’re going to be late!” I heard Drew’s voice call up to me, but I was already headed down the stairs. When he saw me, wide grin spread across his lips. “You look gorgeous. You’ll have an easy time upstaging the brides in my eyes.”

  I giggled a little and grabbed his hand.

  “You don’t look so bad yourself, handsome.”

  Drew was wearing a black and white tuxedo with a pocket square. We were on our way to Ramon, Trent and Knox’s triple wedding, and as Drew’s girlfriend, I had been invited. I was flattered and tried to get a dress that coordinated with all their colors. Hannah, Knox’s fiancé, stayed with a traditional black and white theme. Blanca, Trent’s fiancé, decided to go with fuchsia accents, while Min, Ramon’s fiancé, chose robin’s egg blue.

  To encompass all their wedding colors, I went with a flowy, knee-length floral print dress. It was a lightweight wrap style that I paired with gladiator sandals, which I thought would be perfect for their wedding at Sand Beach in Acadia, a small beach nestled between two mountains. I had been helping the brides prepare for days and was there only hours ago, helping Sophia set up the chairs and decorations for the three o’clock wedding. We raced there in Drew’s car and ended up arriving just in time to see the brides walking down the aisle.

  All of the men were standing up front, wearing traditional black and white suits with pocket squares and vests in their designated colors. I’d heard it had been a nightmare to find a fuchsia vest for Trent—and to get him to actually wear it—but he ended up pulling off the color well.

  Min came down the aisle first from the left, wearing a white sheath dress with a robin’s egg blue lace overlay, which plunged low down her back. I had learned that Min was a simple girl, but she was beautiful, and her dress reflected that in every way. Her bob had been pulled behind her ear on one side with a jeweled hairclip. She was carrying a bouquet of forget me nots and Ramon was beaming as she approached him. They were one of the most fun filled couples I had ever been around, and I knew that would help them have an amazing marriage for years to come.

  Blanca was next, coming from the right, wearing a white chiffon V-neck dress with a full, ruffled skirt. The waist of the dress featured a fuchsia satin belt and a long, sheer train trailed behind her. She carried a plump, white hydrangea bouquet with fuchsia ribbon wrapped around the stems and her hair was styled in beach waves. Trent grinned widely when she walked up to him and he looked like he could jump for joy at any moment. Their happiness filled me with warmth.

  Hannah was the last to walk down the aisle, straight down the middle, and wore a white dress with a low back and a tulle skirt with at least one black layer peeking out from underneath. Her bouquet consisted of stephanotis blossoms with tiny pearl-headed pins peeking out from the center of each, and her hair fell in large waves that cascaded down her back. At the bachelorette party, she had boasted
that the dress had cost her twelve hundred dollars, and it looked like it was worth every penny. She wore a beautiful pearl-studded hairband and all the brides had decided to walk barefoot in the sand to meet their husbands.

  Knox was serious, but proud when Hannah joined him at the altar. I felt like Hannah brought out the best in Knox, and I knew I was right because as soon as Knox caught sight of Hannah’s bright smile, he couldn’t help but return the gesture.

  Everyone was so in love and I was so happy to be a part of such a special day. One justice of the peace wed them all; he had a microphone and stood a few feet behind Knox and Hannah.

  When the vows were exchanged, the couples went in the order of the brides’ processions. Min and Ramon’s vows were playful. Trent’s vows were filled with jokes while Blanca’s were sweet and sincere. When it came time for Hannah and Knox, they shared some of the most serious and heartfelt vows I had ever heard in my life. Granted, I only had heard vows in the movies, since I had never been to a wedding before, but by the end of their exchanges, I was crying my eyes out and Drew rubbed my back in soft circles.

  “By the power vested in me, I now pronounce each of these three couples husband and wife. Men, you may kiss your brides!”

  I stood and clapped with everyone else, dotting my eyes in between as the couples kissed. A moment later, the recessional music sounded, cueing the newlyweds to march down the center aisle.

  Min and Ramon even skipped.

  The reception was hosted by Fox Fields Farm in Bar Harbor, which was held outdoors underneath several large white tents. It was such an amazing time; we all had a blast dancing all night, drinking champagne and dining on the most fabulous surf and turf I ever ate. When it came time for the couples to be on their ways, the brides asked all of the unmarried women to gather around so they could throw their bouquets. Turning their backs to the crowd, at the count of three, they tossed their nosegays over their heads in unison. Blanca’s bouquet was caught by Sophia, another she-bear caught Min’s, and to my surprise, I caught Hannah’s. I gasped, and Hannah turned and winked at me. I looked up at Drew and he just smiled back.

  “I want our own wedding, though!” I warned. “I don’t want to share our spotlight with anyone.”

  Drew laughed because he knew I was half teasing, but half serious. We lined up along the cars as they pulled up one by one, whisking the couples away while everyone threw rice at them.

