Page 78 of Breaking Danger
Nick placed his hands over Jon’s and stilled them. They both watched as Sophie’s head turned and she coughed again and took in air in long gasps. Jon’s hands were trembling under Nick’s.
“Sophie?” His voice was a croak, he could barely shape the word.
And her eyes opened, those glorious eyes, dark blue and loving.
“Jon,” she whispered and reached for his hand.
EPILOGUE
Haven
Five years later
“AndI hereby declare Haven Elementary School # 1…open!” Mac cut the ribbon and everyone applauded.
Mac, who was President Pro Tem of the Republic of California didn’t even try to make this a solemn occasion. He was dirty and sweaty from helping plant fifty maple saplings in a circle around the school and the ribbon was cut with garden shears, still dirty from pruning shrubbery.
Jon emitted a piercing whistle and Sophie rolled her eyes and plugged her ears. Her husband was a world-class whistler and used his ability often. One of the many many things about him she’d learned in the past five years.
The essentials, though—they hadn’t changed. He was exactly as she thought he was—loyal and brave and incredibly hard-working. As were the other Ghost Ops members. Their unwavering fortitude allowed Haven, and later the entire state of California—now the Republic of California—to survive.
Nobody had worked harder to get the mass inoculations completed than the men of Haven. Sophie, Catherine and Elle had worked around the clock to prepare vaccine patches as fast as the four labs that eventually came on line could produce them. But it was the men of Haven who had to move out in armored convoys to get them to the survivors throughout the entire state. It meant sending drones to identify each and every survivor and reaching the survivors with the vaccine and food and water, wherever they were.
The first foci of infection, California, became the first state to declare itself virus-free five months after the initial outbreak.
By that time, however, the rest of the United States was still battling the infection, still trying to get the virus under control and so California broke itself off and became a sovereign state. It had a small population—2,143,402 at the first census. But a lot of very smart and very hardy people had survived and they were rebuilding almost faster than the eye could see.
Haven had become its capital, and Mac—very much against his wishes—its first President. Pro Tem, he kept saying, though no one listened.
Catherine kept Sophie and Elle in stitches with Mac’s complaints about being the most powerful man in California. He hated every second not spent shoring up Haven’s defenses, helping oversee establishing a transport system, helping organize rebuilding the physical plant of the Republic of California.
When representatives began pouring into Haven to establish a constitutional government, Mac had to be kicked by Catherine—hard—to go into the room with the ‘politicos’.
While he was planting the trees, the rest of California was conducting its very first political election for the Presidency. Mac against Sarah Kellerman, a former councilwoman in Sacramento.
Mac campaigned hard for Sarah every chance he got. He extolled her virtues, sang her praises, pushed her forward at every photo op. He all but offered to rub her feet for her.
Jon leaned down and whispered in Sophie’s ear. “He’s nervous.”
“Well, you could have taken his place. It’s not like he didn’t ask you. Often,” Sophie said. It had become a running joke. Mac would have handed the reins of power over to anyone over sixteen who wanted it. Nobody accepted because though he hated it, he was doing a really good job.
Jon gave an elaborate shudder and woke up Emma, sleeping on his shoulder.
“Daddy?” Their daughter lifted her curly blonde head from Daddy’s shoulder and knuckled her eyes. “What’s wrong?”
Jon got that panicky look whenever their four year old daughter was inconvenienced or uncomfortable in any way. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. Nothing’s wrong. Everything is fine.”
Ice blue eyes regarded ice blue eyes. Emma looked so remarkably like her dad.
Jon kissed her forehead and gently pressed her head back into his shoulder. Like all the kids, Emma had stayed up late last night celebrating the new school and was now paying the price. There were a lot of 4 and 5 year-olds sleeping against their daddys’ shoulders.
Sorry,Jon mouthed at her and Sophie repressed a smile.
Big tough badass Jon, who melted around Emma.
At the beginning of their marriage, he’d confessed to her that he had no clue how to be a good husband and father. But for someone so absolutely clueless, he was doing a very good job. He loved her and Emma deeply and he showed it every day. He was as solid a family man as he was a leader of their community. They would never have made it during those first terrifying and difficult months without Jon flying the helo over perilous terrain, flying mission after mission, ferrying vaccine and medicine and food and water.
“Here’s to the new school!” Lora Harris, who taught math, handed each of them a glass of champagne, the first vintage produced from a Haven winery down in the valley.
