The Wrong Side of Honor

by Marshall Ginevan

  Eddie gave her a grin, “Which one is that?”

  “Blue jeans, western shirt, and cowboy boots. That doesn’t say just USA. That says Texas.”

  Her manner told him that she was self-reliant and had a great deal of self-confidence. Her pretty face was enhanced by the smile that was warm and friendly.

  “You must be Elaine.”

  “Welcome to Kuala Lumpur, Eddie. Need a hand with any of that?”

  “No, thank you. A bag for each hand and a camera is all I have. Easy to travel that way.”

  “Okay, but we’ve got a little hike. I’m parked at the far end of the parking lot. That’s where the free slots are.”

  “Hey, sounds fine to me.”

  As they walked through the terminal toward the parking lot Eddie saw a money exchange. “Oh, by the way. I just got here a few minutes before you did and haven’t bought any funny money.”

  “Why? Is there something you’ve got to spend money on.”

  “Well, a hotel and meal for starts.”

  “I’ve got a jeep to drive us back to the school where you have a room waiting on you. It’s a guest quarters, which doesn’t cost anything. And I’ll fix you supper if you’re hungry.”

  “I really didn’t expect to come down here and live for free.”

  “Oh, it’s not free. It just doesn’t cost money.”

  Eddie threw his bags in the back of the old World War II era military jeep with JESUS SAVES painted on the front bumper and around the spare tire. They drove out into rush hour traffic and headed away from the city. Twenty minutes later they were speeding down a dusty road that was called a highway, although Eddie could not figure out why it was called that. After dodging several ox carts and large trucks, Eddie looked at Elaine.

  “What time do the Communists close the highway? Sunset?”

  Elaine glanced at him. “What Communists?”

  “The Communists or anybody close the highway at night?”

  “Not that I know of. Why?”

  “I fly my fighter fast down near the tree tops, but I’ve got this little yellow handle I can pull that gives me a second chance. I don’t see a second chance handle here if this thing comes apart or things don’t go just right.”

  She laughed. “You think I’m getting a little carried away?”

  “I’m worried that we’re both gonna get carried away by someone wearing a big red cross if you don’t slow this thing down.”

  “Sorry,” she said, still laughing, and slowed down to a safer speed.

  “Teresa tells me that you’re a born again Christian,” she said.

  “Yea. Saved and Heaven bound. In fact, I thought I saw the pearly gates coming open through the trees back there.”

  Elaine laughed even harder. Eddie looked at her and laughed, too.

  Thirty-five miles north of the airport, they pulled off the dirt highway and drove into a courtyard surrounded by a wooden privacy fence. All the buildings were of untreated wood and stood on heavy wooden pilings. Aside from the circular dirt driveway, the area was covered with neatly cut grass outlined with flowers. Behind the buildings were tall trees that shaded most of the courtyard. A Christian flag hung on the flagpole beside the Malaysian flag.

  Eddie pulled his bags from the back of the jeep and Elaine walked with him down a gravel pathway that led between two of the buildings.

  “These four buildings are dormitories,” Elaine explained. “Two are for the boys. The other two for girls. Kids spend so much time together here and develop such close friendships, they don’t want to visit their parents on holidays and school breaks.”

  “How many kids do you have here?”

  “About 250. Nearly 200 are English speaking, mainly MK’s.”

  Eddie gave Elaine a questioning look.

  “Missionary kids. Another fifty are rich kids sent here as a private school. We use it as an opportunity to reach them for the Lord.”

  “And what grade do you teach?”

  “English. All grades from first through the twelfth.”

  She stopped at the foot of the stairs and looked at Eddie.

  He smiled. “You’ve got big blue eyes.”

  “Yes,” she said with a pleasant smile. “Top of the stairs. Room four. Drop your bags off and we’ll go to the dining room and have supper.”

  “Against the rules for you to come up?”

