Finding Faith (3 page)

More than anyone, he knew that living in their old home had kept him trapped in a never-ending loop of reliving every memory they had made together. Sleeping in their bedroom had become torture. Her smell lingered. Her voice whispered to him from every corner of the room. Memories of every moment they had lived together within those four walls had almost strangled him. Eventually, just so that he could get a good night’s sleep, he had moved to the vacant guest room.
 

Every morning as he took a shower, images of their lovemaking would roll through his mind like a movie. As he remembered the way she looked standing there in the steam, her come-hither smile driving him crazy with lust and desire, his breath would catch and his heart would skip a beat, as if just realizing that it was still beating. How was he still alive when his wife was gone? Never again able to experience any of life’s joy, anger, or see their little girl grow up?
 

While it had been difficult for him to leave the home he and Heather had purchased in their second year of marriage, he knew it was for the best. There were good memories in that home, but he needed to be whole for his daughter. After he talked it over with both his parents and hers, he set out to find a house that represented renewal.
 

As soon as the realtor walked him through the front door of this house, he knew. This would be the place for them to have a new beginning. Taking deep breaths as he walked around, judging room sizes and picturing Madison growing up in this home, his decision had been made. Rebuild their lives, focus on work, and live a life focused on simply making it through each day.
 

“Mr. Branson, can you look over this order real quick?” The moving truck driver was standing a few feet away from him with a clipboard in his hand.
 

“Sure.” As he grabbed the pen and clipboard, he heard vehicles pull up to the front of the house and looked up. His eyes glanced over at the house next to his and he saw the slightest movement in the window, as if someone were looking out. After a few seconds, he shrugged off the feeling of being watched. That type of thing was to be expected.
 

Everyone wanted to know what the new neighbors looked like and he couldn’t fault them for that. Turning back to the cars pulling up to his new home, he ignored his nosey neighbor for the moment. His late wife’s parents, Stan and Marge Tompkins, exited their car. His mother also had arrived right behind them. Lastly, his friends Rob and Leslie Morrison pulled up to the house, along with their little girl, and Madison’s best friend, Bree. It was good to have all of them here.
 

After Heather’s death, these were the people who had helped him continue to cope with the loss. They had stayed with him night and day. Every one of them had cooked and cleaned for him without complaint. In their own way, each of them had helped him understand that although Heather was gone from this world, he was not. It was Heather’s father who had given him a swift kick in the rear, reminding him that he had lived through too much, come out on the other side of too much death and destruction in the military, to let her death beat him now. Chuckling under his breath at the old man’s words, it was very clear that Stan Tompkins was not going to let his son-in-law wallow in self-pity.
 

Finishing his review of the work order, he signed his name and handed the clipboard back to the man standing in front of him. “Thanks, man. Everything looks in order. We’ll try to stay out of the way as you and your guys get everything in the house.”
 

“Appreciate that, we’ll get the living room and dining room set up first so that you and your family have somewhere to sit,” the driver responded. Tilting his head to the people walking toward them, the driver turned back to his crew and set them to work getting Cooper’s furniture from the truck.
 

He gave Rob and Leslie a wave and went to grab Madison from the truck and placed her on the ground. As soon as she noticed Bree standing by her parent’s car, she ran over and gave the little girl a tight hug. Shaking his head, he laughed at their antics. If he didn’t know any better, he would think those two hadn’t seen each other in years, instead of just yesterday at preschool. Walking over to the group of people, he gave greetings and hugs all around.
 

“Good to see you, Stan, Marge. I’m glad you could make it today.”
 

“Son, we wouldn’t have missed this for anything,” his father-in-law responded.
 

Hearing the giggles of the two little girls talking animatedly with their hands, he put his hands in his pockets as he watched his mother walk over and give her granddaughter a kiss on the forehead.
 

Addressing his in-laws, he motioned toward the movers, “We’re here a little earlier than expected, but these guys are going to get some of the basic furniture in the house for us first. We’ll have somewhere to sit while they move the other items inside.”
 

“No problem, Cooper,” his mother-in-law answered. “Your mother and I brought some food for dinner, so we’ll at least have food.”
 

Motioning to Leslie, who was cuddled up close to her husband while smiling and looking toward the house, he asked, “Did you tell Leslie to bring a dish? You know she’s a sous chef at that new restaurant in DC on 12th and 7th?”
 

Surprisingly, his mother-in-law waved his question away, “Oh, I’m sure she’ll be fine. We don’t need any help. She can watch the kids while your mother and I take care of the food.”
 

Before he could question her about it, Leslie’s voice caught his attention, “I swear, those two are like two peas in a pod. I don’t know how in the world they have that much to talk about. It hasn’t even been twenty-four hours since they saw each other last.” She smiled at Cooper as she and her husband walked up to him. Leaning over, he kissed her on the temple.
 

“Oh, let them be. They’re like BFF’s or something. At least that’s what I hear all the young kids are saying nowadays,” he responded.
 

“Hey, man, she’s taken,” his friend Rob laughingly exclaimed as he pulled his wife closer to him.
 

Leslie laughed and kissed her husband lightly on the lips before turning back to greet Cooper’s in-laws and his mother.
 

If Cooper was an envious man, he would admit that he missed having that type of relationship. Someone that was simply there for you. No judgement, just comfort and partnership.
 

As Leslie spoke to the grandparents, he caught Rob looking over at him. He raised his chin and then went in for a handshake and half-hug. “How are you doing, Coop? You all right?”
 

Without saying the words, Cooper knew what Rob was asking. Was he okay with the move, with giving up the house, basically, with moving on with his life?
 

