It’s Like That (10 page)

“Did you hear me?” Sara whispered urgently. “Chris is coming home. You probably won’t be able to see him for a few more weeks. But he’s coming home. Alan and the rest of the team left this afternoon. I don’t know what the mission was, he couldn’t tell me. But maybe it’s related.”

“When?” Callie whispered.

“When what?” Sara asked.

Callie cleared her throat, still in a daze. “When did they find him?”

“Oh,” Sara said. “They found him about a week ago. But the embassy didn’t even know until yesterday. Neither one of them would say a word, or maybe they couldn’t say a word. Whichever, nobody even knew they were American until a couple of days ago. It’s all over the news. They thought they were just tourists that got lost until the embassy sent guards and some high-ranking officials started asking questions.”

Callie fumbled for her remote and flipped on the television. She surfed until she found a news channel. They were airing an interview with an ambassador, talking about how grateful they were to the hospital for notifying them as soon as they realized they were treating Americans.

“I’ll call you back, Sara.” Callie hung up, not waiting for her answer.

She spent the entire weekend glued to the television, hungry for any information. They really didn’t have much. Sara had already told her pretty much everything they knew. The next week began, and Callie knew it was a good thing it was the last week. She’d have been completely useless otherwise.

Less than half her class was there on Thursday and Friday, and she put on one movie after another and let them eat snacks at their desks. When everyone had gone home, she carefully packed up everything she wanted to take home with her and left. It wasn’t completely over for her, though. Teachers had to come back through Wednesday next week just to finish everything and put away textbooks and take down decorations. Each year started with a clean slate, but you had to clean that slate at the end of the year.

She took each day calmly, hiding the fact that she wanted to weep at one moment and jump up and down the next. Only Sara knew of her inner turmoil, and tried to keep Callie posted on whatever updates she got. Four days after the team had left for the mission, Sara winked at her and said “Mission accomplished,” but had said that was all Alan would say about it. So Callie trudged on, hopeful and afraid.

Chris opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was a grizzled old face. He squashed his first instinct, which was to leap off the…table? Bed? He looked around slowly, blinking the haze of unconsciousness away.

“Welcome back to the United States, Lieutenant,” a rough voice that must belong to the face told him. “You’re in Bethesda Naval Hospital, and you’re going to be groggy for a few more hours. You were sedated for the flight.”

It all came back in a flash. The run-down hospital in Czech, the confused doctors, the suits and uniforms bearing down on him, and…

“Harris?” He’d wanted his voice to be louder, but it came out barely audible.

“Private Harris is in a room on the psychiatric floor. Her injuries weren’t as obvious as yours.”

Chris nodded, and the old man held a straw to his lips. “Here,” he commanded roughly. “Drink.”

Cold, clear water washed through his mouth and down his throat. He’d forgotten what it felt like to quench his thirst. He hadn’t even realized he was thirsty.

“I’m Major Ludwig,” the man continued once Chris finished drinking. “I’m overseeing your care during your stay with us. I’ve already scheduled a surgery for you, to repair your knee. The Czechs did what they could, and they did an excellent job. But I think we can make a few more repairs.”

“My knee?” Chris blinked, trying to clear the fog from his brain.

“Yes. You were shot in the knee, presumably during your escape. It wasn’t a fatal wound, but you walked on it for two weeks carrying another human being. It got infected and there was a little more damage. You’ll always have a limp, but hopefully we can minimize it.” He leveled a serious stare at Chris and said, “You survived because of sheer stubbornness.”

Chris gave a halfhearted smile and said, “My mom always said my head was hard enough to break rocks.”

“Well,” said Major Ludwig, “she was right. Speaking of your mother, you have a family that’s been in the waiting room for about eight hours. One woman, your sister I believe, has been driving the nurses insane. They’d like to come see you, if you think you’re ready.”

Chris swallowed nervously. Who was here? “Who…I mean, how many are there?”

The major looked at him carefully. “Your parents, sister, and brother. Your team has been calling also, asking when they can come see you, offer their support.”

Chris looked toward the window.
Three days. Of course she hadn’t come. He’d been gone longer than she knew him.
“Has anyone else called?”

