When dusk came, Wade lit the lamp inside the cabin. Seiya settled Taza into the bed nearest the stove and made sure the warmth would stay even through the night. She moved with a tired grace now, her body slowly adjusting to a life no longer ruled by constant threat. Wade watched from the doorway, the blanket pulled securely around the boy. Taza's calm breathing.
Seiya's hand resting lightly against his leg. That night, the cabin felt different. It was no longer only shelter. It felt like a home with people inside it. Wade stepped in and closed the door carefully so no draft would reach the boy.
For the first time since Seiya and Taza arrived, their presence did not feel temporary. It felt like the beginning of something all three of them needed, something none of them was ready to name. Morning came with a peace that felt earned. The sun climbed slowly over the ridge and spread gentle warmth across Wade Coulter's land. Birds moved easily through the brush, no longer startling at every sound, as if even they had settled into the new rhythm that had taken hold since Seiya and her son came to the cabin.
Inside, Taza woke early. He pushed himself upright without help. His legs trembled, but he stayed on his feet long enough to pull Seiya from her light sleep. She sat up immediately and searched his face for pain or exhaustion. What she found instead was determination.
Clear, steady, stronger than anything she had seen from him since the fever. Wade was already outside splitting wood when he heard a quiet laugh from inside the cabin. It was a small sound, but it was the first laugh he had heard from there since they arrived. He lowered the ax and let the sound reach him. Then he wiped his hands against his trousers and headed toward the cabin.
Seiya opened the door just as he reached it. She held Taza against her hip, but the boy carried more of his own weight now. He no longer dragged against her the way he had before. He wants to walk across the yard," she said, disbelief softening her voice. Wade stepped aside.
Then let's see how far he gets. The three of them crossed the yard together. Taza held his mother's hand while Wade followed a few steps behind, ready to help without stepping into the moment unless needed. The boy managed five steps on his own before reaching the fence. He wrapped his fingers around the rail, steadied himself, then looked toward Wade with a small smile full of trust.
Wade answered with one of his own. Brief, reserved, but real. Keep this up and you'll leave us behind. Seiya watched them with a warmth she had not allowed herself to show in a long time. For months, keeping her son alive had consumed everything in her.
There had been no room for anything beyond fear, and the need to keep moving. But fear was no longer the only thing shaping her decisions. Taza wandered slowly around the yard, touching the fence posts and staring toward the corral with renewed curiosity. Wade moved closer to Seiya. He's stronger than I expected.