Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
A aron woke to the soft weight of Beth curled against his chest, her hair spilling across his arm like a dark silk curtain.
The early light stretched through the blinds, brushing over her face in pale gold.
For a moment, he lay still, just listening to the rhythm of her breathing, the quiet proof that she was here, safe, with him.
He tightened his arm around her, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head. “Morning,” he murmured.
Beth stirred, her lashes fluttering as she blinked up at him. A faint smile tugged at her lips, but he didn’t miss the shadow in her eyes before she tucked it away with a soft, “Morning.”
They moved through their newly formed routine together, coffee steaming on the counter, her quiet humming as she tied her hair back. She laughed once when he stole the last piece of bacon from her plate, swatting at him like it was habit.
There was a glimmer of something in her eye. Doubt? It was subtle, the way her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes, how her gaze drifted when she thought he wasn’t looking.
Was she regretting telling him that she loved him? Was she having second thoughts about moving in with him for real?
By the time they drove through the gates of River Camps, his instincts were buzzing. She held his hand the whole way there, her fingers cool in his, but the tension in her shoulders told him more than words. Something was on her mind, and whatever it was, it was eating at her.
He walked her to the main building, where Jules was working behind the counter, greeting new campers.
He headed off to the security building to start his day, the morning passing in a blur of checking in guests and routine patrols.
He caught glimpses of her at the front desk when he passed by, her polite smile, her easy voice, but it all felt like a mask.
By the time lunch rolled around, he’d had enough.
He found her already seated in the employee cafeteria, alone, her tray untouched in front of her. She looked up as he slid into the seat across from her, trying for a smile that fell flat.
“What’s going on?” Aaron asked, his voice low.
Beth shook her head. “Nothing. I’m just tired.”
He leaned forward, catching her gaze as he took her hand. “Beth. You can tell me the truth. Don’t shut me out now. Do you want to take back those words? Are you having second thoughts about… us?”
“No,” she answered quickly. Her free hand fisted in her lap. She stared at their joined hands for a heartbeat before her voice broke through, soft and raw. “I’ve been thinking… maybe I should quit. Leave River Camps. Leave you.”
The words hit him like a blow, sharp and cold. “What?”
Her eyes lifted. “I love you,” she said as her eyes filled with tears that he could tell she was fighting to hold back.
“I want to be with you but it’s the only way I can protect you.
To protect everyone here. If Ian comes… if he decides to…
” She swallowed hard. “It’ll be because of me.
I won’t let him ruin this place or hurt any of you. ”
Aaron exhaled slowly, fighting to keep his anger steady, not at her but at the man who still taunted her.
He reached across and took her other trembling hand in his.
“Listen to me. If Ian wants to come after you, after any of us to hurt you, it won’t matter where you go.
Running won’t stop him. Leaving me won’t stop him.
He’ll find a way no matter what. You’re the safest you can be here, among the people that love you. ”
Tears spilled over, trailing down her cheeks. “But if I go, maybe everyone here will be safer.”
“No.” His grip tightened, firm but gentle. “The only thing leaving does is take you away from the people who can protect you. Away from me. And I won’t let him win like that. I told you that I’d protect you, and I meant it.”
Her lips parted, trembling on a breath. “Aaron…”
He leaned closer, his voice rough with conviction. “You love me. I love you. That’s not something we throw away because of him. We fight back, together.”
For a long moment, silence hung between them, heavy with the weight of fear and hope colliding. Then, slowly, she nodded, her fingers curling tighter around his.
He pulled her quickly into his arms and held onto her, knowing just how close he’d come to losing her again.
He felt some of the tightness in his chest ease, though he knew that the storm wasn’t over.
He understood that Ian’s shadow still hung over her happiness, over their happiness.
But he also knew Beth wasn’t going to do anything drastic.
As long as she was here, he’d fight every damn day to keep her safe.
For the rest of the day, he set up shop in the main building. He watched as she smiled when guests came to the front desk. She laughed lightly at a guest’s joke, and even chatted with Zoey when she stopped in. But underneath it all, there was a shadow in her eyes. Worry.
On his early afternoon rounds, sunlight slanted through the trees, catching on the shimmer of the bay as he walked his standard route near the row of cabins.
For a while, things felt almost normal—the hum of voices from guests lounging near the water’s edge, the steady rhythm of the forest all around them.
