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Realigning Destiny
By TT

Sometimes chance intervenes in our lives and causes destiny jumps the tracks. When this happens, fate steps in and realigns destiny’s course to bring us to where we need to be. But, as with the course of true love, the road of realignment doesn’t always run smooth.

Part 6 – Shadow

As the outer door gently clicked closed behind Ranger, Stephanie and Bob sat frozen, staring at the door.

Eventually, Bob was the first one to move. He rose from his chair and walked to the wine bottle. Pouring the last dregs of the wine into his glass, he downed it in one gulp. “Who were they?” he asked, his voice rough.

Stephanie met his eyes and shook her head. “I can’t,” she denied.

Bob just grunted and set his glass down a little too firmly on the table. “You’ll have to soon,” he said. “That man,” he began, pointing at the porch, his eyes turning to look the darkness outside. “That man is the one of finest, best men I have ever known. I have never known him to hurt like he hurt when you disappeared out of his life. He’s nearly worked himself into the hospital several times as he searched for you. He’s called in favors from all over the place to find you. Right now he doesn’t know which way is up. He’s found his holy grail only to find out it’s tied to he own personal hell.”

Turning back to face Stephanie, he flinched when he saw the tears streaming down her face. Softening his voice, he continued. “I understand why you did it. I saw some of what it did to you. I’ve read the pain, the isolation and the fear in your eyes every day I’ve known you. I want the names of those men who hurt both of you so badly. I want to make them pay. But right now, he needs you. He’s been bombarded by so much information, so many emotions…” Straightening, Bob walked to the wall and grabbed his raincoat off the peg where he’d hung it. He opened his mouth as if he was about to say something and then closed it again. Shaking his head, he slipped into his raincoat, fished his rain hat out of his pocket and left the house, hurting for both of his friends.

Stephanie glanced down at her hands and saw they were trembling. Fisting them and then pressing them against her thighs, she felt the shaking that was visible in her hands penetrate to her soul.

Taking several deep breaths, she closed her eyes and tried to visualize something peaceful. The first thing she saw when she closed her eyes were the aftereffects of her skip being shot, but she pushed those thoughts aside and tried to think of something else. Eventually the image of the day she arrived in Montana entered her mind. She had been driving all night, meandering aimlessly from state to state, wondering if it was safe to settle somewhere. She pulled off into a rest area to take a bio break.

Stephanie’s First Day In Montana

Stepping out of her car, she inhaled deeply, enjoying the crisp, clean air. It was Spring and the wildflowers carpeted the meadow as far as her eyes could see.

On a hill a little way distant, Stephanie could make out the shape of a few horses grazing on a hillside.

She immediately thought of Mary Alice. Though hardly someone to hang out with children, there had been times when Mary Alice had poignantly reminded Stephanie of herself as a child. It wasn’t unusual for the girl to appear in her thoughts whenever she saw a horse.

“Is this a sign to settle here?” she asked the gentle breeze since no one else was around to hear her.

As she was about to turn and leave, a bluebird landed on a nearby post and began singing its song

She could remember as a child Grandpa Mazur telling her to keep her eyes out for bluebirds. He then would tell her all about the bluebird of happiness.

Stephanie’s smile broadened. “Guess that’s a yes,” she whispered, heading back to her car. Now she just needed to find a town and a job.

Present

With the fear that had been overwhelming her pushed aside for the moment, Stephanie took a deep breath and rose from her seat. As she released the breath slowly through her nose, she crossed the room.

She only hesitated a moment before opening the door to the porch.

The storm that had tapered off earlier had returned with force sometime during her story. This time, it brought with it lightening and thunder.

It was a perfect match to the storm in her heart.

A flash of lightening revealed a very tense Ranger standing at the far end of the porch where the light pouring out of the windows of the parlor couldn’t reach. His legs were about shoulder width apart and his hands were gripping the railing hard enough that the muscles in his arms were beginning to bulge. His back was perfectly straight and rigid.

She hadn’t seen his face, but she knew what she would find there. It would be perfectly blank. The muscles would be tense and his jaw clenched.

