Bucky called Tandy from Chicago. He had left the day after the news broke to join up with Juliette and Scarlett. The three of them were followed wherever they went, the press hounding them with questions about Rayna, Deacon and Maddie. Juliette alternated between being sympathetic to Rayna's plight to being royally pissed at how it was making her situation even worse. Scarlett was devastated, thinking about Deacon and Maddie and how they were dealing with this. Bucky was worried about Rayna.

"Hey, Buck," Tandy said when she answered his call.

"How's she doing, Tan?"

Tandy sighed. "Not real good. She's closed up in the bedroom and she's not eating, not talking. She sleeps a lot, but when she's not sleeping she's sitting in a chair with her knees pulled up to her chest. Like she did when Mom died. I can't get through to her, Bucky. She won't even look at me."

Bucky rubbed his hand over his face. He was pretty sure he knew what she needed, but he was hesitant to bring it up. "She needs someone she trusts."

Tandy grimaced. "You're talking about Deacon, aren't you?"

"Yeah. I am."

"I don't even know if he would do it. They're not together. He has a girlfriend, from what I understand."

"I'm not saying he has to come sweep her off her feet, Tandy. But as a friend, he knows her probably better than anybody." He sighed. "And this is his issue too. This is about both of them."

Tandy sighed loudly. "Alright. I'll try."

"Let me know how it goes." He smiled a little. "I'll be home day after tomorrow."

Tandy's face softened. "Can't wait," she said softly and then disconnected the phone. She stood looking at her phone for a moment, thinking about what Bucky had said. That Deacon was caught in this situation too, that he would be the person who would be able to get through to Rayna. She hated that, but she thought Bucky was probably right. She went and found Rayna's phone and found the number for Deacon's cabin. She pressed call and waited for Deacon to answer.

Deacon was standing on the porch. Maddie was sitting on the dock again. She'd spent most of her time out there and he felt at a loss for how to comfort her. She wasn't pushing him away, but she hardly smiled and didn't talk much. He thought that maybe they needed to head back home even though he hadn't heard from Rayna. The sound of the phone ringing made him frown. Not many people knew the number here. Then he realized it might be her and he rushed inside to answer.

"Hello?"

"Deacon. It's Tandy."

He felt his stomach clench. "Is she okay?"

Tandy took a beat and then sighed. "Not really. She's closed herself up in the bedroom and she won't talk to me. Or anybody." She hesitated. "I think she'd talk to you. Can you and Maddie come back to Nashville?"

"Where's Luke? Isn't he there?"

Tandy rubbed the back of her neck. "No. He evidently bailed on her when she told him about Maddie."

Deacon took a deep breath. What an ass. Not that I'm surprised. "We'll leave right now." He was ready to hang up and then he said, "Thanks, Tandy. For calling."

"Just hurry," she replied, and hung up.

Deacon put down the phone and rushed out of the house to get Maddie.

Maddie and Deacon were mostly silent on the frantic drive back to Nashville. They were both worried about Rayna. Maddie was on her phone, searching the internet for anything she could find, now that they were in cell phone range. Her eyes lit up when she found several news videos. She turned to Deacon and pulled out her ear buds. "Dad! People are supporting Mom," she said excitedly.

Deacon raised his eyebrows and glanced at her. "Really?"

"Yeah, I found something from Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood. And Blake and Miranda. And Reba. So many! And they all support Mom." She smiled hopefully. "Do you think it will help? Will it make her feel better?"

Deacon nodded, finally feeling encouraged. "I think it will."

Maddie went back to searching. After a moment, she gasped, then turned back to Deacon. "Dad….," she said quietly.

Deacon looked at his daughter, her eyes filled with tears. He knew she'd found the statement he'd released. "I had to, Maddie." He swallowed hard. "She needed me."

Maddie read out loud, her voice breaking. "'Deacon Claybourne, the man at the center of the Rayna Jaymes paternity scandal, finally spoke out about the news that he fathered Ms. Jaymes' oldest daughter. 'I was in a really dark place back in those days,' he told Country Weekly. 'I was out of control then and Rayna couldn't rely on me. I didn't know that Maddie was my daughter because Rayna did the only thing she could have done and that was to protect her. She gave Maddie the best chance for a good, stable life, something I might never have been able to do. Of course, it was hard to find out after all this time, but I forgave Rayna for her decisions. Sometimes people make bad choices for good reasons, and they don't mean anyone any harm. In the end, I have a great relationship now with my daughter, and I thank Rayna for that. I hope y'all will forgive her the way I have.''" She sat there, her breathing ragged.

Deacon worked his lip, tears pricking his eyes, as he looked at her. "I meant every word," he said quietly.

