Hearts of Hope and Courage

A/N #1: If you've read any of my Timeless stories, you may have noticed I tend to write more fluff than angst, but every so often, I get in the mood for some of the sadder/darker stuff. Disclaimer: while this fic is part of the "Hearts" universe, it's also a bit of a departure in tone from the sweeter, more light-hearted previous stories...but I hope you'll read and enjoy it anyway :)

This is the seventh story in the "Hearts" series. The previous six stories in chronological order are:

Summer Hearts

An Impulsive Heart

Her (Soft-Hearted) Tough Soldier

Holding Their Hearts Forever

Another Heart to Hold

Holiday Hearts

April 2026

"Hope is the only thing stronger than fear..." - Unknown

It had been not quite a week since her husband came home from the office in the middle of the day and informed Lucy he was heading up a covert operation in Syria and had less than an hour to pack and say goodbye before his military escort to the airfield arrived. Aside from a single, terse text message informing her that he'd arrived safely at the army base in Syria, there had been no communication of any kind from Wyatt since he left.

Six lonely, interminable days without the man she loved...six days of trying to keep her fear for Wyatt's safety at bay...six days of trying to be both mother and father to three young children who missed their Daddy...

Flashback

The girls were at school and 18-month-old Ethan was napping the day Wyatt came home from work unannounced. Lucy was in the kitchen unloading the dishwasher when the front door opened. She turned to greet him when he walked into the kitchen.

"Hey, this is a surprise," she smiled happily. " I wasn't expecting you home until the usual time..." Her voice trailed away at the strangely blank expression on his face, the rigid set of his jaw. Something was terribly wrong. "What is it? Has something happened? Wyatt, please, you're scaring me. Just tell me what's going on," Lucy begged, going to stand in front of him, her heart racing anxiously as she searched his face for answers.

Loosening his tie, he remained silent for a moment, instead pulling Lucy into his arms. Resting his cheek against her shoulder, Wyatt sighed tiredly before answering in a gruff voice, "I'm being sent overseas to lead a mission in Syria." Shock rippled through Lucy. The hell? Wyatt had retired from active duty more than seven years ago...

"What? No," she stammered, drawing back to gaze into her husband's dull blue eyes. "Wyatt, no, they can't do that. You're basically a private citizen now, not even in the service any longer, let alone Delta Force. Can't Denise do anything? She's SAC and you're her second in command...for God's sake, you've got a wife and three small children..." Pressing her lips together tightly, she fell silent, immediately regretting her impulsive words when Wyatt visibly flinched at the thoughtless, totally unnecessary reminder of Amy, Flynn and Ethan. His strong arms briefly tightened around Lucy before he stepped away to watch her in uncomfortable silence. At the absence of his touch, the empty air between them felt cold and desolate.

Clearing his throat roughly, Wyatt patiently explained in a deliberately emotionless voice that the orders came from much higher up the chain of command than the San Francisco Homeland Security SAC, all the way from the Pentagon in fact. According to the scant details he was provided because of security concerns, there was a "problem" of some sort happening in a very remote area of Syria.

Unfortunately, one Master Sergeant Logan was quite familiar with this particular location because it turned out to be not far away from where the ill-fated mission he alone survived all those years ago took place. This purely clinical determination by some nameless, faceless person in front of a computer in Washington D.C. combined with the invaluable experience gained from his decade-long stint as a Delta Force operative, apparently made Wyatt the most logical choice to head up the new covert mission–conveniently overlooking his official retirement from the military in early 2019. He paused, eyeing Lucy somewhat uneasily, clearly dismayed by the feelings she was simply unable to hide from him though she hadn't uttered a word. Neither one spoke for a long moment.

Easily reading Lucy's mind (as usual), he anticipated his wife's unspoken question. How long will this take? Lifting one shoulder, Wyatt answered that while it was always unwise to try and predict how long he might be gone, it was believed the operation could be completed in a matter of days, and Wyatt should be back in the States in around a week. After a stop in D.C. for a mission debrief, he would then be flown home to San Francisco if everything went according to plan...

Her heart sank like a stone. While grateful for his attempt to be as honest with her as possible, there were just too many variables at play here they had zero control over. Lucy continued to stare at him in disbelief, incapable of articulating the tumultuous emotions filling her very soul lest she break down and completely lose it in front of him. Of course, Wyatt had no choice in the matter, her mind certainly recognized that deep down. Her heart, however, was a different story. Still, at the very least, Lucy understood getting all hysterical wouldn't help the situation. Before she could apologize, though, and make him understand it was her instinctive fear for his safety talking, he turned away abruptly and headed upstairs.

Wyatt went straight to their bedroom, where he retrieved the large foot locker that held all his service fatigues while she stood like a shadow in the doorway. Following him into the room, Lucy sank down on the side of their bed and watched in a kind of miserable trance while her husband hurriedly stripped out of his work clothes and donned a dark green tee, camo cargo pants, and a well-worn pair of standard issue Army boots. Grabbing a large black duffle from the top shelf of the closet, Wyatt began methodically transferring clothes from the foot locker into it.

Ignoring the terrified voice in her head shrieking, this can't be happening, Lucy bit her lower lip so hard the skin broke, yet scarcely felt the sting. His bag packed efficiently, her husband exchanged the nice watch he wore to work every day for an older one and disappeared into the bathroom to grab a few basic toiletries to take. Finally, Wyatt rooted around the top dresser drawer and locating his dog tags, draped them around his neck...ready to go, reluctantly but resolutely prepared to leave her and their children, and travel halfway around the world in service to his country.