  “No. Staff are permitted in the guest quarters. But there are many eyes on us right now and Paul admonishes us to avoid all appearance of evil.”

  “I hope I don’t embarrass you, Elaine. But I came from a military base and –-”

  “I understand. If you have the ability to learn from your mistakes, we have the ability to forgive you for those mistakes. But right now, I’m hungry.”

  “Sorry. I’ll be right back.”

  The dining room was empty, except for two teenage girls cleaning up. Elaine sat Eddie at a table, then walked to the back. She returned to the table with a pitcher of ice tea and two glasses. “Would you like chicken or shall I fix something else?”

  “You can cook, too?” Eddie asked teasingly.

  “Cook, clean, and sew,” she answered with a smile.

  “Chicken is fine, thank you. We’ll save your cooking talents for another meal.”

  Elaine fixed two plates, offered a quick word of prayer, and they started their meal.

  “What do you think of Teresa?” Elaine asked.

  “Good looking, smart, and really knows how to pick a vacation.”

  Elaine grinned at Eddie. “I think she really underestimated you.”

  “How’s that?” Eddie asked, trying to sound serious.

  “Oh, she described you as the bookworm type, fairly quiet, conservative bordering on square, no vices.”

  “I kinda think she lied just a little.”

  “Well, there was more.”

  “Such as?”

  “Fighter pilot. Smart. Gutsy. All around good guy. But in need of a vacation away from the pressures of the war.”

  Eddie shrugged. “What do you think?”

  Elaine thought for a few seconds. “Favorable first impression. But I’ll reserve judgment until I see how you behave.”

  “I am an officer and a gentleman.”

  “And a Christian, you said.”

  “Well, Elaine. Sometimes a war makes being an officer and a gentleman mutually exclusive of being a Christian. At best, they’re hard to reconcile.”

  “There’s a time for war and a time for peace. Here you’ll find no soldiers with guns shooting at you. And we’ll work on building up the Christian.”

  “Being a good Christian doesn’t exactly make you a good soldier.”

  “I don’t know. David took on the giant Goliath with just five little stones and he won. You took on two soldiers with five little bullets and you won. If you weren’t protected by the hand of God you may not have won.”

  “Teresa told you about that, too?”

  “She told me about you.”

  “And it doesn’t bother you that I’ve killed people?”

  “If killing a man that murders two missionaries is a sin, - and I don’t believe it is - I’m sure the Lord has forgiven you. And if you’re forgiven, who am I to condemn you?” She reached out and squeezed his hand. “Come on. Eat your chicken. They saved us some pie that I’m anxious to taste.”

  Eddie picked up his chicken and said, “Think I’m gonna like it here.” He winked at her and smiled.

  Yep, she thought. He’s the one.

  Eddie fell into a routine over the next few days. He would get up at 5:30 a.m. for a twenty-minute run with about a dozen high school athletes. He would then help out where needed in the kitchen from 6:00 until 8:00, spend an hour working out with the karate class, and return to help with lunch. Eac
h afternoon he would visit classes and sometimes help the teachers before rejoining the athletes for an hour of weight lifting.

  After the evening meal he and Elaine would attend a Bible study and prayer meeting, then walk around the campus and enjoy the quiet evening together. They were seen several times holding hands, which started rumors of romance and marriage.

  Eddie and Elaine sat on a picnic table behind the guest quarters one evening talking.

  “Received a letter from Teresa today,” Elaine said.

  “Anything new in her life?”

  “Said she and Ray are working from 6:00 a.m. until midnight every day now.”

  “Yea, I believe that.”

  “What do they do? She never would say.”

  “She can’t write about what she does. We wear civilian clothes and work in an intelligence office that used to be a CIA operation. All the intelligence reports from southern Laos, Cambodia, and certain parts of South Viet Nam come to our office. We evaluate them, write intelligence summaries, and pass the information on to Bangkok.”

  “Why are they so busy now? I thought the war was over.”

