"His Son"
by: iluvaqt@hotmail.com

Disclaimer: As per default chapter.
iluvaqt's Notes: Should've checked the weather patterns before I posted. ;P Just a little bit of a re-write. Feedback is always appreciated, thanks guys. ;)


Chapter 1 -
Friday, November 20th 2020
Krit/Syl's place, Wallace Idaho

Syl sat on the back porch, sketching the wild flowers that were just peeking through the light cover of snow, along the fence. She thought back to the last time she'd seen Zack. She remembered wanting to teach him a lesson, the next time he showed up. Only he hadn't. The next time she had seen him, they were planning to rescue Tinga. There'd been no time for petty payback schemes. Had she known it would be the last time she would see two of her siblings, she would have done a few things very differently.

Hearing a car's engine, her ears perked up. It had stopped close by. She stood, smoothing her pants, and ruffling her hair. It couldn't be Krit back early could it? Maybe he wanted to surprise her. Smiling, she waited and listened more closely. She heard laughter. It was a light and melodic sound. And when the woman spoke, her heart soared.

"Shush, we want to surprise Aunt Syl."

Bounding down the back steps, heedless that she was only in moccasins, Syl ran around the side of the house. "Jondy," she squealed.

The sisters rushed to greet each other, almost forgetting the baby between them. "I'm sorry it's taken us so long to get here." Jondy said apologetically. Beaming happily, she shifted the baby in her arms and pulled at the strap of her bag that was slipping from her shoulder. "Things have been completely insane. I still work at the Blue, and I took a job sitting other kids on the block. It's been great."

Syl stood back and surveyed her sister. "You certainly look great, I've never seen you so happy." She smiled and then gave her sister a stern look. "Now hand him over." She reached out for the baby and took him into her arms with ease.

"I can see you're gonna be a natural," Jondy teased. Her little boy grinned at his aunt and reached up with his chubby little fists.

Syl looked down at her baby nephew and when he looked back up at her. His head was covered with a beanie and it was pulled well down to cover his ears. His baby cheeks were tickled pink with the cold and his nose had a rosy hue to it. He had striking blue eyes, framed by golden light brown lashes. Those eyes stared up at her and Syl froze in shock. There was no mistaking who's eyes he had. And Syl's heart started pounding crazily in her chest. "Dee…"

Jondy knew what she was going to say. She'd known the moment the recognition had flickered in Syl's eyes. The truth was out. "Syl, nothing's changed. You can never tell a soul."

Syl subconsciously hugged the baby tighter. She looked at her sister and frowned. "What do you mean nothing's changed. This changes everything, Dee. And you know it." Suddenly aware of cold moisture against her skin, Syl shifted uncomfortably.

"He doesn't know." Jondy shook her head. "He'll never know," she said numbly.

"He told you to get rid of the baby, believing it wasn't his. If you'd have told him, I'm sure things would have gone down differently." Syl refused to believe that somebody could turn away their own flesh and blood. Not Zack. He would never have turned his back on any of them. Would he?

Jondy's eyes welled with tears. "You think I haven't thought about that? I keep thinking if I had have tried harder, if I'd made him understand, maybe he'd still be with us." Angrily, she wiped her eyes and reached for her son.

Syl surrendered him reluctantly. Folding her arms across her chest, she sighed. "There's no point, playing a blame game here. What's done is done. Knowing Zack, he would have found a way to strew us over royally anyway." Feeling Jondy's pain, she put an arm around her sister's shoulders. "Come on inside. It's freezing out here." She was thinking of the baby. The cold didn't bother her, although, a change of footwear would be welcome right about now.

As they walked around back, Syl filled the awkward silence. "Krit'll be back later tonight, he's gonna flip. I swear the guy's a kid magnet. He has every kid on the block after him when he's around."

Krit was away again. This time it was only a two-day-trip, a mere 80 miles east of Wallace. She hated being separated from him but she couldn't deny that she didn't enjoy the quiet time alone. Sometimes their being together was so all consuming it left her exhausted. And it wasn't physically. He could drive her crazy with desire and mad with rage in the flick of a finger. In the heat of the moment she'd often wondered if it was all worth it. It only took one look into his deep brown eyes and she knew her answer. She couldn't imagine life without him.

The sisters spent the rest of the afternoon lounging in front of the fireplace; catching up on lost time and watching Leo play on his blanket between them. It seemed like so much had changed in the long months since they'd last seen each other.

Zack hadn't known anything about it, but Syl had asked Jondy along, the summer she had taken some of her class into the mountains. Krit had been livid when he'd found out that she'd taken Jondy and neglected to ask him to join them. Even the pictures she'd taken had done little to console him. He'd sulked around for weeks afterward. She tried to explain that it was hard enough to keep their relationship from Zack. Let alone try and hide all three of them together.

