Chapter 17

“Neither am I. But I will tell you, if you hang out with enough of them, you will be as close as you can get without joining. I learned that being with my wife. Word of warning, the mentality tends to rub off.”

“I have been told similar already today. We will see if it falls true.”

The cashier turned to Jason.” We are collecting for the veteran’s fund. We even have a little contest between the cashiers to see who can get the most donations. Just follow the prompt on the pin pad. It should give you the chance to enter an amount, round up, or decline if you so choose. Total comes to 156.32 sir.”

“How much have you collected, and who is winning?” Jason asked as he pulled the card.

The reaction was not subtle, but it wasn’t very well hidden. “That would be Jermaine. He’s the lead and makes the schedules, so he makes sure he is on during the busiest times. He has over fifteen hundred collected. In total, we have about three thousand. Some of us think he’s messing with the totals, as we all have had some generous donations. We can’t prove it, though. I’m almost sure he will win the two hundred dollar prize and the new laptop.

The rest of us agreed to just put it all back into the pot for the donation. All he ever talks about is how useful the cash will be when he goes out with his buddies. If you want to talk about non-military mentality, that guy is the perfect candidate. If it wasn’t for this place, he wouldn’t even have any affiliation for the services.”

Selena leaned over as Jason slid the card into the slot. She saw the prompt and waited as he keyed in an amount. She stepped back and looked hard at the entry. He pulled the card and the prompt. “It is a worthy cause we can always give to. I dislike any that would take advantage for their own gain.” Jason said as the cashier tapped several times on the screen, trying to make it work faster.

Whether it was the tapping or just the machine doing its job, the receipt came up, and the cashier grabbed it. He handed it over with one hand while waving the other. He picked up the hangers Selena had removed and left on the counter.

“Not much can be done. We may be able to get a couple more hundred before the end of the day usually most give a dollar or five. As I said we have had some give larger sums, but that is not as common. But thanks for the donation everything helps. If you are on base this weekend there is a community gathering where we will give the organization the check for what we collected.”

Selena got a hopeful and longing look even with the possibility, but Jason shot it down just as quickly. “We are only here until tomorrow afternoon at best. I suggest that someone call the military police if you don’t make enough. They can investigate and ensure the accounting is correct.”

Selena started to gather her packages. “If that isn’t enough, someone should contact me through the base command office. Major Myers. I will see to it the needed amount is covered.”

All he got was a nod as the next customer became the point of interest. Selena silently walked ahead, glancing sideways at him, wanting to ask but unsure how.

Despite Jason’s earlier suggestion, Lt. Carlson was out of the car holding the door open.

“I’ll take that, miss,” he quickly offered, taking the bags from Selena. “Sir, I received a message from Captain Ostara. She has everything set up for your residence. She believes she has taken care of all the details, but if there’s something she has missed or you find a need, you should call her. She said to remind you to add her to your phone. She’s tried calling twice. Her contact info should be in the envelope the general sent, or I can send it to you.”

Jason rolled his eyes. “I do not need the general’s aid...” he stopped as the Lieutenant got a huge smile on his face. “What?”

“She said that you may be against the idea but also have a message from the General as to why even his calls are not going through and he’s made...”

“Just send the information, Lieutenant.”

Another smirk and a nod as the Lieutenant came back from the trunk. “Yes, sir. Is there anywhere else you wish to go?”

“The airstrip so I can get the hell out of here, but since that is not likely, we should go and get ready for the General’s dinner invite.”

“Yes sir,” he waited for Jason to get in while holding the door. He must have had the information preset because he just pushed a button and it was ringing through to Jason’s phone. Reluctantly Jason added the Captain’s and the general’s contact.

“Since when do you need to have contact info to get calls?” Selena shyly asked as he typed a message.

“Limited service. It cuts back on the telemarketing calls and wrong numbers.” He looked up but not at her. “Now, are you going to ask the question that you want the answer to?”

She feigned ignorance until he got a text that made him smile. She moved in closer and against him as she tried to see it but he closed it before she could. She wasn’t going to complain since he wasn’t moving because of her closeness. Not that he had much room to move. He wasn’t pushing her away either. There was that special warmth that could be tolerated even on a hot California day and always felt welcoming.

“Lieutenant, I think we have time; make a detour to the base headquarters,” he turned his attention to the window, but his head barely turned when Selena jabbed his ribs. He rolled his eyes at her as she mouthed a single word. With a short sigh, “please.”

“Yes, sir. We have about enough time to make it, more so if you don’t mind bending the limits a bit.”

“Best judgment,” Jason replied.

The car accelerated, not extremely but faster than it had been. Selena noted the rolling stops as well.

“So, you going to ask?” Jason said casually watching the scenery pass by. “You may not get another chance.”

“I heard where we are going. But why so fast?”

He shrugged. “If that is what you want to ask about, fine. But don’t complain to me about that question nagging at you to where you can’t sleep. There is an event to happen shortly. It’s not overly glamorous or filled with fanfare, but it’s something anyone spending time on base should be aware of, even civilians.”

Was that a slip? Did he mean to imply she could be there more? She waited for some other comment to counter or try to hide it, but he continued to look out the window. Finally, she lifted herself up and whispered in his ear. “The donation.”

“That’s not a question,” he said as he continued to look out the window.