  “The NVA has more than 100,000 troops in South Viet Nam, and they’re now taking over that country. Ban Me Thuot fell on the 10th. The South Vietnamese withdrew from the Central Highlands on the 14th. And the 19th Quang Tri Province fell.”

  “Are they going to win?”

  “Yes, I’m afraid so. And rather soon. Viet Nam and Cambodia for sure. Probably Laos. Thailand is a maybe. At least for now.”

  “What are you going to do when your assignment here is up?” she asked, as she rested her head on his shoulder.

  “Oh, I don’t know. Doesn’t look like I’ll get into a flying unit. Right now, I’m assigned against a Security Police slot. They’ll probably keep me in that job if I can’t fly.”

  “You don’t like being a policemen?”

  “Don’t like being a sky cop. I was a campus cop at college. If that’s what line of work I’m stuck in, I’d rather be a real police officer or maybe join some federal agency.”

  “What about the airlines?”

  “Market is flooded with pilots right now. They hire guys with more hours than I have.”

  “What about Bible college? Maybe you could be a preacher.”

  “You talk too much,” he said, trying to change the subject.

  She looked up and gazed into his eyes. He brushed his hand across her cheek and softly kissed her lips. She slid her arms around him, returning his kiss. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her tight against his chest.

  His touch excited her. His kiss gave her a tingle that raced through her body. Yet she felt safe and content in his arms. He made her feel like no one else ever had. She belonged in his arms. It was her place. Yes, she told herself. I better not let him get away. He is definitely the one.

  “You must have had a lot of practice at this,” she said.

  “Not really.”

  “What about your girlfriend in Thailand?”

  Eddie pulled his head back and looked at her. “What girlfriend in Thailand?”

  “The one you were with at the restaurant that night.”

  Eddie tightened his arms around her again. “Dr. Pinchon is not my girlfriend. She wasn’t even my date. She simply invited me to dinner to thank me for helping the kids.”

  “So, you don’t have a girlfriend anywhere?”

  “No, but should I be worried about your boyfriend somewhere?”

  “Never had one.”

  Eddie again released Elaine and looked at her. “Never had a boyfriend!?”

  “Nope. When we went out anywhere, it was always as a group of friends. No boyfriend / girlfriend stuff.”

  “Never been out parking?”

  She laughed. “None of us even had a car. My parents are missionaries, so I had to work my way through college. Even worked two summer jobs just for the airfare to get over here.”

  Eddie laughed.

  “What’s so funny?”

  “I can’t believe that someone as pretty as you could go through high school and college without having guys lined up at your door.”

  “I don’t think of myself as pretty. I don’t have pretty clothes and I don’t wear makeup. I’m just a plain Jane nobody.”

  “You may not get a job as a TV model or a pin-up girl, but you are definitely going to have to give me your picture before I leave here. In fact, you just pose. I’ll take the pictures myself.”

  “Why would you want my picture?” she asked in a teasing way.

  “Every guy wants a picture of his girlfriend to say goodnight to when he’s not with her.”

  “That deserves another kiss,” she said, beaming.

  Elaine woke Eddie from a sound sleep.

  “Hello, sleepy head,” she said cheerfully.

  Eddie sat up, rubbed his hands over his face, and checked his watch. It was 6:30 p.m.

  “You overslept.”

  “Yea. I guess I did.”

  “And you missed supper.”

  He swung his feet to the floor and smiled at her. “I guess we’ll miss Bible study if I don’t hurry.”

  “Forget Bible study tonight. We’re dining in.”

  “We are?”

  “Yes.” She pulled up a picnic basket and set it on the chair. “I can cook. Not great meals, you understand. But I figured you for a meat and potatoes guy, not big on vegetables, although they are good for you, and likes buttered rolls. A sweet tooth, too.”

  “You’ve been spying on me, dear.”

  She gave him a big smile, leaned over and kissed him. “No, but I’m learning.”

