The Cabin on Lake Champlain

Beth was making breakfast for her guys in the cute, rustic kitchen of the cabin. Jack loved pretty much anything she made and Linc liked eggs or pancakes, so she made both.

"Mama!!!" Linc called from the second bedroom.

"Hang on, honey! Be right there."

She moved the eggs off the heat for a minute and dashed to the bedroom. "Mama! Tinky."

"Oh yes. You are stinky. Ew." The whole room had a certain stench. "It's sure going to be nice when you are potty trained, sweetie," She told him as she opened the window. She hadn't seen a potty for him at his house in Philadelphia so he assumed they hadn't started training him yet. The next time she went shopping, she would pick one up.

"Egg, Mama?"

"Are you hungry?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. Let's go get some food then and then take it to Dada."

"Dada!" he said, clapping his hands as he ran ahead of her. Beth opened the door to the master and Linc ran in, straight to the bed. "Dada!"

"Hey, buddy," Jack mumbled, lifting him up onto the bed.

Beth went back to the kitchen, washed her hands, and finished the eggs and pancakes. Then she poured coffee and a sippy of juice and headed in. "Breakfast time," she announced.

Jack sat up and leaned against the headboard. "Mm. Smells good."

"Mm," Linc mimicked.

Beth handed Jack a plate and a fork and then cut the pancakes in strips and handed one to Linc.

"Mm Mama," Linc said, his mouth filled with pancake.

"What are we doing today, Jack?"

"I thought while it's cool this morning we could go for a bike ride. There's a nice trail next to the lake."

"That sounds fun." So after breakfast, she packed some diapers, wipes, snacks, drinks, and a blanket in her backpack while Jack and Linc got dressed for the day.

The weather was indeed perfect for a bike ride. The sun was bright and the cloudless sky, a perfect blue. As they pedaled around the lake for awhile, Jack pointed out a family of deer and some brightly colored birds, getting Linc excited.

They stopped later at a beach that had lots of shade trees a bit from the waters edge. "Let's have a snack and rest, Jack," Beth suggested, taking off her helmet and getting off her bike.

"Good idea."

As they sat on the blanket and ate fruit and cheese, Linc toddled around looking at bugs and getting dirty like a two year old boy liked to do.

"Oh, your little guy is so cute," a voice said from behind them.

Beth turned and smiled. "Thank you," she said politely.

"He looks just like you," the woman said.

That took Beth by surprise and she was tongue-tied for a moment. "Um...thank you. We adore him."

"It's easy to see why. Well, you folks have a good day," she said, walking away.

"You too." Beth thought about their interaction for the next few hours. Later, when Linc was sleeping and Jack and Beth were snuggled together on their bed, Beth brought it up.

"It made me uncomfortable, Jack. I mean, how can he look like me? I'm not his mother."

"Not biologically, no. But he does look a little bit like you."

"Jack, he has straight, blonde hair."

"It's something in the face, maybe. His eyes or his nose, I can't explain it. I think he has your calm and sweet spirit too."

"Maybe."

He pulled her closer and kissed her soft, warm lips. "It's true. He even has dimples so maybe he even looks a little bit like me too. All I know is, he's our son now and I'm very grateful to have both of you in my life."

"I love you so much, Jack. Thank you for saying that."

"It's how I feel. You were made to be my wife."

As the couple allowed themselves their much needed time together, back home, things were tough.

Bree heard her phone buzzing so she picked it up, assuming it was Mike since she hadn't heard from him all day.

"Hello?"

"Is this Bree?"

"Yes. This is."

"This is Lee."

"Oh yes. Hi, Lee."

"Hi. Um, I just wanted to let you know that there has been an incident."

Bree's heart dropped to her stomach. "Is it Mike? Please tell me that he's alright."

"Yes, it's Mike. He had pulled someone over, it was a routine stop. The guy got scared or something. He...Mike's been shot, Bree."

"No," she whispered. The worst part was, he still hadn't told her if Mike was alright. "Where was he shot? I mean, he was wearing his vest, right?"

"Yes, of course. He was shot in the left shoulder and his neck. He's in surgery now but he's lost a lot of blood. They aren't sure...I'm sorry, Bree."

"Is he at UVM hospital?"

"Yeah."

"I'm coming." Bree hung up the phone and called Clara to see if she could watch Tate and Xavier. Once they were dropped off, she drove to the hospital, breaking all sorts of laws but thankfully, no one stopped her.

She rushed through the doors and Lee was waiting for her. "Bree."

"Lee! Any news?"

"No, not yet. Let's go upstairs to the surgery waiting room. Jesse's there."

The waiting was the worst part. Bree couldn't imagine losing Mike now. They loved each other. The boys loved him. It wasn't fair.

A tear rolled down her face as she stared out the window of the waiting room. "Please, God. Please save him. I can't lose him now, please. We need him," she prayed.

Bree turned when she heard Lee and Jesse greet someone. "Liam, good to see you, bro," Jesse said, giving him a hug. "How are you doing?"

"How's Mike?" he asked, instead of answering.

"No word yet."

Bree could see the resemblance between Mike and his youngest brother. Same blonde hair, blue eyes, full bottom lip, long nose. If she remembered correctly, this was the brother that Mike was closest to.

