Epilogue
Cole drove Hannah and her parents to the facility. The team took the day before Christmas Eve to spend with the kids, giving the women a break after the blizzard.
“Who will stay with you when Cole spins up?” her dad asked.
“I’m staying at the cabin. Brody and Brownie will keep me company. During the day, I’ll take them to the training center for Archer to work with them and get some energy out.”
“I don’t like the idea of you staying there all by yourself,” Conrad grumbled.
“I’m not by myself. Gabby and Claire plan to come over and play cards one night and then we’re having a movie marathon at Kassie’s the following week. Samantha invited us all for a spa day when the team spins up,” she explained.
“You don’t know how long they’ll be gone with these things,” her dad worried.
“Then, why don’t you stay here until I return?” Cole asked her dad as he turned into the parking lot. Leo permitted her to bring her parents to meet everyone, hoping to allay his concerns.
“We can’t stay in a hotel forever and we’re not encroaching on Hannah’s privacy,” her mom exclaimed. “I will miss you terribly when we leave.”
“I’ll miss you, too,” Hannah said sadly. Her dad spent the last week spending time with her and she didn’t want it to end. Plus, she wanted to stay near her mom if her health changed.
“Why don’t you move here? My parents moved to Phoenix when my sister gave birth to their first grandchild,” Cole suggested. “Then you and Hannah can catch up, you won’t worry about her, and it’ll save a ton of money on flights.”
“We can’t up and move here,” her mother said, laughing.
Her dad stroked his chin. “Why not? You said you enjoyed the community center and got along with all those women. Cole’s right. Hannah’s our only child. She’s settled here. I, for one, don’t want to miss out on spending time with my grandchildren.”
“You mean, you’d consider it?” her mom said, surprised.
“Yes, as long as Hannah feels comfortable with it,” he added.
“I’d be thrilled if you moved here. Then, we can spend more time together,” Hannah replied as she squeezed her mom’s hand.
Cole helped her down from the van and Hannah released Brody and Brownie. They entered the facility and Cole pointed things out to her father. With the two men occupied with military talk, Hannah showed her mom her office and introduced her to the team.
Patch entered the kitchen, sporting a splint on his nose. He held his hands up in surrender at seeing her. Hannah approached him and made a face. “Does it hurt a lot? I’m truly sorry.”
“It doesn’t hurt as much as listening to Knight tell everyone I got beaten up by a girl,” he grumbled. “It’s all right, Stormy. Everyone made it out and that’s what matters.”
“Wait until you have kids,” Leo warned him. “Melody didn’t understand why Hannah hit me. Kit Kat explained the accident to her and reiterated that violence is never the answer. My kid has become a terror lately, bossing her baby sister around.”
Patch chuckled. “I guess I lost the bet. We assumed Grace would act as the enforcer.”
“You might still win that bet. She’s a redhead and has her mother’s temper,” Leo admitted. “Grace will grow up and make me proud like Sparky and Stormy. Melody, on the other hand, plans to follow in her mother’s and grandmother’s footsteps into nursing.”
“What about Derrick?” Shadow asked as he set some snacks on the table.
“He’s still clinging to his mother’s breast too much for me to know,” Leo said glumly. “I finally get a son and he turned into a mama’s boy.”
“Take it from my experience, boy or girl, they’ll steal your heart and you’ll worry about them even when they’re adults. Enjoy every minute and have no regrets,” Hannah’s dad told the group as his eyes glistened with pride for her.
Patch left and returned a few minutes later, carrying a tray of hot dogs and hamburgers. Cole came around the corner, telling Archer about a new dog he wanted to train.
“Oh, careful,” Hannah told Patch as he set the tray on the edge of the counter. “Brody has a thing for hamburgers.”
Patch moved the platter forward and then paused and turned toward Cole. His eyebrow attempted to arch, but Patch winced instead. “What did you say?”
“Brody developed a taste for hamburger, so don’t leave them close to the edge of the counter,” Hannah repeated innocently.
“You knew,” Patch exclaimed as Cole’s eyes grew big. “I’ve gotten stuck on latrine duty for weeks because of your poorly trained mutt?”
Cole held out his hand. “Let me explain. It happened on my first day here and I didn’t know he did it until afterward,” he blurted out as Patch stalked him.
“I have one thing to tell you,” Patch snarled. “Run.”
Cole took off like a flash as Patch made his way around everyone to go after him.
He still tried to explain his predicament, but Patch was in no mood to hear it.
