May 3rd 2022

"I don't see why we need to celebrate his birthday in Baltimore. He's too young to remember it, and it's not safe outside the city. What if something happens?" Bass demanded brow furrowed with concern.

I smiled softly and handed William a block so he could add to his small tower. "Bass, we're already here, and nothing is going to happen, can you please just relax?" I asked softly.

He frowned and peered out the window of the house, studying the streets. I could see the concern written on his face and watched him for a moment, his worry making a knot form in my stomach. He and Miles had been pursuing the rebels for years now, throwing all of our excess resources at the problem, but with little luck.

The Plains Nations were unifying and showing signs they were going to try and attack us, and the tensions with Texas certainly weren't helping matters, nor were our hostilities with Georgia…it seemed like we were surrounded on all sides by our enemies.

"There have been an uptick in rebel attacks here, I'm just worried," he murmured.

Sighing, I rose and went to him, wrapping my arms around his waist from behind, speaking softly. "I know babe, but we've got 100 of my personal guard, and an additional 50 regular militia. There's a barracks down the street and the navy is here. We couldn't be more safe," I told him.

His head drooped forward as his hands covered mine, a deep sigh escaping him.

"I just don't like chancing your safety or Will's," he replied quietly. "Not after Georgia," he murmured, his back shuddering with raw emotion. I tightened my arms around him, momentarily recalling the torture I had been put through at the hands of the Georgia Federation.

Sighing softly against his back I shook my head, "I know. But Norah and Miles will be there too. We literally couldn't be in better hands," I told him with a faint smile.

"We're going to have a nice birthday without any more worrying about the rebels or outside forces, okay?" I murmured. "William doesn't know anything that's been happening, and the last thing we need is for his birthday to be ruined by our worrying."

Bass made a soft noise and then shook his head, "I'm sorry, I don't want to ruin his birthday. I'm just worried," he said softly.

I loosened my arms and stepped around to face him, reaching a hand up to his cheek, smiling faintly. "I'm not upset with you for being worried Bass. You're a good father, and you have reasons to be worried. I'm just asking that we trust our friends and our security. We'll be fine," I told him softly, emphatically.

The lines on his face were deeper and he looked weary, I stroked his cheek gently, worrying that he was working too hard, that things were taking a toll on him. Maybe another vacation was in order.

He sighed and stared down at me for a moment before smirking faintly. "You think Miles and Norah will ever get married?" he asked.

I laughed and smiled wryly, lifting my hand to show him my ring, "Babe, we haven't even gotten married. At this point I consider you to be my partner, my lover, my rock."

"You're my husband and I don't need a ceremony to make it official, and I doubt Miles or Norah do either," I told him with a smile.

Bass wrapped his fingers around mine, drawing my hand to his mouth to brush a kiss against my knuckles. His eyes were worried, sad.

"Are you sure you don't need the ceremony?" he murmured.

I nodded and twisted my fingers to rub his ring, "We've got the rings, we've got each other, and we have our family. Why would we need more?" I retorted warmly.

A smile burst onto his face, his sea storm eyes bright.

"I love you," he murmured before leaning in for a kiss.

"Daddy! Pway wit me!"

I snickered against Bass's lips and lifted a brow, "You're being summoned," I drawled.

He grinned and turned away, contorting his face into a grimace, clawing his hands and snarling.

"The monster is going to get you!" he snarled playfully, drawing shrieks of delight from Will. Our son leapt to his feet and ran around the room, laughing and shrieking as Bass chased him, snarling and huffing like a monster.

I giggled and watched them play, wishing I had a camera for moments like these. I wanted to be able to capture them and hold onto them forever.

This simple love of our family, it meant everything.

"Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear William, Happy Birthday to youuuuu!"

We all sang together, slightly off key and more than a little exuberantly after many glasses of wine and bourbon. But the look on William's face as he got to blow out the candles on his cake was…perfect.

I sighed in contentment and leaned against Bass's shoulder, snuggling into his side. Miles cut the cake and handed Will his piece, the table bursting into laughter as our young son dove in, smashing cake into his face.

