The Heavier the Chains...

Epilogue

The ending we all deserve.

Kenzlee – (Five Years Later)~

I sat at the kitchen table, head in my hands, wondering what the hell I was going to do.

I'd only been teaching for a year, but I hadn't realized what a true calling it had been until the first time that little Katie Matthews had run up to me, wrapped her little arms around my legs, looked up, grinned at me with her checkered smiled, then lisped out, "I did it, Mrs. Draven! I spelled the word!"

The second that I had decided to go into teaching, I knew that I'd wanted to teach little minds. I wanted to experience the satisfaction of watching little ones learn the basics. There was so much joy in their innocent youth that it was contagious. Plus, I'd rather teach honest, innocent six-year-olds than know-it-all teenagers.

Now, while Talon and I had chosen to stay in Lakeside, Edie had taken her college degree from UC Berkley and had moved to Baltimore to attend John Hopkins. That girl was going to change the world, and Talon couldn't be prouder of her if he tried. Alexandria had attended UCLA, where Talon and I had both gotten good enough grades to attend Stanford.

Also, much to Talon's dismay, I had made him wait until our sophomore year in college before getting married. I had wanted at least one year of college under our belts, so that we'd know what to expect out of college life and the demands that it would place on us. We had lived together off campus during that time though, thanks to a little donation.

I'd also taken some of my money to pay for Hunter and Lars' first years of college. Hunter had also gotten into UCLA. Then, the following year, after he had graduated, Lars had gotten into UC Berkley. I had offered to pay for all four years, but like the real men that they were, they had compromised on the help with their first year, then had worked their asses off to make the other three years happen.

Talon had kept fighting all through high school because that was the only way that he'd been able to afford school. Edie and I hadn't liked it, but we'd also known that we couldn't stop him. He had also kept true to his word. Talon hadn't said a word when I had paid off my uncle's house, his mom's house, and had bought my little Nissan Maxima. He also hadn't uttered a word as I had written checks out to Stanford, UCLA, and UC Berkley.

The only time that he had shown any displeasure had been when we'd gotten married, and I'd had set up the trust for our future children and our wills, should something happen to me. He hadn't been happy with me leaving him any of the money, but the attorney had explained that, if I didn't, my mother had action at the funds. Knowing how I felt about my mother, that's all it had taken for Talon to agree.

Over the past five years, my mother had only contacted me a handful of times, and each time had been to get money out of me. I had finally blocked her indefinitely when she had accused me of tarnishing Kaden's memory by taking care of everyone but her. She'd been sure that Kaden would have wanted me to make sure that she was okay. That had been the final straw, and I had cut ties with her completely after that.

One of the good things to come out of Talon's illegal fighting career was that he had ended up with a career in social services. Wanting to make sure that kids had better options, he had delved into community social services, and he headed up many social programs for kids. His favorite, however, was the self-defense classes that he taught.

I heard the front door open, and you could hear the clonk of my head hitting the kitchen table echo throughout the house. I heard a soft chuckle behind me, then felt a kiss on the back of my head. "Rough day today?" Talon teased. "Did someone color outside the lines? Or was there a brawl over the crayons?"

I raised my head and narrowed my eyes at him. "Depends on how you feel about coloring outside the lines," I retorted.

"I'm not coloring much these days," he said, cocking his head at me, surely wondering where this conversation was going.

"Oh, you're coloring lines these days, Talon," I snorted. "Trust me."

He leaned back against the counter and crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm pretty sure that I haven't touched a coloring book in ages, White."

"Yeah, well," I threw the pregnancy stick at him, which he caught expertly, "that right there says you've managed to color two perfectly clear pink lines, Talon Draven."

Talon stared down at the stick in his hand, and he was quiet for way too long. He finally looked up at me, and I was going to remember this moment for the rest of my life. "I hope that she's no bigger than a pixie and has black hair with light brown eyes. I hope that her laugh sounds like music, and I hope that she always looks at me with all the love in the world shining in those eyes of hers."

"Talon..." I choked out, tears already streaming down my face.

"And I hope to God that her momma gives me three more just like her," he grinned.

I jumped up from the chair and ran into his embrace. His arms wrapped around me and held me like they always did. Talon always held me like he was afraid to let me go. "We're pregnant, Talon," I laughed into his chest.

I felt his chin on the top of my head as he nodded. "What we are is perfect, White," he whispered.

The End.