Oh, I can fix that in just a minute. Let me grab my sewing kit.” Roy listened to Annelise’s footsteps fade as she moved toward the living room, then become louder as she returned.
“Something smells wonderful.”
“Here you are. Just like new.” Good. Annelise had finished repairing the doll. Now, if they could just get their unwelcome visitor out the door….
Roy grimaced as he heard the captain’s heavy boots thump toward the center of the kitchen, away from the door.
“It’s been so long since I’ve seen anything this fresh. Home-cooked meals are hard to come by. I’ll bet these are every bit as good as my mother’s.” Roy bit back a groan. The man was laying it on thicker than a jar of Rosemary’s preserves.
“Looks as though you made enough to feed half a contingent.”
“Have you seen how much Axel eats?” Grams’s laugh hardly seemed forced at all.
“Yes, well, a hearty appetite keeps a man strong.”
Roy’s stomach rumbled at the captain’s words. After all, he’d requested tonight’s dinner, a favorite dish from his childhood in the boarding school. Obviously the captain wouldn’t be leaving anytime soon.
“Well, I can’t guarantee it’s as good as your mother’s, but you’re welcome to stay for dinner, if you’d like.” Annelise’s begrudging tone was lost on her would-be beau.
“Wonderful!” A chair scraped across the floor.
Roy sank onto his makeshift bed and waited for the meal to end. In the dark, windowless cell, he couldn’t judge the passing of time nor look at his pocket watch. It seemed like hours before the captain finally took his leave and longer still before Axel judged it safe to come down to the cellar.
“Close call,” Roy greeted him.
“You’re telling me.” Axel slumped onto the chair and held his head in his hands. “Annelise stopped coming down to the business because Captain von Rundstedt kept lurking around, and I don’t want him near my sister. But since she left, he’s become my shadow. Tonight he all but demanded to see her.”
“We can’t risk any more home visits, Axel.”
“I know.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “She’ll have to start coming to the office again. I can only hope dinner tonight dissuades him from wanting more home-cooked meals.”
“Annelise and Grams are wonderful cooks. What do you mean?”
Grams came down the stairs with two peanut butter sandwiches.
“He means that I made the food saltier than the Dead Sea.” She handed the sandwiches to Roy. “And he still ate every bite.” She let out a sigh. “I do hate to waste good food, but we can’t have him popping up all the time for meals.”
“He didn’t ask for seconds, though.” Axel tried to point out a bright spot.
“That’s good,” Roy encouraged through a mouth full of peanut butter. “By the way, good warning.”
“I had to do something.” Axel gave a curt nod. “Didn’t hear a peep from down here all night.”
“Yeah, but I didn’t get any work done, either.” Roy gestured to the photographs hanging on the drying line. “I have so much to do. I’d like to set up a supply of documents that need only a photograph before I leave.”
“We’ll be sad to see you go.” Axel started back up the stairs. “You’re far more productive than the last fellow.”
“Thanks.” Roy smiled and glanced at the photograph on his desk. “But since my replacement is on his way, I need to be off soon.”
Grams gave him a measuring look and followed Axel. “Home is where the heart is,” she called over her shoulder.
And I left mine in Virginia.
Valerie heard a tap on the door. “Come in.”
Her mother poked her head through the doorway. “You’re up late.”
“So are you.”
“I was just checking on Rebekkah, like I used to peek in on you when you were smaller.” Rosemary stepped across the room to stroke Valerie’s hair. “Sometimes I still do.”
“I know.” Valerie gave her mother a brief hug.
“You’ve been tired all month.”
“I just can’t seem to sleep when I don’t know if Roy is safe.” Valerie felt the too-familiar sting of tears prick her eyelids.
“Oh, honey.” Her mother sat down next to her on the bed and nestled her close. “He’s in all of our prayers.”
“I pray and pray,” Valerie confessed, “but still don’t have any peace about it.”
“Even if you pray diligently, so long as you don’t give your cares to the Lord, you won’t be at peace about it.”
“I just can’t.” Valerie grabbed her handkerchief. “I thought I’d finished grieving over Frank—that I’d come to terms with the loss.”
