Author's note:

To clarify; present day in this fic is season two of Justified. So Winona and Raylan are together, Boyd is at the mine and living at Ava's. Since season two continues after season one, I'm going to assume that the year is still 2010.

April 2010, Lexington KY

The whole family took a weekend off to make the drive from Richmond, Virginia to Lexington, Kentucky to visit the college campus. It was an eight hour drive. Emily fell in love with the campus, certain she was going to go there. She was trying to convince Jake to go here with her. He didn't seem interested, so then she talked about how University of Louisville had a great engineering program and that was only like an hour away. He seemed to want to stay closer to home. Dan was so proud that his stepdaughter was so interested in college and was smart enough to hopefully get scholarships. Eleanor on the other hand had been subdued the entire time, grumbling about how she didn't like being in Kentucky.

That night they went out to dinner before going back to their hotel. Emily chattered excitedly about her plans for her dorm room.

"I'm not buying you a TV" he mom said as soon as she mentioned.

"Just a little one"

"Wait till you get a roommate and then you can discuss it, maybe she will have a TV to bring." Dan suggested.

"What about a car," Emily suggested causally. "I know they're expensive but, I don't want to be stuck on campus. If I get a job I'll need a car and to go home obviously." Emily knew it would take a lot of convincing.

"We'll think about it" Dan said.

"I'll get a job and I'll apply for every scholarship I can find. I want to do this as cheaply as possible." She said.

"Well your first two years will be paid for with this college fund, so I think we could swing for a car, a cheap one." Dan said.

"Dad, I don't want to use the college fund" Emily admitted. She was surprised to find that she had called Dan her dad, she rarely did that. It seemed to be happening more often.

"Why not?" Dan seemed surprised.

"I don't want to use the money; all Mom says is that he's a bad man. I don't know what that means and I don't want the man's money."

"Emily, stop being so dramatic" her mom entered the conversation.

"I'm serious, Jake can have the whole thing, I don't want my share." Emily said, looking over to Jake for support. He didn't meet her gaze. Her mom picked up her menu and stared at it. Her jaw kept clenching and unclenching, something she did when she was really angry.

"Jake, have you decided where you're going to college?" Colin asked, changing the subject.

"No, I think I'll stay close to home until I decide what I want to major in.
I'm thinking about engineering but, I just don't know."

"That's okay; lots of people change their majors once they get into college." Dan said. Colin was really subdued as he finally realized that his siblings would be leaving in a few short months. Jake noticed a shadow hovering over him and looked up. A man wearing a cowboy hat was standing in front of their table. Do people actually wear cowboy hats in Kentucky? The man seemed to be staring at his mom. His expression was unreadable. There was a beautiful woman with him who seemed just as perplexed at his behavior. She tugged at his arm gently.

"Raylan" she said softly hoping to break the spell he was under. The man didn't move.

"Hey, buddy can I help you?" Dan noticed the attention. He always got belligerent when someone hit on Mom. She in turn thought it was funny and always flirted back. Jake assumed that that's how she ended up with two illegitimate children. Mom finally looked up from the menu.

"Holy shit" she exclaimed. After a moment of shocked recognition she explained, "Its okay Dan, we went to school together."

"What are you doing here?" their mom asked. Jake was surprised at his mom's rudeness. Jake quirked an eyebrow at his sister, this was going to be interesting.

"Out to dinner, same as you, I suspect." The man drawled.

"In Kentucky" she clarified.

"I joined the marshal service right out of college." The man said.

"I heard" their mom answered.

"I was stationed in Miami then I shot someone and they transferred me here as punishment." The man in the hat said with a wry smile and a southern drawl. Mom started to laugh as though this was the single most hilarious thing that she had ever heard. There was an actual tear when she was finished laughing.

"My daughter is on a college visit to UK, this is my daughter Emily and that's Jake. This is my stepson Colin and my husband Dan"

"This is Winona" the man didn't specify their relationship instead he turned to Emily and then Jake, studying them as though they were freaks at a carnival. He took in their dark hair and skin and hazel eyes. He seemed to come to a conclusion about them and turned to their mother with wide eyes

"Raylan" she said warningly.

"Can I talk to you outside?" he asked.

"Fine" her tone was hard, they left and everyone still at the table stared at each other in confusion.

"I'm just going to sit down" Winona excused herself to sit in the booth behind them.

"What do you think that was all about?"


"Raylan and Eleanor walked out of the restaurant and stood on the sidewalk under the streetlight. They were far enough from the waiting line so they wouldn't be overheard.

"Are they…" Raylan asked.

"Are they what Raylan?"

