Page 2 of Bear Necessities
Ray and I lounge on our cots in the middle of the library stacks when the clock hits midnight.
“You think she’ll show up if we're in here?”he whispers.
“She?Since when do you know it's a she?”
“Women are messy,” he jokes, hiding his head under his pillow as I throw a balled up napkin at him.
We chill for the next hour, each of us quietly reading on our cots.When my phone buzzes, he peers over at me.
“A middle of the night text, Enid?Who’s the fella?”His voice is a mix of teasing, but also curiosity.
“No fella.I deleted my dating apps.I need a break.”
Ray opens his mouth to respond when he freezes in place, eyes wide open.
“Did you feel that?”I ask, looking around the darkness.
“Uh, yeah, don’t know how I could have missed it.Holy, my bones are cold.”
“It feels sad.Does it feel sad to you?”
“Sad.Or maybe lonely?This may just be a simple release job.”
I nod, sitting straight up on my cot.Reaching over the side to my rucksack, I dig out my candles while Ray sets up sage to burn.We look at each other, nod, and light our matches.
2
Bernie
I walkinto the conference room and find my younger brother kissing his fiance, Abby.
“Should you be making out with our landscaping partner, B?”I tease, as they jump back.
“Sorry, Bernie.I doubt you want to keep seeing that at work,” she says, with an apologetic smile and laugh.
I shrug my shoulders.
“It’s fine.You two haven’t even been engaged a month yet.And I do like seeing my brother happy.After experiencing our sister Calissa go through the whole wedding shebang, I guess I’m now used to it.”I say, poking Barrett in the side.
“Ow, dude.”
I sit down, ready to get to work.
“Abby, are you here to discuss the new job or just here for Barrett?”
“Just Barrett.I brought him his coat that he left in my car.I’ll get out of your hair.”
Beth, our secretary, comes in when Abigail heads out.
“The foreman over at Dark Wings Manor called while you two were at the Main Street worksite this morning.He and his guys experienced another weird thing up there.It may be something paranormal.”
“Handsome bear shifter paranormal?”I joke.
Beth rolls her eyes at me.
“I prefer bird shifters like my wife and, no, more like a ghost or specter or something.Sounded kind of creepy, to be honest.”
“Well, that’s a first,” Barrett says as he takes the file Beth hands him.