Picking Up The Pieces

by Brenda Adcock

  ATHON STOOD IN front of a floor-to-ceiling window and watched airplanes take-off and land. There was something majestic about watching them lumber down the long runways, seemingly bound to the earth by their enormous weight, only to lift effortlessly into the darkening sky. Others appeared to float back to the ground as if they were feathers on a breeze. Dark, angry looking clouds on the distant horizon loomed closer and larger as she watched. She glanced at a clock hanging near a terminal entrance. The flight she was waiting for should be coming into sight at any time. She felt her breathing and heart beat increase when she saw the runway lights of three or four aircraft lined up to begin their descent into Frankfurt.

  She could barely contain her excitement. They had waited so long and now the moment she had longed for was there. No more waiting for a visit to Duvalle every ten or twelve months. No more nights in Lauren’s arms knowing they would end too soon, trying to love her enough until her next visit. She wasn’t sure she would be able to accept the idea of no more separation from the woman she had loved since high school. When the arrival board announced that Lauren’s flight was at its gate, Athon walked quickly to the area deplaning passengers would pass through on their way to baggage claims. Soldiers weren’t allowed to wear their uniforms when they traveled to avoid being targeted by terrorists and Athon hoped Lauren would recognize her in the large crowd. She wondered how many others were there to greet relatives or loved ones who would be joining them for the holiday. Lauren’s principal wanted her to wait and leave after the Christmas holiday, but Lauren would begin teaching at the DOD school in Kaiserslautern after the New Year and wanted to spend time alone with Athon before starting work.

  A thousand thoughts ran through Athon’s mind as she waited. In the middle of a group making its way toward the main terminal she spotted a familiar head. She eased her way around and between the others waiting, getting as close to the entrance as she could. Her efforts were rewarded when Lauren’s beautiful cinnamon eyes locked with her own. As she drew closer Athon backed into a small niche in the partition for a little more space. There was no hesitation as Lauren leaped into her arms and hugged her fiercely.

  “I made it, baby,” Lauren whispered. “I finally made it.”

  Athon held her tightly. “You feel incredible. Let’s get your luggage and get out of here.”

  They each pulled one large rolling suitcase as they walked closely together, huddled against the freezing wind. Athon was parked in an enclosed parking garage, but it wasn’t much warmer than outside. She started her car to warm it up before she met Lauren at the rear of the vehicle and loaded her suitcases. She hustled Lauren to the passenger side before making her way to the driver’s side and jumping in. She didn’t bother to buckle up and slid closer to Lauren, who met her in the middle. A frenzied kiss served as a testament to their long wait. Lauren’s fingers twisted in Athon’s hair refusing to let her go. Athon’s lips moved to Lauren’s neck and ear, their rising body heat fogging the windows.

  “If it wasn’t so damn cold, I’d rip your clothes off right here,” Lauren breathed.

  “I know, baby,” Athon panted. “I’ve waited a lifetime to say this to you. Let’s go home.”

  Athon scooted back under the steering wheel. Lauren took her hand and kissed it before buckling into the center portion of the seat. She leaned her head against Athon’s shoulder. “Take me to our home, my love,” she said with a delighted laugh.

  Before she backed out of the parking space Athon pulled her cell from her pocket and hit a speed dial number. She waited a moment, looked down at Lauren, and smiled. “We’ll be there in two,” she said without further conversation and drove out of the parking garage.

  They chatted on the drive back to Kaiserlautern, but Lauren didn’t want to know anything about their new home. She wanted to be surprised and discover everything about it on her own. Athon admitted she hadn’t done much decorating. She wanted Lauren to make it special. Since Christmas would be coming up soon, they could find a tree and begin Christmas traditions that would be their own. They sounded like a couple of teenagers again, making imaginary plans for a future that might never be. Except their future had finally arrived.

