Mike Danko stood near a small campfire on the beach watching as his two eldest daughters bravely dove into the crashing waves. Amy rose up out of the water and seeing him, lifted a hand to wave, as nearby Terry Webster lifted Kate up and tossed her out into the waves. Just at the edge of the shore, Lizzie Danko and MJ Webster were hard at work burying Eddie Ryker with sand. Mike couldn't help but laugh out loud at the sight of his superior officer allowing the two small children to dump sand over him.
"Who would believe that?" Terry asked coming to stand beside him, drying himself off with a towel.
"Willie would be laughing his ass off right now." Mike agreed grinning at Terry.
"He probably is." Terry said thoughtfully. He glanced around. "What happened to the girls?"
"Jenny had to go." Mike said. "You know they can't ever go alone."
"I thought she'd never get potty trained."
"No more diapers! You almost made it!" Mike said clapping him on the back.
"Well, not exactly . . ." Terry said raising an eyebrow.
"What? Really?" Mike asked, smiling. "Oh, three is a good number, brother! I hope it is another hellion little boy, like MJ. Congrats, man!"
"I suppose you are responsible." Terry said thoughtfully.
"I'm pretty sure, I'm not." Mike's eyes were wide.
"No!" Terry laughed realizing what he had said, " No, it was worry over that wife of yours! It made me appreciate mine a lot more." He grinned at Mike. "Spent a lot more time together - and now just when we were about to be free of diapers forever, we are right back at the beginning." Terry sighed.
"Lucky man." Mike said with a grin.
"Damn lucky." Terry agreed.
Just then, the girls returned and Jenny ran to help bury Deputy Chief Ryker, who seemed content to let the children have their fun.
"He's an awfully good sport." Beth remarked.
"Oh, he's a marshmallow." Jill said sitting down beside Mike in the soft sand. "He just acts like a tough guy - they all do." She reached out and kissed Mike's cheek.
"Did Beth tell you?" Mike asked.
"Tell me what?" Jill asked looking up.
"You couldn't resist, could you?" Beth said giving Terry's shoulder a shove. "Spoilsport!"
"I didn't tell Jill." Terry said apologetically.
"That's only because she wasn't around." Beth shook her head at her husband. She turned to Jill. "There will be one more Webster next year." She said with a grin.
"Oh, really!" Jill smiled. "That's wonderful!" She hugged and kissed Beth's cheek before turning to smile at her husband beside her. "Another little one!"
"We should buy them a big box of diapers!" Mike laughed with a raised eyebrow.
***R***
In the late afternoon, Megan and her boys joined the crew on the beach. The boys brought a football that they tossed around until, Mike collapsed in the sand.
James, the oldest, sank down beside him. "What's the matter, Uncle Mike? Too old?"
"I am." Mike said with a laugh. "You better watch yourself, CJ. I'll pound you into the sand here."
"James!" CJ reminded him, instantly furious.
"I know, I'm sorry. James, I just forgot. I'm sorry."
"I dropped the Christopher last year! Soon as I'm eighteen, I'll drop his last name too." His hands were clenched in tight fists.
"I'm sorry, James. I really am." Mike said compassionately. "Come on, bud. Settle down."
"I don't share his name. I'm not like him."
"Okay." Mike said trying to soothe him.
"I know you are still friends with him, and I don't mind Uncle Mike, but I don't . . . he hit her!" He whispered. "I remember it, and you were there."
"I was." Mike sighed. He had hoped the boys didn't remember.
"It wasn't the only time."
"I didn't think it was." Mike looked out at the waves. "But he was drinking then. We talked about it, James. Alcohol can make people do funny things; it can make them do mean things. He doesn't drink anymore, and you know he's very, very sorry."
"I . . ." James sighed sound more weary than any eight year old boy should. "I'm still mad."
"I know. And you aren't wrong to be angry. I don't want to make you feel like that. But, you are talking to a man whose father is dead. We didn't always get along, either, and sometimes I wish that I'd been . . ." He turned to look into James' troubled eyes. "I wish I'd been more compassionate."
