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Later in the day, during one of the coffee breaks, she’d brought out the container of cookies from the truck and watched the two of them sitting on the tailgate laughing at something Rudy had shared.
Heart lifting at seeing Glen so young and happy, she held back, not wanting to intrude. Deciding they’d pretty much finished most of the work for that day, she finally approached the two and held out her treat container.
Rudy reached as fast as Glen. “Man, I love your cookies, Demi. Me and my old man have to depend on store-bought crap for our sweets.”
Glen piped up and added, “You think these are good, you should taste her blueberry pie. It’s delicious.”
Demi didn’t hesitate after seeing the yearning look that appeared on Rudy’s face. “Why don’t you come and have dinner with us tonight? I still have a good portion of that pie left that Glen thinks he’s going to hog.”
Eyes lighting up, Rudy didn’t hesitate. “Yes. Sure. I’d like to come.”
“Great. Around five. See you then. Right now, I’m going to head back to the cabin. There’s a wolf pup there who’s extremely sick of being imprisoned, and I need to clean his cage and give him fresh water.”
Young Rudy grinned as if she’d been joking. Then he saw her serious expression and asked, “You have a real wolf pup?”
Glen spoke up shyly. “We figure it is. Demi saw the mother and says it was huge. Hell, around here it could be a mix, but from the look of the paws and the size of its head, he sure looks like mostly wolf.”
Rudy seemed intrigued. “Then for sure I’ll come and eat with you. I love dogs and will be interested to meet this one.”
After waving off a ride back to the cabin, knowing the hike would be good for her, a chance to stretch her legs, she settled the sling better and walked along, wishing that Whit might have been there with her to see the red glow in the lowering sun.
It never failed to amaze her of the different skies they bore witness to in this wonderful land. The night before, she’d seen her first aurora borealis clouds, mostly greens with slight changes into pinks. She and Glen had actually heard them dancing across the sky. She’d been so intrigued that she’d gone to town this morning for supplies before beginning work on the road and had called her foster sister, FBI Special Agent Isabella, wanting to share this incredible phenomenon with someone she knew would be interested. Thrilled when Tanner had answered Bella’s home phone, she lit up inside.
“Hey Demi. I’m glad you called this time instead of those really short notes you always send to keep us from worrying. How is everything in the land of the midnight sun?”
“It’s not that anymore, trust me. It’s why I had to call. We get our sunrise at midmorning now and the sunsets by late afternoon. Last night, I saw my first aurora borealis clouds and took photos. I was so excited, I added them to Facebook and tagged you guys.”
“Seriously? You still know how to use social media? We keep checking for updates and you hardly ever post anything anymore.”
“I’m sorry. There’s just so much to do here that every minute I’m always busy working at something. You remember the wolf pup I told you about. Well, I have him as a houseguest for a while cause he was injured in the fire. The little bastard freaks me out every time I’m near him. He’s grown a lot in the short while here’s been here. Yet Doc Harper won’t hear of him being turned loose for a few more weeks. I’m figuring on shooting the son of a bitch long before then. Fucker bit me again last night.”
Laughing, Tanner piped in. “You need to use some of that female charm on him.”
“Yeah. A sweet forty-five bullet right between those crabby green eyes he flashes my way.”
Bella’s laugh rang out in the background, and she could picture them both hovering over the speaker. “I miss you guys. Sounds like you’re both doing good.”
“We’re really happy Demi. But we sense there’s something you’re not telling us. Have you heard any news about Whit since that last time you called?”
“No. It’s the most annoying thing. Every time I mention it to Glen, he gets quiet and looks so upset, I back off. Even Norrie says I should leave it alone, that the fire department and police are doing everything they can to find his remains. She believes he’s dead.”
“But you don’t?”
“I just can’t. Something’s wrong. Every so often, Glen is on the iPad Whit gave him, plunking painfully away, and I can tell he’s hiding something. If I come near, he shuts the thing like it’s private and he doesn’t want me to see.”
“Did you ask him about it?”
“Hell, no. I don’t want to intrude on his privacy. I told you he’s gay, right? Maybe he’s online with a male friend or something like that?”
“But you think it might be Whit. Why?”
“I don’t know. Whenever I bring up the subject, he refuses to look me in the eye. It’s weird and makes me wonder.”
“Gotcha. Okay, send me the particulars for this Whit character, and I’ll see what I can come up with from this end of the world. Don’t expect much but I’ll try.”
She’d been thrilled to know that Tanner would look into Whit’s disappearance. The man had contacts everywhere. She had no doubt, if there were a search still operating, he’d find out... even though he had no particular ties to Alaska.
Feeling better about life in general, Demi reached the cabin to hear the howls emitting from inside. That blasted wolf must have heard her approach.
