Thanks for your patience with this story. I'd expected to get this next chapter written and posted sooner, but my summer has not gone as expected. :)


He could feel the vibration humming inside him. The warmth. The fuzziness at the edges. Maybe he shouldn't have driven himself home. But he hadn't felt the effects at the bar as he now did, sitting on his couch in the near dark.

The corners of his mouth turned slowly upwards. That wasn't true. He'd felt the buzz back at the Red Pony.

If he'd been sober he wouldn't have openly stared. Or temporarily forgotten they were surrounded by others. Or stumbled when questions were directed his way.

Not with her family so close. Or his.

But he had done all those things.

Closing his eyes, and sinking deeper into the couch cushions, he pictured her there. Standing a few feet away from the pool table. Her gaze solidly on him in that distracting way. He hadn't been able to keep his eyes off her.

He couldn't remember if anyone else had been standing near them. He hadn't even seen Cady approach until she was standing there between them. It had been hard to focus on what the two of them were talking about. He'd missed the question Cady had asked him. His focus was only partly on the beer he was lifting to his lips when Cady's words, and their meaning, had sunk in. Her suggestion that Vic stay with her instead of on his couch.

Vic had momentarily glanced his way, but she was focused back on Cady before he could shift his gaze to her.

"So...what do you say? Wanna be my roomie again?"

Once again Vic's eyes had darted toward him, but he hadn't been able to read her expression.

He'd felt something clench within him and had looked away, returning his focus to the Rainier in his hands.

Vic had turned back toward Cady. "Uh…"

The beer had been soothing sliding down his throat, but it had only been a momentary distraction before he'd drained the can.

And now, here he was, alone at his place. He hadn't said a word. She hadn't put up a fight.

The disappointment and relief that she wasn't there at the cabin washed over him.

He took a breath, and then slowly raised his eyelids. The lamp on his desk was casting shadows, and he followed them around the room until his gaze landed on the open front door.

He froze.

Vic stood on the other side of the screen, staring back at him. Darkness surrounded most of her, but her face was visible. Her eyes flickering.

He wondered how long she'd been standing there. He wondered why she was standing there.

"Hi." The word came out softly from her lips. "I didn't know if you were asleep."

He blinked. "Nope."

She glanced toward the side of the porch for a moment, before returning her focus to him.

"I, uh…I came to get by backpack. My, uh, stuff." She gestured toward the floor near the end of the couch.

"Right." That's why she was there. For her stuff.

He launched himself into a standing position, steadying himself for a moment, before walking over to her bag and picking it up. He heard the screen door open and close behind him.

He turned and found her standing just inside the door. Still with her eyes on him. Still with an expression he couldn't quite read.

Making his way back across the room, he held out the bag in front of him as he neared. "Your…stuff."

She grinned. He felt the warmth buzzing through him, and the corners of his mouth lifted in response.

Sliding the strap of the backpack over her right shoulder, Vic looked up at him. "Thanks."

He nodded.

"Well…uh…I should go." With a nod of her head, she gestured back behind her. "Cady's waiting." She then glanced over her shoulder. "She might actually be asleep. Her eyes were drifting closed the whole ride here."

He tried to peer out at her truck, which was mostly hidden behind the dark curtain of night.

Eyes back on her, he nodded again. "Ok."

"Oh…" Vic adjusted the strap on her shoulder, her eyes darting past him. "My toothbrush is in your bathroom. Let me grab it."

She stepped past him before he could even pull together a response, or offer his assistance, and he turned to see her disappearing into his bedroom.

He was half-way across the room before he realized he was following her and stopped in his tracks.

This wasn't a good idea. His guard was down. His self-control. If he made it to his doorway…

The alcohol in his system hadn't completely incapacitated the usual censor in his brain that triggered when it came to Vic. So, with a final glance at the entryway to his bedroom, he made his way back to the spot just inside the front door, and looked out at the porch while he waited for her return.

