For the next week, they had one, and sometimes two, rescues a day. It was hectic. Some days they no sooner returned, the alarm blared, and they were off again. When they did get a break, the time off was used to catch up on laundry, grocery shopping, and servicing the chopper.
The day finally came when they were temporarily grounded until maintenance and the annual State inspection was completed. Normally they would dread inspection, but they had gone for so long without a break, they welcomed it.
“Hey, boss. When the State Inspector shows up, could we have him do the inspection on Grumpy and Gramps?” Kenney asked.
“Are they ready?”
“I think so. I can double check everything before the inspector shows up.”
“As long as everything else is done, I guess it would be okay. Let me know if you need any help.”
Kenney wasn’t sure he heard him right, he offered to help Fletcher. Gary could have knocked him over with a feather.
“I will, thank you. I’ll make sure everything is done.”
When the inspector arrived, he would not only check the helicopter and all the equipment, he would go through all the paperwork. Since Shannon had helped in the office while she was medically grounded, Gary didn’t have to sweat the paper inspection.
By the time the inspector was due to be there, everything had been cleaned, polished, and triple checked. Even Grumpy and Gramps were sparkling.
Gary made sure all of Bradley Fletcher’s paperwork for the two helicopters were in order. All previous records were available for the inspector.
Larry Kingston, the State Inspector, finally arrived. Gary walked him through everything in the shop, they went over all the flight records and all the paperwork for the helicopter. When he was done, they had passed their annual inspection.
“Captain Morris, you have done an exemplary job. It has been a pleasure.”
“Mr. Kingston, if you wouldn’t mind, I have two helicopters out back that need to be inspected. They were retired and have been refurbished. They belong to one of my employees. He is on a leave of absence. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to return due to pressing personal matters, or else he would be here. I have all the required paperwork. Kenney will be more than happy to go over everything with you.”
The inspector looked at his watch. “Normally I wouldn’t without the owner here, but I’ll make an exception this time. The inspection stops at the first nick.”
“Agreed, thank you.”
The inspector checked out Grumpy first, shaking his head as he went through the check list. Kenney was losing all hope. If Grumpy didn’t pass, neither helicopter would pass. The inspector went on to Gramps and his reaction was even worse, he shook his head and clicked his tongue. To Kenney’s surprise, both helicopters passed with flying colors.
“Mm – mm – mm. If I didn’t know better, I’d say an old man I used to know has returned from the dead,” he told Gary. “This is like looking at one of his helicopters, in fact, I believe they were the same model. Who is the registered owner?”
“His name is Bradley Fletcher.”
“I should have known, the old man’s grandson. Fletcher Sr. was a great man.”
The inspector shook his head and chuckled. He picked up the clipboard, looked at the name on the registration. Normally, he wasn’t interested in the owner, only the machine. He never let a name influence his inspection. He went through the papers and after signing several pages, he handed the clipboard to Gary.
“I don’t need to come back to certify them for a flight test, I signed them off already. Congratulations, you have one of the best trained helicopter mechanic-pilots there is.”
“But he’s not certified to be a mechanic or a pilot.”
“That is unfortunate. His grandfather’s death was very hard on him. He wasn’t able to be with him when he passed. Give him time. All he has to do is take the tests, he can’t fail.”
Both Gary and Kenney couldn’t believe what they were hearing.
“Well, I’ll be on my way. I’m sorry I missed the young man. Tell him I said hello.”
“I’ll do that, thank you.”
They shook hands and the inspector left. Both Gary and Kenney stood there, dumbstruck.
“Wow.”
“No kidding,” was Kenney’s reply.
Chapter 32
Gary and Kenney headed for the kitchen.
“How did it go?” Shannon asked when they came in.
“It couldn’t have been better,” Gary smiled, “and I have you to thank.”
“Me!”
“You did such an excellent job in the office dealing with the paperwork, the inspector had zero complaints. Same goes for the equipment. You all did an excellent job; I think this calls for a celebration.
“Where do you want to go?” Stan asked just as Gary’s mobile rang. He was in such a good mood, he hated to answer it.
“This is Captain Morris.”
“Don’t say a word,” the voice on the other end stated, “are you alone, can you talk?”
“Captain Miller, we were just about to go and have a celebration. Would you care to join us? I’d be happy to swing by and pick you up.”
Gary listen to the person on the phone for a few moments.
“I’ll tell them to go on ahead.”
Gary put his phone away.
“Have you decided where you want to go?” he asked.
“The Runway bar is fine with us; they cook a great steak,” Kenney spoke up and they all agreed, none of them cared for fancy restaurants.
“If that’s where you want to go, dinner is on me. I have to run over to Frank’s and go by the bank. We’ll catch up.”
“What’s wrong with his car?” Stan inquired.
“Did I say there was something wrong with his car? You go ahead, we will join you shortly.” Gary grabbed his keys. “Don’t forget to lock up.”
“That was a bit odd,” Shannon remarked as they were getting ready to leave. “Has he ever done that before?”
“Things have been so hectic lately, he’s probably short of cash. You know how he hates to use credit cards. Frank’s place is on the way.”
“Makes sense, let’s go.”
