Ch. 19: Home
"So…"
Vic walked into Cady's office and glanced around as she dropped into a guest chair and looked up with expectations. Cady was walking around her desk to take her own seat.
"…what did you want to talk to me about?"
Cady settled into her chair and leaned forward, resting her arms on the desk.
"Couple of things."
Vic waited.
"Okay."
Cady's blue eyes dropped to some papers on her desk and she tapped her right index finger.
"First…"
Cady paused and lifted her eyes back to meet the questions on Vic's face.
"…the DA told me that Ellen Graham has an attorney and he is requesting a competency hearing before anything else happens."
Vic tilted her head slightly.
"That doesn't surprise me. Do you think she's competent?"
Cady's chest expanded with a deep breath and she exhaled slowly, giving that question some very real thought.
"I don't know. She's…she's a hard one to peg. She clearly knew what she was doing and that it was wrong. But, with her past…"
Her words trailed off.
"Yeah."
A somber feeling settled over her. Now, on the far side of everything, she had mixed feelings about the woman. Obviously, she was angry. Pissed was a better word. There was no way around that. The fact was the woman endangered both Walt and Julian. There would be no forgiveness for that. Not from Vic anyway. It wasn't really that simple, though. Some part of her, the part that was a mother, the part of her that lost her own baby and was well aware what kind of pain and mental anguish that could bring about, felt something else as well.
Pity. Maybe.
That was a hard one.
Once, this woman might have been mostly okay. She probably wasn't always messed up the way that she was now. Maybe the seeds were there and losing her child in a manner that was her own fault pushed her over the edge. It was hard to say.
It wasn't really her place to say.
Not legally anyway.
Vic shook her head slightly, trying to clear her thoughts.
"That's out of our control. We've all given our statements. We know we'll wind up having to testify unless they offer her a deal. Not much we can do about it."
That was the stance she was taking. All there was to do now was let the system work, or not. She refused to dwell on it. She didn't want to let the woman take up anymore space in her mind or her life. Walt felt the same way.
"So…what else?"
Cady started to drum her fingers again and the movement made Vic feel tense.
"She wants to see dad."
Vic was quiet for a moment. She wasn't surprised by that. Not at all.
"Why are you telling me and not him?"
Cady's hand stilled.
"Do you want me to? Tell him?"
Vic studied Cady for a long minute.
"Um…"
"I don't want to create any issues now that you two are finally…okay."
Vic smiled slightly.
"Cady, that's his choice. I'm not gonna tell you not to tell him about it. You need to take that up with Walt. Not me."
Cady nodded a little.
"Sure."
"I do appreciate the thoughts."
Cady smiled and shrugged before her expression became serious again.
"One more thing."
"Okay."
Cady shifted in her seat.
"I just wanted to let you know that I fired Garrett."
A smile started to creep across her face.
"Walt will be happy to hear that. He do something else?"
Cady sighed.
"What didn't he do? I had plenty of reasons. The more I thought about it, the more the decision seemed obvious. I don't want or need a man like that working for me. I swear I'll never find someone to replace you. It's like a revolving door."
Vic gave her a sympathetic look.
"Sorry."
Cady leaned back in her chair, her posture relaxing.
"You know…I'm still holding out hope."
Vic laughed, knowing exactly what she was talking about.
"Well…I guess you never know."
Cady grinned.
"See? You didn't tell me no."
Vic continued to smile, but didn't say anything else.
Slowly, she stood up. Cady rose as well.
"So…how are your plans coming along?"
Vic made a slight face.
"This…really isn't my strong suit. Planning stuff. You know? It'll be small. I know that. Probably at the cabin. I should make Walt plan the whole damn thing. It was his idea."
They paused at Cady's still closed office door.
"He's just trying to show you how important you are to him."
"I know. That's the only reason he's getting away with it. I'll uh…I'll tell him about Ellen and have him call you if…"
She stopped talking and sighed. What they really wanted to do was leave this all behind. She would honestly be surprised if Walt agreed to see the woman. As far as she knew, there wasn't much else to be said about what happened.
It was over.
They wanted to move on.
