Page 72 of Gone Hunting

I reach for more bacon and eggs. “Where’s that?”

“Africa,” Mom replies. “It’s a territory known for diamond smuggling and dark magic.”

“Cue the witch,” I guess. I shove a forkful of eggs down my throat and stab a few more pieces of bacon. “How’d you get wind of her?” I ask.

“She’s protecting the diamond smugglers,” Dad explains.

“Can I go with you?” I ask.

“No,” Dad answers, something odd in his tone. “I need you here to look after your mother. I leave this afternoon, but I hope to return by the end of the week if all goes well.”

“Oh.” I play around with what little food remains on my plate. “Are you sure I can’t go?”

“I’m sure,” Dad says, his features wrought with sadness. “Your mother is worried enough, especially with all those females seeking your company.”

I roll my eyes. The females I know are annoying at best, looking to get with me for all the wrong reasons. “I don’t even like them.”

Dad watches me as I rise to dump my plate in the sink.

“Where are you off to?” Dad asks.

“I’m going hunting,” I reply. “Liam swears he scented elk near Mount Elbert.”

Dad places Mom carefully on the floor as he rises. I brush my wet hands against my jeans, hugging him tight. “Good luck, Dad,” I tell him.

“You too, Aric.”

He releases me as the familiar voices of my friends sound from the front of the house. Excitement builds through me. It’s going to be a great day.

“Gotta go,” I say. I clap my dad’s shoulder affectionately. “I’ll see you at the end of the week.”

Dad nods, gathering my mother against him when she wraps her arms around his waist.

“Son?”

Something in my father’s voice keeps me in place. “Yeah, Dad?”

He sighs. “You’re going to go through a lot of females. Promise me you won’t settle down until you find your mate.”

I smirk. “Dad, come on. We don’t even know if I have one.”

“You do and she’s out there,” he says, his voice quieting. “Just please, Aric, make me this promise.”

I want to laugh off his comment, but I can’t. Not with how sad he seems. “Okay, Dad. I promise.”

“Thank you,” he says.

I kiss Mom on the cheek and jog out the door.

If I knew that this was the last time I’d see my father alive, I would have found something better to say.

Like maybe thank you for being my father.

Dad was always one to sacrifice for the greater good. I’d never learn that this time, the greater good was me.

My friends and I race through the wooded property and toward the rear gate, shoving each other and laughing, betting who will bag the best meal.

Something in the woods lures my attention. I stop as Liam jumps on Koda’s back. Koda flips him over and right into Gemini, causing those three to go at it. I edge away from the fight and further away from the path. I’m not certain where I’m going until I find the tree where my father carved his initials and my mother’s into a heart.

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