Chapter 13

When I got back into the house, the girls were ready for our movie tonight. “I’m not normally old enough to rent this, but that’s the advantage of knowing both the kids at the counter and using Dad’s account,” Beth said. She hit play.

The opening line on the screen said, ‘That which does not kill us, makes us stronger,’ and attributed it to Friedrich Nietzsche. A man started speaking to a black screen. “Between the time when the oceans drank Atlantis...”

The actor that played the main role was built. I refrained from making comments, but I think if I looked like that, people wouldn’t bother me, because it’d be intimidating. The lead female was pretty, in a rough sort of way, and her hair was almost exactly the color and length of Beth’s. When it was over, I said, “I didn’t know the actor that played Darth Vader was a black man.”

“He wasn’t. James Earl Jones just did his voice, for the whole movie,” Beth said.

“Okay. I know it’s mixing genres and movies, but I was expecting him to say something like, the Force is strong within you, Conan. Damn, that guy had muscles in places that I don’t even have places.”

“There’s a movie coming out next month, called ‘Terminator.’ I’ve seen previews on TV, he’ll be in it, too. The sequel to this one was out earlier this summer. It ... wasn’t as good as this, to be polite about it,” Eve said.

“Don’t worry, mi amor. Your places are quite enough for us.”

We went to bed after the movie. Once we were on the mattresses, Eve rolled over onto me, giving me slow and loving kisses. Dora and Beth moved over to another part of the mattress, giving us room, while they started kissing and touching each other. My cock began to get hard, Eve felt it between us, and slid backwards, allowing me to penetrate her already wet sheath. With her mouth off mine, I asked, “Um, school night?”

As she was rocking back and forth on me, Eve grunted out, “Straight loving, no groups, during the week. Don’t worry, lover, we got this figured out.”

She and I made love, while the other two did as well, then went to sleep after we’d all had a good orgasm or two.

The next morning was shared shower time, Eve and I got the first one, Dora and Beth the second. Then it was off for a regular day of school, college, and football practice.

Jim showed me where the cable was all waiting, and they had enough RG-6 coax and twisted pair phone line ready in all the spots. He would have to have the phone and cable company come out to actually install things; they were proprietary about that. In what was good news, the home would be finished at the factory next Monday, have final inspection done next Tuesday, and should be here, ready for installation next Friday, a bit ahead of schedule.

Mike told me no one had bothered him, and that he didn’t need an actual physical connection to the phone lines as long as they were close, his wireless system would be able to connect. The only people who’d come near the barn today weren’t there long enough for detailed scans, they’d just brought cables and wiring over and left.

My Tuesday night movie was supposed to be a comedy. The girls found my reaction to it to be more amusing than the movie itself. When it was over, I asked, “Is that supposed to have been a comedy? That was possibly the lamest attempt at humor I’ve ever seen.”

“I suspect that parody falls flat when you don’t understand the underlying references. Jet airplanes aren’t supposed to make prop plane sounds, disco will never die, having the antenna get knocked over, things like that. We’ll just make a reference that you didn’t like ‘Airplane’ and leave it at that,” Beth said.

“I think I know why. Remember, we all grew up watching the Airport movies on TV, and this is a parody of them. As you said, that’s the underlying reference,” Dora added.

“That makes sense, because I have no idea what you’re talking about right now,” I said.

“Good. Come on, mi amor. I am yours tonight,” my dark-haired lover said.

Wednesday was rather normal as well, with the movie that night a comedy musical that even I laughed at, due to some of the slapstick humor, and the massive car chase followed by the crashing of all the Illinois State Police cars while chasing Jake and Elwood.

We got to try out the new machine from Sears that night, and found that it did work on reducing odors. Once in bed, Beth simply rode my mouth and tongue to exhaustion, while Eve and Dora took turns receiving my cum. In one of those discussions that I had not been a part of, the three of them decided Eve and Dora would be the primary recipients of my seed, to see if there was a difference that Mike could measure by next week.

I woke up hearing the phone downstairs ringing at 6:30 in the morning. The girls were still asleep, and we had forgotten to get an answering machine. I ran down and picked it up. “Hello?”

“Cal, this is Stephen Patrick. Is Eve awake yet?”

“No, Sir. Do you need me to get her?”

