Shane set the phone down and looked across the desk at Kim. She stared back at him anxiously.

"What did he say?" she asked.

Realizing that his end of the telephone conversation had mostly been little more than "I see,""Right," and "Call me as soon as you know," Shane filled Kim on his conversation with Mickey Horton.

"Mickey hasn't heard from the Louis Pasqua yet," Shane said. "He's the U.S. Attorney," he added, then realized from Kim's scowl that she already knew that. "Sorry, of course you know who Pasqua is. Anyway, Mickey knows what Tarrington offered, so he'll push for that deal." He hesitated. "I don't know when we'll know anything for sure, but Mickey said he'd call back as soon as he talks to Pasqua."

Kim said nothing, but he could see in her eyes her still-simmering anger and her growing pain. He tried to think of something comforting to say, but nothing came to mind.

"I know you're decided," Kim said. "And you know I support you, Shane. . . ."

"But? I know there's a 'but' coming." He said the words in a way that told her he meant it as a joke, but neither of them laughed.

Kim stood up from her chair and walked around the desk. Shane watched her slow movements, noting how she briefly hesitated when she looked up at the mantle behind his desk and the row of family photographs there. With a sad smile, Kim surveyed the pictures before lowering her eyes toward Shane. "But are you absolutely sure there's nothing else you can do?"

He reached out and put a hand on her shoulder, then pulled her toward him. Kim pressed her head against his chest and wrapped her arms around him. Shane held her tightly as he racked his brain, trying to find any other option.

"The only options are to ask the soldiers to testify or claim the ISA is lying about what happened with Lawrence," he explained. "Those soldiers saved my life; I can't ask them to risk jail by coming forward."

"Then what about using Jack and the press?" Kim asked.

Shane sighed. "You heard Tarrington. . . . The ISA could lock John, Steve and Roman away. They could destroy Carly's career."

"They'd all risk that for you," Kim said. "They wouldn't let Tarrington's threats stop them if you asked."

She was right.

"I know. . . ." Shane knew he had already explained, but he said it again. "But that's also why I can't ask. I can't let them ruin their lives on some wild gamble that might not even work. . . . I know it's not fair, but this is the best option."

As he held her, Shane felt his anger rising. He silently cursed Tarrington and the ISA, and then, for good measure, Fate, for bringing him and Kim back together, only to tear them apart again.

He reminded himself that it was just two years. After that, they would be together with their children. He tried to tell himself that two years sounded a lot longer than it was. He had been on missions nearly as long as that.

A knock on the door caused Kim to pull away. She looked at him, while Shane called out for whoever was knocking to come in. An instant later, the office door opened and Eve rushed in.

"I raced back from Chicago as soon as I heard," she said, her words running together. "Is it true about Andrew's school? Is everyone really okay."

Kim assured her that Andrew was fine and playing in the garden. Eve let out a relieved breath. "Thank God," she said. "I was so worried. They're not saying much on the news, except that the ISA stopped a terrorist attack."

With a snort, Kim stepped away from Shane. She didn't say anything, but just shook her head in disbelief. Eve frowned slightly and gave Shane a questioning look.

"Don't worry about it, sweetheart," he told Eve. He did not want to try to explain what had happened with Lawrence or explain to Eve about what had followed with Tarrington. What was important was to discuss the future with her. Shane looked at Kim, who gave him a slight nod. Taking a deep breath, Shane said, "There's something we need to discuss with you and Andrew."

Eve's frown deepened. In a low voice, she said, "I don't like the sound of that."

"Believe me, neither do we," Kim muttered. She glanced at Shane. "Maybe you should tell Eve now, before we tell Andrew."

Shane was not sure how Eve would take it, so he decided to anticipate the worse. He braced himself for the explosion as he said, "The Government made a new offer . . . and . . ."

"And?" Eve's eyes narrowed.

"And I've decided to take it," Shane said. He decided against explaining the circumstances of the offer, but he told her the basics.

Eve scowled. "Do you believe them? I mean, do you believe they'll keep their promise?"

Shane was surprised by the question. He had not questioned the legitimacy of the offer despite Tarrington's prior manipulations, but he doubted the U.S. Attorney would go along with a lie. He saw that Kim was watching him with interest; obviously she wanted to know if he believed Tarrington.

"I think it's legitimate," Shane said. "But I'll make sure Mickey dots every 'i' and crosses every 't' to make sure." He was surprised that Eve was handling the news so calmly. "It's going to be very hard on your brother, so I'm really hoping you'll stay in Salem and be here for him-"

"And for Kim and Jeannie, too," Eve said. She looked at Kim. "I know we've had our problems in the past, Kimberly, but you know I'll do whatever I can to help while Dad's gone."

Kim smiled appreciatively as she walked around the desk. She held out her arms and gave Eve a hug. "Thank you, Evie."

Shane had to smile a little as he watched Kim and Eve. It had taken them a long time to overcome their conflicts, but seeing them together, he believed they would be able to provide support for one another in the coming months.

Still with an arm around Kim, Eve turned in Shane's direction. "I guess you haven't told Andrew yet?"

Shane felt his smile falter. No, they had not talked to Andrew. Would he understand? They had talked with him about the possibility of Shane going to prison, but would the reality of it actually happening cause Andrew to get angry again? Would he accuse Shane of lying once more?