A few moments later she appeared at his right shoulder, and he took a step to the side, turning toward her as he did. "All set?"

She glanced up at him. "Yep."

He reached for the handle at the same time she did. When their hands touched they both paused, her right on his left.

He took a step forward as if he was going to lean in and push the door open but he didn't move any further. And neither did she, other than her gaze, which was now directed at some point on his chest.

"You smell…clean. Like soap." She didn't look up as she said the words.

"I…uh…washed my face when I first got back to the cabin."

She nodded, her eyes still not on his.

He felt the words spilling out before his filter could catch them. "You taste like flowers."

She glanced up at him, and he could not mistake the raised eyebrow directed his way. "What do flowers taste like?"

"I…I mean you smell like flowers."

A slow smile spread across her lips. "My shampoo." Her eyes were big, and taking him in.

He nodded. He could still feel the weight of her hand against his on the door handle.

He took another step forward, holding her gaze. Taking a deep breath, he noticed that their chests moved up and down in unison. He could feel the pull toward her, but the censor was still there. With a deep exhale, he dropped his eyes, leaned across her and propped open the screen. For a moment, when he looked back over at her, that unreadable expression crossed her features.

He turned his gaze in the direction of her truck, even though he couldn't really see it. "Thank you. For taking Cady home." His eyes found Vic's again. "I really appreciate you looking out for her."

With a slight shake, she seemed to gather herself. "It's not a problem."

The buzz that lit his body was fighting with his brain. To get her to stay a little longer. To enjoy the smell of her hair a little closer. But the brain won out. "I'll…uh…see you at Omar's tomorrow?"

She seemed to study him for a moment, and then rolled her eyes. "Yes. I can't believe I agreed to that. God help me if he says anything inappropriate in front of my family."

"I'm sure Omar will be on his best behavior."

She grinned. "That doesn't really comfort me."

He laughed, and she followed suit.

She took a step toward him and then paused. He held his breath, the buzz tingling beneath the surface. The brain pushed to the side. He started to lift his hand to her side.

"Ok. See you tomorrow." And with that she launched herself out the door and down the steps, disappearing into the dark.

XX

Vic studied herself in the full-length mirror. What she wouldn't give for a mirror like this back at her place. But there wasn't really room, or wall space, in the RV.

Running her hand down her belly, she traced the slight contour. She wondered if anybody else had noticed. There wasn't much difference yet, especially under layers of clothing. But she could tell.

She glanced down at her hand. She was going to have to tell them.

She wanted and feared the conversation with Walt most of all.

Closing her eyes, she breathed in deeply. She needed to do it soon. Before she lost her nerve. Before he found out some other way.

With an audible sigh, she opened her eyes. She pulled her tank top down, and adjusted her shorts, before heading for the dresser. She grabbed her phone and arm band and then exited the room.

On a notepad on the coffee table she scribbled a note for Cady to let her know she'd gone for a run.

Straightening, she paused to strap her phone to her arm, and then pulled the elastic from her wrist as she walked back across the room. Opening the front door as quietly as she could, she stood in the doorway, pulling her hair up off her shoulders, and tying it into her usual ponytail. As she was doing her final tug to ensure the hair was securely in place she looked up, and hesitated, her stomach doing a small flip.

Walt, his back to her, sat on the front steps. Without turning his head, he lifted a thermos as she stepped forward.

"What if I had been Cady?"

He lifted another thermos, causing her to laugh.

She slid into a seated position next to him on the step, lifting the coffee to her lips as he placed Cady's thermos on the step between them.

"This thermos feels a little lighter than the one you filled for me on Friday morning. A little less full."

"You said you were trying to cut back. I'm just making it easier for you." He finally turned his head to face her, a grin lighting his lips.

His eyes stayed on hers a beat longer than she expected, before he turned and looked out at the street. Taking advantage of the fact that he wasn't looking at her, she took a moment to scan his length. She loved him in t-shirts, and seeing him three days in a row in sweats and sneakers did something to her as well. She tore her eyes from him and took a long sip from the thermos.

