Nicole squinted at the horizon. The sun was slowly dipping down. She and Waverly Earp were sitting on the fence at the edge of the Earp property, enjoying each others company in silence. It was nice, knowing that nothing needed to be said between them to enjoy each other. She felt Waverly scooch closer to her, though there wasn't much empty space between them to begin with. She smiled, content, and looked over to Waverly. A calm breeze shifted a lock of Waverly's hair and Nicole watched it flutter across her eyebrow, then her eyes focused on the slight creases in her forehead, eyes tracing her face, from her eyes, down the slope of her cute nose, and lastly her lips. Waverly hadn't noticed that she was getting stared at yet. Nicole was just starting to lean in for a kiss, when she heard something behind her, beyond the ridge. Probably Wynonna, she thought to herself. Waverly's older sister had the worst timing ever! She sighed, and hopped down from her perch. A hand was raised to her girlfriend, ready to aid her if necessary. Waverly looked at her hand, considering. She reached out, but felt something yank her backwards, hard. Waverly let out a yelp and grasped for Nicole's still outstretched hand. She read the fear in Nicole's eyes and then felt her heart beat faster. She realized she was getting further away, something was taking her. "Nicole!!" She screamed loudly as she was carried off, her shriek echoing around her.
Nicole grabbed at her holster for her gun, and swore when she remembered it was on the nightstand in Waverly's room. Wrenching her phone out of her pocket, she punched Wynonna's number in, then leapt over the fence to chase the thing that carried Waverly off. "Waverly! Where are you?!" Her voice carried across the field. Whatever had taken her must have dragged her behind one of the small contoured hills, because she couldn't see them. Her long legs kept moving, towards where she saw them last.
"HELLO???" A tinny voice, Nicole stopped and looked around, then realized it was the phone in her hand.
She brought it to her ear. "Wynonna? It's Nicole… Waverly's been taken."
"Taken? Taken where?"
"I don't know, we were at the homestead watching the sunset and then … she was grabbed. Please come quick." Nicole didn't wait for a response, just jammed the phone back into her pocket and pulled up her spare handgun, scoping the landscape. She ran up a hill, but there was nothing there. "Shit," she muttered to herself, "I lost her."
xoxoxo
Her eyes were closed, that was the first thing she noticed as she started to sit up. Her brain felt foggy, the last thing she remembered was her girlfriend leaping the fence at the homestead to try catching up to her. The second thing she noticed was the strong acrid smell, which helped to open her eyes. Her nose crinkled up as she tried to identify the odor to no avail. It was dark, her eyes needed to adjust to make out details, but she quickly spied a fire. A shadow fell upon her, and she heard the sound of a tongue clucking softly. "Well, look who's awake now."
Waverly tilted her head up and met the gaze of a woman holding a bowl against her hip. Waverly scrambled away, though she was already close to the wall of this place. She pulled her knees to her chest protectively. "Who are you? What do you want with me?" Her tone was firm, though she could feel a shiver of fear pass through.
"Och, dearie, I won't hurt you. My name is Serena. I've brought you here for your own safety." Waverly's eyebrow raised upwards in part confusion, part surprise, and part curiosity. She tried to clear some of the brain fog feeling, not sure how she should respond. She had no weapons, didn't know where the door was, and even if she did, she's not sure if her legs would carry her.
Her eyes darted around the room now that they were adjusting to the darker setting. She saw a random assortment of bottles, herbs hanging from the ceiling, several bowls with grains or plants in various stages of grinding. Sensing no immediate danger, she looked back to Serena. "My own safety? From what?" Then reverted back to her original question, asking more firmly, "who are you, really?"
"I'm a watcher of this god-forsaken place, love. It has been tasked to me from my mother, and her mother before, and so on." Serena took a quiet breath. "I'm the copper witch. Mattie and her sister Greta are my nieces."
Waverly looked at her critically, unsure of what to think. On one hand, Mattie the blacksmith helped her. On the other, her twin sister tricked her into a bargain which caused Wynonna to disappear. As she was mulling her thoughts, the witch turned to tend to the fire. Waverly cautiously stood, more because she wanted to make sure she could still do that than to actually go anywhere. "Do you have some water?"
