CHRISTIANSBURG -- In the field beside Horne funeral home Wednesday, Christiansburg High School's marching band practiced its show for the upcoming football season.

The thump-thump-thump of drums and the swirling of colorful flags was a marked contrast to the scene inside the funeral home where a fraternity of brothers in brown presided over Cpl. Eric E. Sutphin's final inspection.

Sutphin, whose body rested inside a flag-draped coffin, was killed early Monday morning in the line of duty. As he was patrolling the Huckleberry Trail near the Virginia Tech campus in search of escaped Montgomery County Jail inmate William Morva, riding his patrol bicycle near the trailhead, the officer was shot, allegedly by Morva.

The 13-year law enforcement veteran enjoyed working on a bicycle.

"He absolutely loved that bike," said Master Deputy Hank Partin, team commander of the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office Honor Guard. "We were joshing with him about that Monday morning."

The nine-member honor guard, along with about 30 Montgomery County sheriff's officers, decided to extol Sutphin by standing guard by his casket throughout the night. They rotated in 15-minute shifts as visitors poured in to pay their respects at the deputy's wake, which began at 3 p.m. Wednesday and continued into the evening.

"It's our way of showing our love and respect," Partin said. "It stems back through tradition to never leave a fallen comrade."

"We're not here for anybody else. Just Eric. He was our brother," added investigator Brad Roop, another member of the honor guard. "We've done many, many funerals, but this is the first one we've done for one of our own. I don't know how we're going to get through it. But we wouldn't want it any other way."

Partin and Roop -- founding member of the Montgomery County guard -- said they decided to form the unit specifically for fallen heroes in 1999 after the sheriff's office received a request for assistance at the funeral of a veteran.

"I've been on the team two years now," said Master Deputy Chris Lucas as he took his leave from a turn beside Sutphin's casket. "This here is tough."

At the onset of the visitation, police cruisers lined the funeral home parking lot. Members of the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office gathered in their starched brown uniforms. Officers from the Christiansburg and Blacksburg police departments arrived in navy blue. Virginia state patrolmen came in steely gray.

All were somber, speaking in whispers. Many embraced and wiped at tears with soggy tissues.

The honor guard, however, remained dry-eyed, concentrating on their duty. There was the visitation, then the 11 a.m. funeral today.

"We'll be doing the pall bearing tomorrow," Roop said Wednesday. "We just want to get through tomorrow for Eric. We'll grieve then."

The grief on the face of Sutphin's widow, Tamara, was evident, though, as people came to offer comfort. Tamara Sutphin sat with her mother and her twin daughters, Rachel and Emily, through the wake. Montgomery County Sheriff Tommy Whitt stood nearby with his family to greet mourners.

Whitt, who had been visibly emotional in televised news conferences announcing the death of Sutphin Monday, now looked sad but composed. He seemed proud of the officers who stood guard at Sutphin's casket.

"This is the only way we have to say goodbye," he said, likening the experience of losing Sutphin to that of losing a child.

"He was a son," the sheriff said.

As the wake continued into the evening, the field beside the funeral home quieted. Police officers stood on U.S. 460, directing the steady stream of traffic in and out of the funeral home.

But when the traffic subsided and mourners went home, the officers standing guard stayed beside Sutphin.

"As a unit, that casket is not being left alone," Partin said.