Since then, Jondy had moved, she now had Leo and she had made quite a comfortable life for herself in Las Vegas. Her sister had grown her hair long. It hung past the middle of her back in an auburn mass of curls, the sun catching its copper highlights. She looked content too. For a while, Syl had been really worried about her. Especially when they lost Max and Zack. And being a single mother couldn't be easy.

Later that night, Syl heard Krit's pick-up coming up the street. She couldn't keep the bubble of excitement from showing as she dropped the dishtowel and bounded to the front door. Throwing it wide, she was practically jumping in the doorway by the time he reached her.

Gathering her into a tight bear-hug, Krit bent his head to sweetly claim her lush mouth in a passionate kiss. Coming home was always like this. She would be waiting for him at the doorstep the second he alighted from his truck. Her honey blonde hair softly framing her beautiful face, and a smile that could send his pulse into overdrive, butterflies chasing around his stomach at the very sight of her. The adorable dimples in her cheeks, making her look even younger than she was. It never ceased to amaze him, how blessed he was to have her by his side. Her temper might have been enough to rival a point 4 quake but her love was just as ravaging. He had no illusions of his beloved. He relished every moment of their time together. He was a risk-taker and so was she. It was all or nothing.

A figure over Syl's shoulder caused him to abruptly end their kiss and he grinned in surprise. "Jondy!" Not relinquishing his hold on Syl, he reached out with one arm and pulled his sister into a three-way embrace. Planting an affectionate kiss on Jondy's forehead.

"Long time no see, sis. Too long, how's the little guy been? Where is he?"

Krit had a hundred and one questions racing around in his head. Why had it taken her so long to visit? Was everything okay? He still hadn't seen his nephew. His only nephew. He could barely contain the apprehension eating at his nerves. Would he be just like the other baby's he'd seen around town? Was he healthy? What if Manticore had never planned on them…He couldn't stop the train of thought dead even as it presented itself. He wanted to kick himself over it. There was no way he was going to let them spoil this moment. His first and only nephew.

So what if maybe he was a little different. They weren't exactly normal. And who'd want to be when you could run a mile without breaking a sweat or drink three bottles of scotch and still clean sweep at poker. He'd stand by his nephew no matter what. Leo was special. Krit made a silent promise that he would never let his nephew forget that.

As if on cue, baby chatter floated down the passage from the bedroom.

Jondy gave a frown. "He's supposed to be sleeping."

"Awe, come on Dee. Just one cuddle," Krit pleaded. Despite his trepidation, he really was eager to hold the child. And his fears aside, his gut told him that Jondy's son couldn't be anything but perfect.

Biting her bottom lip, Jondy tried her best to look stern. "It's way past his bedtime, but…okay, but only for a little while," she hastily added. "I guess he's not going to sleep right away. Probably can't with all this excitement," she mused.

Krit practically bowled them over in his haste to see his nephew. Once he was out of earshot, Jondy sent her sister a nervous look. "Do you think he'll notice?"

"If he does, he wouldn't make a fuss over it…"

No sooner had Syl said those words than Krit reappeared in the passage carrying Leo. He had a perplexed look on his face. Leo didn't seem to share his concern, he was happily gurgling and kicking out his tiny legs.

"He looks…"

Krit could find the words to explain it. The moment he'd looked down at Leo's little face, he felt has though someone had slugged the wind out of his chest. He knew exactly who's eyes he was looking into, and even though they didn't have that distinct icy edge and commanding light, there was no denying this child had his father's genes. Standing in the passage looking at Jondy, he waited for her to say the name he couldn't bring himself to say.

"Don't," Jondy said quietly. He knew. The look on his face was enough. There was no point withholding it from him now. She almost wished she didn't have to say it. It was already impossible to deal with, having to look into Leo's face every morning and now he was his father's son.

"He's Zack's, but it doesn't matter now anyway…" she stopped short, her voice faltering. She could feel a lump forming in her throat. She inwardly berated herself for her weakness. It had been months now. How long before she stopped crying over something that would never change?

Silently, Syl put her arm about Jondy's shoulders. "You know, he could have escaped. Maybe, he's still out there. We could find him."

Jondy turned her head, raking her sister's face, wishing she could have found some comfort in Syl's words. But it was hopeless. Even if Zack had survived, who knew what they'd done to him. If he found out about Leo and he had been turned, he might give up her son. She'd kill every single one of them before anyone got their hands on Leo. No way. She couldn't risk it. It was over. Zack was gone.

"If you let me, I'll see if I can find anything on Zack. I'll leave you and Leo out of it," Syl said gently. "Okay?"

