Jason

Dawn, the Flying K

---

“You’re still awake.” Olivia’s voice wrapped around him a moment before she embraced him from behind, her hands against his abdomen. He hadn’t bothered to dress. The temperature outside had plummeted overnight. “Is that snow?”

“Yes,” he exhaled the word, and covered her hands with one of his. The contact grounded him. Olivia brought so much peace into his life.

“I’ve never seen it before,” she whispered the words, and the awe in her voice made him smile. “All those years up north—I felt snow, and I know it’s cold and wet and crunchy…but I never realized how peaceful it could paint the world.”

The gray light filtering through the clouds was the only illusion of sunrise. “It’s been falling steadily, and the wind is increasing.”

Micah had left the main house an hour earlier with Kid, and Sam. They were bringing horses in to shelter or moving them to pastures where they could get to shelter. The cattle would be a problem. Cold weather wasn’t terrifically unusual. This much snow, however?

Olivia rubbed her cheek against his shoulder. Turning, he pulled his gaze off the frozen precipitation and looked at his wife. Her presence along warmed his soul. “It will be okay,” he promised.

“You have to go with them.” Those were not the words he expected to hear, nor words he wanted to fall from her lips. The last thing he would do was endanger her. If he went, he’d be in the thick of the fight.

“Darling, after what Quinn did.” His wife’s confession to losing her sight when Quinn did whatever she had to him—it infuriated him.

“She didn’t know it would hurt me.” So forgiving. Olivia didn’t always believe in the darkness of others. Quinn may not have known, but she hadn’t cared at the time either. Gentle hands framed his face as she rose on her tiptoes. “Stop and listen. I know you put me first, and I adore you for it. I do the same for you and that’s exactly what I’m doing now. I heard all the things you didn’t say last night.”

The conversation had waxed and waned, but Jason and his brothers had all arrived at the same certainty. They couldn’t wait for MacPherson to bring the fight to them. Jason was the only one of them who’d seen MacPherson up close and personal except for Delilah. Risking one of the women wasn’t on the agenda. “If I go…” Jason wouldn’t stay out of the fight. He and Kid, they were the strongest. Where his younger brother might struggle with violence, Jason would have no problem. “It puts you at risk.”

“We don’t know that.” The corners of her mouth turned up into a smile. “Even if it does, there is nothing I wouldn’t risk to protect you and our family.”

The our was nearly his undoing.

“We also don’t know if the darkness won’t close in if I am so far away.” Or worse, if he died. Would he take her with him? No, danger to Olivia was not acceptable.

“Seeing through your eyes has been a gift, but I was blind my whole life. If you going saves our family, and I have to be blind while you are gone, then so be it.” Her gaze went to the window. “Do you have any idea how many beautiful memories I get to take into the darkness with me?”

“I don’t want them to be memories for you. I want you to be able to enjoy the sight of color as well as the texture of a blanket or a blade of grass. Or a sunrise.” Her first sunrise remained a memory he would always treasure.

“And I will have them again when you come home.” Her confidence overwhelmed him. “But I will not be the reason you stay. They need you. They need the powerful man you are and the power you control. You spent your whole life defending all of them, and being ostracized because you didn’t tell them what you were doing. You walked a lonely path, one you should never have had to face without the love and support of your brothers.”

Over the last few months, he’d begun rebuilding the strained relationship between himself and Kid. His older brothers, Sam and Micah, had both given him hell for not letting them protect him. “Which is why I know when they go, not everyone will return.” War was ugly. It extracted cost in sweat, tears, and blood.

“You would never forgive yourself if your presence could have turned the tide.”

Jason groaned and dipped his forehead to rest against hers. “I love you.” The words barely scraped the surface of how he truly felt. They would never encompass the wealth of emotion she provoked within him. “I can’t hurt you to help them. I won’t.”

“You would not be hurting me.” Relentless, she refused to back away from her stance. “Jason, look at me.”

Until the last three words, he hadn’t realized his eyes closed. Opening them once more, he met her fierce gaze. “I’m always looking at you.” Always aware of her. She existed within his mind, a place he’d tucked her away securely on their first meeting. Sealing her in, he’d kept her safe from his gift. Now, they were bound so tightly, he didn’t know where he ended and she began, except she was his sunshine—pure and undiluted.

“Then hear me when I tell you that you need to be there. They need you, and I need you to be there for them. If something happened that you might have been able to prevent, you would never forgive yourself.” She flattened her hand over his heart. “I’m a part of you, too. I know what is destroying you right now is that you want to go. You believe you need to be there, but you don’t want to betray me. It’s tearing you apart, and I want you to stop now.”

