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o.
Nicole turns around when her mama chuckles. She tries to cross her arms over her chest and she scrunches her nose up and squints. She doesn’t like it when her mama laughs at her; she knows it means her mama is making fun of her. She spares a glance over her shoulder at her brothers and nods to herself when she sees them taking turns at using the one Tonka Truck they all share. Her mama laughs again.
“What?” Nicole asks, trying to scowl.
Her mama scoops her off the ground and pulls her into her lap. Nicole settles in easily, hunching until her head fits under her mama’s chin. Her mama taps her fingers against Nicole’s stomach and Nicole tries not to squirm. It tickles.
“You sure know how to put out a fire,” her mom says quietly in her ear.
Nicole shakes her head. “Uh uh. I’m gonna be a policeman.” She’s got a hat and a vest and a shiny badge she hides in her secret spot so Billy and Jesse don’t steal it.
Her mama sighs. “I know baby. But not all fires are the kind that needs a firefighter.” She sighs again. “You’re so good with your brothers, baby.”
“Just like you taught me,” Nicole boasts.
“Just like that. How’d you get them to share that toy?”
Nicole sits up a little straighter, balancing on the edge of her mama’s lap. “I told ‘em I’d throw the truck in the woods.” She lowers her voice like she has a secret. “They’re a’scared of the woods.”
Her mama laughs again but it’s not the kind of laugh that Nicole doesn’t like. It’s the good laugh this time. Nicole grins widely.
“Promise me something, baby.”
Nicole turns to look her mama in the eye. Nicole knows promise me is a big deal. She takes big deals very seriously.
“Promise me you’ll always put out their fires, baby.” Her mama touches a finger to the bottom of Nicole’s chin, tilts her face up. "You be my little Peacemaker. Can you do that?”
Nicole nods so hard her head hurts. She nods until her mama laughs again and pulls her back against her chest. They watch her brothers dig up the backyard until they’re covered in dirt, glaring sharply at them each time they seem like they’re about to argue again.
“Promise,” she whispers again.
It’s the last memory she has of her mama.
---
i.
Nicole was always athletic; she’s not out of shape. She went through the academy and always excelled at the physical training portions. She can run a mile in just over 5 minutes and she can carry over 40 pounds on her back across 3 miles of uneven terrain. She can hold her breath underwater for 1 minute and 14 seconds and, she’s not bragging, but she can do 500 pushups in 12 minutes.
None of that helps her when she’s sprinting through the center of Purgatory with a demon chasing her.
“Run!” Wynonna yells from behind her.
Nicole looks over her shoulder and hopes her face says, “That’s what I’m doing!” because she doesn’t have the lung capacity to scream it right now.
Doc, keeping pace with her, apparently does. “I am, woman!” he shouts as he dodges a fireball.
The demon makes a growling noise that sounds far too close for Nicole’s liking. A fireball shines hot across her face as it sails over her shoulder. It hits a trashcan ahead of her. The demon opens its mouth again but anything it says is drowned out by the sound of a car skidding across the dirt.
Nicole’s lungs ache and her thighs are burning but her heart soars when she sees Waverly’s Jeep slide into her peripheral. The tires of the Jeep skid across the compacted dirt road as they try to lead the demon out of the hub of Main Street and towards the outskirts of town.
“Don’t stop!” Waverly shouts.
Nicole ignores her. She’s obviously not going to stop.
The Jeep slows down and falls out of Nicole’s line of sight. She hears a thud and looks back over her shoulder to see Wynonna gripping the side of the open-top Jeep, her feet dragging behind her. If she wasn’t running for her life, Nicole would immediately text Dolls to tell him to put this on the top of her ‘Stupidest Things Wynonna Has Done This Week’ list. Waverly keeps the Jeep going, though, one hand on the wheel while she grabs for Wynonna’s wrist. Nicole doesn’t keep watching but after a few seconds, the Jeep accelerates again and Wynonna is sitting in the passenger seat of the Jeep, her angry face on while she screams at the demon.
“The old garage!” Nicole shouts. Waverly nods back at her and pulls a hard left, getting off the grass and pulling on a street.
Nicole risks a glance at Doc and knows he doesn’t have much left in his tank. Probably just whisky, she thinks to herself. She points a flailing arm to her left and he nods, a hand pressing his hat down on his head. The demon roars again but follows them. Nicole sees the hilt of her utility knife sticking out of its shoulder as it lifts its arm and throws another fireball towards her. She reminds herself to get that later; it was a gift from her mentor at the academy.
She’s not sure how much she has left in her either. She had a sandwich from the diner for lunch and she can feel it turning over in her stomach. The coffee she finished just as reports of a “human torch” started coming in isn’t settling well either. She takes a wide turn at the Wyatt Earp plaque and breathes out a little heavier as they get out of downtown. Doc crosses in front of her and she gives him a small shove to keep him going. The old garage - a rundown stock car repair shop - is right ahead of them and she can see Waverly’s Jeep idling haphazardly in the parking lot, Wynonna standing on the hood.
“A little further!” she yells.