Reluctantly, Jondy agreed. Syl seemed determined. She knew better than to stand in the way when her sister was hell-bent on something. What harm could it do to get a few answers? It'll break your heart all over again, that's what, reason cautioned. Closing her eyes she took in a calming breath and looked at her son. She'd find out what happened to his father, she owed him that much. Discreetly, she shrugged out of Syl's arm and move toward Leo. Her brother relinquished him, when Leo reached out his arms to her.

"Gee, Dee, what do you feed this guy? He's pretty heavy for a five-month-old," Krit said with a chuckle.

Jondy smiled proudly. "He's 22 pounds, the doctor says he's very healthy. But she says he's the biggest kid she's seen. Something to do with our genetics?"

"She's done blood work on him?" Syl asked astonished.

"Only recently," Jondy confirmed. "And I trust her. She did the tests herself."

Syl was still a little uneasy about the fact that an outsider had intimate knowledge of their lineage. She shivered involuntarily. "I haven't seen a doctor since Manticore. Never plan on it either."

Jondy gave her a solemn look. "Not everyone in this world is corrupt and self-serving. And aside from that, if it hadn't been for Janice, I might not have had Leo."

Turning back to Krit, she held the baby up to him. "Kiss from Uncle Krit."

Krit bent his head and gave Leo a kiss on one of his cubby cheeks. Resisting the spontaneous urge to squeeze him to bits. He's little nephew was cubby all over. Not so fat that you could see dimples and ripples, just spongy enough that his knees disappeared when he was standing, and that his small hands looked detachable at the wrist.

Passing him quickly to Syl for one last cuddle before bedtime, Jondy felt her heart constrict. Leo yawned, and reached up into Syl's hair. His lids drooped tiredly, slowly drifting over his sky blue eyes. They made a perfect picture. His fair hair matched Syl's almost perfectly, his skin tone too. He could easily pass as her son. Not hers. Everywhere she took him people stared. A clear complexioned, blond child with a flaming red-haired, lightly freckled, single mother. She always heard their mutterings, 'Is he hers? Where's the father? Not married, probably a tramp, poor child.'

Jondy held out her arms for him and Syl passed the baby over.

"He's gorgeous, Dee," Syl said her eyes moist.

Krit noticed that there was a slight shimmer to her eyes. The child had broken through that tough facade she always carried around. He could count the number of times Syl had cried on one hand. It took a lot to break the iron control she had over her emotions.

Jondy nodded. It took her a moment to find her voice to muster a reply. "He's my precious angel. Come on, little sir. It's off to bed for you." Cradling him lovingly, she quietly walked down the passage and disappeared into the guest room.

Syl watched them and couldn't stop the tear from escaping the corner of her eye. It slipped down her cheek before she could turn away and she knew Krit had noticed. So what, she thought. Nothing he hadn't seen before. No her heart said. It wasn't something he'd seen. This was new. She was glad for Jondy. Leo was perfect. And he made her sister happier than she'd ever seen her. Syl shook her head. It couldn't be? She didn't want a baby of her own. How would they cope? She wasn't the maternal type. Was she?

Krit read all the emotions playing out on his beloved's face. He adored that she felt at ease enough in his presence to let her guard down. He realized she was probably a bit envious over Leo. He tried to picture what their child might look like. Would they have Syl's straw-colored hair, or his dark thick hair? Would they have that feisty streak like their mother, or would they be easy-going and levelheaded like he was? He smiled, his thoughts playing with endless possibilities. Someday. For now, he was more than happy to have Syl's company alone.

Shoving his hands into his pockets, he slaughtered over to her, pulling her close with one arm, he placed a kiss in her hair. She fit neatly just beneath his chin. A year ago, he was barely three inches taller. But it seemed that over the past twelve months, he'd shot up a good foot or so. He wasn't complaining. It had so many advantages. Being able to look down into her eyes and kiss her. Getting the jars from the top shelf for her in the kitchen. Although, it was nice to stand out of sight, and watch her use a chair once in awhile. Sometimes though, his changing frame had its disadvantages. Like a couple months ago, when he'd taken a pie in the face because he's body had refused to successfully obey his split-second command.

Syl ran her finger across his chest and let out a breath against his neck. She knew how much it tickled him and smiled when he grabbed her arms and pulled her hard against him.

"I told you not to-" he's aggressive reprimand died on his lips when he read the hungry desire in her eyes. It triggered something deep in his gut and he tensed in restraint. A simple look and she could throw his good judgement out the window, everything got cloudy and he operated purely on instinct. Primitive and reckless instinct. "Bedroom," he growled huskily.

"Mmm hmm," Syl agreed. Not giving their visitors a second thought, they raced for the bedroom before their greedily need for each other could take them in the middle of the house.