Exhaling slowly, Jason pressed his lips to her forehead.

“I mean it, Jason, because I’m asking you to go,” her whispered words penetrated his concern. “Will you go and protect them for me?”

There was nothing he wouldn’t do for her, and he groaned. “You do not fight fair.”

“Of course not.” Amusement wound through the three syllables. “I love you.”

Sliding his hands beneath her buttocks, he lifted her until she hitched her thighs to his hips and her mouth found his. The kiss took his breath away, and her mind echoed her faith in him. Don’t fight me, Jason. You know I don’t give up.

No, she never did. Breaking the kiss slowly, he nuzzled a path to her ear. “You think you can ask, kiss me, and it will persuade me to your will?”

“Yes,” she said, a smile in her voice. “Because I’ll just keep asking, and then we will argue, and I will ask again.”

She would, too. Carrying her back to the bed, he lowered them both into the blankets and braced himself above her. “You are asking me to leave you…”

“I know,” she said, caressing his face. “But that’s not all I’m asking.”

“No?”

“No,” she smiled slowly. “I’m going to ask you to come home, too.”

His heart squeezed. “Always.”

“We can do this, Jason. You and me? We survived years apart. We were made for this war.”

His sweet, delicate lady was made of pure iron. Conceding to her was a commitment, not a loss. “Then we’ll do it together.”

They needed no more words as she pulled him to her. Where she led, he would willingly follow, even if her lead sent him away from her. She’d asked him to come back to her, and it was enough.

For now.

---

SCARLETT

Molly giggled as Miss Annabeth tickled her tummy. “I’m going to take these two little ones downstairs and get them fed.” The older woman gave her a stern look. Cobb clung to her skirts. He was already walking, and it was hard to keep him contained when he wanted to run. Scarlett understood the feeling well.

Rubbing a hand over her swollen belly, Scarlett summoned a smile. “I will be down directly. I don’t want to miss out on the biscuits or the tea when the stampede begins.” They had moved so many of the kids up to the extended house, consolidating security for them.

“Don’t you worry,” Miss Annabeth assured her as she resettled Molly on her hip. At nearing two, Molly didn’t walk. She crawled, and pulled herself up. If anyone looked at her though, she sat down. Cobb took Miss Annabeth’s offered hand and waved at her as he trotted happily out to get his breakfast.

Her lower back ached, and the baby had been kicking restlessly since the argument the night before. She knew her brothers, and she knew her husband and his brothers. No matter what Wyatt wanted, they were all in this together. So many would be leaving the ranch. It was only a matter of when.

And I should be going with them… The thought haunted her. Throughout her pregnancy, she’d ridden every day. It had been an odd compulsion, one she hadn’t questioned. Now she thought it had to do with the fact that even as many months gone as she was, she was comfortable in the saddle.

I can’t go… When the range fire came for the ranch, she’d confronted it while pregnant with Molly. She’d taken the fire out, absorbed so much of it and then she’d gone into labor. Thankfully, she’d been on the ranch and Noah had been close. If she risked it on the open trail going north…it would be too dangerous.

She needed Quanto. They all did. A tear slipped down her cheek, and she swiped at it. What had Kid said to her? She was being a ma, and mas were important. She was a Morning Star and a Kane. Her family needed her to be strong. The baby kicked at her back and she grimaced. Sam had gone with Kid and Micah to get the horses in. He’d already mentioned needing to get back to town, especially with the cold turn of the weather.

They’d made it through winter without heavy snow, until today. The snow had been coming down heavy, and the land outside appeared painted with ice and cold. The bedroom she and Sam shared was warm, part of the reason they’d brought the little ones in to sleep with them.

That and Sam wanted us all close. Her husband’s need to protect his family was a significant piece of his personality. He defended, protected, and cared for his family, his ranch, and his town. There were too many in need right now. It was wearing on him. He could handle the army a few miles away, managed the townsfolk, and kept an eye on the ranch hands and the kids.

MacPherson?

He presented a whole new level of evil. The baby kicked again, and Scarlett closed her eyes. Agitation on her part wasn’t good for a pregnancy, or so everyone kept telling her. Putting out a fire had been agitating and Molly had been just fine.

