Free The Wizard Returns: Book Three of the Wizard Born Series by Geof Johnson Page A

it. It was a photo of a twisted, dented hunk of blue metal. “Is that what that is?”
    “It was.”
    John Paul leaned in to look at it and gave a low whistle. “You must have mighty big bears in this part of the country.”
    Carl shook his head. “My buddy Hank sent this to me. He’s a park ranger, and he wants to know if I can come look at it. Do you mind?”
    “Can I come along?” John Paul said.
    “That’s what I was suggesting. It’ll mess up our fishing, though. It’s pretty far.”
    “How far?”
    “It’s over an hour drive, even if I turn my police light on in my truck.”
    “I can make a doorway,” Jamie said. “We can be there in a few minutes.”
    “Won’t that be suspicious?”
    “Tell your park ranger friend that you were fishing nearby. Is there a trout stream up that way?”
    “A few, I think. I’ll have to check.”
    “I’ll boot up the computer and we can look at the map. I’ll make a doorway for your truck at the closest dirt road, someplace that’s deserted.”
    “How will you know if it’s deserted?” John Paul asked.
    “I’ll make a peephole first and look.”
    John Paul turned to Carl. “Should I go back to my house and get my gun?”
    “My shotgun is in the truck. You can use that and I’ll bring my pistol.”
    “What about these?” He nodded at his fishing poles, still in his hand.
    “Bring ’em,” Jamie said. “I’ll make a doorway to a fishing spot after we check out the trap.”
    “You’re coming to look at it?”
    Jamie clenched his fist and it flared with a bright yellow glow as if it were about to burst into flames. “With a bear like that, you might need more than a shotgun for protection.”
    Jamie, Carl, and John Paul got out of Carl’s pickup truck at the state park, next to three white Park Service trucks that were parked in a row at the edge of the lot. Carl strapped on his pistol while John Paul cradled the shotgun and gazed around at the breathtaking scenery, mountains stretching into the distance. Azaleas, blooming in pinks, whites, and brilliant reds, rimmed the nicely landscaped park, and a few rhododendrons were just beginning to show hints of their colorful glory.
    “Never been here before.” John Paul said, nodding appreciatively. “It’s really nice. Lot different than where I’m from.”
    “I’ve lived here my whole life,” Carl said. “I still think it’s beautiful. I’ll never get jaded.” He headed toward a small wooden sign mounted on a post a few feet past the end of the parking lot, set in an gap in the brush. “Hank said to follow this trail about a half mile and we’ll find him.”
    Jamie walked beside his father as they made their way onto the path. “How’d they get the trap there?”
    “Probably towed it with an ATV.” He pointed at some narrow tire tracks in the dirt. “See?”
    John Paul clutched the shotgun and his eyes darted about as they strode downhill on the rocky trail. Someone approached them from the opposite direction, wearing the tan uniform of a park ranger. He waved and called, “You sure got here fast.”
    Carl shook his hand when they met and introduced Jamie and John Paul to his friend, Hank Carlan. “Louisiana, huh?” Hank said to John Paul as they continued in the direction of the mangled trap. “I think you’ll like the fishin’ up here. But I bet you don’t get bears like this down there in the swamps, do you?”
    “We got black bears, same as you, but none that can smash up a metal trap like that. Got some pretty big gators, though.”
    Hank slowed and his expression turned grim. “Carl, something is really odd about what happened here. That’s why I called you. Some of the other rangers think it might some kind of prank, but....” He shook his head slowly.
    They continued downhill on the trail until it leveled out at a wide clearing. Near the center of it was the battered trap, a few rangers standing around it with rifles in their hands, talking and studying the