Epilogue

Randy

S pring is ever so slowly coming to Black Raven County. Now that I get to spend most of my days outdoors, it’s easier to recognize its approach. The birds are coming back. They wake me in the morning and fill the bare trees that are suddenly sprouting an abundance of bright green leaves.

I kiss Soojin before I roll out of bed, careful not to wake her, and head out to get the day started. I get coffee started for her, feed Chewpawca, and shift before I head outside. My first stop is always the barn.

Every morning, the pig family and their pet capybara are waiting for me to roll open the big door so they can go off on whatever adventures they get to during the day. They don’t bother the horses, and they aren’t messy, so I don’t mind them making this their winter home. They picked up on my schedule fairly quickly, and now come back every evening as I’m settling the horses in for the night.

Next, I release Grace and Ramona so they can run the pastures while I clean their stalls. They aren’t bonded like the pig family, but they’re more friends than rivals these days. Grace has slowly softened to the younger horse and now they run the pastures together.

Along with everything I do on the ranch, I’ve been working on a few projects now that I have time. With the financial help of the pack, I’ve got a small house started for Zane and Alyssa, close to the barn, so they can finally be near Ramona. We all spend our weekends on it to cut down on costs. If all goes well, it should be done by summer and Zelda can get her house back.

And, even though I haven’t brought it up to her yet, I have a place already picked out for Soojin and me to build. It’s far back among the trees, far from the road, but close to where we laid Robert to rest. For now, though, we live mostly here in the cabin.

After the horses are fed, I drive around, checking on the cattle; making sure there’s enough hay and water, that the babies are holding up during their first cold season, that the mamas are healthy enough to care for their offspring, that the bull is keeping an eye on it all.

It’s repetitive and quiet and slow. It’s definitely a complete shift from my life before retirement, but I like to think I’m adapting pretty well. When I get antsy, Soojin always has something for me to do at the restaurant, so I’m getting by.

I have several things I should get to today. There’s a spot in the fence that needs fixing. Soojin has been wanting a chicken coop and a shed to keep some pet rabbits. Zach’s wife, Red, promised to come out and help with the shed, but I need to have the land cleared before she gets here. I also need to head down the road to the old Gobelin’s place and pick up some more hay.

But it will all have to wait. I have an appointment to keep.

I could walk to where I need to go, but I have some things I need to bring with me, so I hop into the truck and drive out to the property line. The road that leads to the back of the property is mostly rocks and dirt. If Soojin agrees to build out here, we’ll have to lay out gravel, but for now, it’s a slow and bumpy ride to where I need to be.

After several long minutes of non-stop bumps, I finally come to the rock border that serves as the outer boundary of the family graveyard. There aren’t many people buried out here–my grandparents, my parents, and, because it seemed like it’s where he’d want to be, Robert is out here, too.

The graveyard is probably the nicest spot on the whole ranch. Large, full trees make up a little grove near the back of the property that’s mostly flat land.

Everything is set up a few feet in front of the largest tree, to avoid the roots but take advantage of the shade. In a line, they rest: grandma, grandpa, mom, dad, and then Robert.

Back when Robert passed, Zelda and I could barely make it through the funeral, so things like headstones were picked on autopilot. Unlike the others, Robert’s stone is nothing special–a simple, flat, rectangular stone with his name and the dates etched into it. He was the Alpha, and I’ve often thought he needed something fancier, but that honestly wasn’t Robert. I’ve come close to getting him a new one several times, but I’m always stopped by dreams of him making fun of me.

He’s gone but always here.

Zelda’s been by recently–all the gravestones are spotless. Robert’s, in particular, shines in the morning sun, the shadows of the trees reflecting in the polished stone surface.

It’s easy to see which of the kids has visited lately–there’s a fae coin from Zander’s mate, Nolig. She must have come with him recently. She’d been on him for a while, saying she needed to take the baby and make an offering to the ancestors.

In addition to the coin, there’s a few bottle caps from Robert’s favorite brand of beer–a sure sign that Zach has been out here a time or two, having a beer with his dad. Not a day goes by that Zach doesn’t have one or a million questions for me. It has to be hard to be the Alpha without an actual Alpha to turn to.

The others only come out with Zelda… they never got to know Robert like Zach and Zander did. To them, he’s just a story, a photo in an album. That he never got to know them while I did, while I do still, will always be my greatest regret.

It hasn’t snowed in weeks and the ground is dry and ant-free. I find a promising spot and sit down next to Robert, pulling out an old bottle of scotch and placing it in front of his stone.

“How’s it going, old man? Sorry, I didn’t make it for Christmas. This whole place was shut down. I’ve never seen that much snow in my life, but it was a good winter.”

I pull out glasses from my coat pockets and pour us each a glass. “Your granddaughters are growing fast. I don’t think they’ve been out here yet, but Zane’s girl is going to look a lot like Zelda when she’s older. You’d be proud of how hard Zane is trying to be a good daddy. Zelda’s even got him changing diapers.”

I swirl the gold liquid around the glass and then take a sip. It burns my throat going down. Scotch was never my thing, but Robert loved it so much. It has to be part of his birthday celebration. “I can’t believe you’re fifty-five. Fuck, when did we get so old?”

The only answer I get is the wind. It blows suddenly, scattering small bits of debris here and there. I brush off some leaves and dirt that come to rest on his stone and take another sip.

“I’ve been meaning to come and talk to you for a while. There’s a woman I’ve been seeing. Her name is Soojin.”

I take another sip of the scotch and set it down on his stone. “Remember when you finally met Zelda in person after all those months chatting online? She hadn’t even been in your arms a minute before you turned and introduced me as her future brother-in-law?”

“You were so sure about her. No one else in the world mattered but her. I didn’t understand back then, but I think I do now.”

I take another sip and run my fingers over his name. “If you’re okay with it, I want to bring Soojin out here to meet you. It’s crazy, I’m so old but I think… I think she’s the one.”

The End