Alex frowned as Emily turned the car off the main road leading away from the farm. She didn't need to ask to know where she was taking them on this little side trip. "Emily..." she said warningly.

Emily didn't respond, though she knew what the gentle reprimand was meant to say. Her gaze remained fixed on the dirt road ahead; she didn't need to look at her to know that Alex was glowering. And, much as she hated to ever see Alex in any kind of discomfort, she wasn't about to be swayed from this destination.

She pulled the car to a stop, the dirt road fading out a few feet ahead. There was no need for further road, this was the only destination. A dozen feet or so to the side was a small section of fenced-in land, housing a handful of headstones, the freshest among them bearing the name Ethan Miller-Prentiss and two dates with far too few years between them.

When Emily moved to open the car door, Alex made no move to follow suit. In fact, she remained steadfastly in her seat, arms crossed firmly over her chest and stubborn refusal in the set of her jaw. Emily turned to look at her for a moment, then in a small voice said, "You don't know when you'll be back..."

"I don't need reminding," Alex said. "I know what I've lost."

Emily sighed. "Sometimes, that's all life is, Alex... A list of what we've lost." And, with that, she exited the car and crossed the grassy field to the lonely little cemetery. She didn't come here quite so much as she used to, back in that first year without him, but often enough that she could identify the new crocus plants pushing up through the grass where they hadn't been before.

Alex used to come with her. But six months into a life without their son, something inside her seemed to break and she no longer seemed able to face her grief, so she pushed it down further and further until it seemed as if it barely effected her at all... Emily knew better, though, knew that her rein on her emotions was the thinnest of threads.

She also knew that it was the only way Alex knew how to survive without Ethan, so she'd never pushed her too hard. She knew that there were times Alex was surviving only for Finley. And she knew that Alex would never forgive herself if something were to happen to Finley. Which is why she was willing to go along with the (perhaps ill-advised) plan to get him back.

Emily had barely been Sheriff a year when Ethan had been left on the Sheriff station's doorstep. She'd arrived early one morning, nearly stumbling over the cardboard box containing the squirming infant as she unlocked the door in the dark.

She lifted the baby out of the box and clutched him to her chest, shushing him softly as she debated what to do now. Logically, she knew that she should call CPS, that there were rules and procedures and safeguards in place for this, and yet...

She and Alex had spent the past six years waiting for a baby to become available for adoption. She knew there was no telling how long they might be on the waiting list. Who would it hurt if she told a white lie and said the baby had been given to them?

She knew no one in the world would love that child more than she and Alex would. That no one would give that child a better home. What was the harm in saving everyone a whole lot of paperwork?

So, though it perhaps was unwise, she'd called Alex. And, from the moment she'd passed the baby into Alex's arms, she'd known that she had no choice... That baby was theirs.

Alex had given a wet little laugh as she stared down into the baby's eyes. "Hi, Baby..." she cooed, stroking the downy soft hair on his head with all the tenderness of someone who was holding the most precious of cargo.

The baby blinked up at her almost inquisitively, almost like he knew he'd just met his mother.

Alex looked up from the baby to meet Emily's gaze, her eyes filled with happy tears. "He was abandoned? You're sure?" She could feel her hopes rising, in spite of having told herself that she wasn't going to allow herself to fall in love with this baby until she was absolutely certain that there was no chance of him being taken away.

Emily nodded. "If you're not sure about this, I can call CPS and..."

She shook her head urgently. "Don't," she urged. She glanced down at the baby, folding him into a tender embrace. "Please, don't call anyone. I know it's not proper procedure, but maybe he was meant to be ours. Maybe this all happened for a reason." She'd never been one for belief in any kind of higher power or the machinations of the universe, but in that moment she wanted to believe that something bigger than her had conspired to give them the baby they'd always wanted.

With another nod, having expected that answer, Emily moved for the phone.

"Wait!" Alex yelped, "Who are you calling?"

Emily shot her a reassuring smile. "Just calling Doc to make sure our son is healthy," she murmured.

"Our son..." Alex echoed, as if in awe. She pressed a kiss to the top of the baby's head. "What do you think, Little One? Do you want to be our son?"

The baby yawned, pink bow lips stretching wide, then nuzzled into Alex's chest, eyes fluttering closed as he let out a contented little sigh that seemed to say he was more than content with the situation so long as she help holding him close. And, knowing Alex as well as she did, Emily had a feeling that she may just continue holding him for the rest of her life.

(Who could have foreseen, though, that her life would continue on long after his had been extinguished...)