Chapter 57: 15


    Three monthster…


    Things had been quiet since Melissa fled Feral. Gordon was on edge the whole time, worrying that


    Melissa was up to something. It was not like her just to give up. She was bat shit crazy, and he was


    certain hisst encounter her with was hisst. She was like a demon hiding in the shadows waiting for


    the right time to show up and make things worse.


    Things in Feral had returned to business as usual. Gordon returned to work, and Mackenzie spent


    much of her time at the shop with him, discussing wedding ns while he worked. After thest close


    call, Mackenzie never ventured far from Gordon. She was always within earshot.


    The baby had doubled in size, and Mackenzie’s belly wasrge, round, and hard. Gordon and


    Mackenzie would theorize on the sex of the baby. Mackenzie was hoping for a girl, whereas Gordon


    was almost certain by the size of her belly at six months that the baby was a boy. Or so he hoped. He


    had a daughter, and Gordon could not think of anything better than having a son. Someone he could go


    fishing with and do guy things. Sure, he had taken Aster fishing and hunting, but as much as he loved


    his daughter, it was not the same as having a boy.


    nning the wedding kept Mackenzie happily upied. She was in her element. It made Gordon


    happy to see Mackenzie so contented.


    The chime above his door alerted Gordon to Mackenzie’s return. She had wandered down the street to


    the grocery store to pick up something for lunch. There was an entire small section that had ready-


    made sandwiches and subs that Aurora made at the start of each day and sold. Mackenzie had


    brought back two. She came into the back room with a bag of sandwiches and two drinks. As she came


    in, she walked up to him and kissed his lips, then looked at his work. He had spent thest two hours


    finishing a tattoo that had taken twelve hours spread out over six days. He was just putting the finishing


    touches on it.


    “That looks great,” she said, standing next to the tattoo chair as Gordon sprayed it with saline solution


    then gently wiped it clean with a soft disposable rag.


    “And we are done,” Gordon said as the man got up. Gordon walked him over to the full-length mirror


    mounted on the wall so the client could get a good unobstructed view of his new tattoo.


    “Damn, you do great work,” the man said, admiring his new ink.


    “Thank you. Follow me, and we can settle the fee,” Gordon took the client to the front room and rung up


    the cost of the tattoo along with the cost of some care products to help the man keep it clean while it


    healed and avoid a staph infection. The man paid with a credit card and thanked Gordon onest time


    as he left.


    With his business concluded, Gordon went back to clean up. He found Mackenzie already cleaning up.


    They sterilized everything except his needle, which he removed from the machinepletely and


    threw out. For health and safety, he never used the same needle twice. Responsible tattoo artists never


    did. Then again, there were the asional unscrupulous shop owners who cleaned and reused old


    needles. It was unconscionable, but it did happen; the customers were the ones who paid the price


    when they contracted infections or worse.


    Once things were clean, they sat down together and enjoyed their lunch while they waited for the next


    appointment to arrive. This afternoon the baby was fairly active. Mackenzie told him the baby was


    kicking like crazy, which Gordon took as a good sign. During their lunch, Gordon sat next to Mackenzie


    with both his hands on her belly so he could feel his child moving. When the baby kicked his hand,


    Gordon smiled. It was a good strong kick. “He’s strong.”


    “She’s strong,” Mackenzie snickered.


    “Naw, with a kick like that, it’s defiantly a boy.”


    “You don’t think a girl can be strong?” She teased.


    “I’m not going to get sucked into a gender war,” he chuckled. “I’ll love it no matter what it is, but I hope


    it’s a boy. I already have one daughter.”


    The chime from the door alerted them to someoneing into the shop. Gordon looked at the clock on


    the wall and was confused. He was not expecting his next client for another forty minutes. He got up


    from his seat, and he walked to the front of the shop, where he was met by a man dressed in jeans and


    a leather jacket. He was a younger man, probably in his early thirties.


    “Can I help you?” Gordon asked.


    The man pulled the bottom of his open jacket aside, shing Gordon a badge clipped to his belt on his


    right hip. “I’m Detective Winthrop with the Colorado State Patrol. I’m investigating some strange


    urrences on the highway thisst year,” the man said, identifying himself asw enforcement.


    The man did not look like a cop. He was a First Nation’s gentleman. Hisplexation was deeply


    bronzed, and his thin ebony hair was long but tied back. He was a fit man with broad shoulders and


    long legs. He looked like he knew how to hold his own in a fight. He was awful young looking to be a


    inclothes State Detective.


    “Do you have time to answer some questions?” Detective Winthrop asked. It was clearly a rhetorical


    question. Gordon did not believe he had a choice in the matter.


    “Sure. Can we make it quick? I have another clienting in, and most of my clientele are bikers, and


    cops make them nervous.”


    “No problem,” the Detective said. “I don’t know if you have heard, but there have been a few incidents


    on the highways around Feral mostly. People are getting run off the road. There has been some


    serious car wreckage.”


    “Mountain roads are dangerous. Careless drivers die,” Gordon said, trying to sound disinterested.


    “That is true,” Detective Winthrop agreed. “Thing about these specific wrecks is that the crash is not


    what is killing these people.”


    “Oh?”


    “The men in these idents,” He said, making air quotes with his fingers to illustrate that he did not


    believe these idents were idents, “weren’t killed by the crashes. They were torn apart by


    animals. In fact, one car showed evidence of an animal. The driver’s door and the trunk had been


    ripped off with massive w marks in the metal. Something ripped open that car and dragged the


    victim from the vehicle to kill him in the street.”


    “Really?” Gordon acted surprised by the news.


    “You know an animal like that must be massive and dangerous. You haven’t seen any strange animals


    roaming around the area, have you?”


