Disclaimer: Not mine, just writing for fun.

A/N: So sorry for the delay!!! My internet access was shut down for a whole week!!! I am quite certain the phone company is run by the devil. So this is going to be a three parter, guess I had more to write about than I thought! Hope you guys like it and I know it's a bit of a cliffhanger, but that only makes you guys want to read more!:D Next installment should be up in a couple of days, now that I have my internet back!!! Hope you guys like it!!! Please Comment!!!

______________________________________________________________________ Jayne deposited Kaylee on the examination table gently and then leaned back against the counter as Simon checked over her vitals. He just crossed his arms and then shook his head as laughter began to bubble out of his mouth. Simon looked up from his ministrations and scowled as he waited for Jayne to express some vulgar quip. “You really screwed the pooch this time, doc.” Well that’s a new one- Simon thought. His scowl diminished as he contemplated what Jayne had said. Colorful as it was, Jayne had nailed it on the head. He was completely to blame, but he didn’t want to give in to it just yet, especially when it was Jayne pointing out the fact. Jayne pushed himself away from the counter and stared down at Kaylee, “She’s gonna string ya up for this one.” Simon kept himself focused on hooking Kaylee up to the monitor. Never taking his eyes off his work, he retorted, “All canine fornicating and lynching aside, I’d like to be left alone with my wife.” Jayne sauntered out of the infirmary with a slight grin, calling back , “Good plan there, seein‘ as she might not be your wife much longer when she wakes . Best getchya time in while ya can.” Simon eyed the scalpel that had been laying on the tray next to the exam table and then at Jayne’s back, but thought better of it as he let out a sigh. Simon just stared down at Kaylee as she slept, still under the influence of the tranquilizer he had shot her with only an hour before. The silence of the infirmary was only interrupted by the shallow breaths of Kaylee and the beeping monitor. They were on their way to a spaceport, since they couldn’t land on planet. When they reached there, Kaylee would be awake and Simon would have to face the consequences of his actions. He reached down and slid the back of his hand along the side of her cheek, savoring the soft feel, for he was certain he wouldn’t be touching her for a long while. He smiled to himself as he remembered all the times he had made her angry. Her temper was a short fuse, followed by the inevitable forgiveness that seemed to well forth from her heart. He remembered when he had accidentally insulted her by insinuating that she was the “only” girl in the world. He had meant to say to him that she was, but it had come out all wrong. It had been so hard for him to let her in and now he would have to try to break down walls. His betrayal, or that was unquestionably how Kaylee would interpret his drugging her, was nothing that either of them had ever experienced. Each time they had angered each other it had been resolved within a day or two, and their arguments had been minor compared to what they would have to go through now. Simon sat himself down on the stool next to Kaylee and grasped her hand, the other he laid gently on her burgeoning stomach. He rubbed the inside of her palm as he remembered when he had first talked to Mal about the “plan”. They had just found out that Kaylee was pregnant with Molly. Kaylee and Simon had only been married a year when she had announced that she was stopping her birth control injections. Simon agreed to it, thinking that they would be trying for a good long time if he planned it just right. Of course, he didn’t factor in his inability to refuse Kaylee whenever she wanted something, anything for that matter. The thought of bringing a baby into their lives completely overwhelmed Simon. He already had so many fears, one being that their life and works were conducive to being shot at and chased all across the galaxy. Simon loved his wife, he loved her so much, he was afraid he may just lose her and his new family. He had approached Mal when Kaylee was visiting Inara in her shuttle. He had been alone in the galley, with Zoe and River in the cockpit, and Jayne working out in the cargo bay. “Captain?” Mal jerked his head up from the coffee he had been staring at to face Simon. “Well, doc, what can I do for you? Simon pulled up the closest chair to Mal, which had put Mal on the alert. Usually Simon liked to keep his distance from people, personal space and what not. The only people he ever really got near were Kaylee and River. “I..ah...I wanted to talk about Kaylee and ..umm, the baby.” Mal titled his head as he just kept silent, waiting for the boy to spit it out. “I just think that, well, maybe in the line of work that this ship does-” “Ain’t too safe for a new little family, now is it?” “Ah, yes.” Mal took in Simon’s demeanor, his slumped shoulders, hands pressed together in front of him, and decided to give the boy a break. “Well, son, I think it may be that you should be having this discussion with Kaylee.” “She wouldn’t dream of leaving Serenity, not now at least,” Simon looked up from his hands and stared directly into Mal’s eyes,” That’s why I need your help.” “Look here, I ain’t gonna try to convince the best mechanic that I’v-” “No, Mal, you don’t understand. Kaylee would never willingly leave Serenity, even when her life would be in danger. She’s so devoted to this crew, this ship, it would be against every fiber of her being to abandon her post. I know we are here to perform certain duties, but now that she’s with child, I just don’t think I could bear-” Mal held up his hand to quiet Simon,” What do you wanna do?” Kaylee moved her hand in her sleep, breaking Simon's thoughts. It made Simon’s heart skip a beat. It was too early for her to wake up but he so desperately just wanted to see her shining eyes, he wanted to kiss her, and have her kiss him back, but all he could do was hold her hand and devise a plan to win back her trust. ______________________________________________________________________