Blue icing smeared over his face and crumbs of chocolate cake dusted his shirt and hair. He was a glorious little mess and I loved every inch of him. Glancing back at Bass I met his gaze warmly and wondered if maybe it was time to start trying for a baby brother or sister for William.

I laughed internally, remembering a time when having a child would have sent me running for the hills. Now here I was thinking about adding another to our family, despite the trauma of William's birth.

I frowned softly thinking of it, reaching a gentle hand out to brush crumbs from his small chest, smiling when he held a fist full of cake out to me, "Cake mama!" he declared around a mouthful of said substance.

Snickering, I nodded and watched as he continued eating, joy sneaking back into my heart. No matter how scary, awful and traumatic William's birth had been, it didn't lessen my desire for another child.

Glancing away I smiled; Norah gazed longingly at William and then at Miles, her heart clearly in her eyes. I nudged her foot with mine and smiled softly when she flushed and coughed, avoiding my gaze as she took another drink.

I stared at them contemplatively, thinking about what their kids could look like. Damn cute, especially if they took after Norah.

I smirked and chuckled, looking over at William as he ate his cake gleefully. I leaned over and brushed some crumbs from his hair, laughing softly when he only responded by shoving more cake into his mouth.

"Hey Miles, you remember your 21st?" Bass asked with a grin.

"Spring break," Miles murmured, a smile growing on his lips.

"Ft. Lauderdale," Bass replied, grin growing wider.

"Do I want to hear this story?" Norah asked wryly.

Bass boomed out a laugh and slapped Miles on the shoulder, "That girl, that stripper with one leg," he declared, laughing.

Miles flushed but nodded, laughing uneasily, "The one leg," he agreed.

"Yea. Her name was Sierra."

"Yup"

"And she could move," Bass drawled, arching his brows in heavy innuendo.

I smirked and shook my head, sharing a put upon look with Norah.

Miles smirked, "I got one," he replied. Bass looked wary this time and I bit back a laugh. "Your ninth birthday," he told Bass.

A warm smile crossed Bass's face, a look of remembrance filling his eyes. "My ninth?"

"Yea the infamous dodge ball party," Miles replied, swallowing a mouthful of bourbon.

Bass grinned, "Oh yea, and I gave Brian Duffy a concussion," he remembered.

"Sounds like a hell of a time," I quipped, grinning when both men laughed and shared a knowing look.

"That was one of your worst cakes ever," Miles told Bass.

"Coconut isn't so bad," Bass replied, smiling fondly.

"Ugh no way," Norah interjected, shaking her head. Miles smiled fondly at her and joined in on the sentiment, making a noise of disgust.

"Cake!" William declared, pounding a hand on his empty plate, giving us a frosting covered grin.

We all shared a look and then burst out laughing.

Bass ruffled his hair and reached out, cutting another slice of cake and transferring it to his plate. "Enjoy buddy, it's your birthday," he encouraged.

"You're giving him a bath and putting him to bed," I warned as Will dug into the second slice of cake. "If he ever goes to sleep," I muttered, "too much sugar."

Bass pressed a kiss to my hair, smiling. "Shh, I'll do it happily," he murmured. "He deserves a normal birthday, right?" he whispered in my ear.

I nodded and laughed at something Miles said, leaning my head on Bass's shoulder. Our group was in high spirits, laughing and talking as we enjoyed the last remnants of cake and bourbon.

It was a birthday to remember.

In the distance I heard glass shattering and glanced over my shoulder, frowning, trying to see where the broken cup or plate was.

People moved and shifted, blocking my view. After a moment I shrugged and turned away, smiling and laughing as I caught the tail end of another Bass/Miles childhood story.

Then, the world exploded.

My head slammed into the ground as a hail of fire and debris rained down on us, searing where it landed, flesh tearing and burning.

I screamed and struggled, making my way halfway upright, trying to get to William when a secondary explosion rippled through the building.

Heat pressed against my skin and my head slammed into the ground and everything went—

Whooosh….whiiiiiish…..whooosh….whiiiiish….

The….ocean? Is that the ocean? Why am I at the ocean?

