A Decision Based On Love Page 12

  Chapter 12

  It took a couple of months, but after the dramatic stories of the earthquake damage had dwindled, a reporter for one of the newspapers, looking for a human interest angle, stumbled on the story of Mark and Shari. A touching scenario of a hero son sacrificing his life to be with his mom was just what the readers wanted. The reporter interviewed the firefighter that found them and began to paint a picture of a devoted son unwilling to leave his mother even at peril to his own life.

  The story was still in its infant stages when the reporter first showed up at Marci's door.

  She opened the door on a bright cloudless Arizona morning and the reporter introduced himself as Jacob More. Marci was stunned and then skeptical as he told her what he wanted.

  “I don't think Mark would want a story in the paper about that day,” she faltered. “I’m really not sure I want a story in the paper about that day. It's still a very painful memory. I hope you understand.” She started to close the door.

  Apparently he didn't understand. “Just a few short questions,” he prodded. I already know what happened. I just want to know a little more about Mark as a person.”

  Marci hesitated for the briefest of seconds. That was all the reporter needed. He stepped by her and into the house. “What did Mark like to do? What were his hobbies? How long were you married?”

  Marci answered the questions automatically out of politeness. Suddenly Eli, shy since his father's death, peeked his curly blond head around the corner at the stranger sitting next to his mother.

  “Oh well, if that isn't the most handsome young man I've ever seen I don't know who is.” the reporter wiggled his fingers at Eli. Eli darted back into the kitchen and reappeared a few minutes later with a ball for his new friend. As the reporter tossed the ball to Eli, Marci began to warm up to him. She answered his questions as they played and the love and respect she had for her husband radiated from her answers. By the time Jacob left he was giddy with anticipation of a human interest story that would have Arizona women weeping for the fallen hero who loved his mother.

  After he left, Marci began to question the answers she had given. It had taken her by surprise so much she hadn't had time to prepare. Had she shared too much personal information? Had she made Mark sound perfect, when in reality he was just a man? Had she exposed her and Eli to far too much publicity? She paced with anxiety. Then she thought of Tyson. A fierce protective instinct reminded her how much she loved and respected her husband's brother and she was afraid what they would do to Tyson in painting Mark as the hero. Had she inadvertently said anything that would make Tyson look bad? She racked her brain for memories of the conversation. Immediately, she picked up the phone and called Liz and Tyson. She was hoping Liz answered. No such luck. Tyson was home for lunch. He answered on the 2nd ring.

  “Hey Marci, what's up?”

  “Um Tyson. I think there's something you should know. A reporter for the paper came by here and he's writing a story on Shari and Mark. Some human interest thing, but I think he's planning on painting Mark as the hero when he tells the story. I think his name was Jason or Jacob something. I just thought you should know.”

  Tyson's indrawn breath was the only response.

  “Tyson, I'm so sorry if this causes you any problems. I told the reporter I didn't think Mark would like the story but he seemed to be set on it. I think he's going to write it whether we help him or not.”

  By now Tyson had control of his emotions. “Thanks, Marci. We'll deal with this, just like we've dealt with everything else. And Marci, Mark is a hero. He deserves to be recognized.”

  Marci hung up the phone more confused than ever. She didn't know how she felt about this new development. She reached for the phone and called Maddy to set up a session to talk about it.

  Tyson was stunned. He put the phone down and sat thinking about the story. There was a pretty good chance that if Mark were the hero, he would be painted as a coward, or at best the selfish son. He wasn't sure how he'd handle public criticism. He wasn't joking when he told Marci he thought Mark deserved to be recognized as a hero, but where did that leave him in the story? At least with Marci's heads up phone call he'd have a chance to think about what to say to the reporter before he came over.

  That night he told Liz about the phone call. Immediately, she panicked. They were just now getting to a good place and she was afraid this would set everything back. She was horrified by what the reporter might say about Tyson. In her mind he was just as much of a hero to his family for the decision he made as Mark was, but she doubted anyone else would see it that way.