The demon growls again and this time when he launches a fireball, it catches the edge of Doc’s trench coat. The old polyester smolders for a moment before catching and Nicole lets out her own small growl, tapping into the last of her energy. She sails past the Jeep and skids to a stop just past the corner of the building. Doc is wrestling to get out of his coat, flopping on the gravel and yelling. His hat comes off and lands at Nicole’s feet.
Distantly, Nicole is aware of Peacemaker going off and Wynonna whooping. But Doc is still rolling around, the flames hot at Nicole’s ankles. She grabs his hat off the ground and holds it tightly.
“Hold still!” she shouts at him. She brings her hand down, beating the edge of his coat with his hat, the fans fading into embers before they glow bright and fade.
Doc lays on the ground on his back, panting heavily. It takes him a moment before his eyes clear and he stares up at Nicole. “Is that my hat?” he asks, his voice breaking.
Nicole looks down at her hands sheepishly. The hat is gray and ashy. She brushes off some lingering embers and hands it to him slowly. He snatches it out of her hand and holds it tightly against his chest.
“Doc, you were…” Wynonna trails off and slings an arm around Nicole’s shoulder. “Very hot, for a minute there.”
Doc accepts the hand Waverly offers him. He staggers to his feet and looks down at his trench coat, his mouth twisted into a frown. “I cannot continue to replace my personal clothing at such a rate,” he says darkly.
Wynonna shrugs. “If Dolls gives you a clothing allowance, you let me know.”
Waverly slides under Nicole’s other arm. “I know who to call the next time Wynonna lights the stove on fire,” she says conversationally.
Nicole turns and presses a kiss to the crown of Waverly’s head. “Police officer,” she reminds Waverly. “Next time Wynonna catches food on fire, cut her off.” Her stomach twists uncomfortably. “And please don’t mention food. I’m pretty sure my lunch is one more 100-meter sprint from coming back up."
Doc is still complaining about his coat, turning in circles to try and get a good look at the damage. Wynonna is filming him, snickering as he shouts at her. Nicole laces her fingers through Waverly’s and tugs her back towards the Jeep.
“I’m not walking back to the station,” she declares as she climbs into the passenger seat.
“Me either!” Wynonna shouts, skipping past Doc and into the back. Doc sighs wearily and climbs into the Jeep. “Who’s hungry?” she asks as they head back into town.
Nicole groans.
ii.
Nicole’s first thought is desperation.
Tommy Loomis is on his front lawn, on his knees, screaming. And he sounds desperate. Nicole is out of her patrol car before the engine even spurts out. She leaves the door open and her radio hanging from its cradle. She can hear it crackle but she ignores it, grabbing Tommy under his arms and tugging him off the lawn.
“No!” he screams, trying to get out of her hold.
She grips him tighter as another boom echoes in her ear. A fireball the size four wheeler blows out a window on the second floor of his house. He screams louder.
“Tommy,” she tries. He keeps struggling. “Tommy! Stop. Stop!”
He goes slightly limp in her arms and she drags him back a few more feet, stabilizing him against the side of her cruiser. She does a quick assessment of him: his skin is hot to the touch and his hand is already white with blisters. She checks for any lacerations around his head and finds nothing. His eyes are frantic, darting side to side and over Nicole’s shoulder back at his house.
“My daughter,” he sobs. “She’s inside.”
Nicole knows Maia Loomis; she likes Nicole’s hat and whenever Nicole visits the elementary school, Maia asks politely to touch it.
Nicole’s second thought is go.
She pushes at Tommy until he’s half in, half out of her cruiser and reaches over him to get the radio.
“This is Officer Haught. I have a 10-82 in progress,” she calls out as she watches a piece of the siding fall off.
Her radio crackles to life. “10-81?” the dispatcher asks.
Nicole looks at Tommy and them back at house. “Shit, Linda,” she breathes into the radio. “It’s bad. The Loomis house. 10-52,” she says, looking at Tommy. He’s definitely going to need an ambulance. She takes a deep breath. “And, uh, 10-54.”
The radio is silent for a moment before Nicole hears it click back on. “Who?” a different voice asks quietly.
“Maia Loomis is still inside,” Nicole manages to say.
“Shit,” Nedley breathes out.
“Where?” she asks Tommy. "Where is she?”
Tommy points to the second floor. “Her room. I couldn’t… I thought she was following me out but she went up the stairs instead."
Nicole pulls the radio closer to her mouth. “Listen Sheriff, I’m going in there. I gotta try.”
“Like hell you are, Haught” Nedley fires back. “I sent Linda to get the Chief and you’re gonna wait until he gets there.”
Nicole is already shaking her head. “Half of the volunteers are down in Regina at that rodeo convention,” she reminds him.
He swears again. “Haught,” he starts.
Nicole flinches as another window blows out. Tommy, slumped in her front seat, tries to push past her weakly. Nicole looks into his eyes and takes a steadying breath. “Sheriff,” she interrupts. “I’m trying. Tell Chief Rand I’m headed for Maia’s bedroom.” She looks to Tommy.
“Back corner on the left,” Tommy whimpers.