"You know, are they his?" Eleanor would usually find his awkwardness adorable but, right now she was just to upset someone figured out her secret.

"Whose?" Eleanor glared a challenge.

"Shit, El, why are you making me ask this?" Raylan took off his ridiculous hat and ran his hand through his longish hair. Her attention was drawn to the grey at his temples.

"If you don't want to know then why are you asking?" she asked softly, hoping he would let sleeping dogs lie.

"Are they Boyd's?" he finally spit out. "They look like him."

"Yes" she admitted.

"Does he know?"

"Yes"

"Is that it?"

"What do you want me to say?"

"I want to know what happened after I left" he admitted putting his hat back on and let the shadow it cast hide his face.

"When I found out I was pregnant we decided it would be for the best if I left, neither of us wanted to raise a kid in Harlan, especially a Crowder's kid"

"And Boyd just sent you away, pregnant with twins" he had the decency to sound skeptical at that.

"He gave me the money to do it; I went to live with a great aunt in Richmond."

"Why didn't Boyd go with you?" he asked, She forced a laugh.

"Raylan, Bo was going to drag his ass back to Harlan to take over the family business, didn't matter where he went. So we figured it was best if we never told no one and left a blank on the birth certificate"

"Shit" Raylan had his hands on his hips and leaning to one side, he really did look like a cowboy.

"The kids don't know anything; I only admitted that I actually knew who their father was a few months ago so don't say anything."

"I won't"

"They are safer far removed from the Crowders"

"When was the last time you spoke to Boyd?"

"It's been years, why did he attract the attention of the US Marshals?"

"Yeah"

"What's he been doing?"

"Far as we know; robbing banks and blowing shit up, occasional murder, joined the white supremacy movement" Raylan listed off the shit he had to deal with.

"He doesn't believe that shit" Eleanor quirked an eyebrow.

"He got the tattoos at least" Raylan looked tired.

"What else?" she knew there was more to this.

"I shot him." Eleanor gave him an astonished look.

"He lived, even claimed it was an act of God or some such bullshit and started preaching." Raylan shook his head, perhaps in amusement.

"He always was a talker."

"Bo's dead, killed by the Miami cartel" Raylan said, knowing this would be big news.

"Shit, Raylan, when'd this happen." Eleanor looked astonished. Bo was gone? That could change everything.

"About a month back" Raylan said.

"What else is going on?"

"Ava shot Bowman, killed him, you know they were married?"

"Yeah, I went to the wedding."

"Now I'm dealing with the Bennets."

"Mags?"

"Yeah"

"Arlo still alive?"

"We've crossed paths." Raylan didn't seem inclined to talk much more on the subject; honestly, she was surprised he'd said this much already without pulling teeth.

"What's Boyd doing now?" she couldn't help but ask.

"He's at the mine, says he's going straight."

"Really?"

"It won't last." They stood in silence absorbing the news.

"Don't say anything to the kids or to Boyd when you see him, in fact just don't say anything to anyone." Eleanor said.

"Alright" Raylan agreed.

"Promise me." Eleanor turned her intent look toward him.

"Okay I promise." She searched his face for deception and didn't find any.

"Let's go back in before they send out a search party." Eleanor returned to the restaurant booth. Her family watched her every move, waiting for her to speak.

"The waiter been by yet?" she said causally.

"I ordered a steak for you" Dan said, a little harshly.

"That's great thanks." Eleanor took a long drink from her glass before she started to explain. "That's Raylan Givens, we grew up together. He had some news to share from home"

"Bad news or good news?" Dan asked, seeing how his wife was a little rattled.

"Not surprising news" was the vague answer.

"Mom, where exactly did you grow up?" Emily asked softly, if they were ever going to get answers, this was it.

"Harlan County, Kentucky"

"Never heard of it"

"Not much to tell"

"What was the news?"

"Oh, you know who passed away and everything. That's what happens after twenty years."

"Mom, you looked freaked, why won't you talk to us"

"Emily, why do you suddenly want to know?"

"You've been keeping secrets Mom!"

"And I hope you trust me enough to know that it must have been for a damn good reason. Now how about we enjoy our dinner and not cause a scene."

"We're talking about this in the car Ellie" Dan said quietly.

"Fine" Eleanor seemed hurt, but not surprised, that her husband wanted to talk about this. She made sure that the steak lasted a long time. On his way out Raylan gave her a card with his number and a graphic of a Marshal's badge. He didn't say goodbye.

They paid the bill, left a nice tip, and went out to the car. Eleanor studiously looked out the window as Dan drove out of the parking lot.

"So..." Dan started.

"What do you want to know" Eleanor asked angrily

"How about you start with the father of your children?" Emily said angrily from the backseat.

