Two days later, the funeral

"I would like to bring a very special person up to deliver the eulogy...Charlie Eppes" The pastor moved aside and I stood, taking a deep breath. I walked up and weakly shook his hand.

"Thanks" I said softly. He smiled sympathetically and then moved aside so I could talk. I turned to face the crowd, gripping the lectern with my hands until my knuckles turned white. "Uh, hi. I'm Charlie Eppes. Don..." My voice cracked and I paused, getting my voice under control. "Don was my older brother." I paused to take a deep breath before continuing and looked at Dad, he nodded, tears in his eyes, urging me on silently. "He was a great older brother, he always had the answers. I always looked up to Don and always wanted to please him. Hell, I'd do anything for him, just to help him, or make him happy. I know many of you may already know this, but Don and I graduated high school on the same day" I laughed, "Puts a little strain on the sibling rivalry" That comment got a few laughs and I continued, "But Don was so cool about it, he never once was bitter towards me about it, and he never ever took advantage of my abilities to help him with his homework. He was a great older brother, he protected me from bullies, offered the support whenever I needed it, and always had the best advice, at least in my eyes. Don never broke down, he was always strong and provided the support I needed, he was there for my first day of high school, prom, graduation, my first day of college, when we lost our Mom, and when I was having trouble with a case I was helping him with. Don always looked out for me, he sheltered me from pain and harm that may come during a case, and always tried to prevent me from going dangerous places with him, even when I insisted I had to be there. Most of all, Don trusted me. If I said it was true, he 9.5/10 times believed me and that meant a lot to me. As we were growing up Don always made sure I was involved, he made sure I wasn't always left out of everything, he even involved me in some things that I probably shouldn't have been involved in" I paused, thinking about what to say next, "I remember the first time Don asked for my help on a case. It was a stock fraud case and I was ecstatic to help. I eventually began to help him on almost every case and we grew closer. Don was a great person to know and anyone would have been honored to know or work with him. He was honest, trustworthy, caring, loving, funny, smart, reliable, and most important of all; he cared about whatever he was involved in. He had a...quality about him, I can't explain it. He walked into a room and everyone turned and looked. He lit up each room he was in and when he spoke, people listened. It was amazing to witness. Don lived his life for others, whether it was for others welfare, safety, or comfort, he was always giving. Don never worried about himself and he will truly be missed. Don wouldn't want us to sit here, mourning his death; he would want us to celebrate the lives saved because of the millions of people in the world like Don. If you remember one thing about Don Eppes, remember that he was a great, well respected man who gave his life selflessly for the safety of others." I managed a smile and headed back to my seat, people clapped. As I walked back, the tears began to fall and by the time I reached my seat next to Dad, the tears were rolling.

Dad grasped me in a hug, "That was amazing Charlie, Don would have been proud."

All I could do was nod; I sat numbly as friends went up to tell anecdotes or stories of their encounters with Don. Don's superior agent from Albuquerque spoke, Walt Merrick, his current Assistant Director spoke, Larry Fleinhardt, Amita Ramun, Colby Granger, Megan Reeves, Billy Cooper, his old partner, and David Sinclair all spoke. Even Kim, his ex-fiancé, and Terry Lake spoke for a few moments. With each story, I cried harder until I could barely see, blinded by the tears. Family went up one by one, then, Dad stood to speak.

