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Tobias

Standing barefoot in the warm sand, I look out at the lake where sunlight dances on the water's surface. Little waves roll gently onto the shore, creating a rhythmic soundtrack for this perfect day. Not too hot, not too cold, it's just perfect for a wedding. Our wedding.

I feel a tap on my shoulder and turn to find Tim, looking handsome in his light linen suit, pointing toward the path that winds through the pines to this lovely area of the park. I follow his gaze and there she is—my Ruth, and I'm overcome with emotion so powerful I can barely breathe.

Five weeks ago, I admitted my mistakes to her and bared my soul. Because she is the most extraordinary woman I've ever known. Full of compassion, strength, and love, she forgave me. Our first night together, after we'd made love and lay tangled in each other's arms, I proposed. I knew with absolute certainty that I needed her to be mine forever. She cried, laughed, and then said yes with such conviction that any lingering doubts I'd ever had about us vanished instantly.

We agreed we wanted to start our life together sooner than later. So, we combined our households, putting my place on the market, and here we are, about to be married on the shores of the lake where we first met at the Chamber of Commerce event.

Ruth looks like a goddess walking toward me. Her copper hair is pulled back into a long ponytail with tiny white flowers woven through it, the product of Dianna's handy work. Her short white dress is simple and elegant, showing off her strong, beautiful legs.

She's on her uncle's arm, smiling so radiantly that everyone around us seems to fade away. Aunt Irene walks a couple of steps ahead as her matron of honor, carrying a small bouquet of all Ruth's favorite flowers that mirror the larger one in Ruth's hands. Reaching the sand Ruth pauses to kick off her sandals and continue the rest of the way barefoot. How she got me to agree to get married barefoot I have no idea. I can't even remember her asking. Although I vaguely remember something about sand, or sandcastles, and shoes or shorts. Shit, I can't be held responsible for remembering what's said while she's down sucking the life out of me.

"I'm really happy for you dad. She's beautiful," Tim whispers beside me.

"She's everything," I reply, not taking my eyes off her.

Ruth's uncle and I shake hands, a moment of silent understanding passing between us. He places Ruth's hand in mine, and the warmth of her skin against mine centers me in this perfect moment.

"You look incredible," I whisper. "Take my breath away."

"So do you," she replies, her eyes taking in my light gray suit with rolled-up pants that let my feet touch the sand. "Ready to make this official, Sheriff?"

"More than you know."

When I called Clark to tell him, he not only agreed to be at the ceremony he insisted he officiate the wedding. Saying it's one of the perks of being the police commissioner. The ceremony is everything we wanted, simple, meaningful, filled with promises we both intend to keep. We wrote our own vows, and when it's my turn, I have to take a breath to steady my voice.

"Ruth, I never thought I was capable of loving someone like you. I thought I wouldn't ever know what happiness felt like, again. I was wrong. You showed me that love can overcome obstacles and opinions. That it's about challenging each other, growing together, and finding the courage to be vulnerable. I promise to love your strength as much as your softness. I promise to be your partner in every sense of the word. I promise that no matter what comes our way, we'll face it together. My new rule is to spend every day telling you that I love you, every part of you, and I will for the rest of my life."

Ruth's eyes shimmer with tears as she begins her vows. "Tobias, you found me when I wasn't looking, annoyed me when I wasn't expecting it, and loved me when I thought I was unlovable. You've seen me at my worst and somehow decided that's when you loved me most. I promise to keep challenging you, because we both know I will." The crowd laughs, and she smiles through her tears. "I promise to be your safe harbor and your adventure. I promise to remind you every day that love isn't about age or what others think. But rather, it's about the way your heart recognizes mine. I loved you yesterday, I love you today, and I'll love you every tomorrow that comes our way."

When Clark pronounces us husband and wife, I dipped Ruth backward with a long kiss. As our friends and family cheered.

The reception is held in a picnic area draped with fairy lights and wildflowers. The caterer Holly recommended has outdone herself, and we all eat more than we should, sharing stories and laughter as the sun begins its descent toward the horizon.

