"Business must be booming for you," Deacon noted as they talked over beers on the back porch. "I tried to book a cabin here a couple weeks ago and you were booked out for the next four months. I had to rent out a unit with the Landers, and all they had available was a bunkhouse."

Both men were seated outside, enjoying the cooler air as it passed through the trees.

"Yeah, between those of us who own the rentals out here, we stay pretty busy. Sometimes I get folks cancelling on me for one reason or another. If I can spare anything, I'll let you know."

"I'm alright. It's just me, so the bunkhouse will do. Plus I won't be in town that long," Deacon said.

"Unless I can convince you to stick around, right?"

"Ah, you don't want me around here. I'm more trouble than I'm worth. That's what they all say about us Remys," Deacon replied, and then changed the subject by saying, asking, "Haven't you remodeled this place? I don't remember it being this big."

"Don't you remember me adding on the third bedroom and the laundry room?" Luke asked. "That made more space for Nessa and Henry. And then when they moved out, I got rid of a whole lot of stuff, so it probably just looks like the cabin is bigger. Still the same old cozy home I've been living in for the past nine years."

"You've done well for yourself."

Luke sighed. "Sometimes I feel that way, and then other times I feel like something major is missing from my life, you know? Do you ever feel that way?"

"What do you mean? Like a mate?"

"Ah well, that too, I suppose. I was talking more along the lines of where I would be if I'd never lost my brother and things were running the way my family had always planned."

"Of course, man. I always think what if this and what if that. But these tragedies have shaped us into who we are today," Deacon said. "I've been away from Aspen Valley for longer than I wanted to. I know I'll never be able to change what some people think of me. I no longer spend my energy on thinking about those people anymore. What I give my attention to are the people who I left behind. Those who were loyal to me, like you and Leo and Hawk. Without being in the company of you guys, I was on the verge of depression. It affected me to the point where my wolf would withdraw and I couldn't shift for weeks at a time. I got my shit together real quick at the thought of losing my true identity."

"Where were you exactly?" Luke asked.

"I wandered around for about two months after I left here and then I ended up in Tunica, Mississippi." Deacon said.

"Tunica? That's where your grandpa's old Pack migrated to, right? Isn't that where you were born?"

Deacon nodded. "Not to far from it. I realized that to truly accept my life as it was and my family's past, I had to revisit our origins."

"I think that's great that you went back to your birthplace. Is the Tunica Pack still there?"

"Sure is. Now known as the Wild Horseshoe Wolf Pack. They're a small tight-knit group. They knew I was a Remy the moment they saw me. I gathered with them every now and then, but I didn't pledge or anything. I had just gone rogue from one Pack and I couldn't see myself declaring my loyalty again so soon, ya know?"

"I get it. Rogue or not, you're still one of us. You grew up here."

Deacon emptied his beer bottle before saying, "Tunica is where my grandpa developed his gambling addiction. He had some good folk out there…people he trusted. They still talk of him. I almost wonder why he never went back after losing our house."

"You and I both know…" Luke commented.

Deacon sighed. "Yeah. He lost the love of his life here, and he wanted to be buried beside her. I was only a teen then but after my grandmama died, he started drinking again. He stopped for a bit when I went to live with him permanently, but I don't know…maybe he only stopped then because he knew I depended on him since grandmama was gone. He knew my mom wasn't coming back and he knew my dad was up to no good when he got involved with that outlaw group out west."

Luke frowned. "Yeah, that's unfortunate."

"I remember my grandpa saying that he wanted to buy the farm back one day as if the current owners would just agree and hand it back over." Deacon shook his head. "He said he wasn't going anywhere until he figured out a way to get it. We were so dirt poor that I knew it was a lost cause. On his death bed, he told me where he buried his life savings and made me promise I'd pay back any debts he had here. I think his dementia had progressed too much for him to understand that his savings wouldn't even pay back a quarter of the debt he owed. It was mostly business debt from the farm we had. Nonetheless, after he died, I went from business to business, person to person, with a little notebook and recorded everything the Remys owed. I used to carry that think around in my back pocket while I was homeless and look at it almost everyday. I even added the folks, like you, who helped me along the way after he passed. I've memorized it all. All the names. The amounts. Everything."

Luke shook his head. "It's been so long. I think the people who your grandpa owed have finally realized that when he owned the farm and when he wasn't sick, he gave back to the community far more than some of us have ever done. They can't be expecting him to clean the slate now that he's dead."

"Well, it's why I came back. It's done. I did some things to come up with it all, but it's done. Every red cent. By the time I leave Aspen Valley, the Remy family will owe no one."

