AN: Here's the next installment for our couple. Things are going to be picking up now as we head to the end of this journey. This whole idea has spun out of control, but it's been both challenging and enjoyable to explore these characters more in-depth. Stay safe and healthy during this time of turmoil...this too shall pass.

Ch. 25

Vic was sitting at the piano with a new piece of music to learn, but her mind and her fingers were elsewhere. By memory she was playing Moonlight Sonata, a piece she knew so well she could let her mind wander through the auditory landscape the instrument produced in her capable hands. It had been six weeks since her dad left and he had called a few times, but had made very little progress with his stubborn clan. On his last call to her, he explained that he had one more idea before he made the ultimatum that Victor spoke about with her and Walt. She didn't want to be the cause of the separation of her parents, but they agreed if the clan didn't come around he would move out to Wyoming and join Vic on her counseling for 6 months and then evaluate the situation at that time. The three of them agreed that it would be helpful for him to support Vic in her healing and give their family time to reflect on his choices and what they would mean on a permanent basis.

She felt Walt's hands on her shoulders as she sat at the piano having finished the piece but not moved still lost in her thoughts.

"You ok, Vic?"

"Hmm? Uh yeah. Just thinking about Philly and what Dad said."

"I still find it absolutely baffling that this has happened."

"I need to thank you, Walt. Seeing the shrink has really helped me work through all the shit I buried. Where did you find him? He's not like all the other idiots I've come across over the years."

"He was in the Corps with me. He had to go see a shrink when he was in and hated it enough to become one that wouldn't be like that. I'm glad that it's helping. I was surprised when Victor said he sought counseling on his own."

"Me too."

"Can I ask you something?"

Walt's tone alerted her that something was on his mind. She couldn't imagine what it was. Since they had worked through most of their issues on their own and she had started seeing the shrink about her 'daddy issues', they hadn't really had any big misunderstandings like they had early on. That wasn't to say their relationship was perfect, it's just they had learned to talk to one another and work things out. She stood up and looked in his eyes, sliding her hands up his chest resting them both near his heart.

"You don't have to ask me if you can ask a question. What's wrong Walt?"

His eyes searched hers, ticking side to side as if he was looking for something. He then released a sigh which told her he was worried and piecing together how he would handle what was on his mind.

"I'm happy, being here with you. Happier than I've been in quite some time. The fact that you've agreed to be with me for the rest of our lives completed our bond. I told you that was enough for me and it is."

He paused, as he is often wont to do and it suddenly dawned on her what he was trying to ask her about. He had a delicate approach to sensitive subjects at work, but in his personal life he was more blunt and direct. She, on the other hand, was always so fast to interpret, process and react before he could even explain the context of his comments. The result was usually shouting matches. Since they've come together, he's learned to put his thoughts into paragraphs, so to speak. To explain where he's coming from and why he's thinking that way instead of just making cryptic statements. In turn, she learned to give him some leeway, like she does at work, to compose his thoughts and explain them to her. Time to think before he talks as he once put it. Their efforts had done wonders to eliminate the yelling matches they had early on. They still get mad and sometimes the disagreements still get a little heated, but not like before. She sighed, thinking she knew what he wanted but she owed it to him to hear him out.

"You said you wanted to get married. I know that you've been through a lot with your family, the harassment, your grandmother, and your dad's visit. Now with the therapy and dealing with your past, I'm just curious if you've had a change of heart since you haven't mentioned it. I've been afraid to ask, because I didn't want you to think I was pressuring you about it. I'm not. I'd like to know where your thoughts are on it is all."

She nodded and her expression softened, hearing the vulnerability in his voice.

"Hey, you're not thinking I changed my mind are you?"

His eyes left hers and sought out the floor. There was a time she would've snapped at him and left. Not now. She needed to know how far his doubts went. They've both needed reassurance at times, but it was mostly her now. Especially with how fragile she's been during the therapy. Right now, he needed reassurance from her.

"Are you thinking I changed my mind about the wedding or about us?"