“Back corner on the left,” Nicole repeats.
“Haught,” Nedley says. She can hear him sigh. “Nicole, be smart. Don’t stay in one place. Move quick and light. In and out. If you can’t reach her, don’t linger. In and out,” he repeats. “You got it? In and out and don’t you dare get yourself hurt.”
Nicole smiles crookedly. “The floor is lava, sir.”
“10-4,” he barks.
Nicole presses the radio into Tommy’s hand. “Anyone calls you, identify yourself. Talk to them. An ambulance is coming, okay?”
Tommy nods. “My little girl.”
Nicole nods. “I’m gonna try.” She pops the trunk and grabs a t-shirt from her station bag. She dumps one of her water bottles over it, soaking it through. She ties it around her face, covering her nose and her mouth. It’s bulky and the smell of sweat is nauseating but she pushes down the feeling and places her hat on the top of the cruiser, over her phone and her wallet. She pulls a pair of workout gloves from the pocket of her bag. They’ll do. Her phone vibrates heavily against the roof - someone is calling - but she ignores it and double checks the knot on her makeshift mask. She pulls the gloves on, takes a deep breath, a final look at Tommy, and heads towards the house. She pauses on the front lawn, then runs back to the cruiser. She rifles through the truck, pulling out the 5 lb. fire extinguisher rolling around. She checks the tags and decides she’ll risk it.
The front door is open, swinging back and forth on the hinges. The house is hot, too hot. Nicole steels herself and pushes into the front hall. She looks up and can see the flames are coming from the right side of the house. The stairs are starting to catch, centered in the middle of the house.
In and out. Quick and light.
She takes the stairs two at a time, not gripping the railing. It’s hotter the higher she goes. She feels the heat against her forehead and her eyebrows ache. The smoke drifts out lazily towards her and she takes careful, measured breathes through her t-shirt. She gets to the top of the stairs and pauses on the landing.
Back corner on the left. Don’t stay in one place.
She pivots sharply and opens the first door she finds. A bathroom. She opens the next one - a bedroom, but not Maia’s. A door all the way at the end of the hall is shut tight. Nicole grabs the handle and twists it, pushing into the room. She lifts the t-shirt off her mouth. She puts the fire extinguisher on the floor.
“Maia? It’s Officer Haught. I come visit your class sometimes?”
Nicole scans the room but doesn’t see Maia. She opens the closet, but sees nothing.
“Maia,” she says again, raising her voice over the crackle of fire licking its way down the hall. “It’s okay, Maia.” She sees a pair of shoes sticking out from underneath the bed. She breathes a sigh of relief and drops to the floor on the opposite side of the bed. She lifts the bedspread and tries to give Maia a big smile. “Hey there,” she says. “I’m Officer Haught.”
“I remember you,” Maia whispers.
“Maia, can you come with me? We need to get out of here before we get really hurt, okay?”
Maia blinks owlishly at her. “I needed to get Mr. Fluffy Buns.”
Nicole focuses a little and notices the small kitten in Maia’s hands. She gives Maia a small smile. “Okay. How about I get you and Mr. Fluffy Buns out of here.”
“Where’s my daddy?” Maia asks, her voice small.
“He’s outside, waiting for you. We can go see him now.” Nicole looks back towards the hallway when she hears something crash down. She looks back at Maia just in time to see the little girl flinch. “Maia,” she says, trying to get her attention. She reaches for Maia but the she slides away. “Why don’t you call me Nicole, okay?” Nicole tries.
Maia nods slowly.
Nicole smiles softly. “I need you to come with me, okay? Because your daddy is outside and he’s very worried about you and Mr. Fluffy Buns.”
“Okay, Nicole,” Maia says softly.
Nicole stands and when Maia is on her feet, she peels off her mask, tying the shirt tightly around Maia’s face. She looks at the small kitten in Maia’s hands. She reaches for it. “How about I tuck him inside my shirt,” Nicole offers. She unbuttons the top two buttons and gestures for the cat. Maia hands it over slowly. She slides the kitten between her uniform and undershirt, hissing softly when the kitten’s nails scratch against her collarbone. She reaches down and hoists Maia onto her hip. She stands in the doorway of Maia’s room and stares into the hallway. The fire is spreading quickly. She looks down at the fire extinguisher. 5 pounds of sodium bicarbonate isn’t a lot, but it’ll have to do.
In and out.
She puts Maia down and crouches next to her. “Maia,” she says gently. “I need you to get on my back, like a piggy back ride, okay? And I need you to promise to hold on tightly. Can you do that?”
Maia nods wordlessly. Nicole turns and winces when Maia’s feet dig into her ribs. She stands slowly, checking Maia’s grip around her neck. Nicole hoists the fire extinguisher up and takes a deep breath. She tries to remember her limited training. Pull, aim, squeeze, sweep, she reminds herself. Nicole checks Maia’s legs around her ribs.
“Hold on tight,” she repeats.