I'm thrilled to look out and see my team enjoying themselves. Laughing and snickering, they and their spouses sat together. They've stood by me and always had my back. I'm honored to have such amazing people around me daily. As dessert is being served, Tim stands and taps his glass with a spoon, calling for attention.

"Everyone, I'd like to make a toast to the happy couple." The crowd quiets, turning toward my son. "Dad, I never thought I'd see the day when you'd loosen up enough to get married on a beach with no shoes on." Laughter ripples through the gathering. "Six months ago, you were a mess." People laugh again, "I worried you and Dianna were done speaking to each other. But because of the love of this incredible woman, you're happier than I've ever seen you." Tim's gaze shifts to Ruth. "Ruth, we welcome you to our family with open arms and full hearts. You've not only brought light back into my father's life, but you've shown him how to let it shine." He raises his glass higher. "As an expression of our love for this family, Dianna and I have a gift for each of you. Please open them together."

Dianna steps forward with two packages of identical size, both wrapped in crisp white paper with silver ribbons. She hands them to us, then stands beside Tim, who wraps his arm around her waist with a knowing smile.

"Well, go ahead," Tim urges, practically bouncing with excitement.

Ruth and I exchange curious glances before carefully unwrapping our packages. Inside each is what appears to be a black t-shirt folded neatly. I unfold mine, reading the font.

"NO!" I exclaim, my voice breaking. "Really?" I drop the shirt and leap up to embrace both Tim and Dianna, kissing their cheeks.

"What does it say?" calls Sang.

"Yeah, what's on the shirt?" Several others chimed in.

I hold up the shirt, unable to contain my grin. "World's Best Grandpa. I'm going to be a grandpa!"

Everyone erupts in applause and cheers. Beaming, I embraced Tim again. Then turned to see Ruth and Dianna locked in a tearful embrace, both of them laughing and crying at once.

"Are you sure?" Ruth asks, pulling back to look at Dianna's face.

"One thousand percent," Tim confirms, his smile wider than I've ever seen it. "Due in February."

"Roo, what's wrong?" I ask, noticing her tears picking up.

Ruth releases Dianna and picks up her shirt, turning it for everyone including me, to see. Written to match mine, it reads "World's Best Grandma." Her face is radiant with joy.

"I'm going to be a grandmother," she says, and then laughs. "Well, step-grandmother."

"No, no," Tim walks to Ruth, "grandmother, no step or anything else. Just grandma" Tim corrects her. "Our baby will be lucky to have you." They embrace and it's my turn to wipe away a tear. With my heart about to burst, I wrapped us all in a group hug.

Later as the music plays and the sun starts to set over the lake, I pull my bride into my arms. From tragedy to joy, from fear to courage, from loneliness to this moment of perfect belonging, this has been our journey. It's brought us here, to this very moment, the beginning of something beautiful.

"Happy?" Ruth asks softly, her arms around my waist.

"Yes, Mrs. Trenton, I'm more happy than I ever thought possible," I reply, and kiss her again under a sky painted with stars just beginning to appear.

Law

The office was quiet, just the way I liked it. Mouse and Keyboard had left hours ago to go have a girls night with my mom. Last I heard it involved movies, facials and loads of food. I'm contemplating sleeping in my office. Ferris was still here, in his office gathering intel for a bounty hunter friend of ours on some state level bail jumper in Reno. And I was enjoying the rare silence. Tobias and Ruth's wedding had been a welcome break from the constant chase, but it was a new week and we needed to be back at it. Michael was still out there, and every day he remained free was another day he could rebuild his operation. Another day he could and would hurt someone. Another day I was reminded that one of my bounties was free. One of my bounties escaped custody. I wasn't going to let that happen again. Even though it wasn't my fault Michael got away, it still bothered me. Ate away at my mental record.

