Chapter 1 – The Phone Call that Changed Everyone

To think he'd been worried about a simple family get together was ludicrous to Frank now. It wasn't that he disliked his family; it was just that every time the family got together his mother would question him on his love life. He hadn't wanted to go, but knew Anne and his mother wouldn't take no for an answer, and he hadn't seen them in a while.

"Uncle Frank!" a small voice had cried out the minute he stepped through the door. Before he'd even had a chance to take off his coat, Frank had found his arms full of a rambunctious three year old, Joe's son, Freddy. The boy was handsome, as any child of Joe would be, with his mother's beautiful golden hair that fell to his shoulders, Frank's bright blue eyes, and Joe's small frame. He was what some would call pretty instead of handsome, something Frank hoped he would grow out of.

"Freddy, how you doing?" Frank had greeted.

"Uncle Frank!" the boy repeated happily.

"Frank is that you?" a female voice had called. Before he could respond, a beautiful woman with flowing gold hair and brown eyes had appeared in the doorway.

"Hello Anne," Frank said as he looked over his sister in law. She wasn't as young as she had been the last time he'd seen her, having aged considerably since the death of her and Joe's oldest child the year previous, but some how she hadn't allowed it to jade her. She was still every bit the loving mother and wife. "How are you?"

"Alright I guess, Freddy keeps my hands full of course and with Joe on the road all the time it's difficult, but we do well, don't we Freddy?"

"Speaking of Joe, where is everyone?"

"Well Joe went with your parents to the store to grab a few bags of cement to repave the driveway and Cordy is upstairs playing with her dolls. She's real excited to see you Frank, you don't come home often enough," Anne said fondly as she took the sleepy toddler from him. "Freddy has too, he was awake all night last night, poor thing must be exhausted."

"I'm happy to see them too. I'll put my things away in the guest room then I'll stop by Cordy's room and see her."

"Alright, I'll put Freddy down in our room. Dinner will be ready in ten minutes; can you bring Cordy down when you two are done playing?"

"Sure thing Anne," Frank replied as he grabbed his bags and headed up the stairs of his childhood home. He placed his bags in the closet and moved to exit when he noticed something on the floor. He kneeled down to get a better look when he heard a crash.

"FRANK! Frank come down here!"

Frank ran from the room, spotting Cordy poking her head out the door.

"Uncle Frank?"

"Cordy, I want you to go into my room darling. Can you do that for me?"

"Yes Uncle Frank."

"Anne!" he'd yelled as he ran down the stairs to see Anne leaning against the wall to support herself, tears pooling in her eyes. "Anne, what is it? Are you alright?"

"It's Nancy, Frank, Ned beat her pretty bad. She's in surgery."