"Okay."
That was Cady's only response.
"I'll see you."
Cady nodded and pulled the door open as Vic left the office.
xxx
Walt was just turning Horse and Lady out in the pasture when she walked up. He'd seen her pull in and park. He knew that she was coming his way. He leaned on the fence and waited, hearing her shoes on the dead grass. She came up beside him and her arm brushed his.
"Everything okay?"
Vic watched the horses.
"Yeah."
He looked her way.
"Doesn't sound convincing."
Vic turned to face him.
"Ellen Graham's attorney is trying to say she's not competent."
His expression didn't really betray anything. There was no visible reaction. He supposed that some part of him expected the news. Some part of him wondered if there wasn't some truth to the move. She was obviously a disturbed person.
"That doesn't surprise me."
"Me either."
He studied her. That wasn't the only thing on her mind. He could read that on her face.
"Something else?"
"She wants to see you."
She answered without any hesitation as though she just wanted to get the words out.
He continued to stand as still as anything. For some reason, he wasn't surprised by that either.
"Really?"
"That's what Cady says."
Walt let his eyes wander out to the horses.
"Why didn't she come directly to me?"
He actually thought he knew the answer to his question. But, he wanted to hear it from her.
"She wasn't sure how I would feel about that. Didn't want to cause trouble."
That was what he expected. He understood where Cady was coming from. With everything finally settling back into some sense of normalcy, it would make sense that she wouldn't want to rock the boat.
"How do you feel about it?"
His gaze returned to Vic just in time to see her shrug.
"I told her it was up to you."
"That's not an answer."
She looked down at the ground and scuffled her sneaker over the dirt. After a moment, she looked up and met his eyes.
"I trust you."
It still wasn't an answer.
"Vic."
That was all he said. She sighed. Her discomfort was obvious.
"If you want to go talk to her…I'll support you. Would it bother me? I guess."
That seemed to be about as committed an answer as he was going to get out of her. He certainly didn't blame her. Were their situation reversed, he wouldn't be overly thrilled. Walt nodded.
"I don't want to see her. There's nothing else to say."
Vic bit her bottom lip.
"Why didn't you just say that?"
"I wanted to know how you would really feel about it."
She huffed out a breath, but didn't say anything. They stood in silence for a few minutes as the horses trotted around the pasture, their hooves thumping on the ground. His eyes were on the horses, but he felt her move. He glanced her way to find her still watching the horses.
"She fired Garrett Perry."
A feeling of satisfaction wound through him.
"Good. He shouldn't be representing this county."
"Yep."
That was her only comment on the matter. Vic looked around, a thought suddenly occurring to her.
"Where are the kids?"
Walt pushed up off the fence and turned towards her.
"Anna is taking a nap…"
He tapped the baby monitor that was clipped to his belt.
"…and Eli took Julian for a ride."
Vic smiled slightly.
"Bet he loves that."
Walt nodded remembering how Julian's face lit up when Eli suggested the boy come with him to exercise a horse. Walt wouldn't have had the heart to say no even if he wanted to. He didn't worry, though. It was good for a child to be surrounded by roles models. It would be just fine with him if Julian turned out like Eli.
"So…I found a horse I want to take a look at."
He could see that he peaked her interest.
"For Julian?"
"Yep."
She shot him a look.
"Care to elaborate?"
Walt hitched his fingers in his belt as they started walking back towards the cabin. Vic walked along beside him, her hands slipped into her back pockets.
"It's a guy Eli knows from the Rez. He's selling off his stock cheap. Eli said he's got some good ones. One in particular."
"Boy or girl?"
He smiled slightly.
"Gelding."
"So a boy with no manhood."
It was such a Vic thing to say. He laughed.
"Yes."
"Good natured?"
"Supposedly. I want to go over and look at him this afternoon."
"You taking Julian?"
"Plan to. It's for him. I want you to come, too."
"Okay."
It seemed odd to be talking about such simple things after what just happened. Not to mention all the issues they had leading up to all of this. That was life, though, wasn't it? There wasn't much you could do except roll with it as it came. He was actually grateful for the simplicity of it all. It was the way their life should be. Quiet. Safe.
