Richard awoke with a jolt and in a cold sweat, his heart racing as he looked to where she slept. Without hesitation, he reached out and pulled her into his arms, pressing their chests together with a sigh of relief. She sleepily returned his hug, blinking her eyes to clear her vision. She waited for him to speak, to tell her what was wrong but, he remained silent. Pulling back, she took his face in her hands and met his eyes before grazing her lips against his.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's nothing, I just had a bad dream and needed to be reminded of something good."

"Richard-"

"Let it go, please? I want- I need to feel us again."

Snuggling closer, Kahlan nudged her nose against his and smiled. "Only if you promise that you'll tell me what's wrong when it's over."

"Kahlan," he whispered her name with a sadness that made her ache. "Please don't make me promise you something I can't keep."

Rolling onto him, she pressed her forehead to his and let her hair fall around their faces, shielding them from the world around them. "I'm sorry, Richard."

His hands moved over her back, bringing her closer as he shared her slow and deep breath. "I can't lose you, Kahlan."

Releasing her magic, Kahlan leaned into him, allowing him to hold the weight of her as her strength left her. "You aren't going to lose me. I promise, Richard."

He laid beneath her for a few moments in silence, his heart racing as he tried to quiet his mind. She was looking at him; he could feel the beauty of her dark eyes on his face, waiting for the moment he looked into them. "I keep dreaming the same dream. Every night, Kahlan. I see you, giving birth to our daughter, and your hand in mine as you cry out in pain. The sound rings in my ears and it's maddening because I can't stop it. I want so badly to ease your pain, to hold you in my arms, but I can't. The instant we hear our daughter cry, you collapse..." His eyes closed as she brought her face closer, waiting for the courage for him to finish. "You died, Kahlan. You laid there and I couldn't help you. I can't lose you, Kahlan."

"You won't lose me, Richard."

Bringing his hands to her soft, delicate face, the Seeker frowned. "I nearly lost you and Hope before."

"It was only a dream, Richard."

"I've had it every night for the past month. If it was only a dream, why does it haunt me?"

Closing her eyes for a brief moment, Kahlan shook her head. "I don't know. Maybe it feeds off of your fear."

"It's more than fear. Kahlan, when I think about losing you, I can't breathe. I don't think there is a word to describe the amount of terror I feel."

"I promise that I will do everything within my power to stay with you."

Her lips were against his almost the instant the words left, cradling him in comfort. She could feel him reeling beneath her, his mind still spinning as he returned her kiss. After a few minutes, Kahlan pulled back and rolled onto her back, bringing him with her. "The council will know soon. I don't think I'll be able to hide her much longer." Meeting his eyes, she smiled. "She grows bigger every day and I can't wait for you to be able to feel what I feel."

His hand flew to her stomach, his mind showing him what he imagined. "I wish I could feel her the way you do and know everything about her."

"She's us, just like Hope."

"I can't wait to meet her, to see her running down the hall as Hope chases her." Nearly bursting with laughter, he lifted himself onto an elbow and looked down at her. "That reminds me. Hope wants to name our next child."

"Our next?"

"She's under the impression we're naming this one, Cara."

Kahlan chuckled instantly, reaching for the hand that lay on her stomach. "So it's been decided?"

"I believe Hope will name the rest of our children."

"Cara..."

"Cera?" he asked with a wide grin. "Close, but not enough to make Cara beat us in appreciation."

"I don't think that is a name."

"It could be," he countered with a sly grin. "Cera, the third most beautiful Confessor alive..."

Closing her eyes, she hugged his arm to her chest and nodded. "It's beautiful."

"What happens when they find out?"

"I can't imagine they will be pleased, but it is too late for most of their... Methods to- I don't know what they will do."

"Kahlan-"

"Hope was outside with the goat all day." She smiled as she spoke, knowing the conversation would be pleasing to them both. "She had a blanket wrapped around its back to keep it warm as she tried to feed it the last of the afternoon soup."

Richard chuckled, his mind envisioning her words. "I suppose I should have been clearer with her about what it would eat."

"Cara helped her to understand."

"I'm sure she enjoyed it, too."

Hope pulled Sandy, her new goat, down the palace hallway by a short piece of rope, smiling widely at everyone who passed for a look.

"Come on, Sandy! Mommy is just around the corn-" She froze as a tall, dark haired woman stepped in front of her with a frown. "I'm sorry, Miss. Diana. I didn't know you were there."

The older woman crossed her arms, ignoring the girl's apology. "What are you doing with that filthy animal in the palace?"

"Sandy's not filthy, I gave her a bath before she had breakfast."

"What is it doing inside the palace?"