The woman nodded as she moved from the fire to the kitchen area. Finally able to see better, Waverly took another look around. They were actually in a cave, a large cavern. We have to be in the mountains, thought Waverly, no one will find me here, she realized with dismay. Serena shuffled back with a small cup of water. Waverly brought it to her mouth and surreptitiously smelled it before it touched her lips. She was not going to be drugged a second time. After her thirst was quenched, she turned to the witch. "What are you trying to save me from?" She put a slight emphasis when she said trying, knowing that between Wynonna and Officer Haught she was plenty protected.
Serena closed her eyes. "There is a darkness come, when the mountain wind shifts. A bluebird to be found, her wings carry a gift. Steady on ground, precarious in flight. She may look weak, and yet she fights." Waverly's face was blank. The other woman's eyes opened again. "A great danger approaches soon, I have felt it."
"Yeah, okay, so there's demons in the ghost river triangle. Big deal," Waverly shrugged her shoulders. "My sister kinda has that base covered. No need to worry."
The witch shook her head, "it can't be her." Waverly waited for her to explain, but Serena had gotten up. "Rest, little bird, there's much to be done."
xoxoxo
It was cold in the barn, wisps of visible breath coming from the group already gathered. Wynonna was staring down at the map laid out in front of her. Dolls and Jeremy were with her. When the barn door opened they all looked up as Nicole came in. Wynonna felt her heart drop as she looked at Nicole's distraught face. She was sure her own face must look similar.
"Doc is holding down the fort at Shorty's and is keeping his ears and eyes open for anyone meeting up there," Nicole reported as she approached the group. "But no sign of Waves in town."
"Jeremy and Dolls searched on the property, I took a wider parameter, but no luck. Of course there's no snow around to make this easier," Wynonna scowled, as if the weather itself conspired to hide her sister.
"I don't think we can do any more good until the morning comes. We should all get some rest tonight." Dolls heard a soft murmur of acquiescence from Jeremy, but the women remained silent as they filed out of the barn.
Jeremy and Dolls loaded into Dolls' car. "Hey, you hear anything at all call me. Immediately," Dolls stared point blank at Wynonna, "I mean it."
Wynonna's shoulders lifted and her face scrunched into something that said 'of course I will, you dummy' without her having to say it out loud. "Yeah, same goes for you." They gave each other a quick hug. Wynonna watched the car drive away, then turned to look for Nicole, who was looking off in the direction she'd last seen Waverly.
She walked over to her, putting a firm hand on her shoulder. "Hey, we will find her," she said, partly for Nicole, but also to believe it herself.
Nicole wiped away a tear that had fallen, then turned to Wynonna, "Yeah. We will," she sighed, "but the question is, will it be too late for her?" A second tear fell and before she could do it herself, Wynonna brushed it away.
"Hey now, don't turn on the waterworks, Haught," she tried to joke feebly, but instead felt a lump in her throat and her eyes burned, threatening to spill into her own tears. She swallowed and took a shaky breath. "Well. I have two flashlights with our names on them if you're up for a night stroll?" Nicole nodded and Wynonna took off towards the homestead, returning only moments later with two flashlights and a couple of doughnuts. She handed one of each over to Nicole and took a big bite of her own doughnut. "Let's do this," she said, her mouth full of sugary goodness.
Nicole nodded, "Let's split up to cover more ground. I'll go north, you go south?"
"Great. Let's meet back here in an hour unless one of us finds something. Keep your phone on," Wynonna glanced at her battery, which read 56%.
"See you in an hour," Nicole hesitated before she headed north, and Wynonna correctly guessed she needed a hug. Hell, they both did. Wynonna hooked an arm around Nicole and they embraced, then split off to search for the spunky shorty they both loved.
Wynonna's flashlight shone on the land and the trees as she walked. Her eyes were constantly scanning, but nothing she saw stuck out to her. She walked until she couldn't feel her legs anymore. "C'mon, Waves, where could you be?" She muttered under her breath. She fished in her pocket for her phone to check the time when -snap!- someone was close by. Her head whipped around and she dropped the phone to grab her gun. "I'm armed and pissed off, whoever you are," she shouted at the trees, then muttered to herself, "or whatever you are." No one answered, so she cocked Peacemaker's trigger, "angrier by the minute!" She stacked her hands so she could aim her gun where she shone the flashlight.
