It took another hour to get within the “official” boundary of the valley. The grass was so soft under their feet that the need for footwear was practically nullified. Up ahead of about a thousand feet was a small settlement beside one of the valley’s many rivers.

“Let’s go there and see if we can find a place to settle in for a little bit.” Marcus led the way.

“What are you going to do next?” Ronald asked.

“I need to get a job first thing so we can get a comfortable place with a roof over our heads. I mean, living out in nature is an option for us, but with all this stuff we have now, we can’t risk subjecting it to bad weather when it comes.”

It was hard for Ronald to imagine bad weather in such a peaceful and clandestine location, but he knew it was possible.

The settlement was nondescript and small, like a town one might find in the middle of nowhere, off the side of a main highway. Most of the activity happening was alongside the river; Marcus could hear people chattering and kids playing just beyond the buildings. Any activity going on indoors was mostly store workers. On a lovely day like this, he didn’t think too many people were going to remain inside. He walked down a road dividing the settlement in two, looking for a particular building.

“I’m hungry.” Cecilia complained. “Can we have lunch yet?”

“Yeah, sorry. I was looking for a real estate office so we could find out what I can afford at the moment, but that can wait.”

For lunch, the squirrels were satiated by a fruit tree in a park, while Marcus caught some fish from the river. The two children had overeaten and felt a bit sluggish and bloated afterward. While Ronald just lied down, waiting to feel better, he wondered if Marcus was ever going to tell Cecilia the truth. He didn’t know what choice would be the better; he thought his sister had a right to know what really happened, but he also didn’t know if she would take it well and grow to hate her dad for what he did.

”Maybe when she’s older, but I don’t know. She might hate him for waiting so long to tell her. Or maybe she’ll just shrug it off and not think any differently of him. After all, she was so trusting of him from the start; there might be no secret of his that would make her mad.”

After lunch, Marcus gathered up his children again and went hunting for a real estate office. There weren’t many houses here, but there were two apartments. Marcus had a consultation with an agent, and after telling him they just wanted something temporary, he directed them to one of the apartments. He would still have enough money to pay for three month’s worth of rent, which gave him plenty of time to find a job. The apartment was cheap, but had some downsides. There were only two beds in each one, and it was nearly a mile away from the river. The other apartment complex was much closer, had bigger rooms, but was more expensive. If Marcus opted for that one, he’d only have one month’s worth of rent. He accepted the first option, relishing the idea of walking all the way to the river and getting exercise and fresh air from that, and not considering the number of beds a problem. The three of them had always slept in the same bed, as they were typically designed for adult humans, and they were small enough to sleep in it comfortably and have room to spare.

By three in the afternoon, Marcus had signed the lease and made the deposit. The apartment he had gotten was a little smaller than the cabins they were in over the previous days. It wasn’t shabby, but it wasn’t exactly five-star. The carpet was soft, but was dirty in some places. The kitchen was small, giving Marcus little room to work with, and the table for them to eat was a small circular surface not big enough for all of them to sit at and have room. There was a little balcony outside, and it provided a little area to hang out.

”It’s not the best, but it’ll do. Remember, this is just a stepping stone for later.”

Ronald and Cecilia were still feeling slothful after their banquet of assorted and delicious fruits, so all they wanted to do was sleep.

“Okay, you can nap, but maybe later we can go walk around and see more of this place.” Marcus said to them.

Ronald nodded lethargically, already curled up on one of the pillows and going to sleep. Cecilia curled up beside him and did likewise.

Marcus took this time of silence to look for something to do. On the dresser was a small stack of newspapers and magazines. It likely contained a lot of local news and job listings.

And a light bulb went off in his mind.

”The job listings! I gotta see if there’s anything in here I can get!”

He thumbed through (figuratively speaking of course) the pages and looked for key words such as “job,” “career,” or “employment.” He wasn’t optimistic about seeing anything that’d appeal to his field of expertise, but if need be, he’d learn another trade just for the sake of having an income.

It didn’t take a lot of searching to discover that the fishing industry was a major thing in this valley, and the largest source of employment. Not only was it caught and eaten locally, it was often exported to other cities and even areas beyond the mountains. Marcus felt good about this, being an expert at snatching those creatures from the water, no matter how fast they were swimming. He excelled at this over most other wolves since all of his hunting was concentrated on fish. Of course, he really wanted to do something involving robotics and designing machines, but until he saw such a career opportunity, he’d have to settle for that.

The next thing he did was call the number beside the job listing and let the business know he wanted a job with them and was ready to start at any time. They thanked him for calling, and said they would call him back as soon as needed. He wasn’t the only one looking for a job, of course.

He then slid open the screen door and stepped out onto the balcony. The slight breeze felt nice against his skin, if a bit on the cooler side. The view of the balcony made him look towards the river, which was still teeming with activity. Ten miles further was the valley’s main town, and he wanted to visit it at some point. Perhaps when he saved up more money,, he could move there and find a job closer to what he really wanted to do. These thoughts were both scary and exciting.

