Chapter 4

The local guide said there've been auroras over the ice fields the last couple of days.

Joshua avoided my eyes and mumbled an excuse. I'll be back soon.

I'm the group leader. I can't just stand up the brothers who are waiting on me.

Before he could finish, our son in my arms suddenly broke into a hoarse, rasping cry, his little face flushed red.

My voice shook. "Joshua! Our son has a high fever! Do you really have to leave right now?!"

He hadn't answered yet.

Ivy stepped in first, frowning. "It's still pouring out there, ma'am."

"Carrying a child this small outside—even a healthy one would end up sick from all the jostling."

She paused, then covered her mouth as if it had just dawned on her. "You didn't do this on purpose, did you—just to make Joshua stay?"

My head buzzed.

I was about to snap back when a familiar sharp pain stabbed through my temple.

The next second, a scene rose in front of my eyes: me clutching my son's dead body, sobbing and screaming in the rain.

I sucked in a cold breath.

With almost everything I had, I shoved Ivy out of my way. "Move!"

I bolted for the door with the baby in my arms, but Joshua caught my wrist.

He stared at me, his eyes full of suspicion and ice. "Ivy has a point."

"Lily Henson, when did you turn this vicious? You'd even use our own son to trap me here."

"Enough!" I screamed, breaking down.

Tears mixed with cold sweat ran down my face. "Look at him! His breath is scalding hot! If we wait any longer he'll die!"

Maybe he'd never seen me look so desperate, because he froze.

A few seconds later, he took our son from my arms, wrapped him tight in his coat, and rushed me toward the garage.

"Joshua, the flight's going to be delayed."

Ivy called out urgently behind us.

Joshua paused, but didn't turn around. "You go ahead."

Ivy still wanted to say something, but with the engine already started, Joshua was long gone.

At the hospital, the doctor confirmed it was a high fever.

Joshua's hands trembled with the aftershock of fear, and he looked at me, stricken with guilt. "I'm sorry..."

Seeing me stay silent, he crouched down in front of me and took my hand.

His tone was more serious than I'd ever heard it. "Once our son is discharged, we'll go register the marriage... This time, I'll keep my word for sure."

"So you're still going to go chase the aurora?"

His eyes flickered, and he looked away from me. "Lily, do you really believe you can see the future?"

"Ivy says this premonition you talk about is most likely just too much mental stress."

He paused. "Ivy is a psychiatry grad student, after all. Honey, maybe we could have a doctor run a full evaluation."

I threw off his hand and laughed in spite of myself.

"So you're still going, then."

"Even if it means dying?"

This time, he didn't answer me.

And so Joshua took over all the work of caring for our son.

Rod came by once during that time, but Joshua sent him away.

That quiet was broken by a phone call, the voice on the other end near tears.

Joshua! Ivy went into the ice fields alone to scout a route for the aurora!

The rescue team won't head out right away, and none of us have any outdoor experience, so we had no choice but to come to you!

Joshua shot to his feet. "Send me her location!"

He hung up and grabbed his coat.

He pressed a hurried kiss to my forehead. "I'm just going to take a look."

"We can register the marriage after I get back. It's not too late."

I watched his back as he left, and suddenly I smiled.

Then I picked up my phone.

The first call was to the funeral home. "Yes, reserve an urn for Joshua Gilbert. The cheapest one you've got."

The second was to Rod. "Meet me outside the county clerk's office in half an hour."