The next morning they have breakfast together before checking out of the motel. On the way to the airport, Damon stops at the racetrack to make sure Brady and Kol have Ruffian ready for the trip back home. As they walk through the stables, they run into an old acquaintance of Damon's from Kentucky. Urging Elena forward to where Ruffian is stalled, Damon visits with his friend, Will Jackson. Wanting to see Ruffian, Damon leads him to the stall where Brady and Kol are getting ready to move him into the horse trailer for the drive back to Kentucky.

"It's a fine animal," Will remarks, petting the horse's face.

"It is. We're racing him next in the Wood Memorial," Brady mentions, give the horse a lovingly gentle pat.

"So Damon, do you have any horses for me?"

"I have a couple of one year olds but Dr. Gilbert here," Damon starts to say, using his head to gesture towards Elena. "She has a fine colt that's about six months old. He's the offspring of Bold Pharaoh and Ruby Belle."

"Really?" Will asks, turning his attention to Elena. "Are you interested in selling your colt?"

Although it takes every ounce of self control she possesses to keep from yelling at Damon, she tampers it down when she addresses the other man. "No! I have absolutely no interest in selling that colt and Damon is very well aware of that fact." Glaring at him, she takes Andy's hand and walks outside with Kol and Brady who are now leading Ruffian into his trailer. Once the horse is safely inside, they close it up. Brady waves goodbye to Damon then hops behind the drivers seat, ignites the engine and pulls away out of the parking area and onto the highway.

Knowing that she's not interested in selling her colt, Will says goodbye to Damon after telling him that he'll come to his horse farm next month to look over Damon's stock. Sensing that she's angry, Damon approaches the spot where she's waiting for him. Glancing over at Andy who is talking to and petting a dog, Damon asks, "Are you two ready to head to the airport?"

"Yes, I'd like nothing more than to get back home and away from you," she spits out, walking over to retrieve Andy. "It's time to go," she tells him. Standing up, Andy keeps pace with his aunt as they walk back to Damon's rental car. As soon as they arrive at the airport, Damon returns the car and the three of them walk out on to the tarmac to Damon's plane. Once he's in the cockpit, he begins the take off procedure while Elena and Andy take their seats and buckle up. Elena jumps when she feels the engine roar to life. Swallowing thickly, she grips her armrests when he takes off. Relaxing once they're airborne, she breathes a sigh of relief.

Knowing that she's angry with him, Damon doesn't invite Andy to the cockpit this time, instead he keeps to himself while he pilots the plane back to Kentucky. As soon as he lands it safely, he takes Elena and Andy home. And although Andy thanks Damon and tells him that he had a good time, Elena doesn't say a word to him. Getting out of the car, he follows after her, stopping at the front door.

"Elena, the Wood Memorial is in three weeks. I'd like you to accompany us again. My father always said that there's no horse not for sale."

"I don't want to have anything to do with you quite frankly... I told you that I had no interest in selling Ruby's foal yet you practically offered him to your friend. How dare you?"

"Elena, I know you could use the money. You can make a pretty penny off of that colt. I know for a fact that you don't have the means to successfully breed horses."

"First of all, I don't care about the money. Second of all, my financial situation if none of your business. And third, why can't you get that through your thick head?" she snaps, unlocking her door. Pushing it open, she's about to close it on him when he asks again about the race coming up.

"I don't know, Damon. We'll see. Right now I'd like you to leave."

"Elena?"

"I'm much too angry right now to even think about accompanying you to another race." Looking over his shoulder, she yells for Andy to come into the house. Stepping around Damon the boy walks into the house. Staring at her for a long moment, Damon visibly deflates then walks back to his car to pull their suitcases out of the trunk. Walking it up the sidewalk, he sets them inside of her door and after sharing a look with her, he walks back to it, hops inside and drives away, leaving a cloud of dust behind him.