  She sat up in bed, “Tyson what are we going to do? Should we contact the reporter? Should we get Todd or Cami to call him up? I couldn't stand to see you dragged through the mud in this.”

  Tyson chuckled at her protectiveness. He pulled her back into his arms, and shoved her head onto his shoulder. “Relax, mother bear. My ego can handle a little hit. Think for a minute about what Marci's lost and how this could help Eli someday to know and understand his father a little better. If the article is well done it could end up being a good thing. I imagine the reporter will show up here eventually and I'll have an opportunity to visit with him too. Let's not borrow trouble. It may not be as negative as you think.”

  Liz wasn't sure but she trusted this confident man and if he was OK with the story then she would try not to worry about it either.

  Tyson was right. The reporter showed up unannounced Saturday afternoon to talk to Tyson. He was playing in the yard with the kids and greeted the reporter with a big smile and an outstretched hand. They introduced themselves and then Jacob began to ask him about that day. Tyson told him what happened. He wasn't defensive or apologetic. He talked about his admiration and respect for his brother and his love for his mom. While he spoke, Kenny climbed up his leg and tried to reach into his pocket. Kylee launched her missile like body at his back end, giggling hysterically when she bounced off onto the grass.

  Jacob said goodbye and walked to his car. He watched as the tall, muscled man swung one wiggling child up on each shoulder and carried them laughing into the house. He stood by his car for a long time, pondering what he'd seen and heard. He remembered the sadness in Marci's eyes and could hear again the love in her voice as she talked about her husband. The story he'd been working on was taking a little different direction than he had envisioned initially. He thought maybe he’d pay a visit to Shari's husband. For the first time he wondered if the hero brother had made the right decision.

  The story ran on the front page of the inside section a couple of weeks later. It was an instant sensation. Jacob had titled the piece “A Son's Love” and had tried to tell the story with clarity and compassion. Surprisingly, he found that he didn't have to elaborate or exaggerate anything. The story was a genuine story of a family that loved each other deeply and was willing to make any sacrifice necessary for that love. Mark was unquestionably the hero, but Tyson was portrayed as a caring, thoughtful son who made a different decision based on love of family as well. The article included quotes from Todd, Marci, Tyson and friends and colleagues of Mark's. Jacob had even spoken to the waitress who served the threesome that day in the restaurant. There were pictures of the family and at the last minute Tyson had decided to send the paper the picture they had taken that day on his camera phone. A beaming Shari laughed into the camera as her two sons crowded in beside her. It was the last picture Shari and Mark had ever taken and it added an aura of reverence to the article. The story ended with a smiling picture of Mark with his arm draped around Marci and Eli looking up from his daddy's arms.

  By the time Jacob got into work his phone was blinking with messages. The secretary handed him another stack and told him with red rimmed eyes that it was the best story she'd ever read in the paper.

  Marci opened the paper, not really knowing what to expect. Her heart tugged instantly when she saw the pictures but she focused on the story instead. She sighed with relief.
It seemed like a good story to her, and it hadn't been damaging to any family member, especially Tyson. She folded up the paper and set it aside. She had no idea how much her life was about to change.

  Tyson too was a little anxious about opening the paper but as he read the article he was surprisingly calm. He thought reading the events would take him back to that day and all of the pain would return, but it hadn't. He didn't know why but he felt good about things. Pride in Mark was definitely there, but for once the guilt seemed to be absent. He was hoping that somehow he had moved passed it. He wondered briefly how the public would react to the story. Would they look at him with disapproval? Would he be the subject of discussion and debate? He hoped not. For Liz's sake as much as anything, he wanted things to quiet down; but he was starting to think that he could handle anything that came his way. He wasn't however prepared for what happened over the next few days.

