Walt's mind is full as he rides back to his cabin with the empty tea box in his saddlebag. Cady's right, he shouldn't have waited as long as he did to scatter Martha's ashes. He hopes she will understand it was something he needed to do alone and that he will take her out there soon. She had been there many times as she was growing up. Walt and Martha typically had a family picnic on the site at least once or twice a year, and always on their anniversary. Cady had gone with them until she entered her early teen angst ridden years and thought it too much of a burden to consider her parents could possibly have a romantic side to them. Walt and Martha hadn't been there together since the cancer diagnosis. She had become sick very quickly and there never seemed to be enough time. He wished they would have made the time when they had the chance. Of course Walt had not been able to bring himself to even think of returning there since she'd been gone. It was good to see it again and be with her there as he set her free. Martha had been Walt's constant reminder of all that is good in the world, but by continuing to hide her away and hold on to her so tightly he was starting to lose his grasp on the positive influence she had on his life.
As he puts his saddle away his thoughts move into the present and the next steps he is about to take. He hears Martha's voice in his head as he enters his cabin. "Be careful Walt." Every time work called him away from her it was the same. It was her mantra and his tie to home and the security that lived there. He thinks back to the last time he heard those same words just a few days ago. Vic couldn't have known she was taking him back to the feeling of determination that he would do everything in his power to come back through that door to the arms of the woman he loved. Only this time it was a burning need to make it back to her. The echo that emanated though Vic's words touched him in a way that almost made it no longer matter to him that she wasn't his, that he had no right to feel the way he did. Even so, he knows he has to keep his love hidden from her. He had been successful in maintaining a safe distance for a least a short time until Ruby had contacted him and told him Vic had stopped by the station. Ruby was concerned that Shaun was out of town again and insisted I go by to check on her if possible, especially with Branch still on the warpath. She had even made the suggestion that Ferg help keep an eye on her. He wondered how much of that came from Ruby's understanding that Vic means more to him than she should. That woman doesn't miss much. Maybe Ruby was letting him off the hook, allowing him to protect Vic as best as he could under the circumstances. It had been such a relief to see her and remember again that Chance had not been successful in taking her away from him. Though he knew it was risky, he couldn't stop himself from reaching out and touching her. After their embrace in the hospital he suspected it would only become more and more difficult to fight that urge now that he knew what it felt like to hold her. It was a feeling he wanted to experience again and again.
Since he lost Martha Walt had been taking more chances than was safe, almost taunting death to come and take him too. He had felt he had nothing left to lose. His feelings for Vic have changed that. He felt now like he had everything to lose but he knew there wasn't anything he could do about it. Even so he refused to drag Vic down with him. Too slowly the necessary pieces had come together to allow him to finally reach some closure regarding Martha's death but it's not over yet. He would forge ahead and walk the path set before him. The suffering of the last two years is working its way toward a resolution. Still, adjusting to life without his wife, Cady's withdrawal when she learned the truth, the election, Cady's accident, and Henry's trial have all added additional layers of weight upon his shoulders. He has included others in his efforts to ease his agony, some who came willingly and some who did not, but he would walk the rest of the way in solitude. He thinks of Henry, his partner through it all. Henry was as committed to finding Martha's killer as he had been. He didn't deserve a friend as good as the one he had in the Cheyenne Nation. Henry's celebrating his freedom right now, as it should be. He would understand Walt's absence from the party.
Walt moves deliberately as he checks his colt and places it in its holster before picking up the rifle and heading out to his truck. This time it's Vic's voice he hears as he walks out of his cabin door, "Be careful Walt."