She finally dared to look over at him again. "I'm impressed."

He turned with his eyebrow raised. "Impressed with what?"

"Your commitment to running these past few days."

"You're just as committed. I'm not out here in my running shoes on my own."

"Yeah, but I've been at it a little longer than you. Which means I've got a little more discipline built in. A little more motivation."

He looked down at the thermos in his hands. "I can be very disciplined—"

"Yeah, about select things. Not sure if I'd put running up there with the other things I've seen you so intensely dedicated to."

"And I'm very motivated."

"Oh yeah, what's got you so motivated?" As the question slipped out she realized she needed to be careful. She didn't know if this was the moment she wanted to share her motivation for taking better care of herself with him.

He lifted his head and turned her way, his eyes again holding hers for a beat longer than usual, before dropping back to his hands.

"Just internally motivated to make some improvements."

She nodded. "Me too."

She noted that they both lifted their thermos to their lips at the same time.

After finishing the last of her coffee, she stood, picking up the third thermos as she rose. "I'll be right back."

She re-entered the house and quietly made her way over to the coffee table, placing the thermos near the note she'd left for Cady.

XX

Exhausted, Walt watched Vic drop to a seated position on Cady's front yard. He sank down on the patch of grass to her right, a little concerned he might not be able to get back up again.

That had been their longest run yet, and his previous non-existent dedication to running was rearing its ugly head to laugh at him.

She let out a sigh as she sank down on to her back. "God, you really pushed me that last mile."

"I pushed you?" A glance in her direction at the end of their run had confirmed that she had not been sucking wind like he had."

"If you haven't noticed, I've got a bit of a competitive side."

His competitive side had been severely overshadowed by his desire to keep breathing. "Well, you can let your competitive side know that you won."

"It already knows."

He turned his head toward her and found her smiling up at him. She let out a loud laugh, bringing her hand to cover her mouth when the volume surprised them both. Which of course made her laugh again.

Smiling, he rested his wrists on his knees, dropping his head slightly as he studied the blades of grass near his feet and waited for his breathing to steady.

"Ok. I'm ready."

He looked over at her again. "Ready for what?"

"To hear what you said you would tell me. Your update on how things are with Cady…and Henry."

He must have had a look on his face that expressed his lack of excitement in discussing these topics, because she pursed her lips. "Walt, you promised. And the way you've been resting this last little while suggests you don't want to get up from your position any time soon, so you might as well get at it, 'cause I'm just going to keep bugging you until you do."

He watched her lift her arms and rest them behind her head, never taking her eyes off him.

"Things have been light between us this morning. These aren't light topics."

"I can handle it."

In truth, he was more worried about himself. Confronting these topics by talking about them directly with Vic meant he couldn't live in denial or distraction as he'd successfully, or maybe not so successfully, been doing these last weeks.

But Vic was looking at him in her stubborn way that communicated she wasn't going to budge. If he wasn't going to get up and leave he would need to start talking. And for multiple reasons he didn't feel like leaving.

Placing his hands on the grass behind him, he leaned back slightly and extended his legs in front of him.

"When Cady told me she was working for Nighthorse…" He paused, shaking his head. "I haven't been able to get past it. He's dirty." He glanced over at Vic, finding her eyes still on him. "I don't need to convince you of that. But I couldn't convince her. And I couldn't get her to see that working for him was a bad idea."

He returned to looking out in front of him. "It's been strained between us…for a while. And getting worse with each interaction. Nighthorse and his illegal activities were all I could see every time Cady and I talked, and she wanted me to see anything but that."

Again he hung his head for a moment.

"She's a lawyer. And her father's daughter. She needs evidence. But Nighthorse has been good at covering his tracks, so my assurance that he's behind some very bad things hasn't been enough to sway her."

Walt ran his hand over his forehand to catch the beads of sweat that were still pooling there.