"Well, that is the one story I will not be telling so pick a different question."

"Ellie, you shouldn't withhold this type of information"

"Look, you don't want to know Emily so just drop it." Eleanor snapped.

"Can you tell us about our grandparents?" Jake asked, always the peacemaker.

"I never knew my daddy; he died in the mines before I was born. My mama went to live with her brother and she did the best she could with a waitressing job, obviously we were dirt poor all our lives but, we loved each other and that was more than what most people had."

"What about our dad? Did he come from money?" Emily asked.

"if you had money, you wouldn't be living in Harlan." Eleanor explained.

"So that's a no?" Emily filed the information away.

"So your father worked in a coal mine that is an interesting piece of history" Dan said timidly, trying to encourage her to talk. Even when they were dating she didn't offer much about her childhood, he never thought much about it honestly.

"Nothing interesting about dying in a coal mine, around a coal mine, or of black lung" she said hotly.

"Sorry"

"Did you play any sports?" Colin asked.

"No, Raylan played baseball though, so I went to a lot of those games."

"How'd you two meet?" Emily asked.

"Had to do a biology project, turned out we had stuff in common."

"What did you have in common?" Jake asked.

"We both wanted to get out of Harlan."

"Come on Mom, quit being dramatic, it couldn't have been that bad." Emily said.

"There's a reason that I don't talk about it."

"Well, what were some of the good parts?" Jake asked.

"The hiking, the lake where went fishing."

"Ellie, will you tell me what was so awful about it?" Dan pleaded.

"Nope" luckily they had pulled up to their hotel. Eleanor stayed silent as they went to their separate rooms. Eleanor slept in the room with her husband and the three kids stayed in the adjacent room.

"you're not going to say anything more are you?"

"nope" Eleanor stormed into the bathroom. She took a long time. When he felt his wife get into the bed beside him, Dan rolled over to face her.

"You know that if you ever want to talk about it you can" Dan whispered before he fell asleep.


"That was really strange; I mean what could be so awful that she can't even tell Dan about it?" Emily whispered to Jake the moment Colin closed the door to the bathroom.

"Maybe she saw a murder." Jake said.

"I was thinking the same thing! What if our dad killed someone and she's covering it up!" Emily said anxiously.

"I'm starting to agree with Mom, I don't really want to know who he is."
"How can you say that? He's our father and a total mystery." Emily said, this was playing out like a mystery novel.

"Who just happened to have fifty grand to spend on kids he's never even met!"

"What if we have met him and we didn't know?" Emily suggested.

"Who would that be? I've never met a friend of Mom's from before we were born or a family member besides Aunt Bertie."

"What if it's that cowboy we met at dinner, Mom was really rattled."

"It could be. I just hate the idea of having a cowboy for a dad." Jake said.

"Cowboys are cool" Emily retorted. Colin walked out of the bathroom.

"Solved the mystery yet?" he asked.

"No"

"I think you should leave it alone Emily, I think Mom's a good judge of character and if she thinks this guy is bad enough to not give a name, I don't think you want to be associated with him." Colin showed more insight than the average freshmen in high school.

"I think he's right Emily" Jake admitted.

"I just can't let it go" Emily mumbled, pulling the covers around herself. Jake moved to the rollaway bed and Colin turned out the light. Emily just couldn't stop imagining her mom's life. How could she know so little about her own mom? Why had she never asked questions? She tossed and turned and it was suddenly one thirty in the morning. She just couldn't sleep.

"Did I wake you?" the question came faintly from the window. It sounded like her mom. The window was open; it was a warm spring night.

"Drinking I'm sure" the faint laugh was definitely her mom. She must be out on the balcony but, who the hell was she talking too? Emily got out of bed and went to stand by the window.

"I just, the kids keep asking me questions." There was a pause; she must be on the phone. "I told them that their father had set up a college fund years ago, which of course meant that I actually knew who their father was…. What was I supposed to say to them; you father never visits just because? It was just better if they didn't know…I know it makes me sound like a slut, thanks asshole… of course I'm not going to answer their questions… what would they investigate, it's not like that information is just lying around at the local library… nobody knows Raylan… I know you figured it out but… Raylan it'll blow over… it's for the best… it was a mutual decision… you know they're eighteen and neither of them has held a gun. That's why we did it Raylan, so those kids wouldn't have to grow up in that place… thank you… seriously, just don't mention it to anyone. …thanks…you too, goodnight." Her mom opened the balcony door and went back inside.

Okay that was weird; she calls the cowboy in the middle of the night. It didn't sound like he was their father either, but he knew who was.