Page 103 of Hero Mine

They watched as Jackson, one of the youngest, attempted to cross a rope bridge strung between two trees. When he faltered midway, Aaron immediately moved to help, his voice carrying clear encouragement.

“You’re okay. Keep your eyes forward. That’s it.”

The patience in Aaron’s tone was striking—so different from the typical teenage bravado. When Jackson successfully reached the other side, all the boys cheered.

“Those kids are pretty impressive,” Joy said, her voice soft with admiration. “In a slightly criminal way.”

Bear nodded, surprised by the complexity of what they’d built. “It’s actually not a bad design. Some safety issues, but the concept is solid.”

“So, what’s the plan? Wait until they’re gone and then call Callum?”

Bear considered it for a moment, then shook his head. “No. I think we should talk to them.”

“Right now?” Joy looked skeptical.

“They’re good kids who made some bad choices. Sneaking around won’t help that.”

Joy studied his face, then nodded. “Okay. Let’s do it.”

They stood and made their way down the slope toward the clearing. The moment they emerged from the trees, one of the boys spotted them and shouted a warning. Panic erupted as the teenagers scattered in different directions.

“Hold up,” Bear called. “We just want to talk.”

Most of the boys froze, but Kyle bolted toward the trucks. Aaron, however, stepped forward, placing himself between Bear and the younger boys in a gesture that was unmistakably protective.

“Mr. Bollinger,” Aaron said, his voice cracking slightly. “What are you doing out here?”

“Could ask you the same thing,” Bear replied, keeping his tone deliberately calm. “But I think we both know.”

The remaining boys shuffled nervously, exchanging worried glances. Kyle had stopped running but hung back near the edge of the clearing, clearly ready to bolt if needed.

“It’s not what it looks like,” Aaron tried.

“Really?” Joy raised an eyebrow. “Because it looks like you guys built an obstacle course using stuff you stole from all over town.”

Silence fell. The younger boys looked terrified, but Aaron’s expression hardened with determination.

“We were going to return everything,” he said, the words rushing out. “Eventually. We just needed it for a while.”

“For training,” Bear guessed.

Aaron’s shoulders sagged slightly. “Yeah. For training.”

“Why not just ask to use the Linear Tactical course? Or ask for help building one?”

“Would you have said yes?” Kyle called from where he stood, finally finding his voice. “Would anyone have taken us seriously?”

The genuine frustration in his tone gave Bear pause. He remembered being a teenager. Remember feeling like no adult could possibly understand anything about his life.

Aaron sighed, shoulders slumping. “We tried asking about using the Linear Tactical facilities last summer after the demonstration. But Mr. Lindstrom said it had to be supervised because of insurance purposes, so we’d have to schedule it each week.”

“So you decided theft was the answer?”

“We didn’t think of it as stealing, exactly,” Aaron admitted, scuffing the ground with his boot. “More like…borrowing. Most of this stuff was junk nobody wanted.”

“My ladder wasn’t junk,” Joy pointed out.

Jackson, the youngest kid, stepped forward. His face flushed with embarrassment. “That was my fault. I told them we needed it for the climbing section.”