Page 3 of In Too Deep

My eyes land on Theresa, standing behind Harry with her hands resting on his shoulders. She gives me a warm smile.

“Well, he’s in luck, isn’t he, Harry? Come in, Cole. It’s freezing out there.”

Theresa moves aside so I can walk in, and I don’t disagree with her. The weather has turned suddenly cold tonight, and the warmth of the fireplace is beckoning to me.

When I enter her inviting home, I’m greeted by its warmth. My eyes immediately land on the Canadian flag given to Theresa at Keith’s funeral, sitting above the fireplace with a picture of Keith in his uniform. Taking a few steps inside, I make my wayto the fireplace, and my eyes lock on the image of Keith in the picture frame.

I met Keith on my second mission as a lieutenant. He was funny, honest, courageous, and just had a way with people. Leave him in a crowded room with strangers, and he was in his element. I, however, like my own company and struggle with big crowds, but not Keith. He was the talkative one in our squad and had a way of making people open up. But when he spoke of his family, his eyes would light up, and you could tell how much he loved them.

Not only was he my soldier, but he became my best friend.

When our mission was over, we would still make sure we caught up every chance we could, and that’s when I met Theresa and Harry. Harry was only one year old at the time, and I could see why Keith spoke of them every chance he could. Theresa was his high school sweetheart, and she was beautiful. Although Harry had his mom’s eyes, he was his dad all over. His curly, blond hair and blue eyes were so bright they looked crystal blue.

Standing in Keith’s family room, I can’t help but feel regret for what could have been for Keith and his family—a future like Keith had planned. He won’t get the opportunity to see Harry grow into a man or spend his life traveling as he had hoped or get to go on that holiday he had planned to surprise Theresa with next year to Europe, where her family is from. Her grandmother still lives in Capri, Italy, and Theresa had always wanted to go back and see her. She hadn’t been there since she was a child and missed her grandmother so much.

Theresa was born in Canada, but her parents were born in Italy and migrated to Toronto to build a better life for their children. Theresa’s brother, Frank, lives in Washington, and he’s also taken the same career path as his sister, working to protect and serve, but he’s part of the Secret Service. So he’s a pretty bigdeal. He gets to work with the president. Their parents must be super proud.

The touch of a hand leans on my shoulder, and I turn to see Theresa standing behind me, her eyes filled with unshed tears.

“It’s not your fault, you know?”

Emotions fill me as I turn fully to face her, nibbling on the inside of my cheek, trying to hold back the tears that are threatening to fall.

“Theresa, I…”

“No, Cole, you’re not to blame. So, take that stupid thought out of your head,” Theresa explains, tapping her fingers to her temple. “Keith loved his job and knew the repercussions that came along with it. Don’t take that away from him. He died in honor of serving you. He did what any of your soldiers would have done, and that was taking a bullet to protect your life.”

Tears fall from her face. Without thinking, I cup her cheek and swipe away a tear that’s caught my eye with my thumb. She clears her throat and pulls back with a small smile.

“Look at me,” she says with a laugh, walking backward toward the kitchen. “It’s only been five minutes since you’ve walked in the door, and I’m already crying on your shoulder.”

Shaking my head, I clear my throat too.

“Theresa, you can be yourself with me. If you want to cry, then cry. I’m here for you no matter what, and that includes Harry.”

Wondering where Harry disappeared, I peek behind her, finding him on the carpeted floor playing with toy cars. He’s using a mat with a racing track printed on it, and he’s holding a yellow and a red sports car in each hand as he pushes both along the track in a race.

He looks up and smiles with both cars in the air.

“Want to play, Uncle Cole?”

My eyes move from his to Theresa’s, and she smiles again and replies to Harry, “Let’s eat first, shall we? Then Uncle Cole can play cars with you.”

He frowns. “But, Mom, please, just one game? Pretty please?”

She looks back at me with a raised brow.

“I guess one game will be okay. It will give me time to set the table.”

“Yesss,” I call out, excitement laced in my voice. “I love playing cars.”

Briskly walking over to Harry, I join him on the floor, accepting the yellow car.

“Here, you take this one, and we can see who’s the fastest.”

“Yay, I wanted the yellow one. You’re on, Harry.”

I hear a giggle and look up at Theresa. “Thank you,” she mouths, and I nod with a smile before she vanishes into the kitchen.

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