20. Bear With Me
Chapter 20
Bear With Me
T he next day, Marcus and Elina took his car around to the station instead of walking through the woods. He wasn’t taking any chances until they had this guy in a cell.
What was his problem? And who was he targeting?
Marcus needed a plan to go on the offensive. So far, their only actions had been defensive and reactive. Time to change that up.
The gaps between the incidents with the station and the spray paint the night before made him think the man had left the area. Why? And why return?
What was so important about harassing him or Elina? They’d got away with each incident and could have simply left. The fact that they’d returned meant they likely harboured a grudge for some reason.
That indicated Marcus was the target. His job naturally leaned to some people being pissed off at him. Maybe it was a person who’d recently been released. He’d dig into that today while also writing up some advertisements for new officers. With the free help he’d received from the town, there was enough money to hire two people.
Once he had the furniture from Midnight Lake in to fill up the place, he’d take pictures of the station and use them to lure in new recruits.
Elina had been working in the squad room, using one of the larger tables near the back, away from the windows. She popped her head into his office. “Jim and Carl have a new guest who’s highly allergic to fur. They asked if we could take Finch and the kittens for a few days. If not, he’ll ask Kimi.”
Marcus definitely wanted the dog around. He’d be an extra layer of protection for Elina. The kittens wouldn’t add protection, but they were a good distraction. “I’m good with having them. You?”
She nodded and typed on her phone. “They’re going to drop them off here with a few supplies for the kittens. We have everything we need for Finch.”
The dog already had two dog beds and several bowls here in the station, along with others at the house. He wondered if Elina realized they were no longer fostering. The way things worked in this town, he was pretty sure the animals were a permanent part of their lives.
Which made the two humans even more connected. Probably part of Carl and Jim’s plan.
Sure enough, the two men showed up with a litter box, food dishes, and a ton of cat toys. It wouldn’t surprise him in the least if none of the guests had allergies. Or if someone had mild allergies, and that had helped the pair to concoct a plan to tie Elina more firmly to the town and to him.
He didn’t disapprove.
Without having a lot of furniture in the rooms yet, the kittens had plenty of safe room to play. Finch moved between Marcus’s office and the squad room, checking on people and animals alike. It was domestic and damn near perfect.
Which meant he needed to catch this guy so he could focus on ensuring Elina planned to stay.
What kind of trap could he bait that would keep everyone safe, and lure the guy in closer? So far, he’d stayed on the edges. His actions hadn’t harmed humans, but anyone who could do that to the animals could do it to humans as well. Marcus needed to stop him before he crossed that line.
A knock on his office window had him looking up to find Troy and Piper, along with Oreo. He motioned to the door and let them in.
Finch jumped up from his bed, and Piper let Oreo off-leash. Oreo didn’t even hesitate to approach the Great Dane. Even though Finch was a puppy who still had lots of room to grow, he towered over the French bulldog. But Oreo was best buddies with Jabba, a huge mutt Sean had adopted on his way to Phail. He also loved Moose, the combo Newfoundland and Yeti belonging to Lia and Joe. Oreo loved everyone, regardless of their size.
Finch watched Oreo approach and lowered his head to sniff him. Oreo pranced and sniffed at the bigger dog, who didn’t seem to know what to do with him.
After Oreo licked Finch’s nose, the big dog led him over to where the kittens had collapsed in a heap next to the desk where Elina worked.
Oreo yipped, and Boo bounced out of the kitten pile as if he’d been prodded. The black kitten rolled a few times before arching his back to stare down the dog. The other two opened their eyes but let Boo take charge.
When Boo hissed, Oreo tilted his head and then wiggled his butt as he moved in closer. The kitten circled to the side, but the bulldog wouldn’t be denied. He kept closing the distance with his friendly prance and yips.
Finally, Oreo got nose-to-nose with the kitten. They stared at each other for a long moment, then Boo turned his back and flopped to the ground. He didn’t shift when Oreo lay beside him. Finch looked from the humans to the new friends before sitting down to keep an eye on his buddies.
Piper laughed. “No one can resist the power of Oreo.”
Marcus had to agree. “Maybe we use him as our secret weapon when we set out to trap the asshole.”
Troy grinned. “Sounds like you have a plan.”