My mentor used to tell me he didn't think the job was done until the bonded one was in front of a judge or dead. Then he would put that particular bond out of his head. I guess I adopted his philosophy. Because damn if it doesn't piss me off that Michael's out in the free world. Next time I'll make sure he doesn't escape.

I poured myself two fingers of bourbon and settled into my chair. The clock on the wall showed nearly midnight. Time to call it a day. That's when my secure line rang. Few people had this number. Even fewer would call it at this hour.

I pressed the button to accept the call. "Summers."

"Are you Wallace Summers, a bounty hunter for the US Government who goes by the name, Law?" The male voice that was electronically altered, asked.

I straightened in my chair. "Who's calling?"

"We represent a group who finds themselves in need of your services." A different voice, also disguised, but distinct from the first.

"And what services are those?" I kept my tone neutral, professional.

"Finding people."

I'd heard this routine before. Usually from desperate family members or corporate headhunters trying to track down someone who didn't want to be found. "I have a job, thank you."

"Yes, we know. You're searching for the Emperor, so are we."

My blood ran cold. Only a handful of people knew that Michael called himself Emperor Maikeru in certain circles. Even fewer knew I was hunting him specifically. I grabbed my other phone and sent a quick text to Mouse and Keyboard.

Quick - track the call on my secure phone!

"Go on. I didn't catch your names."

"We didn't give them. Plain and simple Mr. Summers. We want, no we need him found, his personal server destroyed along with any paperwork that would pertain to a certain business the Emperor was running. I think you know which one I'm referring to."

Understanding dawned. These were his clients. The watchers. The buyers of pain. "I do. And by all rights you all should be locked up too."

"We're willing to pay very handsomely."

I swirled the bourbon in my glass. "The US government has issued a hefty bond for his capture."

"Yes, we know. As we understand, you can claim that bond by returning him to custody or presenting a body. Is that correct, Mr. Law?"

"Yes, that's how it reads." A cold calculation formed in my mind. These people were desperate.

"We would very much prefer the latter of those options."

I let the silence stretch, forcing them to say it outright.

"You want me to kill him?"

"Precisely."

"That's illegal. You can't hire me to kill someone."

"We're not. We're hiring you to perform your duties as stated in the bond."

I leaned back in my chair, considering. "And what makes you think I'd be interested in such an arrangement?"

"Ten million dollars." A third voice, deeper than the others. "One now, the remaining nine when the job is complete."

I whistled low. "That's a substantial offer."

"We know you don't get paid until the suspect is caught. Consider it a bonus for expediency and discretion. As we mentioned, part of the job would be ensuring all servers, files, backups, and hard copies are destroyed. That's our offer."

"That would make yourselves untouchable."

"That would make a problem disappear," the first voice corrected.

I took a sip of bourbon, buying myself time to think and time for the ladies to track down where this call was coming from. There was no doubt Michael deserved to die for what he'd done to all those women. The official mission was to bring him in alive, but accidents happened in my line of work. I'd be lying if I said they didn't. And sometimes, like it or not, our job has fatal consequences.

But letting these vultures go free, the ones who'd paid to watch women suffer. That didn't sit right either.

"I'll need time to consider your offer," I said finally.

"You have twenty-four hours. After that, we'll find someone else."

"And when I decide to accept, how do I reach you?"

"We'll contact you. Same time tomorrow."

The line went dead.

I stared at the phone for a long moment. Ten million dollars. Enough to retire on, to disappear if I wanted to. And all I had to do was what I was already planning to do. But there was another option. I could take down Michael's entire network of clients. The kind of people who had enough power and money to make problems disappear. Including themselves. But did I want to give them an out? A way to walk away from what they've done without facing any consequences? My phone beeped.

Mouse: Heavily encrypted with blocker programs scrambling the signal. We couldn't get a bead on the location.

Interesting. First things first, I told myself. If they want to pay me to catch Michael well, I guess I'm happy to spend their money.

Michael might think he was the apex predator, but he'd never met anyone like me. And neither had his clients.

The story continues in Restitution, July 2025.