Page 133 of Storm and Tempest

She slid her feet into the slippers at the end of the bed and grabbed a zippered hoodie from Jax’s side of the closet, one of the only things that closed over her pregnancy bump.

She ran a hand down the spot where their daughter resided, greeting the baby with a silent good morning.

The coffee pot had finished percolating, the beep likely what had awoken her.

She ignored the worddecafon the side of the bag, pressed into the corner with the sugar Jax used now, and poured herself a mug. Added a splash of milk. Petted the cat on her way past Jolene’s perch on the recliner where Jax typically sat.

Kenna unlocked the RV door and left it open, closing only the screen.

Just yesterday they had the whole team on video chat, discussing what they were going to do next. Elizabeth and Craig Stairns were back in Colorado with Maizie in her Airstream. Ramon had just finished a job in Pittsburg, looking for a man they suspected had ties toDominatus.In the middle of the meeting, Maizie had informed them of the breaking news.

The president and the FBI director had been having lunch in a DC hotel when they had both fallen deathly ill as a result of what the Secret Service believed to have been poison in their food. They had been dead before EMTs managed to arrive, and neither had responded to life-saving attempts by agents there for the president’s protection.

Now the vice president had been sworn in.

Dominatushad taken out the top tier of the resistance in this country, and they likely had someone sympathetic in power now. Or at least a person willing to look away and ignore what was really going on.

Kenna tore her gaze from the mountains long enough to sit.

She offered some silent prayers for the coming day, determined to take each one as it came. Able to handle what was right in front of her. The rest she would leave in His hands, knowing He would take care of each of them.

Kenna sipped her coffee and watched the morning yawn itself awake.

A slight breeze ruffled wildflowers in the meadow in front of her. The only road was so far away that she couldn’t make it out in the distance. Mountains all around them. So much space she didn’t think she’d ever seen the world this open. Bursting with light, and growth. Warm to the touch.

Everything her life hadn’t been.

Thank You.

The RV screen door snapped back on its hinges, and Jax came out, his hair sticking up in different directions. He wandered over and planted his hands on the arms of the plastic chair on either side of her. “Good morning.”

She lifted her chin, and he kissed her. “Yes, it is good.”

“Even though you started it without me.”

She smiled. “You needed to sleep.”

Neither of them had been immune to bad dreams, the fear creeping up at random moments and catching them off guard.

He slumped into the chair beside her and lifted her hand, kissing the back. Not letting go. “I’d rather be with you.”

She lifted his hand to her lips. “Me, too.”