When he came back, he was carrying my photos along with a couple of other frames I didn’t recognize.
“What are you doing?” I asked when I saw him removing his own photos and replacing them with mine.
“I’ll get new ones another day.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I want you to be able to look at the photos of the people whose memory brings you peace.”
My eyes filled with tears again. “Why do you have to be so sweet?”
He looked up at me, smiled, and handed me one of the photos he’d removed. “There was a time in my life when looking at these was the only way I could find my own peace.”
I pointed to the young boy. “This looks like you.”
“’Tis me.” He pointed to the older boy. “That’s my brother, Lennox. And those two people are my mum and dad.”
Each of them looked perfect. And happy. Perfectly happy. “You have a lovely family.”
“I did, at one time. No longer.”
“What do you mean?”
Edge pushed up the sleeve of his shirt and turned his arm over. He pointed to the tattoo I’d noticed the first night I met him. “Annaliese and Arlo are my parents, and this,” he pointed to the date, “is the day we lost them.”
I gasped and covered my mouth with my hand. “I’m so sorry. I thought…”
He looked into my eyes. “I almost died then too. Poor Lennox. He lost his parents and immediately became one.”
I reached out and cupped his cheek with my palm. “I don’t know what to say.”
He covered my hand with his. “I was in hospital for several weeks. Lennox gave up going to university to become my guardian. Not just that. He rarely left my side.”
“You were all he had.”
“And vice versa.” He rubbed his finger over the image. “He was here a few days ago but is in Boston now, hopefully a soon-to-be-happily-married man.”
I smiled. “Yeah?”
“Yes.” He smiled too, but it left quickly. “It’s one year today since Casper lost her husband.”
I closed my eyes.
“I knew it would be a difficult day for her. I even suggested we shouldn’t send her in. She wanted it. Told me that as long as she was working, she’d keep her mind off of what happened.”
“And because of me—”
Edge put his fingertips on my lips. “Don’t. Nothing about this is your fault, Rebel.”
“What happened to him?”
“He was an agent too. An op went south, and he got caught in the crossfire.”
“Like you did.” I put my hand on his arm.
“I was a luckier bloke.”
“I wish I could tell her how sorry I am.”