Moving along the porch, she stopped beside him in the deep shadow and turned to look out at the land around them.

The darkness at first seemed overwhelming. Event the familiar objects she knew were out there seemed to blend into the night.

Slowly, though, her eyes adjusted and she could make out the forms of near objects. It took a while standing there beside him, but eventually the words came.

Turning to face Ranger, she was about to speak when lightning flashed, allowing her to clearly see his face. She couldn’t suppress her gasp at what she saw. The mix of strong emotions she read in his eyes were nearly overwhelming. It truly did rival the ferocity of the storm around them. She could easily identify anger, hurt, loss, fear, love and anguish. In that moment, in that brief flash, she understood the shadow her disappearance had cast on his life. He had told her once that she was the light in his dark world. By disappearing, she had taken away his light and condemned him to a life of darkness.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, her throat closing with emotion as she fought tears. She wasn’t a crier. She just didn’t cry and she certainly didn’t deal with this sort of emotional crap, but Ranger was… He was everything. Even now, he was her everything.

Without saying a word, Ranger released his death-grip on the railing and drew Stephanie into his harms, hugging her tightly to his chest.

He buried his face in her hair as she wrapped her arms around him just as tightly.

They stood that way until the lightening was too distance to pierce the night and the thunder was too far away to hear. They stayed that way until the driving rain tapered to a steady downpour and then reduced further to a soaking drizzle.

They stayed that way until the storm of emotion within each of them retreated enough to allow them to move forward instead of being lost in the past, lost in ‘what-ifs’.

They stayed embracing each other in the shadows on the porch until Ranger whispered, “I’m so sorry, Babe. So sorry I didn’t save you.”

Stephanie smiled and pulled back a little. She placed a finger over his lips and smiled. “Shh,” she coached. “No more worries about the past. We can’t do anything about it now.”

Ranger reached up and cupped her face in one of his hands. “But we can look to the future,” he replied.

The darkness around them hid the denial that flashed in Stephanie’s eyes. She made no reply to Ranger’s statement. Her reality hadn’t changed. She still couldn’t go back to Trenton, couldn’t let anyone know she was still alive.

Stepping away, she let her arm loop around Ranger’s waist. “Let’s go in and get some sleep. I work a long shift tomorrow,” she prompted. “I need to take that shower you mentioned earlier. Besides, I’ve got to be up to make you breakfast.”

“You cook, Babe?” Ranger asked.

He didn’t sound surprised, just curious, so Stephanie let the question go and answered, “Even I can make cold cereal and coffee, Ranger.”

Ranger chuckled softly to himself as he ushered her into the house. He waited while she locked up and then helped put the fire out. With that set they headed to the hall.

Stephanie stiffened as they reached the hallway. A part of her desperately wanted to have Ranger hold her all night long, but she knew she wasn’t ready for that, especially when Charlie wouldn’t know who he was.

As always, Ranger stepped in and said just the right thing. “It’s hard for me to believe you’re real,” he whispered, reaching out to run a finger down her cheek. Leaning forward, he kissed her gently, but firmly. “I’m looking forward to breakfast.” A smile twitched at the corner of his lips. “And meeting the other man in your life,” he added.

Stephanie laughed softly. “Charlie’s going to love you,” she assured.

Silence fell upon them once more as her laughter died out. Before it could become uncomfortable, she indicated the door to the back part of the house and said, “I should go get that shower.”

Ranger stepped away and then offered a wolf grin. “I’m good in the shower,” he teased.

Stephanie laughed again. “I think I can handle this one on my own, Romeo,” she teased back.

“Then I’ll see you in the morning,” Ranger replied, his eyes not leaving Stephanie’s as he moved to the stairs and began to climb.

When he was out of view, Stephanie shook herself and headed back to her side of the house.

It wasn’t going to be easy to keep her heart from overruling her head in this, but she knew she had no choice but to do it. She couldn’t risk Ranger’s life or any of the others.

She was going to have to be strong.

Continued in Part 7 – 017. Front

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