”Our lives have really changed...this is going to be our new normal. I no longer have my house, nor Diane...and they don’t have their orphanage any longer. It would be lovely to turn back the clock by a week and change everything that’s happened, but what good is wishing? This is now our reality, and we have to adapt and make the most of it. By God’s grace, it can work!”

Also on his mind was the hard truth that if he still wanted to be married in the future, he would have to become emotionally detached from Diane, and give his heart to another lady. At this moment in time, he couldn’t bring himself to do that. Sure, there were probably other wolves out there who were perfect for him, but he wasn’t ready to make that pursuit again, at least not for a long time.

When it was early evening, he woke the kids up so they wouldn’t mess up their sleep schedule too much, and also so that they could go for a walk.

“Do we have to walk?” Ronald complained.

“You and Cecilia ate a lot for lunch; it’s a good opportunity for you to walk it off. Also, don’t you want to explore a bit? There’s so much we haven’t even seen!”

“Oh, alright.” He surrendered.

“Good. Both of you put on some footwear and we’ll go out. We should be back in before it gets dark.”

Walks weren’t necessarily the most exciting thing, but what Marcus was really looking forward to this one was that it was walking for the sake of walking. He could finally be out moving without worrying about getting to a distant destination safely. He could finally walk just to relax and enjoy being with his kids.

They came by a small grove of trees near the apartment where Ronald and Cecilia were able to play. He decided to let them loose, so long as they stayed in his sight. This wasn’t his first time watching them play, but he wasn’t at all tired of it; he relished it.

Not long after sunset, he took them back inside, where they got to play with the various toys and gizmos he bought for them the other day. After they got tuckered out from that, he made them get ready for bed. Before bidding them good night, he told them another one of his crazy fairy tale spins (this time, the “Tortoise and the Hare,” except they both lose to a wombat riding a motorcycle). He then said a prayer for them both and for himself, thanking God for the beautiful day they had.

“Pleasant dreams you two; I love you.” He kissed them on their foreheads and then let them sleep. He stayed up a little bit longer, thumbing through the remaining pages in the “jobs” section for anything more. Seeing nothing new, he let out a big yawn.

”What a long, long day, but it was a good one. Guess I’ll hit the sack now.”

He checked that the door was locked, shut off the reaming lamp, and then took the other bed beside the kids’. He loved them, but it was nice to finally have his own space to sleep.

- - - - - -

He woke up early the next morning with a start; shaken by a terrifying dream. All of the animals from the forest had stormed their apartment, captured him, and executed him by burning. After he had woken up, it occurred to him that he had not seen a single WANTED poster of himself anywhere.

”Huh, I guess Phil was right?”

To be extra cautious, he looked out the window for any raging mobs with torches and pitchforks, but saw none. He let out a sigh of relief, and stepped out onto the balcony for some crisp morning air.

Ronald woke up and saw him standing outside. Being in the mood for a prank, he tried his best to sneak up behind him discreetly. The moment his feet made contact with the balcony though, his dad’s ears perked up.

“Good morning, Ronald.”

“What?! How did you know I was here?”

“I could hear the sound of your feet against the surface. I’m not deaf.”

Ronald climbed up to the top of his head. “So what are we doing today?”

“Well, I am hoping to start on a new job today; hopefully I get a call soon.”

“What job are you trying to get?”

“Anything that involves catching fish, since it’s a demand here, and I’m good at it.”

“But what about building robots?”

“Yeah, I’d love to get back to making and designing machines again, but I need to get something quickly for now so I can save up more money while I look for the kind of jobs I really want. From what I can tell, my particular trade isn’t in high demand here.”

Marcus stepped back inside to make some coffee for himself. The coffee was intended as a little “welcome” gift from the apartment, but there was really no food in the kitchen. He was shocked to see the fridge and pantry completely scant of anything edible, being used to the cabins.

“Guess we have some shopping to do. When Cecilia gets up, we’ll all go to the store and find enough food to last us for a week or so. Some cookware would be great too...”

Just then, the phone began to ring, and Marcus grabbed for it excitedly. This would surely be his new job calling.

“Good morning, is Marcus there?”

“Yes, that would be me. How are you?”

Sure enough, it was a confirmation for Marcus to begin working today at a business he applied to. He would be supervised, and if he did well, he’d keep the job.

“Thank you, we will see you at noon then.”

“Thank you, and likewise.”

Marcus was put into a smiling mood; it hasn’t even been a full day here and he already had a job, almost.

”This valley is living up to its name!”

- - - - - -

The store wasn’t too crowded that morning, leaving Marcus all the room in the world to browse and peruse everything they had to offer. Of course, the three of them could live off the food from the river and the fruit trees, but having food right there in the kitchen made getting to it so much easier. Besides, as they were sentients, they were inclined to try some things intended for humans, things that didn’t appear in nature.

