Heart is the Key towards Home (Wynonna Earp)

Chapter 13

Wynonna is drawn from sleep by a ray of sunshine peaking through the curtains. She didn't really get much sleep with Nina's words running through her head all night long. She pulls herself out of bed, searching for the cowboy. Not finding him anywhere in the room, she gets dressed and heads downstairs. Doc is on the back porch, nursing a cup of coffee and smoking a cigarillo.

"Morning, Baby Daddy." Wynonna tells him as she leans against the doorframe.

"Wynonna." Doc tips his hat at the brunette with a small smile. "Did you get any sleep?"

"Not really." She says. Then she starts to walk towards him, with an extra sway in her hips. "Maybe if you would just sleep next to me for once, I might be able to get in more than a few winks." She smirks and looks into Doc's eyes intensely. The world starts to fall away; they are consumed by the presence of one another. Doc leans forward, their lips mere inches apart, when "Highway to Hell" starts to play from Wynonna's back pocket, effectively breaking the trance.

Wynonna pulls her phone from her pocket. Her eyes widen comically upon seeing the caller ID. "It's Waverly, Doc!" she says as she throws her phone to the cowboy, as if it had burned her. I can't talk to her, not until I have answers!" To her dismay, Doc just tosses the phone back to her. "Wynonna just answer the phone!" he instructs. "NO!" Wynonna throws the phone back to Doc, it has now become a full blown game of hot potato. "What do I say to her? Hey, baby girl! Yes, we are okay. By the way we found your long lost family next to the road and we are having breakfast together?" she says while gesturing wildly with her hands and aiming a raised eyebrow at the gunslinger.

The phone stops ringing then and Wynonna sighs in relief, finally taking the device back from Doc. She is in the process of deciding if she should send Waverly a text, when Nina comes through the back door. "Good Morning! I hope that you slept well. Breakfast is ready, if you would like to join me in the dining room." She tells them with a warm smile and walks back into the house.

Wynonna turns back to Doc just as her phone pings in her hand. A text from Waverly lights up her phone screen, much like the angel lights up Wynonna's life. "Hi Sis, are you okay?" the text reads. The brunette shoots a quick text message back and stuffs her phone back into her pocket. She then walks into the house straight towards the dining room. I need to get answers and then I'll call Waverly. She thinks to herself as she sits down at the table. Doc follows shortly after, taking a seat next to her.

"Did you sleep well?" Nina asks Wynonna.

"I didn't really sleep much. After last night's surprising news, I have a lot of questions and I can't keep this from Waverly." The brunette says with her signature serious face when her sister is the topic of conversation. She knows that Waverly deserves to know, but has no idea how she will take the news. Nina nods in understanding.

"I understand completely. You can ask me anything and I will answer honestly." She tells Wynonna, the sincerity in her eyes removing all doubts from the Earp's mind.

"Okay. Why didn't you contact Waverly after Charlie...I mean Julian, passed away? You were in Purgatory then, weren't you?"

"Yes, I was." Nina looks down, the guilt and hurt clear in her body language. She takes a deep breath and finally looks back up at Wynonna and Doc.

"Julian came to see me the morning before he died. I hadn't seen him in years. He explained everything to me; why he was gone, that he lost his memory, that he had a daughter, that he came back to Purgatory because something pulled him here after Waverly stepped outside the border of the Ghost River Triangle. He told me about what happened between Charlie and you.." Nina looks at Wynonna without any judgement, just warmth and openness. "He told me a lot about you Wynonna."

Wynonna blushes slightly and looks over at Doc, the memories of the past flooding back to her. Nina continues "I missed my son and I knew in that moment that I missed a lot in his life. I didn't know I had a granddaughter; I didn't even know if my son was still alive. But then he was there and he told me everything." She says, smiling fondly.

