Jake released a long, tense sigh.
“What if I’m not? What if this isn’t me?”
“It’s no longer your call. It’s out of your hands. Based on what little I really know about your escapades with Pierre, I know that you can shape the fate of nations. Now you need to learn to shape the fate of people close to you that you love.”
“This sounds hard. I mean, there’s no training for this. There’s no way I can really prepare, is there? How do I get ready for this?”
Nick’s smile assured Jake.
“For the first time in your life, you let your older brother teach you something.”
“Okay, sure. What do I need to know?”
“You forget about trying to be a god who changes the entire world with each magnificent mission you take on,” Nick said. “And you try your hardest to make the world a better place by caring about it one person at a time.”
“Sounds hard.”
“Remember how I said you have the same gift I have, maybe stronger, to read people? A sense of augury, how to behave, and figure out what to do next?”
“Yeah. Sure.”
“I recommend you start using it when you get home.”
Nick met Linda’s kids in the garage to take them to dinner, freeing Jake for his reunion.
Jake sauntered through the entryway into his warm home. In the entryway, feminine lines drew voluptuous curves under a pink robe, and dark hair touched his wife’s shoulder. She ran to him, and he saw a smile spreading across her face before she hugged him.
She bounced and wiggled in his arms, and he squeezed to lessen the repeated impact of her head on his jaw.
“Careful!” he said.
She stepped back.
“Sorry. I just missed you.”
“I know. I missed you, too.”
Jake stared at her belly. He thought he sensed new life but could only speculate if his brother had planted a false image in his mind.
“What? Do I look fat?” she asked.
“No,” he said. “Just wondering. I mean, how are you doing? How do you feel?”
“How do I feel? You’ve never asked me that.”
“Well,” Jake said, “I think I’m learning how to care.”
About the Author
After graduating from the Naval Academy in 1991, John R. Monteith served on a nuclear ballistic missile submarine and then as a top-rated instructor of combat tactics at the U.S. Naval Submarine School. He now works as an engineer in the Detroit area. He writes the award-winning Rogue Submarine series.