“I thought this was about Roy!” Rosemary tipped Valerie’s chin with her hand.
“It is! Don’t you see? Frank is gone, and nothing will bring him back—I accept that. It’s not because I miss Frank! When I fell in love with Roy, I thought he’d always be safe in spite of the war. He couldn’t fight because of his leg.”
“So you thought his injury made him safe for you to love.” Her mother knew exactly what she meant. “You didn’t have to worry about losing him.”
“And now he’s in Europe risking his life!”
“Valerie, do you love Roy because he can’t fight or because of the man he is?”
“I love him because he’s strong in Christ and kind to others, and he made me feel as though everything would be all right. And now he’s not here.”
Rosemary just held Valerie tight and let her cry. When the sobs subsided into tiny hiccups, she spoke again. “Honey, if you wait to love someone until you’re certain your heart is safe, you’ll never love. Love is the greatest gift God granted us and the heaviest responsibility.” She placed her hands on Valerie’s shoulders and looked her in the eyes. “If you live in fear of loss, you never really live at all.”
“But I am afraid. I’m afraid for Roy. I’m afraid of being without him.”
“You need to give that fear to the Lord. If you don’t, you’re saying you don’t trust Him with what is most important to you.”
“How can I?” Valerie whispered brokenly. “How did you when Paul was away?”
“Who better to trust than the One who made you? The Father who sent His Son to die for you? Didn’t He assure us of His plans to prosper each of us?”
She pulled out of her mother’s arms and blew her nose. “I don’t know what those plans are, but I’ve got some praying to do. I was wrong, Mom.”
“We all are, honey. That’s why we need Jesus.” She kissed her daughter’s forehead. “Good night, Valerie.”
“Good night.”
Valerie stood on tiptoe at platform 3C as she heard the train whistle. “It’s coming!”
The nine o’clock train chugged into the station. Rosemary stood next to Paul, who carried Rebekkah atop his shoulders. A stream of passengers swarmed out of the cars, blanketing the platform. Valerie peered around as best she could, but Rebekkah spotted Roy before any of them.
“There! Roy!” The toddler flailed her arms so wildly that Paul tightened his grip so she wouldn’t fall off.
As Roy made his way through the throng, Valerie couldn’t stand still. She’d waited five long weeks to see him again—even one more minute was too long. She took off to meet him halfway. When she reached him, he wrapped her in a warm hug. She rested her cheek on his shoulder. “I’m so glad you’re home!”
“Me, too.”
She kissed his cheek, then stepped back. “Let me just look at you for a minute!”
“I get the better end of that bargain.” His eyes drank in the sight of her, making her feel beautiful and blessed beyond imagination.
Lord, thank You for bringing him back to me safe and sound. I’m sorry I didn’t put my faith in You sooner!
“My turn!” Rebekkah stretched toward Roy, wiggling her fingers.
He gave an easy laugh and swept her high into the air, grinning at her merry giggle. “Good to see you, too, Bekkah!”
“All right, all right, enough with the mushy stuff.” Paul swiped Rebekkah and passed her to Rosemary before clapping Roy on the back. “Good to see you, Roy.”
“Good to see you, too.” He turned to Valerie. “Paul and I have some business to attend to, so we won’t get home until this evening.”
“Oh.” She couldn’t hide her disappointment. He’d been gone for five weeks, and “business” was more important than spending time with her?
“But I want you to be ready. I’m taking you out to dinner so I can have you all to myself.” His smile made her heart pound. “Then we’re off to the seven o’clock showing of that new Disney movie.”
“Perfect!” She gave him one last hug before Paul led him away.
“Roy, this is William Donovan.”
Roy shook the stranger’s hand before pulling up an office chair. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Donovan.”
“You, too, Mr. Benson.” Mr. Donovan leaned back and tented his fingers. “You must be wondering why we brought you in here.”
Roy nodded but said nothing as Paul’s friend pulled out a rather thick file and plopped it on the desk before leafing through it.
