Figuring Joe had taken a walk to clear his mind, Frank bent down and examined the box. It was not like him to snoop into his brother’s affairs, but Joe was acting different. Too different. Different enough that Frank thought that by looking in the box, he might be able to understand what was going through his younger brother’s head. Looking again to make sure Joe could not see him, Frank felt confident to open the box.

Inside was a small gold ring with a very small diamond in the center. Attached to the ring was a string with a note underneath it. Frank opened the small note.

"With this ring, I pledge my love and heart to you… for as long as we both shall live."

A promise ring. Joe had secretly gotten Iola a promise ring. It was then that Frank put the pieces together.

Frank hung his head. He took the ring and placed it in his pocket, knowing that someone might steal it from the site if it was to be left there. He thought that maybe someday, Joe would like to have it back. Someday when he was thinking clearly. The oldest Hardy then spotted another note attached to the flowers. Looking around again, there was no sign of Joe. Frank then opened the other letter.

Frank’s heart ached for his brother as he put the letter and empty box back, hoping that Joe would not notice. It was then that a thought hit Frank. The phrase "I hope to join you soon" echoed in his head. He looked towards the path that led to the overlook. Fear seized Frank and he immediately turned and ran down the path. His legs just could not carry him fast enough as his mind raced through what could be waiting for him.

When he reached the clearing, there stood Joe looking out over the ocean. The cold wind was blowing his hair as he stood there silently. Frank let out a sigh of relief and walked over to his younger brother. Joe did not turn to face him until he was standing beside him.

"Hi!" Frank managed to say. What a lame opener there Hardy! He thought.

"Hi," Joe replied. "Why are you here?"

"Mom told me that you would probably be at the cemetery. I just followed the footprints from there," Frank answered still catching his breath.

"I guess the flowers were a dead giveaway," Joe remarked. Then he turned and faced his brother, who was trying to hide the fact that he almost had a near heart attack. "Why are you so out of breath? Did you run all the way out here or something?"

"Just a long hike in the cold weather. I guess I am a little out of shape."

"Or you just thought that I had thrown myself over the edge of this cliff," Joe said in a matter of fact way. Frank grew quiet. The brothers had never lied to each other and as much as it was going to hurt, he had to tell the truth.

"I am worried about you. Everyone is worried about you Joe," Frank said, almost pleading. Joe just stood there, looking out over the ocean.

"I suppose you saw my letter," Joe remarked, not even looking at his older brother.

"I am sorry Joe. I only read it in hopes that I find out what was going on in that thick head of yours," Frank admitted. "I didn’t mean to intrude on your privacy, but you have me that scared."

Joe looked like he was going to cry, but composed himself. He slowly stretched his neck and took a deep breath. "Look Frank. There is no way you can even realize how I am feeling right now. You still have Callie and Dad still has Mom. I loved Iola Frank! I really did love her!"

"I know you did Joe. And Iola loved you too," Frank answered, putting his hand around his brother’s shoulders. But Joe jumped and moved slightly away. Frank was a little shocked by Joe’s reaction.

"I bought her that ring. I was going to give it to her tonight Frank. Tonight was going to be the beginning of our new future. I was going to bring her here Frank. It was our favorite place. It was the place we shared our first kiss, our first real talk, and our first…" Joe stopped himself and took a breath. He was now trembling and the tears were flowing down his rose colored cheeks. "But just because of my stupidity, she is losing out on everything. Instead of opening gifts and spending time with her family, she is laying dead cold in her grave! Instead of sharing our future together, I took her future away."

Frank again tried to put his arm around Joe, but Joe jumped back once again.

"I don’t deserve to have a Merry Christmas and such. I find it even hard to deal with myself or even look in the mirror anymore. Iola is gone and nothing I can do will bring her back. I don’t feel like celebrating this year. Everyone expects me to be the old cheery Joe. But I can’t Frank. I just can’t. Not now… not without Iola."

"Joe, Iola’s death was not your fault. If you had known that the car was rigged to blow, you would have never let her anywhere near that car!"

"Then a part of me wonders if I could have saved her. If I had gotten away from you in time, would she still be alive today."

Frank felt that statement go through him like a knife. The day of the accident, Joe had fought him to get to the car. However, Frank was able to keep him back. He figured Joe resented that, but Frank also knew that Joe would have killed himself that day trying to rescue an already dead Iola.

"Joe, she was already gone by then," Frank said softly. The snow was starting to flutter down again. It was so peaceful, but it was the only peaceful thing on that overlook.

Joe stopped and looked out over the Atlantic Ocean. The brothers stood there quietly.

Joe finally broke the silence. "Frank, I am sorry. But I do feel that Iola is in her grave because of me. And if there was a way, I would trade her places in a heartbeat."

Frank knew Joe meant every word and the statement saddened him. The words cut through him unlike any other words that the brothers had exchanged during the years. To him, it sounded like his brother had a death wish. He was just waiting for his wish to come true. He knew that Joe and Iola were very serious, but he did not know just how serious they were until that day.