Authors: Kathryn Le Veque

Fires of Autumn (55 page)

Colt nodded. “I could,” he whispered. “There
were times I would enter his dreams, too, just to talk to him. But the older
he got, the more he didn’t really remember me, so it became harder and harder
for me to fill his dreams until one day, it just stopped. But I could still
see him and see how he was doing. You, on the other hand, always kept my memory
alive, so I was always able to enter your dreams to be with you, if only for a
short while.”

Strangely, the confusion and surprise over her
death faded quickly and Casey realized she was accustomed to the idea that she
had passed away. Everything he said made perfect sense. The truth was that she
wasn’t frightened at all because Colt was here, waiting for her, and she knew
they would never be apart again. Whatever came, they would remain together for
eternity. Already, she knew she had reached heaven because they were together
again. That was all that mattered.

“I could never forget you,” she turned to him.
“You are the love of my life, Colt Sheridan, in this life or the next.
Whatever comes, as long as we are together, I can take it.”

He smiled at her. “I’m told it’s pretty great
on the other side.”

Casey looked over at Jack one last time,
reconciling herself to the fact that she was moving on and leaving him behind.
Hunter, Brody and the daughter she’d had in later years… she was leaving them
all behind. Tears threatened but she fought them.

“We’ll see the kids again one day, right?” she
asked softly.

Colt kissed the top of her head. “Absolutely.”

With a lingering glance at Jack, who was now
being escorted by the nurse into Mother’s room to see the body, she turned to
Colt.

“Then I’m ready if you are,” she murmured.
“Let’s see what’s waiting for us on the other side.”

Colt cupped her face tenderly, gazing into the
eyes he knew so well. “I love you, angel.”

“I love you, too. Always and forever.”

Colt kissed her deeply before taking her hand
and leading her from the waiting area into another hallway that seemed to be
very bright. Casey held his hand tightly, following him into a brilliant white
light that beckoned them both. As long as they were together, nothing else
mattered. Their love transcended time and space and death, only to be
continued with the coming of the dawn.

For them, the next adventure had begun.