  ATHON SWUNG HER vehicle into its parking space not far from the cottage and unloaded Lauren’s suitcases. She stuck her hand in her pocket and took out a key, handing it to Lauren.

  “Two doors down on the right,” Athon said. “Watch out for ice on the walkway. I’ll clean it off tomorrow.”

  Lauren walked carefully and turned onto a shorter walk that led to a heavy looking front door. A portion of the cottage front was covered by evidence of ivy. She turned the key in the lock and started to push the door open. Athon stopped her and leaned over to lift her into her arms. “Welcome home, baby,” she said as she kissed her lightly and stepped through the opening. Muted lighting in the front room and hallway allowed a subdued view of the area.

  “Oh, my God! Athon, this looks like something out of a fairy tale,” Lauren said as she hugged her lover’s neck.

  Athon set her down to explore further and stepped outside to bring in the suitcases. She left them in the entry and took Lauren’s hand, leading her into another room to see if Frank had done his job. She was relieved to see that he hadn’t let her down. A table for two, illuminated by red, medium tapered candles, took up most of a small dining area. Plates filled with steaming food, accompanied by a chilling bottle of wine, greeted them.

  “Welcome home,” Athon said as she smiled down at Lauren.

  ATHON LEANED BACK in her chair and patted her full stomach. Lauren sighed and pushed her plate away. She reached out and took Athon’s hand.

  “That was delicious and I was starving,” she said. “Airline meals and snacks are pathetic.”

  “I’ll introduce you to the chef tomorrow,” Athon said, running her thumb over Lauren’s knuckles. “Her husband is my wingman. My protector, so to speak.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Medevacs don’t carry any weapons other than sidearms. Frank pilots a bad ass, fully armed Blackhawk in case we run into trouble.”

  “What kind of trouble?” Lauren said with a scowl.

  “It’s a combat zone, honey. Sometimes the bad guys shoot back. If they do Frank sends them to greet Allah, or whoever they believe in. He must be doing a good job. No one in my crew has ever received a scratch.”

  “If I don’t move pretty soon, I’ll fall asleep with my head on this table,” Lauren said, abruptly changing the subject.

  “Then let me give you the grand tour,” Athon said as she stood up and held out her hand. “It’s been a long day and you’re probably exhausted.”

  Athon became suddenly quiet as she showed Lauren the rest of the quaint cottage. She returned to the front room for Lauren’s suitcases and rolled them into the bedroom. She hoisted them onto the king-size bed she and Frank had managed to wrangle into the largest bedroom. Nothing short of dynamite would be able to remove it again.

  “Think you’ll be happy here?” Athon asked as she handed clothing to Lauren.

  “I’d be happy living in a mud hut as long as I’m with you.”

  “I hope so.”

  “What’s wrong, baby?”

  “Nothin’.”

  “We promised never to lie to one another, Athon. Don’t start on our first day together.”

  Athon sat on the edge of the bed and stared at her hands. “We’ve waited so long. First that moving stunt your dad pulled. Then waiting while I was gone for months at a time. All we ever wanted was to be together. We’ve never been together for more than a few days at a time. What if it turns out that being together every day isn’t enough?”

  “Are you having second thoughts?”

  “I’m not. But what if it doesn’t turn out the way you want?”

  Lauren shrugged. “Then it won’t, but at least we gave ourselves the chance to be happy.” She climbed on the bed and knelt in front of Athon. “Look at me, Athon.” She waited for A
thon’s eyes to meet hers. “I love you, baby. When you weren’t with me, I thought I’d get over it. But I never did. The moment I saw you again I knew there was no one else who could ever give me what I needed. No one else could fulfill my every dream. You’re the only one who can. The only one who ever will. If you want me to go away, I will, if that is what would make you happy. I couldn’t stand to see you unhappy.”

  Athon pulled Lauren up into her lap. “You’re all I wanted then. You’re all I want now. You’re all I’ll ever want.”