It was a relief to be slipping back into ordinary life.
They reached the porch and Walt stopped, turning to look out at the mountains in the distance.
"Once we have a horse for him and know he's comfortable, I want to take him camping again."
He was hesitant to broach this topic all things considered. The statement did cause her head to turn sharply in his direction. Their eyes met.
"You don't think it's too soon?"
Walt inhaled deeply. That was something he had given a great deal of thought.
"If he doesn't want to, we won't. But…I'm afraid that if we wait too long…he won't be able to overcome his fears. He's safe here and he knows that. With us. I don't…"
Walt paused momentarily.
"…I don't want her to take that away from him."
Something in her face changed. He thought he saw a flash of anger before her expression softened. He could see the mixed emotions and Vic didn't make any effort to hide it.
"Yeah."
Her voice was quiet.
"It won't be all that soon really. He needs to be comfortable on the horse. We…won't go to the same spot. Not yet. I just…sometimes you have to face your fears."
She took in his words and turned them around in her mind. He could see her brain working. After a few minutes, the baby monitor lit up and rustling could be heard. Anna was waking up, moving around. Vic's eyes dropped to the monitor. She reached out and tugged it free from is belt.
"I should get her. We'll…talk about this later."
He knew that she wasn't convinced. She also didn't seem set against the idea either. They would take it step by step much like they did everything else these days. The air between them was much better with only some lingering heaviness. He didn't want to endanger that.
He would not endanger that.
"Sure."
With that, she went up the stairs and into the cabin.
xxx
It had turned out to be an absolutely gorgeous day. The weather seemed reflective of their lives in that moment. Clearing with the poor weather being pushed out. It was near impossible to see the comparison as they walked along the fence line surveying the horses. Their coats were dirty with mud from all the recent rain and the pasture smelled like hay and manure.
Eli wasn't wrong.
The horse the man, Dwight as he introduced himself, separated out from the rest of his small herd showed a great deal of promise. Like the rest, he was dirty. That wasn't a big deal though. He could be washed, brushed out. He was comparable in size with Lady, not an overly large horse. His coat was black, or would have been were he clean, with a white blaze running down his nose.
Julian was all but vibrating with excitement looking at all the horses. They'd left Anna with Cady so that they could give this situation their full attention as it needed. Buying a horse was no small thing.
Walt was looking the animal over, running his large, weathered hands over horse with a practiced eye. Vic vaguely knew that he was checking for soundness and any issues. Dwight stood quietly off to the side letting him do his inspection. Truth be told, if Eli said the horse was sound, Vic figured it was the truth. The young man's knowledge of horses could rival Walt's at times.
Walt straightened up and glanced over at Dwight.
"I'd like to ride him."
Dwight nodded and motioned.
"Tack is over here."
Vic watched as Walt led the horse over and began to saddle him. The horse stood quietly with his ears twitching this way and that. His tail swished and he shifted one back foot. He stood otherwise still, obviously accustomed to this routine.
Dwight watched and let Walt take the lead in handling the horse. The man knew what he was doing. Walt pulled himself up onto the saddle and nudged the horse into a walk. He put the horse through his paces as he rode him around the pasture, his face set in concentration. Once he was done, he pulled up in front of them and dismounted. His eyes shifted to Vic.
"Here. Ride him."
Vic's head tilted.
"Me?"
He nodded.
"I want to see how he is with a less experienced rider."
She went through the gate and eyed him.
"I feel like you're comparing my skills to a child."
He smiled slightly.
"Nope."
That was all he said. She wasn't keen on the idea of riding with an audience. But, she mounted the horse, settled in, and started off at a walk. It took her a minute to get comfortable with the rocking motion of his gait, but she didn't sense any hesitation in the horse. She pushed him into a trot for a stretch before shifting back into a walk.
Stopping in front of Walt, she looked down at him from the horse's back.
"Satisfied?"
He nodded and she slipped from the saddle. Walt waved Julian over and looked over at Dwight.
"He good with kids?"
Dwight gave him a nod of affirmation.