“Turn your TV on, to CBS.” I could hear Jennifer quietly crying in the background, on the phone call. I picked up the remote and turned it on. The screen came on with a film showing a partially destroyed building.

“So far, we don’t have reports of how many are dead or injured this morning. There’s been a phone call from a group calling itself the Islamic Jihadist Organization, claiming credit for this bombing of the United States Embassy Annex in Beirut. This, of course, brings to mind the suicide bombing of the US Embassy in Beirut that killed seventeen Americans and forty-six other people, and the suicide bombing of the US Marine Barracks in Beirut that killed two hundred twenty-nine soldiers, sailors, and Marines, injuring another one hundred twenty-eight.”

Stephen sounded distraught. “That’s where Junior is stationed. I don’t want Eve to go to school today, we need to find out ... find out...”

“I understand, Stephen. I’ll make some phone calls right now. I’ll have the girls come over to your house as soon as they get up and get dressed, if neither of us have heard anything by then.”

“Thank you, I appreciate that.” He hung up.

I thought for a moment, then grabbed my wallet and pulled out some business cards. I dialed the first number. “Good morning, Principal Anderson. This is Cal Lewis. I apologize for calling you at home, however, we have a bit of an emergency. Have you seen the news about the Embassy Annex bombing in Beirut? That’s where Eve’s brother, Stephen Junior, is stationed.”

“I saw it. I presume that you’re calling because none of you will be in today. I’ll tell all the teachers this morning, and we’ll consider this totally excused. Keep us informed.”

“Thank you. I’ve more calls to make now.” I hung up from him, then pulled out Dean Dawson’s card. That call went about the same way, except that I mentioned that Joaquin Menendez may also need to be excused. As college classes have different attendance requirements than high school, from a class perspective it wouldn’t matter if I wasn’t there. Then I made another call.

“Elroy, this is Cal. You saw on the news about the bombing? Eve’s brother is stationed there. I’m going to make a few more calls, the girls will be up in just a bit, and will be going over to the Patrick house shortly.”

“What are you going to do, Cal?”

“I’ll be here at home today, by the phone, Elroy. I’ll talk to you later.” Beth came down the stairs, her face quizzical.

“What’s going on, Cal? Why are you out of bed already?” I nodded at the TV, which was playing the scene from Beirut again. “Oh, shit, that’s where SJ is. I’ll go get Eve and Dora up, get them cleaned up. Are we excused from school today?” I nodded, as I was already dialing another phone number.

“Good morning, this is Cal Lewis. Governor Carlin gave me this number. I need to ... thank you, I’ll hold. Good morning, Governor. You’ve seen the news from Beirut this morning?”

“Yes, Cal, I have. How does that affect you?” he asked.

“Eve Patrick. You met her at the football game Friday night, she even interviewed you. Stephen Patrick, Junior, Lance Corporal, United States Marines Corps, is stationed at the US Embassy Annex in Beirut, and is her brother. Their parents found out about this on the TV, not from anyone coming by to notify them. Eve, Dora, and Beth will be going to their house, I’ll be remaining here. Can you find out his status and let me know?”

“Cal, I’m not sure what I can do to help, but I’ll call you at home as soon as I can. I’m guessing you’ve already spoken to Elroy this morning.”

“Of course, I have. Thank you. You have my number here, correct?”

“Yes, I do. Cal, I may not be able to find out, this is a military thing, but I’ve contacts at the Pentagon.”

“Thank you, Governor.” We hung up, and I hurried upstairs.

Dora and Eve were both looking confused, Beth had simply told them to get up and get cleaned up immediately, then get dressed. “What’s going on, Cal?”

I took Eve in my arms, looking at her face. “Eve, my love, we don’t know all the details. There was a suicide bombing in Beirut. It’s on the news. Beth and Dora will be taking you to be with your parents. We’re all excused from school today. I’ve called several people already, I’ll be here, doing what I can from here.”

Her eyes looked deep into mine. “Find out, Cal. I’m not going to grieve until I’m sure he’s gone. If you find out, come tell us in person. I’m going to stay calm, I’m not sure how, but I will. I love you. Thank you.” She leaned forward and gave me a kiss, then left my arms to finish getting ready.

Less than five minutes after the girls left, I was dressed and waiting when the phone rang again. “Please hold for Governor Carlin.”

