Hey guys, are you surprised? I bet you are! I've finally updated this story after a whole stinkin' year...far too long, am I right? Sorry to have kept you all waiting, although I have a feeling most of you have forgotten this story. But just to let ya'll know, I plan to finish this no matter how many readers are left and no matter how long it takes! So yeah, with that being said, here is the thirteenth chapter. Hope you like it, and thanks for reading! Let me know if you see any spelling mistakes, I got a brand new computer for Christmas and I haven't installed Word yet, so until I do I'll be using notepad.

Chapter Thirteen

"Loving someone is setting them free, letting them go."

- Kate Winslet

"Are you telling me," Jen said slowly, her eyes widening considerably underneath her glasses, "that you're finally engaged to Jake Ely?'

Sam grinned and nodded her head. "That's exactly what I'm saying. Surpised?"

"Hell no," Jen snorted, causing Sam to raise an eyebrow. "It's about damn time you two got hitched."

Rolling her eyes, Sam stopped brushing Kismet long enough to turn her head in Jen's direction, a soft smile spreading across her lips. "I love him so much, Jen. It's crazy how much..." Trailing off, she continued to brush Kismet in smooth, long strokes along her side.

"More than the Phantom?" Jen teased, smirking playfully at her friend as she combed through Kismet's tangled, silver forlock.

Sam flicked Jen a warning glance, "Don't start with me." Touching her hand gently against Kismet's rump to let the horse know that she was there, she moved over to the other side and began brushing again.

"Speaking of the Phantom...how long are you going to keep him holed up in here?" Jen questioned curiously.

"As long as necessary," Sam replied, biting down softly on her bottom lip. "He's healing pretty well, but I can tell that he's getting restless. He misses his herd."

Kismet snorted lightly and whisked her tail to the side, causing Sam to smile. "Yes, I know girl, you've been helping him calm down. You're such a good girl," she crooned sweetly.

"How do you think the herd is managing with him gone?" Jen asked, kissing Kismet's fuzzy nose. "I mean, you don't think that other stallion is leading them now, do you?"

Sam narrowed her eyes, and then firmly shook her head. "No, that stallion is long gone by now. I think he got the message that he wasn't welcome here when Ace and I chased him off."

"But what if he thought he won when the Phantom went down?" Jen inquired, raising an eyebrow at Sam. "Besides, Ace isn't the leader - he has no formal status within the herd. Would it matter if he chased him off after seeing the Phantom just laying there on the ground-"

"Stop it, Jen!" Sam snapped, whipping her head around to glare at her friend. "Just stop it, okay?"

Feeling her eyes start to unexpectedly fill with tears, Sam dropped the brush on the ground and stormed out of the stall, gut-wrenching anguish and a stiffening anger flooding through her like a raging wild fire as she hurriedly left the barn.

Why did Jen have to make it seem so obvious about the Phantom's failure to defeat the stallion? Was she trying to make it harder for Sam to come to the realization that her beloved stallion was much older than he was before? Yes, it was true, he was - it was painfully easy to notice the slower, less settled gait that the great stallion now seemed to possess in his steps, even before all the damage the younger stallion had done to him. But that didn't mean that she had to face it, at least not now. Sam still wanted to imagine him as the young, formidable stallion she had known and loved...

With fresh tears streaking down both sides of her face, Sam stormed into the house, banging the screen door behind her. Cougar, who had been stretched out on the kitchen counter, sprung up instantly and stared at Sam with his ears pinned back in alarm as she fled up the stairs and into her room.

Wiping away the tears with both sleeves of her coat, Sam plopped down on the bed and curled up in a ball. Wrapping her arms around her knees, she rested her head on the pillow and sobbed quietly, wishing it was six years ago and the Phantom was young again. How had time gone by so fast? It seemed like it was only yesterday when she had packed up all of her things and loaded them in her truck, waving a farewell to her family as she headed out to the Big Sky Country. She wouldn't regret her time there, how could she when the time there had made her an important part of who she was today? But she did regret one thing, and that was not being here to watch over her beloved Phantom. And now here they were, six years later, and he was no longer strong enough to defeat a younger stallion. This hard realization caused another fresh wave of tears to roll down her cheeks, and a loud sob caught in her throat.

She didn't even realize she had fallen asleep until a sudden knock on the door roused her from her slumber. Lifting her head from her pillow, Sam slowly sat up and called weakly, her voice hoarse from crying, "Come in."

