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“Wow, how did I miss that massive sign? Is that ‘ THE sign’?” Madison asks, perking up and peering over Drew’s shoulder where he’s seated on the rug.
“Sure is,” Drew props up the wooden sign so she can have a better view of it. “What do you think?” He asks pink cheeked.
“Dang Drew, that lettering is perfect. I can’t believe you painted that by hand. I love how you outlined the fish in that bright yellow and left the rest of the wood natural and polished.” Madison says in awe.
“The real question is would the sign make you pull over if you were passing through town?” Ash appears in the doorway wearing a rumpled t-shirt and sporting an intense bedhead.
“It would!” Madison smiles brightly. “I think it’s the flashiest and freshest looking sign in this town. We should investigate getting a billboard near the freeway and Drew, you should paint it! Then we’d draw people in.”
“That’s not a bad idea Madison,” I say mulling it over in my head.
“What do you guys say we hang the sign today? We open in three days, and I’d like to start making our presence a bit more known with the branding, don’t you think?”
“I’ll get dressed,” Ash turns to leave but then stops in his tracks. “Is there any coffee left?”
“There sure is,” Madison says, “These scamps left about a millimeter of coffee burning for me to find this morning, so I made a fresh pot. Help yourself.”
Ash grumbles his thanks and then makes his way out of the living room and down the hall.
“Our shirts are arriving today,” I state doing my best to stifle my excitement.
“That reminds me, I made you something!” Drew hops to his feet instantly and rushes out of the room. When he returns, he has a rolled-up piece of canvas in his hands.
“What’s this?” I ask after he hands it to me.
“You’ll see,” he says grinning nervously.
With care, I unravel the unbleached canvas to reveal an apron with a hand-printed logo on it. “Drew, it’s perfect. How did you make this?”
“I took screen printing classes in college. I found an art store in the next town over that had all the supplies I needed to print the logo on the canvas for you.”
It’s unbelievable the amount of support our pack members lend one another, nothing like the West Coast pack we escaped from, filled with hierarchy and competition. The pack Chase’s father had been grooming him to lead.
After the signwas hung beautifully on the outside of the bar, which the pack and I built from scratch, most of the pack wentback to the compound. There’s still plenty of work to do there to make the place a more suitable home.
We are a small pack now, but we’ve got plans to grow, and as it stands right now the compound won’t support that.
However, I’ve got a sous chef to train so instead of heading to the compound, I’ve taken myself deep into the forest along the riverbed to catch some fresh fish. Memories of being shot while at this same stream only a month earlier flood my mind.
Taking a deep breath, I look out at the sun that glints off the water, its warmth is welcome against the thick mass of my brown fur. Fishing is always easier in my bear form.
My paws dip beneath the surface and my huge snout takes the massive fish from them with ease. The biggest challenge is not letting my animal take over and eat the catch right then, although sometimes my animal wins that small battle.
Any fisherman worth their hook will tell you that much of a day spent fishing is a day spent waiting. This is the time we can spend mulling over our thoughts or letting a tranquil nothingness fill our minds.
Today, the fish are in hiding but I have learned to be patient. The fish can sense one’s impatience, I believe. They understand when a predator lurks ready to devour them, whether man or animal.
On the edge of the riverbank, I stand perfectly still on all four paws, ready to pounce at any moment and yet stay very still in a meditative-like trance.
Rarely do any humans venture this far into the woods. Though I’ve had the occasional kayaker desperately try to snap my photo as they make their way down the water’s rapid current. Although the weather is calm now, a summer storm is predicted to arrive in our little neck of the woods today.
Most of the daredevils in town will choose other pursuits instead of water sports when a storm is brewing. A knowledgethat makes it even more relaxing for me at the water’s edge, especially after my recent incident.
I glance around, hearing twigs snap off in the distance. Hunting bears is illegal in this part of the country, but you can never be sure when you’ll come across a poacher who doesn’t care about the law.
My uncle was killed in such a way a long time ago. His head is still mounted on the cabin wall of a wealthy asshole from my hometown. My mother barely let me leave the house after that occurred.
The sounds grow nearer and now my undivided attention is on the forest surrounding me rather than the river at my paws.
