Page 164 of Enemy of My Enemy
“Hey,” he whispered.
She sniffed. “Hey.”
He didn’t know what to say. Scott and Stacy continued to argue, just beyond the kitchen’s closed French doors.
“I know what I signed up for when we got married, but this isinsane. You’ve already made the huge sacrifice. I buried you once already! Can’t the president ask someone else?”
“He didn’t ask. I volunteered.”
“Unvolunteer then! You can’t go, Scott! Do you have any idea what this will do to our daughter?”
“Stacy—”
“Do you know why she doesn’t want to go to college next year? Because she’s too terrified to leave! She’s absolutely petrified that you’re going to die one day, and she won’t be here! She can’t stand the thought of losing you, so much so that she doesn’t want to spend a moment away from you!”
Silence.
“I love my family, Stacy. I love Liz.”Scott’s voice was rubbed raw.“But Ethan is mybrother. We’ve been at each other’s side for more than half our lives!”
“And we’rejustyour family.”
“I can’t leave him!”
“You can leave us?”
“I would do the same for either of you. Drop everything and go do what I could. Everything I could. He’s part of my family. Part ofthisfamily, Stacy! He was the first call I made when Liz was born. I cried on the phone with him telling him we had a baby girl.”
“And your baby girl is going to have acorpsefor a father!”
Jack’s eyes slid closed. Liz sniffed again.
“He’s going to go with you,” Liz said softly. “He and Uncle Ethan are best friends. They’ll do anything for each other.”
“Uncle Ethan?” He sat one step down from her, leaning against the stairwell. Somehow he hadn’t learned about this side of Ethan.
Liz nodded. “He’s always been the best. He and Dad are best friends, and he and Mom are pretty cool too. It’s always fun when we’re together. Sometimes we’d all go camping when I was little. Baseball games when I got older. He’d babysit when they wanted to go out. He’d show me movies Mom and Dad said I couldn’t watch.” Her voice died, and she looked down.
The argument kept circling, Stacy’s tears added to the mix.
“You and Uncle Ethan… Are you guys still together?”
I hope so.“I love him very, very much.”
“He’s needed someone to love him.” Liz picked at her frayed jeans. “I think we were all he really had.”
He reached for her, taking her hand in his. “I love him more than I can say,” he choked out. “He’s the one for me. The love of my life.”
She squeezed his hand hard. Hard enough to hurt. “Bring him back, okay? Bring my dad back, too.”
“I promise.” He held on to her hand, and she turned, leaning against the wall with him as she rested her head on his shoulder. He stroked her hair, listening to the end of Scott and Stacy’s argument.
Stacy was sobbing, the sounds muffled as if she was crying into Scott’s chest.“I don’t want to lose you again,”she said, her voice warbling.
“I have to do this.”Scott didn’t sound any better.“I have to go. But I will be back. I swear. For you, and for Liz. I swear to God I will be.”
Silence descended over the house.
* * *