Then his radio crackled.
“Aaron, we’ve got a situation,” Brett’s voice cut through the static. “Bear sighting near the Eagles Nest Cabin. We need you here, now.”
Aaron swore under his breath, already jogging. “On my way.”
His pulse kicked up hard as he ran, scanning the path ahead.
The Eagles Nest Cabin sat at the far edge of grounds, at the top of a slight hill near the tree line, prime territory for curious wildlife.
By the time he rounded the bend, a couple of guests and a staffer were already being guided back towards the main trail, their nervous voices carrying. He rushed past them and there it was.
A black bear lumbered near the supply shed behind the cabin, nose buried in an overturned trash bin. Its massive shoulders rolled with each movement, claws scraping against metal as it rooted for scraps.
Aaron slowed, keeping his movements measured, calm. He lifted a hand to the staffer, who was herding the last guest away. “Good work. Keep them clear,” he whispered.
He radioed back. “Got eyes on it. Looks like a juvenile, food motivated. Get animal control on the line, but I’ll keep it away from the cabins until they arrive,” he said softly, so as not to draw attention to himself until he was ready.
It wasn’t the first bear he’d encountered, but every one demanded respect.
A twig snapped under his foot and he watched in horror as the bear’s head jerked up, muzzle slick with trash.
It huffed, snorting loudly, then turned directly towards him.
For a tense heartbeat, Aaron thought it might charge, but then the bear hesitated, swinging back towards the trashcan.
By the time animal control arrived with a tranquilizer gun, the bear had circled to the back of the shed, stubborn in its search for an easy meal.
They managed to dart it without incident, the big creature staggering before collapsing in the grass.
Aaron stood back, muscles taut, until they had it loaded on the truck for relocation.
Only then did he allow himself to breathe.
The guests were safe, the staff shaken but fine. The camp’s peace had been restored, at least for now.
As the adrenaline faded, his first thought was Beth. He knew that all the staff were on lockdown until they got word that things were clear.
As he strode back towards the main lodge, he was eager to share the photos of the animal with her.
He needed to see her, reassure himself that she was okay after the tense morning.
Maybe bring her an iced coffee like she liked, coax another real smile from her instead of the shadowed ones she’d been giving him all day.
Aaron pushed open the doors to the main building, the familiar hum of conversation and the faint scent of brewed coffee drifting in from the lobby.
But the one thing he expected, the sight of Beth sitting behind the desk, head bent as she sorted schedules, wasn’t there.
Her chair sat empty, still slightly turned as if she’d just risen from it.
Jules glanced up from the stack of registration forms in her lap. “She said she was just stepping outside for some air.”
Aaron froze. “Where?”
Jules waved vaguely towards the glass doors. “I thought maybe she was meeting you now that the bear was dealt with. You must have passed her on your way in.”
A cold weight dropped into his stomach. He shook his head. “No. I didn’t see her.”
He turned sharply, heading back through the doors. “Beth?” His voice carried across the courtyard. Silence answered. He circled the front steps, scanning the shaded walkways, the stretch of manicured lawn, the trailhead that wound towards the cabins. Nothing.
He cut towards the employee break area tucked behind the building, where picnic tables and Adirondack chairs sat under string lights. Empty. The faint rustle of wind in the trees mocked him.
Aaron’s chest tightened. He doubled his pace to the cafeteria, shoving through the doors. The smell of fries and fresh bread hit him, but no Beth. A few staff looked up from their meals.
“You guys see Beth?” he asked, moving from table to table. Heads shook. Murmured nos.
He strode to the kitchen pass-through, caught the cook’s attention. “Did Beth come through here?”
The man frowned, thought for a beat, then shook his head. “Haven’t seen her since breakfast.”
Aaron muttered a curse under his breath. He pulled his radio from his belt. “Brett, copy?”
Static crackled before Brett’s calm voice came through. “Go ahead.”
“Beth’s not at the desk. Jules said she stepped out, but I’ve checked the front, the break area, and the cafeteria. Nobody’s seen her.”
“On my way,” Brett answered instantly, no questions asked.
Aaron’s pulse hammered. He shoved the radio back and scanned the lobby again, half-expecting she’d reappear with a sheepish smile. But the chair was still empty.
No matter where he looked, Beth wasn’t there.
And that hollow weight in his gut grew heavier with every step.
Beth was just… gone.