Leaning one arm against the fireplace, Damon takes a sip of his bourbon. His eyes happen to drift to the photo of himself and his parents when he was around six years old. Setting his drink down, he picks up the frame and stares at his mom. With the photo in one hand, he picks up his drink again and then plops himself down on the recliner. After taking another long pull from his tumbler, he sets it down again but keeps the picture tight against his chest. Closing his eyes, he tries to remember a time when things were good around here. Despite wracking his brain, he can't remember one.

"Bethany, he's going to go to military school. They'll teach him what discipline means."

"Joe, he's six years old. He doesn't need to go to a military academy. You know very well the schools right here in the Versailles, Lexington area are excellent. You and I both went to school here."

"There will be no further discussion. He's going to go and that's that."

"No, he isn't. For once I'm putting my foot down. You are not going to ship our son off somewhere so he can only come home on holidays. I won't have it."

"I don't care what you will or won't have. My mind is made up." And with that his father walked out of the room, leaving a cowering Damon hiding in the corner behind.

Damon remembers it like yesterday when the bus from the Kentucky Academy arrived to pick him up. And while he did learn discipline as his father demanded, he grew to hate the strictly regimented schedule that he had to stick to. It took him nearly dying from pneumonia when he was eight for his father to relent and let him come home. The school's Headmaster made the kids stay outside and march despite the cold weather. He doesn't remember much of what happened when he was so sick, he just remembers being as happy as he's ever been when his mom told him that he could come home. But his happiness wasn't to last because although the school was no longer his disciplinarian, his father took the job. Instead of giving young Damon the love and affection he so desperately craved, his dad kept him at arm's length. Sighing, he finally puts the frame down. After throwing back what's left in his tumbler, Damon closes his eyes, letting the crackling of the fireplace lull him to sleep.

Parking his car along the curb in front of her office, Damon gets out of the car and struts into building. Seeing that no one is in the waiting room yet, he walks up to Caroline and demands to see Elena. Looking up from what she's doing, Caroline rolls her eyes at him.

"Miss Forbes, it's very important that I see Dr. Gilbert."

"She's not here yet. Apparently she overslept. She's on her way. So why don't you do both of us a favor and go over there and sit down till she arrives," Caroline demands, pointing him towards the waiting area. Raising his hands in surrender, Damon does as he's told but not without a glare of his own. Dropping into one of the chairs, he picks up a copy of a year old 'Horses' magazines and starts to thumb through it. Quickly bored, he sets it down and pulls his cellphone out of his pocket. Clicking on the Words with Friends app, he starts to play the game. With his mind now occupied, he loses track of time until he hears someone say his name.

"Hi Andy," Damon says, genuinely happy to see the boy.

After waving at Damon, the boy follows Elena out of the waiting room and down the hall, most likely into her office. Once Elena puts her purse in her desk drawer, she tells Andy to start his homework while she goes out to see what he wants. Stepping behind Caroline, she motions for him to walk over. "Did you need something, Damon?"

"Yes, the race is coming up next weekend and I wanted to see if you and Andy would join us again? It's in New York as I'm sure you know."

"I'm aware of its location, Damon."

"Brady, Kol and my buddy, Tyler are going to drive with him. You, Andy and I will take my plane. Tyler is going along just in case Brady's wife goes into labor so he can get home. I already have arrangements made for him to fly back here should that happen."

"She's not due for a few weeks yet, right?"

"I don't know exactly. I promised Brady I would do this and despite what you think of me, Elena, I am a man of my word."

"Aunt Elena, I don't understand this," Andy states, interrupting them, his history book in his hand.

"I'm sorry, I can't help you right now," Elena explains, gesturing to the people that are now waiting to see her.

"I'll help you Andy. Go get your pencil and paper and we'll work on it together."

"You'll help me?"

"Of course," Damon says, smiling at the young boy. Curious to why, Elena crosses her arms over her chest. Not quite understanding her stance, Damon sighs in frustration. "Will you come with me or not?"