Deacon grabbed a wool drawstring bag, set it on top of the table, and pushed it toward Luke and then added, "Out of everyone I've paid, I can say you were among the few that personally helped me the most when I was down on my luck. I couldn't thank you enough before I left, but I wanted to pay you back."

"What's this for? You never asked me for money. I offered many times and you refused to take it."

"Remember when I couldn't get the electricity or anything to work right in the apartment above the auto body shop?"

"Yeah." Luke nodded. "You were staying there for over a month when things just stopped working. The wiring. The plumbing. We tried everything to repair stuff with what little tools we had."

"You let me stay in one of your cabins rent free until the day I left Aspen Valley," Deacon said.

"Man, it wasn't rent free." Luke shook his head. "You helped me with a lot of maintenance and errands for the lodging business."

"An hour of handyman work here and there didn't equal the amount of weeks I stayed in that cabin. A cabin that you could have rented out to the public. I wanted to pay you back. With interest."

Luke pushed the money back. "No, I'm not taking that. You're family to me."

"Yes. You are taking it. Do you know how hard I worked at that casino to save all that up?"

Luke cast him a sideways glance. "A casino? Really? You told me you'd never go to one of those."

"Well, I spoke too soon. It's not what it seems or what I've been led to believe. All the money is legit. I spent a lot of sleepless nights earning it."

"When you talked about leaving, I offered you a permanent place to stay. We could've worked these issues out together. I'm not sure what you went through to earn all the money to pay back your family debt and yours in just under a year’s time, but that's what I call amazing and true dedication," Luke said.

"It was rough, but I lived way below my means. I still do. When I got to Tunica, I bugged a casino owner about a job almost every week until he let me on the security team. I bounced at LIVE, so I thought…hey, I can handle a few drunken gamblers too. Pay was fantastic. Incentives were even better if you think about all the opportunities I had to double and even quadruple my earnings."

Luke laughed. "No wonder you stayed gone for so long. I'll have to come down and visit one day so you can show me how to play poker like a pro."

"I'd like that," Deacon replied.

Luke's gaze landed on Deacon's left forearm briefly before he looked up and asked, "Do you still stare at those hummingbirds?"

Deacon chuckled. "My wolf does. He thinks it's quite entertaining when they bicker over nonsense. I can't believe you remembered that."

"Your birthmark is showing, man. I was just wondering if that had anything to do with it."

Deacon looked down at his birthmark which resembled a lone hummingbird. His grandpa always told him that it was his mate mark. He ran his hand across his skin, wondering why the mark had chosen this moment to emerge. Then again, the mark had been tingling on skin for the past several days. He hadn't paid it any mind. If he had stopped to stare at the birds, he probably would've never accomplished his goal in the short time that he had.

"I don't think that's the reason. Come to think of it, I haven't seen a hummingbird since I got in town. Have y'all ran them all off?" Deacon asked.

"Not me. Not my wolf. I suppose they're hiding around here somewhere."

They talked personal business, about the recent string of shifter murders, and about the strength of the Pack for another half hour before Deacon noticed it was getting late. He had another person to see first thing in the morning and he was already dead ass tired from riding around in the Valley.

"You can stay for supper if you want," Luke offered while setting up a grill in the corner of the back patio.

"I'm not gonna take up too much more of your time tonight. I'll be around for a little bit longer while I find out what I'm gonna do with that old building. It's about the only thing I own outright except for my motorcycles."

"You mean the body shop?" Luke asked.

"Yeah, I don't want to leave it sitting there anymore. It's still in pretty good shape and the foundation is solid. Think I should have the building torn down and sell the lot?"

"Sell it to who?"

"The gas station owner right next door to it said he wouldn't mind working out something with me if I decide to sell. He doesn't have all the funds right now but I figured I could hire a lawyer to write up a contract or something. I'm still undecided about the whole thing. What do you think?"

Luke frowned. "Hmmm, do you want my real and honest opinion?"

Deacon nodded.

"You should work with what you have for now and then renovate the place. I think you should get back to doing what you do best—repairing motor vehicles. A long time ago you told me that's what made you happy. You oughta do what makes you happy and not what other people expect you to do."

"There's a lot to think about, Luke."

Deacon left shortly after that, but not before promising to stop by again if he left Aspen Valley. As tempting as moving back to the Valley sounded, there were still some memories lingering around that left a bad taste in his mouth. Yet still, his wolf got excited the moment he rolled his motorcycle out on the dirt road again, begging Deacon to abandon the bike, shift, and run through the mountains and valleys they still loved. He decided he wouldn't deprive his true self any longer. It was time to call it a day and let the beast in him run wild and free.