Major Ludwig watched him as understanding dawned. He responded, “No, son. But there’s a phone by your bed if you want to call someone. Whoever she is, she’s probably waiting for you to call.”

Chris closed his eyes and breathed in sharply. He hadn’t always been so transparent, and it irked him to no end that this old doctor could read him so easily. “I don’t have her number. It was in my phone. I didn’t memorize it. I don’t have anyone’s number, sir.”

Major Ludwig chuckled and said, “Well, we live in the information age. Give me her name and I’ll get it. This is the government, after all.” He waggled his eyebrows and said, “Uncle Sam has everyone’s number.”

“Sure. Yeah. Her name is Callie Alexson. She lives in Virginia Beach.” After all, getting her number didn’t mean he had to call, did it? He’d been gone damn near a year, and even though it wasn’t his fault, she’d still been alone. He scratched at the itchy beard that was beginning to grow back. He wanted to see his family, but first, he needed to shave.

“Sir?” he asked as Major Ludwig was leaving the room. “Before you send my family up, can I get a razor and some shaving cream?”

“Sure, son. We’ll get you taken care of.”

The reunion with his family was tearful for all of them. They hugged, they cried, they laughed, and even though he loved them, he was glad when they left for the night. The room was almost unbearably silent after they left, though, and he folded and unfolded the scrap of paper that had Callie’s number on it.

Major Ludwig had slipped it to him when he brought his family in, and he’d held it tightly in his palm since then. He’d held it so tightly for so long that the numbers were smudged, but still legible.

He glanced at the clock on his wall. Twenty-one thirty on a Thursday. Did she have school the next day? Was she already in bed? And the question that caused his heart to clench: was she alone?

He reached for the phone beside his bed and dialed. Then hung up quickly. He took a deep breath and dialed twice more before finally letting it ring.

* * * *

The phone was ringing, the shrill chime drawing Callie from a sound sleep. She rolled over and picked it up from her bedside stand. Unknown number from Maryland. She rolled her eyes and started to lay it down and go back to sleep, but she paused, barely daring to hope. Her hand shook as she touched the screen to answer.

“Hello?” she said softly, her voice unsteady.

Silence and then a deeply drawn breath.

“Hello?” she asked again. “I’m sorry, I can’t hear you.”

Silence.

“Um, I’m going to hang up now,” she said, although she had no intention of doing any such thing.

“Wait,” a voice whispered.

Callie’s breath caught in her throat. It was impossible to tell with the whispered voice but she hoped. God, she hoped!

“I’m here,” she whispered back.

Another deep, shuddering breath sounded through the phone. “I…” He’d spoken this time, instead of whispering, but before he could complete the sentence, his voice caught and he stopped.

“I’m here,” Callie whispered again. “I’m still here.” She knew, without him saying another word. She just
knew.

They stayed on the phone like that, silent, just the sound of his pained breaths and her quiet sobs for long minutes.

Finally, he broke the silence. “I’m so sorry, baby.”

Callie blew her nose noisily. “What do you possibly have to be sorry for?”

His voice was rough when he answered. “I made a promise to you, and I couldn’t keep it.”

Callie’s heart broke, and her tears started up again. “You can still keep it. If you want to.”

“Yeah,” he whispered, “yeah, I want to try.”

“Okay.” Callie smiled through her tears. “Then come home and try.”

“Okay,” he breathed. Another one of those shuddering breaths, and then he haltingly said, “You can come see me. If you want. You don’t have to. They’re gonna try to fix my knee tomorrow. I fucked it up pretty bad.”

“I know. When can I come see you?” Although she hadn’t moved from the bed, she’d already begun looking around for what she had to pack.

“The surgery is tomorrow morning. I don’t know how long it takes.” He paused, and she waited, sure he wasn’t finished. “My, uh, my family is here. If you’re not comfortable with it, you don’t have to come.” He cleared his throat. “But, uh, I’d really like you to meet them. I told them about you before…”

“I’ll be there in the morning,” Callie said firmly. “Make sure they’ll let me see you. It only takes about three and a half hours to get there, so I’ll be there before lunch.”