"I haven't decided yet. It depends on how busy I am."

"Fine," Damon mumbles, looking away when he sees Andy approaching. Leading the boy outside to where Elena has a picnic table, the two of them sit down. Opening the book to the chapter in question, Damon glances over it. Although he's a kid, Damon is a bit surprised that he's already learning about General George Washington's spies. The Revolutionary War and the Civil War were his favorite periods in American history when he was in school. "So what is it you don't understand?"

"I guess I don't understand what they did and I'm supposed to write an paper about it."

"Here's what I remember from when I was just a little boy. I had to go to a military academy for a couple of years and as you can imagine, military history was important for us to learn. Although that school is where I first heard of Washington's spies, I really delved into when I went to public school. To this day, I love history and historical novels."

"I like it but I like science class the best," Andy adds, playing with the pencil in his hand.

"It's okay that you like science class. Do you want to me to tell you what I know?"

When he nods excitedly, Damon can't help but be excited himself. "The British forces occupied New York in August 1776, and the city would remain a British stronghold and a major naval base for the duration of the Revolutionary War. Getting information from New York on British troop movements and other plans was of critical importance to General George Washington. There was simply no reliable intelligence network that existed on the Patriot side at that time. That all changed in 1778, when a young cavalry officer named Benjamin Tallmadge formed a small group of trustworthy men and women from his hometown of Setauket, Long Island. Known as the Culper Spy Ring, Tallmadge's homegrown network would become the most effective of any intelligence-gathering operation on either side during the Revolutionary War."

Intrigued and on the edge of his seat, Andy blurts out, "Tell me more."

"Okay I will. Tallmadge recruited only those whom he could absolutely trust, beginning with his childhood friend, the farmer Abraham Woodhull, and Caleb Brewster, whose main task during the Revolution was commanding a fleet of whaleboats against British and Tory shipping on Long Island Sound. Brewster was one of the most daring of the group, was also the only member whom the British had definitely identified as a spy. Tallmadge went by the code name John Bolton, while Woodhull went by the name of Samuel Culper."

"How do you remember all this?"

"I like American history, Andy. Do you want to know more?"

Damon smiles when the boy bobs his head up and down. "Woodhull, who began running the group's day-to-day operations on Long Island. He personally traveled back and forth to New York collecting information and observing naval maneuvers. Then he would evaluate reports and determine what information was important enough to be take to General Washington. Dispatches or information would then be given to Brewster, who would carry them across the Sound to Fairfield, Connecticut, and Tallmadge would then pass them on to Washington. Woodhull lived in constant anxiety of being discovered, and by the summer of 1779 he had recruited another man, the well-connected New York merchant Robert Townsend, to serve as the ring's primary source in the city. Townsend wrote his reports as Samuel Culper, Jr. and Woodhull went by Samuel Culper, Sr. And that is why to this day it's known as the Culper Spy Ring.

"Wow."

Smiling, Damon ruffles his hair a little bit and then continues. "There was also a man named Austin Roe. He was a tavern keeper in Setauket. He acted as a courier for the Culper ring. He would travel to Manhattan with the excuse of buying supplies for his business. A local Setauket woman and Woodhull's neighbor, Anna Smith Strong, was also said to have aided in the spy ring's activities. And although they do know there was a woman was among the spies, her identity has never been positively confirmed. Supposedly she used the laundry on her clothesline to leave signals regarding Brewster's location for meetings with Woodhull."

"So they don't know for sure that the lady was spy?"

"That's right, Andy. It's a mystery to this day whether she was in fact one of Washington's spies."

"I like this story."