“Can we get this?” Cecilia gestured to a jar of peanut butter, not knowing what it was, but it looked good.

“Don’t see why not.” He added it to the basket.

“What about these?” Ronald held up a bag of potato chips

“Sure. Toss ‘em in.”

Marcus was questioning the nutritional value of some of the items his children wanted, but he figured that he’d at least let them try them out. They probably didn’t have any of these things at the orphanage.

“Let’s try to make this stuff last a while; I still want you two to be mostly eating nuts, vegetables, and fruits.” He did care about their health, but he was also afraid of coming off as an irresponsible parent.

When they got back home, it was already ten. Marcus started packing everything away.

“We’re going to start heading down to the river at eleven-thirty. I don’t know how long they’ll want me today, but be prepared to stay down there the rest of the day.”

“Is there stuff to do at the river?” Cecilia asked.

“I’m sure there will be plenty to do, but you two will have to stay near me the whole time. I’ll need to be able to see you.”

“I’m sure we could swim or something.” Ronald said.

“But I can’t swim.” Cecilia replied.

“Oh, then in that case, don’t go into the water. When I have a free day, I can try to teach you how to swim.” Her dad offered.

“Swimming looks hard.” She commented.

“It’s easy!” Ronald countered. “I can show you how it’s done when we get to the river.”

“I still don’t want her going into the water quite yet.” Marcus said to him. “I want to make sure she has complete adult supervision before doing this, but thank you for offering to teach her.”

Ronald was bummed out; he wanted to swim, but it seemed he was going to have to spend his time as Cecilia’s babysitter. Boring!

- - - - - -

The three of them got to the river at ten before noon. Marcus was told to look for a large orange tent, as that was where he was expected to meet the boss. He turned out to be a lion, an animal that didn’t even exist back in the forest. Ronald and Cecilia were surprised to see him as well, having seen lions only in cartoons and illustrated kiddy books.

“You Marcus?” He asked, his voice gruff and authoritative.

“Yes I am.”

“I’m Harold, and I’m the owner here. Follow me, and I’ll show you how we do things around here.”

Harold didn’t really acknowledge the children, which Marcus understood, as he seemed busy supervising his employees. There were not only people and animals who did the fishing, but there were those who also had to clean them, weigh them, sort them, and package them. It was a complex operation with a multitude of moving parts, and it all had to be done not just correctly, but to perfection. There were other businesses who also drew resources from the river, and Harold strove to make his the best out of them all. Marcus was as attentive as he could be; the main thing he was concerned about was whether Ronald and Cecilia were still following him around as he was being shown the ropes.

“Any questions?”

“No, I understand what to do, thank you.”

“Good. Go get started, and if you have a question, ask me or another worker.”

Marcus nodded, and walked up to a vacant spot at the edge of the river to begin his work.

“You kids stay right around here, alright? There’s a flower bed right there you can go play in so you don’t risk getting stepped on by one of us.” He instructed them, remembering how he was told the workers weren’t supposed to trample through the flowers.

“Okay, dad.”

The flower bed was close enough for Marcus to notice Ronald and Cecilia from his spot, but not close enough to impede operations. There weren’t too many other children in this immediate area; most were back at home or at school. Most children that were out here were like the two siblings; having just one parent or guardian to look after them. It wasn’t ideal, but it had to work for now.

What Marcus had to do was simply catch any fish he saw swim by, and place it into a specified bucket he was given. He had to keep catching and catching until the bucket was full. When it got full, he had to carry it to another location where it would be cleaned and sorted. He was practically made for this job; he had no problem catching the fish (though he had to be self-aware and not eat what he caught) and filling his bucket. The harder part was actually carrying it. That thing was so heavy when it was full that he couldn’t carry it normally; he had to drag it along the ground to its destination.

“Very good work,” Harold commented, “but you could just fill it halfway next time; not make it a burden for yourself.”

By three, most of the other workers were calling it a day, as they had begun earlier in the day. Many of the playmates Ronald and Cecilia had made had to go back home with their mom or dad. The only catchers left were Marcus, another wolf, and a cobra. They were all staying until six, but Marcus had enough energy to last till midnight.

Though his kids would have a problem with that.

Close to six, Marcus was picking up his pace to fill up his bucket just once more. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a lion cub by the flower bed in a poised position, as though he were about to pounce on unsuspecting prey. Assuming the worst, he stopped what he was doing.

“Kids, watch out!” He raced in their direction to guard them from the attacker, but the cub made the pounce, and it was too late.

“STOP!” He barked.

Then, laughter erupted from the flower bed. “No!” Ronald started laughing. “Stop him, Cecilia!”

“He’s too heavy!”

As it turned out, the ub was not attacking them...he was merely playing with them. It took a minute for Marcus’ heart-rate to go back down.

