Chapter 1

"I'll give you one last chance Major. If you are selected, by next year or so you could become a Lt. Colonel, what do you say?"

I had heard this 'last chance' scenario for the last three months. I was turning in my papers, taking my last month as R&R and saying my 'good byes'.

"Thank you Sir, but I've got a 'gal' and a home all waiting for me to get out. After these 25, I think the change will do me good too, but I thank you anyhow."

Shit, I had said that all with almost a straight face. No way in 'Hell's Half-Acre' was I ever going to join them 'REMFs'. If there was one thing I had learned it was as long as you put on a good show for the UAVs above, looked to be successful and gave all the credit to 'Fearless Leader' they didn't care what you did, how you did it or what the orders really were. No Sir Re Bobbie, 25 and out since I got four years credit for ROTC. I was Carl Majik, (Name must have been shortened) I'm, early 40's and still could walk. I was luckier than most for that. I had lied a little though, that house got sold near a year ago, that 'gal' who I had not seen for twenty plus years had a big belly and one kid stashed away at her Mom's. Granddad had left me 80 acres of prime Black Walnut trees and 163 Acres of mostly Hickory. One big Black Walnut tree alone was worth over $15,000. Mr. J. R. Foster wanted all of them. He not only told my Lawyer 'Yes'; he had to call himself to thank me for selling them. Lawyer Grimes had put $5.68 Million into my bank for the house and land, after his fee of course. Those little things I also wanted him to do for me, as he put it, were 'freebies'. He had taken some of that money and seen to it a few of 'my men' got some help. Some were still in hospitals some needed a 'stake'; it might have helped some. Hell I would have paid his fee again just for doing that for them. I believed in justice and was not a 'vindictive' man, but thinking about it; maybe I was.

I had planned to go back to Stillwater, just to see the face on Steve and Betty. When I had left to attend VMI, (Virginia Military Institute) she had pledged her undying devotion and promised to wait for me as long as it took. I left at 17 and before I hit 18, Mr. Grimes had informed me that my 'doppelgangers' were already in her bed.

I never expected her to wait and what was funny was her 'annual' letter. They could have been plain paper or carbon copies (Remember Carbon Paper you old fossils) since they always said the same thing. You would have thought she knew as an Officer, that having a wife was no big deal. Her latest 'Ass' had already been tromping through a few of those woods and probably had visions of some kind of wealthy wife (My 'widow' maybe) or was it life, (mine too maybe). Fool. My MOS had said that I was in Supply. (A nine character United States military occupation code, or 'Occupational Specialty') That was not quite true. He must have gotten confused watching TV and thought 'Force Recon' was some kind of video game I played. My 'Hazardous duty' was real and not the errant paper clip he might have faced.

Hunter Holmes McGuire, the Veterans Administration Medical Center serving most of Virginia as well as part of South Carolina had a good rep, as if any were 'good'. I wanted to stay in the South so; Virginia, The Carolina's and parts of Maryland were my first choice. Hi, Ho, 'Hi Di Ho'; it was off to Richmond I go. The first stop was ... no, not Manassas, it was a bank. (If you have never gone to that battlefield in Centreville Virginia, you might want to visit. It is a special place, but not much there. You can sit atop one of the Park's benches and just imagine what it must have been like. The Union called it 'First Bull Run.' Nearly 70,000 men met, and a few things happened. The 'Blue Bellies ran back to Washington and a brigadier general new from the Virginia Military Institute, Thomas J. Jackson, stood his ground and received his famous nickname, 'Stonewall Jackson' there)

I was not too meticulous in choosing a bank but the Bank Of America office on Jefferson Davis Hwy sort of had a nice ring to it and had local branches unlike Navy Federal. Forty-three minutes later, after a call to Mr. Grimes and signing about a thousand forms they said I was all ready; I just had to give them my address.

I stated to scratch my almost shaven head. It looked like my luck was turning fast and I would soon be answering a whole bunch more questions with 'Huh'. I started to get that look on my face. You know the one ladies, the look a man (and I was right-handed) gets when asked some really tough questions, like, 'How Y'all doin today?'

She looked at me, then the balance I was transferring over, loudly sighed, and made a call on her phone. Some perky young thing came into her office, nodded at me and almost stood at 'attention' in front of Mrs. H Peters (What it said on the nameplate on her desk). I almost was waiting for her to salute.

"Marcie, Mr. Majik has a whole lot of things to do this week and needs some assistance. From what I can tell he is a Southern Boy but I'm not certain a 'True Gentleman' though."

"Yes Ma'am!" I nodded. "Born and bred in Virginia so I at least 'try' to be."

"He may need some work on better manners but since he has been protecting our 'asses' he gets a few 'opps' now and then. Now I won't say he is our 'Best' customer but you might just think he might be in the top hundred; so for this week, 'anything' he needs, wants, see's or you think he should have see to it. Y'all hear me girl?"

"Yes Mama!"

