Chapter 4: A Quick Re-connection

I was antsy for most of the week. I was anticipating an evening with Mary and her children and trying to imagine how it would go. Actually, I was trying to imagine how it would end up. Considering we had never done more than some moderate petting before she disappeared, it was a pretty big leap to what my imagination was producing. But then, neither of us were virgins and we were both consenting adults, so it wasn't beyond the realm of possibility.

I was working standard hours during the week. My seniority and the fact that I was mustering out at the end of April gave me some privileges. As a single guy, I'd covered a lot of holidays and summer vacations for the married guys, so they cut me a good portion of slack as my time wound down. I had already sent my job application into Flight Tech Services in Bremerton and had my interview. I was advised that my final interview would be in two weeks. My contact indicated that it was pretty much a formality, since I had both experience and proficiency rating on their equipment. The pay was great and the job was at Bremerton Municipal Airport, generally away from rush hour traffic. I already had my eye on a home in Gig Harbor. I planned to spend some of that cash I had sitting in reserve.

Friday afternoon arrived at long last and I headed to my base quarters to shower, shave, and put on some new clothes. I wanted to look my best for Mary and her youngsters. I climbed into my car and headed off to the address she had given me. I had already plotted my course on a local map, so I knew where I was going and roughly how long it would take to get there. I avoided I-5 to keep away from the rush hour mangle and made it to her home in twenty minutes, a few minutes quicker than I calculated.

Mary's house was a nice-looking bungalow, about thirty years old by the style, but it appeared to be in good condition. The grounds were tidy and there were garden beds with shrubs and plants with room to plant some summer flowers if she wanted to. There was a one car detached garage in the back with a gravel driveway leading to it. I pulled up the driveway to the front walkway and got out. I was nervous. I could feel it in my gut. I wanted this meeting to go well for a whole bunch of reasons.

Mary must have heard me arrive. I saw her at the front storm door as I got out. I walked up the path to the steps trying to have a relaxed smile on my face, but I wasn't sure I was pulling it off. I was anything but relaxed.

"Hi Ruel," she smiled as she held the storm door open for me.

"Hi Mary. You have a really lovely home. This looks like a great neighborhood to raise kids."

I was displaying my nervousness I know, but I couldn't help myself. Mary's smile never changed.

"Come in," she said, taking my jacket and hanging it on a coat tree. "You look very nice."

"You look even better, Mary. I can't get over how you've changed," I said, trying not to stumble and say the wrong thing.

"It's been eight years and two children, Ruel. I was bound to change," she said as she led me into the living room.

"Children, Mr. Carter is here," she called.

I heard the scampering of feet and, within a few seconds, two youngsters appeared. The boy, William, was about what I expected from a six-year-old. He stopped and stood looking at me, wondering what to do next. The little girl moved to her mother and held her leg as security. Both were silent.

"William, Tara, this is Mister Carter. He is an old friend of mine from when we were in school together. Please say hello to him. He'll be staying for supper tonight."

"Hi, William," I said, holding out my hand, not knowing what else to do. "Hi, Tara. Nice to meet you both."

"Are you in the army?" William asked, still not taking my hand.

"Yes ... for now. I'll be getting out soon."

"Did you shoot some bad guys? My dad shot some bad guys. He was in the army too."

"No ... I never did shoot anyone. I worked on trucks and tanks and helicopters."

"Helicopters?" he said, his eyes lighting up.

"Yep. I make sure they're safe to fly."

"Oh, wow! Do you fly in them?"

"Sometimes I go up with the pilots and make sure everything is working okay."

"Someday I'm going to be a pilot. I want to fly helicopters," he said enthusiastically.

"Why helicopters? I thought all kids wanted to fly fighter jets."

"Yeah, but in a helicopter I could land anywhere. Even in my back yard."

"Oh ... okay. I get that. Well, study hard in school and you can get a chance."

The mention of the word school seemed to put a damper on William's enthusiasm.

"Do any of the kids call you Bill?" I asked.

"No!" he said, stamping his foot. "My name is William."

"Oh, okay. Sorry."

Tara was still clutching at her mother's skirt.

"She's quite shy until she gets to know you, Ruel," Mary explained. "She'll come around."

"She's a real cutie. Takes after her mother," I said, noticing a quick blush from Mary.

The dining room table was set, and that caused a question from William.

"How come we're eating here, Mom? We always eat in the kitchen."

"We have a guest tonight, so we're going to eat here."

That seemed to satisfy the young boy. Mary put a booster seat in place for Tara and three of us sat while Mary delivered the meal. It was a casserole of some description. I hadn't had a casserole since I left home years ago. It smelled really good.