They locked up and headed for the Runway bar.
*****
Gary pulled up in front of Frank Miller’s home. Bradley Fletcher sat on the front porch. Gary got out of his truck and went up the walk. As he reached the steps, he heard a growl.
“Relax Piccolo, this is a friend. Come ahead, she just likes to sound dangerous, her growl is a lot worse than her bite.”
As soon as Gary reached Fletcher, he pulled him to him and squeezed him in a bear hug.
“Uncle - uncle, I give up.”
Piccolo whined.
“She’s going to bite your ankle if you don’t put me down.” Fletch managed to wheeze out.
Gary finally let him loose. Fletch wheezed as he took deep breaths. Piccolo growled again.
“It’s okay, little one.”
“You son-of-a-bitch, where have you been?” Gary shook his hand. “We’ve been worried about you.”
“It was a long walk.”
They looked at each other and broke into laughter.
“Sit down, man. Sorry I didn’t call; my phone was dead.”
“Fletch, you weren’t going to call even if your phone was working. I’ve been there. I understand.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I needed to spend some time alone. I never grieved for my Grandpa and needed that time.”
“You don’t have to explain. When did you get back?”
“Frank picked me up two days ago. I needed to recoup before calling you.”
“Are you going to come back?”
“For a while. I imagine I’ve fucked things up between you and I.”
“Nah, everything has been covered. Oh, Larry Kingston said to say hello.”
“Larry! Really!”
“Yup, he certified your birds for flight. He
came to do our annual inspection. When he was done, I asked him to check out your helicopters, they passed with flying colors.”
“But they weren’t ready.”
“Yeah, they were. You can thank us later.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
Piccolo sat at his feet.
“Who is your friend?”
“This is Piccolo. That sick fuck in the woods killed her mother and litter mates. This one got away.
“It’s a wolf, then?”
“Is that a problem? Piccolo and I have become good friends, I won’t turn her out.”
“What about Shannon? She’ll be terrified.”
“Piccolo is a wolf, Gary, not a shifter. Besides, she’s just a pup.”
“Shannon went through a lot, Fletch.”
“I know, so did I. I’ll have to play it by ear. I think Shannon might be my mate, but if she can’t accept me or Piccolo, we’ll have to move on.”
“Just like that?” Gary was shocked.
“Life is too short to live it for others. I’ve learned that the hard way, I’ve almost lost my life twice now. I have spent the last few weeks thinking it through.”
Fletch scratched Piccolo’s ears.
“We plan to do a lot together. I even plan to teach her to fly with me.”
“You won’t be able to bring her on rescues.”
“Yeah, I know, but she can go up with me on my off time.”
“Alright. We better get going if we’re going to join the team for dinner. Where’s Frank?”
“I think he’s at the Runway already.”
“Oops, I told the team I was picking him up.”
“We better get a move on,” Fletch laughed. “You are going to have a lot of explaining to do.”
Gary shook his head. Fletch threw his pack in the back of the truck and picked up the pup. He climbed into the truck and set the pup in his lap. Piccolo had grown a lot in four weeks, she was almost too big to sit on him.
“You need to teach her to ride in the back, in the bed of the truck.”
“Who, Shannon?”
“No,” Gary laughed, “the pup.”
“Oh, yeah. I don’t think she’d like it in the back, Shannon I mean.”
They both had a good laugh as they drove to the Runway bar.
*****
“Well, look who decided to grace us with his presence,” Kenney announced as Fletch and Gary walked into the bar.
He went to Fletch and embraced him.
“Hey, man, you’ve lost some weight, we need to fatten you up. Come and sit down, we just ordered steaks.”
Next was Stan.
“We thought for sure the hunters had gotten you by now. Welcome home, it’s good to see you.”
They briefly embraced.
“Thanks guys.”
Shannon stayed seated.
“Shannon,” Fletch asked, “how have you been?”
He stood next to her chair. The last time he saw her, she was being lifted into a helicopter.
Shannon slowly got to her feet. She slapped Fletch as hard as she could.
Before anyone could react, there was a snarl from behind Fletch. Piccolo launched herself at the enemy. Luckily, Fletch was quick enough to stop her; being a pup, she wasn’t as fast as she thought she was. Fletch snatched her up.
“It’s okay Piccolo, she’s entitled, I must have deserved it.”
Shannon took a step back. Not so much from the wolf cub, but from Fletch.
“I’ll say you did. Do you have any idea how worried we were?” she said almost under her breath. She wanted to cry and throw her arms around him, but she held back.
“Yes, I do. About as worried as the rest of us were, when you were kidnapped!” He replied with a bit of a growl.
Shannon’s mouth dropped.
“I think this table is a bit crowded. Piccolo and I will sit somewhere else. If fact, I don’t think we’ll sit here at all.”
He looked at everyone.
“Frank, thanks for your help. Gary, Stan, Kenney; I’ll catch you guys later,” and he walked out.
“What the fuck just happened?”
Kenney looked at everyone and then ran after Fletch. He caught up with him outside.
“Fletch, wait. Where are you going?”
“Some place Piccolo and I can get a decent meal and relax.”
