Mason nodded.
"Yes."
"Forever?"
"Unless you decide to give it to someone else someday."
Lucas examined the handlebars.
"Why are you giving it to me?"
Mason crouched.
"Because somebody gave me a chance when I needed one."
The boy looked at him.
"Who?"
"My brother."
Lucas nodded.
Then he climbed onto the bicycle.
He rode slowly at first.
Then faster.
His mother cried.
Mason smiled.
He watched until the boy disappeared around the corner.
Bear stood beside him.
"Your brother would like this."
Mason nodded.
"I hope so."
The most difficult day came on the anniversary of Daniel's death.
Hannah had expected it to be hard.
She had prepared herself for the familiar sadness.
She had arranged for the children to spend the afternoon with Evelyn.
She had planned to visit the cemetery.
But she had not expected Mason to arrive at her house carrying Daniel's old toolbox.
She opened the door.
"What is that?"
Mason held it up.
"I found something."
She stepped aside.
He placed the toolbox on the kitchen table.
Inside were several small tools, a tape measure, a hammer, and a collection of old screws.
There was also a folded piece of paper.
Hannah picked it up.
It was a list.
At the top, Daniel had written:
Things I want to do with Mace.
Below were several items.
-
Repair the old kitchen table.
-
Take him to the lake.
-
Show him the workshop.
-
Introduce him to Caleb and Mia.
-
Ask him about Mom.
-
Find out whether he still whistles.
-
Take a photograph together.
-
Have coffee without talking about the past.
-
Tell him I love him.
Hannah began crying.
Mason looked at the list.
He had already completed some of the items without knowing it.
He had met the children.
He had visited the old apartment.
He had learned about their mother.
He had repaired things with Caleb.
But the final items remained.
Hannah wiped her eyes.
"We should do them."
Mason nodded.
"All of them?"
"All the ones we can."
Mason smiled faintly.
"Then let's start with the lake."
The lake was two hours away.
It was the same place their mother had taken the boys during a summer vacation when Mason was twelve and Owen was six.
Mason remembered the water.
He remembered the picnic basket.
He remembered Owen throwing stones into the lake and insisting that each one had made a different sound.
He remembered their mother laughing.
He remembered falling asleep in the back seat on the way home.
The trip had lasted only one afternoon.
But it had remained one of the happiest memories of his childhood.
Mason drove.
Hannah sat beside him.
Caleb and Mia were in the back.
Scout was strapped into a seat belt.
When they arrived, the lake looked almost unchanged.
The trees were taller.
The parking area was different.
A wooden dock had been rebuilt.
But the water remained.
Mason stood near the shore.
He closed his eyes.
For a moment, he remembered Owen running toward the water.
Then he heard Caleb.
"Uncle Mace!"
Mason turned.
Caleb was holding a flat stone.
"Watch this."
He threw it.
The stone bounced once.
Then sank.
Caleb looked disappointed.
Mason smiled.
"Not bad."
"How do you make it skip?"
"Practice."
"Show me."
Mason picked up a stone.
He demonstrated the movement.
The stone bounced three times.
Caleb stared.
"Again!"
Mason laughed.
He threw another.
Four skips.
Mia demanded a turn.
Her stone sank immediately.
She frowned.
"The lake ate it."
Hannah laughed.
Mason picked up another stone and handed it to her.
"Try again."
They spent nearly an hour throwing stones.
Then they sat on the grass and ate sandwiches.
Hannah watched the children.
"Daniel would have loved this."
Mason nodded.
"He would have."
She looked at him.
"Do you ever wish you could have had more time?"
Mason considered the question.
"Every day."
"Does it get easier?"
"Not exactly."
"What changes?"
Mason looked at Caleb and Mia.
"You learn that missing someone and being grateful for what remains can happen at the same time."
Hannah nodded.
Mason continued.
"I used to think that if I stopped feeling guilty, I was somehow forgetting him."
"Do you still feel that way?"
"No."
He looked at the children.
"Daniel wouldn't want me spending the rest of my life punishing myself."
Hannah smiled sadly.
"You're right."
Mason leaned back.
The sunlight reflected off the lake.
He remembered the list.
Take him to the lake.
He looked toward the water.
"Well, Owen," he whispered, "we made it."
The second item was the workshop.
Daniel had wanted to show Mason where he worked.