"Our last conversation, back at her office…it was bad. I didn't know if things could be repaired. I wasn't going to change my mind about Nighthorse, and Cady wasn't going to change her mind about working for him. At least not based on anything I had to say."

Letting out a breath, he looked over at Vic.

She slowly raised one eyebrow. "The two of you seemed to be doing better after your conversation at the Pony last night. Did one of you concede?"

"Not in the way I thought would be needed for things to start to improve between us. I realized I didn't need to accept Nighthorse to accept what she's trying to do. I'm not going to let my guard down when it comes to him, but I can't keep it up, to the degree I've been keeping it up, with her."

Vic placed her hand on the grass close to his. "It's probably hard to be a parent sometimes, when you're a sheriff. What we do shades how we see the world. Affects our trust, and our ability to let things go."

She laughed. "But it's hard for the kids of law enforcement as well. With Cady being the only child, she probably got way more shit from you than I got from my dad. My brothers got in a lot of trouble and took some of the burden off me. Cady had no one else to divert your attention."

Walt watched her for a moment. "Does your father see me as your Nighthorse?"

"What?"

"I haven't been easy to work for these last years. I've been obsessive. I've made some decisions that have put you in danger. And if you read the paper these days or listened to Tucker Baggett, you'd think I did things that were just as bad as—"

Vic propped herself up on her forearms. "Stop that. You're nothing like Nighthorse. You're a good man. With strong convictions. You've got the strongest moral compass of anyone I know. And while we haven't been able to prove a lot of the shit we believe Nighthorse to be behind, I know that what's been in the paper about you, what Baggett is saying, isn't true."

He blinked, and then swallowed, moved by her belief in him. "Thanks."

Vic lowered herself down, so she was again lying flat on her back. "But I have been building a scrapbook of all the articles the newspaper has printed about you, so if my parents happen to find that while they're staying at my place this weekend…"

He watched the slow upturn of the corners of her mouth as her eyes glowed with mirth. "Good. Some of my greatest hits are in there. It will be a real compelling read."

He reveled in her smile for a moment longer, before pausing, his expression sobering. "Do they know any of what's been going on?"

"I told them about Barlow. What he'd done. That you were cleared."

"Nothing about the lawsuit?"

She shook her head. "You're going to be cleared of that too. No need to get them worked up."

"And if I'm not cleared?"

"Not going to happen."

"You don't know that."

"I know you."

Gripping the back of his neck he stared through the link fence at the edge of Cady's yard. How had all this Barlow stuff spun so out of control?

"I'm realizing I don't look up much anymore."

Pulled from his thoughts, Walt looked over at Vic quizzically. Once again her hands were behind her head, her gaze directed upwards.

"I mean I've seen the sky off in the distance, obviously, but I haven't looked up at it lately. Back at my old place I used to lie on one of our patio chairs and just stare up at the clouds. Sometimes for hours. The Wyoming sky is so different from the one back in Philly."

He watched her watching the clouds.

"But now…I'm surrounded by concrete at my new place. No lawn like this to lie down on. No patio chairs. I didn't realize how much I missed it until now."

Shifting his weight, he sank down onto his back, and joined her in looking up. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her rotate her head to face him.

"You probably take your sky out here for granted."

He shook his head. "I don't." He paused, memories swirling through him. "When we were kids, Henry and I used to do a lot of staring up. On the grass along the bank after a good day fishing. Against a rock after reaching the peak during a climb. On the field getting mentally prepared for a game. Up on the roof at his house. It made us feel connected with something bigger than ourselves. I still do it from my front porch from time to time."

Without turning, he could feel her eyes still on him, waiting for him to open up about Henry.

"Nighthorse hasn't only been manipulating Cady. He's been doing it to Henry as well. With tighter, more controlling reins."

He avoided her eyes, hoping he could feel less exposed if she couldn't look directly at him. Into him.

"He has Henry doing things I never would have imagined he'd do."

Walt paused, noting how the early morning sun lit some of the clouds and darkened others.