“Yeah, man, I’m good.” And as he said the words, he knew it was true. At that moment, both he and Rob turned toward the house next door. That feeling had come back again and he knew the house, or better yet, the person in that house, had something to do with it. Someone was there and they were watching.
 

Rob had been in Special Forces with Cooper and if he felt it, then so did his former Army brother. Leslie automatically turned to look as well. She had often picked up on their tendency to react to things at the same time. The running joke was that the two of them had gone through an experiment in the Army and their brains had been sliced in half, with each getting fifty-percent of the other’s brain. If it weren’t so wrong, he could actually believe it happened. There was no one he trusted more to have his back, to keep him sane, and to stand beside him than Rob Morrison.
 

It was the same house where he saw the woman peeking out of the window just a few minutes earlier. When Rob and Leslie turned away and began looking over the girls, laughing at their antics, Cooper continued to look at the window. Something kept his attention glued to that house and he wanted to know what, or who, it was.
 

It didn’t feel like a threat. No, Rob would not have relaxed that soon if had been a threat to their families. But for some reason he couldn’t look away just yet. He felt a soft hand on his arm and was forced to look away from the house. Looking down into the light blue eyes of his mother, he gave her a smile.
 

“Hi, Mom. Welcome to my home.”
 

“Hi, honey. I’m so glad to be here. We all are. I see Madison and Bree haven’t let go of each other since they stepped out of the cars.” Laughing, she turned to him, “Did you buy that second bed for her?”
 

Laughing out loud, he grabbed her hand and tucked her arm over his as they walked toward the middle of the front yard where the others had gathered, “As if I could get away with not getting it. Do you remember the last time these two whirlwinds spent the night? Oh no, they’re each having their own space.”
 

Although he was drawn into the conversation and felt lighter than he had in months, something kept calling for his attention. As he motioned for everyone to go into the house, the need to look over and see if he could catch a glimpse of the woman looking at him through her front window took over. He glanced over just as she ducked out of the way. “Hmmm, interesting.”
 

“What was that dear?” His mother-in-law looked over at him in curiosity.
 

“Oh nothing, just getting my bearings in the neighborhood.”
 

Listening to the sweet voice of his daughter as she and her best friend talked about everything that happened to them in the last twelve hours since they had been separated, he smiled. Walking into his new home, the start of the next chapter in his life, Cooper could appreciate that things had not turned out the way he had expected. Far from it.
 

A widower at thirty-eight was not his idea of a perfect life. Having his wife of twelve years die in a car crash six months after giving birth to their beautiful little girl had never been in the cards. It had taken him almost two years to get over the pain and hurt of losing Heather on that warm day in June.
 

He could still remember the moment he got the call from his boss and was asked to come to his office. Walking into the large corner office and seeing the two police officers waiting for him, he had no idea what to think. There would be no reason for the police to want to talk with him and he knew it, which only caused his confusion to grow. Never in a million years would he have expected their words to haunt him in his sleep for months, even years, after that meeting.
 

The officer who spoke first had a deep, raspy voice. “My name is Sergeant Isles from the Arlington County Police Department. Are you Cooper Branson, the husband of Heather Branson, of 321 Lee Boulevard?”
 

Looking toward my boss, I immediately noticed the look of sadness in his eyes before I turned back to the police and answered their questions, “What is this about?” My tone was a tad curter than the situation called for, but even in the few seconds I stood there, I knew it would be bad.
 

Just earlier that day, no more than three hours before, one of those gut feelings that something huge was about to happen had come over him. In that moment, he knew that his life would be changed forever. Having the cops show up at his office asking about his wife had not been on the list of possibilities.
 

Earlier that day, he had called Heather. Needing to speak with her after the feeling had come over him, they had been joking and laughing just minutes before she headed into a lunch meeting with a client.
 

“Baby, if you’re pregnant, I want a boy this time.”
 

“Who says I’m pregnant?”
Her sweet voice responded with laughter.
“I’m not you know. But, even if I were, who says it’s up to me what you get. Last I heard, it was the father who decided sex.”
 

Settling into his chair, he looked out the window as they continued to talk,
“Well, I just got that feeling and it usually happens when something huge is going to happen. Like when you were pregnant with Madison, and when I got this job offer, even when Rob and Leslie asked us to be the godparents for Bree.”
 

What he failed to mention, and never would, is that these feelings also came right before they were attacked by insurgents and the day his father had a heart attack. No, his focus that day was on the positives.
 

“I think you just want someone to watch football with
.” She laughed into the phone as he heard her turn off her car and exit.
 

“Nope, because Madison is going to be there, too. I’ll make sure she gets the right kind of sports education.”
And no dating, he thought. There’s no way in hell she’ll date a boy like me.
 

Because of his career in the military, they had both agreed to wait until he had finished serving until they had children. Madison was born just six and a-half months ago at the time, and Heather had already been talking about having another one. Steeling his nerves for what he was about to hear, he spoke to the officer again, “Yes, I’m Cooper Branson. What can I do for you, Sergeant?”
 

The officer looked at him without blinking, as if schooling his features to deliver the next words out of his mouth, “Sir, I’m sorry to tell you, but there’s been an accident.”
 

Silence.
 

Although the police officer's mouth continued to move and words were coming out, Cooper didn't hear a word he said. The silence was deafening. Loud ringing was all he could hear and he tried to clear his head of the sound. What was the officer saying again? An accident? Dead on impact? It happened so quickly? She felt no pain? How do they know she didn’t feel any pain? How do they know his wife didn’t suffer for even one-second?