Chapter 24: Untying the Strings

The next morning, Amy awoke from a lovely dream of her and Mitch and felt really rested. Her thoughts took her back to the thought she'd had when telling Mitch goodbye last night. It was nearing the anniversary of Ty's passing,* and she thought, 'It's time. I think I feel strong enough to do this with Mitch.' She got dressed and began her day and pledged that she'd ask him to take that ride with her the next time they talked.

She didn't have to wait long, as he called around mid-morning just to say hi and that he loved her, that he was thinking of her. "I've been thinking of you, too! Thank you for the wonderful day together yesterday! I'm so glad we could share so many things together! It took Lyndy a while to wake this morning. I think she was recovering from all the excitement." Amy paused for a moment, and then said, "Mitch, I have something to ask you. I think I'm ready to take that ride with you. Would you have time to ride up to Ty's memorial site with me on Saturday morning?"

Mitch's words caught in his throat for a brief moment as he answered with a rasp, "I'd be honored to, Amy." He knew this was a most significant step in their relationship.

"Good. It's a date then. Please bring Sapphire with you, and we'll ride up on him and Harley." Amy felt good and resolved. She had six days to confirm that she was strong enough to follow through on this commitment.

As the week went by, each day Amy drew special memories of Ty from the recesses of her mind. Things she'd sometimes tried to push down – telling him he couldn't smoke on the ranch; that first ride in his truck; their first kiss; borrowing Jack's black cowboy hat for him to go on his first cattle drive; the plane crash; their dance in the back of Ty's truck when he'd kept secret learning to dance just for her; the cattle drive they'd been on together; the fishing cabin and caring for Ty through that night when he was so sick, Ghost and the first time they'd declared their love; their foolish attempt to save Spartan together when she'd put Ty in danger of jailtime, yet thankfully, it turned out alright; when he called her on the phone after he'd saved the pups but lost one; saving Will's horses together at Pike River; his joy over the Ducati and then Ty's motorcycle accident; the issues with his dad and his mom and so many hurts in his life that he fought so hard to overcome and did; the rock he was for her when she'd temporarily lost her sight, even going against her family to be sure her need to be home was met; teaching her to ride a motorcycle; doctoring together the wild colt who'd gotten hung up in a rope and hot, baked potatoes in the fire; his first proposal by the tepee beside the lake; gifting Ty the stethoscope; saving Will's herd a second time and Ty's amazing second proposal in the gazebo; the threat of him facing a long jail term over the fight Jesse provoked him into and the intense relief they felt when Jesse had dropped the charges; their almost elopement and then their beautiful wedding and first night together after marrying 'the boy in the loft;' the Paris honeymoon Lisa gifted them; rescuing the eagle and Ty's fall down the cliff; telling him she was pregnant under the Northern Lights; building their loft home; him almost dying upon returning from Mongolia; Lyndy's birth, the three of them dancing together in the back of their truck, and Lyndy's naming ceremony (and she recalled Mitch being there for that ceremony); Ty's graduation; the day by the pond when they decided to build a business together; buying Ty his desk and putting up the name plate for starting that business; searching for Ty in Mongolia with her dad and their unprecedented reunion hug; their RV family vacation; starting to build their dream house; fostering Luke; moving Will's wild horses to their land and watching them together with Lyndy and Luke and opening Luke's parting gift to them; all the many times of working together helping animals; and that last morning together when he'd expressed with tears in his eyes his fear of losing her (little did she know it would be the other way around; she'd still not quite been able to overcome the guilt). It was a special time for her recalling all the joys of being the wife to such an incredible, amazing, passionate, loyal, talented and loving man! They had packed a lifetime of memories into thirteen short years, almost six years of those in marriage. She'd never really thought about it, but she had her mom to thank for Ty. As hard as it had been to lose him, she'd do it all over again. The week of remembrance was something she needed to prepare her for Saturday. On Friday night before Amy went to bed, she thought back over the week once more, and she took a velvet pouch from her bedside drawer and put it in her coat pocket.