She pulls the pin on the fire extinguisher and aims it out in front of her. A flame laps at her ankles and she squeezes the trigger. She presses Maia against the wall, sliding down it slowly towards the stairs. The smoke is thicker now, harder to see through. It coats the inside of her mouth and she inhales too much. Her throat feels raw instantly and the sudden inhalation makes her stumble. Maia’s grip tightens and Nicole grabs blindly for the wall, trying to get air into her lungs. The wall is hot and she pulls her hand off it quickly, nearly dropping to her knees. She squeezes the fire extinguisher again and the air cools for a quick second. She staggers back up on her feet, pushing Maia back against the wall again. She slides along it, using the extinguisher to clear a path for herself. She gets to the top of the stairs and takes the corner, staying tight against the wall. A flame laps out and brushes against her nose. She swats at it and sprays the extinguisher. She can feel it getting lighter but she can't see the door. The smoke is suffocating, curling around her. Her neck is wet from the shirt wrapped around Maia’s face. She stumbles down the stairs, crashing to the first floor on her knees. Maia stays wrapped around her. She feels for her stomach, near where her shirt is tucked into her belt and gives a small cough of relief. The kitten squirms against her. She pushes up to her feet and drops the extinguisher from one hand, pushing at the front door.
The lawn is lit up with red, blue, and white lights. Nicole stumbles to her knees again, her strength gone. The extinguisher bounces against the cracked concrete walkway. A pair of hands reach for Maia and Nicole finds her voice enough to tell Maia it’s okay, go see your daddy. She paws at her shirt until another button comes loose and fishes the kitten out, handing it to the first set of hands that reach for it. She sags forward, pressing her hand against her knees and struggling to breathe. Just as she thinks she’s getting her breath back, something hard and heavy tackles her to the ground, touching her face and her throat.
“Haughtmoney,” Wynonna says into her ear.
“Off,” she wheezes. “Off.”
A hand grips her collar tightly, pulling her off the ground. “Nicole,” Waverly says, her voice far away and breaking. “You… You-“
“Haught!” someone yells.
Nicole feels her body pitch forward. Hands circle her waist and hold her steady. Waverly, she thinks. She knows those shoulders and those fingertips and the way they press against her ribs.
“I need oxygen!” the same voice shouts. “Goddamn it, Haught. I told you not to get hurt.”
Nedley, Nicole thinks.
The hands at her collar tighten as she slides forward again. She can hear someone humming in her ear.
“Wynonna,” Nicole breathes out. She struggles to open her eyes. “Now isn’t the time to sing ‘This Girl is on Fire,’ she says.
Nicole keeps her eyes open just long enough to watch Waverly reach around Nicole and smack Wynonna on the arm. “Waves,” she breathes out.
Waverly’s hands are on her face and they’re so cool. She feels so hot. “We need to get you to the ambulance,” Waverly says. “And then I can yell at you.”
“I’m next,” Nedley says, his voice gruff. Nicole feels his heavy hand land on her shoulder. It squeezes gently. “But for the record, I’m proud of you. Chief says your little extinguisher cleared enough of a path that they were able to get up the stairs. They might be able to save the structure."
A plastic mask comes up over her face and pumps pure oxygen into her lungs. They feel sticky, coated with smoke, but she manages to open her eyes and give Nedley what she hopes is a grin.
Waverly walks her down the slope of the lawn slowly.
“This girl is on fire,” Wynonna sings softly behind her.
iii.
Nicole feels uncomfortable without her uniform on. She reaches for a utility belt that isn’t there. She tugs at a collar she’s not wearing. Her shoulder feel sloped instead of sharp and pointed. The blazer she’s wearing feels tight in the wrong places. She pulls at the waistline of it and gives up at trying to stretch it out, throwing it over a chair instead. The button up she’s wearing underneath it doesn’t feel as tight. She clenches her hands into fists and forces them deep into the pockets of the khakis she picked out.
A hand settles between her shoulder blades and she lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. “Breathe, baby,” Waverly tells her softly. “I’m right here.”
“I don’t know, Waves,” Nicole starts to say. “Maybe this isn’t a good idea.”
“We can leave whenever you want,” Waverly promises. “Just say the word and we’re out of here.”
“Yeah, Haught topic. Say the word,” Wynonna parrots.
Nicole lets out a laugh that sounds more like a cough. She turns to look at Wynonna, sitting on the windowsill. “Why did you come again?”
Wynonna’s face goes soft. “Because you need your family right now,” she says quietly. Her face tightens again. “And that’s us, so deal with it.”
A door opens and Nicole’s head snaps up.
“You came,” Billy says. His voice is so much deeper now at 31 than it was at 21. He grew into his ears and his nose, too, Nicole thinks. He’s still the spitting image of their daddy.
“I wasn’t sure I would,” she admits.
Billy nods. “Carly owes me $20 now.”
Nicole shakes her head, a small smile on her face. “That wife of yours still doesn’t know when to fold?”
Billy shrugs. “She never did.”
Waverly shifts besides her and Nicole suddenly remembers there’s two other people in the room. Waverly’s hand slides down to the small of her back before it slides off her completely. Nicole misses its warmth almost immediately.