“Cal, this is John Carlin. I realize it hasn’t been long, but one advantage to being in my position is I have a very nice Rolodex of numbers. Lance Corporal Stephen Patrick was on duty at the Embassy Annex when the bomb exploded. He has both a broken arm and a concussion, but otherwise will be fine. I have a number that the family can call for more information. I don’t have anything else.”

“Thank you, Governor. This will relieve a lot of people.” He gave me the number, I hung up, and ran to the barn. The construction crew was just starting to show up, but they weren’t by the barn.

“Mike, I need you to find out all you can, tapping into the phone and cable system, about a group called the Islamic Jihadist Organization. They have claimed credit for bombing an Embassy today, where a family member was injured.”

“Certainly, Cal. I have determined how to proceed with accessing data networks, and will proceed to do so. This may take me quite a bit of time, as the data transfer rates available are horrendously slow.”

“I’ll be home later for a full run-down. This is your top priority for the day.” I hurried down to my truck and headed into town. It was only a few minutes later that I pulled up in front of the Patrick house, parking behind Beth’s truck. Toby was watching the front and saw me pull up.

“Cal! What’s going on, Mom and Dad won’t tell me!”

“Come on in, little brother. Let’s go see everyone.” I went into the living room, where Stephen was hanging up the phone in disgust.

“You’d think the local unit would have a damned clue!”

Eve came running up to me, taking me in her arms. “What do you know?”

“Broken arm, concussion, otherwise fine. Let me call this number that I got.” Stephen handed me the phone, a quizzical look on his face. I dialed it.

“General Davis’ office, this is Major Pittman, how may I help you, Sir or Ma’am?”

“Major, this is Cal Lewis. Governor Carlin gave me this number, regarding...”

“Lance Corporal Stephen Patrick, Junior. I can disclose the appropriate information to an immediate family member, only.” I handed the phone to Stephen.

“This is Stephen Patrick, Senior.” He held the phone away from his ear.

“Sir, I am Major Pittman, aide to the Assistant Commandant of the Corps, General John Davis. Your son, Lance Corporal Stephen Patrick, Junior, was injured this morning due to enemy action against our Embassy Annex in Beirut, Lebanon. He has received a broken arm and a concussion. He is being airlifted to Ramstein Air Base in Germany, for treatment at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center. His injuries are not, I repeat, NOT, life threatening. Upon his arrival at Landstuhl, his condition will be evaluated by orthopedic doctors to determine if surgery or casting will be needed. In addition, he will be treated by the top neurologist we have there, due to his concussion. I anticipate that he will be able to call you at your home in approximately 8 hours, although it may be sooner than that. Do you have any further questions for me at this time, Sir?”

“Will Junior receive medical leave once he gets his arm set, or will he have to stay there, and if he does, can we come visit him?”, Stephen asked.

“That depends upon the neurologist, Sir. Having said that, if his concussion is mild, I would expect him to be able to be released by this time next week. He’ll receive 30 days of medical leave, not chargeable as ordinary leave, at that point, and would be able to return home if he so desired. If you have any other questions, I suggest you wait and talk to him, or his doctors. Someone from the hospital will call you in 8 hours or less.”

“Thank you, Major, for all your assistance.”

“You’re welcome, Sir. Semper Fi!” He hung the phone up.

Stephen looked at me. “Assistant to the Commandant of the whole Marine Corps? How much influence do you have, Cal? I called the Preacher from my church, he didn’t have a clue other than to try the Red Cross. Damn!”

“I just called John Carlin is all. I may have mentioned that Eve had interviewed him for television on the phone.”

“Damn that man. I may have to vote Democrat in the next election, if he did something that nice for us.”

A car pulled up outside. Two men in military uniform got out, and walked up to the door. “Good morning, I’m Lieutenant Walker, this is Gunnery Sergeant Patterson, we’re with the Marine Reserve Unit from Wichita. I’m sorry to have to tell you that we received notification that your son, Lance Corporal Stephen Patrick, Junior, was injured in Beirut this morning. Unfortunately, we don’t know anything else at this time, however we’ll provide whatever assistance we can.”

“Thank you, Lieutenant. We just talked to Major Pittman, assistant to General Davis,” Stephen said. “I think we’ve got it under control.”

The Gunnery Sergeant frowned. “Pardon me, Sir, but are you referring to the Assistant Commandant of the Corps, General John Davis?”