The door opened and a tall, handsome figure stepped inside the room. Sam didn't even have to look at the man fully to know exactly who it was. "Hey, Jake," she murmured, laying her head back down on the pillow and turning her back to him. She closed her eyes, and a couple moments passed before she felt the bed sink down under his great weight. She peeked one eye open and saw him stretched out there beside her, his feet dangling off the end of the bed, staring at her with a guarded expression, like always.

Sam groaned and closed her eye. "Stop it."

"Stop what?" came his deep, husky voice.

"Stop looking at me in that way. I can't tell what you're thinking."

"Why do you need to know what I'm thinking?"

"Because you're my fiance and I demand to know."

An amused chuckle sounded. "Try again."

"Because I want to know whether or not you think I'm pathetic for crying over an aged horse."

No response.

Sam sighed. "So I'm right, then? You think I'm pathetic?"

She opened her eyes fully this time and stared at him, wanting desperately to know what he was thinking.

"No, I think you're acting exactly the way a mother acts when she realizes her kid is growing up and she's growing old."

Sam pursed her lips in a frown, thoroughly confused. "That's not the situation at all!"

"In a way, it is," Jake said, gently taking a hold of her hand and drawing small circles on the palm of it with his thumb. "You love the Phantom as genuinely as you would your own kid, and now that he's older you've realized that you're older too, and there's nothing you can do about it...no way you can go back in time and see him as he once was."

Sam sighed and murmured softly, "Okay, maybe you're right. But you still think I'm pathetic, don't you?"

Rolling his eyes, Jake wrapped his long, bear-like arms around her and pulled her close against him. "No Sam, I don't think you're pathetic. Old maybe, but never pathetic."

That earned him a nice, solid whack to the head with her pillow. Letting out a deep, hearty laugh, Jake rolled over, flattening her against the bed with his body, and planted a loud-smacking kiss on her mouth. Sam glared up at him, before slowly spreading her lips into a smile. "Jake Ely, I ought to shoot you."

"Naw," Jake drawled, grinning down at her. "You ought to kiss me."

"Again and again until you tell me to stop?" Sam questioned, wiggling playfully underneath him. His eyes narrowed, and she smirked devilishly.

"Trust me hunny, you won't be hearing the word 'stop' from me anytime soon," he murmured, causing Sam's stomach to erupt with butterflies. Oh, Lord have mercy, she was in trouble. Deep, unfathomable trouble. There was no denying it.

And there was no denying her steady and abounding love for Jake Ely as he kissed her once more, sending her heart reeling into space and far, far beyond normal measure.

Sam woke up in the middle of the night to the feel of Jake's heavy arm strapped across her chest. Blinking, Sam waited for her eyes to adjust to the darkness before slowly picking up his arm and moving it off of her. Sitting up, she quietly moved to her closet and got out her coat, slipping it on silently. Once she was done getting ready, she left the room and closed the door as quietly as possible behind her. She snuck down the stairs and when she made it to the kitchen glanced over at the clock. It read four forty am.

Stepping out onto the porch, Sam looked up and gazed for a couple moments at the first colorful specks of dawn painted across the sky. It was still considerably dark out, but light enough to see where her feet were going as she made her way to the barn. She could smell the fresh morning dew in the air, drawing a peaceful smile to her lips.

The moment she opened the barn doors and stepped inside, a chorus of welcoming nickers flooded the vicinity. She went straight to the Phantom's stall, approaching it quietly. What she saw nearly broke her heart. He was standing at the very back of the stall, head up and eyes staring straight out the window at the beautiful vastness that stretched out for miles and miles. Forcing back the tears that were starting to build up, Sam unlocked the stall door and stepped inside, leaving it cracked open behind her.

The sound of Sam's foot steps caused the Phantom to turn his head and stare at her, his ears pricking forward.

"Hey, boy," Sam murmured, reaching out to place her hand lightly on his face. He nickered softly and nudged her arm affectionately with his muzzle. Sniffling, Sam stepped closer and wrapped both of her arms around his neck, resting her head gently against the side of his face. A single tear was released, sliding quickly down her cheek and dropping soundlessly down onto the ground.

"Oh, Blackie, I love you so much." Closing her eyes, Sam squeezed him gently before backing away slightly to gaze straight into his eyes. "But you're not happy here...are you?"

