"Eve, watch out!" Ray held out his hand, and she moved forward. The thought of Eve slipping and hurting herself was unbearable. Immediately, bitter bile rose in his throat. His grip was firm as he hurriedly pulled Eve to the safe ground and then close to his chest.

He had to hold her for a moment until his heartbeat calmed.

"Ray, are you all right? Where is...?"

"Escaped," Ray pressed out.

Downstairs, the boy cried bitterly, and the fleeing hermit was quickly forgotten—at least for that moment.

"Come on, let me do it," Ray gasped and gently squeezed Eve's hand. Their eyes met for a few heartbeats; Eve seemed to hesitate but nodded in agreement.

With the help of the roots, Ray climbed into the hollow bit by bit and slid down the rest. Some old rainwater remained at the bottom. It soaked and drenched his boots as he trudged through the mud to Liam.

"Go away!" the little boy scolded, his face wet with tears, and slapped Ray half-heartedly.

"Liam!" came the stern voice from above.

"Come on, Liam. I'll take you up to your mum," Ray said conciliatory. "It's wet and cold down here. You want to see your mum, don't you?"

The boy's lip trembled, and Ray would have liked to take him in his arms to show him he was there for him, too. But he had to give the child time ...

The little fingers wiped over his face and smeared it with more mud. But then he stretched out his arms - and that was all Ray needed. He knelt before the boy and let him climb onto his back. It was exhausting, and his body felt like blades were digging into his flesh. Nevertheless, he pulled himself up the embankment until he could lower the boy into the bed of leaves. There, Eve rushed towards the boy, but he pulled his legs to his body and contorted his face in a mixture of rage and desperate crying.

"No! Liar! I hate you!"

Ray was heartbroken. Liam wanted to throw his arms around his mum's neck and cry. The boy had probably been holding back all the pent-up emotions now bursting out of him.

Eve opened her mouth when Ryker briefly grabbed her hand and squeezed it.

He gave her a long look.

'Let me do it,' he said tonelessly.

Eve visibly shifted her weight from one leg to the other. He saw her press her lips together as she inhaled and exhaled deeply, then nodded.

It meant an unspeakable amount to Ray... because it was an infinite vote of confidence.

Ryker dropped to his knees, placed his hand on his lap, and sought Liam's gaze. But the boy defiantly avoided his gaze. Ray's expression remained gentle and understanding. Liam didn't realize what he had seen.

He was probably afraid that ...

Yeah, what?

Liam was too young to understand what a divorce meant. Maybe he even believed that Dylan was really dead. Ray wondered if Eve had told the boy the truth about his father. Had she only lied to the strange handyman or everyone? At the cottage, the subject of 'Mr White' was avoided like the devil avoided holy water.

Anyway, the boy now saw a stranger at his mum's house.

Was he afraid of losing Eve, like his father?

Could he not bear anyone else at his mum's side?

Or had it really admiration and love for Dylan driven him to this act?

A soft sigh escaped Ryker's lips.

Whatever it was, it didn't make things any easier. Ray wanted to comfort Liam and ease his worries. He wanted to show him that he could - and would - be good to him and to Eve.

But he also knew that he was becoming increasingly entangled in the sticky threads of the web he had woven, partly because of Dylan and partly because of himself. Every lie, every deception, was fiber in a rope that could break his neck sooner or later if he didn't stop lying soon and tell Eve the truth, especially before Dylan turned up here.

His jaw muscles tightened only briefly. A few heartbeats in which his anger at his former mate flared up inside him. But as quickly as the flame was kindled, he smothered it again by focussing his attention on the stubborn little head in front of him - a trait the boy had inherited from Dylan.

"Hey, mate," Ray finally said in a calm tone. He didn't want to push or force the boy. So he refrained from seeking Liam's gaze and just looked at the brown mob before him. "You know, I wasn't completely honest with you. I did say I've always been a craftsman, didn't I?"

The boy's dark eyes flashed cautiously between the brown veil. Furtively, as if he didn't want to be caught looking. Noisily, he scrunched up his nose and sniffled. Even though the boy didn't answer, Ray knew Liam was listening.

"Well, that's not quite the truth. Before I... did what I'm doing now, I was a soldier - just like your dad."

At the word soldier, his head lifted a little, and although the child's small forehead wrinkled, curiosity and surprise flashed. So blatant that Ryker had to struggle with a chuckle for a moment to keep it to a slight grin. Admittedly, he was playing a little unfairly by exploiting the Whirlwind's weakness to his advantage. But as the saying goes, all was fair in war and love.

"I've been to many, many places. And I've met some great people and some I didn't like. But that didn't matter in the field. We were a team there. No matter how angry we were or how little we liked the other person. We always helped each other. If a comrade was injured, you never let him down, you know? Sometimes, but only sometimes, you have to let those you're angry with help you," he tried to explain.

Liam grumbled but seemed to understand the words. Nevertheless, Ryker could see him grinding his teeth sullenly, a gesture that momentarily reminded Ray of Dylan. He had been the same in many a heated situation ... and had driven him mad more than once.

The thought stabbed him in the chest. Dylan was like a brother to him. The men spent more time together than with their families for many years. They knew each other's faults and weaknesses. Now he recognized Dylan in the little man ... and hoped the boy wouldn't turn out like his father.

"Besides," now it was Ryker who nervously lowered his chin and ran his fingers through his hair in his far too typical manner before raising his eyes again. "...I really like you and your mum..."

As if on cue, his gaze slid to Eve, standing next to them with wide eyes and the sweet, slight blush that delighted him so much. She bit her lips and turned her head to the side almost a little too quickly to avoid his gaze and that of her son.

"I could never do anything to hurt you, okay?"

'At least no more than I've already messed up,' he added the last words silently, trying to focus on Liam again. He could feel Eve's gaze in his neck and swallowed harder under it.