“Fluent in four languages, served the navy for eight years now. Ascended the ranks quickly to become an officer of cryptography in the OP-20-G. Very impressive, Mr. Benson.” Mr. Donovan shut the folder and peered at him.
“Why so dedicated to America when you were raised in Europe? This is no time for divided loyalties.”
“My father has served the United States Navy my entire life.” Roy refused to let the probing question raise his temper. “Benson loyalty is steadfast, and I’m proud to follow in his footsteps. It’s my heritage, my duty, and my honor to protect my country.”
Mr. Donovan leaned back and gave Paul a curt nod. “Excellent. Mr. Kincaid speaks quite highly of you and your father. Let’s get down to the reason for this meeting.
“As you know, we live in dangerous times when intelligence and preparation for homeland security are vital. Up until now, there has been no cohesive intelligence unit functioning at the behest of the government since the MI8 was disbanded in 1929.
“The separate cryptography divisions of the army and navy are no longer sufficient, as the Signal Intelligence Service and the OP-20-G have not established a free flow of communication. President Roosevelt has authorized me to establish an American intelligence service, which I’ve dubbed the Office of Strategic Services. Our mission is to collect and analyze strategic information for the Joint Chiefs of Staff and to conduct certain special operations not handled by other agencies. For instance, Latin-American intelligence will be handled exclusively by the FBI.” Mr. Donovan paused for a moment, but Roy remained silent.
Lord, can this be another way You’ve answered my prayer to do Your work in this war?
“If you’re interested, we could use a man of your background and talents.”
“It sounds very worthwhile, but I have obligations to the OP-20-G, Mr. Donovan. Mr. Kincaid already had to make extensive arrangements regarding my leave of absence.”
Donovan broke into an approving smile. “That Benson loyalty, eh? I already attended to the matter. Admiral Rochefort tells me that Station Hypo is now consistently breaking the Japanese naval code and has graciously consented to my request.”
“In that case, sir, I’m your man.” Roy rose to shake his hand again.
“Good.” Donovan chuckled. “By the way, my friends call me Wild Bill.” And with that, the three men went off to enjoy a fine lunch before Wild Bill left to attend to other concerns.
“So.” Roy cleared his throat as Paul pulled out of the parking lot. “Where do they sell rings around here?”
Valerie dabbed a bit of perfume on her neck as she heard Paul’s car pull into the drive. She grabbed her jacket, gave her hair one final pat, and made her way to the top of the stairs.
“He’ll be out in a minute.” Rosemary met her at the bottom, wiping her hands on a dish towel. “You look lovely, honey. Have a good evening.”
A few minutes later, Roy came out of his room, dressed in full uniform. He seemed so tall and handsome that he made Valerie’s breath catch as he gazed at her appreciatively.
“You look stunning.” He gallantly offered her his arm as he took her outside. On their way to Giovanni’s, she learned of his time in Europe.
“I stayed in the basement the whole time. It was cold, cramped, quiet …” He reached over and gently clasped her hand. “And lonely. I missed you.”
“I missed you, too. I prayed for your safety every day.” Her grip tightened.
“Thank you.” He grinned as he led her into the restaurant.
As they enjoyed warm, fragrant bread and lasagna, Valerie could tell something else was on his mind. When dinner was over, she broached the subject. “You’re probably tired after your trip. We can skip Bambi and go home if you’d like. I’ll sleep better knowing I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Oh, no,” he refused quickly, then gazed at her intensely. “But there is something I need to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“I know how you felt about me going,” he began, “but I’m called to my work. Can you support me in it?”
Valerie didn’t need to think it over. “Yes, Roy, I can. I know it’s a part of who you are, and I accept that. I trust you, but more than that, I trust the Lord with our love. I won’t try to stop you from doing His work again.”
He knelt down before her and pulled a small box out of his coat pocket. “Then, since you’ve captured my heart, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
“Yes, Roy.” She trembled as he slipped the small diamond onto her finger and swept her into his arms to seal the promise with a kiss.
“You’ve made me a happy man, my love.”
“No happier than you’ve made me.” She stroked her fingers through his wavy hair and smiled. “With God in our hearts and you by my side, our home will always be filled with joy.”