Leland Kincaid pulled his truck into the front driveway of his family’s ranch and parked outside the old house. The stately two-story farmhouse had been in the family since his great-great grandfather settled the land so many generations ago. The thought of his legacy hung heavy on Leland’s shoulders as he slid out of his cherry red truck.

He hadn’t been home in years, and it wasn’t a happy occasion that brought him here now. He took the worn front steps slowly, his cowboy boots making a familiar click on the wood as he climbed. He made it to the porch before the carved oak front door swung open.

“Leland’s here,” Jessie said, turning away.

His youngest brother’s light tone belied the grief in his blue eyes when he looked back to Leland. Jessie’s taut muscles moved under the fitted yellow motocross t-shirt as he gave Leland a quick, warm embrace. Jessie stepped back and let Leland pass into their father’s house.

After so much time, it amazed Leland how little had changed. His mother’s decorating still dominated the house even though clutter had taken over. The ancient red velvet sofa sat in front of the stacked stone hearth in the front parlor. Opposite to the sofa was his dad’s leather armchair. His dad’s desk and office were at the back of the room beside the door to the dining area. In front of him was the stairs to the second floor and to his right was the door to the TV room.

Buck Kincaid stood from the red velvet sofa in the parlor, his massive shoulders straining the blue flannel shirt he wore. Buck crossed the space and shook Leland’s hand, his lips a flat line and his eyes hooded and unreadable.

“It’s good to see you, brother,” Buck said in a thick voice.

“It’s about time you made it home,” Jessie added, slapping Leland on the back.

Leland turned to his youngest brother and frowned. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to come home. He couldn’t.

“I agree,” Leland said, not wanting to worsen an already difficult situation. “What happened?”

Leland took a seat across from Buck in their dad’s old armchair. It still smelled faintly of him. Leland squeezed his eyes closed, holding down the pain, and opened them again as Jessie settled next to Buck on the old sofa.

“The coroner said it was a heart attack,” Buck said.

Leland had barely spoken to his father or his brothers for seven years. That didn’t make it any easier to accept that his dad was gone.

“Did he know he had a weak heart?” Leland asked.

“Dad never talked to me about that kind of thing,” Buck said.

“We all know how Dad could be,” Leland said. “Me more than anyone.”

“Maybe so, but that didn’t keep him from leaving you control of Timber Bear Ranch,” Jessie blurted out.

“What are you talking about?” Leland asked him, surprised.

“I told you not to say anything until we all read the will together, Jessie,” Buck scolded.

Jessie went to an old front cover desk at the far end of the room. He pushed back the rolling cover and pulled out a stack of papers.

“Is that the will?” Leland asked as Jessie sat back down.

“Sure is,” Jessie said, flipping through the pages. “Same as was filed with his lawyer.”

“We checked,” Buck grumbled.

“Shouldn’t Cyrus be here for this?” Leland asked.

“We haven’t seen Cyrus in about as long as it’s been since we’ve seen you,” Buck said.

Leland could tell he’d hit a nerve with his brother Buck. Buck and Jessie had stayed to work and live on the ranch with their dad after the war while Leland had gone off to manage a ranch in Texas, and Cyrus had taken to the woods.

“You haven’t heard from him lately? How do you know he’s alright out there?”

“Buck is exaggerating. Cyrus comes down from the mountain for supplies once or twice a year. I saw his ass like four months ago. Don’t you remember, Buck?”

“Yeah, I remember. That chump looks like a real wild man nowadays,” Buck said, shaking his head.

“Dad didn’t leave Cyrus anything special. Not like what he left you, Leland,” Jessie said.

“Okay, let’s hear it,” Leland said, tired of waiting.

“I hereby bequeath to my oldest son, Leland James Kincaid, fifty percent ownership of the Timber Bear Ranch and the title of Alpha of the Kincaid family.”

“He left me majority share and the title of Alpha?” Leland repeated, shaking his head, stunned.

The last time he’d been home, he and his father had fought. The two men had always butted heads, but after the war, Leland found his father’s lack of respect for him unbearable. So, he’d left.

“That’s what it says,” Jessie said, handing Leland the papers. “Read it yourself.”

Leland read the words, but they didn’t register. He’d taken time off work from his ranch management job in Texas to come home to clean up the aftermath of his father’s death and help his brothers, but he had not expected to be given the role of their leader.

Even if he was the oldest and the rightful Alpha, he’d never expected his dad to make him his heir. Buck was the second oldest and had been there all along. It should have gone to him. By Buck’s expression, Leland had the impression that Buck felt the same way.

“It does say that,” Leland concluded.

“What now, Boss Bear?” Buck asked.

Buck was usually a straight shooter so his sarcastic tone was clumsy and obvious, making it sting even worse than it would have if Jessie had said the same thing.

“Where is the herd?”

“I have no idea,” Jessie said, standing up.

Jessie’s usual bright smile returned to his face for a brief moment before he started to back out of the room.

“That was all Dad’s department,” Buck said.

“You guys don’t even know where the herd is?”

“I’d check the north pasture,” Jessie said, gripping the front doorknob.

He slipped outside and Leland looked at Buck, who was supposed to be the responsible one of the two.

“Dad ran the herd. You and I both know that. I helped with branding and castration and whenever Dad wanted me to fix a fence line. Aside from that, it was hands off. I’ve been managing the timber rotation for years.”

“The north pasture, in this weather? What was dad thinking?”

“Dad had been acting strange. Snappier than usual. Not a good time to ask him about his precious cattle.”

“So you just left them there?” Leland said, getting irritated.

Buck stood, his face like a statue. Leland knew he was pressing his brother and it wouldn’t get him anything but a stone-cold shoulder.

“Looks like you finally got what you always wanted, control of the herd, the ranch, and all of us. Congratulations, brother.”

“For crap’s sake, Buck. I just got here. I had no idea Dad left me all this. I’m a rancher. What do you expect when I hear the herd is in a notoriously muddy pasture during the rainy season?”

“You’re right,” Buck said, shaking his head darkly, before sighing and leaving the house without another word.

Leland sat alone in the parlor. His mother’s furniture and decorating tastes were still evident throughout the house. It was like things hadn’t changed in all these years, even with only men living in the space.

A vase filled with peacock feathers sat on the fireplace at the center of the room. Leland gazed up at the multicolored old feathers and thought of his mom. What a sweet bear shifter lady she’d been. Gone far too soon for anyone. They’d lost her when Jessie was little. A terrible accident that had left them all scared.

Leland pulled himself out of dark memories of the past and hurried outside. If he was the new Alpha of the Timber Bear Ranch, then he was going to do his gosh darn job.