    “I’m sorry, I thought you said that you were with the State Patrol. Isn’t this an Animal Control problem?”


    “Well, here is the thing. I think someone is in possession of dangerous vicious dogs. I think they are


    running motorists off the road and using these dogs to kill the victims,” it was a very good theory.


    Completely wrong, but still a reasonable theory. “Do you know anyone who has dogs around here?”


    Gordon took a deep breath and pretended to think about his answer. “No,” he finally said, “None that I


    know off.”


    “You know thest victim was an FBI Agent. I think he died because he knew too much. He was


    investigating a case and clearly uncovered something that got him killed. Someone around here is a


    cop a killer.”


    “I wish I could help you, but I don’t know anything. Feral is a fairly uneventful ce,” both men stood


    there, their confident gaze holding the other, staring each other down. The cop was hoping to intimidate


    Gordon into saying something to incriminate himself, but Gordon had a lifetime of experience covering


    his ass, and he did not break.


    “What is going on, Baby?” Mackenzie asked,ing from the back when he had note back.


    “It is nothing,” Gordon said firmly. “Go back into the back room. I’ll be back in a minute.”


    “No, wait,” Detective Winthrop said, putting up his hand to stop her from leaving. “I want to ask her a


    few questions. First off, who are you?”


    “My Fiancée,” Gordon answered.


    “If you don’t mind, I want to hear her answers, not yours,” the cop scolded Gordon.


    Gordon said nothing as he shared a warning nce with Mackenzie. It was a look he hoped she


    understood to mean she was not to tell this man anything.


    “Who are you?” Detective Winthrop asked again.


    “I’m Mackenzie Starr.”


    “Do you live around here?”


    “Yes.”


    “Do you know anything about the recent automobile crashes on the highway around here?” She shook


    her head, no. “Do you know anyone who might own somerge dogs?”


    “I can’t say I do.”


    “See, Detective, we don’t know anything,” Gordon stressed. “Now, if you don’t mind, we were in the


    middle of lunch, and I’m expecting a client.”


    “Alright,” he said, reaching into his jacket pocket and took out his wallet. He removed a business card


    and handed it to Gordon. “If either of you remembers anything, we haven’t already discussed. Please


    call me.”


    Gordon epted the card. “Will do.”


    The door opened, and the chimes sounded as Aster came into the shop. The Detective took one look


    at Aster, and his gruff exterior softened as he smiled at her. Gordon knew the cop would likely stop


    Aster and ask her the same questions.


    “Hello,” Detective Winthrop smiled at Aster.


    “Hello,” she smiled back.


    Gordon cleared his throat. “Detective Winthrop, allow me to introduce my daughter Aster Wilder. Aster,


    honey, this is Detective Winthrop with the Colorado State Patrol.”


    Gordon’s gaze held Aster’s for a moment, and then she smiled once more and shook the Detective’s


    hand. “Nice to meet you, Detective.”


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    “It is very nice to meet you, Miss. Wilder,” he smiled back as he shook her hand.


    “He is investigating some traffic fatalities around here,” Gordon informed his daughter. It was all he had


    to say, and she understoodpletely.


    “Do you know anything about them?” Detective Winthrop asked.


    “I don’t watch the news. I find it depressing.”


    “Do you know anyone who might own somerge dogs in the area?”


    Aster pretended to think over his question. “No, sorry, I don’t. But I’m often working, so I don’t socialize


    much.”


    “What do you do for a living?” He asked.


    “I own a bakery,” she said.


    “In Feral?”


    “In Aspen.”


    “If that is everything, Detective, I’m sure my daughter came to see me. If you don’t mind leaving us to


    our business.”


    “No, of course not,” he took out another business card and offered it to Aster. “If you think of anything


    that might be helpful, please call me.”


    Aster epted the card and smiled as the officer left the shop. Standing alone, Aster slipped the


    business card into her pocket with a smile. “He’s cute for a cop,” she said with a crooked grin.


    “Should we worry?” Mackenzie asked.


    “No,” Gordon said. “As long as we don’t talk, he can’t prove we were involved.”


    “What if he has evidence?” Mackenzie asked.


    “What evidence? The only evidence he has is that an animal was involved. What is he going to tell his


    superiors? Monsters did it? He would beughed at all the way to the department psychiatrist. As long


    as everyone holds their tongue, we have nothing to worry about.”


    “Dad is right. Besides, we have other problems.”


    “What?” Gordon asked.


    Aster took out her cellphone and brought up some text messages to show her father. “Mom’s been


    messaging me?”


    Gordon took the phone and read the messages. He could see all the messages where Melissa was


    telling Aster to go on a vacation ande visit her in LA. Gordon could not help but notice how Melissa


    insisted shee right now and not tell anyone.


    “She’s plotting something, isn’t she?”


    “It certainly seems so,” he handed the phone back to Aster. “Spread the word. I think she’s going to


    show her face again.”


    “Do you think I should go to her? I could meet up with her and deal with her in LA.”


    Gordon shook her head. “She’s not in LA,” he knew his wife all too well. She wanted her daughter far


    away and safe before she showed her face and struck. Melissa was a viper. She was trying to lure


    Aster to a safe ce. Which meant she intended to do something big that would likely destroy the


    pack. Gordon refused to let that happen. From now on, he wanted patrols in the woods. All eyes open


    until they found Melissa. “No one goes anywhere alone. Melissa is in the wind, but I anticipate


    whatever n she has will be exposed soon.”


    “Alright, I’ll spread the word,” Aster said, searching her contacts list, trying to decide who to talk to first.


    “Aster, be careful. Your mother is dangerous and unpredictable. If she thinks you betrayed her, she’ll kill


    you too.”


    “Not without a fight.”