Julia enjoys the ride back to her house. She is careful when she pulls up her long driveway because the wolves sometimes like darting out of the woods. She still couldn’t believe that the new captain put her on suspension for three days. As she parks her pick-up truck, she spots Sphinx coming around the corner of the house.

“Hey, boy.” As Julia exists from the pick-up truck.

Sphinx walks over to Julia, happy to see his human. He stops near her and wags his tail when she starts scratching him between his ears. He loves when she scratching him between his ears.

Julia smiles as she watches her best friend enjoy having his favorite spot scratched. She couldn’t believe that after all the years her father rescued her and Gina. That he has been her protector and best friend. If it wasn’t for Sphinx and Cadmus, she doesn’t know how she, and Gina would have recovered from their ordeal.

“I got you a treat while I was at the store, boy.” Julia pulls out a Slim Jim with Tabasco sauce gives it to him, after removing it from the package it was in.

Julia holds it out to Sphinx as he removes it from her fingers carefully. She knew Sphinx loved Slim Jim’s. It was one of his favorite treats. She has another one in her pocket for Roxy as well. Roxy loved Slim Jim’s as well. Waffle, on the other hand, didn’t like the tabasco ones, but the normal ones.

Julia starts unloading the pick-up truck and carries the groceries into the house. She had to make several trips, but once she has everything inside. She starts putting everything away. She pulls what meat they were going to use for dinner out of the freezer to defrost.

Once the groceries are put away, and she gives Roxy and Waffles a treat. She heads towards her and Christmas home office and logs onto her computer. She starts going through the bills and pay them online. Julia transfers some money from her trust account into a household account. Her father set up the trust account for her when he rescued her and Gina.

She only taps into it, when the household account goes below a certain level. Most of the time, the money she makes as a police officer and what Christmas makes as a teacher pays the bills and whatever the kids need. The mortgage on the house and property was low. Once she is done paying the bills and moving some money around from her various accounts.

She checks her email and answers some of them. One of them was from Tizzy and it showed her with her new daughter and husband in Florida visiting Disney World and Sea World. They were planning on going to Universal Studios in a few days.

Tizzy’s adopted daughter looked cute in the swimsuit she was wearing. Julia knew Cheshire must be proud to have a granddaughter. She knew her father was happy having grandchildren and her grandmother in Ireland was happy having great-grandchildren.

Julia continues to look at the pictures Tizzy sent. Once she was done, she heads into the kitchen to fix herself some lunch. While she is sitting at the counter, eating her lunch. She figures she’ll go over to her mother’s and father’s house to see if her mother has heard from her father.
Julia cleans up her lunch mess and whistle for Roxy. Sphinx stayed outside, so Roxy was the only animal in the house.

“Come on Roxy, let's go and visit grandma.” Julia looks down at Roxy.

Julia walks out of her house and follows the path that leads from her house to her father’s place. She could take her ATV, but she didn’t mind walking. She pats her side for Roxy to stay near her as she walks towards her father’s place.

Gina’s place was on one side of her father’s property and her place was on the other side. Between all three of their properties, they had a lot of acres. Gina had a hundred and sixty acres. She had hundred and forty acres of land.

The wolves had the run of all their properties. She follows a path that has been created from the ATVs they owned. She spots the ranch hands out on the back acres herding the cattle and bison her father was raising.

Julia finally makes it to her father’s place. She noticed her mother’s pickup truck was in its normal parking spot and Selina’s brand-new Land Rover was parked in its normal spot. She walks up the steps going up the back deck. She knew Chaos 2 and another wolf was nearby. Roxy had stopped and looked towards the woods.

“Mom, Selina it's me.” Julia enters the kitchen area as she walks through the back patio sliding doors.

“We’re in the living room, sweetie.”

Julia walks towards the living room and spots her mother and Selina folding clothes. They were watching a movie on the big screen television set her father just bought.

“Looks like you have a lot of laundries today.” Julia sits down in her favorite recliner.

“Arabella is staying with us, while Gina and Arnold are in Washington D.C.” Debbie didn’t mind babysitting her granddaughter.

Selina looks at Julia “why aren’t you at work right now?”

“I was given a three-day suspension for punching a fellow officer.”

“Why did you do that?” Selina knew Julia took her oath as a police officer seriously.

“Because he was planting evidence and falsely arresting an older black man.”

“He was planting evidence. What type of evidence?” Debbie looks at her oldest daughter.

“He was planting drugs after I had searched the vehicle and found none. He said Terror missed where they were hidden.”

“That’s a bunch of bull crap.Those wolves don’t miss anything. Your father has trained them to sniff out all sorts of things.” Selina reaches down and pets Roxy.

“I know, so I sent Terror through the vehicle again and he still didn’t find anything. So, I punched the officer for lying and accusing an innocent man of a made-up crime. I told the officer he was training to report his actions and went on my way. When I got back to my precinct, I was called to the new Captain’s office and given a three-day suspension for what I did. He said I should have reported him, instead of slugging him.”

“Doesn’t your new Captain know, that isn’t how this family work? We respond when something isn’t right.” Debbie knew all her children had a strong sense of right and wrong.

“He doesn’t. He isn’t from here.”