A laugh escaped her and she massaged her belly. “You should know your ma is very stubborn.” Making her way across the room, she pulled back the curtain to study the wintry scene. The fat snowflakes continued to fall. One of the children had a gift for the weather, but he’d been managing it. Whatever caused this snow, she didn’t think it was him—But one of us should talk to him anyway.

Heavy snows were the exception, not the rule for Dorado and the surrounding area. She’d grown up with worse in the mountains, but she could maintain warmth, keep the fires burning, and it had been fun—even when they were cooped up for months at a time.

A chill lived at the base of her spine as she continued to watch the snow. Movement at the barn was barely visible, but she knew they were bringing horses in. They’d have sent hands to the other barns and pastures. The cattle had shelter in the form of natural canyons and high fields. Micah’s horses, however, he’d want them protected which was why he’d roused Sam just before dawn.

Bracing her hands against the window ledge, Scarlett tried to focus past the ache in her lower back. It kept radiating up her spine, and took her breath away with every pulse.

“It’s too early for you,” she murmured. “You need to wait a little longer.” The answering wave of cramps didn’t bode well.

The bedroom door opened. “Scar, why didn’t you call someone?” Cody’s voice washed over her. Of course…he’d have scented her pain.

“Because it’s too early.” It wouldn’t be her first false alarm. Molly had done that to her a couple of times.

“Which is why you call for help.” Her brother crossed the room and put a hand against her lower back. The heavy weight eased some of the cramping. She kept her grip on the window ledge as he dug his fingers against the taut muscles. The massage eased some of the tension but it didn’t abate it fully. The cramps spread across her belly and the baby kicked at her again.

“You have your own wife to fuss over.” It didn’t matter he didn’t deserve the snap in her voice. She didn’t want to be in labor. It was too early. Early labors could mean lost babies. At least, that was what Miss Annabeth had told her once.

“Mariska’s not in pain at the moment, and she’s downstairs helping getting the kids fed.” Infinite patience filled his words. When they were younger, he would have growled back at her.

“It’s strange,” Scarlett gritted the words out as a fresh wave of pain washed over her. “You used to be meaner.”

“You used to be brattier.” The retort made her smile. “We both grew up.”

They had. They’d left their mountain, found spouses, and built families. They’d seen their family expand to include so many more. It had taken adjustment on all their parts and now… “Cody, I think you better get Sam.”

The dampness against her legs was the last sign. The baby was coming, whether it was time or not. Pain fisted in her middle. If Cody hadn’t caught her, she would have gone to her knees.

“Not going anywhere yet, Scar.” Cody lifted her and carried her to the bed.

“Not yet. We have to cover it.” Birthing babies made a hell of a mess. He growled, but then he lowered her gently to the floor again. Scarlett concentrated on breathing.

A rush of steps in the hallway alerted her a moment before Jason arrived. “I called them. They’re coming. So is Miss Annabeth. Noah’s down at the bunkhouse, but he will be here soon. What do you need?” The clipped delivery made her smile. Jason always seemed so distant, yet on edge.

“Something to cover the bed.” Cody didn’t sound absolutely certain, then Delilah hustled into the room followed by Mariska.

“We can do this. We’re going to need water, and Noah, and the cleanest towels. Miss Annabeth has been sterilizing them every day.” Mariska’s pregnancy was nowhere near as pronounced as Scarlett’s. The woman had also not always been her favorite person, but today…today that changed. She sounded competent.

The two women went to work as more people gathered in the hallway. What seemed like an eternity later, Mariska wrapped an arm around her and lifted her. “We have the bed ready, and we’re going to get you out of this dress.”

“All right,” Scarlett blew out a breath. “I don’t remember it hurting this bad last time.”

Mariska’s chuckle accompanied her unbuttoning the dress. “Every mother I ever helped said the same thing.” It was a nice reminder that Mariska had acted as midwife in her previous life, when she’d traveled with her people. “When you have your son or your daughter in your arms, you’ll forget how bad this is right now.”

“If you say so.” It was like being split open from the inside out. The pain came in faster waves, and the cramps increased in ferocity. Sweat slicked her skin, and the air was almost icy as Mariska got the outer dress off. Her chemise was already bloodstained and they’d likely have to burn it afterward.

Delilah wiped at her face with a cool cloth. “I’d worry about you burning up,” she said, a smile in her voice. “But I’m just glad you don’t burn the house down when you’re like this.”

A laugh escaped Scarlett, followed by a gasp as swift contraction hit. “If I don’t burn it down when I’m irritated, this is nothing.” It was an old joke. She’d always had a temper, and learning how to be mad while not burning had taken her years to master.