“Yes, we have his direct phone number. I do appreciate you driving here from Wichita to let us know, would you like a cup of coffee or glass of water? He, or someone from the hospital in Germany, will call us in about eight hours. I presume you don’t need to hang around for that, do you?”

The Lieutenant looked very confused at this moment. The Sergeant said, “Thank you, Sir. A cup of coffee would be great.”

“Please. Come in, have a seat. I’m hoping you don’t have too many of these missions to do today,” Stephen said.

I looked at my girls. Eve was much calmer, but still sitting by her mother. “Beth, would you get these gentlemen coffee? Dora, how about seeing if there’s food enough to fix breakfast for everyone. I doubt anyone else has had anything, either.”

“Of course, mi amor. No, Jennifer, Eve, sit. We will take care of it.”

Toby was looking at the Marines. “My brother wears that on his uniform!”

“That’s the Globe and Anchor, Son. That’s our badge, represents our brotherhood.” The Sergeant looked at me. “Son, for some reason, you look familiar. I pulled Corporal Patrick’s records, it said he only has the one brother.”

“I’m Cal Lewis. Eve is one of my girlfriends, Beth and Dora are also my girlfriends. Do you watch high school football, Sergeant?”

“You’re the quarterback for the Salthawks. You destroyed our Pioneers two weeks ago, then you were on the Wide World of Sports on Saturday, after crushing the Eagles last Friday.” He stood up, held his hand out. I shook it. He applied a little bit of grip, but nothing major, not trying to battle against me. “Call me Gunny.”

“Pleasure, Gunny.” Beth brought out cups of coffee, with milk and sugar in bowls for them. The Lieutenant still looked confused.

“Thank you, miss. We appreciate it.”

“Certainly. Cal, I’ll be in the kitchen helping Dora, if you need anything.” Jennifer started to get up. “It’s our pleasure, Jennifer. Eve is our sister.”

“You have three girlfriends, and they all know each other?” the Lieutenant asked.

“Of course, we do. The three of us have been friends since elementary school, and it was only natural when Cal ended up living with Harry and Beth ... Harry is Beth’s Dad, he and Cal’s dad are distantly related, and Cal is a complete orphan ... that when Beth and he started going out, the Dora and I also would also go with him.”

Toby, in his innocence, said, “It’s nice now that you’ve moved in with Cal, too, cause Mom and Dad said I get your old room, since it’s bigger than mine.”

I thought the Lieutenant was going to choke, he was taking a drink of coffee at that time. The Gunny, however, simply cocked his head, an amused look on his face, a calm tone to his voice. “How are your grades in school, Cal?”, he asked.

“We haven’t gotten our first graded reports yet, but so far, I believe both my high school and college grades are all excellent.”

“Both high school and college?” the Gunny asked.

Eve proudly answered, “Yes. Cal only takes 3 classes at high school, just because the state requires him to do so. At the end of this year, he’ll graduate from high school. In the afternoon, he takes 5 different classes at HCC ... Hutchinson Community College ... and at the end of this year, he’ll earn 4 associates degrees from there.”

Walker looked completely lost. Gunny Patterson, though, smiled almost like a shark, sensing prey in the water. “So, what are your plans after school, Son? Have you given any thought to a career?”

I decided to toy with him a little. “Not really, Gunny. I turned 16 just before school started here. In spite of what that announcer said on TV, I can’t play pro football until three years after I graduate high school, and while it’s possible they can test out, my girls would otherwise have their senior years to complete.”

Eve turned to me quickly. “You think that’s possible, Cal?”

“You keep up with your studies and grades like you are, and I don’t know why not. I haven’t found a single mistake in your homework for days, and you’re starting to find the mistakes in the textbooks, like Beth has done.”

The Lieutenant couldn’t keep his mouth shut. “Son, are you some kind of genius?”

“Pretty much, yes. The Dean at HCC said I already tested out of their requirements for my Associates in Mathematics, I simply have to take the classes so I can get Associates in Chemistry, Physics, and Biology, I’ve already tested above the 99^th percentile in all four of those subjects for high school.”

Gunny Patterson said, “You know, we have one of the best engineering colleges in the country, if you think you have what it takes to qualify for entry. And you’d be paid while you attend college, as well.”

“Really? How much?” I could see Stephen had a bit of a shocked look on his face. Eve leaned over and whispered in Jennifer’s ear, which made her mother giggle.

