Witness Protection ✔

Epilogue/ Life and Death

Nathalia's POV

Rain poured from the heavens and onto her cap. Her feet were cold and wet and a shiver ran down her spine. She looked up to see the distance between her and Cassius increase and picked up the pace.

A graveyard is no place to get lost in.

Where Cassius just stepped over a puddle she had to go around it. She didn't like being here, but it was her idea. Visiting was the least she could do for him.

An ache formed in her stomach when she looked at all the abandoned graves, overgrown with weeds and the stones illegible. These were people at one point, loved and cherished. But there comes a time when everyone who loved you is gone as well and you're just a name on a tombstone.

She looked back at Cassius just in time to see that he had stopped. The grave in front of him was a simple one.

In loving memory of

James Julian Barnett

2001-2021 †

Our son, brother, and friend.

She thought about what kind of man he could've become if he'd gotten the chance. It pained her to know they'd never find out. Her heart went out to his family. They probably never expected their son to not return to them.

He was only 20, she thought grimly. No one should die that young.

She was lucky Cassius knew Nico's real name, or else they might never even have found his grave. It was risky to go, but she'd never forgive herself if she didn't at least visit once. It took years for Cassius to agree to this but here they finally were.

A hollow feeling threatened to consume her until a hand reached out to grab hers. The familiar feeling of the metal of his wedding ring pressed against her fingers, sending warmth through her body.

She looked up and into his eyes, and although he never voiced it, she knew his death had hit him hard as well. Nico, or James as he was called, admired Cassius and made no secret of that. And although Cassius was busy setting up the security measures all the time she knew he made an effort to mentor James.

James's easy smiles in those difficult times were something she'd never forget. He was always in a good mood and nothing could bring him down. She wished she'd taken the time to know him better.

She released Cassius's hand to step forward and carefully placed the flowers on his grave, releasing a sob in the process. Suddenly it became too much, his death, this place, the shooting. The emotions of all those years ago suddenly returned and it was too much to handle.

She turned back to hug Cassius, who allowed her to cry freely against him. Every day she could spend with him was a blessing, and it was something she'd never take for granted. The day they exchanged their wedding vows was the happiest day of her life.

She tried to calm herself by thinking back to that day and couldn't help but feel like none of that would've been possible without James. He sacrificed his life to give her one, and she would never forget that.

"Cassius?" she spoke up after a while.

She felt him shift, but he didn't let go of her. "Mm?"

She liked the way she could feel the vibrations of his voice against his chest and the weight of his arm around her. "Will you tell me about him?"

He was silent for a while, making her wonder if he was willing to talk about James at all. When he finally spoke, it was calm and composed. She never did figure out how he could just hide his emotions like that but she knew he griefed as well.

"He became a bodyguard when he left the army," he started. "I saw him around, but never really noticed him until Garrett told me he specifically requested to be put in the same division as I. Apparently, he really wanted to work with me, and-"

She knew he had trouble talking about it, but she was glad he tried. By rubbing circles against his back she encouraged him to go on, which he did a few moments later.

"This was the first time we worked together."

He didn't have to say it. She knew he felt responsible for his death. And nothing she could say would change that. She'd tried before but he'd just shut down. All she could do was be there for him like he was there for her.

"He was smart, really smart. But he didn't want to go to college, he wanted to protect people. Said that it was his calling and he never would be able to spend his days behind a desk. "

When he didn't say anything after that she nodded into his chest. "Thank you," she whispered just loud enough for him to hear.

They stood like that until her fingers turned numb from the cold and she couldn't take it anymore. They turned back to the parking area and despite the wave of negative emotions from earlier, she felt better now. She hoped James was in a better place now and felt proud of his accomplishments.

Her eyes threatened to close but she forced them open. Sweat dripped into her eye, making it sting. The fatigue was something she'd never experienced before but she refused to fall asleep. She needed to see him.

She gasped when pain shot through her as she tried to change the position she was in and gave up. Cassius gave her a concerned frown but before he could say anything she spoke up, "I'm fine," she offered with a small smile.

She could see he was too tired to reply, so he just nodded. His pitch-black hair was a disheveled mess and the dark bags under his eyes were a stark contrast to his now pale skin. She'd never seen him as stressed as he was these last few hours and she felt bad for making him feel that way. Even if it wasn't her fault.

---------------

A woman walked in, holding a small bundle in her arms. Her broad smile assured Nathalia that everything was fine and at that moment, she felt a weight lift off her shoulders.

"It's a boy," the woman said excitedly. It took Cassius only a few steps to reach the woman and she was happy to hand his son to him. With great care, he took him over from her before taking his time to inspect his face.

Cassius's face was completely unreadable for a while until he turned his gaze to Nathalia. His eyes were filled with so much emotion but above all, love.

Love for his son but also love for her.

He made his way over to her before bending down to carefully hand their son to her. His small body was all wrapped up in a blanket but his perfect little face was still visible. She ran a finger over his round cheek, just to make sure it was all real. And it was.

Who he looked like, she didn't know. His eyes were closed shut in his and his mouth slightly agape while he twitched in his sleep every now and then.

Cassius sat down next to her and kissed the top of her head while throwing his arm around her. It was difficult to tear her eyes away from the little angel in her arms but she wanted to look at him.

"We made this," she said with a smile. It was hard to believe he was finally here after nine tiresome months. She'd been nervous for most of them but in the end, she just wanted to meet him.

"We did," he confirmed contentedly.

For a while, they were silent, lost in a feeling of euphoria and each other's eyes. She smiled so broadly it hurt her face, but she didn't care. He returned it with a smile of his own and at that moment, everything was perfect. All that they'd been through and everything that happened led to this moment and despite the journey having been hard, it was all worth it in the end.

The nurse from before came back into the room and stopped at the end of her bed. "Have the two of you picked a name yet?" she asked.

She looked at Cassius who nodded at her before looking back at the woman and confidently answering, "James. We're calling him James."