Chapter 24: Epilogue

It was a cold, blustery afternoon. You know the weather is bad if it’s snowing too hard to go skiing. The driveway was shoveled, but there was another two feet of snow on the way, if Accu-Weather is right. All three children had a hand in the job. Five-year-old Wayne, four-year-old Patrick, and two-year-old Vanessa helped mom and dad shovel. However, most of Patrick and Wayne’s help was pulling Vanessa around on a plastic sled. She’s more a pet than a sibling to the boys, but Roxanne says they’ll grow out of that stage.

It was a delightful house, but it wasn’t theirs. It was Senior NCO Housing on Buckley Space Force Base in Aurora Colorado. They own a house in St. Felix, Florida and in three years they will move there permanently. “If we had a snowmobile we could go out right now!” pouted Patrick.

“If we bought a snowmobile, a week later we’d get orders to Arizona,” said Wedge.

“So?” demanded Wayne.

Inside it was warm and dry and in the family room a fire crackled in the gas fireplace. Dad made pigs in a blanket out of breakfast sausage and crescent roll dough from a tube; it was fast, easy, and the kid’s favorite. They carefully walked through the house with a paper plate with a couple of pigs in a blanket and a small puddle of ketchup and placed them on the coffee table in the family room where their fruit juice awaited them. As they ate, a relic from the past, Bugs Bunny and The Road Runner, played on the TV.

Wedge and Roxie sat in the love seat and felt each other’s warmth. It’s been a horrible winter, and this is how they spent their “anniversary” too. They’ve had more extravagant Valentines Days, but none better. They kissed, causing little Vanessa to cover her eyes and say “ewww” the way her brothers taught her. As they kissed, a cell phone rang, bringing the kiss to an end. “You’re the one on call,” said Roxie, and she handed Wedge the phone.

He looked at the screen and it wasn’t a base phone number; in fact, it was a 218-area code. It took a moment, but he remembered the phone number. He pressed the button and lifted the phone to his ear. “Senior Master Sergeant Donovan ... Oh, Doctor Nguyen, how are you doing? ... uh huh ... uh huh ... wait a minute, you’ll want to talk to the chief...” Wedge handed Roxie the phone. “They want to talk to the chief.”

Frowning at Wedge, Roxie took the phone. “Chief Donovan,” she said in an annoyed tone. Who in her squadron did not understand, “I will not be available this weekend?”

“Roxie, it me, Lanh!”

Roxie glared at Wedge, who was overjoyed with himself and his little bit of subterfuge. “Lanh, how was that boat ride of yours? How are you doing.”

“Boat ride was with Josh!”

“You’re kidding! How’s that old cracker doing?”

“He got a girl,” said Lanh. “Very pretty, Miss Ohio.”

“Josh is dating Miss Ohio?” Roxie looked at Wedge and they both shrugged at the same time. “How are you doing sweetheart?”

“We’re going to have a baby!”

Roxie remembered their last conversation months ago, Lanh’s sister Kim-Ly had volunteered to carry a baby for Don and Lanh, who was infertile. “How is Kim-Ly doing?”

“She’s going to have a baby too, so is Tam. All three of us!”

It took Roxie a moment, but the news sank in. “You’re what? OH MY GOD!!! Oh my god that’s so wonderful! If you need anything I can be right there! Christmas? We can do it. Yes!”

“What was that mommie?” demanded all three children as Roxie ended her call.

“A good friend of mommy and daddy is having a baby and we’re going to go to Minnesota to visit them next Christmas.”

“Oh.” And the three amigos went back to Bugs Bunny.

“That’s so awesome,” sighed Roxie. “They wanted a baby so bad, and now, somehow...”

“Don and Lanh are Juvats like us,” said Wedge. “Fortune favors the bold.”