“Dad, are you okay?” Cecilia asked him. “We’re just playing.”

“Yeah...I’m okay...who is he?”

“Oh, he’s Harold’s son. He doesn’t talk though because he can’t hear very good.” Ronald added, escaping from under the cub’s paw.

“Oh...” Marcus was beyond relieved that Harold didn’t see him react like this, and also that the boy couldn’t hear him too well. He looked up at Marcus and waved.

“H-hi.”

Marcus smiled and waved back. He sounded about Ronald’s age. He quickly headed back to his post, humiliated and wanting to leave.

When it turned six, the remaining workers clocked out. Harold’s evaluation of Marcus was that he had done very well and was a very hard worker. He was officially given the job, and was asked to come in at the same time tomorrow.

“Thank you; I will be here at the same time.” He was relieved, but inside, was still shaken. He just wanted to get his kids home before finding another way to embarrass himself. On the way home, Ronald asked him why he yelled at Harold’s son to stop.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know who he was. For all I know, he could’ve been mistaking you two for ferals and wanted to eat you. I didn’t mean to scare you like that.”

“It’s okay, you didn’t know.”

“Did you make any other friends today?”

“Yeah, there were some other squirrels, and some rabbits, moles, raccoons, and opossums, One of them was being a bully though.”

“Really? What happened?”

“Oh, he was sitting on someone else’s tail and wouldn’t let him go until he said something stupid about himself.”

“Did he ever threaten you or Cecilia?”

“No.”

“If he does, just call for me and I’ll deal with him.”

They didn’t go straight home; Marcus decided to stop at a different store to get some more books for Ronald and Cecilia, as well as a Bible, as they had in their previous stay. He also bought some scarves, mittens, and snow caps for when it would get really cold in a couple months (like the footwear, the “mittens” were designed for use by small animals). He decided he would get things like decorations another day.

Before dinner, Marcus made sure to lead his children in a short prayer and saying of thanks to God for all they had, including each other. He also said a prayer for them both individually at their bedsides, before bidding them sweet dreams. He knew it was important to instill in them a spirit of gratitude towards God; he himself feeling convicted, as he sometimes didn’t want to give thanks, especially with Diane gone. It was a test of faith and perspective to express joy in light of that sorrow.

- - - - - -

The next day, Marcus was back at work at the same time, and the kids were back to frolicking about with their new playmates.

But then the bully showed up. He too was a squirrel, a few years older than Ronald, and quite chubby.

“Hey you, come over here.” He taunted some younger rats who were playing and minding their own business. “I need someone small to pick as my punching bag today.”

The rats tried to flee, but he managed to snatch one by his tail.

“Let me go!”

“Um...nah.” He dangled him upside-down and guffawed as he tried in vain to escape.

“Hey, you big butt-face!” Ronald stood, getting fed up with this bully. “Leave him alone and be nice for once! Some of the surrounding children gasped, considering it suicide to stand up to him.

He looked over at Ronald and laughed. “Aw, did your mommy teach you to say that, little mommy’s boy?”

“Let him go or I’ll tell my dad!”

“You’re a joke, you can’t fight for yourself so you have to cry to daddy! I’ll just sit on my friend here and you can go cry to daddy about how mean I’m being.”

So he placed the helpless rat kid under himself and sat on his tail. The rat’s siblings were trying to pull him free, but all the pressure did was hurt him even more.

“Get off me!” He cried. Ronald then tried to free him, but the pulling just caused more strain. He then tried to shove the bully over, but he was so heavy he barely budged.

“You’re weaker than a wet noodle!” He laughed.

“DAD!” Ronald shouted. “I need your help!”

“I bet your dad can’t even make me move, but I’ll enjoy seeing him try!”

So the bully just sat there fat and proud, and was puzzled to see Ronald smirking.

“So your daddy’s coming?”

“Yep.”

The bully feigned a big yawn, not realizing who was approaching him, as his back was towards the river. “That’s cool, maybe he can give me a lecture on being nice.” He laughed.

“I would like to give you a lecture, but I need to get back to work. What’s going on here?” Marcus’ shadow enveloped the bully, and he noticed the poor rat who was stuck under him. Meanwhile, the bully was startled by the shadow. He turned around and just about fainted at seeing the wolf towering over him. Without any arguing or obstinance, the bully tried to scurry off, but Marcus planted a paw on his tail just firmly enough to prevent him from leaving.

“You need to apologize to him for what you did; that’s not a kind way to treat others.”

“I’m sorry.” The bully blurted out quickly, more terrified of the wolf than he was remorseful. “I won’t do it again.”

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

Marcus wasn’t sure he was being that sincere, but he let him go nonetheless, and he scurried away.

“Are you okay?” He asked the little rat, to which he said that his tail hurt. The little creature thanked Marcus for helping him.