"Wynonna, dear, don't shoot, it is only me," Doc Holliday stepped into view with his hands half raised. Wynonna uncocked the gun and rested it on her shoulder. "Have you found anything that may help us find our Waverly?"
Wynonna shook her head, "no, but aren't you supposed to be at Shorty's? Eavesdropping on all sorts of customers?"
Doc shrugged his shoulders, "I closed the bar early tonight. I could not abide to just wait around, and I would like to lend my assistance."
"Right. Well, I'm done for the night, I was about to head back to Nicole. It's been over an hour already." She turned to walk back in the direction of the meeting point with Doc at her heels.
xoxoxo
The next morning, the team was crowded in the Black Badge Division's office. Nicole had tacked the map of the triangle on the wall and was scrutinizing it, she'd already made marks indicating which areas had been searched, color coded by who searched the area. She put her hands on her forehead, palms digging into her eyes. She couldn't sleep last night, even after walking for hours trying to locate Waverly. Someone had thought to pick up breakfast: more doughnuts. She made a face, but the rumble in her stomach made her pluck one from the box with a mental note to handle lunch herself later today. She saw Wynonna stride up to the map and face everyone. "Okay. Listen up. We've covered everything around Purgatory and the homestead. We need to make a decision on where we go next." She unholstered Peacemaker and used it as a pointer. "I've divided the map into areas," she tapped the gun on the map, "the mountains in the north," she slid the gun to the right, "the city in the east," and down to the point of the triangle, "and the convergence of the rivers way down here. I think we should start--"
The door to the office opened just then, interrupting Wynonna. Expecting Nedley to be there, Nicole's heart burst when she saw her beautiful Waverly standing in the doorframe. She sprang towards her, arms stretched open to embrace her in a tight hug. "Oh, baby where have you been? We've been searching for you all over!" Tears welled up in her eyes as she felt Waverly cling to her, head buried under her arm and pressed against Nicole's crisp officer uniform. The redhead put a hand on her love's head and stroked Waverly's soft brown hair while holding her close. Nicole felt another pair of arms and knew that Wynonna was there, embracing both her sister and Nicole. The three stood there for a minute, all hugging each other. Finally, they broke apart, Nicole holding Waverly's hand and refusing to let it go.
Waverly bit her lower lip, knowing everyone was expecting answers. "I…" she sighed and fiddled with Nicole's fingers, interlocking her hand between those slender fingers. Her eyes looked upward, meeting Nicole's. "Can… can we be alone for a few minutes?" She glanced at the others in the room apologetically and led Nicole out of the Black Badge office, and rounded the corner into Nedley's empty office. She closed the door and let go of Nicole's hand. Worried eyes looked back at Waverly. "I only have a little while before she comes back, and I miss you." Her head tilted up and Nicole eagerly found her mouth with her lips. The kiss was sweet, but Waverly wasn't done. "Is Nedley… coming back anytime soon?" She asked, innocently enough.
Nicole contemplated, "well, I don't know his schedule … but I'm sure I could let him know I have a fragile victim of a crime that needs some recovery time …" she trailed off, glancing sideways at Waverly, who was already closing the blinds of the office. Nicole sent off a hurried text to Nedley. She heard the soft click of the door getting locked, and it was like a green light clicked on. Waverly rushed into her, knocking her backwards a few feet as she kissed her. The back of Nicole's legs bumped into Nedley's desk and she turned around with Waverly, leaning her against the wood. Waves lowered her arms, palms on the flat of the desk and gripped the edge, hopping up to sit atop it with Nicole's help. Waverly wrapped her legs around Haught's waist, her arms snaking around her neck as they continued to kiss. Then Nicole tightened her grip on the petite woman, her hands supporting Waverly's bottom as she carried her to the couch. The couch that really started it all, so many months ago… she shivered as she gently lay her lover down, remembering the spunky Waverly who barged in out of nowhere and let her intentions be known quite clearly as to what she wanted to do with Nicole. But now she was the one doing the straddling, looking down at Waverly with a hunger in her eyes.