Inara jostled Molly, bouncing her up and down as she prepared something to drink for her in the galley. Simon had asked her to take care of the baby while he tended to Kaylee, but Inara knew better. Simon needed to collect himself before Kaylee woke. She truly felt for him, he was in quite a predicament. Inara moved Molly over to her left hip and reached into the right pocket of skirt, hidden by folds of shimmering gold silk, feeling the small scrap of paper that Simon had shoved into her hand. She hadn't looked at the note, it being something private between Simon and Kaylee, but rubbing the paper gave her some comfort. Inara knew her friend would feel betrayed and devistated, yet maybe the words inside could bring a little light on the circumstances for Kaylee. Molly reached up pulled on Inara's hair, jarring her out of her revelry, then giggled as Inara began to tickle her. Her eyes shone brightly, just like Kaylee‘s, their trilling laughter filling up the room. "Least someone is happy on this boat." Zoe wandered in from the bridge and walked past Molly and Inara, reaching out and rubbing Molly's cheek. She then grabbed her mug from the counter and poured herself a cup of hot water from the kettle. "Trouble's brewing." Zoe moved out of the kitchenette, grabbing a tea bag and sat herself down at the dining table. Inara picked up the trainer cup and Molly instantly grabbed for it, calling out, “Mine!” Inara just let Molly take hold of her drink as she rearranged them on the chair across from Zoe’s. She cradled Molly in the crook of her arm, the toddler settling in against her body. One of her little hands reached out to run her fingers along Inara's skin, making Inara smile down at the child. After the events of the day , Inara seemed to not want to let go of the little girl and she hugged Molly a little tighter as she thought about what Zoe was suggesting, "There might be repercussions, those people who were chasing us?” “Mal’s on the cortex right now with Bernouli, maybe he can suss out what tipped them off, or who.” “You don’t think the feds will get wind of the situation?” “Don’t think they’d much care about two vessels such as ours, “ Zoe took another sip of her tea and then smiled back at Inara, “ Wouldn’t worry too much, we’re on our way to the Whittier outpost, quiet port, and a good three sectors from here.” “What about the drop off? The cargo still has to be ... disposed of.” Zoe smirked back at Inara,” It’s what he’s working on right now.” "Do we have any idea of who they were?" "Mal seems to have a notion, knew they weren't too hospitable from the start. Ain't seen fit to share it just yet." Zoe picked up her mug and wandered out of the galley down towards the infirmary. Inara stared off into the kitchen, distracted by her own thoughts when Molly ran her fingers along Inara's arm again and sighed. She looked down at the little girl beginning to nod off, the cup lying limply in her hand. She carefully removed the cup and set it on the table, then proceeded back to her shuttle with the sleepy toddler. ______________________________________________________________________