"Why didn't you get along?" James asked. "Did he hit your mom?"
"No. It wasn't anything like that. He didn't understand why I would join the Air Force. He didn't understand why I would join the police force. He wanted me to be a lawyer, like him. I was his only son; his only child. He wanted a different life for me, and was frustrated that he couldn't make me see things his way."
"Did you ever make up with him?"
"He had a stroke, and I went to see him. He couldn't really talk, but, yeah, we made our peace." He looked down at James. "I don't want you to wait that long. It isn't good for you, James. That's all. Aunt Jill and me, we care about you. We care about you a lot." He explained.
"I know. I remember when you came. You saved us. You saved her." James said of that horrible night so long ago. He dug his toe in the sand. "Is Aunt Jill gonna be alright now?" He looked over at where everyone was gathering around a campfire.
"The doctors think so. She had some tests the other day to see." Mike said.
"What did the tests say?" James asked.
Mike smiled, and reached out to run his hand over James' curly hair, "We are gonna tell everyone about that now. You wanna come?"
"Yeah!" James rose slowly. Mike had remarked often, both to Megan and to Jill, that James was the oldest eight year old he had ever met. But as they turned to walk back to everyone else, James slid his hand into Mike's reminding him that he was still a child - it was just buried deep under the hurt and worry that his father's choices had caused. It was times like this that Mike found it very hard to have any compassion in his heart for Chris.
***R***
"Alright before we let you eat all those marshmallows we have something we would like to say." Mike told the small group gathered in front of him. "You know Jill had a bunch of tests done last week."
"Daddy?" Kate looked up at him nervously, but he reached down and lifted her into his arms.
"Wait a second, Kate, no need to panic." He told her, kissing her cheek.
"You gonna drag it out, Danko?" Ryker said irritably. "What did they say?'
"They said that there isn't any trace of cancer." Jill said her smile radiant, and her eyes bright.
Anyone wandering past that stretch of beach to have a peaceful stroll as the sun sank would have been no doubt frustrated and startled by the cheering and shouting that erupted from a small family gathered around a campfire. Everyone yelled and cheered, and hugged Jill. It was without a doubt the best day that the Dankos and their extended family had experienced in a long, long time.
Mike released Kate from his arms, so that she too, could hug her mother, and sat back down, on the fallen log that he and Terry had dragged over to the campfire. He put his head in his hands, listening to everyone's joyous cheers. He found he was incapable of speech; he found he was incapable of breathing - his heart was too full.
"You alright?" Ryker said standing over him looking down.
"Yeah, for the first time in a really long time, I am." Mike said looking up.
Ryker said nothing only smiled, and glanced back to where Jill stood holding Lizzie in her arms. Terry stood beside her with one arm draped over her shoulder. Mike followed his line of sight and smiled seeing her.
She was wearing a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt but as the sun began to fade, she had put on her favorite sweatshirt - a relic from their past - his old grey, academy sweatshirt. The word Danko which was across the front had faded a bit over time. It hung on her still much-too-thin frame. Her head was covered in baby thin hair. She still usually wore a scarf or a hat - except when around family. She'd left her head uncovered today although, he imagined that as the sun sank as night fell, she would put on her pink knit cap to keep warm. She stood in the fading sunlight completely surrounded by their closest and dearest friends. A breeze blew and lifted her hair - feeling it - she smiled and lifted her face to the bright sky above her.
His eyes filled with tears and he glanced back at Ryker. "You said it was me, but it wasn't. It was her. She made me the kind of man I am. She did that. And we are all here because of her." He found his voice choked with emotions.
"Listen, Danko," Ryker said. "I've had enough tears and deep talks. Haven't you?" He grinned down at him, but he also wiped tears away. "I'm ready for an ordinary day - where you tell me about one of your cases and I point out all the holes in your theory."
Mike rose and faced Ryker, "I'm deeply offended!" Ryker stepped back startled. "My theories never have holes, sir." He squeezed Ryker's shoulder, and then stepped past him determined that he wouldn't be the last one to kiss his wife.