The group gathered and watched as he finally caught up to Cole in the pool room.
Patch lunged, and Cole grabbed hold of his shirt, sending both men into the water.
Everyone laughed as the two men climbed out of the pool.
“Don’t let Melody or Kit Kat hear me say this, but sometimes, there’s a need for violence.” Leo opened the pool room door. “Cole, you have latrine duty until you spin up.”
Everyone turned when Kassie, Catherine, and Claire entered the building.
“Hi, Kit Kat,” Leo said, glancing behind her. “Did you forget the kids?”
“My mother will bring them in a few minutes,” she said stiffly. “May I see you in your office?”
Everyone quieted as they watched the two go down the hall and Leo’s office door slammed shut.
“What did he do this time?” Shadow asked Kassie.
“You’ll know soon enough,” she said, worriedly. “Patch, you might want to get the first aid kit out.”
“Surely Leo won’t hurt his wife,” Conrad stated in shock.
“It’s not her we’re worried about,” Taco answered. “Leo gets into scrapes all the time. This one must be a doozy.”
“Ten bucks, he taught Grace a new swear word,” Whiskey guessed.
“Make it twenty,” Saint chimed in.
Kassie bit her nails as they all waited to see what their fearless leader did this time.
Leo led Catherine down the hall and into his office. She slammed the door and he turned around, taken off guard by her venom. When he left this morning, he made sure he put the toilet seat down, and she seemed in a good mood. “What’s wrong Kit Kat?” he asked gently.
“Don’t Kit Kat, me,” she seethed. “Leo, did you go back to the doctor for your confirmation the vasectomy took?”
“No, not yet. I cancelled it when we rushed to help Matthew in Texas. I’ll make an appointment after Christmas,” he said, approaching her. Catherine reared back and punched him in his good eye.
Leo stomped his foot and held his face. “Why the hell did you hit me?” he exclaimed. “I promise, I’ll make the appointment.”
“It’s a little too late now,” Catherine snarled while holding her knuckles. “I’m pregnant.”
Leo’s mouth nearly dropped to the floor and his tongue went dry as he tried to come up with a way to soothe his savage wife. “How did it happen?”
Apparently, his choice of words came out wrong as her eyes shot fire at him. “How do you think it happened?”
“Didn’t you stay on the pill?” As soon as the words left his mouth, Leo knew he managed to put himself in the doghouse.
“Why on earth would I take the pill if my husband got neutered?”
“You know,” he said, putting the desk between them. “For your hormones.”
He grimaced as Catherine’s face changed from red to purple. A knock on the door saved him. “We’ll be out in a minute.”
“Carol and Jake have the kids. She said Derrick needs to eat,” Saint spoke through the door.
“Please tell Mom to bring the baby here with his bag,” Kit Kat said, still seething at her husband.
A soft knock indicated Carol arrived with the baby. Catherine opened the door, took the baby and his bag from her mother, and shut the door again.
“Here’s your son. I gave you enough formula to last until tomorrow morning.
I’m going home to puke my guts out and get some sleep.
What happens when you spin up, Leo? I never know when you’ll return, and if something happened to you, I’ll have to raise four small children,” she said, tears glistened in her eyes, but she angrily brushed them away.
“Kit Kat,” Leo said softly. “We’ll figure it out. We always do.”
“No, Leo. I’m the one handling it and juggling the schedules, whether you’re here or not. I’m tired. You didn’t think of me when you cancelled the appointment. If it mattered, you would’ve done it.” She slowly opened his door and left.
Leo sat down with Derrick in his lap, crying, and held his eye. “Damn.” He screwed up big time.
Kassie entered and handed him an ice pack. “I’ll check on her this evening,” she said before leaving.
Taking the prepped bottle out of the diaper bag, Leo fed his son.
His gaze roamed over his child’s features, and he frowned.
His wife didn’t feel like his priority, and he didn’t protect her.
The last thing he ever wanted her to think.
Leo knew he sometimes went overboard, but he did it out of love.
His stomach churned and he struggled with what he’d done.
A dark sense of foreboding filled him as he stared at his innocent son’s face.
Did little Derrick’s future not include him?
He picked up the pen and paper on the table beside him and made a list of things he needed to do before he left for the Middle East. His heart pounded in his chest as he squinted to write everything down.
The same feeling he got before the mission, which killed his best friend and Catherine’s brother, stuck in his gut.
This time, he knew he might not make it home.