  Lauren shoved her back. “Then stop with all the doubtin’ shit.” She giggled when Athon pulled her down on top of her, then flipped her onto her back.

  “You’re way too overdressed, woman,” Athon whispered as she kissed along her neck. When Lauren wrapped her arms around her, she whispered, “You’re my home.”

  OVER THE NEXT five months Lauren couldn’t remember being happier. She and Athon took short trips together, with Athon showing her all the castles and historical sites she had described to her in daily e-mails. She had sent pictures, but in person everything seemed so much more alive. They felt safe walking down ancient streets hand-in-hand, wandering into unique small stores, amazed at the variety of foods available in grocery stores. They spent time going to dinner with Frank and his wife, Amanda. Mandy Hardesty was an excellent cook and was determined to become proficient at European cooking before they rotated home. She convinced Lauren to learn German with her so they wouldn’t feel like tourists. Lauren loved her job teaching at the American high school in Kaiserslautern and, as far as anyone could tell, her students liked their new teacher. She became involved with a variety of groups at school and volunteered to take classes on field trips to historical sites. For the first time in their lives they prepared meals together, occasionally argued, only to spend most of the night making up, slept in one another’s arms, and woke up together.

  It hadn’t taken long for them to fall into a routine. Athon was out of bed every morning by five, dressed, and off to PT. Lauren had breakfast on the table by the time Athon returned from physical training at six-thirty. They chatted as food and coffee fully awakened them. While Lauren cleaned up the kitchen, Athon jumped in the shower. Lauren drove Athon to her office before heading to school and picked her up again about five. Over the weekends, they prepared their meals for the next week together. There was something reassuring about the sameness of their routines neither had had in the past. Because they had no weekend PT, Athon and Frank usually met early in the mornings for a three to five mile run before their spouses were awake. It gave them a chance to discuss what the unit was doing, discuss how they could improve their response time, or what they should do about a crewman who’d fucked up one too many times.

  Lauren soon discovered that Athon loved her job, was dedicated almost to a fault and worked impossibly long hours. She told Lauren about her plans once she retired from the service. She had already been contacted about continuing to fly for a private corporation working with large trauma centers in the southwestern area. Her pay would rise significantly. However, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to continue what she was doing. But she still had three years left on her current enlistment and was in the final eighteen months of her tour in Germany. Unless she was extended, they would be rotating home in less than two years.

  As part of the Armed Forces Day celebration in May, Lauren made arrangements for her students to observe some of the units stationed in the Kaiserslautern region perform simulated duties. It was a chilly day as the students huddled together to watch a simulated battlefield rescue. Mandy tagged along as a chaperone to keep an eye on the students. Soldiers in full battle gear spent nearly an hour showing and explaining the various weapons at their disposal as well as the communication apparatus used to keep in contact with other units. When Lauren and the other teachers began herding the students back toward the bleachers, they could hear the distance thudding sound of helicopters approaching. Mandy smiled and pointed into the sky as two Blackhawks skimmed across the area firing blank rounds, presumably clearing it of hostiles before the medevac teams swung into action. Two at a time, in a well-synchronized maneuver, helicopters touched down. Crewmen jumped from the loading doors and volunteers acting as casualties were loaded. The first group departed, making room for the last two choppers. Lauren pulled a pair of binoculars from her shoulder bag and scanned the idling machines. She poked Mandy in the shoulder and handed her the binoculars. Lauren could tell that one of the pilots was Athon, even with her helmet on. She took a deep breath. Athon looked so in charge, so commanding, that Lauren wanted to break down and cry with pride. After the demonstration ended, all of the choppers landed and shut down their engines so the students could get a closer look inside.

  “God, she’s so handsome,” Lauren sighed as Athon removed her helmet and swung out of the pilot’s seat.

  “Don’t you think for a Minnesota minute they don’t know that,” Mandy said. “I want to tear Frank’s clothes off when I see him like this.”