“Don’t be mad at Shannon. She was worried sick about you.”
Fletch kept walking.
“Fletch, she remembered everything. She remembered what Weston was like when he almost killed her. She was afraid he was going to do the same thing to you. His name wasn’t Weston Cruz, his real name was Barnabas Green. He killed a doctor and stole his name.”
“Yeah, I figured as much. He was crazier than a dog with rabies. Look, I thought if I came back, maybe I could work things out. I can see that isn’t going to happen.”
“What the hell! You didn’t even sit down, how could you know?”
Fletch shook his head.
“What are you going to do?”
“Pack up my gear and move on. Tell Gary I’ll pay storage for the choppers until I can find some place for them, maybe my Grandfathers place.”
“You know, Gary helped me get Grumpy and Gramps ready for inspection. We all worked on them. Shannon made sure all the paperwork was in order. As far as that inspector was concerned, you could walk on water. He certified both of them for flight without seeing them fly. Why didn’t you tell us?”
“Tell you what?”
“That you were that good.”
“Come on, Kenney. I wanted you to like me for me, not for what I was.”
“I don’t understand. What are you?”
“Never mind.” Fletch finally reached his truck parked outside the hangar. He threw what gear he had in the back and reached under the wheel-well for his hide-a-key. He hoped it would start after sitting for a month.
“Tell Gary I’ll call him tomorrow.”
“Where will you go?”
“Right now, I want to get something to eat. I’ll make arrangements with Gary to come and collect my things.” He stuck his hand out to Kenney and they shook hands.
“What do you want me to tell Shannon?”
“Tell her whatever you want. Kenney, look, there was nothing between Shannon and me. Yeah, maybe with time, things might have worked out. She’s not ready to accept me. She’s a human and I’m a bear, it doesn’t always work out.”
“Isn’t she your mate?”
Fletch closed the door and rolled down the window.
“I hope we can continue to be friends. I’ll keep in touch.”
Kenney watched his best friend drive off. There was no point in going back to the bar, there was no longer anything to celebrate. He sat in one of the chairs outside to wait for the rest of them to return.
Chapter 33
Shannon and Stan walked back to the hangar. Gary drove back in his truck. They noticed that Fletcher’s truck was gone. Shannon carried a take-out container; she had brought Kenney his dinner.
“Where did Fletch go?” Shannon asked.
“He’s gone. He said he would call Gary tomorrow.”
“Gone? Where?”
“I don’t really know to be honest. He’s changed, he’s different.”
“Shannon, give it a rest.” Gary joined them.
Everyone’s celebratory mood was gone.
“Give it a rest! I want to know what happened, where was he?”
“Maybe you should have asked him before you hit him,” Stan snapped as he sat down with Kenney. “I wanted to know, too.”
“Oh, now it’s all my fault. You can all go fuck yourselves.” Shannon stormed past Gary after he opened the door.
Gary let out a sigh and sat down outside with Kenney and Stan.
“Did he say where he was going?” Gary asked.
“Maybe to his grandfather’s place in Oregon. He said he would move Grumpy and Gramps there, once he got settled.”
“What about his job in Montana?”
“He didn’t say.”
“Shit. I don’t understand what happened. An hour ago, he was happy, he was glad to be back. I was afraid Shannon would be afraid of the wolf, not be pissed off at Fletch. How did it go to hell in a matter of seconds?”
“He told me that she wasn’t ready to accept him as a bear. She’s his mate, but he said it wouldn’t work. Was that pup really a wolf?”
“Yeah, it was,” Gary said with a slight laugh, “it wanted to eat me alive when I gave Fletch a bear hug.”
Shannon stood just inside the door. She heard everything they said. What did they mean when they said she was his mate? As tears ran down her face, she made up her mind; she had to get over her fear of their bears.
She realized at that moment, she loved Bradley Fletcher and she didn’t want to lose him.
She had to figure out where he was going. She thought about all the paperwork she had handled for Gary, and all the paperwork for Fletch’s helicopters. She didn’t pay much attention to names and addresses, only records of parts and certificates. If Fletch was going to his grandfather’s, there must be a record of his address in his files. She’d have to wait until everyone went to bed before she could go into the office. For now, she needed a shower and a change of clothes. She was going after him.
*****
Fletch and Piccolo had an excellent meal at a local restaurant simply called the BBQ. The owner gave Piccolo some meaty ribs that had just been cut from a side of beef. The wolf cub made herself comfortable in a corner out of the way. She was in heaven, chewing on huge bones.
Fletch visited with the owner of the restaurant while he stuffed himself on BBQ ribs. Frank Miller happened to be a close friend, and as it turned out, Roger Sanders was a black bear like himself. As he got ready to leave, the owner gave Fletch a large order of ribs to go, and a bag of meaty bones for Piccolo. When Fletch offered to pay, he said his company was payment enough. He told him that he and the wolf were always welcome.
Fletch drove back to Captain Miller’s. He wanted to thank Frank for his help. Fletch had called him when he was ready to return to civilization and asked him to come and get him. He had actually spent a couple of days at Frank’s before he called Gary.
Haunted by the Wolf- Shannon Page 17