He cleared his throat and looked her in the eyes.

"You haven't changed your mind about us. I know that."

"So it's the wedding then…"

"Yeah. If you've changed your mind, I won't be upset. We can still take a trip wherever you want to go. I guess it's bothering me because it feels like you're avoiding it."

It was her turn to nod. It seems some old habits die hard.

"You asked me a while back if I would want my dad to go. I've been thinking about that and with all that's happened I really think I want him to but I still don't know. I guess I've been dragging my feet, so to speak, until I make my mind up."

Walt looked at her with the stare that makes her squirm. It's almost like he's looking into her soul to confirm the truth of her words. Once he seemed to be satisfied, he pulled her into a hug.

"I understand. I just wish you would've said something. Sometimes it's hard for me to keep from reading too much into things."

She felt his tension ebb and a sigh let loose from his frame. He was right. She had been mulling it over in her head for quite some time.

"I'm sorry, Walt. I should've said something, but you've been dealing with so much of my shit since your call to my dad, I didn't want to add to it. Turns out I did anyway."

She leaned into him and enjoyed the feeling of just being in his arms. She felt his breath in her ear as he spoke.

"I'll do anything for you, Vic. This will soon be behind us."

He kissed her, then held her to him. He sometimes did this after an argument or bad day. It seemed to calm him.

"You hungry?"

She smiled as he pulled back to ask her about dinner and all thoughts of her dad were put aside for now.

—-—

Victor sat in his study lost in thought. His family had collectively lost their fucking minds. He couldn't figure out why they were still shunning Victoria. His therapist said while he had a part in shaping their beliefs, they were making their own choices now and he wasn't responsible for their continued animosity against Vic. He had several get-togethers with them and his mother since his time in Wyoming. His family was shocked that he went out there and even more so that he had apologized for his behavior in response to the IA incident and for his failings as a father. They listened to his tales of Vic, Walt, Cady and Henry, but felt even more betrayed by the fact that he had a change of heart and lied to them about what he was doing. They all gave him the silent treatment for the most part, but what hurt the most was his wife's reaction. She couldn't see why he would go see Victoria at all after 'what she had done' and only spoke to him when necessary.

That night he had decided he needed a counselor's help to navigate the situation and treat all his children fairly. It's been about 6 weeks since he spent time with Victoria and Walt and he missed them. He missed them much more than he ever thought he would, especially after beginning to really know his daughter for the first time. He had found out that Victoria was also getting counseling, which eased his mind after seeing how much she had been affected by things he didn't even realize he was doing or had done. He had spoken to his counselor about his idea to take a break from his family and go to Wyoming to see Victoria after his first attempt to talk to his family resulted in them shunning him as well. The counselor suggested making a few more attempts to speak with his family before resorting to leaving. He did, and they seemed to thaw a bit in regards to him, but they wouldn't budge when it came to Victoria.

Since he couldn't sway them from their irrational behavior toward her, he had told the counselor he couldn't stay in Philly when he knew Victoria needed him. He also told the counselor that he and his wife were at odds over it and he wanted to take a break from her and the boys to focus on Victoria for at least 6 months. He thought it was selfish and that the counselor would advise against it, but asked his opinion anyway. To his surprise, he told Victor that while not ideal, it was an important step to make himself available to Victoria during their attempts to heal and this would allow them to do some joint counseling if she was willing. He also told Victor that he had given his family time to come to terms with the changes he's made and it was important he focused on himself and Victoria at this point in his life. While it would be easier with the support of the family, the fact that both Victoria and Victor were working toward healing indicated that their needed to be a shift in his priorities. Making this move would give him time to be with his daughter and to be present in her life. It would also give him time to reflect on his marriage and what his continued progress with Victoria would mean for him and his wife. His family would have time to reflect on what life would be like if they didn't have him nearby. The counselor stressed to him the importance of communicating with his wife and sons during this time and suggested emailing and calling them individually and on a regular basis. Engaging them one on one would allow the person to have to make their own choices and have their own opinions, rather than a collective mantra.