“Ya know Mal, I paid ya to drop off the goods on Lian Juin, not a couple days from now, but today,” Bernouli’s pale, round, pig like face had the distinct look of irritation as he leaned back in his chair, his head changing position on the vid screen. “I surely do, but it seems we’ve run into a predicament. Landscape's changed a bit, you could say." Bernouli pushed back forward in his chair, intrigued by Mal‘s words, "What're ya getin' at Mal?" "It's come to my attention that someone else might be wantin' what we're carryin' for ya." "Well...I sent out a couple of waves fore I got a hold of ya, but no one bit.” Mal leaned back against the console and eyed River, who was just out of sight. She nodded that he was telling the truth and so Mal continued on,” We ain’t carrying nothing that’s too special here, Bernouli?” “Just some seeds and...redistributed farm equipment, Mal.” “Hell, I could care less if the goods are hot, I just wanna know if any one in particular were interested in us taking the job, ‘stead of them, maybe?”.” “Look, we’ve always had a favorable business relationship, good work on both ends, but I can rightly say that I have no idea who would be after you. The goods were from a warehouse in Persephone. Some ambitious entrepreneurs liberated them and I got a hold of the shipment bout a week or so ago. Phelps on Lian Juin gave me the best price and that’s when I got hold of you, after a few missed opportunities by others. End of story Mal.” Mal rubbed his temple and then replied, “All right then, give us a day or two. Gotta make some repairs and then the shipment will be delivered.” Bernouli grimaced, but resigned himself to making the deal work,” I’ll contact Phelps, You just be there. Get your house in order, Mal. Two days,” Bernouli leaned back in his seat again, then shut off the communiqué. River looked up at Mal from the co-pilots chair, her eyes wide and knowing. Mal ran a hand through his hair, and moved out of the console area to lean against the lockers, crossing his arms in thought. “You know who they were, shot you once before.” Mal gave her a frown, he not liking her mucking about in his brain. “Yep, seems like everybody in the ‘verse has taken a shot at me, but they was salvagers, like us. This time they was trying to run us into the ground. Ship ain’t worth nothing if it’s busted up into little, bitty pieces,“ Mal pushed himself off of the lockers as he began to make his way out of the cockpit,“ Nope, some one was behind it, and I wanna know who.” ______________________________________________________________________

Zoe looked into the infirmary windows from the stairs to see Simon sitting by the exam table, resting his head against his hand, the other clasped in Kaylee’s own. She shook her head as she continued down , making her steps louder, giving Simon time to collect himself. She entered the infirmary as he stood up from his stool and moved over to check the monitor on the wall behind him. “How’re things going, doc?” He turned to her, his face showing nothing of the emotions running through it. It was something she truly liked about the doc, his detached demeanor. Something they had in common, not letting people in. Those that they did, well, they were special. “She should be awake within the hour.” Zoe walked forward to face him directly, so there could be no mistaking the meaning of her words, “You did the right thing. She’d of been a liability if we did get run down. Couldn’t be worrying over her and your babies and still get out alive.” Simon’s brow furrowed as he took in what Zoe was really doing. She had been the silent warrior, never flinching in the line of duty, but here she was giving him a pep talk. Not much for sentimentality, Zoe cocked her head to one side, looking back at Kaylee and then to Simon again, “ Not to say ya ain’t going to be payin’ for this one, but ya know the old sayin‘. The road to hell and all.” With that Zoe turned on her heel and left the infirmary, leaving Simon to ponder her words. He was still a little shocked that she would reach out to him, he expected it more of Inara, or even his sister. Yet she had known exactly what to say to him, bolstering his leaden heart.

