“Vitals are steadying,” Eli says behind me, snapping off his gloves as he checks Aidan’s tiny arm. “Fever’s breaking.”
Relief pulses through me like a warm current. I glance at the kid—still red-cheeked and weak, but breathing easier. He’s curled on Eli’s chest now, swaddled in one of Rafe’s old flannel shirts like a burrito. He’s probably only six, maybe seven months old.
“Kid’s a fighter,” Boyd mutters from the corner, arms crossed, a rare softness in his voice.
“Yeah,” I say, voice gruffer than I mean it. “So’s she.”
Kayley’s curled up in the oversized armchair, drowning in a fleece blanket, eyes fluttering shut as the heat finally starts thawing her out. Her cheeks are flushed, her lips pale. She’s got a split in her jeans, snow in her hair, and a look that says she hasn’t slept in at least forty-eight hours.
She’s also beautiful.
Not the flashy kind. Not the runway kind.
She’s the kind of beautiful that sneaks up on you. That lives in the curve of her jaw when she smirks, the tremble in her voice when she tries not to cry, the fire in her eyes when she says she’s fine—but you know damn well she’s not.
I rub the back of my neck and clear my throat. “I’m taking them to my cabin.”
Rafe looks up from where he’s tossing logs on the fire. “You sure?”
“Yeah.” I glance back at Kayley. “She needs quiet. The kid needs rest. My place is stocked and close enough if anything changes.”
Chase whistles low. “Breaking protocol already, Commander?”
I shoot him a look. “Protocol can take a back seat. She’s not a threat.”
“She might be a target,” Rhett points out, tone calm but firm. “If someone’s after her—or the baby—we need to know who and why.”
“And we’ll figure it out.” I nod to Rafe. “Start a file. Run facial rec on Kayley’s plates and get eyes on traffic cams near Timber Creek. See who could’ve followed her this far.”
“Copy,” Rafe says, already moving toward the tech setup in the side office. Rafe used to run point on everything, but ever since Harper, he’s taken a step back. Doesn’t mean he’s out—not even close. Just means Haven 7’s fallen to me now.
Commander Gavin Messer. Has a ring to it, I guess.
Boyd lifts the baby with surprising gentleness and tucks him back into the portable bassinet we keep around for emergencies. “Kid’s good to move.”
Eli hands me a thermometer and a small bag of meds. “Watch his fever. If it spikes again, radio me.”
I nod, already scooping up the bassinet in one hand and tugging on my jacket with the other. Then I turn back to Kayley.
She blinks awake like she forgot where she was. Her voice is rough. “Did I pass out?”
“Almost.” I offer a hand. “Come on. You and Aidan are coming with me.”
She sits up fast. “Where?”
“My cabin. It’s warmer. Quieter. And has better coffee.”
Her brow furrows. “Why are you being so… nice?”
Because I don’t like the idea of her sleeping under anyone else’s roof.
I also want to know why she ran. Because something about her makes the part of me I buried in the sandboxes of war want tostand up and fight again.
Instead, I just say, “Because I can.”
She stares at me for a long beat before sliding her hand into mine.
It’s small. Cold. But strong.