“Not a problem, just be careful, alright?”

He returned to his spot by the river, and he didn’t hear from that bully the rest of the day.

- - - - - -

Marcus had Sunday off; he normally would’ve been working except there was no one but himself to look after Ronald and Cecilia. Exceptions were made for single parents. It was a nice change to wake up that day and not be required to go anywhere for once. He woke up at his normal time, but didn’t get out of bed for a while. He just lay there, thinking about what he wanted to do today.

”There’s still a lot of exploring I want to do, and stuff I want to do with the kids. I have the whole day with them; it’s just deciding what to do with it...”

He decided to start his day with reading; he went out onto the little balcony with a book and began reading it. He thought he’d try to enjoy the quiet atmosphere before the kids would get up.

Ronald woke up and spotted his dad out on the balcony. He had tried some days before to scare him from behind, but failed miserably. Today would be different; he would be lighter on his feet, and extra sneaky, like some of those ninjas he saw in a cartoon once. With utmost stealth, he slipped out of the bed and crept along the floor.

”Good, he doesn’t notice me...” He thought, a childish and mischievous grin on his face. He tip-toed right onto the wooden surface of the balcony, and it seemed like dad didn’t notice him.

”Just leap right onto the table and yell BOO! He won’t see it coming!”

But before he could carry out his jump-scare scheme, his dad turned the tables on him. He lowered his book and exclaimed ‘Boo!’ right back at him, causing Ronald to jump out of his skin.

“Dad! How did you know?!” His fur still bristled.

“When I noticed you get out of your bed and start crawling this way, I knew what you were planning to do.” He replied casually.

“Nuts, I thought I was being sneaky, like a ninja.”

“Nope, I saw you all along.” Marcus smiled. “So anyways, I got to thinking that we could go swimming today. It looks like it’ll be a nice day for it, and I also want to teach your sister how to do it.”

“I haven’t swum in so long; this would be really cool!”

“Neither have I! We’ll go in the afternoon when it warms up.”

- - - - - -

True to his word, Marcus took them down to the river a couple hours after lunch. The sun wasn’t unbearable, but its heat was present enough to warrant a satisfying plunge into some deep, cold water. The river was tame, at least according to Marcus’ judgment, and he didn’t worry about Ronald or Cecilia being swept away.

“Ronald, whatever you do, don’t go past that bush right there. I’ll need you to stay reasonably close at all times.”

“Only that far?”

“I just want to make sure I can see you at all times; this river may be slow, but anything could still happen. Call on me for help if you need it, alright?”

“Alright.” Ronald dipped his foot into the river first to get acclimated to the cold, and then he jumped right in. Marcus watched him for a little bit to make sure the river’s flow wasn’t too strong for him. Seeing that Ronald was managing on his own, he turned to Cecilia.

“I’m too scared.” She complained.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of; I’m right here with you.”

“I’m scared I’ll sink all the way down.” She clung to her tail as though it were a safety blanket.

“I would never let that happen to you; I’ll make sure you stay above the water the whole time. Here, I’ll show you it’s okay. Watch.”

He stepped into the river with all fours, the water only going up to halfway between his paws and his chest.

“See? It’s not very deep for me, so I can easily keep you over the water and not let you sink.”

She was still hesitant.

“Just look up at me.” He instructed her. “Don’t worry about the water. What I’ll do is lower myself and then let you climb onto my head. I promise I won’t even let you get wet.”

Marcus then stooped just far enough so that his nose was still above the water and that Cecilia could climb onto his head. She was very shy about even this first step. After nearly a minute, she leapt onto his muzzle and clasped onto him so tightly that her little claws started digging in. He grimaced at the pain, but made no sudden movements, save for lifting his head so he could talk.

“Not so tight, please. I promise I won’t let you won’t fall; just climb on top of my head.”

She quickly did so, wanting to get to “higher ground.” As far as Marcus was concerned, this was already progress; she braved going out over the water.

“Feeling good?” He asked.

“It’s still a little scary.”

“You’re doing good, sweetie. Now, I’m going to ease you into the water. I won’t take you far; just pretend like you’re taking a bath, alright?”

“O-okay...”

“When I lower my head far enough, I will tell you to climb back onto my nose so you’re closer to the water, and then, I will lower you in.”

“Okay...” She repeated, still uneasy.

“And when I lower you into the water, I’m going to hold you with my paws. The water will only go up just past your tummy, and no higher. Ready?”

The question was more of a formality, as he began lowering his head towards the water without waiting for an answer. Marcus could feel her little hands gripping his fur more tightly

“Don’t be scared...okay, now climb onto my snout.”

She did as he said, though slowly. If she lost balance, she would slip into the water prematurely. After he felt her grab on firmly, he started lowering his snout into the water, and now Cecilia began touching the water. Ronald could see the fear in her eyes.

“Just pretend it’s a bath!” He said flippantly.