All this in mind, he had started making preparations. Rental properties were scarce in Durant, but he lucked out and found one on the outskirts of town. He had booked plane tickets for this Friday evening hoping they would have him over to their weekly breakfast Saturday morning. He arranged a rental car until he could find a reasonable truck to purchase. The small sedan they had wouldn't survive unplowed roads of the winter and his wife would need the car anyway. Wardrobe wasn't too much of a problem, since he had winter clothes. He'd already arranged his leave of absence and warned everyone that this was on his mind. All he had left to do was tell his family and call Victoria and Walt.

He dialed the phone and waited as it rang.

"Hey, Dad."

"Hello Victoria. Do you have a minute?"

He asked because she seemed winded and he could hear voices on the line.

"Sure, let me step away from the commotion."

The noise on the line faded as she moved away.

"Ok Dad. I don't have too long since we're on a scene, but I can be spared for a couple minutes."

"I wanted to let you know that I'm coming out there for about 6 months, as we talked about a while ago. I'm flying in Friday evening. I've made arrangements to stay in a rental home on the outskirts of Durant and I'll have a rental car so you don't need to pick me up from the airport. I'll fill you in on the rest later, but I'm looking forward to spending more time with you."

"I'm sorry it's come to this, with you and Mom, but I'm also glad you'll be here for a while. I'll apologize in advance for the shitty pizza!"

He laughed with her and was delighted that she was happy that he was coming. He'd have to thank Walt again for his insistence in talking to him and defending his daughter.

"I know you're busy, so I'll let you go. Say hi to the rest of the family for me?"

"Of course, Dad. Email me all the particulars. I can go by the rental and make sure that everything's setup for you. Sometimes the owners are slow in responding."

"I will. Love you, Victoria."

"Love you too, Dad."

—-—

Vic hung up the call and stood in shock. So it had come to him leaving home. While she still had mixed feelings, her counselor told her that while she was indeed one subject of discord between her parents, it was their own actions that are the cause of the split, not hers. Putting this into perspective, she was able to look forward to her dad's visit despite feeling bad that they were having trouble in their marriage. Pocketing her phone, she walked back to the crime scene outside of the local grocery store where two women decided to play bumper cars like in that TV show. She saw the clip online and laughed her ass off, saving it to her list of videos for when she needed a good laugh. The harpies have finally calmed down, a wrecker has towed off both cars and citations were issued to the two drivers. The tow truck had just showed when she stepped away. She saw Walt lingering near the Bronco and walked up to him.

"So my dad just called."

He turned and looked at her, hat shading his eyes, and waited for her to elaborate.

"And he's coming to Durant for 6 months. He says he has a rental home and car, but will probably need help finding a used truck or he'll spend a fortune. He's staying at a place on the edge of town. I told him I'd check it out before he gets here."

"We can look online for trucks…we meaning you can show me what's available. I'm glad he'll get to spend time with you, but it's a shame that your family won't come around. And I thought you were stubborn."

He nudged her from the side and she gave him a mock glare back.

"That's what you get for thinking."

They both grinned.

"When's he getting in?"

"Late Friday."

"Maybe he'll be able to make breakfast. If not, we can meet him later for dinner."

"He'd like that. It's kind of surreal, you know, to be important to him. To have his attention."

"It's long overdue, Vic. Long overdue."

"Fuckin' A it is!"

She loved the sound of his laughter and was pleased to see he smiled and laughed a lot with her. He'd come such a long way since the loss of Martha.

"Let's get back to the station so we can wrap this up and head home."

She climbed into the truck and he drove them back to the station. She fiddled with the radio, as usual and he watched the road lost in thought. Knowing she wasn't going to get a station, he placed his hand on hers and put it on his knee. He didn't often cross personal and professional boundaries while on duty, but he would in the Bronco. It was a connection with her he seemed to need and she didn't mind letting him have it.

TBC