Hope lowered her eyes for a moment, hurt by the woman's angry tone. "I wanted to show mommy. I can take care of Sandy good and when they give me a sister, I can do the same-"

"They won't give you a sister, child. It is forbidden." She smiled as Hope's face grew confused and disappointed. "We have made it clear she is not to have another child."

"You have no right," she whispered, surprising the other woman. "We don't tell others how to live. We protect them! Daddy said he and mommy would-"

"Your father has been with another woman, he doesn't love her enough to give another child to your mother."

"You're lying!" she shouted at once, tears filling her eyes.

"You know I am not. You were lucky with your birth, we will not allow another monster to be born."

Hope's blood boiled in a way she hadn't experienced before, her knuckles turning white as her hold on the goats leash tightened in anger. She stared up at the proud council member and tried to calm herself. She could see the fear in her eyes, a terror she hadn't seen directed at her before. "They told me others would feel- I should ignore the blindness, but..." Tears began to fall down her cheeks as she held the other woman's eyes. "Please let us pass."

The woman took a single step to her right, allowing the young Confessor and her goat pass without another word, pleased with the end result of their short conversation.

Richard and Kahlan had been searching the palace for over two hours when they found her sitting in the barn with Sandy on one side and Cara on the other. She was in tears and from the way the Mord'Sith's arm wrapped around her shoulders, they knew something was incredibly wrong.

Kahlan knelt down in front of them, searching her daughter for wounds. "Are you alright, Hope?" She remained quiet as she brought her eyes to her father, who did the same as her mother. "What happened?"

"Is it true?" she asked in a voice quieter than a whisper.

"What?" he asked tenderly, almost removing the girls fear.

"Miss. Dianna said you didn't love mommy- you wanted a family with someone else." Her tears rained down her cheeks as she waited for an answer.

"It's not true, Hope. I don't want another family. I love the one that I have."

Shaking her head, she looked to her mother, who appeared just as upset. "She wasn't lying mommy, I know she wasn't. I saw true!"

Taking her daughter's tiny hand in hers, Kahlan nodded. "I know Hope, but things are not always as they seem. In the eyes of the council, your father was with another woman, but in truth, he was with me."

"I don't understand."

Releasing a heavy sigh, Richard patted his hand on the top of the goat's head, petting it for a brief moment as he tried to find the right words to say. "They're afraid of me," he said after a moment. "The council doesn't want your mother and me to have another child because they're afraid she would be like me." He met her eyes, giving her a chance to see the truth in his words. "They were willing to do anything to keep us apart and sending me women was a part of that. I knew they would never understand the way I feel about you and your mother and... With our second child growing inside of her, I didn't want to lose any of you."

"But-" Hope started before he began to speak again.

"Give me a moment to finish," he said softly, laying his left hand on Kahlan's knee. "I was afraid that once they learned what we had created, they would take it all away from me, so I asked your mother, Hannah and Sister Verna for some help. I spent the afternoon with Kahlan, but because of a spell Sister Verna used, the council saw me with Hannah. It allowed them to focus on what they thought to be my betrayal and not the child within your mother." Kahlan took hold of his hand and gave a small smile in his direction. "I thought it would keep our family safe long enough for me to come up with another plan."

"I would never hurt you or your mother, Hope. Do you understand? I only wanted to protect my family and I know that it may not have been the best plan, but it gave us another few months. I am not sorry for that."

Hope studied his face for a moment, trying to understand his words and why his voice was so strong. "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why can't you and mommy... Why was she so afraid when I got upset?"

"Because you're my daughter," Richard stated calmly. "The anger within me burns hot that sometimes I can't see straight. I've hurt people before, Hope and neither I nor those around me can forget it."

"It's like a splinter."

"What do you mean?"

Moving forward, she wrapped herself into his arms and blinked out her last set of tears. "It hurts, even when you try to ignore it."

Tightening his hold on her, he nodded. "That's right."

"I never had been that angry before."

"But you stayed calm and that is what's important."

Pulling back, she met his eyes and tilted her head the way her mother did when she was curious. "How did you know?"

"Because I know you. I trust you. And," he added a little softer and with a grin. "If you had lost control, they'd have you locked in your room without supper."

"I don't want to be a monster."

Richard brought her back into his arms and hugged her tightly, responding before her mother could. "You are not and never will be a monster. You're powerful and not only because of your magic. You are just like your mother. Your strength, heart and knowledge make you more powerful than your magic ever could. Anyone who thinks otherwise is ignorant and are at a loss at their own life."

"But they fear us."

"People almost always fear what they don't understand."

"I don't like it."

"Like a splinter."

"From a redwood rocking chair," she responded instantly. "I'm sorry, daddy." Looking to her mom, she tried to smile. "I'm sorry, mommy. I shouldn't have run away."