It wasn’t as easy at that; every time she had gotten a bath, the water was always much shallower, and Marcus was always holding onto her. She didn’t have the same security here; the water was deeper, and her dad was only going to hold her for so long before encouraging her to tread water alone.

As she was lowered deeper into the water, she began to panic and tried to climb back up onto Marcus’ head. He stopped her with his paws and held her in place, letting the water go up only to her chest. He then raised his head back out.

“See, I got you.”

He held her there until she stopped kicking and panicking.

“There, it’s not so bad, is it?”

“No.”

“Okay, now what I want you to do is slowly kick your legs back and forth; this will help you to float and stay above the water without my help.” He watched her kick back and forth a few times.

“Not too fast; you don’t want to tire yourself out....that’s better! Okay, now...I’m going to slowly move my paws away from you, but not too far. I want you to try to stay above the water on your own for just five seconds.”

Fear filled her eyes, as though she had been asked to walk a tightrope over a bottomless pit...filled with hungry bears. She frantically shook her head in protest.

“I know you’re scared, Cecilia, but you’re not going to learn how to swim if you can’t float in the water by yourself. I’m your dad; you can trust me, right? I won’t move my paws too far from your body; if you start to sink, I will quickly catch you. I know you can do this.” He smiled encouragingly at her.

Ronald stopped what he was doing and watched. “Come on, you can do it.” He threw in his support.

“Alright, I’m going to let go on three. One...two......three.”

Marcus slowly moved his paws away from Cecilia, leaving her suspended in the water by herself. She looked down at the water and immediately panicked and began to sink. Marcus caught her right away.

“It’s okay, we’ll try it again. This time, look up at me, not at the water. Ready to try again?”

Cecilia felt more ready, now that she had been suspended in the water once and survived.

“One...two...three.”

Marcus released her, and she looked up at him while she kicked. Instead of being aware of the danger, she was aware of her dad, who would save her from danger at a moment’s notice.

“Look at that, you’re doing it!” Marcus cheered her on.

Cecilia felt like a conqueror; she was scared of going into the deep water by herself just ten minutes ago, and now here she was treading in it. It was exhilarating. She asked him if they could go swimming tomorrow as well, but he informed her that he would have work again, so next weekend.

”If I were able to find someone like a babysitter for them, they could go tomorrow. It might be practical to do that...”

Back home, Marcus let the kids partake in some of the treats he got for them at the store; he had to regulate them so they’d have room for dinner. He was finding himself in a very good mood lately; not just with having this day off with his kids, but also having gotten his pay from the week’s work. It was nice having some financial stability again.

After dinner, they played some games with each other, mostly that one Ronald made up about the aliens and outer space. Once again, Marcus found himself the bad guy, but he didn’t mind, as he was having fun making up silly lines as the evil alien king. After getting tuckered out, he read to them for another ten minutes from the Bible; reading a little bit from both Romans and Genesis. The former established the foundation of salvation, and the latter the foundations of creation.

“Alright,” he closed the book, “I think it’s bedtime for all of us now.”

“Aw, can we stay up longer?” Ronald pleaded.

“Only on Saturday night; I want us all to try to have a normal sleeping schedule. So I don’t have to worry about you falling asleep when I’m at work.” He said to him. He had had all-nighters and late nights before as a little kid, against his parents’ wishes, and he paid for it by sleeping through the following day.

“Just five more minutes?”

“No.” He shook his head. “I know how that works; five more minutes becomes ten more minutes, which becomes twenty, then thirty, and so on. I don’t want to encourage that. Ten ‘o-clock it is.”

Ronald sighed, clearly disappointed and grumpy. He wanted to argue and complain further, but when he remembered that his old orphanage had an eight ‘o-clock, he decided to drop it. His dad was actually very lenient compared to them. Cecilia didn’t contend with Marcus about staying up, as she was already tired.

Ronald got under the covers, and Marcus did his usual routine of praying for both of them and bidding them pleasant dreams. Ronald was still feeling mad, but that didn’t last long, as he fell asleep in under an hour.

Marcus lay down on his own bed, facing outside. He enjoyed being able to see the stars from this spot, though it pained him at the same time. It was only two weeks ago that he last stayed up late with Diane, both lying down beside each other in one of the clearings and looking up at these same stars.

”I hope I can enjoy this same scene some day with another...if I can ever bring myself to love someone else as much as I loved Diane...”

He decided to turn his head and face the kids, thankful that he wasn’t totally alone. Raising them as his own has been a joy, as well as a tough learning experience. Two weeks ago, he was a wolf madly in love with another, and today, he was a single father doing his best to make everything work.

A lot can happen in two weeks.

”I love you two kids...I just hope I can do a good job as your dad...”

He eventually closed his eyes and went to sleep, expecting another normal day tomorrow.

If only.