“What is his name?” Selina takes her cellphone out to record his name.

“Selina you don’t need to do a background check on him.” Julia knew what Selina was going to do.

“Julia, I want to know who your new Captain is. He should know that you don’t question a Bounty. Now give me his name.” Selina looks at Julia the way she did when Julia did something wrong.

“Fine, his name is Thomas Floyd Wheeler and he’s from Texas. He might be a former Texas Ranger.” Julia spotted his name on the certificates and awards hanging in his office.

“I wonder why they hired someone from out of town?” Debbie looks towards her daughter.

“Beats me, they didn’t consult me.” Julia wonders why her mother asked her.

“I know you wouldn’t know, sweetie. Did you talk to your uncle Dereck about your new Captain?” Debbie wonders if her uncle knew what was going on.

“No ma’am. I was thinking about going and seeing him tomorrow.” Julia didn’t like asking her relatives to intervene for her.

She found out that he had recommended her for active duty right out of training. Normally, a police cadet is on probation for a year right out of the academy. She was assigned right out of the academy to Precinct Five and taken off probation and made a full police officer.

“While you talk to your great uncle, I’m going to have a full background check done on your Captain.” Selina had skills and connections that she uses for Mr. Bounty.

“Has anyone heard from dad, lately?” Julia looks at her mother and Selina for an answer.

Debbie was afraid of this question. Only her, Selina, and Cheshire knew what has happened to Jack.

“Sweetie, your father has been through some changes.”

“What do you mean some changes, mom?” Julia’s cop instincts were kicking in.

Selina sat quietly by Debbie. She wanted to help explain things, but it was best if the explanation came from Debbie.

“It’s best that I show you.” Debbie picks up the remote on the coffee table and switches the screen to the house computer system.

She accesses the house server and plays the video of what happened after Julia and everyone left Sanctuary ranch. She and Jack had spoken about the best way to explained what happened to him. So, they put together the video showing what happened after they left Jack at the ranch.

Julia watches as her father fought off four attackers. She gasps when she saw her father shot and fall to the ground. She doesn’t know who the woman was that showed up to take care of her father. Julia continues to watch and notices another guy that showed that changes from a wolf to a human.

Julia pauses the video and looks at her mother “did I just see, what I just saw?”

“Yes sweetie, you just saw something that we all thought were myths.” Debbie was surprised as well.

Julia presses play again and watch as her father undergoes a physical change. She couldn’t believe how young he was looking. She had seen pictures of what her father had looked like in his younger days.

At the end of the video, her father appears on the screen. Julia could see how much her father had changed. His eyes were no longer the same color that they had been. They were more like how Chaos and the rest of the wolves were “girls if you are watching this video, then your mother felt it was time for you to know what happened to me. During the time Angel patched me up, my spirit had gone to another plane of existence. While I was there, I was given a choice to either pass on to heaven or come back and continue doing what I have always done. Plus, I couldn’t go on leaving you girls and your mother by yourselves. I chose to come back and continue to do what I have always done. As a result of that choice, I was given a second chance. There is more I want to tell you, but I want to do it in person with the whole family present. Just for now know I’ll be home in a week or so and I’ll explain everything to you. Remember that I love all of you.”

The video ends.

Julia was stunned as she looks at the screen with her father’s face looking back at her. She doesn’t know what to make of what she just saw. She looks at her mother “is this for real?”

“I’m afraid it is, sweetie. Your father has changed. Also, he isn’t the only one that has changed.” Debbie brings up the picture she had of Cheshire.

Julia looks at Cheshire’s image and noticed her eyes have changed as well. She also looked younger, like her father.

“I wonder if Tizzy knows?” The last time she saw Tizzy, was when she went with her mother.

“I would have to say, yes,” Debbie remembers everyone being at the ranch with her.

“This is too weird even for me.” Julia thought her life difficult before.

“I know what you mean, sweetie. Look, let's concentrate on your problem first. Go and see your uncle and find out why they hired Thomas Wheeler.”

“And while you talk with your uncle, I’m going to run him through the computer system. Also, doesn’t Bart live in Texas?” Selina couldn’t remember if he did or not.

“He does and I think Rex and Sandra Oakley live in Texas as well. Sandra works for her father on their family horse and cattle ranch.” Debbie
personally knew Rex and Sandra.

Sandra was like her girls and was supported by her parents. Rex was a Female-to-Male and worked as a trash collector. He was trained by
Jack to collect information since his job allowed him access to a lot of different areas.

“Give me their contact numbers and I’ll ask them as well.” Selina figures it wouldn’t hurt.

Julia notices the time “well, let me know what you find out, Selina.”

“I will.”

Julia stands up and looks at her mother “sorry to run off, mom. But if I’m going to have dinner ready by the time the kids and Christmas get home. I need to head home now and get it going.”

“Well, why don’t you come by tomorrow.” Debbie liked when Gina and Julia stop by.

“I will mom.” Julia hugs her mother.

She also hugs Selina as well. She was like a second mother to her.

“Thanks for everything, Selina.”

“Any time, sweetie.” Selina returns Julia’s hug.

Julia heads back out the back door with Roxy beside her and walks back to her house.