"Thanks," Maddie said, with a hitch in her voice.

Deacon breathed out slowly. "Maddie, I've loved your mama for as long as I've known her. I'll always love her, no matter what. The accident was a terrible thing and it happened because I didn't know how to handle all of that. But it helped me see that I had to let the anger and the bitterness and the hurt go. I don't know that things can ever go back to how they were before that, but I will always be there for you and your mama. I can't walk away from her."

Maddie looked up at him, her eyes pleading with him. "Will you tell her that? I think she needs you to tell her that."

"I don't know, Maddie. I think right now, we just need to help her get through this and back on her feet. The rest is up to her."

Maddie was quiet for a while, her hands in her lap, looking out the passenger window. Deacon knew she was still crying, because every now and then she'd sniff and her shoulders would hitch. Eventually, she calmed down. "When did you do that?" she asked quietly, still looking out the window.

Deacon rubbed the back of his neck. "Yesterday. When you were out on the dock. I saw you out there and I knew I needed to help. You and your mama." He reached for her hand and she turned and looked at him. "We'll get through this. I promise."

The drive back to Nashville seemed to take forever. Maddie was anxious to see her mom. At that moment, she thought back over the last six months or so since she'd found out that Deacon was really her dad. She'd had a hard time forgiving her mom for everything that had happened. There would be times when things were good and then she'd be in her room or at school and it would hit her again that her whole life had been a lie and she'd be mad again. Spending time with Deacon had helped. It made her feel more like she knew who she was. It had helped her put together the pieces of the puzzle that was her life.

She'd pushed so hard for her relationship with Deacon to be public and now she understood why her mom had been so hesitant. Maddie didn't want her mom to be hurt and she resolved in her mind as she and her dad drove back home to not be the cause of any more hurt.

When Deacon pulled into the alley behind Tandy's townhouse, he and Maddie both jumped out of the truck almost before he'd turned off the ignition. Tandy was waiting at the back entrance and let them in.

"How is she?" Deacon asked worriedly, as Tandy pulled Maddie into her arms.

"The same," Tandy said grimly. "She's in the back bedroom."

Deacon nodded and walked back to the room where Rayna was. He knocked lightly on the door and then opened it. The room was dark and it took a moment before he could make her out in the chair. She didn't look up or acknowledge him at all. He walked over to the other chair and pulled it up across from her and sat down. He reached for her hands and his heart broke as he looked at her face, defeated and lost, and felt her hands lying limply in his.

"Ray, I'm here," he whispered. "We're gonna get through this." She didn't move, not looking at him at all. He let go of her hands and reached in his pocket for his phone. "I've got something to show you," he said. He found the video he was looking for and hit play, holding it out for her to hear.

"Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood spoke out today concerning the firestorm around country music legend Rayna Jaymes and the recent revelation that her oldest daughter was fathered by her long-time bandleader and former lover Deacon Claybourne. Ms. Jaymes has been under fire for concealing this information from her daughter and Mr. Claybourne and passing her daughter off as Nashville Mayor Teddy Conrad's daughter, apparently with his full support.

"But just this morning, Garth Brooks made a strong statement supporting Ms. Jaymes. Here's a bit of what he said."

Deacon watched as Rayna turned towards the phone, finally showing an interest.

Garth's voice was firm and forceful. "Trisha and I have known Rayna Jaymes for a very long time and we love and respect her. We just want to say that we are a hundred percent in her corner. It's hard to know what you would do for your child, but we believe every action she took was to take care of her beautiful daughter Maddie. She and Deacon had a long and difficult relationship and everyone involved in this made decisions on behalf of that little girl. They made the choices they thought were right at the time. Maybe I would have chosen differently, but I have no right to judge. Nor do the rest of you. Trisha and I want Rayna – and Deacon – to know that we love you, we respect you, and we support you."

As the video ended, Deacon watched Rayna. He saw a tear run down her cheek and she raised her hand to cover her mouth. "They were just the first," Deacon said. "Since then so many other people have stood up for you. Brad, Kenny, Faith and Tim, Reba, Blake and Miranda, even George." Slowly she looked up and into Deacon's eyes. His heart hurt as he saw the pain there. "I'm here, baby," he whispered. "It's gonna be okay."

Rayna started to cry and Deacon reached out and pulled her out of her chair and onto his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her head on his shoulder, quietly crying. He held her close, rubbing her back, until finally her sobs stopped and she seemed to relax. Deacon ran his hand over her head and softly kissed her on the forehead.

"Ray," he whispered. She opened her eyes and looked at him. "We're gonna be okay. You, me, Maddie. We'll be okay."

