The Marine's New Family. Roz Dunbar
was doing.
“No, Baldwin. I’ve got this.”
The young marine looked at him oddly for a moment and then walked away without another word.
“She’s ready to be moved now,” the corpsman said a minute later. “We need to get her out of here, fast.”
Luke nodded and knelt to pick the woman up gently, balancing the portable IV pack securely against his chest. It wasn’t going to be an easy trip down the mountain by any stretch of the imagination, and the less pain she was in the better.
The journey was rough, but he never really gave that part another thought. She would periodically open her eyes and focus on his face. He had no idea if she could hear him, but part of him felt that she could. So he talked to her. He talked about anything and everything he could think of. He told her about his life at home. He told her about two special elderly ladies who had welcomed him into their lives and hearts, making a home for him, the first he had had in years—maybe ever. He told her about a village on the coast of North Carolina where he wanted to live for the rest of his days.
Before he knew it they made it to flat terrain, and up ahead he saw a CH-53E helicopter waiting. Luke breathed deeply, knowing that they had made it and that this was her ticket out of there. He just hoped she’d pull through once they got her to proper medical facilities. He met the corpsman at the door of the helo and gently transferred her into the man’s arms.
“Don’t leave me.” The hoarsely whispered plea was heartfelt.
Luke had looked at the woman with surprise, his eyes locking with hers. He hadn’t thought she was capable of speaking or that she was even aware of what was going on.
Smiling, he told her, “You’ll be all right. You’re in the best hands possible. I’ll check up on you. Promise.”
He watched her nod slowly and close her eyes. The corpsman saw Luke hesitate and assured him that they had her and would take care of her. “According to comm she’s in pretty bad shape. We’ll get her to Kabul as soon as possible. They’ve got the best medical officers there.”
“Can you let me know how she does?” Luke still hesitated, not wanting to leave her for some reason.
“Can’t say that we can or can’t. They don’t tell us much because of HIPAA laws, and she’s a civilian.”
Luke nodded and backed away from the medical helicopter, watching it as it lifted from the landing zone and took his charge away. And he prayed, just as he had prayed for her every step they took together down the mountain. He knew that God was everywhere, even in that remote part of Afghanistan.
Shaking his head, he came back to the present. He had tried to find her, follow up on her, but without a name to help him identify her, he couldn’t seem to find any information. He had run into one dead end after another and had finally given up. But he prayed for her each day. He had never stopped doing that. It was all he could do.
Yet now she was right in front of him. He felt guilty for staring. It wasn’t fair somehow. She was vulnerable in sleep and he did not want to wake her. But he couldn’t look away. Then his eyes caught sight of the cane next to the chair and he felt a sharp stab of compassion. The soft lavender sundress she was wearing hid any scars that might be on her legs, but he knew they were there. One thing he was sure of: if God had brought her here, He had a reason.
“Hey, Dad, I finished with the chairs. Can I go to... Hey, who’s that?”
Luke put his finger to his lips, “Shhh.”
“Who’s she?” Caleb whispered.
“She’s the new tenant we built the screened porch for,” he explained simply, as he tried to usher his son out of the room.
“We don’t have to whisper no more. She’s awake.”
“Awake?” Luke turned sharply to see that Caleb was right. The woman was sitting up and looking at them with shock.
“Who are you and what are you doing in my house?” Her tone was low and even, but she was obviously frightened and disoriented, judging by the way her small, white hands were clutching the arms of the chair.
Luke immediately tried to diffuse the situation. “I’m sorry, ma’am. We didn’t know you were here yet. We brought groceries for your pantry.”
“Groceries?” He watched her closely as she slowly digested what he had just said.
“Yeah, the ladies asked us to do it,” Caleb tossed in helpfully.
“The ladies?” she repeated, still looking slightly disoriented.
“He means the Salter sisters, Katie and Annie.”
Luke watched as recognition dawned in her green eyes, and her hands visibly relaxed their death grip on the chair.
“Oh, the aunts.” She summoned a small smile as she shook her head slightly. “I’m sorry. I fell asleep.”
She has a lovely smile, Luke thought inconsequentially. She’s lovely, period. And she didn’t recognize him. That much he was certain of. There was no spark of recognition in her eyes.
“My name is Luke, ma’am, and this is my son, Caleb.”
“Hello, Luke and Caleb. I’m Tess. Tess Greenwood.” The smile again.
“Hello, Tess. Nice to meet you. Say hello to Miss Greenwood, Caleb.”
“Hello,” Caleb muttered, before adding, “Can we go now, Dad? Joey is waiting for me.”
“Yes, son, we’re leaving now. Everything has been put away, Tess. If you need anything at all, don’t hesitate to call on us. My number is on the calendar in the kitchen.”
“It is?” Tess and Caleb spoke at the same time, and Luke smiled.
“It is. I do work on the cottages for the Salters from time to time and they asked me to leave a number, just in case.”
“Oh, I see. Well, thank you for the groceries. If you give me a receipt I’ll reimburse you.” The smile had faded and her voice had become distant. “And I’m sure I won’t need anything else, but thank you.”
Luke hesitated at her tone, but nodded as he ushered Caleb out of the living room to the back of the cottage. He was still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that that she was here, literally on his doorstep. He would see her and have a chance to speak with her later, he assured himself. For now, he needed to concentrate on his son.
“She must have been pretty tired. She was sleeping and it’s still daytime,” Caleb said as he buckled his seat belt in the truck.
“I think you’re right. She must be pretty tired. So, ready to go swimming with Joey and his dad?”
“I guess so.” Caleb shrugged his slender shoulders and looked out the window.
“You guess so? I thought you couldn’t wait to get there.”
“I can’t. Let’s just go, okay?”
One step forward and two steps back, Luke thought as he started the truck. It was as if the boy was afraid to let down his guard for any length of time. Luke had thought it had been a good day. Caleb had been more animated than he’d ever seen him since his son had gotten to Swansboro six months ago. Things had seemed to be changing, but now Luke couldn’t be sure. He knew that Caleb missed his mother terribly, but Luke couldn’t get him to talk about her. Would the boy ever feel comfortable opening up to his father? Only time would tell. But one thing was certain. Luke had never known that he had the capacity to love anyone the way he now loved his son. Not even his ex-wife.
Was that the problem?