She and he had this game before too. “Are you sure you put in the right amount?”

“Why? Do you think it was too little?”

“Little? Jason, you donated five thousand dollars.” She had seen him being generous, sometimes more than he should have when it came to tips and such, but not that extravagant. He never seemed to be broke, but he never seemed to go for high-end anything for himself, at least. Well, besides his phone and laptop, from what she had seen, those were not cheap. Then, there was his constant mention of the cost of things. She always felt bad when he spent more than twenty bucks on their outings.

He started off as if he was thinking back to the PX. “Perhaps you are right. Maybe we will have the Lieutenant pick us up earlier and go back and give some more. Maybe we can boost one or more of the other cashier’s numbers a bit.”

“I don’t think your bank will allow that. I’m surprised there wasn’t some red flag to keep that from happening even once.”

“It’s a specialized card tied to my military pay. It has a higher purchase limit. I can’t have purchasing issues when I need to do something quickly. Since I have a direct deposit of a continuous check, the bank hasn’t raised any concerns. At the worst, they would send a text if it went too high or was unusual in some way.”

“Over five-thousand-dollar purchase isn’t unusual?”

“Well, I can’t say the last time I made that large of a purchase. But I’ve come close since coming here. But since the limit isn’t reached, it won’t raise any flags.”

The car sped up a little more as the Lieutenant went around a curve. “Sorry sir, almost there. we should make it with a minute or two to spare.”

“No worries, Lieutenant.”

When they came to a stop, Selena looked out. They were in a parking lot. “Umm...” she started as she got out and joined Jason.

“Just watch and listen,” Jason said as he and Lt. Carlson were watching a group of uniformed people off the side of the lot.

It was as if she was watching a very small parade of six. They all marched up to the flagpole and formed around it. Just as they finished somewhere, music started to play, and both Jason and the Lieutenant came to attention and saluted. She tried to mimic what she was seeing, but she was unsure what else to do. As the music played, one of the six lowered the flag. It was all over once the flag was folded, and the men and women in the group marched off. It wasn’t grand in size, but even Selena could see the respect and honor that was paid in that short time.

“A flag ceremony happens twice a day,” Jason explained as they all got back in the car. “Civilians should stop what they are doing and stay silent while Retreat, which is what you just heard, or Reveille, in the mornings, is played. Military people will render a salute and come to attention, even if they are not by the flag. They will face the general area or the direction of the music.”

He was a bit cold in his tone, but again, it was as if he was telling her something she’d only need to know if she was going to be there for it. The Lieutenant’s voice helped the tension still in the air.

“However, there are no rules that say a civilian cannot salute and come to attention, is there, sir?”

“I haven’t heard of any, but in my experience, it’s not common, and most non-military don’t. Few even know what is happening when they see it. Most civilians don’t salute correctly when they try and can offend some more veteran officers when they see it.”

“It wasn’t that bad, sir,” Lt. Carlson chuckled, and Selena blushed.

Jason had to close his eyes. From the first time he saw her blush it amazed him how cute it looked. Even with her natural coloring, it showed just right. “No, not too bad. Good effort,” he admitted.

Selena glanced at him. That comment wasn’t as cold, it was the exact opposite. She couldn’t figure what was going on. He never ran cold with her even in the beginning. But to go from one extreme to the next was even more unusual. When she looked up front and saw the Lieutenant, she took a breath. Maybe it was all location and situation. She needed to figure it out.

Whether it was a short drive or she was just lost in thoughts, Selena shook herself as they came to a stop. They were at a small one-story building. It looked suitable for a single person or even a couple. Selena felt a sudden burst of excitement.

“We are not putting anyone out, are we Lieutenant?” Jason asked as they all got out.

“No, sir. The officer who was here was transferred several weeks ago, and I don’t believe it has been used since. I’m guessing the Captain just needed to make sure it was cleaned up. She mentioned that there is also a basement and four bedrooms. The weather tonight is not bad. Just a light breeze, but the air conditioner does work, and each room has a television set up.”

“I don’t understand. It all seems a bit much for one night. It could have all been avoided with a reservation at the motel.”

“Yes, sir. It would make more sense. It is all the general’s orders, though. Privileges of rank.”

Jason laughed and felt Selena tug at his arm. “It is his way of saying he agrees without actually disagreeing with the general. And he is right, the higher the rank, the more likely they will use it to make sure they get things how they want when there are possibilities of it not happening.”

Lt. Carlson retrieved Selena’s bags and brought them to the front door. “Captain Ostara sent the lock code and said she left the instructions on changing the code on the counter sir. It’s currently six two one nine four.” He took everything inside and set them on the sofa.

“How?” Selena asked as she followed him inside.

“It is not that hard to find information. This is the Army, after all, and they have the Army CID, which means its resources, including the multitude of databases used by law enforcement. Or, in your case, probably just the school records.”

The Lieutenant seemed to ignore their conversation. “Well, sir, if there is nothing else that you need from me, I will leave you to do what you need to do. The Captain said she made sure everything was in order and you had everything you would possibly need. If not, please call, and I will do what I can to get whatever it is. I’ll return in about four hours to take you to the restaurant.”

Jason looked over the room as Selena went to her bags. The entire place was set up. There was even a fruit basket. What he expected he found beside it. A pen and pad of paper and an envelope. He went to it and tore off the top page and wrote something.