The Sun Always Rises
Chapter One
Sunrise was always her favorite time of the day. It was always quiet at the station around the same time. Anything that happened over night was usually cleaned up by the time the sun started to peak over the horizon and the mountain was at peace. Home was sometimes a different story. Most mornings when the sun started shinning so started the day of the two little girls who slept upstairs. Today they were still asleep. Jess Hawkes sipped her coffee as she watched the sun slowly make its way higher into the blue sky. She felt his presents before she felt his arms wrap around her waist.
"Good morning, stranger." Jess leaned back against the warm body that was her husband.
"How was your night?" He kissed her neck and pulled her close.
"The girls slept thought the night and they are still sleeping, so I guess it was a good night." Turning she kissed her husband. "How was yours?" She knew they had gone on a call close to midnight. She had been awakened by something. Maybe it was a sound or maybe it was the feeling she got when one of her loved ones was headed toward danger.
"Five car pileup on I-89 near Rampart." Derek was still shocked with every accident call they got on the mountain roads. Speed was always a factor. The faster they went, the worse the outcome. "Three dead." Jess hugged him, burring her face in his chest. She knew even after years of profiling serial killers that every death still affected him. In some ways that was a good thing. If you stopped letting them get to you then you have a problem.
"Devin won't be here till eight. I could make you some toast. I think me and that silver thing on the counter have made peace." Jess would never be the greatest cook but she tried.
"I would rather spend the time we have right here." Jess smiled and they turned to watch the sun slowly rise over the horizon. Derek hugged her close and breathed in the sweet scent of his wife. "I love you Jessie Lynn."
"I love you too Derek." Jess closed her eyes and wished every morning could be like today but she knew it wasn't always going to be all sunrises and sweet morning kisses.
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The sweat poured off her forehead as she ran though the meadow. She had left her horse near the creek when the shot rang out. She knew what the poachers were looking for. Baily and his family had been hanging around the cabin since the wild dog scare last year. They had been safe because only people who knew about them had been around the cabin in over a year. Now strangers threatened the small pack of wolves that she had been protecting.
"Flying Tiger to Lady Hawke." Jess's radio crackled to life. She grabbed it off her belt as she hit the porch of her father's cabin.
"Matt, I lost Cutler somewhere between the creek and the cabin. These guys mean business."
"Cody is ready to fly at first light. Hang in there. Cutler is doubling back near Gabe's." Jess let out a whistle that would wake the dead but as she opened the door five wolves were at her feet and plowed into the cabin. She locked the door and slid down it taking a deep breath. The big alfa wined as she opened her eyes. "We're safe for now boy." She looked at the rag tag pack that had survived on of the worse winters on record. Baily had been found and tagged by the rangers as a pup. Last year he had imprinted on a half breed female and had a litter of three puppies. The female they named Hannah and the pups were Larry, Curly and Monica.
"We are at the cabin Matt. I don't think he was following us because we back tracked though the river three or four times." Jess grabbed Baily and hugged him close. All five wolves growled when the sound of a branch breaking echoed though the cabin. Footsteps echoed on the porch.
"Jess open up." Cutler's voice echoed through the door. Jess stood up and unlocked the door. Deep growls radiated from behind her.
"It's okay, it's just Cutler." Baily growled louder. "OH STOP. He stepped on your tail one time and you hold a grudge." Jess opened the door and let the older man in. "Welcome to the party." She stepped back and let him in.
"Those guys are crazy." Cutler looked at the five fur balls. "Y'all should have eaten the bastards." The three pups pushed though and pounced on Cutler. "They missed me." He bent down and gave attention to the animals. Jess crossed her arms and shook her head.
"Kids love you." She smiled. Her best friend had a way with the younger set weather they had fur or not. The kids flocked to him at family functions and he even took hours in the daycare co-op. "Have you talked to Randa about having kids?" He looked up at her with his piercing blue eyes. She knew it was a touchy subject. When they had dated, she had wanted to get pregnant but it never happened.
"I'm getting a little too old to be someone's dad."
"You're never too old. Look at Matt." Her brother and sister in law were in the last stages of adopting two children whose parents died on a camping trip in the mountains.
"Yeah, remember how that started out." Robin had a few misgivings when the subject of adopting two young children only weeks after they got married. It had taken a few weeks but she came around and now they are one big happy family.
"Not every family starts out with wine and roses."
"A lot start out with beer and pretzels." Cutler chuckled. Jess smiled. It had been a long time since the two of them had time to talk. Between his training his search and rescue dog and working on his relationship with Randa and her new job as wife and mother they just hadn't had much time together.
"It's amazing you aren't the father of dozens of children." Jess went to the kitchen to see if there was anything to feed the wolves. She pulled out a bag of her dad's beef jerky stash and passed out a little to each of the wolfs.
"Honey, you should know better than anyone that I was more than careful over the years." Jess boosted herself up on the counter. The pups curled around Cutler's feet and Baily and Hannah laid on the floor under her feet.
"Let me know when you want to go ring shopping." She smiled.
"You think you know me so well, don't you?" He looked into her eyes. They danced with mischief.
"I know you better than anyone and I know I have never seen you look at anyone, even me, like you look at her Jimmy." She looked out the big bay window and saw the sun was starting to come up. "Cody will be here with back up soon so let's has this out. You love her, right?" Cutler dropped his head and shook it.
"You know I do. Look at my track record Jess. You were the closest thing I had to a normal, healthy relationship." He looked up at her. "That's what scares me." Jess chuckled.
"Yeah that is kind of messed up. But you were the same for me till Derek. We don't fight over little things or make each other crazy like you and I did. Do you and Randa fight, ever?"
"No, the only thing we fight over is what to order on our pizza." He smiled. "I don't want to break her heart like I broke yours,"
"Is the International Ski Federation having a competition I don't know about? Because the only Swedish skier I know of is married to my brother and I'm sure you wouldn't mess with her." He raised his hands and shook his head.
"Not even on my worst night of drinking." Jess looked at her friend.
"You haven't even glanced at another woman since that day at the bar, have you?" She hadn't been with him that much over the last six months but she knew she was right. He grinned and smiled. Jess had fallen hard for his dimpled smile back in the day.
"Hell, I haven't even thought of another woman since that day."
"We both have Saturday off. I will drop the girls off with my mom and dad and we are going to find the perfect ring."
"Isn't going ring shopping with your ex a little on strange side?" Cutler chuckled.
"Not any stranger than your ex marring you and your husband." She said, reminding him of his involvement in her wedding.
"I guess not." The sound of the helicopter had Jess pushing herself off the counter.
"So, it's settled then." She watched at the sun hit the horizon and smiled. Matt and Robin came up the trail with two men in hand cuffs. With every new day came a good reason to watch the sun rise and set on this mountain. Today, two dangerous men will be put behind bars and a wolf family can go on living in peace. Also, James Alvin Cutler made a decision that would change his life forever. Jess opened the door and let the five furry beasts out to run. They took off strait for Matt, knowing he would have beef jerky for them. The men cringed as the wild animals ran toward them.
"You should have put the jerky in their pockets." Jess headed toward the helicopter, stopping next to the men. "You made me run. You were this close…" She made a tiny opening between her thumb and forefinger. "to having me feed you to those wolves." Jess stomped off, leaving the rest of the team to deal with the poachers and the wolves while she enjoyed the sunrise from the comfort of the helicopter.