- - - - -

It was two in the morning; most everyone in the building was asleep, but that was to change very soon. Marcus woke up, hearing a tirade of footsteps in the hallway outside.

“What the heck?” He sleepily muttered. He also heard a lot of talking, but couldn’t understand what was being said. They were getting closer to his room, and he heard a question that made his eyes widen in horror.

“Is he in this one?”

”Who? Is there a criminal in this building?!”

He quickly climbed out of bed, thinking that it was the police looking for an offender on the run. If some killer tried to break in his room, he wanted to be alert and ready to attack.

And then his night got worse.

Much worse.

“Open up! This is the police!” They were right outside his door and pounding on it. “We know you’re in there, Marcus!”

No way this could’ve been happening! Didn’t Phil take care of this? The kids were woken up, and when they heard the banging, Cecilia began crying, and Ronald just stared at the door in abject disbelief.

“You’re under arrest! Make this easier for yourself and surrender now!”

“Daddy?!” Cecilia was now hysterical.

“It’s okay sweetie...” He spoke quietly and calmly to her. “I’m going to talk to them and clear this up; we’ll be okay.”

He didn’t honestly believe that last phrase he uttered, but what else would he have said?

“I’m coming.” He announced, hoping against hope these officers would be reasonable. He opened the door, and his hopes were quickly dashed. He was quickly and forcefully pinned to the ground and cuffed.

“You’re under arrest for the murder of ninety-two people, injury of hundreds more, and the burning down of Cedarwood Forest.”

As the charges were read to him, along with his rights, Ronald and Cecilia were quaking in fear under their bed; Ronald had to keep his hand over his sister’s mouth so she wouldn’t scream, or make some other sound that would give them away. He wanted to run up to them and tell them all this was a mistake, but not only did he have no hope of that even working, he was far too scared to confront them. Police officers had weapons, and he was terrified of being killed for confronting them.

Seeing their dad being treated this way was surreal and gut-wrenching. Ronald knew he had to swallow his fear somehow and do something, before his dad could be whisked away and never seen again. By now, they were hauling Marcus away; he’d be gone very soon.

“Cecilia,” he whispered urgently, “w-we have to follow them!”

“What if they hurt us?” She asked through her tears.

“They could kill dad! I-I’m going to chase them and stop them.”

He then darted away, not waiting to see if his sister would actually follow. She ran hastily after him, more scared of being left here alone than being spotted by the police.

The two squirrels made it outside into the cold, dark night. There were three cars, but to Ronald’s bewilderment, they didn’t look anything like the police cars he saw in the cartoons. They looked like regular cars that regular people (and some animals) would use. Marcus was pinned to the ground by two other wolves, a deer, a bear, and a human. It looked like Marcus was struggling against them, but it was no use. Worse yet, his muzzle was completely bound by some thin, but strong, tightly-wound cables. At this, he couldn’t even speak up for himself.

Perhaps Ronald and Cecilia were his only chance now.

The human opened one of the car doors, and the bear threw Marcus in, not caring if he got hurt in the process. None of this seemed right to Ronald; weren’t the police supposed to be more responsible in how they handled suspects? They weren’t supposed to just shove them in haphazardly. He had no time to analyze this though, as this looked like their only chance to sneak into the car. Right now, it looked like everyone was huddled around a different car, as though going over some kind of plan. If Ronald and Cecilia made a run right now for Marcus’ car, they could make it undetected.

So Ronald just ran for it.

Cecilia bolted after him, taken by surprise. Hopefully the car would have a nice hiding place for them.

Ronald bounded into the car, and saw his dad, curled up and fettered like a kidnap victim.

“Dad, we’re here.” He said to him, but before he could even try loosening the cables, the voices of the others drew closer. Someone was coming back to this car, and the siblings entered panic mode. Ronald dove under the seat in front, and his sister followed suit. The human, a man in his forties, sat next to Marcus to keep an eye on him. The bear got into the driver’s seat, and the two other wolves went to their own cars.

Ronald and Cecilia waited helplessly beneath the front passenger seat as the driver started the car. Meanwhile, Marcus was mentally panicking, not just for himself, but also for his kids. This car was the last place he wanted them to be; he was being kidnapped by people who clearly were not police, and who knew what they’d do to the two squirrels if they found them. If he was going to be killed, he didn’t want them to see that.

“Well, you’re finally going to get what’s coming to you, buddy.” The bear taunted the helpless wolf. “You’re not going to kill ninety-two people and just expect to run away.”

This was the first time Cecilia heard those charges, and she wanted nothing more than to object. The charge was not new to Ronald, but he knew it to be a mistake. He was so angry and grieved; if these people just gave him a chance to explain himself, and perhaps showed actual hard evidence of their claim, he would be freed.

“I heard that he had two squirrel children with him.” The man added.

“Probably a cover; wanted to look gentle and innocent, I’m sure.”