"After he died, I felt so lost. I finally got my son back just to lose him again. By the time I was ready to find Waverly and meet my granddaughter, she was gone too. Doc was gone, you where gone. For months I stayed, but Purgatory turned into a disaster when the Clantons took over. I had to leave, I had something I needed to do. Believe me Wynonna...Doc...I wanted to meet my granddaughter so much." Nina says with that same sincere intensity. Wynonna and Doc believed her fully.

"Then Junior's mother just showed up one day and told me I have a grandson as well. She told me that she was looking for Charlie. By then she knew his name was actually Julian, that is how she was able to track me down. She wanted to tell him that he had a son and that is how Junior came into my life. I still think about Waverly every day. I just don't know how to tell her all of this and if she would even want to know me."

Wynonna sat in silence for a long moment before she spoke. "I know you don't know Waverly, but she is an amazing person. Nicest person in Purgatory, with a sash to prove it." Wynonna says proudly, causing Nina to smile too. "She would definitely want to meet you and Junior. She has a heart of gold and she deserves to know."

Wynonna feels Doc squeezing her hand. She only now realizes then that he has been holding her hand the entire time. She looks down at their entwined fingers, thinking about how well they fit together. She then looks back up at Doc with a soft look. Blue meets intense blue and in that moment, she knew for sure that he would always stand by her side and support her.

She then looks back at Nina. "I know this is something she'll want, Nina." She tells their host in a soft, earnest voice as she reaches over the table to take her hand.

"Thank you, Wynonna. Hearing you say that... it lightens the guilt I have been carrying all this time." She says, a stray tear rolling down her cheek. "How do I get in touch with her? Can you help me, please?" she askes the duo, a new hope lighting up her eyes.

"Yes, of course we will help you. But I think I should be the one to tell Waverly. It might be easier for her to hear this from me." Wynonna says as she squeezes Nina's hand. Nina nods in agreement, seeing the brunette's point.

"Thank you." Nina says gratefully. "Let's eat something. I'm sure you are both very hungry." She then says with a lighter tone in her voice, switching the conversation. The three of them then proceed to have breakfast. A silence falls over the table, but Wynonna can feel there is still something Nina hasn't told them. Not wanting to push their host on the matter, she stays quiet and bites into her toast.

As they finish breakfast and are all sitting with a cup of coffee around the table, Nina finally speaks again. "Doc..Wynonna.. there is something else I need to tell you." She starts with a serious look on her face. Both Wynonna and Doc stay silent, looking at Nina expectantly.

Nina looks at them with overwhelming honesty and love. She feels like she knows them on an intimate level, thanks to Julian's tales of the kind Earp heir and her loyal little group of found family. "I don't only know you because of Waverly. That day that Julian came to see me, he told me about Alice too." Doc and Wynonna are completely taken off guard at her words, they just look at her in shock. How could she know about their daughter?

After giving this moment to take in her words, Nina speaks again. "He told me that you had to send your daughter away. To protect her from everything, to keep her safe. He told me that he cared for you Wynonna, he told me that Alice meant a lot to Waverly as well, and that he really wished that he could send a Guardian Angel to look out for Alice from any supernatural being that might try and find her." Nina goes silent again, allowing Wynonna and Doc to share their thoughts at this overwhelming news. Wynonna and Doc just remained still and silent, apparently waiting for her to continue. So, she does.

"After Julian died, you all being gone and Purgatory going to shit, I made a decision to leave. I left to become your daughter's Guardian Angel. I wanted to honour my son's wish, I wanted to do something worthy for the little family I had left. I've been looking out for Alice ever since." Her words are the final push to cause the tears to fall. Not only did Julian save Waverly, he also made sure their daughter was looked after. Overwhelmed at the realization of his selfless sacrifice, Wynonna falls into Doc's arms and cries. Along with Dolls, he is a hero and Alice would know their names. Their daughter will know the overwhelming love that kept her safe. Thank you, Julian. Wynonna thinks as Doc's arms tighten around her.