Waverly stared back up at those hungry eyes. Her arms were still loosely circled around Nicole's neck. She ran both hands up her neck and through the short red hair, massaging her head gently. Nicole's eyes closed, enjoying the massage. She felt her scalp tighten suddenly, and realized Waverly had a fistful of hair in her hand. The sensation sent tingles down her spine and she tucked her knee between Waverly's legs before attacking her with kisses. She started kissing her mouth, then the corner of her mouth, and along her jawline until she reached just under her ear. Nicole flicked her tongue out, dabbing Waverly's earlobe almost as a distraction while she brought her knee up and rubbed it against Waverly. Nicole felt the shudder underneath her, then let out a gasp next to Waverly's ear as she felt two hands go under her officers shirt and scratch from the bottom of her shoulder blades back up to her neck. "Oh, baby…" Nicole murmured softly into her ear. If she had any smooth lines waiting, they escaped her as Waverly's hands carried their momentum to the front of Nicole's shirt and buttons started coming loose and her shirt was being folded back. Waverly gently nudged Nicole to let her sit up and the taller woman obliged, shifting her legs to accommodate. Waverly looked up at Haught, an adorable smile resting on her lips before she leaned in to kiss Nicole's now partially exposed shoulder, moving up her neck as if she was copying what Nicole had just done.
Nicole licked her lips and her hands moved to Waverly's waist, tucking her fingers into the back of her pants as her hands rested perfectly on her hips. Nicole's thumbs traced Wave's hips while she leaned back into the couch, guiding Waverly over her. Nicole had just taken her hands off the hips when almost simultaneously there was a loud, gruff, voice outside and a loud, sudden, thud as Waverly rolled off and hit the floor.
Haught's eyes were wide open, "Oh, fuck!" Nicole mouthed silently to Waverly, who was now sitting on the floor. Waves scrambled to her feet, straightening her clothes and checking for any hair out of place. Officer Haught fumbled with the buttons down the front of her shirt, her face and neck getting warmer by the second. She'd only managed to get one button threaded, but spied a Purgatory PD baseball cap that she threw on her head to hide her incredibly messy and too-obvious sex hair. Waverly was sitting in the desk chair and slid her over a notebook pad with some words scribbled onto it. Nicole glanced down at it quizzically, and back up to look at Waverly. She pointed at the pad, then to Nicole, then mimed writing. She clearly was saving her police ass by writing her own interview answers down. Taking a few breaths and hoping her face didn't look flushed, Nicole eased to the door, unlocking the door as quietly as she could. She could hear Nedley's gruff voice again, but not who he was presumably speaking with, then his heavy footsteps as he approached his office door. Haught jumped away, closer to Waverly and snatched the notepad on the desk and a nearby pen. To her remarkable achievement, Waverly looked like she had just come from a harrowing kidnapping experience, as she should. Nicole silently prayed her face showed business, hopefully the business of getting a statement from a victim.
The doorknob turned, and in sauntered the sheriff. Spotting the two girls, he slid his hat off his head in greeting as he looked the couple up and down. Nicole felt her heart pounding and willed it to slow down. "Sheriff Nedley," Officer Haught smiled at him and put on her innocent charm. "Look who's back!" Her smile widened automatically when she turned to look at her Waverly.
"Yes, I just spoke with Wynonna and Agent Dolls. Wynonna sent me in, wanted me to make sure everything was okay," an eyebrow lifted on that fuzzy face of his as he turned to Waverly, still seated in his chair, behind his desk.
"Oh yes, sheriff. I was just telling officer Haught I think it was a wolf that dragged me off and I hit my head. I woke up a few hours ago and had to find my way back into town," Nicole lowered her eyes to the notepad. Sure enough, Waverly had scrawled down the words 'wolf, concussed? back in town this am.' Waverly stood then. "Thank you, Officer Haught," she winked, and walked past. "See you at your place when you get off?"
Her words were carefully chosen. Nicole cleared her throat to cover up a snort, "yeah, of course. You get some rest," she paused, then thought to add, "are you sure you shouldn't get your head looked at?"
"I'll be fine, baby. Just come home when you can, okay?" Waverly exited the office and Nedley came around behind his desk.
"I'll just go … file this report," Nicole turned and walked to the door.
"Sounds fine. Close the door on your way out," Nicole walked out and started to pull the door shut behind her. Before it closed, Nedley made a comment loud enough for her to hear, "you missed a button, Haught." Her face instantly went red as she closed the door.