CHAPTER FORTY-One

 

Two and a half hours later

Tuesday evening

April 1 – 8:45 P.M. MDT

Denver, CO

“We’re almost there,” Joseph stuck his head in the carriage house small dining room. “Fifteen minutes.”

“Thanks,” Alex said.

Alex spent an hour with the Denver Police. When Joseph took over, she retreated to the small bedroom on the first floor of the carriage house to work with the Fey Special Forces Team journals. The men were busy cleaning up, repairing the doors, and installing state of the art security in the carriage house. Alex could devote her undivided attention to the Fey journals.

Family members dropped the remaining journals by the house around dinner time. The journals had arrived from Buckley by secure transport an hour ago. Attempting to create order out of chaos, Alex sorted the journals into stacks. She ordered them chronologically leaving the most recent journal on top.

There were five tall stacks of their communications officer Tommy’s journals. Tommy always had so much to say. As if she was patting Tommy’s back, her hands lovingly patted his journals. There were four or five journals in Dwight’s stack. As a weapons officer, his journals consisted of lists of weapons. Remembering Mrs. Harris’s assertion, Alex smiled. Dwight would never have written even one detail about his liaisons. Never.

Nathan’s son had dropped off one journal. He said his father didn’t like to write things down. Also a communications officer, Nathan was the opposite of Tommy. She flipped through the pages and smiled. To Nathan, words were powerful and should be used sparingly. Paul’s engineering precision led to only a few concise journals. She held the tiny precise script close to her eyes.

Jax’s journals were filled with the team’s health data. She had three stacks of his journals. Dean, their other medic, also had three stacks of journals. Doing a quick count, Alex realized they had an equal number of journals. She wondered if they kept the same information. Or…

Who knows? She rubbed her heart where her loss lingered.

Joseph had about as many journals as Tommy. His journals were clean and fastidious. Typical Joseph.

She didn’t have any of Mike’s journals. After letting his kids pick one item, his wife threw all of his belongings away. The kids were tossed out about six months later. Mike’s oldest son, MJ, supported his brother and sister on his salary as a Special Forces medic. She remembered Mike having journals. But, like her funny, mercurial friend, they were lost forever.

Scott and Jesse had about the same number of journals. Four stacks. She wondered what Scott the engineer, kept in his journals. Jesse’s were filled with drawings and comments about the churches they visited. Jesse loved old churches. Every trip, they visited at least one church. Alex fanned Jesse’s journals in front of her. She felt a familiar warmth and safety brought by her best-friend.

Charlie’s journal sat on top of the desk next to her own last journal. Going from stack to stack, she pulled the last journals from each of the stacks. She set the journals out in a row on the table. She counted eleven journals. She set Charlene’s fake journals above the eleven true journals.

Alex folded her arms across her chest. She was looking at the last words of the Fey Special Forces Team.

“Yes,” she said to the knock at the door.

The door opened to show a small round faced woman. If she wasn’t wearing in a full dress Marine uniform, Alex would have thought she was twelve years old. The woman’s eyes went wide with surprise and she popped to a salute.

“Who are you?” Alex asked.

“Private First Class Margaret Peaches reporting for duty, sir. I mean ma’am. I mean Fey. I mean...”

“At ease Private,” Alex said. “Why are you here?”

“I’m a translator, ma’am. I’m a member of the Navajo nation. My grandfather was a code talker in World War II, ma’am. The Peaches have always been Marines. We’re always ready to be of service,” Private Peaches spoke in a rush of anxious words. “I’m here to fulfill a request by Major Joseph Walter. High priority clearance ma’am. I flew to Denver from the sand.”

“I’m sure you’re exhausted,” Alex said.

“I’m here to serve, sir. If you show me where I can start, I’ll begin at once.”

“Private Peaches, we are about to have dinner and a little party,” Alex said. “If you’d like to look over these books, you may start. But I will encourage you to join us for dinner.”

“Yes ma’am. I worked on your books last fall,” Private Peaches said. “I’m here to work, ma’am. I...”

“Ok,” Alex said. “First, you need to call me sir.”

“Oh. Oh. Oh. I’m sorry. I remember that from last fall, but... Oh crap!”

Alex smiled.

“Why don’t you start with these two books?” Alex asked. “We know they are fakes. We ran them through every test. We haven’t found anything – electronic, microbot, gadgets, even biological weapon. Just this nonsensical prose. Most of the families threw the books away. Maybe your fresh set of eyes can reveal their mysteries.”

“Yes sir,” Private Peaches said. “I won’t let you down, sir.”

“I’ll come to get you when I’m done,” Alex said.

“For?”

“Dinner.”

“I’m here to work. My Sergeant told me I needed to work hard and not let you down. And I don’t intend to ever let you down, sir.”

“Then come to dinner,” Alex said. “Do you need additional translators?”

“No, sir,” Private Peaches said. “I can do this. I want to do this.”

Alex smiled at the eager girl.

“We’re ready,” Joseph said.

“Major Walter, this is Private First Class Margaret Peaches,” Alex said.

Joseph nodded his welcome.

“She’s going to take a look at the fakes,” Alex said.

“Great,” Joseph said. “We’ll return in thirty minutes. Join us for dinner.”

“Sir, I intend to work hard for Lieutenant Colonel Hargreaves, sir.”

“Then come to dinner,” Joseph said. “We’ll be back.”

The Marine was sitting down at the table when Alex and Joseph left the room. Walking down the hall, Joseph took her hand. She turned to hug him.

“So hard to move on,” he whispered.

Pressing her face into his shoulder, she began to cry.

“I miss them so much,” she said.

“We don’t have to...”

“It’s time,” she said. “The boys would want us to form a new team.”