“Son, an Officer Cadet at Annapolis gets paid nine hundred dollars a month, his room and board are free, you get free medical care, for yourself and dependents, too. Then when you graduate, you get a commission in the Navy or the Marine Corps, you’d have either two or four years time in already, so you could make up to fourteen hundred dollars per month. With allowances, you’d be earning more than twenty thousand dollars per year. That’s darn good starting pay for someone who’d be an entry level manager.”

I decided to pretty much crush his dreams of me being the perfect recruit. “I don’t know that I could handle that much of a pay cut, though. Based upon my current investments, I earn a bit more than that.”

Stephen choked off a bitter laugh. “Yeah, you could say that.” Jennifer just started laughing.

“I’ve made a serious error, haven’t I?” Gunny Patterson said.

“It’s all good, Gunny. I won’t hold it against you. But to give you an idea, in just simple interest – not actually the return on stocks and such – I make more than twenty thousand every week.”

Beth and Dora came in from the kitchen, with plates of scrambled eggs, sausage, and toast, first for Stephen, Jennifer, and Toby, then a second trip with plates for the Marines and me, then finally plates for themselves. “Thank you, young lady. We were just going to stop at a fast food place, but this is much better, I appreciate it,” Lieutenant Walker said. “I apologize to you, Mister Lewis, for making a scene regarding your personal life.”

“I’ve spent ... let’s just say a while ... with people who were unable to accept what was right in front of their faces. That you have recognized it, recognized your own fault in the process, and didn’t require the Gunny taking you behind the latrine to realize it, tells me that it’s entirely possible you have a good future as an officer.”

“Forgive me if this sounds ... well, odd ... but you’re quite unlike any sixteen-year-old I’ve ever run into before,” the Gunny said. “If I wasn’t sitting here talking to you in person, if I was just listening to you talk on the phone, I would swear you’re twice your age, with an incredible amount of experience and knowledge. Also, we’re Marines, so I’d have to take him behind the head, not the latrine.” His Lieutenant nodded.

Stephen swallowed what he’d been chewing. “That’s one reason I had no illusions that I could keep Eve here at home. You’ve only been talking to Cal for a few minutes, and you feel that way. If you saw him in action, you’d understand why the girls can’t be with anyone safer.”

Jennifer nodded. “I can still see Rusty, when you spun him around so that Don stabbed him in the stomach, and then you broke every bone in Don’s hand.”

“Hang on. You’re talking about Rusty Eck and Don McCullough? I read in the paper there was some kind of family dispute.”

“There was. The Judge told their wives they weren’t really his daughters, and Rusty got up to threaten both The Judge and Judge O’Connor. Cal immobilized Rusty, Don got up with a steak knife to stab Cal, but gutted Rusty instead. Then he swung at Cal, and Cal broke his hand,” Jennifer explained. “Toby, you don’t need to be repeating that.”

“Everyone at school already knows all that, Mom. Just like Cal almost killed Mister Baker when he tried to shoot Liz and him, and how Cal held that guy until he swung at the police officer, who killed him. I just wish Cal could do something about these bad guys that hurt my big brother. He’d make them pay for that.”

Gunny Patterson looked at me with something I hadn’t expected to see. “You’ve seen a bit of the elephant, it sounds like.” He had some respect in his eyes.

“I’ll put it this way, Gunny. In my wallet, I have a card with the personal number for Governor John Carlin. I also have General John Davis’s number. But more importantly than either of those numbers, I can call Judge Elroy Bannister at any time. How’d he say he felt about me, Tuesday night, Beth?”

“He considered you to be the grandson he’d never had,” she said.

Both Marines blinked. Lieutenant Walker said, “I’m not from here, and even I know who the Judge is. And the power he wields. Mister Patrick, we’d do this anyway, because Lance Corporal Patrick is our brother, he’s a Marine, but if you folks need ANYTHING from us, you let us know and we’ll do whatever we can to make it happen.”

“Thank you, Lieutenant. I appreciate that. We’re expecting a call in, what, about six hours or so. The Major said that either Junior or one of his doctors would be calling us then. Would it be possible for you to come back in, say, four hours or so? That way if the doctor says something that I don’t understand from a military perspective, you would be able to interpret it for us.”

“Yes, Sir. Consider it done. Thank you for breakfast, we’ll go find something to do here in Hutchinson for a few hours, and come back about, say, 1400? Two o’clock?”