  Elaine set the table and they ate the steak and potato dinner, which came with a half dozen hot dinner rolls. Eddie melted butter over the rolls before devouring four of the six. She was pleased that he enjoyed the meal.

  “I’ve got a pie in the basket, too,” she said, when they finished the meal. “But we can have that later, if you’d like.”

  “Yes, let’s save that. This was a very good meal. I’ll give you an A on it.”

  “Oh, you’re easy to please.”

  “Yea. You keep me pleased this way and I’ll end up weighing 300 pounds.”

  She got up and sat on his bed. He sat next to her, wrapped his arms around her, and laid back on the bed. She gave him a hug and kiss. They lay there relaxing for several minutes.

  “Want to hear the latest rumor?” she asked.

  “Sure. I like hearing rumors.”

  “We’re getting married.”

  “When?”

  “Haven’t heard that,” she giggled.

  “Am I invited?”

  “I don’t know. Do you want to be?”

  “Only if you’re there.”

  “Okay, but you’ll have to decide when.”

  “I believe in long courtships.”

  “How long?”

  “I don’t know, yet. But you’ll be the first to know.”

  “Where will we live?”

  “The Air Force will probably decide my future for me for a while.”

  “You seem to like the Air Force.”

  “As long as I can fly, I do. And I’m just a lowly lieutenant. I don’t get involved in politics or make any important decisions.”

  “But suppose they won’t let you fly any more. Then what will you do?”

  “I have no idea. Maybe I’ll be a bum and live under a bridge.”

  “Want to be a missionary? You get to travel and help people. It’s really rewarding.”

  “No, thanks. All I’m good at is bombing and shooting foreigners. Not saving their souls.”

  Elaine lifted her head and looked at Eddie. “That’s not a proper attitude to have for a Christian.”

  “Y
ou’re learning some of the things we don’t have in common.”

  She laid her head on his chest and said, “We need to change your attitude.”

  The next morning Eddie was called into the school director’s office. It was a small office loaded with shelves of books. On the front edge of the small wooden desk was a name plate that read ELMO E. PAZARCHEK, M.D. D.D.

  Dr. Pazarchek was a tall, thin man of sixty who wore his gray hair cut short. His large nose was his most prominent feature and he had the gravel voice of a fire and brimstone preacher. He had a reputation as a father figure to everyone at the school and was frequently referred to as “Father Pazarchek,” although never to his face. The term “Father” sounded too much like a Catholic title, and he expressed his dislike for that religion by referring to Catholics as “idol worshippers.”

  Dr. Pazarchek looked up when Eddie walked in. “Good morning, Lieutenant.”

  “Good morning, sir.”

  He came around his desk, offered Eddie a handshake and a smile, then told him to have a seat. He returned to his seat behind his desk.

  “Enjoying your stay with us?”

  “Yes, sir. Very much.”

  “Good. We appreciate all the help you’ve given us. What I want to talk to you about is a rumor that’s going around. I’ve heard about the hand holding and occasional kissing between you and Elaine. The latest rumor is that you two are getting married.”

  “I heard that very rumor from Elaine last night.”

  “Just a rumor?”

  “Yes, sir. Although we did joke about it.”

  “Last night?”

  “Yes.”

  “She was in your room last night?”

  “I over slept, so she fixed supper for me. We ate in the room and she stayed a while to talk.”

  Dr. Pazarchek nodded, but said nothing.

  “She left at 10:00. It was all above board and proper.”

  He nodded, accepting that. “I was told you were a fine Christian man and I have no doubt that Elaine will always do what’s right. I’m quite proud of her.”

  “I can see why. She’s a real sweetheart.”

  “Yes. She would make a man a fine wife. That’s what confuses me, Lieutenant. You seem to be very interested in her and she seems to be falling head over heels in love with you. Yet you say the talk of marriage is only rumor. No thought of it becoming fact?”