Six Years Later

It was a beautiful summer day and to that effect, I was surprised to find the park almost empty. I laughed as I watched my triplets racing towards the play area, their things laying on a picnic table near by.

The last six years had been the hardest of my life, but as I watched the three reasons that had kept me alive, and sane, I knew that I wouldn't trade them for the world.

Taking a seat on the picnic table, I watched as my twin boys, Weston and Easton race towards the kiddy rock wall, doing their best to beat the other to the top. A flash of golden brown hair had my attention turned to my little angel. Not wanting to be outdone by her brothers, Seren raced towards the slide, running up them holding on to the sides.

I smiled as I watched them, knowing that their fathers would be proud of them. A shot of pain ran through my heart at the thought of the men I had left behind. I couldn't help but wonder how they were doing. Shaking my head, I turn my thoughts back towards my children. The last I had heard from Uncle, the team had been taking as many missions from the Academy as they were given and not once had they asked about me. Their memory was still buried deep.

"Watch me, Mama!" The call came from Easton as he jumped out and grabbed ahold of the monkey bars. I watched as he slowly began to cross the small gap from one end of the platform to the other. I smiled and clapped when he looked back at me. Weston quickly followed and I repeated my actions.

A couple of hours passed and the park began to fill up. More parents and their children milled about playing and mingling. As I looked around me, my gaze settled on a large man standing beside an oak tree. I couldn't see his face well, but his stance told me that he was on alert, searching for someone.

Our eyes met and my heart froze. His face lit up with recognition and I watched as he briefly touched his ear. Academy. They hadn't bothered me in almost seven years, though I had done my part in moving around and keeping a low profile. We had only been in Wyoming for two months and even then, I wasn't under my name.

Standing up slowly so I wouldn't draw any unnecessary attention to myself, I began to gather up out things. Walking towards the play area, I look for my children. "Weston! Easton! Seren! It's time to go," I called out as I began to walk around the border, scanning each face.

"Mama! Mama! Easton's stuck in a tree!" Seren's voice rang out and I turned. She and Weston were standing beneath a small oak tree looking up. My eyes followed their gaze, finding Easton sitting on a thick branch. He was smiling, his eyes full of mischief. My breath caught in my throat as his father's face with that same look flashed in my mind.

"Easton, get down before you hurt yourself," Seren called out. Her hands were planted on her hips as she scolded her brother and I couldn't help but laugh at the scene they made. Though she was the youngest of the three, Seren always worried about her older brothers. She was always reminding them to be careful.

Coming to a stop behind Seren and Weston, I cross my arms and meet Easton's eyes. "It's time to go son. Climb on down." He shook his head no and I raised a brow at him. "Easton Victor Taylor..."

"I can't Mama," he spoke as he shifted slightly. "I'm stuck." My gaze judged the distance between me and him but I knew that I was too far on the shorter side of five foot to safely have him drop down. While I was trying to figure out a way to get my son out of the tree, a deep voice that was heavily tainted with an accent spoke behind me.

"Let me help." I spun around, making sure that Weston and Seren were behind my legs as I did so. This man had moved so quiet, I hadn't sensed him. And that was something that hadn't happened to me in a very long time. I eyed him warily as his eyes met mine again. Slowly, his hands lifted showing me that he meant no harm. My head tilted slightly as I backed up a little more. "I only mean to help, little bird."

His voice was soft and deep and it suddenly dawned on me that he was Russian. With a nod from me, he reached up towards Easton and lowered him to the ground. The moment that his feet were on the ground, my son shot towards me, wrapping his arms around my leg as he glared at the stranger before us.

His eyes darted from Easton to the two behind me, a puzzled look on his face. A brief flash of recognition crossed his face before it was gone. "I'm Raven," he spoke as he offered his hand. Slowly, I shook it before quickly pulling my hand back. "I'm Sang." That was all I offered and he nodded.

Raven. His name was familiar, I thought as I watched him. Suddenly, I remembered North had come home after a mission with another team, ranting about some Russian named Raven that had taunted him. The end result of that mission was Raven got shot in the foot by North and North was docked a favor.

"You're on the Toma team." The words slipped out before I could catch them. Surprise washed over him as he took a step back. "Are you Academy?" He asked me but I shook my head.

His hand lifted towards his ear as he listened to whoever was speaking with him. His eyes hardened as he spun around, searching frantically through the crowd. Relief flooded me. They weren't here looking for me then, I thought as I began to usher my children towards our car. But as I buckled them in, I knew that we would be moving soon. If the Academy had a team in the area, it wouldn't be long before they found me. And I wasn't willing to join- not now.