Irrevocable Decision Part 5
Jack looked up briefly from his fruit loops as Jacob entered the kitchen the next morning. He noted that there was only slight bruising round the cut on the Tokra's lip and assumed that Jacob's symbiote must have assisted in the healing process. He grimaced as the throbbing in his own right hand increased painfully, all too aware that the swelling and skinned knuckles would take much longer to heal.
He pointed out the coffee, cereal and toast then returned to his own breakfast, making no attempt at small talk.
The sound of a vehicle pulling up in front of the cabin and the sound of its horn interrupted the silence and had Jack climbing wearily to his feet. He reappeared a moment later with a young woman in uniform.
"Jacob, Olivia. Olivia's one of the rangers for this area. Olivia, meet Jacob – he's ex Air Force too."
Jacob estimated a woman in her late thirties, auburn hair and bright hazel eyes which right now were sparkling pleasantly.
"Nice to meet you, Jacob."
Pleasant voice too, Jacob mused. He took the proffered hand, noting the firm grip.
"We rarely get to meet Jack's friends."
Jacob's eyebrows shot up and Selmac gently yet firmly advised, 'You are seeing more to this than you know.'
Ignoring his symbiote, Jacob put on his most charming smile for the woman as he continued holding her hand. "That might be because Jack doesn't have that many friends." And as Jack scowled, Jacob continued, "The pleasure's all mine, Olivia. I have a couple of friends further north in the same line of business. Until I knew them I never realized just how much you people do."
Behind Olivia Jack rolled his eyes, even more annoyed when it was Jacob who bade the attractive woman sit at the breakfast bar and brought her coffee to Jack's exact specifications. He also put a fresh mug before Jack into which he'd again added honey, encouraging him to 'drink it all up like a good boy.'
Wiping the disgusted scowl off his face, he turned to the ranger. "So what's happening to bring you knocking on my door?"
Again Jacob noted the ease with which the man spoke to this woman, the way the two of them were so relaxed – the fact that Jack knew how she took her coffee. She was, he admitted, certainly easy on the eyes with her long hair tied up in a ponytail and the uniform which was unable to hide her slim waist. She had a golden glow to her skin which was natural for someone working outdoors a great deal of the time and yet her hands were well cared for the Tokra noted. He also noted the way the woman smiled a lot, particularly when her eyes alighted on Jack.
"We've received news that a small gang has moved down into our area trapping beaver and otter and basically decimating the wildlife…If you see any signs of traps or any kind of unusual activity, give us a call."
'There's no market for those skins – they're banned," exclaimed Jacob, his ire aroused at the idea of such indiscriminate killing.
Olivia nodded in agreement, her green eyes revealing her own anger as she turned to the older man.
"There's still a market in south east Asia, that's where most of the stuff ends up. And it's not just the pelts. Some people believe the deer's musk glands have certain properties to aid sexual potency; a stag's antlers are ground down and mixed with other compounds to be sold as so-called healing properties. That's just for starters," she explained hotly, the fire in her eyes telling Jacob more than her words just how deeply she was affected by the poaching.
Draining the last of her coffee, she took the mug to the sink, rinsed it and bent to place it in the dishwasher just as there was a knock on the open kitchen door.
The newcomer felt three pairs of eyes swing her way as she entered the kitchen, noting the curiosity in the hazel pair, surprise followed closely by wariness in the blue, and then a distinct lack of anything in icy dark brown eyes just before Jacob started forward and exclaimed, "Sam, is everything okay?" and after receiving a barely perceptible nod he continued, "Olivia this is Sam, my daughter."
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(Go to Part 6)