Marcus shrugged. “Not really, but I think we’ve got to do something to lure this asshole out.”
Piper held up a sheaf of papers. “Can it wait for a bit? I promised on the website that the first round of the Phail facts and Did you know? cards would go up today. I’ve got volunteers ready to help. I was coming to corral both of you but we can postpone it if you think we should.”
Marcus managed to keep the sigh internal. Part of what he loved about this town was the way everyone volunteered to help. Getting the cards onto the posts they’d created was a big deal. Everyone was looking forward to them. The posts were at every bridge along the walking paths and scattered throughout the town.
People had put a lot of time and effort into making the posts, contributing facts and riddles. He didn’t want to put a damper on the day. The jerk might not even be in the area. He’d made a habit of popping in, disrupting shit, and disappearing again.
“As long as everyone works in groups and we have someone on guard duty in each group.”
Piper’s eyes widened. “That doesn’t sound safe to me. I’ve got some of the kids helping.”
“How many?”
“Owen and Nina for today.”
Marcus sighed. “Are Heath and Addy coming with Nina?”
Piper nodded. “Okay. We’ll team them up with another pair. And the four of us can work with Owen and Rachel.”
And everyone who’s been trained would be armed.
E lina hoped Marcus was overreacting. Carrying guns to put riddles and fact sheets around the town seemed extreme. Even if the extra protection made her feel better.
The men carried their weapons in holsters. Safe and impossible to be discharged accidentally or used against their will. These men were experts, and safety was a top priority.
Owen raced into the police station, eyes wide and excited. “Elina. Piper. Did you use any of my jokes? Can we put up one of my riddles? Did you figure out the answers to mine?”
Rachel followed with Flups on his leash. “Breathe, buddy. One question at a time.”
Owen shook his head. “Elina and Piper are smart. They can keep up.”
Elina laughed. “It’s a secret until we put the cards on the posts. You’ll find out then.”
He grinned. “I’m good at secrets. Did you use Fancy Firefly or Phil Fox on all the cards? Are the drawings all the same, or did you make different ones?”
Piper ruffled his hair. “We’d better get a move on so we can let you see the answers to some of your questions.”
Elina knew that Piper would have included at least one of Owen’s jokes this time around. To her surprise, people had submitted dozens of jokes, riddles, and town facts through the website. Others had dropped them off at Phail General, and in the mail slot of the Phail Jail.
“Are you coming too, Deputy Ramirez? Do you want to hear my jokes?”
Marcus’s chuckle warmed her. He was genuine with kids and enjoyed them. “I’d love to help. But if you tell me your jokes, I won’t be surprised when I see them on the posts.”
Owen scrunched up his face while he thought that over. “You’re right. Can I tell you the new one I learned today? I haven’t used it yet.”
Marcus nodded, and Owen bounced with glee. “What do you call a bear with no teeth?”
Marcus leaned back on the desk and crossed his arms over his chest. “A bear with no teeth? I’m going to have to think about that for a minute.”
“Do you want a hint?”
“Not yet.”
“Do you know the answer, Elina?”
She shook her head, so he asked Piper and Troy the same question. No one knew. She certainly didn’t, but she figured even if the others knew, they wouldn’t spoil his fun. She hadn’t had a lot of experience with jokes and riddles growing up. Another side-effect of the language barrier and the reason she’d worked so hard to learn the languages of all the countries where she’d lived.
Marcus pulled out his keys and frowned at Owen. “An old bear? A great-grandpa bear?”
“Nope.” The boy squealed with delight.
They moved outside as Marcus set the security system and locked up. Elina had Finch on a leash, and Rachel walked with Flups. The kittens would be fine on their own, but she imagined they’d have a bit of a mess to clean up when they returned.
Marcus kept guessing and sending Owen into fits of giggles. “A grumpy bear? A toothless bear? A chicken bear?”
“A chicken bear? What’s a chicken bear?”
Marcus shrugged his massive shoulders. “No idea, but chickens don’t have teeth, so I thought it might work.”
Owen nodded. “Good guess, but that’s not it.”
The twinkle in Marcus’s eye had Elina believing he knew the answer, and she couldn’t wait to hear it.
“A polar bear? Do polar bears need teeth?”
