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  “Ky-ky?” She looked up at me.

  “Yeah, baby girl. We’re gonna go see Ky-ky. He’s going for a ride on a train!”

  “Choo”

  I chuckled. “Yep. He’s going to ride on the choo-choo train.”

  Kaia had gone on ahead to help with the loading. Most of the villagers were helping. The Harvest had gone well, and we were going to share our bounty with the other villages.

  Kyan had been elected the representative of Orchard and was going to meet with the representatives from the other villages during the journey. Julia and Phoenix would stand by his side.

  Phoenix was going to advise them on matters of technology and security. Some people were leery of having an Upper Lesser from Vesuvius give them advice of any kind, but Kyan and I had stood up for Phoenix, telling them of his bravery. We told them how we wouldn’t have made it out of Vesuvius without his help. He’d worked with us, not against us.

  The old council had been disbanded by Vesuvius and was never resurrected. Each village’s citizens would determine their own form of government, rules, and punishments for breaking those rules. But we were all survivors. We planned to help one another, share our raw materials, and rise from the proverbial ashes.

  Ella and I could hear the laughter and commotion before we crested the hill leading down to the depot. She started pointing and giggling at everyone standing around the train. I could see Laney’s blonde hair from where we were standing. It bounced more than she did, if that was possible.

  “See the train?”

  “Ky-ky?”

  “Let’s go see Ky-ky.”

  I swept her up, and we made our way down the hill together, a warm, dry breeze stirred the leaves above and made them rain down on us. Ella squealed and giggled, trying to catch the red, yellow, and brown swirling around us.

  We meandered through the crowd to the platform, people squeezing Ella’s hands and patting her back. She was the belle of every ball around there.

  I saw Kyan, and we maneuvered our way over to him.

  “Ky-ky!” Ella squealed and reached for him.

  He took her from me and hugged her tightly. “You been missing me, Ella Blue?”

  She nodded and hugged his neck.

  “I’ve been missing you, too. You look so much like your mama, it’s scary.”

  Ella smiled. “Mama!”

  Abby stepped up and grabbed Ella. “How’s my peanut?”

  “Mama!”

  “You missed me, huh?”

  She nodded and squealed as the train’s horn blew loudly. It was time to let Kyan go for a while. He, Julia, and Phoenix stepped on board a passenger car that had been coupled to the end of the long line of freight cars. They held our hearts, the apples of Orchard. Modified or not, they were grown with our bare hands, the sweat of our brows, and the strength of our backs.

  IT HAD TAKEN ME TWO weeks to beat the virus that killed most of the Greaters. I thought I was dying. The only thing that had kept me going was visions of Ella and Gray and the will to see them both again. I wanted to see my baby grow, to teach her all the things Lulu had taught me. I wanted to hear her first word, watch her first steps, hug her when her feelings got hurt by other kids and when her heart first got trampled on by some scummy boy.

  Most of all, I wanted to see her eyes light up when she found the one. Because I’d found mine, and I didn’t want to ever let him go.

  Gray and Ella made life complete for me. As our villages began to carve their own way, we’d be there. We’d enjoy the freedom we’d fought for, that some had died for. Freedom... It was like air. You never knew you were missing it until you couldn’t get it. Then, it became everything. And we could all finally breathe deep and long.

  Freedom and love: two things I could definitely enjoy for the rest of my days.

  Ella held my forefinger and Gray’s. We walked over the hill toward the setting sun, toward home. The sound of crickets chirping, the hay stirring in the breeze, and our laughter filled the air.

  “ELLA’S FINALLY TAKING A NAP.”

  Gray dropped the ax and stalked toward me like a lion, a crazy love lion. He even growled as he reached me.

  I almost climbed him. His mouth met mine with the passion of a lover whose time was limited by feedings and diaper changes, by the wandering little eyes following you everywhere. Our lips pressed and searched. His hands lifted me up until I straddled him, and my back banged against the side of the cabin, scraping flesh and making me try to climb higher.

  My fingers tangled in his hair, his stubble scraped the delicate skin of my face so deliciously. His hand searched beneath my shirt.

  “Ma-ma,” Ella screamed.

  I stilled and sucked in a sharp breath. He eased me down with a groan.

  “I’m so sorry, Gray.” I huffed in frustration, planting my feet beneath me and blowing out a pent-up breath.

  He winked. “To be continued...”

  Thank you so much for taking the time to read what I wrote. If you’d like to help other readers decide whether or not to read this book, you could leave a review on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com or Goodreads.com.

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