EPILOGUE
MAX
Two Years Later
The Virginia Beach cemetery is quiet in the late autumn afternoon.
I stand in front of Marcus Harris's headstone, my hands shoved in my pockets against the chill. Claire is beside me, her fingers intertwined with mine, her belly heavy with our son who's due in just six weeks.
Our son.
I still can't quite believe it.
"Hey, brother." My voice comes out rougher than I intend. "Sorry it took me so long to visit."
The marble is weathered now, the edges softened by time and rain. Someone has left flowers recently. Claire's mother, probably. Catherine has been making the trip from Grizzly Ridge every few months since she finally left Gerald and moved to Montana to be closer to her daughter.
It took her six months after that night at the inn to find her courage. Six months of phone calls with Claire, of slowlyrebuilding a relationship that had been damaged by years of silence and complicity. When she finally showed up on our doorstep with two suitcases and mascara streaming down her face, Claire held her for an hour while she sobbed.
Now Catherine runs the front desk at the Mountain Haven Inn. She's softer than she used to be. Happier. The woman she was before Gerald got his hooks into her is slowly reemerging.
"I brought someone to meet you," I continue, looking at the headstone. "Well, two someones."
Claire squeezes my hand. I squeeze back.
"I married your daughter, Marcus. I know that probably makes you want to rise from the grave and kick my ass." A laugh escapes me, raw and real. "I wouldn't blame you. I spent a long time thinking you would hate me for this. For wanting her. For loving her."
The wind rustles through the trees. I choose to believe it's Marcus listening.
"But I think maybe you knew. When you asked me to watch over your girls, maybe you knew that someday Claire and I would find each other. Maybe you trusted me with more than just protection." I clear my throat against the thickness building there. "Or maybe I'm just telling myself that so I can sleep at night."
Claire releases my hand and steps forward. She traces her fingers over her father's name, carved deep into the stone.
"Hi, Daddy." Her voice is steady, but I can hear the tears underneath. "I miss you. Every day, I miss you."
She's quiet for a moment, her hand resting on the marble.
"Max takes good care of me. You'd be proud of him. He's built this whole life in Montana, this community of veterans who look out for each other. He makes these incredible sculptures that people come from all over to buy. And he loves me, Daddy. He loves me so much it scares me sometimes."
I move to stand behind her, wrapping my arms around her from behind, my hands resting on the swell of her belly.
"We're naming him Marcus," she says. "After you. So he'll always carry a piece of his grandfather with him."
My throat tightens. We decided on the name months ago, but hearing her say it here, in front of her father's grave, makes it feel more real somehow.
"I wish you could meet him," Claire continues. "I wish you could teach him to throw a football and take him fishing and tell him embarrassing stories about me when I was little." She laughs through her tears. "I wish a lot of things. But mostly I wish you could see how happy I am. How happy Max makes me."
She turns in my arms, buries her face against my chest. I hold her while she cries, my cheek resting on the top of her head.
"I kept my promise, brother," I murmur, looking at the headstone over her shoulder. "I watched over your girl. And somewhere along the way, she became mine." I pause, struggling for the words that have been building in my chest for two years. "I hope that's okay. I hope you know I'll spend the rest of my life making sure she's safe. Happy. Loved."
The wind picks up, warm despite the autumn chill. It wraps around us like an embrace.
Claire pulls back, wiping her eyes. "We should go. Our flight leaves in a few hours."
I nod, but I don't move right away. There's one more thing I need to say.
"Thank you," I tell Marcus. "For bringing her into my life. For trusting me with the most precious thing you ever had." My voice breaks on the last word. "I won't let you down."