In a stunningly short amount of time, her loving husband Wyatt had transformed into stern, capable Delta Force operative, Master Sergeant Logan, and Lucy recoiled mentally at the seismic metamorphosis. Stop it this instant, Lucy, she ruthlessly berated herself. This is completely out of his hands, and you're only making him feel worse. And that was something Lucy couldn't live with. It took every scrap of courage she could muster to stand there and calmly assure him they would be fine, but a small sacrifice indeed when she managed it and caught the tiniest bit of relief on Wyatt's face. She could do this...give her husband the peace of mind he deserved (and would need) in the coming days that the four of them would be fine while he was gone.

With only minutes left until his ride arrived, they made a quick stop in Ethan's nursery where Wyatt tenderly rubbed the sleeping toddler's back for a few precious seconds. Despite her determination to remain strong for him, Lucy's eyes filled when he said softly, "You're the man of the house now, son. Daddy needs you to look out for your Mama and big sisters, okay?" They both jerked when a horn sounded loudly from outside in front of the house. Turning to face her, Wyatt frowned regretfully and murmured, "The girls..."

Throwing herself against his broad chest, Lucy trembled and breathed against Wyatt's neck, "Don't worry about Flynn and Amy. I'll tell them Daddy had to go away for a little while." He nodded, swallowing hard, the anguish in his dark blue eyes nearly undermining her efforts to remain composed in the face of her growing apprehension.

Ever so gently removing Lucy's shaking hands from the back of his neck, Wyatt stood tall and proud in front of her. Her eyes frantically scanned her beloved husband from head to toe in his military fatigues, trying like hell to memorize every inch of him to sustain her through the long days and nights ahead of her without him. Then the obnoxiously loud horn blew again. Lucy squared her narrow shoulders and forced herself to say the words she desperately hoped would sustain him until he returned.

"I think I'll stay here with the baby for a little while because I'm not saying goodbye. I can't. You will come home to us, I know it. I love you so much, Wyatt Logan. Be safe and we'll see you soon." Drawing away from him, she wrapped her arms tightly around her middle and blinking back sudden tears, bravely gave her husband a last tremulous smile.

Wyatt abruptly tugged her to him for one last fierce kiss, telling Lucy in a hoarse voice, "I love you, sweetheart...take good care of yourself and our babies," and then he was gone...

End Flashback

It hadn't taken Lucy very long to decide that with Wyatt away, it would be impossible for her to keep their family's regular schedule and cope with the day-to-day routine on top of worrying about her husband-without the ever-present threat of losing her mind. Within minutes of him leaving, she was on the phone to the Assistant Dean of Stanford's History Department asking for a leave of absence of undetermined length that was quickly granted. With that pressing concern taken care of, Lucy took a deep breath and began to settle into a new routine, one of waiting for Wyatt to return and looking after their children as best she could until then.

Being with the twins and little Ethan 24/7 was both a comfort to her, and yet, had its stressful moments as well. The days seemed to pass quickly enough, with Lucy kept extremely busy taking care of two active six-year-olds and a toddler by herself. Thankfully, there was always some household task to keep her hands (and mind) occupied. The nights? They were another matter all together. Each day, after bath time and a story, her son went down for the night by 7:00. Then the next hour was spent getting Amy and Flynn bathed, teeth brushed, and ready for their bedtime stories. By that same token, however, every day between the hours of 8:00 p.m. and 6:30 a.m. when Ethan usually woke before his sisters, Lucy was alone-physically, mentally, emotionally–and in spite of her determination to be brave and hopeful as possible, she was barely sleeping, prone to sudden tears, and had little appetite.

On the seventh day since Wyatt's departure, they were just about to sit down for dinner when the doorbell rang. Lucy settled a wiggling Ethan on her hip and asked the twins to please finish setting the table. Opening the door, she was pleasantly surprised to see Denise and Michelle Christopher. "Well, what a nice surprise! C'mon in, you two. We're just about to eat and there's plenty to go around," Lucy invited with a smile, stepping back from the doorway.

Her wifely intuition–already on high alert the past week-started going off like an alarm though when the two women exchanged somber glances before stepping into the front entryway, although they both smiled when Ethan held out his arms to Michelle and babbled, "Mee, Mee." An icy wave of fear swept over Lucy, causing her knees to shake. For a sickening moment, the outer edges of her vision began to blur, and she thought there was a distinct possibility she might pass out. Wyatt...oh, dear God, something's happened to Wyatt...

With suddenly shaking hands, Lucy thrust her squirming son into Michelle's arms, who murmured she was going to check on the girls. Once the older woman was out of hearing, she turned to face her husband's superior (and their friend). "Tell me," she gritted out painfully, steeling herself against the tremendous wave of fear trying its best to overwhelm her...

"Hope and fear cannot occupy the same space at the same time." - Maya Angelou

A/N #2: Oh, no, Gracie, not a cliffhanger :/ Sorry, I really meant for this to be a one-shot story, but the deeper I dug into what Lucy might be feeling in a situation like this, the words kept on coming, and I decided this was a good place to stop for now. Luckily, I've already outlined the second chapter, and hope to finish it within the next week. My thanks to all of you still reading Timeless fanfic. This is a wonderful fandom to be a part of :))