“Minx,” Sam’s soft call was exactly what she needed to hear. Then her husband was there. Still cold from the ice and snow, he gripped her hand before pressing a kiss to her forehead. “You weren’t supposed to rush this.”

“Last time it was a brush fire. At least this time I waited for a snowstorm.” A contraction put a hitch into her joke. The room was so full of people, and she squeezed Sam’s hand as she rode out the pain.

“How far apart are they?” Noah was there. Good everything would be all right. It was too soon for the baby, but Noah could heal him…or her.

Noise filled the room, a rush of it, so many people chattering. Scarlett ignored all of them, focusing only on Sam’s voice. She pushed when he told her to, and she breathed, when he reminded her to rest. Again and again…then the pressure was so unbearable she thought she’d blacked out.

A half-a-heartbeat later, a baby’s healthy cry filled the air.

“You did it beautiful,” Sam held her, wiping her face with a wet cloth and pressing kisses to her cheek. “You did it.”

---

DELILAH

The sudden arrival of Quinton Jebidiah Kane turned a busy morning into a party. Delilah lingered only until Noah declared the early arrival healthy, much to the relief of his parents. Sam, however, did not relax fully until Noah also pronounced Scarlett well. She’d lost a lot of blood, and he required she rest for at least the next day or two. The women of the household swarmed in to clean up, then left Scarlett and Sam to welcome their new son.

After taking the soiled sheets down and leaving them to soak, Delilah caught sight of Jo alone in the sitting room. Leaning inside, she called, “Are you all right?” The very pregnant woman had been a bundle of nerves for months. Previous miscarriages had left her fretting over this pregnancy and tears were not unusual.

“I’m fine,” Jo said, smiling in spite of the dampness on her cheeks.

Stepping inside, Delilah nudged the door closed and crossed over to take a seat near her. “Are you really?” Sounds, Delilah had begun to learn, offered different measures of emotion. Jo wasn’t lying, but she wasn’t telling the whole truth.

“Yes, I…” Even her British lilt couldn’t ease the hitch in her voice. “I’m feeling particularly uncharitable at the moment, and I’m ashamed of myself.”

Surprised, Delilah reached out to take her hand. Jo accepted the grip and squeezed. “Tell me,” Delilah urged her. “I promise, it can’t be that bad, and I won’t tell anyone.” Sometimes, it helped to just get it off one’s chest. Buck counseled his brothers, and she’d heard him offer similar encouragement in the past.

“I’m jealous.” Sniffing, Jo dabbed at her eyes. “Scarlett’s baby came early, and I am so thrilled for her. I can’t express how happy I am that she and the baby are both fine, but I’ve been pregnant longer and—” She swallowed hard. “It’s selfish and unkind and…”

“Completely natural.” Sliding forward, Delilah settled onto her knees before the other woman. “Hey, it really is totally natural. There’s a part of me that wishes I was pregnant, and another part that is so profoundly glad I’m not. You can’t wait to hold your baby…being envious of Scarlett is natural.”

“I shouldn’t be, though. Scarlett was scared. I’d have been terrified if it had been me going into labor early. I’ve been worried about that since Noah confirmed my pregnancy.” Releasing Delilah’s hand, Jo put touched her own belly. “So why am I crying and wishing it had been me?”

“Like I said, you want to hold your baby. You want to feel all those things you’ve imagined.” Once upon a time, Delilah couldn’t have pictured the life she had now. Loving Buck, living on the ranch, and having strong friendships with the women, and the children—and even Buck’s brothers and the Kane men. There wasn’t anything they wouldn’t do for each other or everyone under their care.

“You make it sound so simple,” Jo said, finding a smile. “I guess I’m scared, and I don’t want to take away from their joy. Scarlett and Sam deserve it.”

“So do you and Micah. So do we all.” Even two years earlier, she wouldn’t have been able to say that. “We’ve all experienced pain, and loss. We know what it is to be alone. To wish for more. That baby right there…like little Quinton and Molly and Cobb, they are so lucky. They’re gonna have the best parents who won’t let a damn thing happen to them. Who will never let them be taken away, and who will love them and raise them to be the good people you already are.”

Releasing a sigh, Jo wiped at her eyes again. “Now it’s my turn to ask you—” She spoke with such refined intonations, it pleased Delilah’s musical ear. “Are you all right?”