“Right,” she says, clearing her throat. “This is Waverly. My, uh, girlfriend.” She barely stumbles over the word. She hooks a thumb over her shoulder. “And that’s her sister, Wynonna.”
Billy stares at her for a long moment. “Well, guess Carly can keep her money.”
Nicole’s shoulders tighten. “You have nothing better to do than bet on me?” Behind her, she can feel Wynonna push off the windowsill and settle just behind her.
Billy puts his hands up in surrender. “Nic, I’m not looking to fight.”
Nicole breathes out, deflating. “I’m not either.”
The door opens so hard it slams against the wall. Nicole jumps, her hand going to a holster she’s not wearing. Waverly’s hand covers hers and Nicole calms quickly.
Her brother staggers into the room, his eyes glazed and his steps heavy. His eyes swing wildly around the room. They settle on Wynonna and he frowns before he moves and looks at Nicole.
“The prodigal son returns,” he says loudly. His arms flail in two directions. He finally points to Nicole. “I mean you, obviously. Me and Bill here haven’t gone anywhere.”
Nicole sighs. “I know who you meant, Jesse.”
Jesse smiles humorlessly. “Right. ‘Course you did. You know everything, ain’t that right, Nicky?”
Billy steps forward. “Jesse,” he warns. “Not today.”
Jesse turns to face him, overestimating the spin. “Well, when else are we gonna see her, Bill? She never comes home. Christ, the man had to die for her to step foot in the county again.”
Nicole’s fists clench at her side. Waverly’s hand settles on her back again.
Billy steps closer and puts himself between Nicole and Jesse. “Jesse, come on.”
“If he has something to say to me, he should say it,” Nicole says. She feels brave with Waverly by her side; braver than she would feel if she had come to her dad’s funeral alone.
Jesse’s mouth twists into a snarl. “You left us. You don’t care about us. You never did.”
“That’s-“
“Bullshit,” Billy finishes. Nicole sighs.
Wynonna steps closer, leaning into Waverly. “What’s going on here, exactly?”
Nicole knows the beginnings of a Haught family fight; she lived them for 19 years before she had the courage to say ‘enough was enough’ and put herself through school and the academy. It starts with her daddy, always, and this time is no different. He might be dead but his memory lingers and now everything is going to hell.
“10 years, Billy,” Jesse is saying. “She’s been gone ten years. And did she call? Did she write? Did she check on her brothers and their dying father?” Jesse doesn’t wait for an answer. “No, she didn’t.”
Fights always went like this: Jesse twisted and turned up about something, usually something Nicole did. Being 11 months apart and in the same grade, lusting after the same girl, fighting for the same spotlight, made growing up hard. And Billy, three years wiser and older, always picked Nicole’s side. Jesse would get more bent out of shape, angry now at Billy, until Nicole stepped in and played judge and jury.
Peacemaker, her mother had called her.
Nicole’s eyes stray to the other Peacemaker, strapped to Wynonna’s side.
“And now she just shows up, all accomplished, with some chick in heels, and we’re supposed to just fall over and kiss her feet?” Jesse continues.
Billy growls and leaps forward, grabbing Jesse by the collar. He pushes backwards, shoving Jesse against the door, their faces red enough to match their hair. “Daddy was shit to her after Mama died and you know it. So don’t you dare stand here, drunk off your ass, and accuse her of not coming to visit when you know Daddy didn’t want her to come anyway.”
The words sting. She’s always known that her daddy wasn’t fond of her, but hearing the words spoken out loud cuts her deeper than she’d like to admit. The tips of Waverly’s fingers dig into her back as Waverly flinches. She can’t bear to look at Waverly and see the pity on her face so she doesn’t. Instead, she stands stock-still and tense, watching as Jesse struggles against Billy’s grip. Suddenly, Jesse is out from under Billy and he’s twisting, pushing Billy face first into the door, pulling his fist back.
Nicole catches it just before it catches Billy under the ear. She twists her wrist and Jesse’s arm bends backward, his fist pushing between his own shoulder blades. He struggles but she continues pushing until he’s pressed against the door next to Billy. She puts her palm flat against Billy’s back too, holding him steady. She eases up on the hold she has on Jesse’s arm, afraid of breaking something. He takes advantage of the moment and slips her grip, lunging towards Billy with a growl. Nicole catches him around the neck and bends, holding him in a headlock against her hip. Billy’s foot swings up, aiming for Jesse’s face. Nicole catches that too, twisting his ankle. He spins midair and falls face-first onto the floor, his ankle still trapped in Nicole’s hand.
“We’re done,” she hisses. “Both of you are done. Got it? This is our father’s funeral. And we’re going to act like it. So get your heads out of your asses and act like somebody died, not like you're the main attraction at an MMA match."
She looks up and comes face to face with Wynonna’s gun, aimed at Jesse’s forehead.
Billy tries to flail in her grip but gives up sigh, tapping twice against the floor to signal that he gives up. Jesse struggles in Nicole’s arm but settles after he realizes he’s not going anywhere either. His body slumps and when she lets him go, he sinks to the floor.