The Phantom didn't make a single sound, only continued to gaze somberly into her eyes. Sam's bottom lip trembled, but she refused to cry. Now was not the right time.

"You're not meant to be in a stall...you never were," Sam whispered, and she smiled slightly. "You're such a special boy, aren't you?"

Sam leaned forward and kissed his nose lovingly. He snorted softly in response, and her heart fluttered with happiness.

Giving him a gentle pat on the neck, Sam checked his injuries one last time. One of his major injuries was still rather tender, the one on his shoulder, but it was nothing that wouldn't be healed in time. Inhaling a long breath and then exhaling it a bit unsteadily, Sam grabbed a handful of his mane and began to lead him quietly out of the stall. He followed beside her willingly, his steps quick and eager.

Once they had made it out of the barn, Sam could feel the Phantom quivering in anticipation as they headed towards the river. For the Phantom it was the path to freedom, but for Sam she felt like her heart was breaking with each step she took. This was truly the hardest walk she had ever endured, and it took all of her strength to continue.

By the time they had reached the river, she was clinging to the Phantom, her fingers clenched tightly in his mane. She stood there with him for several minutes in complete silence, holding onto him for dear life. When at last he gave a soft, impatient snort, she lifted her head and slowly let go of him. "Okay," she whispered, before taking a step back.

Surprisingly, he didn't leap forward immediately like she thought he would. Instead, he turned his head to her, gazing at her with a gentle understanding that both amazed her and calmed her spirit.

"Go now, Zanzibar," Sam whispered to him, accepting his decision to go back to his herd...where he belonged for the rest of his days.

"Go, and be free."

Tossing his head slightly, the Phantom let loose a short, shrill neigh in farewell before bounding forward, splashing gladly into the river. Sam watched him as he went, his silver mane gleaming majestically in the fading light of the moon. The moment his hooves came into contact with the familiar, hard Nevada ground the Phantom leaped forward and bounded across the desert, stirring up a massive cloud of dust. It wasn't long until he was merely a speck of white in the distance...

"Good-bye," Sam breathed, and hung her head.

"You did the right thing, Sam."

Gasping, Sam spun around in surprise and saw Jake standing there behind her, his hands resting snugly in the back pockets of his jeans.

Sam stared at him silently for a moment, before nodding once and stepping into his warm, loving embrace. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his head ontop of hers, causing her to sigh softly in contentment.

"What am I going to do when he's finally gone, Jake?" Sam whispered in the early morning silence, fear evident in her tone. "Who am I going to be? The Phantom, he's...he's so much a part of me."

Frowning, Jake lifted her chin with this thumb so that he was gazing at her face. "Now, look here Samantha," he ordered, and her eyes widened. "I honestly thought you were smarter than that."

Sam's eyes narrowed, and before she could open her mouth to snap a fiesty remark at him, he silenced her with a quick, hard kiss on the mouth. Afterwards he admonished, "You are Samantha Anne Forster, and nothing in this world is ever going to change that. True, the Phantom's life holds a great place in yours, but the end of his life won't mark the end of yours. Besides, and don't you dare tell anyone I said this...once he leaves this earth he will still be present in your heart...am I right?"

Sam nodded and murmured firmly, "Of course. It's the missing him that I'm worried about."

"You'll get over it," Jake said matter-of-factly, and kissed her once more before she could growl at him.

"Ugh, you can't keep doing that you know," Sam muttered crossly at him.

"Doing what?"

"Kissing me to avoid my angry remarks," Sam chastised.

Jake grinned smugly and replied, "It's been working pretty well so far."

Sighing, Sam rested her head back on his chest and closed her eyes. "Just promise me one thing," she whispered softly.

Jake tilted his head, his expression curious as he questioned, "What's that?"

A long moment passed before she finally said, "Promise me that you'll always remember the Phantom as he once was...and that when you think of him, you think of his strength and power."

"I don't think I can," Jake murmured softly.

Sam blinked and turned to look up at him, asking in wonder, "Why?"

"Because when I think of the Phantom," Jake said gently, placing one of his hands on her heart, "...I think of you."

Hope you enjoyed that! Leave me a review if you'd like, or if you'd like to yell at me for waiting a whole year to update, that would be okay too, haha.

Oh, and by the way, the next chapter is going to leave you with quite a surprise...until next time!

~ Warriors Pride