"Marcie Peters, my daughter; Marcie, Major Carl Majik Ret."

"Suh!' Then she curtsied.

"What do you need first?"

"A cold shower, a very, cold shower I think Marcie."

Mrs. Peters held up the list of accounts and handed them to her. She sighed again.

"Marcie, see Paula, have her issue starter checks, debit and credit cards for the Major to use this week. Here is a list of things we need for his records." She handed over another list to Marcie.

"For... ?"

"Make it for $100,000 Checking and the same for a Credit Card for now; we'll hold the rest of his funds in a temp account until he has at least a local address to use. If he needs more, you see his account balance so girl, just fix it."

That sheet already had my name, former Rank, serial number and Mr. Grimes's contact information filled in. Marcie read off the 'Yet To Do' list.

On it were spaces for, my Address, Telephone number, Registration, Drivers license, Insurance, Car Tag ID, Cell, Soc, Email, spouse, children, next of kin, and so on. With the Single, Zero and None hand written in on three of those lines her head and eyes seemed to move a might.

Her question, "Which of these others do you already have information on?" got her another of the 'lost puppy', man looks.

"Suh! If you would please wait here, I'll go see Paula and ready myself."

I sat down as she left. The 'Dowager Empress' got up, locked the door and sat on her desk near me.

"My Marcie is a good girl, foolish maybe but 'You Suh', to use her phrase, are a catch for any woman. If you even bring her back, give me a kiss and call me 'Lou' and I'll start looking for a dress. If you two don't fit, watch out because I know of at least one older woman who will be running after you."

"Yes Ma'am. I ... I ... I don't rightly know what to say or do."

I heard a sigh. "Look, say 'thank you' and Slot A goes into Slot B and in nine months..."

There was a loud crash that almost put out the glass in the door. We looked at each other and together said, "Marcie!"

Mrs. Peters got up and unlocked the door to the office. A red faced Marcie floated in. In her hand were some envelopes. "I also got him some cash, $10,000."

This was not the same Marcie that left. Her hair was done up, she had more makeup on, no jacket now, and new blouse with three open buttons and the hint that her bra was gone made a difference. She tried handing me the envelopes.

"Nope, you hold onto things, I'm just a 'poor boy' (A Southern submarine sandwich from Louisiana consisting of meat, fried seafood, sometimes chicken or ham served on a baguette-like New Orleans French bread) who might lose them."

"Now Marcie, do you have your ID and passport incase 'we' need them?" I looked at the smirking woman now behind her desk again. I also saw the look she gave her 'Lou'. "No, but I can stop home for them."

"Better get some clothes and things for the week too; 'we' can stop at a Mall this week, right, if 'we' need to buy you more things?"

Placing my arm around her waist and pulling her with me, I said, smiling to her Mom. "Now I'll follow you, so where are you 'taking' me first?"

I guess the first thing I liked about her was, Damn, two things, first was the silence going to her home to get those papers, next, this girl, woman, female followed orders and I was used to giving them. That is two things, right? 'Anywho', I drove she navigated. I did not bother to tell her the car I had rented had GPS. I liked her voice, especially when she said 'Suh'. A man could get used to that sound very easily.

When we pulled onto a side road leading to a house it was my turn to sigh. "I know Monticello was on Thomas Jefferson Hwy, but I always thought it was in Charlottesville not Richmond?"

This is Grand Daddy's Plantation House; Mom and I live here."

I had pulled up to the front. I stopped the car, turned it off but before I could get out of the car to open her side she ran up the steps and went inside. If this were a comic book, 'The Flash' would be a might slower than she was. Within a few minutes a man, dressed to the 'nines'(Very formal attire, like for High Tea to you right ponders) came out to the car and asked "would I please come inside".

I knew it was going to be one of those days as soon as I walked in. My new civilian shoes 'squeaked' on the polished marble floor. Looking around, maybe, just maybe I could afford one of those paintings that hung on the walls. I was shown into another room; my new shoes further letting anyone know that I was around town.

Marcie came in, papers in-hand, about the same time I heard. "Mar, Lou called and said you might be over with 'your' young man. Don't tell me you already need the Major to track him down?"

I did not have to look. I knew that voice. Turning, I said. Mr. Ambassador, I needed a job and Marcie was kind enough to try this 'Old Dog' out. How are you, as she would say, 'Suh'?"

"You two know each other?" asked a shocked Marcie.

"Does anyone really know another? Let's just say we were in a few countries at the same time."

I had been TDY (Temporary Duty) to NATO to assist The Ukraine, Romania and Bulgaria to pass muster to join as Members. (Them Black Sea ships and Subs might have been old but there were a lot of them) What started out a might tenuous became very pleasant after 5 or 6 people asked me 'if I was related to... ?' I started to just say, 'cousins' I think. That and that I spoke; if poorly, some Russian and Polish made me feel that I might actually have some family over there. When I left and they passed muster, I knew I had some friends there at least.