The room fell silent, "Don was a great person. He was an amazing son, brother, friend, and partner. He was such a great brother to Charlie as the two grew up. He taught Charlie many things and took Charlie under his wing to help him grow and to protect him. He was always athletic growing up; he played baseball and was actually pretty good. He made it to the minor league, but then decided he couldn't get any better. He signed up for the Academy the next day. As scared as his Mother and I were about his new interest, we supported him, and he excelled. He was stationed in Albuquerque, was on Fugitive recovery with Billy Cooper for a while, and that was a hard time for us. We wouldn't hear from him for weeks, sometimes months at a time, but he loved his work, so we dealt with the infrequent calls. Then, Don met a beautiful woman and fell in love with her. Soon after, his Mom got sick, and even though we told him he didn't have to, he moved home, even though he had to leave the woman he loved behind" Dad cleared his voice and glanced at Kim who was smiling. "Er, after the boys' Mother passed away, Don got a job at the L.A. FBI and worked there until his death. He and his team saved many lives and he was in too many dangerous situations than I care to think about" Alan scanned the crowd, "A father's greatest pride is seeing his two sons get along, and I was lucky enough to experience that pride. Don and Charlie began to work on cases together and I couldn't have been happier. Don needed the help, and loved getting it from Charlie, and Charlie loved to help his big brother in any way possible, lucky for Don" Dad turned the speech serious, "Last week Don sacrificed his life to save the life of a little boy and his sister and the lives of the people on his team. Don always gave selflessly and cared deeply for his family and friends. He would never allow something to happen to anyone he cared about it, and he gave his life trying to protect those very people. Let's take this time to remember Don as the man everyone loved, and to celebrate his full life, if only it could have been longer." Dad nodded and left the lectern, and the church broke into applause.

I stood and Dad and I hugged for a long time, each of us crying and holding onto for the support we once found in Don.

The time came for the viewing; people silently walked past Don's coffin and paid their last respects. I walked up after mostly everyone had already been by. He looked good; he was in his black suit, a white dress shirt with barely noticeable blue stripes. He was wearing a black tie and his white undershirt could barely be seen from under his shirt. He had his favorite belt on and his favorite dress shoes. I smiled; he wore this outfit for Mom's funeral. I dug into my pocket and pulled out a picture of the two of us. It was taken right after I had helped Don on the stock fraud case. Don had his arm draped around my shoulder and we bother were smiling. I was wearing an olive green t-shirt with jeans, Don was wearing jeans, a white dress shirt, his sleeves rolled up past his elbows, a trademark of his, and black shoes. Don's gun, cell, and badge could be seen on his belt. I admired the picture for a moment, then carefully put it under Don's folded hands. I stood, memorizing everything about him so I wouldn't forget, and almost jumped when someone placed their hand on my shoulder.

"Charlie, everyone's going outside. Come on" He gently guided me away from Don.

The ceremony ended, and everyone headed outside for refreshments and to mingle. Terry approached me and drew me into a hug, "Charlie, the service was beautiful. Don would have been proud," She said.

"Thanks." I paused, "Terry, he really loved you, you know?"

She smiled, but all she said was, "Oh Charlie, I wish we could have had more time with him. What I would give for just another day" She buried her head in my shoulder and I wrapped my arms around her.

"Me too, me too" I murmured back, then smiled, remembering. "Did you know that Don's all time favorite date was pizza in a laundry mat?" I asked softly.

She looked into my eyes, "Our first date? Did he really say that?" She asked.

I nodded, the tears began to welt up again, "He really said that" I promised.

She smiled, "Thanks Charlie, that means a lot to me" She sighed, "I need to go talk to Alan, er your Dad, I'll talk to you later" She gave me a last hug.

"Alright. Take care," I whispered, hugging her briefly before she left.

Everyone drifted by me and I talked to each of them, sharing stories with some, while accepting others grievances silently.

Soon the time came to take the coffin to the cemetery. Only a few people came to the actual burial. Some close family, Terry, David, Colby, Megan, Amita, Larry, Cooper, and Kim were the only people who were not related who came. A priest blessed Don's coffin and the area around it, then we lowered the coffin into the ground.

"So long, Don" I said softly.

Hugs were exchanged, then we all parted ways, Dad and I headed home. I unlocked the front door and entered the deathly silent house. Dad and I wandered into the house and sank down onto the couch. "I can't believe he's gone," I muttered.

Dad gazed at me and placed a loving arm on my shoulder, "Neither can I" He paused, "But Don wouldn't want us to stop our lives and crawl into a hole because of him. If Don was here right now, he'd tell us to go on living..." Dad picked up a picture from the coffee table and the two of us looked at it. It was the picture of the three of us right before Val's wedding this past year. "And that's exactly what we're going to do, we're going to keep on living"