"It's chicken with rice and celery, almond slivers, mushrooms and soy sauce. A neighbor gave me the recipe and William and Tara both like it. I hope you do too," she smiled.

"It smells terrific," I said, genuinely savoring the aroma.

It was terrific, too. Both William and I had seconds and there was none left in the dish when we were done. Even Tara had finished her portion, although it was fairly small. I remembered how little my sister used to eat when she was small and it brought back fond memories.

"I have a sister too," I said to Tara. "Her name is Juliet and she lives in Colorado."

The little girl looked at me for moment before she spoke to me for the first time.

"Why doesn't she live with you?"

"She lives near my Mom, but she has her own home," I explained. "I think she's going to get married pretty soon."

"Do you go to the wedding?" she asked.

"Yes. For sure. She's my only sister. I have to be there."

"How is Juliet, Ruel," Mary interrupted. "You two were very close."

"We still are. She and Mom were with me all through the bad times. She's a dental technician in Pueblo and Mom thinks the guy she's dating is going to ask her to marry him. He's a dentist, so she'd be well taken care of if he's the right guy."

"I hate the dentist," William snapped as he dug into his ice cream and pie.

"Me too," Tara said, equally involved with her dessert.

"I'm not too fond of them myself," I chuckled at their reaction. "That's why I brush real good two times every day."

I could see the grin on Mary's face as I gave the kids my opinion on dental care. It was probably exactly what their mother was trying to get established.

The kids took off to their rooms while Mary and I did the dishes.

"You seem really comfortable around the children, Ruel."

"They're nice kids. I remember Juliet when she was about Tara's age. She was a real brat for a while. Dad had just died and we had to move and that upset her quite a bit. She settled down when she went to kindergarten and made some new friends. I'm really proud of how she and Mom have come through all the rotten stuff that was thrown at them. The town treated them like dirt because of me and they never deserved that, even if I had been guilty."

"I think Hazard was a horrible town when we lived there," Mary replied. "Part of it was because everyone was just scrambling to get by. You'd think the town would bond together in times like that, but it didn't happen. Maybe it's better now, but I don't intend to go back and find out."

"You ever hear from your folks?" I asked carefully.

"No, and I don't expect to. They cut me off, threw me away, telling me they never wanted to see me again. That was hard, but I have no feelings for them anymore. They never asked about me when my aunt and uncle talked to them on the phone. I don't know what's happened to them and I don't care."

I could see some tears forming in Mary's eyes and I desperately wanted to hold her and banish the bad memories. Instead, I just stood beside her until her moment passed.

"Do you talk to your aunt and uncle?" I persisted, perhaps unwisely.

"Yes. Three or four times a year. They are good people and I was lucky to be able to stay with them until I was older."

Mary made coffee and we sat in the living room, talking about our lives since we had parted almost nine years ago. She had met Brett Hubbard when she was nineteen. He was still in the army and back on leave from Iraq. He charmed her and took her virginity with her consent. She thought he was going to be the man of her dreams. Instead, he was a drunk and a womanizer. He was cashiered out of the army for dishonorable conduct after an incident with a married female officer. He had gone to work for his father in the family real estate business after obtaining a license.

He took every opportunity to seduce women without any regard for Mary's feelings. Near the end he barely hid his indiscretions. Mary took William and went back to her aunt and uncle's place for a few weeks when she caught him cheating on her for the second time. He came to talk to her, and made all kinds of promises to behave and stop his womanizing and drinking. She threatened to divorce him if he didn't reform. Of course, he promised his wayward days were behind him.

Eighteen months later, Mary discovered she was pregnant once more. She also learned that Brett had more than one woman that he was seeing on a regular basis. That was it as far as she was concerned. She filed for divorce and presented him with the papers when he got home late one evening. He tore them up and stomped out of the house. Already with a few drinks in him, he went directly to a local bar and had a few more. He never made it home or anywhere else that night. He lost control of the family car and it overturned into a water filled ditch. He was unable to get out of the car and drowned.

The house they were living in was rented and most of the furniture was junk. She had been working at Cessna to make some additional income. By then, her income was more regularly going to household expenses since Brett was drinking most of his meager earnings away. After his funeral, the insurance settlement gave her the opportunity for a fresh start. She was offered a similar job at Cessna's Wichita headquarters and decided it was the best thing to do. Now four months pregnant, she rented a U-Haul and packed all their worthwhile possessions in it. With William in his booster seat behind her, she set off for her new home in Kansas. She found a decent place to rent in Wichita, and purchased some furniture and a TV to give them at least the minimum of comfort.