I inhaled and was immediately overcome by agony, a wretched cry slipping between dry, chapped lips. My eyes fluttered open and my hand worked its way weakly towards my face, feeling like it weighed a ton.

My hand collapsed to the ground as my chest heaved, waves of nausea and dizziness rolling through me. It felt like hours passed until I had the strength to lift my hand again and reach for my face, trying to feel the damage.

When the pads of my fingers brushed over my forehead I inhaled sharply, pulling away. There was a large cut on my head and blood was coating half my face. Through the whooshing and whishing noise in my head I could faintly hear someone shouting.

William…Bass…I had to make sure they were ok.

Rolling onto my back slowly, I winced at the pain in my back and ribs as I tried to sit up.

The whooshing and whishing noise grew louder as I sat up and it occurred to me distantly that it was likely my heartbeat along with damage to my eardrums.

Black spots appeared in my vision and I blinked rapidly, trying to clear my head.

William. I had to find my son.

When my vision had cleared I looked around, inhaling sharply. The devastation surrounding me took my breath away.

The front half of the restaurant was just…gone.

The bar and the ruins of the tables were on fire and bodies lay everywhere.

William.

My gaze darted around the room…where…there was Miles propping up Norah; blood on both their faces…was…Bass was…I rose to my knees at the sight of Bass holding something and crawled over, a pit of dread in my stomach….a rushing noise filled my head as I took in the sight of Bass holding…

"William?" I whispered.

Tears streamed down Bass's face as he looked up at me, holding our son's lifeless body.

Something in me shuddered and quaked, cracking wide open.

I reached for William, snatching him from Bass's arms to press against my chest and a howling noise filled the room. As I rocked my baby and Bass wrapped his arms around us both, it came to me distantly that the howling was from me.

"My son! Noooooooooooo!"

I wept and rocked, stroking his bloodstained face, praying for him to come back to life, for this to be a terrible misunderstanding.

"William…no no no," I whimpered, pressing my forehead to his.

The sound of gunfire rang in the distance and the shouts of men filled the air, growing louder.

"Bass, Becca, we need to go, it's not safe here."

Bass made a faint noise of agreement and pulled on my shoulders, dragging me to my feet. His arm remained tight around my shoulders as we beat a hasty retreat, leaving death and destruction behind us.

I glanced back just once; the bright blue icing of the cake on William's plate somehow still intact.

I was numb; the only feeling in my body was the unbelievable lightness in my arms that used to be my son.

We had made it back to our safe house nearly an hour ago and in that time the local militia had been dispatched to find out who had tried to kill us. Miles and Norah were in their rooms recovering; both had concussions and wouldn't be able to travel for at least a day.

I reclined against the wall, holding my son's corpse in my arms as Bass strode around the room shouting orders at the militia, sending them scurrying as he spat orders. When the room finally emptied and he was facing away, his shoulders slumped heavily, his head dropping low.

Long moments of silence passed until they were broken by the sound of his sob. His knees crumpled and I watched as he fell to the floor, one hand grasping desperately at the wall for some sort of support.

His shoulders heaved as he sobbed, loud, broken noises.

I clutched William…what remained of him…closer and buried my face against his neck, tears of my own falling heavily. As I breathed unsteadily I smelled under the copper bitter scent of blood, gunpowder and death, the scent of his skin; so familiar that it made my already broken heart shatter into dust.

I gasped for breath, clutching desperately at him, agony tearing through every inch of my soul. It built until my body couldn't contain it anymore, shattering outwards in a guttural scream of agony.

My wail went on unbroken for a long moment until I lost my breath and collapsed over the tiny body in my arms, shuddering.

Black spots swam in my vision, my chest heaving unsteadily and I grew lightheaded with grief until the blackness rushed over me and I succumbed to it gladly.

AN: So this is based off that flashback when the rebels bomb the bar that Bass and Miles are in and almost kill them. I always thought that though that was terrible, it didn't merit Bass's reaction. I know he and Miles are friends, but I just thought he would need a bit more of a push to drop over into the deep end. So there you have it. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and please, grace me with some comments!