With a sigh, Shane said, "I guess we'd better get on with that."

Eve volunteered to get Andrew and meet them in the library. As she disappeared, Kim studied Shane for a moment.

"He's a child and it will be hard for him to understand, but he loves you, Shane," she said. It was like she could read his mind. "No matter what he says, you need to remember that."

Shane nodded as she held out a hand. Together, they slowly walked together to the library, where they were met by Andrew and Eve, who was carrying Jeannie. Once inside, Eve set the toddler down on the ground. While Andrew took a seat on the couch, Jeannie toddled over to where her favorite stuffed bunny was lying. She picked up the pink toy, carried it over to Shane, and held it up for him.

"Thank you, sweetheart," Shane said, trying to keep his voice from breaking. He took the toy from his daughter, while Kim lifted Jeannie up and took a seat on the couch next to Andrew.

With Jeannie on her lap and an arm around Andrew, Kim said, "Your father has something important he needs to tell you."

God, this is bloody hard, Shane thought as he saw Andrew frown almost exactly like Eve had earlier. Before Shane could figure out the right words, the boy asked, "Are you going away, Daddy?"

Shane and Kim exchanged a quick look as he tried to recover from the surprise. But with Andrew broaching the subject, it suddenly seemed easier to speak.

Shane crouched down so he was directly in front of Andrew. "Do you remember when Mommy and Aunt Kayla were gone and I explained that I would be going away for awhile?"

"And then we would go to England?" Andrew asked.

"That's right," Kim said. "Daddy's going to go away and when he comes back, we're all going to move to England."

Andrew seemed to think for a moment. It was a surprise, but he seemed to be taking it well.

Shane took advantage of the silence to say, "This may be hard for you to understand, Sport, but one of the things I have to do is say that I'm guilty of committing some crimes. You know how some of the kids at school said I'm a traitor. . . . Well, when I plead guilty, I'll be agreeing with them."

"But you're not a traitor," Andrew said, his voice insistent. "Uncle Steve said you're a hero because you rescued him."

Shane glanced at Kim, who had a mournful expression on her face. "I know what Uncle Steve said. . . ." Shane tried to figure out how to explain. "But it's like I told you . . . when I decided to rescue Uncle Steve, I knew there might be some people who thought I was doing a bad thing. Now I need to accept that, and it means that a lot more people will say I'm a traitor."

"It doesn't matter," Eve said from where she was standing. "Let them say what they want. We know the truth, don't we?" After a pause, she added, "We know Daddy did the right thing in helping Uncle Steve, don't we, Andrew?"

Andrew finally nodded. Then he looked back at Shane. "Will you be here for Christmas, Daddy?"

Shane sighed and shook his head. "I don't think so, Sport. I don't know when exactly I'll be going, but it will probably be before Christmas."

Seeing the disappointment on Andrew's face, Shane felt his chest tighten.Would there ever come a time when he didn't let his children down?

"Andrew, honey. . . ." Kim squeezed the arm that she had wrapped around Andrew's shoulders. "I know you'd like Daddy to be here for Christmas, but this means that when he gets home, it'll be right before Christmas. So we'll be able to have a really big Christmas when Daddy comes back."

"Yeah, Sport. . . ." Shane reached out and ruffled a little of Andrew's hair. "It won't be that long. Before you know it, we'll be back in England at Donovan Manor."

"And I'm not going anywhere," Kim said softly.

Shane smiled softly. "That's right. Mommy's going to be right here."

He looked into Kim's moist eyes. She swallowed tightly as their eyes met then reached out her hand and brushed the side of his cheek. She forced a small smile to her face and nodded. "I'll be right here."

Shane took her hand in his and kissed it. He had no doubts, but he was awed by the love and the devotion in her eyes. He tried to speak, but couldn't. He finally managed to mouth the words, "Thank you."

An instant later, the telephone rang. Not wanting to pull away from Kim, Shane let Eve answer. After a moment, she lowered it and nervously said, "It's Mickey Horton."

Shane found it hard to pull his eyes away from Kim's, but he forced himself to stand and take the phone from Eve. He listened as Mickey reported on his call with Lewis Pasqua and their agreement.

"Shane?" Mickey asked. "Do you understand?"

From where he stood, Shane glanced first at Eve, who was staring up at him expectantly. Turning, he looked to the couch. Kim and Andrew were both watching him with similar anxious expressions. In Kim's lap, Jeannie seemed oblivious to the tension that everyone else was feeling. She was gazing intently at the cameo broach pinned to Kim's blouse and reached out her little fingers to the carved face, giggling as she brushed the stone.

He tried to remind himself again that two years wasn't much longer than some ISA missions, but that did not stop the agony of the thought of being apart from his family.

"Shane?" Mickey repeated.

Shane forced himself to take a deep, steadying breath before responding. "Yes, Mickey, I understand." He spoke more for Kim's benefit than for his own. "We'll meet you tomorrow, sign the documents, and then go to the court. And they'll take me into custody immediately afterward."

Kim let out a small gasp. Her mouth fell open and her eyes widened. "Tomorrow," she said, her voice little more than a soft breath.

Tomorrow. Shane looked again at his children and then at Kim. Tonight would be their last night together for the next two years.