Learning to Stand (51 page)

“
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

Chapter forty-Two

Three hours later

Wednesday morning

April 2
–
3:15 A.M. MDT
Denver, CO

Alex lay awake with John nestled around her.
Sex always worked to keep her pain at bay. She felt comfortable,
but wide awake.

Her small journal whispered her name from
the carriage house. Unwilling to give up the festivities, she put
the journal out of her mind. The journal’s secrets poked at her
unconscious.

Could she really let that little Marine look
at her journal first? Not a chance. Despite her efforts at being
silent, John awoke while she was getting dressed.

“
Lusting for cookies and
coffee again?” he asked.

“
How did you…?”

“
Oh love, I finally know all
your secrets,” he said.

“
So you think,” she
laughed.

“
Are you in
pain?”

“
I feel loose and
happy.”

He laughed at her usual post-coital
reference.

“
Can I wear your
fleece?”

“
Of course,” he
said.

She pulled the fluffy blue fleece over her
head. The soft fabric smelled of him. She picked up her laptop
case.

“
Where are you going?” he
asked.

“
Kitchen first. I want
some...”

“
Coffee and cookies,” he
said.

“
Yes,” she said. “I’ll be in
the carriage house.”

He was asleep before she left their room.
Standing on the third floor landing, she listened to the house
breathe. Everyone was asleep.

She crept to the kitchen. While the coffee
dripped, she dug in the cabinets for some cookies. Of course, the
cookie jar was empty. She was about to give up when she remembered
Cian’s secret stash of cookies in the freezer. She gave a soft
yippee when she found a zip lock bag of lemon drop cookies.

While the coffee brewed, she checked to see
if the party was cleaned up. She found Eoin and his curly red
haired girlfriend nestled on the couch together in the living room.
The woman has so much curly hair Alex could only see the red hair
and Eoin’s face. If that was the soon-to-be wife, they were going
to have a lot of red haired kids.

Chuckling at her joke, she collected her
coffee and added milk. She took half of the lemon drops. Imagining
Cian finding his stash raided, she put a few cookies back then
tucked them back in the freezer. At the backyard door, she checked
her handgun to make sure it was loaded. She slipped the gun back
into its sacrum holster. She opened the door to a blast of cold and
jogged to the carriage house.

Turning off the security for the carriage
house, she wandered through the downstairs until she found the
thermostat. She cranked up the heat. Settling in the small bedroom
on the first floor, she was going to take her jacket off when she
realized she was too cold. She opened the door in hopes the room
would warm up faster. Taking her laptop from its case, she turned
it on, then read Private Peaches’ note.

“
The books are expensive
fakes. Did you have them x-rayed?” Answering out loud, she said,
“No. We didn’t think of it.”

“
There’s a plastic tracking
device that doesn’t necessarily show up on the usual tests. You can
see it with x-ray.” Alex read.

“
Good work, Private
Peaches,” she said out loud. “Wish you could tell me what they were
tracking and who ‘they’ are.”

Alex tossed the books in a corner of the
room. She would have them x-rayed tomorrow.

She took Helene’s Magic 8 ball from the
zippered pouch of her laptop case. Turning it over, she saw, “NOT A
CHANCE.” Smiling, she set it next to her small team journal. She
placed her broken Zippo lighter next to the Magic 8 ball. For good
measure, she put Charlie’s journal next to the lighter. Biting her
lip, she let out a sigh.

Each item held some secret.

Every word in the journals could be a
clue.

She had no idea what secret or what
clue.

She reached for her small journal then
stopped. Her hand hung in the air over the journal. What if the
small journal unlocked the key to the swirl of Joiner, the Weasel,
the Boy Scout and the deaths of her team? What if it didn’t? She
poured a cup of coffee, to avoid the question.

Stalling, she opened an email from Krystal
Joiner.

Subject: Update

Hi Alex,

I wanted to let you know that Cory is out of
the ICU. They don’t know if he’s out of the woods yet, but they’re
hopeful. His organs are responding to treatment. We won’t know
about permanent damage for a couple months.

I’m sure you heard Bobby and Beth Ann are
here with Tristan. Tristan made it through the surgery and they
think he will be able to go home in the next couple of days. Home
to Long Beach, that is.

Cody will probably go home today. His stupid
momma keeps talking about how “mean” the Texas Rangers were to her.
But she’s relieved Cody is alive.

Thanks to you, and God of course, we think
the boys will make a full recovery. Of course, the insurance
company is squawking about payment but luckily they have a good
agent! ;)

Sue Ann is in bad shape. She fell apart at
Daniel and David’s funeral. She’s been hospitalized. I don’t think
she’ll recover.

I attached a little update of my own. It’s
only been a few days, but I think he’s my dream come true. Make me
a fairy wish, Alex.

Your friend always,

Krystal

P.S. Do you see the funny tattoo on his
shoulder? I asked him what it meant and he said it was a military
thing. Since you’re the only person I know in the military, do you
know what it means?