  Athon waved when she saw Lauren and walked toward her, her hips swaying in that leisurely way Lauren always noticed. Tonight would be a night to remember, Lauren thought with a smile. She was jealous she couldn’t greet Athon the way Frank greeted Mandy. She would have been happier if ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ was changed to ‘Don’t ask because nobody cares’. There had been talk that the policy might be repealed, but for now it was still in effect. Despite everything, Athon found a way to touch Lauren before the students moved away and the crewmen jumped back on their helicopters to return to their unit landing area for the day.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Kaiserslautern, Germany June 2008

  ATHON HAD A ton of paperwork sitting on the old chipped wooden desk in her office, which was located near the rear of the hangar where her helicopter was undergoing its scheduled engine maintenance. The dog-and-pony show they’d put on for Armed Forces Day had put them a little behind schedule. She should get busy making the pile smaller, especially the personnel reports. In her opinion every member of her crew worked well together and their heads were fully into their mission. Partially because of her crew, she was the envy of their unit. She leaned her long body into the engine compartment before reaching back and patting the back pocket of her work coveralls. “Goddamn it,” she muttered. “Somebody hand me a quarter-inch socket.” Her hand fluttered around behind her waiting for one of the mechanics to drop the wrench in her hand, but after about a minute she pressed her middle finger against the bolt she had finally located and raised her head far enough to look outside the compartment. “Jacobsen! Where’s the quarter-inch socket?” she called out.

  “In your other back pocket!” the man called back.

  “Attention in the bay!” another voice said loudly.

  Athon strained to turn her neck and look behind her while still holding onto the bolt. It had taken her half an hour to locate it and she wasn’t going to let go until it was tightened. A dark-skinned man with short black hair and a pair of aviator sunglasses hiding his eyes stared back at her. She hadn’t seen anyone who looked so stereotypically like a pilot in years and had to smile. She recognized the cocky way he walked and carried himself. She had carried herself the same way as soon as she completed flight school. It hadn’t taken long for a seasoned warrant officer to teach her she wasn’t the hot shit she believed she was. Now she might get stuck teaching the same lessons.

  She missed her former co-pilot. Captain Allison Struthers personified laid-back California beach girls. They had worked together well and the men in her crew thought they’d died and gone to helicopter heaven. Athon had to admit that Alli had been magnetically attractive with her long blonde hair and sky blue eyes. If she’d been single, she might have given her a whirl herself. But like everyone in the Army who was worth a shit, Alli earned a promotion and was shipped off to a new assignment teaching at the army flight school.

  “Listen, buddy,” Athon said. “There’s a wrench in my left ba
ck pocket. Hand it to me, will ya.” She didn’t feel it being removed from her pocket, but it suddenly appeared in her hand. “Thanks. You must have been a pick-pocket or something in another life. Never felt you removing it.” With a couple of quick turns, the bolt seated into place. She pushed onto her toes and felt the locking nut behind the bolt to make sure it was in place. She pulled her head out of the compartment and picked up a cloth from the housing to wipe her hands. “You new?” she asked the stranger.

  “Yeah. I’m looking for Major Dailey. I’m his new co-pilot on this bird.”

  “That right? How long you been a real, live pilot?”

  “Just direct me to Dailey’s office so I can report in.” He removed his sunglasses and let his eyes scan Athon from head to toe. “You might be kind of cute without the layers of grease.”

  Athon smiled. “A dirty mechanic is a good mechanic.”

  “I wouldn’t know, blondie,” he said.

  “The major’s office is over in that corner. Should be back in a minute.” She glanced at the rank on the collar of his shirt and his name tag. “Chief Warrant Officer Ortega.”

  Ortega strolled toward Athon’s office. “Now I really miss Alli,” she said to herself.

  “Who’s that?” Jacobsen asked as he bent over to find the wrench he needed in the large rolling tool chest.

  “New co-pilot,” she answered. “Should be fun.”