Chapter 34 "How are you feeling? And tell me the truth. If you feel like crap, say 'I feel like crap.'" Indie ran her finger around the rim of her chai spiced latte. She was finally over the coffee-induced nausea and could have kissed Clara's feet when she'd opened the door and seen it in her cousin's hand. "I'm doing good. Colt's been making sure I'm on strict bed rest. And this morning, he told me they're tearing the old toolshed down, which made me feel even better." She couldn't believe it had already been a week since the kidnapping. A week since she'd stabbed Gordon and run for her life. A week since Colt shot his father. But he seemed to be telling the truth, that killing Gordon really hadn't affected him. Clara tilted her head. "Are you sure? You went through a lot." "Positive. It's actually been kind of nice to be waited on hand and foot." Indie chuckled. "Not to mention the daily chai lattes everyone's bringing me." She should actually text Colt to let him know she already had one, because she was ninety percent certain he'd show up with one when he got back from the park. Usually, she wouldn't say no to two lattes in one day, but being pregnant, she was trying to limit herself to one or less. It was hard. "I was more worried about Colt than me," she said quietly. "He shot his dad." "He had to. If he hadn't, his father would have shot him or you. Or both of you." "I know. I still hate that it was him who did it." Clara looked down at her drink. "I think we got really lucky with our parents. Then really unlucky when I lost my dad and you lost both of your parents. They were good people. Not everyone has that. And unfortunately, I don't think love's a given." "Gordon missed out on a great son." "He really did." There was a small pause before Clara said, "What about your sister? Have you spoken to her since answering her call on Noah's phone?" "No. I want to reach out, but I'm scared she won't want to talk to me. And maybe I'm a little scared that she'll tell me I'm the reason she won't come home." "Why would you be the reason?" "I was always so angry at her because she made our parents' lives so hard. She would never do what they asked. Then her boyfriend died and everyone blamed her, and she rebelled further. Then our parents died. It was hard for everyone. She didn't need to leave." "You should tell her." "I did. After she took off, when I left messages trying to get her to come home. She never responded." Clara tilted her head. "I'm sorry." "Me too." Clara sipped her tea. "Hey, did you ever find your wedding rings?" "No. I have no idea what happened to them. Colt says we'll replace them, but they were family heirlooms." She straightened. "This has softened the blow though." She leaned down and opened the drawer on the coffee table before lifting out the sonogram and holding it to Clara. Clara gasped as she took it. "Peanut!" The smile on Indie's face grew. "They gave us the printout at the scan. I can't stop looking at it." Tears gathered in Clara's eyes before she looked at Indie. "I'm so happy for you." "I was so worried about the baby after the kidnapping-whether the fear, the stress, or the trauma had somehow hurt them. I was terrified I'd lose them before I got a chance to hold them." Her heart raced just thinking about it. "But they're obviously a fighter." "They're resilient. Just like their mama." "Thank God, because if something had happened-" "Nothing happened, and nothing will happen." Clara leaned forward. "Your baby is happy and healthy. They're perfect." This time, Indie got teary. She nodded. A knock on the door had Indie's head jerking up. Clara frowned. "Expecting someone?" "Colt should be home soon, but he wouldn't knock." When she looked through the peephole, she stopped breathing for a moment. Sylvia. She held two containers in her hands. Colt's mother had dropped by a couple of times in the last week, but he'd always been home. And he'd kept the visits short, thanking Sylvia for the food she'd brought and sending her on her way. She opened the door. "Sylvia. Hi." "Hi, dear. Can I come in?" "Colt's not here." "That's okay. I'd like to talk to you." She tried to hide the shock, not sure if this was a good thing or a bad thing. In any case, she stepped back and let Sylvia enter her home. "Sure." Clara cleared her throat as she rose. "Hello, Sylvia." "Hi, Clara." Her cousin crossed the room, and when she hugged Indie, she whispered, "Do you want me to stay?" "No, I'm okay." If she could handle a kidnapping, she should be able to handle her mother-in-law... Should. Clara pulled back and studied her closely, like she was trying to figure out whether to believe it. Eventually, she nodded. "I'll text later." "Thanks for the latte." "You've got another coming tomorrow." When Clara left, the awkward silence in the house made Indie want to squirm. "Would you like some coffee?" Yes, coffee, that was a good idea. It would keep her hands busy. Indie took a step toward the kitchen. "No, thank you." She stopped. Dammit. "I made you some lasagna and some corn soup," Sylvia said, as she set the dishes onto the kitchen counter. "Thank you." Sylvia's gaze landed on something in the living room. Slowly, she walked toward the coffee table and lifted the sonogram. She swallowed hard before setting the print down. Then, she pulled something out of her pocket and held it out. "I believe these are yours." It took Indie a moment to realize what she was looking at. Then she gasped. "My rings." "Back when you first bought the house, Colt gave me a key. You may not remember, but six months ago, I ran into you and asked about your wedding rings. You said you put them into storage in the spare room." She lifted a shoulder. "I got angry. I felt like they belonged to my family and you weren't with Colt anymore. So I came and I took them when you weren't home." Unbelievable. She'd stolen them. Not just stolen them. Broken into her house and searched through her things to steal them. "Take them," Sylvia said gently. "They're yours." Indie took the rings from her palm, and when she looked at Sylvia again, there were tears in the older woman's eyes before she said, "I'm sorry." Indie blinked. The two words sounded genuine. "You're sorry?" "Yes. For everything. For years, I haven't treated you well. I should have welcomed you into my family. When you were going through the hardest battle of your life to become a mother, I should have asked what I could do to help. I should have asked you if you needed support during your medical