he hated being treated like a feeble old man who had to be dealt with. His son had a good heart, he was just busy, impatient, and a bit intolerant of other’s feelings sometimes. Jean had always told Theo it stemmed from Cam’s hidden insecurities, but sometimes he just wanted to take that boy and shake him. He had to admit, though, his son had checked on him almost every week since Jean died.
He sat down at his computer and turned on the screen so he could answer when the call came through. Cam was sitting at his desk in his high-rise office and Theo could see the Seattle skyline out the wall of windows behind his son.
“Good morning, Dad.” His cell phone was in his hand and it looked like his son was texting as they spoke.
Theo nodded.
Cam looked up. “Are you there?”
Theo wanted to say, “If you were looking at me, you would know.” Instead he grunted. He was particularly grumpy today. Edgy. Not his usual immobile self at all. Having some energy all of a sudden made him restless.
“Have you thought any more about our discussion last week about selling your house?”
“Why would I want to do that?” Theo said. He knew he was being difficult, and he had thought a little about it but it had only made him sadder.
Cam’s sigh grated on his nerves. “Dad, what do you need with that big house anymore? It’s too much for you.”
Theo thought about his spacious home and yard. Again the dog park popped into his mind. “Maybe it’s not,” Theo said. “I have some ideas that might work out.”
“Like what?” Cam seemed very distressed. “Last week you could barely get out of bed, today you have ideas?”
Theo chuckled to himself, imagining what Cam might have imagined his ideas were. He was going to keep them to himself for now.
“How are you and Judy doing?” Theo asked, trying to change the subject.
His son glanced down at his phone again and back to the screen. “Fine. We worry about you. You were so down last week, I was thinking of coming out and getting you myself.”
Cam cared, that was clear, but the thought of being whisked out of his home rattled him. Yes, he had been depressed since Jean’s death, but he was fully cognizant of what was going on around him and still had a good brain. “I can take care of myself just fine. I’m feeling a bit better and so is Wally.”
Cam looked skeptical. “Glad to hear it. We can discuss more about future plans next week.”
In that moment, Theo knew he was facing a crossroads in his life. He had a choice to make and he wanted it to be his alone. Did he want to come back to life or run away from it? The weight of grief clung to his chest like an anchor pulling him to sea. With little effort he could let go and the waves would overtake him. Or he could do something with his life and the time he had left.
“I’ve got a meeting, got to run,” Cam said. “But I wanted to wish you a Happy Father’s Day.”
“Thanks, son.”
Always running, Theo thought. He hoped his son was happy with the fast-paced life he lived. No grandkids yet. But, he needed to respect his son’s choices too, if he expected Cam to respect his. His son probably wanted his dad to be happy.
“Love you, son,” he said.
“You too. Bye, Dad.”
Theo let out a sigh as the screen went blank. Jean would want him to try harder to have a better relationship with their son. But he wasn’t sure how that could be accomplished at this point. He was not going to move into a conveniently located—for Cam and Judy—high-priced care facility where he would lose not only some of his freedom, but his beloved Moonwater Lake home and all the memories it held. He looked down at Wally nestled at his feet. His faithful companion.
He’d been so close to giving up hope recently, giving up and just letting Cam handle everything. No wonder his son had been worried. But now Theo had other things calling him to pay attention, wake up, and reach out.
“Wally,” he said. “What would you think about having some visitors around here again?”
The dog looked up with his big brown eyes, sleepy but attentive.
“Treat?” Theo said. Hounds never refused.
That got Wally up and he followed him into the kitchen. He tossed the pup one of