“It’s his. I know it’s his. I can feel it.”
“Hush, now. Hush. We don’t know anything for sure.”
****
But Avery refused to be consoled. She cried herself to sleep on the first night, and spent the second day curled up on the sofa beneath a blanket, staring at the wall. Without Alice to care for her, Avery would have pined away into starvation.
“You have to think of the baby.”
“The baby with no father?”
“The baby with a loving mother.”
“I don’t think I could ever love again.”
“Don’t give up on him, Ceel. You don’t know—”
“He’s gone. I know he’s gone.”
“And what if he isn’t, huh? Have you thought about that?”
“What do you mean?” Avery asked her knees.
“What if he walks in that door and you’ve already written him off as gone? How will you come back from that?”
“That would be the best thing ever. But it’s not gonna happen.”
Alice squeezed onto the sofa beside her friend. “You keep saying that, but no-one knows for sure. Hell, the military don’t even know what day it is, sometimes. They probably got the wrong plane.”
“They didn’t. I know they didn’t.”
“Hush, baby. Everything will turn out okay, I promise.”
*****
The funeral was a somber affair, with slate-gray skies, gunfire salutes and empty caskets. The military had finally confirmed the death of Ross, and his entire squad.
“They’re gone,” a red-eyed Avery croaked hoarsely. “Every one of them has died. Maybe… maybe I’m cursed, or something.”
Alice pulled her into hug and stroked her hair. “You can’t think that way, baby. None of this is your fault.”
The pair stood off to the side as the funeral was conducted. Twenty caskets, draped with flags were lined up in the military cemetery. Twenty flags, which would be handed to each Marine’s next of kin. Avery would receive no flag, no payment and no recognition. Her status as fiancée would go unacknowledged.
“Why are there so many?” Alice asked.
“People?” Avery glanced around the gathered crowd.
“Caskets. A squad only has twelve men.”
“Oh.” Avery wiped her eyes with a tissue. “I guess the others are for the aircrew.”
“Eight aircrew? Seems a lot.”
“They’re also holding the funeral for the other Marines,” a man said softly. “The ones who died four days before the crash.” Avery glanced up to see a Marine standing beside her. His left arm was missing, and the empty sleeve was pinned across his chest.
“Other Marines?” Her grief would barely allow her to speak.
“Casper and Jeff, the two who were lost last week.”
Avery frowned. “Casper and Jeff? What about Elliott and Manny?”
The Marine fixed her with a strange look. “I’m Manny, lady. Do I know—Alice?” His eyes widened at the sight of her.
“Oh my God. Manny!” Alice broke away from Avery and crashed into the big Marine, throwing her arms around him. “Oh my God. It’s really you!”
Avery blinked at the pair, trying to concentrate. “I… don’t understand. Ross told me you’d been killed. He said you went back for Elliott, but…”
“I did. Stupid thing to do. He lifted his left shoulder. “Cost me one of my four limbs. Not my favorite one, luckily.” He patted Alice’s back fondly.
“So you didn’t manage to save Elliott?”
“Sure I did. He’s right over there, with the other walking wounded.” Manny nodded toward a line of Marines. Avery thought she recognized Elliott on the end, his large frame squeezed into a basic wheelchair.
“So the bad guys didn’t get you?”
“They tried. Hell, they tried. But we laid low until the firing stopped, then crawled away under the cover of night. A convoy of Brits picked us up sometime before morning, and here we are.” He sighed. “And if we’d been on that transport plane… Ah, what a shitty deal.”
Avery extended a shaking hand. “I’m glad you made it out, Marine.”
“And I’m sorry about Ross… Avery, isn’t it?”
“Well remembered.”
“Weren’t you the one we all…”
Her cheeks warmed. “Yes, that was me.”
“And me,” Alice added from her hug.
“But you passed out, Alice, if I remember rightly. Avery was amazing; she lasted until around dawn.” Manny glanced at her swollen belly, and his voice grew soft. “We all laid with her. Every one of us.”
“I know, right.” She smiled. “That means any one of you could be…Oh, hell. Forget I said that. I didn’t mean—”
“You know something? You’re right. Ross might have been your boyfriend back then, but—”
“But he was limp as a fish,” Alice supplied. “He couldn’t have been the father.”
“I remember,” Manny said. “We laid you two together because Ross had passed out completely, and we had to leave. The guys had a discussion, and we volunteered him to stay with you.”
