Leigh Ann and Melvin arrived at The Outpost a half hour early, and as they reached the back door it swung open. Leigh Ann jumped back, startled.
“What are you—” Leigh Ann began.
Ambrose, looking half asleep, held a finger to his mouth, signaling them to be quiet. “Hi, guys,” he whispered, stepping aside to let them in. “Keep it down. Jo’s still asleep.”
Leigh Ann led Melvin down the hall to the break room. “You mean Jo’s been here all night?” she whispered back. “What’s going on?”
“Any news of Ben?” Melvin asked.
“About ten last night, just as I was about to convince her to go to the house and get some sleep, she got a visit from that army officer,” Ambrose said.
Leigh Ann sucked in her breath. “And?”
“He told her that the rescue operation had been successfully completed and that everyone involved had been evacuated by helicopter. He assured her that he would stay on duty until he learned what Ben’s exact status was and would call her, day or night, as soon as he knew.”
Leigh Ann nodded. “Jo stuck close to the computer all night, hoping to hear from Ben himself.”
“Yeah, and I stayed with her, talking, trying to keep her sane. She finally dozed off at her desk about two hours ago. You can start getting ready to open up, if you want, but I’ll stick with her. She’ll need to see a friendly face when she wakes up.”
“I just did,” Jo said, walking across the storeroom to meet them. Going up to Ambrose, she threw her arms around him and gave him a hug. “Thanks for having my back last night, brother.”
“No prob,” Ambrose said.
“Morning, boss,” Leigh Ann said, noting that Jo looked exhausted. “Let’s see what we can scrounge up for breakfast before we have to open the doors. Melvin and I also have some good news to share.”
“Other than you took down Pierre Boone’s ass last night?” Ambrose said.
“How’d you find out so soon?” Melvin asked. “Oh, never mind. You were at the computer all night.”
“Following every news report we could find,” Jo replied, nodding. “But give us the details, the local sources never get it right.”
* * *
After running back to the Stuart house to shower, Jo returned to her office. More alert now, she stayed close to her computer and kept her cell phone in her pocket. Though waiting for word was taking a huge toll on her, she made a point of leaving her office every half hour and talking to the customers who came to admire Melvin’s exhibit or watch Ambrose’s silversmith demonstrations.
When lunchtime arrived, Leigh Ann brought her a sandwich and sat across the desk from her. “Staring at the screen isn’t going to make time go by any faster,” she said gently.
Jo expelled her breath in a whoosh, stood, and made a face at the monitor. “You bucket of chips and wires, give me what I want!”
A familiar tone sounded on the computer and the Skype screen popped into view. Jo jumped, simultaneously grabbing her headset. Leigh Ann hurried around the desk, praying this would be good news, but ready to help Jo if things didn’t turn out so well.
Moving the mouse to click on the green video button, Jo looked at Leigh Ann. “It’s Ben!”
A grainy image appeared and quickly became sharper. Ben was staring back at them. From the background, he appeared to be back in his own quarters. He looked exhausted, sunburned and scratched, and there were crutches propped up against the back of his chair.
“Ben! You’re alive!” Jo said, half laughing and half crying. “But the crutches. You’re hurt!”
“I’ll be fine, just a cracked tibia and sprained ankle. Took a hard landing,” he answered, his voice still sounding a little underwater because of the connection.
“Well, don’t you ever scare me like that again! I was so worried. I miss you so much,” she added in a softer tone.
Leigh Ann smiled. Since she didn’t have a headset she had no idea what Ben said next, but Jo’s smile could have lit up a room. Moving away, she left the office, closed the door behind her and went to the others to give them the good news. “He looked a little banged up and is on crutches, but otherwise seems okay.”
Ambrose pointed outside the window. “Here comes that lieutenant, and he has a smile on his face for a change. Let’s see if we can get any more details.”
* * *
“Sergeant Stuart’s a hero,” the lieutenant told them as they gathered near the cash register in the main room. “Though his leg was injured in the crash, he protected the rest of the crew for three days. They’re all expected to fully recover from their injuries.”
Jo smiled. “That’s the Ben I know,” she said.
“This calls for a celebration,” Ambrose said.
“Yes, a party! Complete with a barbecue and a country-western band. We can have it right outside,” Leigh Ann said.
“Guys, I have to get some sleep,” Jo said, giving them a weary smile.
“You do that, hon. We’ll handle everything,” Leigh Ann said.
* * *
That evening Leigh Ann found herself sitting beside Jo on one of the three dozen folding chairs facing the band. Somewhere between twenty and thirty people were already there, helping themselves to the fixings laid out on the long buffet table.
“Everyone loves a party,” Leigh Ann said, sipping a Coke and watching another pickup coming up the drive.
“How did you find a band so quickly?” Jo asked.
“Del. These boys play at high schools in the area, and he knows the skinny guy playing the bass guitar. They’re doing it for free in honor of our community’s latest hero.”
“I’m so proud of Ben,” Jo said, smiling.
“So are we all,” Leigh Ann answered.
Ambrose came over to join them. “Ben’s going to call you tomorrow, right?” He had to raise his voice to be heard over the band.
Jo nodded. “He promised we’d have a long talk. The best part comes from knowing he’ll be grounded until he mends, and not long after that his unit will return stateside and I can go visit him. Leigh Ann and the rest of the staff can do without me for a few days.”
“We’ve all missed him, you know,” Ambrose said, leaning closer to her ear.
“Yeah, but I’m not sharing him when he comes home. He’ll be all mine—and the army’s,” she said, then smiled.
As the band began a slow-moving country-western song, John led Melvin to Leigh Ann’s side.
“Here you go, nephew.”
“I saved you a seat right beside me,” Leigh Ann said.
Melvin remained standing. “No, come on. The band’s playing a great song—romantic and slow. Let’s not waste it.”
“I didn’t know you liked dancing.”
Melvin smiled. “I’ll take any excuse to have you in my arms—but just to stay safe, you better lead.”