“Charlie would scream at us for waiting so long.”

Alex shifted back to look at Joseph’s tear drenched face. Their eyes held.

“New team, new era.” As if to dismiss them, she swatted at her tears. “We must be brave.”

Joseph clasped her to him. They stood together for a moment. Pulling tissue from her pocket, Alex offered Joseph one then used another for her own tears.

“You’re prepared.”

“Girl Scout,” she laughed.

“You were never a Girl Scout.”

“Boy Scout?”

Shaking his head, Joseph held his hand out to her. They walked hand in hand through the carriage house to the main rooming house. The men were waiting for them in the dining room. Joseph held the door for Alex. They hugged one last time for strength.

Alex’s Sergeant waited for them in the kitchen. Joseph took the contracts from him. One last look at Alex, and Joseph entered the dining room. Alex stood in the doorway to watch.

“In my hand are your contracts to join the new Fey Team.”

FFFFFF

Three hours later

Wednesday early-morning

April 2, 2009 – 12:15 A.M. MDT

Denver, CO

 

Alex wandered outside to let Maggie out. Signing the contracts led to a boisterous dinner which continued through the bars on Colfax. The rowdy team members arrived at the rooming house with a bevy of rowdy women. Trece and White Boy were entertaining five college girls in the newly purchased hot tub. Troy and a curvy brunette were doing some version of dirty dancing on the deck. Sharing a lounger, Sami and Raz cuddled under a fleece blanket near the chimenea.

After Maggie finished her business, Alex picked her up and went inside. Vince and Emily were playing cards across the dining room table with Joseph and Nancy. Cian, Max, Private First Class Margaret Peaches, Eoin and his red haired girlfriend were laughing and arguing in the den. She checked on Larry and Helene, who were watching the children in the basement.

Only Matthew and Erin had made an early night of it. Well, and Alex. After receiving solemn promises to keep the noise down, she gave Maggie to Max and retreated to her bedroom.

“Mmm,” John said. Alex slipped into the bed next to him. “I’ve been waiting for you.”

“You and your hairy palms?”

John kissed her lips.

“Why are you still naked?” she asked.

Her hand ran across his chest. Trying to decide what to do, her fingers pulled the dog tag along its chain before moving down his body. Her fingertips swirled the thin line of hair that went from his navel to his trimmed public hair. John sighed at her touch.

“I had this enlightening conversation with Trece,” John said.

Alex jerked up to look at him. “Yeah?”

“He explained in great detail how I get hair on my palms,” John said. He took her hand and demonstrated the movement along him. “He went on to explain other American euphemisms.”

“Like what?”

John slipped on top of her. He kissed her lips.

“I remembered something from my OB rotation in medical school.”

“Uh huh,” she said. She lifted up so he could pull her T-shirt over her head.

“The concern after hysterectomy is infection from intercourse,” he said.

Hooking his fingers under her panties, he pulled them off.

“What does this have to do with Trece?” she asked.

She gasped as John pulled her nipple into his mouth.

“He told me the meaning of the phrase: ‘southern route.’”

“Mmmm.”

His mouth continued moving down her body. His tongue explored her belly button. Moving along her body, his lips pulled at her soft flesh. She shifted her hips as his tongue and lips found purchase in her tender folds.

“Wait! What about you? You can’t keep growing hair on your palms.”

“Trece also reminded me of the term ‘69.’”

When he lifted her body over his, she giggled. She had just started when he said:

“I wanted to ask you something.”

She looked at his face.

“You know, I realize I don’t really know about you and Zack.”

“You’re asking me about Zack? Now?”

“I realized I didn’t know… the other day when you were upset. I keep forgetting to ask.”

“I must not be very good at this,” she said.

Peering at his face, she saw he was embarrassed. She gave him a soft smile and move to the bed. She shifted her body around so her head rested on his shoulder.

“Why did you stop?” he asked.

“I’d prefer to talk about this. We can return to our festivities when we’re done,” she said. “What do you want to know?”

“What happened between you and Zack?”

“Nothing,” Alex said.

“Nothing?”

“Nothing.”

“What do you mean ‘nothing?’”

“I mean, Zack told everyone we were lovers and we weren’t,” Alex said. “It broke my heart. So when he started up again later, I broke his nose.”

“Did you kiss him?” he asked

“Yesterday, I kissed his cheek. He gave me a peck on the lips like he always does. You know, I don’t think I’ve gone out of my way to kiss Zack… ever. Probably. We’d have to ask Max.”

“No.” John’s voice was frustrated. “As a kid, did you kiss? Make out? Fool around?”

“He kissed me once, messed his pants and passed out,” Alex said. “At a party.”

“So you’re saying...?”

“I’m not saying anything,” Alex said.

John sat up to look at her.

“But Alex, who was your first lover? This really freaks me out. I felt like I knew you. Now I don’t feel like I know you at all.”

“I know that feeling.”

She gave him a wry look. He fell back to the bed in agreement. He stared at the ceiling for a moment.

“Who was your first lover?”

“You.”

“What? How is that even possible?”

“Zack told everyone I was a whore so I couldn’t get a date in high school. I didn’t want boyfriends or lovers in the Army. Any complication could keep me out of Forces training. Men weren’t worth the risk. I met you right after training. It’s pretty simple.”

“Oh,” John said. “Oh.”

“Oh what?”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“You never asked,” Alex said. “Plus you were like Mister Girl a Night guy. I was kind of embarrassed.”

“Oh.”

John was silent so long she looked up to see if he had fallen asleep. She saw tears in his eyes.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“I’m overwhelmed,” he said. “It’s hard for me to imagine you haven’t had a million lovers. You’re sure?”

Alex nodded.

“I’m the luckiest man in the entire world.” John laughed.

F