"He does great with my grandkids. Real gentle sort."
Walt lifted Julian into the saddle and started to walk the gelding. Julian held on, his face lit up with excitement. It was hard not to smile at his level of enthusiasm. She watched as Walt lead him around for a few minutes before turning Julian loose to guide the horse on his own.
Finally, it seemed like Walt was satisfied with the horse and lifted Julian off the saddle, setting him onto the ground.
"Do you like him?"
Julian nodded with a smile. The boy was smitten.
"Yeah!"
Taking Julian back over to Vic, he headed for Dwight to talk business. Vic didn't pay them very much attention. Julian was bouncing at her side as the horse ambled his way over and dipped his head over the fence looking for food. Vic held up her hands, then ran one palm down the white nose.
"Sorry, no food."
He bumped his nose up into her palm. Julian reached up and patted the horse as well.
She saw Walt shake Dwight's hand and knew they were taking the horse home with them.
The horse loaded into the trailer without issue and the ride home was peaceful except for Julian's excited chatter. The first order of business once they got the horse home was bathing him. The weather was chilly, but the sun was shining. Walt worked as quickly as possible hosing the horse down so that Vic and Julian could scrub him down with shampoo. The work was tedious, but once Walt rinsed him, the payoff was obvious.
Minus the mud, he was a very pretty horse with a coat that was much shinier than it initially appeared. Taking him into the barn and out of the breezy weather, Vic helped Julian brush him out as he dried off in a stall and munched on hay.
"He needs a name."
Vic leaned on the stall door and watched the content horse. Walt glanced at Julian.
"Any ideas?"
Julian looked over the horse.
"I dunno."
"How about…Blackie?"
Julian wrinkled his nose and shook his head at the suggestion.
"Um…Midnight?"
Another shake of his head. Vic reached out and traced the white on his nose.
"Blaze."
She said if in an offhand manner, but Julian perked up.
"Blaze! Yeah."
Walt smiled at her over the boy's head. His excitement was definitely contagious.
"Okay. Blaze it is."
xxx
"What're you doing out here by yourself?"
He figured she was on the porch or in the barn when he couldn't find her anywhere in the house. He started outside to look for her and his search was cut short when he found her sitting on the steps looking out. It was late and the sky was a blanket of dark with pinpricks of countless stars spread out as far as one could see.
That was the beauty of this place.
The openness.
Vic looked at him over her shoulder as he approached and sat down beside her on the top step, letting his legs stretch out in front of him. Vic's feet were on the step below her. She sat bent forward with her arms resting on her legs, her hands clasped between her knees.
"Thinking."
He didn't need to be told that. Vic almost always sought a quiet space when there was something on her mind. That was nothing new. He looked over at her. Her eyes were still pointed towards the dark landscape.
"About?"
"Life."
That didn't narrow it down at all. Walt's brow furrowed at her extremely vague answer.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
If she didn't, there wasn't much he could do about it. The one thing he knew about Vic was that pushing her was a mistake. It was better to let her tell things in her own time. Quiet stretched out between them and she didn't answer. Not at first.
That worried him.
With all their talks lately, he genuinely expected her to say whatever was on her mind without much in the way of hesitation.
"Vic."
He said her name softly. Vic leaned back and turned her face in his direction.
"Cady's got to hire someone again."
"Yeah."
No surprise there. Since Vic left, finding someone to take her place had proven to be nearly impossible with a parade of bodies moving through the position. Garrett Perry was simply the most recent. And, possibly the most obnoxious. Walt was glad that Cady was rid of him. Based on his experience, the man was bad news.
But, that wasn't foremost in his mind. The way Vic brought this up was.
"Are you thinking you want to go back?"
Again, there was no immediate answer from Vic. She simply looked at him before turning her eyes away. Walt shifted on the wooden porch. It wasn't the most comfortable seat.
"Maybe."
"Can I ask what changed your mind? In the past, you've been adamant that you didn't want that life."
"I know. And…I'm still not sure I do. It's just…been on my mind some lately."
"How lately?"
She shrugged.
"A week or so."
"You didn't say anything about it."
Vic inhaled.