appointments and brought you meals." Indie almost wanted to press a hand to her chest to stem the ache. She'd craved those words for so long. So many times, she'd wondered what she'd done wrong. What she could have done differently. Sylvia stepped forward. "I told myself that it was because you were weak, but it was the opposite. You were strong and brave in ways that I've never been, and you loved my son. Really loved him. I got scared." "Scared of what?" "That you were going to take my boy from me. That he would stop visiting. Stop calling. Stop wanting to be a part of my life because he was building his own with you. I was scared that he'd see all your strengths, and they would accentuate my weaknesses. I saw you as a threat when I should have seen and treated you like the daughter I never had. You deserved more from me." Now tears gathered in Indie's eyes. Everything Sylvia said was so late but also so validating. "I needed to hear that." "I'm going to do better. I've told my friends that the rumors I started about you were lies. I'm going to do better for my son, for you, and for my grandchild." Her gaze flicked to Indie's stomach. "I promise." Indie inhaled deeply. "It will take time, Sylvia. A lot of time." And even then, she wasn't sure they'd get there. But for Colt, she wanted to. The front door opened, and Colt stepped in. His expression was hard, probably because he'd seen his mother's car on the street. His eyes narrowed when they landed on Sylvia. "What's going on?" She blinked the tears away and straightened. "I just brought some meals and had a conversation with Indie." Concern was etched into his features as he turned to Indie. "Are you all right?" She nodded, so many emotions swirling inside her that she didn't know what to feel. Sylvia crossed the room and gripped Colt's shoulders before pressing a kiss to his cheek. Then she turned to Indie. There was genuine warmth in her eyes before she leaned forward and hugged her. Really hugged her, like she'd never done before. It wasn't cold or tentative or quick. It was the hug of a mother. When she leaned back, she smiled warmly. "Ben and I would love to have you both over for dinner on Sunday. Please let me know." "Ben and you?" Colt asked. Her smile softened. "Yes...we would be hosting together." Then she walked out. Colt immediately stepped in front of Indie. "What was that?" "I think it was a new beginning." Hopefully, one where she and her mother-in-law weren't at war. Where she was pregnant with her baby. And she and Colt were married and in love and at peace. Life was pretty good. Colt looked at the now-closed door before shifting his focus back to Indie. Then his gaze lowered to her fisted hand. "What are you holding?" She opened her hand, and there in her palm was her wedding and engagement ring. "You found them?" Her gaze flashed to the door. No...no fucking way. "My mother stole them?" "Yes, but-" "I'm going to talk to her." He wasn't just going to talk. He was going to yell and rage. He spun, but Indie grabbed his arm. "Colt, no." "Yes! What did she do? Search the house?" Indie didn't have to answer-the look on her face told him he was right. "But," Indie added, "she gave them back. And she apologized. And not just about the rings. She apologized for everything. I think she meant it. I don't know if we can recover from everything that's happened, but I'd like to try." The only thing stopping Colt from going out there and confronting his mother was the look on Indie's face. The hope. She wanted things to be better with his mother. He gripped her hips. "I hope for her sake she means it." Indie lifted her shoulder. "Only time will tell." He'd actually started to wonder if his mother was capable of loving anyone other than him and Ben. But then, this last week, she'd been different. Softer. She'd asked about Indie's health and sounded like she honestly cared. Indie's hands curved around his neck. "So...she wants to have us over for a meal on Sunday." "Do you want to go?" "How else am I going to find out if she and Ben are dating?" Colt laughed. "It wouldn't surprise me. I think my mother has loved Ben for a long time." Indie suddenly gasped. "Wait! She shouldn't even have walked from her car to the house while Wade and Chester are still out there!" "Actually-" Right on cue, his cell rang, interrupting him. He pulled it out to see that it was the call he'd been waiting for. "Jesse, do you have good news for me?" "We have Chester Vane and Roman Korr at the station. We have a long list of reasons to keep them locked up, so they won't be free men for a very long time." The very last bit of tension eased from his shoulders. His father was dead, Chester and Roman were with the authorities, and Wade was no longer a deputy. They'd even found the nurse who'd shared the information about his mother's room number and had charged her. "Thank you," Colt said. "Just doing my job. Everything okay for you and Indie?" He looked down at her perfect face, then over her shoulder at the sonogram on the coffee table. They'd seen their baby yesterday. Heard their heartbeat. Good didn't even begin to describe how everything was. "It's great." "Glad to hear. We'll talk soon." "Everything okay?" Indie asked when he hung up. "They have Chester and Roman." Her eyes closed, relief fluttering across her face. "Don't pinch me. If I'm dreaming, I don't want to wake up." "Indie." "Honestly. Things are too perfect right now. I can't-" "Indie." She opened her eyes. "Things are working out how we deserve," he said. "We've done our bad. It's time for the good." Her eyes softened, and she leaned into him. "Speaking of good, is everything ready for next week's opening at the park?" "I just left Addie. She's working out the finer details. Noah was on the bouldering wall. He wants to test everything and make sure the activities are ready to go." "Things really are perfect." That was a fucking understatement. "We have each other. We're safe. And we have Peanut on the way." She laughed, but there was a hint of tears in her eyes. "Maybe we had to go through all the crap, just so we could feel this." "Maybe." But if he could have taken all that hard stuff away for her and made it a bit easier, he would have. They were here now though, and nothing was going to break them ever again. She was his priority. She'd always be his priority. "I love you, Indie Reed." "I'll always love you." He lowered his head and kissed her, and there it was, everything he'd come home for, right in that kiss with his wife.