She walked over and put on a brave smile. "Hi, you're Liam, right?"

"Yeah. You must be Bree. Where are your boys?" Her shocked expression must have come across loud and clear. "Of course he talks about you. All three of you."

She wiped away another tear. "It's good to meet you. Is your mom coming?"

"Yeah. She will be here soon."

Bree nodded. "I need some coffee. It's going to be a long day, I think." It already had been.

"I passed a cafe on my way up. I'll walk with you."

"That would be nice, thank you."

As they walked he placed a friendly hand on her shoulder. "He's strong. He always has been, just like our mom. He seems quiet, but underneath…"

"Yeah. I get that feeling." In fact, that quiet strength made her feel stronger and it was what she loved most about him.

"You love him," Liam acknowledged.

"You're perceptive."

"It's my job."

"What do you do?"

"I'm a cop, just like Mike. A detective, actually."

"This whole thing is scary. I always knew his job was potentially dangerous but I guess I thought that being out here in Maple Hills shielded him from it."

"It does. But bad guys come from all over."

"Yeah."

Back at the cabin, Lake Champlain

It had heated up by early afternoon so they took Linc swimming in the lake. They put his bright orange water wings on and his swim diaper and then they went outside.

Jack watched Beth's slim, shapely body as she carried Linc on her hip down toward the water. She wore a black halter bikini top with black and white print shorts. It had been a good ten years since he had seen her in a bathing suit. She was definitely not a teenager anymore.

"Jack?"

He shook his head and hurried to catch up to them. "Hey."

"What's going on?"

"Nothing, you are just super distracting."

"That right?"

"Oh yeah."

"I kinda have to agree about you. Those swim trunks..." She blushed and laughed.

He looked down. They were just boring navy swim trunks. Nothing special.

"Well, I guess it's this," she gestured to all of him, his head to his toes. "All of you. My heart is going so fast." She grabbed his hand on held it to her heart. "You've always had this effect on me. Now it's a little different because you're my husband, but...wow."

He smiled and gave her a kiss. "The feeling is mutual, sweetheart."

"Sim!" Linc said, squirming to get down.

"Okay, bud, let's swim," Jack said as they walked into the water.

Lee tried Jack's phone again. It went straight to voicemail. He knew Mike wouldn't want him bothered on his honeymoon but Lee thought he should know. It was their brother in blue. They were close.

"Jack, hey, its Lee. Sorry to bother you on your trip. Look, bro, Mike's been shot. He has been in surgery now for about five hours. Dude, I don't know if he is going to make it. Call me, Jack. As soon as you can."

When Lee returned to the waiting room, Mike and Liam's mom Pam had arrived and the surgeon was talking to them. Lee walked over to the group and listened.

"So he is still unconscious and will be for a while. We have him in the ICU to keep a good eye on him."

Bree stood nearby, tears falling down her face.

"Can we see him?" Pam asked.

"Just for a few minutes each."

"Alright." Pam went first and Bree left the room quickly, heading the other direction.

Lee followed her. She stopped and sat on a bench and buried her face in her hands. Lee sat next to her and slowly wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "He's okay, Bree."

"He is alive, but that's all we know. He could still die, Lee."

"True, but he needs us to be strong for him."

"I'm not strong, Lee. I can't stop crying. I didn't think I would do this again."

"Do what?"

"Fall for someone and rely on them so much that I can't be without them. I promised myself I wouldn't risk it again. Love only brings pain."

"That's not true."

"Ever been married, Lee?"

"Yeah."

"You have?"

"Yeah. I lost her about five years ago."

"Oh, I didn't know. I'm sorry, Lee."

"It's been awhile. I'm doing well. It was definitely not an easy road. The one thing I know, with total and absolute certainty, is that I would never give up the three years I had with her. She was everything."

"So, even if you knew you would lose her, you would do it all again?"

"Absolutely."

"What was her name?"

"Kelli."

"What happened?"

"She had a blood clot. It traveled to her heart and killed her."

"Oh gosh."

"Bree, do you love Mike?"

"Yeah."

"I know he loves you too. That love is what will get you both through this. It's not going to be easy but I'm asking you not to give up on him just because you're afraid."

"I'll try."

The cabin

Jack and Beth read Linc a story before bed and while Beth went in to get a bath started for them, Jack took a few minutes to check his messages.

He turned on his phone and after a moment, it told him he had five voicemails and sixteen texts. He read through the texts. There wasn't anything urgent.

The last voicemail however got his attention.

Jack went into the darkened bathroom where Beth was sitting on the edge of the tub.

"It's almost ready, Jack." She looked up at him. "Honey? What's wrong?"

"Its Mike. Lee says he was shot and had surgery and the doctors aren't sure he's going to make it."

"Oh, my gosh," she whispered. "Call Lee, Jack. Find out if there's more news."

"Yeah." His hands shook as he tried to work his phone.

Beth could see he was on the verge of breaking down so she turned off the water and led Jack to the bedroom. They sat down and she took the phone from him.

She dialed and waited.

"Bro!"

"Lee, its Beth. How's Mike?"