“Thank you. I…I can’t wait.” His voice was rough again, and he cleared his throat before saying, “Well, you need to get to bed. You know, if you’re leaving in the morning.”

“Yeah. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Callie used both hands, nearly hugging the phone to her ear in her reluctance to hang up.

“Yeah,” he whispered, “Drive safely.”

“I will.”

“Okay. Well, uh…Good night, I guess.”

“Good night, Chris.”

Another deep, shaky breath, then a violent hiss. “Say it again.”

“Um…” Callie began, unsure of what exactly she was supposed to say.

“My name. Say my name, baby. I haven’t heard such a sweet sound in nine long months.”

She sighed happily and said, “Chris. I’ll say it as many times as you want me to, as long as you’re there tomorrow.”

He gave a rusty chuckle and said, “I’ll hold you to that. Night, Callie.”

“Good night, Chris,” she said, and hung up before she could find something else to say. They had time now, time that she hadn’t been sure they would ever get. She flopped back on her bed, laughing and crying in relief. She hadn’t imagined it or blown it out of proportion. He’d called her his first day back, and wanted her to come see him.

Her sobs soon turned to hiccups, and gradually she relaxed into sleep.

“Lieutenant Paulson, can you open your eyes?” A persistent voice nagged him incessantly. “I need you to open your eyes, Lieutenant.”

Chris opened his eyes and quickly closed them against the brightness.

“Lieutenant Paulson, what’s your pain level, on a scale of one to ten?”

He blinked several times, adjusting to the lights. “Uh…” He hadn’t noticed the pain until he thought about it, but now his knee felt like someone had flattened it. “About a four.”

A heavyset black nurse with bright pink nails and pink scrubs stood by his bed, eyeing him doubtfully. “I think it’s higher than that. You boys always want to be so tough,” she grumbled.

She pushed a few buttons on the machine beside his bed and said, “This won’t knock you out, and it won’t make the pain go away completely. It’s just gonna dull it for a while. When you’re ready for more, just push this button.” She showed him the little handheld device that allowed him to dose himself as needed. “Now it only lets you get more every ten minutes, so don’t try to push it all the time because it just won’t work. If you need it more than once every ten minutes, let us know and we’ll get you something a little stronger.”

Chris nodded, still groggy. “Okay.”

The nurse continued, “Your family is in the waiting room, and you can see them whenever you like.” She headed for the door before stopping and turning back around. “Oh! And you have a lady visitor.” She smiled at him mischievously, “I can send her in first if you want.”

His heart pounded in his chest and he replied, “Yeah. Give me a few minutes to wake up and send her, please.”

She nodded and winked. “I’ll wait about ten minutes and send her.”

Callie was here. Chris looked around, trying to clear his head and figure out what he needed to do before he saw her. A shower was out of the question, but…he ran his tongue over his teeth. Disgusting. He wrinkled his nose. He’d always had straight teeth that, while not pearly white due to his love of coffee, had always been at least a bright white. Now they were yellow, half of them filled with cavities. He pushed his call button and a nurse popped her head in less than a minute later.

“Everything all right, hon?” This was an older nurse in blue scrubs and bright, fake red hair. He recognized her from the day before. She was a dragon, but a friendly one.

“Yeah, uh, I was wondering if I could brush my teeth. My uh…girlfriend is on her way in a few minutes.”

The nurse pursed her lips and said, “As long as you promise me no hanky-panky.”

He gave her his best, most innocent smile, and said, “No, ma’am.”

“Mmm hmm,” she said, moving toward the bathroom. She brought him a glass of water, toothpaste, a toothbrush, and a basin and set it on the table beside his bed. “Go ahead and brush,” she said, moving the table over his lap and adjusting his bed. “I’ll be right back with something to make them just a little whiter pretty quick.”

He brushed for all he was worth, getting every corner of his mouth and scrubbing his tongue until he gagged. He was just rinsing and spitting when the nurse returned carrying an orange box.

“Let me hold your toothbrush,” she said, holding out her hand. She sprinkled a little of the powder on his toothbrush and said, “Baking soda. It’ll lighten them a couple of shades, but it’ll burn like the devil if you use too much too often.” She squeezed more toothpaste on top of the baking soda and gave it back to him.