“No,” Delilah admitted freely. “Wyatt looks like Father, and he’s here. Buck’s father died. There’s a war brewing with Father, a war we’re all going to have to play some part in, and I don’t know if I can protect everyone that I love. But we have right now. We can celebrate the arrival of a new Kane, and soon we’ll be celebrating the arrival of your child.” It was the most peace she could make it with it all. Her fear of Wyatt had diminished after their time on the Mountain, but it didn’t change everything they still faced.

Father would not surrender easily.

“You make it sound almost simple.” The schoolteacher shook her head. “I’d almost forgotten about that nightmare. Even if I weren’t this pregnant, they wouldn’t need me in that battle.”

No, Jo had been blessed with the gift of speaking to animals. As simple as it was, she could actually do a lot of damage if she considered the ways to do it. Violence, however, wasn’t in Jo’s nature. Delilah, on the other hand, could take control of huge crowds. No matter what strategy they decided to employ…she would be needed because she also knew Father. She knew many of those around him.

“You will be here, with your husband and your family and you will keep it safe and warm for those who return.” Delilah was not certain she could count herself among those numbers. “Now, shall I go fetch us a pot of tea? I know where the good cookies are hidden.”

“Biscuits,” Jo corrected, but the tears in her eyes had dried and her smile had grown. “Just not the ones Miss Annabeth covers in gravy.”

They both grimaced, and Delilah rose to her feet. “I promise. I’ll be right back. Then maybe we can finish the embroidery on the new blanket we’ve been working on.” Learning all these household tasks had been a point of pride for Delilah. She loved needlepoint, knitting, and cooking. Fortunately, she’d discovered a great many patient teachers.

“I left my bag in our room,” Jo called. “I’ll go up to fetch it.”

“I can get it. The water has to boil and the tea steep.” It was better that Jo continued to have a few minutes to rest. Sometimes crying helped, but it was the time after the tears when composure could be regained.

Closing the door behind her quietly, she found Sage lurking. The young woman had gradually grown into her own wild ability to enhance powers of others. She didn’t just power them up anymore unless she wanted. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to eavesdrop.”

“It’s fine,” Delilah assured the worried girl. “Did you need something?”

“I’m going to look after Molly and Cobb for the day,” Sage hesitated. “And I can go get the water on to boil for you if you wanted to run up and get Mrs. Jo’s needlepoint. Is she going to be okay?”

The rush of the last question earned a smile from Delilah. “Yes, and I would appreciate it if you would put a pot of water on to heat. I’ll be right back down.”

“Yes, ma’am. Cate was asking after you, too.”

Cate was one of the youngest of the new Fevered turned during the outbreak. She saw sparkles, and could identify those with gifts. Absolutely precious, Delilah spent more time with her than most of the other child. Cate had also helped Delilah learn to read. “Tell her we will do our lessons this afternoon, once we’ve all settled from the new arrival.” The snow outside would keep the kids cooped inside unless… “When Molly and Cobb take their nap, what do you think about taking the other littles sledding?”

Delilah had done that once when she was very young. It was great fun.

“I can find some sleds,” Shane announced as he dusted off his boots at the front door. “Hey, Sage.”

Delight illuminated Sage’s eyes as she glanced at Shane. Was this the first time she’d seen the young man since he returned? Just as soon as the happiness appeared, her gaze shuttered. “Shane can do it, I’ll be busy.” Then she disappeared toward the kitchen.

Sighing, Shane dusted off his hat and hung it on a peg near the others. No man was allowed to wear his hat inside. “I have a feeling I’m in trouble,” he said.

Sympathetic, Delilah smiled at him. “She missed you.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Shane hung his jacket on a peg, then nodded to her as he followed in Sage’s wake.

Wishing him a silent good luck, Delilah hurried up the stairs. Winter meant they quartered near the great lake, the one which Delilah had once thought of as the ocean. Father would corral them all there for a few months at a time, to train, to rest, and to…

She froze. It was winter. She knew exactly where Father would be. If they could head north, it was what? A month—two-month journey? They never left the winter quarters before mid-April.

Heart hammering, she gripped the railing then began ascending the stairs. The second wing included more master suites for the different couples. Micah and Jo’s rooms were there.

Think it all the way through, remember how we spent the winters. She needed as many answers as she could before she told Buck. Once he had the information, they could decide what to do with it.

The lake property was far away from everything. The only people within a two-day ride were his people. Father assured them all that it kept them safe; it was their sanctuary.

Her stomach turned at the name. For Delilah it had simply been another prison.

If she had to lead her family back there, she would.