"You said something a little while back. About not discounting people as suspects just because we know them. I've been ignoring so many of the signs when it's come to Henry. I've been so wrapped up in my own troubles, that I didn't realize what he was getting himself into. What he's been falling for in regards to Nighthorse and his promises."

He bit down lightly on his lower lip, his gaze still on the sky. "A little while ago Henry asked me to hold off bringing Nighthorse down, telling me that Nighthorse had promised to help him get the Red Pony back from Malachi. I should have known then that Henry was getting pulled into Nighthorse's shady dealings."

He felt his hands involuntarily clench at his sides. "Henry told me he was able to get the bar back because he found a ledger proving Malachi was laundering money. Malachi signed the deed to the Pony over to Henry in exchange for Henry not reporting him to the authorities."

Again he clenched and unclenched his hands, his chest rising slowly. "Because of their arrangement, all the evidence related to laundering money for the Irish mob is now in Nighthorse's hands, the person most interested in covering things up."

Walt flattened the palms of both of his hands against the grass. "I think Nighthorse's agenda goes well beyond ownership of the Red Pony. He's trying to silence the person who can actually do what we haven't been able to do so far. Connect him to organized crime. And now that Malachi is missing…"

Vic propped herself up onto her forearms. "So, you're back to thinking Malachi is missing? And you think Nighthorse and Henry are responsible?"

His eyes briefly flicked over to hers. "I think Nighthorse is silencing Malachi. Henry insists they threatened Malachi but didn't kill him. But I don't see Nighthorse just letting a person go who has the potential to bring him down. Henry says I'm being paranoid, but there are too many signs…now that my eyes are open, there are too many signs to ignore. The dishonesty. The disloyalty. I can't trust anyone's word anymore. Not even Henry's."

Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath. He felt Vic sink back on to the grass beside him, her shoulder grazing his.

"Sometimes I think that Nighthorse is doing all of this…to the two of them…to manipulate me. To buy my silence when it comes to all the things I've been investigating him for." Again he sucked in a corner of his bottom lip before releasing it. "Sometimes I just think he's trying to turn the two of them against me."

He felt Vic's fingers briefly wrap around his left wrist. "I'm still in your corner. And so are Cady and Henry. They wouldn't have spent time with us yesterday if they weren't." She let her hand drop, returning her gaze to the sky.

He rotated his head, allowing himself a few moments to study her face as she peered upwards. Her cheeks were still flushed from their run.

When she turned back toward him, he didn't look away. After a moment she blinked, and her gaze slid to his cheek. "Did you and Henry get into a fight last week?"

He nodded. "Things came to a head when I stopped by the Pony."

Her eyes connected back with his. "Have you talked to him since then?"

He shook his head.

"Not even yesterday, when we were together?"

Again he shook his head.

"How does Hector fit into all of this?"

He cringed inwardly, remembering his harsh tone when he'd told her to drop their investigation into the person who'd picked up Hector's mantle. "Henry might be involved in that too. I'm not sure. He wouldn't admit it when I confronted him. That's what started the fight. I was tired of people keeping the truth from me."

"And you lost your cool?"

"Yep."

"Henry might not be involved. Or at least not in the way you're thinking."

"He might not be. But he might. Henry talks about Hector as something that gives the people on the Rez hope…in a time when much seems hopeless. He may have taken things too far. It's what I worry about for both Henry and Cady. That their initial actions, done in the spirit of good, will shift to something they didn't set out to do…out of desperation or delusion. Shift because Nighthorse is involved and pulling the strings."

Again he looked over at her, finding her eyes still on him. "I'm surprised Nighthorse hasn't tried to do the same with you."

"Turn me against you, or try to get me to do his bidding?"

"Both."

She laughed. "I think Jacob Nighthorse and his tail light know I'm not a big fan of his. That I'm not one who could be easily swayed."

Walt hoped not, but he would have said the same about his daughter and best friend just a short time ago.