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Mal entered Inara’s shuttle unannounced as Inara was accustomed to. She held a finger up to her lips when he passed through her curtains into inner sanctum. She stayed perched on the edge of the bed while Molly slumbered. Mal pointed to the shuttle’s cockpit, where their voices could be muffled. She elegantly slipped off the side of the bed without disturbing the sheets and take hold of Mal’s arm, guiding him through the folds of fabric. “I..ah..just wanted to check on y’all.” He looked so much like a little boy to Inara in that moment, scratching the side of his face, his feet shuffling a bit against the awkwardness that had suddenly creeped up on him. It made a diminutive smile edge along her lower lip,” We’re fine, Mal.” He pulled back the curtain to catch a glimpse of Molly sleeping on Inara’s bed, then turned back to her, letting the material fall into place. “Good, well, then I ah...suppose I should be gettin’ back to...ya know...got things need takin’ care of.” “Mal?” Mal had begun to leave the cockpit but the tremor in her voice halted him. Her eyes pooled with unspent tears, constricting his chest involuntarily. He sucked in a deep breath and then engulfed her in his arms. She held back the tears and just let herself absorb the warmth Mal was giving her. “I know we’ve all been through worse circumstances than this,” her voice was muffled by his shirt, her lips moved softly against the fabric, sending little tremors along Mal‘s skin,” but I just...I can’t get the image of Kaylee laying there, lifeless on my bed. We all could’ve died. That sweet baby in there could’ve died, her unborn child, I just don’t think that -” Mal held her a little tighter, cutting off her sentence as she began to quietly sob. Thoughts that he had been pushing out of his mind for years began to resurface.

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Kaylee stirred on the exam table, her head slowly moved from side to side as she pushed herself out of the fog of the drugs. She moved her hand to her head as one word slipped from her lips, ”Simon?” The sound of her movements had propelled him to be at her side when her eyes fluttered open. There was so much confusion in them, the tranquilizer still coursing through her veins. “Kaylee, I’m right here,” He pushed some of the hair that had fallen in front of her face aside, smoothing it down, then running his hand along the side of her cheek,” Right here bao bei.” “Simon...where’s...where’s my baby?” She tried her best to sit up, her pregnant belly making it more difficult and her head still muddled, making her a little woozy. Simon ran to the com and beckoned Inara to bring Molly down from her shuttle. As the fog began to lift, Kaylee gripped her stomach, fearing that something was wrong with the child growing there inside. “Our-” “Molly’s fine and our baby is fine, Kaylee.” Simon smiled down at her, resting his hand against her stomach. She laid her own hand over it and stared down at them. Her eyes began to well with relief. Then the drugs started to wear off, the flood of memories leading up to her being there in the infirmary took hold. When she looked back up at Simon, his heart dropped to the floor. Her eyes were filled with tears and they shone brightly against the fury in her eyes. Her lower lip trembled as she push herself off the exam table. “Kaylee, I-” Simon had reached out for her arm but the look on her face made him retract it back to his chest. They gazed at each other, neither one speaking, the anger fuming from Kaylee’s body, filling the room with hostility. Inara walked into the infirmary with some apprehension, clutching Molly against her side. Molly’s eyes lit up at the sight of her mother and she cried out, ”Mama!” Her tiny voice broke the spell they all seemed to be under, releasing the tears that had pooled in Kaylee’s eyes as she grasped for her child. Inara released her and stood back as Kaylee clutched Molly in her arms burying her face into the soft curls of Molly’s hair. She wept with great abandon, her shoulders heaving with the sobs. Simon laid his hand on her shoulder and Kaylee violently shrugged it off, then turned and stormed out of the infirmary. She left Simon to stand wordlessly staring at his retreating wife as Inara strode up to his side. “Give her some time,” Inara whispered to him before leaving the infirmary herself, her heart aching with the pain that Simon and Kaylee were suffering through.

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TBC...Next installment, a little rage and some comforting words.