“This is a hell of a family reunion, Haught mess,” Wynonna says casually, gun still trained on Jesse.
Nicole takes a deep breath and sighs. “We’re usually more civilized than this.”
Jesse snorts. Billy rolls over onto his back. Nicole offers him a hand and hoists him up. She turns to Jesse and offers him the same. He stares at her for a moment before nodding to himself and grabbing her hand, letting her pull him off the floor.
“It’s been a while since Peacemaker laid down the law,” Jesse says, rubbing a hand against the back of his neck.
Wynonna stares at her gun and then back at Jesse. “Uh, how did you-“
“Me, Wynonna,” Nicole cuts in. “I’m Peacemaker.”
Waverly’s hand finds hers again, their fingers lacing together. Nicole feels a flush of calm wash over her.
Wynonna frowns and chews her bottom lip before shrugging. “Makes sense, I guess.”
Nicole’s lips twitch. “Oh yeah?” Waverly leans into her side. Nicole looks down at her and smiles softly. She looks up and locks eyes with Jesse. “Jess, this is Waverly. My girlfriend. And her sister, Wynonna.”
“We’re with her,” Wynonna points out unnecessarily.
Jesse nods, his eyes lingering on Waverly. He finally looks up and meets Nicole’s eyes again. “She’s prettier than Claire McNally.”
Nicole snorts. “She sure is.”
Waverly gives a fake gasp and swats Nicole lightly in the stomach. “Claire McNally? You’ve never mentioned her before.”
“I have baby pictures,” Jesse says loudly. “At the house!” He flaps his arm excitedly. “If she didn’t tell you about Claire, she definitely didn’t tell you about Ward Thomas’ girl. Damn, what was her name?”
“Frankie,” Billy offers.
“Frankie Thomas!” Jesse shouts. He quiets down and reaches for Nicole’s shoulder, squeezing gently. “I’m sorry, Nicky,” he breathes out. “I missed you."
She stares at him for a moment until she can’t take the silence anymore. “Whatever,” she mutters, grinning at him. She pushes him away. “Come on. Let’s go bury the past.”
Waverly’s hand feels warm and heavy in her own.
iv.
Nicole hears them before she sees them. She’s sitting at her desk in the station, flipping through a case file Nedley asked her to look at. She tries to keep it pushed under a file for a case she’s running; if the rest of the guys find out she’s playing spellcheck for their reports, they’ll turn on her quick. She’s trying to focus but someone curses loudly and Nicole looks up, her eyes scanning the nearly-empty bullpen. She’s only here so late while she waits for Waverly to be done at the library with some research; she’s not even in her full uniform. She traded her button-down for a Purgatory Sheriff’s Department t-shirt and her utility belt is sitting on her desk.
Someone else curses and Nicole frowns, standing up. Her back cracks as she twists side to side, stretching her arms over her head. Her shoulders pop and she hisses softly. Her cold coffee cup stares back at her and she picks it up, swirling the last sip she never finished around in a circle before dumping it into her small trashcan. An extra cup can’t hurt; on nights like this when Waverly is doing research, there’s no telling when she’ll finish.
Nicole gets as far as the front desk when she hears the same noise. It sounds like a thud, followed by a string of words Nicole can’t make out. She double back to her desk, sliding her utility belt back on, unbuttoning her holster. She rests her hand on her gun and leaves her coffee mug on her desk. She palms her phone but Waverly hasn’t text her yet.
Linda, their dispatch officer, drifts by her in a sleepy daze. She’d switched to nights since her grandson moved in her with and she’s become the ghost of the station. Nicole reminds herself to get Linda a green tea from the kitchenette after she figures out what’s going on.
A shadow moves across the frosted glass of the door leading to the BBD office. Nicole unholsters her gun now, her senses tingling. She crouches low behind the front desk and rounds it, her gun aimed ahead of her. She slides up against the wall the door is on, taking a deep breath before she reaches for the knob. She grips it tightly and turns slowly. It doesn’t squeak. She slips forward, easing through the crack. The voices are louder now and she recognizes them - but barely, over the pounding of her blood in her ears.
“Put your - god, take these off,” someone growls.
Two shadows move near the back of the office. She creeps forward towards a back room - if Dolls never let her in here before, Lucado sure as hell wasn’t letting her through the door. She can hear water turn on and she frowns.
“This is so much easier without your hat,” she hears.
“Please do not ruin the moment, Wynonna,” someone else drawls.
Nicole stands, sighing. It’s Wynonna and Doc and - she frowns.
It’s Wynonna and Dolls and it sounds like they’re having sex.
Shower sex.
In the Black Badge office.
Nicole resists the urge to gag and reholsters her gun instead. She turns and heads back towards the bullpen but stops and turns sharply back around. She stalks forward, through into the back room and closes her eyes as much as she can while still being able to see. She reaches a hand into the shower and pushes the knob as far right as she can, the water instantly freezing cold.
She sprints out of the small shower room and back through the BBD office, slamming the door behind her. She sinks back against the door, grinning wildly when she hears Wynonna screaming.