His eyes must have broadcast this thought, because Vic rolled a little to her right, and propped her head up on her right hand, looking down at him.

"There's nothing Nighthorse could offer me, Walt. Nothing."

Like that moment back in his office, when she'd adamantly sworn that she would stay by his side, and not let him go down on his own, he felt her loyalty. Loyalty he didn't know if he'd rightfully earned. Definitely not loyalty that he deserved. Still, there it was. Nakedly looking back at him. He felt it, and like before, was drawn even more to her because of it. But back in the office, he'd done nothing but stare back at her in silent acceptance that her loyalty existed. Now, lying on the lawn, with little space between them, he felt her gravitational pull. And this time he felt powerless to it.

He didn't know who started the kiss. They were so close that they may just have both moved toward each other simultaneously to close the distance. Regardless of who initiated, they were both actively involved from the first moment of contact. The left side of her body was lying partway across his chest, and her hand was threaded through his hair. His right arm was spread across her back, holding her to him.

The kiss had started out slowly. A bit tentative on each of their parts, as they tested what was happening between them.

But now there was heat.

Her hand dropped to his right shoulder and then moved down his arm, her fingers finally sliding beneath the band of his sleeve to grip his bicep.

He pressed against her lower back, shifting his weight as they both rolled to their sides. When she lifted her hand to encircle his neck, he felt her tank top rise, and his fingers were soon traversing the exposed skin at her waist.

His hand was splayed along her left rib cage as she lowered the back of her right shoulder to the ground. Again they both shifted their weight. He ran his lips along her jaw, and his fingers slid further under the front of her shirt.

Suddenly she grabbed his wrist and pulled back. He was confused by the surprised look in her eyes.

He watched her squeeze her eyes shut for a moment before opening them.

"We need to talk." The words were whispered, but had an edge of urgency behind them.

"Talk?"

She released her grip on his wrist, letting their hands fall. "I…I need to tell you something."

His hand was at her hip, and he slid it up her side, making sure to stay on the outside of her clothing. "Now?"

She bowed her head, leaning into him slightly. "It's…big. What I need to say. You might not want to keep doing…this…once you hear."

He doubted that. He'd been thinking about this almost constantly since that first kiss in her RV. And then her words sunk in, and his hand stilled. Was she going to tell him that she was leaving? Had she finally talked to her parents and been convinced to go back to Philadelphia?

He swallowed. "Ok."

Lifting her head so they were again making eye contact she briefly pursed her lips. "I—"

Vic was cut off by the sound of Cady's front door opening and the shuffle of footsteps along the stoop. They immediately pulled apart. Walt sat up as Vic lowered herself into her initial position on her back. He tried to calm his breathing down as Cady appeared on the front steps, no longer blocked by the bushes.

"I thought I heard someone out here."

She glanced between them. "Did you both go for a run?"

Walt tried to put on a smile. "One of us ran. One of us was just trying to keep up."

The corners of Cady's mouth lifted. "Still in the 'running is torture' stage?"

"Yep."

She paused, taking him in. "I didn't know you'd gotten in to running."

Looking up at her, he held her eyes. "I'm trying to make some changes."

She nodded, her eyes softening. She then seemed to gather herself. "You two hungry?"

A shadow crossed his view, and he turned to see that Vic had risen, and was now standing at his side. She was looking over at Cady, avoiding his eyes. "Starving."

"Great!" Cady gave them a smile and then walked back up the stairs.

Vic started to follow her, but then turned and offered Walt her hand. "You look like you need a little help getting off your ass."

Cady laughed from the top of the steps.

He took Vic's hand, and held her eyes as he stood.

Vic's gaze stayed on him for a moment longer and then she dropped his hand and pivoted. Cady was already in the house when he reached the top of the stairs, but Vic had not entered. She was standing in the open doorway, her back to him.

Cady called out from the kitchen. "What do you two want?"

Vic turned and looked up at him, her hand on the doorknob. What did he want? If only it were that simple?