  As Drew and I made our way home, I realized it had been a month since I forwarded every shred of damning evidence against Hanson to all of the media outlets in the country. He was quickly detained, rotting away behind bars as he awaited his trial. We’d never hear from the bastard again. And as it turned out, the client who’d hired me to hack into the NCPD-CID’s files in the first place was one of their own: an anonymous whistleblower, looking to put an end to Hanson’s mad plans once and for all. After the fact, I wondered if he was a shifter himself, but of course, I’d never know for certain. Because of this loophole, there’s no way I’d ever be faced with charges for any of the hacking I did for him.

  As for the fire, the 747 Supertanker had made quick work of it, and after a week, the park had the air quality tested and found the levels had returned to a safe range once again.

  Everyone chipped in and helped patrol the area, cleaning up anything they could. Trees that had been scorched by the fire had to be taken down and their roots were dug up. Acadia decided to cancel their peregrine falcon nesting program due to the extensive damage to their nesting area, so when the falcons returned, they were caught and brought to the White Mountain National Forest in Lincoln, New Hampshire.

  When the trees had been completely cleared, enough fresh topsoil had to be mixed with the old to make the areas fertile again. I helped with that aspect, planting new trees in the former nesting area so the park could eventually rebuild the program. Unfortunately, even with great care, the trees wouldn’t be fully grown for another ten years, so the program would be delayed for a long time. Once we finished planting the new saplings and had closed off the nesting area from the general public, the park reopened, allowing the public to revel in its magnificence once again.

  And for the first time since I was a child back in Ireland, I felt like I finally had a place I could call home.

  Living with Drew had been so incredible. On his days off, we took long hikes, hung out at the beach and picnicked by Acadia’s many lakes. We had already eaten at virtually every restaurant in Bar Harbor and had chosen a few favorite date spots. Usually, though, we just cuddled at home and talked. And had sex. There was definitely a lot of sex.

  Life was good for us. I couldn’t imagine living without him; it was as if the difficulties of my life before him had been erased and I was born anew, ready to start my new life, with him.

  “Do you think I could meet your bear?” I turned to Drew who had just pulled into the driveway of our home.

  “Today?”

  “Yeah, why not?”

  “Here? Right now?”

  “It doesn’t have to be right now, but if you’re up for it, I am. I love you. And if I’m going to be with you and your clan for the long haul, the full moon is coming up, and I feel like I should see—”

  “You won’t be there for our full moon get-togethers. We only allow shifters to participate, so you don’t have to worry too much about it. Hannah, Min and Blanca usually have sleep overs during it, and they already invited you.”

  “Still. I want to see…” He stared at me with unsure eyes, but I was confident.

  “Okay, let’s go.” He smiled and grabbed my hand, leading me through the back of the house to the forest. When we were out of sight, he sat me on a log and stepped back.

  I watched his limbs elongate, fur erupting all over his body as he grew taller and wider, and before I knew it, a majestic black bear was standing where his human form once stood. The bear was on his back legs, but came crashing down to the ground on all fours, causing my eyes to widen and my jaw to drop.

  His bear approached me slowly with worried eyes. I reached my hand out tentatively and he paused, waiting for me to be comfortable enough to reach out to him on my own. As I made my way toward him, my hands felt his shiny fur; it was the softest coat I had ever felt in my entire life. Overwhelmed by the magic of it all, I nestled my face against his fuzzy neck and smiled.

  “You’re beautiful, Drew. I love you.” And in that moment, I knew I was fully ready to start a new life with Drew, one filled with magic and love that transcends all.

  THE END

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  Cade stood at the back of the theater with a single-malt scotch in his hand. A few empty seats peppered the room, so he could have sat down, but he had no intention of staying for long. He wouldn’t have bothered making an appearance at all
, but it was the illusionist’s first show in his casino, and he wanted to make sure the act went off without a hitch. Better than waiting for the reviews, he wanted to get a feel for the reception of the new act before he committed to further appearances.

  Right on cue, the stage’s strobe lights brightened as a figure descended from the ceiling—suspended from near-invisible wires, of course—and pyrotechnics lit up the circumference of the stage. The trick seemed to enthrall the crowd. The music grew louder, a cacophonic techno mix designed to increase heart rate and bring the audience to the edge of their seats. The man certainly knew how to make an entrance.

  All of a sudden, blazing streams of fiery ribbon whirled chaotically just to the left of center stage and it drew the audience’s attention there. The illusionist touched down and the strands of fire vanished, leaving in their wake the man’s shimmering-haired assistant. She contrasted the illusionist in every way, creating a vivid display in the middle of the stage. He was clothed entirely in black and his dark hair was slicked back. She looked like she was almost aglow. To the audience, she appeared to be shimmering, but Cade could see each of the tiny lights that covered her body, an impressive fiber optic display. Her costume—some sort of silvery corset—left little to the imagination, evident by the way every head in the room turned to her.

  He couldn’t blame them. She was beautiful, so much so that he couldn’t take his eyes off her. But it wasn’t her soft curves or slender legs that held him captive. He’d had so many women with curves in all the right places that it wasn’t much more than a chore these days to select a bedmate from all the blonde beauties and gorgeous brunettes who fell all over him.

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