Her phone rings and Nicole doesn’t look before accepting the call. “Hey, Waves. Done at the library?"
v.
Nicole doesn’t notice it immediately. White-gray smoke slips out from under the door of the small station kitchenette. It takes a few minutes before Nicole’s nose twitches. By the time she looks up, the whole bullpen has a faint haze to it.
She jumps back from her desk so quickly she knocks her coffee over. It spills across her case files, ruining her just-finished notes on the Lewis break-in. She ignores it and rushes across the bullpen instead, touching the knob of the door to the kitchenette before she grabs it hard and twists it open. The smoke billows out of the small space, suffocating her. She takes off her hat and fans it in front of her face, trying to clear the air enough to pinpoint the point of origin. There’s a small spark across the room.
“Shit tits,” someone hisses.
Nicole comes to a full stop. “Wynonna?” she asks.
There’s a moment of silence before someone clears their throat. “Haughtpotato?”
Nicole starts waving her hat again, clearing smoke out of her eyes. She turns her body in the direction of where she thinks Wynonna is standing and moves forward.
“Ouch,” Wynonna complains.
Nicole lifts her foot and then steps down hard again.
“Okay, that was on purpose,” Wynonna says. A hand reaches out and hits Nicole in the stomach. “Just like that was.”
Nicole grunts and swings her hat close to where she thinks Wynonna’s face is, pulling it in just a little before it actually hits her. “What the hell are you doing in here?"
Wynonna bangs something metal down against something else metal. “I was making bacon.” Something flashes again.
Nicole rolls her eyes and reaches for a window she knows is above the sink. It takes a few tugs but she gets it open. The cool mid-spring breeze blows in and some of the smoke dissipates. “Shit!” Nicole yelps when she turns and gets a good look at the stove.
The pan Wynonna was using is in flames. It boils up the sides and licks into the air.
Wynonna sighs as some of the smoke clears. She turns to the sink and fills a cup with water.
Nicole watches her lift her arm in slow motion, clearly intending to dump the cup of water into the pan to smother the flames. Nicole lunges forward and grabs for Wynonna’s t-shirt, pulling her to the floor as Wynonna dumps the cup over the pan. The fire erupts, blooming up towards the ceiling. Nicole hits the floor with a heavy thud, Wynonna landing on top of her.
“Holy Haught ball,” Wynonna whispers, mystified. The pan smolders, thick grey smoke pouring out from the stovetop. Nicole kicks Wynonna off of her and rolls onto her stomach, pushing up to her knees as she grabs the small fire extinguisher they keep in the kitchenette. She pulls the pin and fires at the pan, suffocating the smoke and the last sparks lingering in the pan.
Wynonna sits up and scoots back until she’s sitting against the cabinets, her mouth hanging open.
“What in the hell is going on in here?” Nedley growls from the doorway.
Nicole pants from where she’s kneeling in the middle of the kitchen. Wynonna lifts the cup she’s still holding up in one hand, a slice of bacon Nicole didn’t notice before in the other. “Uh, checking Nicole’s response time?” Wynonna offers.
Nedley narrows his eyes and growls under his breath, turning and leaving the door.
Nicole sighs heavily and flops back onto the floor on her stomach.
“Goodness gracious great ball of fire,” Wynonna signs softly.
Nicole turns her head to glare at Wynonna.
Wynonna shrugs and rips the piece of bacon in her hand in half. “Halfsies?”
---
i.
Nicole sighs contently and tips her head back, clearing the last few drops from her beer can. She aims the empty towards the small cooler a few feet away, flicking her wrist and letting the can fly. It sinks into the cooler with a satisfying clink. Waverly catches her arm as it comes back down, her fingers slipping under the sleeve of Nicole’s shirt.
“I’m sorry,” Waverly whispers into her arm.
Nicole frowns and pulls back a little. “What for?”
Waverly looks around and then back at Nicole. “This isn’t exactly the birthday party I was planning for you.”
Nicole grins and leans back into Waverly. “This is good,” she says. She feels Waverly, still and stiff against her. “Honesty,” she says, turning to press her lips to the crown of Waverly’s head. “This is the best birthday I’ve had since my mom died.”
Waverly melts, tipping her head to rest it against Nicole’s arm. She grips Nicole a little tighter. “Well, I still intend to make it up to you,” she promises. “Wynonna is going to spend the night… somewhere else. So I can give you your present.”
Nicole laughs. “Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah,” Waverly mumbles back. Nicole can see the hint of a blush on her cheeks.
Nicole smiles widely and looks around the fire at the rest of the partygoers. Wynonna is sitting on a log, staring intensely at Dolls over the top of her whisky bottle. They’re having some sort of contest no one - including them - knows the real rules to. Doc is sitting on a broken lawn chair , his feet up on one of the rocks they used to create the fire pit. Even Nedley is hunched over in their non-broken lawn chair, gruffly retelling the story of the time he chased a cow in a clown hat through town. Nicole picks up a stick and reaches forward, poking at the fire and moving around the embers. Small sparks lifts and shower the ground outside of the rock ring. One lands on Wynonna’s knee and she flinches, looking down as she swats the ember out.