“What?” Avery stared, shocked. She frowned at Alice, who shrugged.
Manny continued. “We thought it would be shitty for you to wake up alone, after all the fun we’d had, so we gave you Ross.”
“You gave him to me?”
“We were all on duty, but Ross was too sparked out to move, so we left him behind.”
“That’s the reason we were together that morning?”
“Like I said…”
“I thought he’d been with me through the night. I thought he was my first, and my last.”
Manny shook his head. “He didn’t manage once. But at least you had someone to sleep with.”
Avery nodded. “I would have hated to wake up on my own.”
“Especially as we’d all… enjoyed your company. We felt that we owed you some respect.”
Avery snorted. “Respect?”
“To be fair, the whole thing was my fault,” Alice said. “I dragged you in because I was scared.”
Avery’s anger evaporated. “I guess. And no one forced me.” She managed to smile. “It was a fun night. But now they’re all gone.”
“All except these two,” Alice pointed out.
“Oh, yeah. Sorry. My head’s a mess right now.”
Manny smiled. “We should get together after this is over.”
“Really?”
“After Elliott is presented with Ross’s flag, we should all meet at the diner.”
“Our diner?” Alice asked.
He laughed softly. “Yeah, that diner.”
“Wait, what did you say about Ross’ flag?” Avery asked.
“Ross has no family, so Elliott said he’d accept it.”
“No family?” I thought he had a sister?
“Step-sister. And they weren’t close. Besides, she lives in Singapore. Never made the trip.” He inclined his head. “Would you like to have his flag?”
Avery burst into tears, and Alice resumed comforting duties.
*****
Avery and Alice were already at the diner when the Marines pulled up in a minivan.
“When we were dating, we made a point of coming here,” Alice explained. “There’s something cozy about the place.” She glanced around at the retro fittings as Avery watched Elliott struggle into a wheelchair.
“Ross brought me here once,” Avery replied. “He didn’t think much of it, as I remember. He imagined he had higher standards.” She shook her head at the memory.
“Well, I like it. Hello, guys!” Alice called as the door opened. The other customers turned to watch the big men, still wearing their dress uniforms, squeezing through the diner’s narrow doorway. Manny steered Elliott’s wheelchair around the table and parked him in a space vacated by the chair Alice had moved. Elliott was carrying a flag in his lap, folded into a tight triangle. When he offered it to Avery, tears welled in her eyes again.
&
nbsp; “I’m sorry for your loss,” he said in a surprisingly gentle voice. She nodded mutely, then slid across so she could sit closer to him. She brushed the table clear of debris, then laid the flag in front of her. Alice’s hands squeezed hers gently as she turned to Manny.
“It’s really good to see you again—both of you.” She nodded to Elliott.
“It’s good to be back.”
“No one told us you made it,” Avery said in a tight voice. “Ross never said…” Her throat closed and she was forced to stop.
“Ross wouldn’t have known,” Elliott explained. “We caught a flight back yesterday morning on a British transport. The guys had already gone down at that point. We only found out once we were debriefed.” He glanced at Avery’s swollen belly. “And how are you, little lady?” One side of his mouth rose into a smile.
“We’re both fine, considering Erica no longer has…” She pressed a hand to her mouth as it twisted with pain.
“Erica?” Elliott asked.
“She’s going to call her Erica—if it’s a girl,” Alice supplied.
“After Ross’s father, I guess?” Elliott raised an eyebrow.
“Mm-hmm,” Avery managed.
Elliott dropped his head for a moment. “You do know he couldn’t have been the father?”
“Yeah, Manny said. Ross was… dysfunctional that night.”
Elliott laughed. “Ross was always dysfunctional.”
“But we loved him,” Manny added.
“So that begs the question…” Alice began, glancing at the Marines. “Who’s the real father?”
“Don’t!” Avery hissed. “It doesn’t matter anymore.”
“What?” Manny asked. “Of course it matters. Your kid will need a father, and—”
“I’ll go and live with my Mom. I’ll tell her what happened to Ross. She’ll look after me.”
“Hell, no way, little lady,” Elliott said. He glanced at Manny, who nodded minutely. “We Marines gotta stick together, and that includes our kids too.”
“We Marines?” Avery wiped away another tear. “I don’t know what you’re saying.”