  It took the public less than 2 days to find out where Marci lived and she woke up the next morning to yellow ribbons tied around her tree, signs of love and support in her yard and mailbox full of cards and letters. Over the next few days, the phone never stopped ringing. She didn't answer it but there were messages filling up the answering machine. Stunned, she began to open the letters. They were filled with notes of encouragement, money and stories of how Mark had inspired others to be more courageous. She sat down hard on the couch. She was touched but a little overwhelmed. Since most of them didn't require a response she just packed them up and thought she might save them someday for Eli to read. Maybe it would make growing up without a father a little less painful if the little boy knew his father was considered a hero.

  The story took the city by storm. Everyone loves a hero who loves his mom. Mark's name was everywhere. A women's organization decided to host “A Son's Love” charity fun run to raise money for victims of the earthquake. Mark's picture was on posters, banners and advertisements all over the city. Marci had thought it was a good idea to raise money for the victims but she had no idea what was involved. The first time she drove downtown and saw a billboard with Mark's face smiling down at her she almost drove off the road. She pulled over and sat staring at the image for an eternity of time. After that she saw the posters everywhere. Her mailbox was constantly full and people periodically dropped by to tell her how much they admired her husband. It was crazy. Her mind was reeling. Worse of all, she had no idea how she felt about the whole thing. Her instinct was to pull back and protect Eli and shelter him from all the publicity, but it was spiraling out of control and she seemed incapable of slowing it down, much less controlling it.

  Tyson had to field questions everywhere he went. Work, clients, neighbors, long lost acquaintances all seemed to want to talk about Mark and Shari. Most people were kind and considerate in their comments and questions, but once in awhile someone was deliberately cruel. Tyson tried to be gracious in answering questions, always spoke with affection of his brother and his choice and never tried to defend his own choice. The more calmly he handled rude comments the less often they arose. By the day of the race Tyson had begun to realize that he really didn't care what strangers thought. He knew and his family knew the circumstances behind his choice and that was all that really mattered.

  On the day of the fun run, Tyson, Todd, Cami, Marci and the kids were all there. They sat on the stage and all 4 of the adults squirmed uncomfortably. None of them really seemed to know what was expected of them. Runners lined up for blocks. Someone said they had nearly 10,000 participants expected to run.

  A loud speaker welcomed the athletes and “special guests.” A booming cheer filled the air, and the announcer introduced each of Mark’s family members. When Marci and Eli were introduced they stood and waved and the crowd went wild. Cheers and whistles brought a blush to her cheeks. Eli loved the attention, waving frantically and blowing kisses to the crowd.

  “We're here today to celebrate love and sacrifice and family.” the moderator began. “Mark is the epitome of all three of those. He is an inspiration to us all. He is a model of courage and love and dedication. A hero who selflessly gave his life trying to protect someone he loved. We are here today to celebrate that kind of love and commitment to family, to honor those that lost their lives in the tragic earthquake and raise money for those that are left behind. As we run today, let's remember our families and how fortunate we are to have people who love us.” A resounding cheer filled the air and the starting gun signaled a start to the race. Everyone was clapping Marci on the back, shaking her hand and congratulating her. What they were congratulating her on she wasn't sure. A heavy knot sat in the pit of her stomach. Everyone saw Mark as a hero and celebrated his love for family but all Marci felt was bereft of her family. She wanted to scream at the announcer, “I don't want a hero, I want a husband!” No one would understand. A hero might be fun to talk about and read about and put on the banners but a hero didn't help much with raising a rambunctious 1 year old and a hero didn't hold you in his arms and kiss away the tears. Women looked at her in awe and envy. She was the wife of a hero, but she wanted no part of any of it. She just wanted her husband back.

  As waves of runners passed the stage, Marci saw Todd wave at them from the center of the pack. She waved back and decided to make a quick exit. On the way down she passed Tyson and Liz lacing up their running shoes. She watched silently as they put Kenny and Kylee in strollers and unobtrusively slipped in among the pack of runners.