As far as Mitch was concerned, the week had passed way too slowly as he'd only heard from Amy one time. It had him a little worried. Saturday finally arrived, and Mitch drove up with his trailer and Sapphire. He also had Lyndy's saddle with him. Amy came out of the barn leading Harley. She looked especially beautiful today, and Mitch told her so. That helped set the stage for what would prove to be a most special time for them. Her smile and greeting to him helped put him more at ease. Mitch took the saddle into the barn and then took Sapphire out of the trailer, and they mounted up. They took their time riding up to the site, not really talking much, sometimes holding hands but just being together. As they reached the spot, Mitch could understand why Amy chose this place. It was beautiful and so peaceful!

They dismounted, and Amy reached for Mitch's hand. They stood in silence for several minutes, and Mitch thought back to times with Ty, though they'd been brief. Ty had been there when Amy had helped Mitch with Maverick. Though Mitch was gone when it happened, he remembered getting word of Lyndy's birth. He thought of the couple of days they'd seen each other at the car lot which resulted in selling Ty his truck. He remembered watching the pride on Ty's face when Amy gave her special liberty performance for Lyndy's naming day. And he remembered back to the day Ty had come and told him and Lou about the wolf poaching and finding out J.D. Worth was wanting to build in the wild-life corridor. That now seemed like a fateful day. He recalled that he'd felt gut-punched the day he'd learned of Ty's death.

Amy drew his attention back to her as she said, "It took me a long time to be able to decide on making the ride up here to spread Ty's ashes. It was a special time together as a family. I'm sorry you couldn't make it when we did it. And Mitch, I'm sorry that losing him still affects me sometimes."

Mitch looked at Amy and said, "Amy, you and I both know that grief is needed and real. It's not a problem to be solved but a way of coping with the deep loss that has been thrust into our lives. As we've talked about before, you will never be 'over' your loss. And though time doesn't truly heal it, as some like to tell us, it does lessen the frequency of the pain of the loss."

Amy confessed, "One particularly hard part of losing Ty is that he died protecting me. Though I know that wasn't my fault, it may haunt me til the day I die." As Mitch heard this, he said a silent prayer to have the right words to respond.

He took Amy by both arms and turned her toward him, then took both her hands in his. Looking deeply into her eyes, he said, "Amy, Ty did that because of his love for you. That's what we men do. It was instinctive. We protect those we love. That's what I will do. It's within our nature. And just as you see in the same way in the animals you work with how fiercely the mom protects her young, how you protect Lyndy…it's the way we were created. And there's not a thing you could have done to prevent what happened that day. I'm so sorry Ty was fatally injured in the process, but I'm so very grateful he did protect you that day. He had no idea the gift to me it would result in. For that, I'm forever indebted to Ty."

Mitch wanted to drop down on one knee right then and ask her to be his, body and soul, but he knew now was not the time, nor in this sacred place.

As Amy took in and contemplated all that Mitch had just said to her, she looked up at him, finally with no guilt in her eyes or heart - free. "Thank you, Mitch, for that wisdom and helping me understand. It feels like it just helped to release me from the guilt I've carried for so long. You and Ty are different in many ways, but you have the same strength and depth at your very core that he had. And again, I'll never understand how I deserve either of you!"

Amy let go of one of Mitch's hands and reached into her pocket and drew out the velvet pouch she'd placed there. She laid it in Mitch's hand as she reached behind her neck to unhook the necklace that held her wedding rings, fastened it back, and gently placed them into the pouch with glistening eyes and pulled the strings shut on the pouch. As it began to dawn on Mitch what was taking place, he looked deep into her eyes with a lump in his throat unable to speak. He knew what a monumental moment this was for Amy. As Amy leaned in, they embraced in a way they never had before, as if neither could let go. Mitch knew she could finally give her heart wholly to him. They found so much strength in each other. And she fit perfectly in that special spot, just for her, against him as he rested his chin on her silky hair. He knew that she was now free to respond to what he'd been longing to ask her for weeks now, but there was preparation to take place first. He longed for them to belong to each other. Today also finalized in his mind a special gift he wanted to make for Amy that he'd been thinking of for a while, and it would also be for Lyndy. Today, together, would be a memory etched forever in those most precious to them, again tucked away into their hearts.

A/N: *Ty's passing - Again, my timeline for the time of year that specific events occur may not necessarily adhere to Heartland canon, but they are written to fit into my story timeline. And the Memorial Ride that the family took to scatter Ty's ashes happens in Season 14, Episode 1.

In my mind, this is the most significant scene in my whole story for Mitch and Amy's relationship. Perhaps you agree...