“I guess, though I didn’t see them when we cuffed him. They probably ran away when they found out the truth.”

”I did not, you horrible jerks!” Ronald thought.

Meanwhile, Marcus was really hoping that Phil would find him somehow and set these people straight. He wasn’t optimistic though; these fiends could be taking him anywhere. Just one quick bullet to the head in the middle of nowhere would be enough to end everything.

- - - - - -

The drive wasn’t long; they stopped just ten miles away from the town. However, there was nothing but nature around them, so finding this spot by chance would be highly unlikely. After the car stopped, the bear got out and dragged Marcus out by his forelegs. Ronald and Cecilia remained in the car, the older unsure what to do next. For now, all they could do was hope that the others would go away somewhere far.

Their location was among a few trees, and that seemed to be intentional, as they held Marcus up against one of them, as though they were going to tie him to it.

“I think you’re going to appreciate the irony,” the man mused to him and laughed, “you killed so many by fire, and yet that’s exactly how you’re going to die.”

Marcus was trying to make it clear that he wanted to speak, as muffled sounds were coming from his mouth.

“Oh, you’re not going to burn right now. You’ll get the chance to speak soon enough, we want to be fair after all.” He laughed again.

Marcus wasn’t sure what to make of that, but it was better than nothing. He badly wanted to ask for evidence that his robot-in-progress was even the catalyst that began the blaze, even though he assumed it was. He also wanted to ask for evidence that his mistake was intentional and performed in cold blood. Of course, if they’ve already decided beforehand they’re going to kill him, then nothing he said would matter anyways.

“Well, all of us are going to head out and get some well-deserved sleep. We’ll feed you when we get back. I hope you enjoy spoiled food.” The man then spat on his face. “Have pleasant dreams; they’ll be your last.”

The man and the other animals drove off; Marcus left out in the cold. His back was right against the rough bark of the tree; should he move the wrong way, he could get scratched and start bleeding. He was also positioned so that he was only on his hind legs; his underside completely exposed, which added even more discomfort.

After the others had left, Marcus saw Ronald and Cecilia emerge from a bush.

“Dad!” They ran to him, Cecilia in tears, and Ronald in a frantic panic. He looked down at them, depressed that they had to see him like this.

”I’m so glad to see you both again...but at the same time, I wish you hadn’t put yourself in danger like that...”

“I’m going to try to free you.” Ronald scaled the tree and landed on Marcus’ head. “I’m going to start here. Cecilia? Could you try to free dad’s hind legs?”

Ronald wanted to start with the muzzle so that Marcus could talk, but it didn’t take him long to realize that these cables were much too hard for his teeth to tear into.

“It’s too hard!” Cecilia echoed.

“We can’t give up!” Ronald tried to urge, though he knew this wasn’t going to work. “Wait, maybe we can just try untying it, instead of cutting it! Try doing that instead!”

However, just as they started, they saw the lights of an approaching car coming their way! Was someone returning to keep an eye on Marcus, or was this someone new altogether? Either way, Ronald and Cecilia got scared and quickly hid behind the tree Marcus was tied to.

The car stopped just feet from Marcus; the headlights not facing him directly, but still at an angle where he had to squint. The car door opened, revealing the driver.

”Phil! He found me!”

Marcus was thrilled to see him, thinking his old acquaintance was going to help free him.

“Marcus, I’m sure you were dying to see me!”

To which he eagerly nodded.

“Good, because I really wanted to see you...and finally...laugh in your face!”

Marcus’ eyes widened.

“I get to laugh because you fell right into my trap! But before I continue, let me untie this cable so you can talk. After all, it’d be cruel of me to not let you choose your last words.”

Phil unbound his muzzle and took a step back.

“Trap?! You said you were going to help me!”

“Yes, I did say that, but you can’t trust everyone.” He snickered. “I did in fact, dissuade many of the law enforcement agencies around so they wouldn’t get you. I did that to lure you into a false sense of security. Just when you were getting settled into your new life...BAM! You became easy to capture! And maybe you’re thinking, ‘why did you not just tell police where I was?’ It’s simple...I wanted to let the very people you affected take vengeance in their own hands. The law would’ve actually been nicer to you; us, not so much.”

“Th-this doesn’t make sense!” Marcus angrily growled. “You told me you knew the truth about what really happened! You KNOW that what happened was an accident!”

“Yeah, I do know...but no one else needs to.” He smirked, and then he lowered his voice. “Marcus, this is my chance to finally be rid of you...I NEVER liked you...and this whole scenario just worked out in my favor.”

“Phil...you’re kidding..”

“You wish. The reason I hate you? I’ll tell you just moments before your life comes to a fiery end...and everyone is here to watch. For now, I’ll let you wallow in your thoughts...see ya later.”

And with that parting note, Phil went back to his car, and drove off. All Marcus could do was watch in paralyzed disbelief.

It was all over.