"No, you shouldn't have. Do you know how worried we were? If you had come to us, we could have talked about it."

Hope's bottom lip quivered and she leaned back, grabbing the Mord'Sith's arm. "I'm sorry, I thought you wouldn't worry if I was with Cara."

Kahlan reached for her daughter and waited for her to move into her arms. "We didn't know you were with her." Looking to the blonde, the Mother Confessor gave a small smile. "Thank you for looking after her."

"I didn't have a choice. The weed stopped me at the gates."

"I didn't want to be alone."

"Are you hungry?"

Shaking her head, Hope sighed. "I don't want to go inside."

"We can go into the city. I hear there's a delicious pie at the tavern beside the gates."

Her eyes lit up as she clapped her hands together. "Can we go?"

Looking to Kahlan, Richard raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Pie for dinner?"

"Sounds delicious."

Taking his daughter's hand, he helped her stand and looked down at the still sitting blonde. "Are you coming?"

"She's coming!" Hope squealed as she reached out for her friend's hand. "She's been com... Compleening about how hungry she is."

"I'd have eaten if you had gone with me," the blonde sighed.

Hope lowered her head. "I'm not allowed to leave without telling them. I didn't want to get into trouble."

Standing, Cara looked down at the small girl and grinned. "We wouldn't have had to tell them."

"Oh, no," she responded as she walked along her father's side. "They'd have found us." Stopping suddenly, Hope pulled her hand free of her dad's and looked up at him. "I have to put Sandy to bed. She doesn't like sleeping out here alone."

"Go on," he chuckled loudly. "We'll wait right here."

Richard had been lying on his back in bed since they returned to the palace. His mind spun in circles over what his daughter had asked him and he hated to expose her to something so wrong so early in life. The air was thick around him, almost dulling out the sound of the Mother Confessor changing a few feet away. Turning his head, he watched as her dress dropped to the floor. Kahlan threw a smile in his direction, easing the tension in his body before he sat forward and motioned for her to come to him.

"Let me help you with that." She turned and pulled her hair over her right shoulder and grinned over her left. "You don't have to wear this. It can't be comfortable."

"It's not, but I can't remember a moment when it was. I should wear it as long as I can. It may help hide Cera a little while more." She sucked in a deep breath as he unlaced the last of the corset, welcoming a moment of relaxation. "I don't know what I'm going to say to them yet."

Tracing his fingers over her back, he frowned. "It's been cutting into your skin." Flattening his hands on her back, he began massaging her tender skin, a smile forming on his lips as she moaned in pleasure. "Here, sit down beside me. I'll try to relieve the pain."

"It's becoming harder to walk with my back straight. Sometimes I feel like I'm waiting for the moment I can't keep... Spirits, Richard," she moaned softly, her head falling forward as his hands rounded her shoulder. "That feels wonderful."

"Does it?" he questioned through a whisper, his chin coming to rest on her shoulder. "And this?" He asked as his hands moved to the swell of her stomach and over her breasts.

Laying her hands over his, she held them in place and leaned back. The action forced his hold on her to tighten as she lay on his lap. Looking up at him, she grinned and lowered her hands to the bed, freeing him to do with her as he pleased. He waited no time before leaning forward and connecting their lips as his hands traveled down her stomach. His fingers traced the top of her skirt, slipping beneath for a moment before scurrying back to her breasts and then back again.

The desire within him flooded onto her with his every move, making her need rise rapidly. Bringing her hands to his head, she pulled him closer, trying to deepen their kiss without changing their position and crawling on top of him. He seemed to, as always, sense her impatience and acted quickly. Pulling her completely onto the bed, Richard yanked the shirt over his head and laid over her, pressing his chest against hers while the bump of her stomach hit his. The action removed the breath from his lungs, a feeling he long to experience again and again. Abandoning her lips, he kissed down her chest and paused on her stomach, lifting his head slightly as he laid his hands on the side.

"I don't understand how you can look at it like that," Kahlan whispered, her eyes studying him through the haze of desire.

"It's beautiful. You're beautiful and this," he said before placing a kiss to her bellybutton. "This holds our child, Kahlan. I don't think I can describe the way it makes me feel."

"You can try," she responded with a soft chuckle.

"I feel, I don't know, prideful. I look at you and I see what we've created, what we can make and every part of me wants to hold you against me and never stop. If it is possible, it makes me want to be with you even more." Crawling back up her body, he kissed her quickly. "I know how you must feel, but you shouldn't. There is nothing that could make you unattractive to me. Whether you're pregnant or covered in mud, I'm going to want to rip off your clothes and show you how beautiful you are to me." His body pushed down against her with a heated moan, making her body go wild. "And if I don't show you now, I may never be sane again."