"We were going through a lot. Didn't seem like the time to bring it up."
She looked his way again.
"How would you feel about that?"
"I've told you before that it's entirely up to you."
"Yeah, I know. But…is that how you really feel? Or, are you just saying that cause you don't want to be that guy?"
He nearly smiled at her comment.
"I mean it, Vic. If you want to go back to being a deputy, that's okay with me. Anna isn't a baby anymore. Julian is in school. My job is flexible. I don't want you to base your decisions on me."
She made a face.
"That's dumb. It's involves you, Walt. This would put more on you. I wouldn't have anywhere near as much flexibility. You know how that goes."
He nodded. He did know. He knew exactly what kind of unpredictability came with it. He also knew they were in a position to manage it without too much difficulty. They could always get help if they decided they needed it down the road.
"Maybe you should talk to Cady."
"Maybe. I just…don't want to get her hopes up."
He knew what she meant. Cady didn't keep it a secret that her preferred route was always for Vic to come back. That would certainly solve her personnel problems. No one in that department possessed the level of experience or training that Vic did.
Walt ran his palms over his pants.
"Well…think about it some more. Be sure."
She shot him a look.
"Being sure is easier said than done."
That was true enough. Walt stood up and offered her his hand.
"Come in. I have something for you."
She didn't move to stand, but looked up at him with some level of suspicion.
"What?"
"You'll see. Come on."
She took his hand and Walt hauled her up onto her feet. Inside, he closed and locked the door, then went into the bedroom while Vic pulled the hoodie she wore over her head and tossed it over the back of the couch. It was quiet in the cabin with both kids in bed. A fire was crackling away in the fireplace. When he returned, she was sitting on the couch with her shoes off and her feet pulled up.
Walt sat down and offered her a box.
"Here."
Vic took the small box and eyed it. It was nondescript and white with nothing giving the contents away. She raised her eyes.
"What's this?"
"Open it."
Vic slowly opened up the box to find another box. This one was dark gray and leather. Unlike the outer box, there was the name of a jewelry store printed on the top in small, gold print. Vic looked up again.
"Walt…"
He shook his head.
"Open it."
She wasn't an easy person to buy things for. She never had been. She tended to be non-materialistic in regards to jewelry or other nice things. She wore her wedding ring and wore earrings at times. But, not much else unless she was dressing up for a special occasion. In reality, they didn't do fancy very often. He would sometimes give her books, but she wasn't the voracious reader that he was so he tried not to wear that idea out too often.
Vic lifted the lid and looked down into the box for the better part of a minute before she looked at him again. The box contained a necklace. A gold chain with a small gold disk that contained two colored gemstones. Vic studied it for a long minute and he saw the recognition in her face.
"It's…the kids' birthstones."
She didn't need him to verify it. He nodded anyway.
"Yep."
"It's…it's beautiful. What's the occasion?"
Walt breathed out a laugh of amusement.
"No occasion. Well, I did ask you to marry me again. But…you already have a ring so…"
His words faded.
"You didn't have to do this."
"No, but I wanted to."
She smiled and it warmed him from the inside out.
"Thank you."
Walt nodded. Vic leaned in and kissed him lightly on the mouth. When she pulled back slightly, she bumped is forehead with hers and let out a breath that ghosted across his face. Lifting her head, she kissed him once before and stood up.
"C'mon, let's go to bed. It's getting late."
Wordlessly, Walt stood up and followed her to the bedroom.
xxx
The Red Pony was busy. It was to be expected on a Friday night when everyone was looking to relax after a week of working and living life. Vic sat at the bar and leaned forward, her arm touching his. The contact felt good. The whole situation between them felt good two weeks after everything went down. She certainly didn't have any complaints.
Walt turned his head slightly and scanned the bar. Vic knew there was a better than average chance that he knew someone in here. They rarely went somewhere and Walt didn't know someone. Not that they went out all that much.
Tonight was planned.
It was part of their spending more time with each other plan. Walt offered to take her somewhere nice, but that felt too forced. While she didn't mind getting dressed up every now and then, she knew they were both more comfortable here.