Owen’s voice was serious. “Yep. They gotta eat seals.”
“Yeah. I guess they need teeth for that.”
“They do. It’s not another animal, Deputy. Try something else.”
They walked along the sidewalk to where the path led into the woods. Owen grabbed Elina’s hand. “We’ve got the first post here. Do you think we should have a fun fact here instead of a joke? We can maybe do a fact and then a joke or a riddle. Does that work?”
She nodded. “Sounds like a good plan to me. Do you want to use Fancy or Phil for the first fact?”
Owen took his time over the serious matter. “Do you have a fun fact about the Phail Jail? We should do one of those here because it’s close. And can we use Phil because Deputy Ramirez is male, too?”
Elina smiled and managed to ignore Marcus’s soft groan and the quiet laughter from the other adults at Owen’s use of the nickname the town had adopted for the police station. “I think one about the Phail Jail would be amazing. How about the one about it originally being a telegraph office?”
Owen nodded as they stopped by the post, and they answered his questions about how telegraphs worked. Piper dug through the cards for the right one, and the boy turned to Marcus. “Do you have another guess yet?”
“Are you going to be a lawyer when you grow up?”
Owen laughed. “I don’t know. Why?”
“You’re determined, and you don’t give up easy. Those are good qualities for a lawyer.”
“And a hockey player?”
Marcus nodded seriously. “You’d be good at that, too.”
Elina fell a little more in love with Marcus with every interaction. This one had her tumbling all the way. Completely and irrevocably.
She had never put much thought into having children of her own. There were so many kids out there hoping for love. Sometimes, hoping only for survival. But a little boy with those serious eyes and that sparkling wit? How could she not want that?
At that moment, Marcus lifted his eyes to lock with hers. Some of what she’d been thinking must have shown because heat flared in his eyes. Heat and something that looked a whole lot like the love she felt swamping her.
“It’s not Toothless Tom, it’s a gummy bear!”
The other adults broke into laughter while Elina tried to swallow down her emotions, and stay tuned on the topic. “What’s a gummy bear?”
Owen turned to her, mouth open. “You’ve never had a gummy bear?”
“I don’t think so. What is it?”
Owen looked at his mother, absolute horror written all over his face. “Mom, Elina’s never had a gummy bear.”
Rachel laughed. “Remember, Elina didn’t grow up here. Not every country has candy. And not every country has gummy bears.”
He blinked slowly. “Can we buy her some?”
“We sure can.”
“You have to try them. They’re all different colors of bears, and they’re kind of see-through. And they’re chewy. They stick to your teeth. And they can be sour, too.”
None of that sounded like anything Elina wanted to eat, but she kept those thoughts hidden. “Sounds interesting.”
“They’re really good. You’ll like them. Can we do my joke on the next post?”
Elina didn’t think she’d ever had that much energy as a kid. “Sure. And I’ll make up a new card for the gummy bear joke, so don’t tell everyone that one.”
“Okay.” Then he bounced over to whisper to his mom that it was really weird that she’d never eaten the candy before.
Marcus leaned down and spoke softly. “They’re much tastier than the description he gave you.”
That made her smile. “You’re really good with him.”
“So are you.”
The look in his eyes told her she wasn’t alone in imagining a little one sometime down the road. She wanted to tell him she loved him. Right here and now, with no regard for who was nearby.
But Owen’s voice called out. “Hurry up. Mom says we have to go as a group.”
The disgust at the adult instruction was obvious in his tone. With a grin, Marcus took her hand. “Let’s follow our gummy bear fan.”
They walked as a group through the woods, but the leaves made it difficult for her to watch her footing. “It’s like being surrounded by a painting. A living, breathing piece of beauty. No wonder you have so many leaf-peepers visiting.”
“Look at you talking like a born and bred Vermonter.”
She laughed and bumped his shoulder with hers. “I may not have been born here, but I’m sure glad I found my way here.”
“Me too. And I’m hoping I can talk you into staying here for the next bunch of decades.”
Her heart swooped and soared.
She was about to kiss him when Owen called out again. “Come on, guys. We need to figure out the next joke.”
Marcus grinned at her. “The kid’s timing sucks. Let’s get back to that thought later.”
She couldn’t wait.