With a nod to Andy, Damon continues, "Despite some strained relations within the group and constant pressure from Washington to send more information, the Culper Spy Ring achieved more than any other American or British intelligence network during the war. The information they collected and passed on by the ring from 1778 to war's end in 1783 concerned key British troop movements, fortifications and plans in New York and the surrounding regions. The group's greatest achievement came in 1780, when it uncovered British plans to ambush the newly arrived French army in Rhode Island. Without the spy ring's warnings to Washington, the French and American alliance may well have been damaged or destroyed by this surprise attack. The Culper Spy Ring has also been credited with uncovering information involving the treasonous correspondence between Benedict Arnold and John Andre, chief intelligence officer under General Henry Clinton, commander of the British forces in New York, who were conspiring to give the British control over the army fort at West Point. Major Andre was captured and hung as a spy in October 1780, on Washington's orders."

"You sure know a lot," Andy exclaims, completely enthralled with what Damon has told him.

"My father was a pretty strict guy, Andy. If I didn't get good grades, he would take the belt to me."

"You got spanked?"

"I did," Damon admits. Unbeknownst to him or Andy, Elena is standing at her window, listening to a little bit of what Damon was telling her nephew. Since Andy likes Damon, Elena decides that she'll ask him about going to the race with Damon again. Hearing her name, she takes the chart from Caroline and follows her into another exam room to take care of a sick ferret.

After a few more tense days, Elena finally agreed to go along with Damon to New York. Because the race is the next afternoon and they didn't get to leave till after Elena finished up her day at the clinic, it's already dark by the time Damon lands his plane. Fortunately Damon is just as skilled flying with instrumentation as he is flying by seeing landmarks. Spatial disorientation can be a real problem for pilots flying at night if they're not adept at flying using their instruments too. It's said to be the cause of John F. Kennedy Jr's plane crash in 1999. Since they're all tired, Damon hails a cab to take them directly to their motel. Too tired to even stop for something to eat, Damon tells Elena and Andy that he'll stop at their room in the morning to go to the race track. After saying goodnight, he leaves them to take a nice hot shower and go to bed. As soon as he gets to his room, he plops down face first on the bed. And although he wanted to shower, his level of fatigue is just too much, his eyes dropping closed almost immediately.

Finding himself still fully clothed when he wakes up the next morning, Damon strips out of his clothes and hops into the shower. Once he finishes, he quickly gets dressed and goes across the hall. Knocking on her door, he waits patiently till she opens it. His eyes widen when he sees how gorgeous she always looks wearing something as simple as jeans and a tee shirt. Stepping aside, she gestures for him to come in.

"Are you ready for some breakfast?"

"Where were you last night? I half way expected you to be knocking on our door."

"I told you that I was exhausted," he explains, wondering if perhaps she was disappointed. Knowing it's a crazy thought and not wanting to dwell on it, he adds, "I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. I didn't move a muscle until my alarm went off this morning."

"You do look more refreshed," she says before turning to Andy. "Are you hungry?"

"Can we have pancakes?"

"You can indeed, Andy. Let's go. We should probably decide now whether we're going to fly back after the race or wait until tomorrow. I need to rent the rooms for a second night if you two want to stay. We could mosey around New York a little bit?"

"Andy?"

"I don't know?"

"Brooklyn has a fabulous zoo. We could do that after the race. What do you say Aunt Elena?" Damon asks, raising an eyebrow at her.

"I suppose but I want to be able to leave early Sunday then. Andy still has some math homework that he needs to get done before school on Monday."

"Deal," Damon says, extending his arm. He follows Andy out while Elena pulls the door closed, making sure it's locked. After breakfast, they take a cab to the racetrack. Once they find Kol, Brady and Tyler, Elena examines Ruffian, giving him a clean bill of health to run the race. Even though there's an on sight vet, he trusts Elena. Afterwards, they take their seats and wait for the race to begin. When the starter gun goes off, they get to their feet watching as the horses race down the track. The bright colors of the jerseys are flapping in the wind as the horses kick up the dust as their hooves pound the track. With his mouth parted, Damon watches, holding his breath when Ruffian pulls into the lead. And although the next few minutes seem to pass like hours, Damon is as giddy as a school boy when Ruffians crosses the finish line first. Squealing with excitement, he gives Elena and Andy a hug. When he realizes what he's doing, he quickly lets go.