She wasn't paying too much attention to his surveying the room until she felt him stiffen. Vic sat up and looked his way.
"What?"
When he didn't answer, she turned all the way around and tried to follow his line of sight. It only took her a moment to realize what he was looking at. Or who.
Across the bar, near the door, stood Garrett Perry. He was dressed much in the same manner as he was the night that she saw him when she was here with Cady. He had a bottle of beer in one hand and was talking to another man about his age.
Vic bumped Walt with her elbow.
"Stop staring."
He did as she asked and turned away. Vic started to turn back around when Garrett shifted his head and their eyes met briefly. She looked away before he was able to have any reaction and repositioned herself so that she was facing the bar.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement and saw him coming towards them.
"Shit."
Vic whispered the word and Walt looked by her at Garrett. She looked at him.
"Behave."
Walt didn't respond, but gave her a look and took a drink from his can.
"You cost me my job."
He tossed out the words before he even stopped walking. Vic knew it was directed at her. She gave him a long look.
"You cost you your job."
His face was reddening as he took her in. He looked like he was a few drinks in and that was never a good thing. He stopped in front of her and seemed to make it a point not to look at Walt, his eyes focused on Vic.
"You…"
He started again, but Walt rose and pulled Garrett's attention away from Vic.
"Walk away."
She recognized the voice he used. It was one he used frequently back when he was the Sheriff. Calm yet containing some level of force. Insistent in a manner that most people found intimidating. Garrett squared his shoulders as though he was preparing for a fight, but Walt wasn't interested. She could see that.
"Just walk away."
He repeated the words. Just then, the man Garrett was talking to earlier came over and clapped him on the shoulder.
"Hey, man…"
He tugged at Garrett who was still staring at Walt, maybe gauging what he really wanted to do.
"…come on."
Wise idea. Vic waited and didn't say anything in spite of what she really wanted to do. There was no reason to stoke the flame. Garrett's buddy pulled again and broke into the spell the man seemed to be under. He blinked and nodded, taking a step back.
"Yeah."
He gave her one more sideways look before he allowed his friend to lead him away. Walt remained standing until the two of them paid the bartender and left the bar, the saloon style doors swinging shut behind them.
He sat back down and finished off his can of beer.
Vic sighed with relief.
"That was pretty good."
"What?"
Walt looked at her.
"That tone you used. The one that says step the fuck off without actually saying it. It's one of my favorites."
She could see that he was trying not to smile. And failing.
"Really?"
"Yep. It's…kind of hot."
"Kind of."
"Okay…very hot."
He huffed out a breath of amusement.
"You trying to tell me something?"
She smiled at him with a wide grin. Once upon a time, he might have feigned ignorance. Hell, there was a time, he wouldn't have even gotten what she was saying. Way back when they were first starting out and he was easily embarrassed by her version of honesty.
"Yes, I am. So…pay up and let's go."
His eyebrows went up.
"Really? We haven't been here that long."
She shrugged.
"Going out is overrated. And, the kids are with Cady tonight. So…"
She let it all speak for itself. He smiled in earnest.
"Good point."
Walt rose and pulled out his wallet. He paid for their drinks and followed her out.
The night was cold. They were halfway to the Bronco when a voice sounded from behind. A voice they both knew and had a slight slur to it. They turned simultaneously and Vic groaned internally when she saw Garrett still flanked by his friend, who looked somewhat helpless.
"Hey."
He started their way with the swagger that Vic associated with him since the first time she met him. She knew the type. It was a safe assumption that he wasn't used to hearing the word no. He obviously wasn't a fan either.
Her arm was touching Walt. He felt relaxed. There wasn't anything in him that seemed stiff or concerned about this situation. Vic shifted her weight and folded her arms across her chest as he walked over.
"We weren't finished."
"We are finished. So…move on. Seriously."
"You cost me…"
He made the mistake of taking one more step in her direction and Walt intervened. Walt's arm extended and his palm landed on Garrett's chest.
"Step back."
Garrett cocked his head at Walt.
"What are you? Her bodyguard?"
He shook his head and attempted to snap his fingers, failing.