The doorbell rang. Toby ran and opened it. “Cal, you weren’t at home, so I figured that you’d come here. Stephen, Jennifer, what can I do to help?”

“Lieutenant Walker, Sergeant Patterson, this is Judge Elroy Bannister,” I said. The men shook hands. “I called John Carlin this morning as soon as I heard; he got me a number within five minutes to the Assistant Commandant of the Corps. I called the Principal, told him where the girls and I would be, then I came here, we found out what’s going on, which is that SJ has a broken arm and a concussion, and is being evacuated to Germany. Sometime around 3 or 4, either SJ or his doctor will call here from Germany with an update. These Marines came from Wichita to help; they’ve been very gracious this morning. They were going to go find something to do locally, then come back about 2, so that if there was a military question, they’d be able to help Stephen.”

Elroy nodded. “Sounds like you’re right on top of things, Cal. Gunny, LT, as it appears that I’m not needed right now, may I offer you the hospitality of my company for a time? I find that I’d like to reminisce about my military service.”

Gunny Patterson was no fool. “Our time is yours, Judge. Thank you.”

Stephen said, “Thank you for coming by, Judge.”

Elroy shook his head. “You’re effectively family, Stephen. My name is Elroy.” He went back out to his car, the two Marines following him out to their car.

“Cal, I ... I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done for us,” Stephen said.

“As Elroy said, you’re family. Beth, Dora, why don’t you run home with me for a bit, so we can let everyone here have some time to decompress from stress. And don’t worry about the dishes from breakfast, we’ll be back with lunch about 1, and take care of them then. I suggest just ... relaxing, for a bit.”

“That’s actually a good idea, Cal. It’s been, to put it mildly, a rough morning. Thank you,” Jennifer said. I could see the gratitude in her eyes.

Eve started to get up to go with us. I saw the look on Jennifer’s face, and shook my head. Eve nodded, then sat back down with her mom. I went out with the girls; they got into my truck with me.

I went to the school first. The three of us walked up to the main office. “I’m surprised to see you here at all today, Cal. I think all of us saw the news.”

“We actually just stopped by to give you a quick update. Stephen, Junior, was injured, broken arm, a concussion, and that’s probably it. He’s been evacuated. We’ll be getting a phone call later, from Germany, updating the family. I know that we’re not related, not in the sense that counts for paperwork, but...”

Principal Anderson shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. There are rules, and then there are exceptions to all those rules, if I see fit. I’ve already talked to Barry Jenkins, since Jennifer’s a teacher in the school corporation. One rule I can’t violate is that if you’re not in school on Friday, you can’t play Friday night.”

“I understand. Tell Coach that it’s up in the air at this time.”

“No problem. Um, will you all be at the Patrick house this afternoon, after school?”

“I’m sure we will, why?”

“One of the staff, maybe even me, will bring all of your homework assignments for the rest of the week to you over there. That way, you won’t have to worry about those, and being behind,” he said.

Beth nodded. “Thank you, Sir. When this traumatic event is behind us, we’d all like to have a discussion with you, about something totally unrelated.”

“Of course, Miss Watson. Tell Eve that the whole school is behind her, her family, and if you can talk to Stephen, Junior, we’re all praying for his speedy recovery.”

“Thank you, again.” As we were leaving, I noticed that the American flag in front had been lowered to half-mast. “I thought that only happened when someone died.”

“Two of our troops at the embassy were killed, Cal. We heard it on the radio, when we were fixing breakfast. Both the US Ambassador and the British Ambassador were injured in the attack, and about twenty civilians, Lebanese employees, were also killed.”

“Thank you, Beth.” We got into my truck, heading home. I was very quiet, doing a lot of thinking. I stopped at the driveway entrance, looking at what was going on. The crews were all working. But in the front yard, in front of everything, a cherry picker had the boom totally extended, about sixty feet in the air. Hanging from the boom was a cable with two flags on it, the United States flag, and just below that, a flag with the globe and anchor on it. The cable continued down and was secured to a generator, so it wouldn’t blow around.

The girls had tears running down their cheeks as I drove the rest of the way home. Jim met me when I pulled in and parked. “I did my tour in ‘Nam, with the Corps. The word got around quick, about Corporal Patrick. We know one of your ladies is his sister. The, uh, display is only temporary.”