“I win,” Dolls says smugly, leaning back on his log.
Wynonna curses and hands him the whisky bottle. “One sip,” she demands. He takes two.
Nicole smiles wider and wraps her arm around Waverly, pulling her even closer. “I-“ she starts to say.
“Present time!” Wynonna yells, her whisky bottle already back in her hand. “Randy,” she offers.
Nedley staggers to his feet. Nicole goes to stand but he holds out a hand and clears his throat. “I, uh, wasn’t sure what to get you. You already have a pretty good mug and a utility knife and usually, I get Chrissy a day at that place she likes where they use cucumbers on your eyes, but uh,” he shoots Wynonna a glare when she snorts. “I figured you could use a few days off. So I submitted a request and signed off. Three days. You just let me know when you wanna use ‘em.”
Nicole smiles softly. “Thanks, Sheriff.”
Nedley nods, uncomfortable, and then sits down.
“Dolls,” Wynnona instructs.
Dolls stands and pulls a piece of paper out of his pocket. “Happy Birthday.”
Nicole unwinds herself from Waverly and unfolds the paper, struggling to read it by firelight. “Is this… Is this clearance?”
Dolls nods, a faint smile on his lips. “Lucado approved temporary clearance. You’ll have to prove yourself.”
“I will,” Nicole swears.
“Christ, Dolls. You’re takin’ the only competent officer I got,” Nedley swears. But he gives Nicole a small smile when Nicole catches his eye.
Nicole holds the paper close to her chest. “Thank you, Dolls.”
He nods and sits back down. Doc rises up quickly and hands her a clumsily wrapped package. She struggles to untie the knots and pulls at it with her teeth instead. Slowly, she unfolds a tin piece and turns it over, sucking in a breath.
“Henry, this is…”
Doc nods. “Despite my feelings on Mr. James, I understand he is a point of interest for you.”
“This is an original,” Nicole breathes out. She holds the tintype carefully, tipping it a little so the firelight hits it. “This is Jesse before the war.”
“He was a buffon,” Doc adds.
Nicole shrugs, grinning happily. “This is great, Henry. Thank you.”
Doc tips his hat, still stiff and new on his head.
Wynonna sighs. “Well. My gift sucks.”
Nicole laughs. “You actually got me something?”
Wynonna gasps, holding a hand to her chest. “I’m offended. I bought your gift months ago.”
Nicole holds out her hand, beckoning for Wynonna’s gift. Wynonna reaches behind her log and holds up a cylindrical-shaped present, sighing. It drops into Nicole’s hand heavily and she’s not expecting the weight. She barely catches it. She slowly rips off the newspaper wrapping and groans loudly. “Wynonna.”
Wynonna is smiling. “I thought, since you’ve used every single one I think this town owns, you might need a replacement.”
Nicole pulls the rest of the wrapping off, exposing the bright red color of the fire extinguisher. Waverly snickers before it slides into a full blown laugh. Doc his his smile under the brim of his hat. Even Dolls and Nedley are smirking. Wynonna’s smile is stretched from ear to ear.
“You’re an ass,” Nicole finally says.
“A top shelf ass,” Wynonna corrects. “From your mouth to God’s ears.” She hops up to her feet and kicks the newspaper wrapping into the fire. It ignites quickly. “Well, I’m headed to bed. Haughtstuff? Happy Birthday. Congratulations on another year. Don’t have sex anywhere I sleep. Or eat. Or shower.” She saunters away from the fire, the night swallowing her with each step. “Boys,” she calls.
Dolls ducks his head slightly and barely catches Nicole’s eye. “Happy Birthday. Agent,” he adds after a moment.
Nicole lifts a hand goodbye.
Doc tips his hat. “Ladies.” He steps into the shadows and disappears.
Nicole chews on her bottom lip as Nedley looks around uncomfortably before standing. “Right, then. I’d better get. See you tomorrow, Haught.”
Nicole nods. “Night, Sheriff.”
Waverly shifts closer as Nicole sits back. “And then it was us,” she sings.
Nicole nods. “So it was.”
They’re quiet for a moment, staring into the flickering flames. Nicole feels the heat barely hitting her cheeks but Waverly is hot besides her.
“Wanna go in?” Waverly asks eventually. The flames are nearly nothing now. Nicole reaches out with her stick again, shifting the ashes around before she throws a few piece of kindling onto the embers.
“Or we could stay out here,” Nicole counters. She shifts so her leg is under her and she’s staring at Waverly. “I mean, this qualifies as somewhere Wynonna doesn’t sleep. Or eat. Or shower.”
Waverly smirks. “That is true,” she says slowly.
“And I have this brand new fire extinguisher handy, should anything get too…” She pauses, leaning in towards Waverly, her eyes on Waverly’s lips. “Hot,” she finishes.
Waverly laughs, loudly. She winds a hand around the back of Nicole’s neck and tugs gently, pulling down as she leans back into the dirt until their lips meet. “Happy Birthday, baby,” she says when they pull apart.
"Best birthday ever," Nicole repeats.