"Oh…that's right. Husband."
He did take a step back and looked in her direction.
"You know…we could have had some fun."
Vic rolled her eyes and looked by him to his friend.
"You should get him out of her before he winds up spending the night in jail."
His friend started forward.
"Come on, Garrett."
Garrett ignored him, his eyes still on hers.
"I bet you could have me tossed in, too. It's easy to see who runs this town."
The young man behind Garrett took his arm and pulled.
"Let's go."
Garrett didn't brush his friend off. He allowed the guy to pull him away a little, his eyes still on Vic. She dropped her gaze and glanced at Walt.
"Let's go."
They turned, got into the Bronco, and left.
xxx
"Maybe you should say something to Cady."
Vic looked up at him with a look of dismissal.
"He's just pissed. He'll get over it. That's the first time I've even seen him since Cady fired him. Don't worry about it."
He wanted to believe her. He wanted to accept what she was saying. But, he remembered Ed Gorski too well for that. Granted, this was a different man. Garrett Perry didn't seem all that dangerous. Still, he also knew better than to underestimate someone who felt like they had been wronged.
Especially when it came to Vic.
Taking chances wasn't something that he did anymore.
"I worry about you. There's nothing you can do about that."
She smiled at him, the sharpness leaving her features.
"I know. I worry about you, too. But…I'm pretty sure he's harmless."
He continued to look at her, his expression unchanged.
She sighed.
"Tell you what. If I run into him again and he's an ass, I will say something to Cady. Otherwise, let it go."
He nodded slowly, accepting that.
"Okay."
A look of satisfaction spread over her face.
"Good. Now…I don't want to talk about this anymore."
"Okay."
His back to back single word answers earned him a look that he knew well. Walt relaxed and lowered his head back onto his pillow, making his head even with hers. Vic turned her head so that she was looking at him.
"So…"
She started and paused. Walt gave her his full attention sensing that she had something on her mind that didn't have anything to do with their run-ins with Garrett Perry and his anger.
"…I'm thinking about talking to Cady."
He knew what she was talking about and didn't require any clarification.
"Still not sure."
She let out a breath.
"It's a big step."
"It is. But…there's no harm in talking. You're not committing to anything just by having a conversation."
"I just don't want to get her hopes up. You know how she's been since I left."
"Yeah."
He didn't offer anymore than that. She already knew his opinion on the matter. He knew she was looking for it all over again. She was just having a debate with herself. He knew she was hesitant to go back into law enforcement. He had to admit the idea made him nervous as well. Since she left her job as a deputy, he didn't have to worry as much about her being in dangerous situations. At least, not in a work environment. In all honesty, trouble had a way of finding them both. There didn't seem to be much either of them could do about it. The situations felt different, though, when he couldn't watch her back.
She let out a sigh.
"This is all way too serious."
"What?"
"This conversation. Here we are…alone…and we just keep talking about heavy stuff."
"You started it."
Predictably, she rolled her eyes at him.
"And…I'm finishing it."
He halfway smiled at her.
"Do you want to talk about something else or…not talk at all?"
She gave him another well patented look.
"You know…for someone who was worried about being old…you sure are…persistent."
He was accustomed to her form of verbal banter and didn't miss a beat.
"I had a good teacher."
She smiled.
"Really?"
Walt nodded, his eyes still on her as his mind reminded him to take in this moment. To absorb it and exist in it. To file it away for later on when he needed a reminder of what his life could be. What their lives could be. It was something he had taken for granted in recent months. He supposed they both had in spite of the fact that they both knew better.
Life was like that. It was filled with roadblocks and challenges. The pathway through it was consistently winding with sharp turns you never saw coming. In truth, it was that very thing that brought her into his orbit in the first place. That same aspect of life that created their family.
It was interesting how you could both simultaneously dread and appreciate it, never knowing if what it brought would be good or bad.
"I guess it's true what they say then?"
Her words pulled him out of his head and back into the moment. She was watching him. Closely.
"What do they say?"
She shrugged one bare shoulder and tilted her head in a way that never failed to drive him crazy.
"I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks."
End