Rayna gave him a sad smile. "I'm sorry, Deacon," she said softly.

Deacon frowned and shook his head. "We're past all that."

Rayna took a deep breath. "I don't think I can face anybody yet."

"You don't have to right now. Tandy and Bucky are handling all that stuff." He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and kissed her again on the forehead. "Maddie would like to see you though."

Rayna sighed and leaned back against him. "Poor Maddie. I know she thinks it's her fault. I'm sorry that she's gotten hurt in all this."

Deacon ran his hand over her back. She seemed so small and frail. "She'll be okay. We'll all get through this, Ray," he said soothingly. "I promise."

Rayna raised her head and moved her hands to cradle Deacon's face. She leaned in and kissed his lips, softly at first, then lightly tugged at his lower lip. He couldn't help it, he opened his mouth and covered hers. They kissed hungrily and when they pulled apart, they both were breathless. "Why did I let you go?" she whispered. "Why did I give up so easily?"

Deacon took a deep breath. "Rayna, I don't think we should do this right now," he said. He was very conscious of holding her and how kissing her had felt, but it wasn't the right time for this.

Rayna sighed. "I know. You've got Megan in your life now." She sat still for a moment, then got up out of his lap.

Deacon wanted to tell her how much he wanted to keep holding her, how he wanted to undress her and pull her into bed, how this really had nothing at all to do with Megan. But he didn't know if this was just a reaction to what had happened and he wasn't ready to be hurt again.

"I'm sorry," she said softly.

Deacon stood up and took her hand, then pulled her into his arms and held her tightly, his hand threading through her hair and clasping the back of her head. "It's okay. You've gone through a lot the last few days." He let her go and took a step back, rolling his shoulders forward and working his lip. "Why don't you change clothes or put on a robe or something and come out and see Maddie."

Rayna nodded silently. Deacon reached for her hand again and gave it a gently squeeze, then let go. She watched him walk out of the room. She took a deep, shaky breath. Having his arms around her had felt so good, so warm and safe. She missed that. Then she took in a sharp breath and went to find a robe. Then she pulled her hair into a ponytail and walked out to see Maddie.

When Deacon walked out into the den, Tandy and Maddie jumped up. "Is she okay?" Maddie asked tearfully.

Deacon held one arm out for her and she buried herself in his side, as he hugged her close. He leaned down and pressed his lips against the top of her head. "She's going to be okay," he said. He looked at Tandy, who mouthed the words "thank you" to him. He nodded. "Maddie, she's going to be coming out in a minute. She's happy you're here."

Maddie looked up at him with such gratefulness in her expression that it made his heart hurt. "Thanks for doing this, Dad. I know it meant a lot for you to come see her. She really…needs you."

He wasn't sure what to think. Seeing her so broken was hard for him. She rarely let herself get into such a dark place. It was always one of the things he'd admired most about her, the way she could push through the worst of circumstances and stay strong. Hadn't she done that countless times before with him? His eyes were burning with unshed tears and he bit down on his lip. He didn't say anything, just held his daughter and rubbed her shoulder.

"Maddie?" came Rayna's hesitant voice.

"Mom!" Maddie cried and ran from Deacon into her mother's waiting arms.

Deacon and Tandy watched Rayna murmur quietly into her daughter's ear, holding on to her as if her life depended on it. Maddie had wrapped her arms around her mom and was crying. Rayna then led Maddie over to the loveseat and sat rocking Maddie in her arms, making soothing noises. Deacon felt his throat close up and he dragged his hand over his face, willing the tears not to come. Tandy sank down into a chair across from the loveseat.

Deacon walked hesitantly over to where Rayna and Maddie were sitting. He put his hand gently on Rayna's shoulder and she looked up at him. "I'm gonna go," he said softly. "Let me know if you need anything."

Rayna nodded, her eyes red. "Thank you," she whispered. "For everything."

Maddie watched Deacon leave and then turned back to her mom. "You should go after him," she said.

"What?" Rayna looked startled.

"You should go after Deacon." She looked stubbornly at her mom.

Rayna took in a deep breath. "Why?"

Maddie shrugged. "You love him. He loves you."

Rayna looked away. "He has a girlfriend, Maddie."

"I think if you told him you wanted to be with him, he'd break up with her."

Rayna gave her a small smile. She thought about how he'd pushed her away only minutes ago. He's moved on. "I think we're past that now, Maddie," she said sadly. "I'm sorry." I should never have let him go.

Deacon got in his truck and started to head for home. But as he got closer, it just wasn't where he wanted to be. There was a lot to think about. And with that, he changed his direction and headed back to the cabin.