"I'm sorry, I just got caught up in the excitement of it all."

"It's okay, Damon," she says, smiling despite herself. When the crowd starts to filter out, Damon, Elena and Andy work their way down to the winners circle. Accepting the trophy, Damon thanks Kol, Brady, Tyler, Dr. Gilbert and Andy. Once the festivities are over, Damon congratulates his friends profusely, promising them each a big bonus when they get their next paychecks. After dropping the trophy off at the hotel, Damon takes the two Gilberts down to the Prospect Park Zoo where they spend the rest of the afternoon and part of the evening. As expected, they're all very tired by the time they get back to the motel. Andy is now wearing his zoo tee shirt and yawning deeply. Since they had something to eat there, Damon walks them to their room and says goodnight. Pausing at his door, he looks over his shoulder, his eyes meeting hers. For a brief moment, he's mesmerized and unable to look away. The sound of laughter from a young couple stepping out of the elevator breaks the spell. Nodding, Damon says goodnight then steps inside of his room, closing the door to both her and the outside world.

Although she hates to fly, Elena tries her best to relax. She still doesn't appreciate Damon's motivations, money and all that but she will admit that she's impressed the way he is around Andy. Her nephew got an A on the history paper Damon helped him with. While Andy was busy looking at the zoo animals, Damon brought up Duchess and her colt and how fond he is of that horse. She's getting up there in age, he's had the mare since he was a teenager. But it's not unusual for healthy mares to have babies into their teens and even twenties.

Turning to look out of the window, Elena is so completely entranced by the cloud formations, she doesn't even realize that the plane is descending till Damon tells her and Andy to buckle up and prepare for landing. Once on the ground, he taxis the plane to its hangar. Afterwards they walk to the long term parking and begin the twenty six mile drive home. Pulling into Elena's driveway, Damon stops the car and walks the two of them to the front door. Once he says goodnight, he walks back to his car. As at the hotel last night, he turns around when he reaches the drivers side, their eyes meeting for a long moment and this time it's the sound of a car backfiring that breaks the spell between them. Raising his hand, he waves then crawls into his car and disappears down the block.

After winning at the Derby, Ruffian came in second both at The Preakness and at Belmont stakes. Even though Damon could have made a good profit by selling the horse, he just couldn't find it in himself to do so. Somehow he wormed his way into his heart. Once the season starts, Damon will receive offers for him to breed with the finest mares. Having spent the afternoon riding him, Damon brushes him down, gives him food and water and then retreats to his house. Glancing at the clock, he walks over to his bar to pour himself a tumbler of bourbon. Taking a long pull, he closes his eyes and savors the warm, oaky taste. Walking over to his favorite recliner, he plops down, setting his drink on the magazine rack. Laying his head back, he closes his eyes and drifts off to sleep, Elena never far from his mind.

Several months later:

Awakened by the sound of frantic pounding on her front door, Elena lurches upright in bed. Shaking herself out of her stupor, she throws her legs over the side of the bed, throws on her bathrobe and slippers and then hurries to the door. Pausing to look through the peep hole to see who it is, Elena is stunned to see a frenzied looking Damon Salvatore. Covering her mouth to stifle a yawn, she pulls the door open. "Oh thank God," Damon says, his voice thick.

"What's going on?" she asks, noticing how his eyes are wild and full of fear.

"It's Duchess, she's sick. Please, Elena, you have to come quickly."

"What's the matter with her."

"She's weak and lethargic. She isn't eating and seems to be having some trouble breathing. Kol told me that she's had some diarrhea and a cough too."

"Any discharge or fever?"

"I haven't checked her temperature but she's sick, Elena. Please, we don't have time for this."

"Alright, try to calm down okay?" Feeling genuinely worried for the man, she adds, "I need to get dressed and get Andy out of bed."

"I'll carry him to the car. He can sleep in one of the beds at my house. Please, Elena, we must hurry?"

"His room is the second one on the right down that hall. I'll get dressed while you get him."

Nodding, Damon rushes to the boy's room. As carefully as he can he lifts Andy into his arms, covers and all, and takes him out to his car. Just as he's closing the back seat, Elena steps outside. He watches as she makes sure her home is locked before she hurries down the sidewalk and jumps into the passenger seat. Swallowing thickly, Damon starts the engine, presses on the gas pedal and speeds down the street towards his horse farm.

As soon as they reach his place, he parks the car and takes Andy in the house while Elena makes her way to the barn. Ever the conscientious friend, Kol is here, having promised Damon that he'd watch over her while Damon went to fetch Dr. Gilbert.

"How long has she been ill?" Elena asks, examining her gums, noting that they are pale. With Kol's help, she checks Duchess temperature, not surprised to find that she does have a fever. Suspecting pneumonia, she pulls out her stethoscope to listen to the horse's lungs. When she hears moist crackling sounds throughout her lung fields, Elena is certain that she's correct. She's finishing up her exam by the time Damon arrives, having run out here from the house.

"She has pneumonia. We need to move her to a warm, dry area. She needs to drink plenty of fresh water. Do you have a humidifier?" Although Damon is now on his knees lovingly petting his horse, he nods.

"I'll have to run to my office to get her some antibiotics. I can give her an injection plus I'll have you give some using a nebulizer along with some bronchodilators. She'll need to take them for a couple of months, Damon. We'll start with the antibiotics. If it becomes necessary, I'll order some immune stimulants in a couple of days depending on how she responds to the antibiotics."

"Kol, would you please take Dr. Gilbert to her office? I'm going to stay out here with Duchess," Damon says softly without looking at either of them.

"Sure, Damon," Kol agrees. And after sharing a look with Elena, he goes outside to pull his truck around.

"Andy?"

"He's sound asleep in one of the bedrooms."

"I'll just go in and check on him before I go. I won't be long. She's very sick, Damon. You should prepare yourself."

"No, don't you say it, don't you dare say it," he says forcefully, his eyes meeting hers when he looks over his shoulder. Elena is stunned to see that they're moist and glassy looking.

"Damon?"

"Please don't," he whispers, his heart slamming so hard against his chest that it nearly takes his breath away.

"I'm just going to go to check on Andy. I'll be back as soon as I can," she assures him. Hoping to ease his burden a little bit, she gives his shoulder a pat and then starts to back out of the barn.

With an almost imperceptible nod, Damon turns away from her. Sitting down beside his equine friend's head, he gently begin to stroke his hand down her face. The sight is something she thought that she would never see, the hard hearted Damon Salvatore completely heartbroken by the possibility of losing his beloved horse.

Now there is only one Skywalker. The Force will be with you always, RIP Carrie Fisher.

Thanks and much love to Eva. Without you there would be no scarlett2112.

Thank you all so much too. I appreciate each and everyone of you so very much.

chapter title: 'Comanche (the Brave Horse) by Johnny Horton.

The real Comanche was the only survivor of the Battle of the Little Bighorn aka Custer's Last Stand. He belonged to Myles Keogh. In June 1879, Comanche was brought to Fort Meade by the Seventh Regiment, where he was kept like a prince until 1887. He died of colic November 7, 1891, believed to be 29 at the time of his death. He's one of only two horses in US history to be given a military funeral with full military honors. I mention Fort Meade because it's in Western South Dakota and I am a proud South Dakota native.

You can check my profile for recent updates and other one-shots that I've posted recently. I posted 'Burnt Ice' on Monday, starring DE as pairs figure skaters. Now Eva and I have our attention on "Over the Rainbow" and then it's back to 'The Truth Beneath the Rose'...

I hope you all had a fabulous holiday. Be safe and have a wonderful day. Thank you all again.