“I’m saying, there were twelve of us that night.”
“Eleven, really,” Alice corrected him. “Plus three of them were with me.”
“Okay, we’re not counting Ross, but those three? I was one of them, and so was Manny, and we went on to enjoy some fun with this crazy lady.” He laid a big hand on top of Alice and Avery’s, engulfing them both.
“You took me from behind,” Alice said.
Avery’s cheeks warmed. “I think I was on top of you.”
“You do remember!” Alice said.
“Some of it, yes.”
“My point is,” Elliott continued, “Ten or eleven of us treated you to some Marine loving, so ten or eleven of us could be the kid’s father.”
“But everyone’s gone. Everyone except you guys.”
“And so that means we have a responsibility toward you,” Elliott said.
Manny nodded. “I had a word with the paymaster before we came here. Ross’ sister is married, and has no claim. But you, as his fiancée are eligible.”
“I thought I had to be married for that to work.”
Elliott rocked his head. “Yeah, most of the time that applies. But when I told him you were also pregnant, he put wheels in motion.”
“I don’t understand. Wheels?”
“The Marine Corps will compensate you for his death, Avery.”
“But now we know he wasn’t the father…”
Elliott leaned closer. “I won’t tell if you don’t. Besides, you already slept with him before and after that night, didn’t you?”
“Of course.”
“Then who’s to say otherwise? In the meantime, we’d both like to volunteer our services.”
“Oh? For what?”
“Your welfare.”
“Can Manny look after my welfare?” Alice grabbed his muscular arm and hung on tight. He grinned.
Elliott bowed slightly. “Then I’ll be responsible for yours—until you no longer have need of me.”
Avery thought about the offer, then sighed. “I’m not sure I could go through it all again.”
“Go through what?”
“The worry. The pain of losing someone.”
Elliott leaned back in surprise. “We’re not going anywhere, Avery. Manny lost his second-favorite paw, so he’s out of action. I’ve taken enough shrapnel to bar me from action for at least five years. Plus I’ve been offered a training role right here.”
“I might become a fitness instructor,” Manny said.
“Really?” Alice cried. “That’s wonderful!”
“No more worrying about plane crashes?” Avery asked.
“Unless one lands on my head, I’m safe as houses.”
“I’m happy to hear that.”
“Now, if that’s all sorted, I’m gonna use the bathroom. Then I’ll snag a waitress on my way back. I’m getting hungry.” He pulled on the big wheels, then spun away from the table to propel himself toward the men’s room.
“It’s nice to know little Erica will be looked after.” Avery rubbed her bump as she watched him go.
“And she could have a great father as well, if you like.”
“Father? You mean Elliott? He wouldn’t want to—”
Manny leaned closer. “There’s something you should know about Elliott. They call him Mister Fertile. He can get a woman pregnant just by looking at her.”
Avery laughed. “That’s quite a story.”
“Yep.” Manny leaned back. “He’s impregnated every woman he ever slept with.”
“Not to mention he was the first one to… you know.” Alice raised an eyebrow.
Manny nodded. “Elliott was in like a Jackrabbit. He was your first.”
“My first?” Avery stared toward the men’s room as she rubbed her growing belly.
“Plus,” Manny continued. “she might have been his last.”
“His last?” Alice asked. “Why?”
“He took some shrapnel out in the desert about two days after that party.”
“Was he badly hurt?”
“He needed some…” He lowered his voice. “…delicate surgery. Down below. He’s fathered his last child, by all accounts.”
“Oh. My. God.” Alice grinned, then pressed her fingers against her mouth. “Little Erica could be his only chance at a family now.”
“A family…” Avery murmured. “But does he really want a family?”
“It’s all he talked about since the surgery,” Manny said. “He was pretty low about it.”
“And Erica might still be his,” Alice said.
Manny shrugged. “Elliott has a long-standing reputation.”
“Speaking of long-standing…” Alice grinned. “Was everything damaged by the shrapnel?”
“Oh, no. He tells me the fun part still works. But he’s firing blanks these days.”
“Maybe we should test it out later?” Alice suggested.
“Hey!” Avery cried. “Hands off… my… my…” She stared at her friend as her words slowed to a halt. “Oh. My. God.”
“And we have a winner,” Alice said. “Both of us do.”
Avery glanced down. “Maybe I should call her Ellie instead?”
*****
The double wedding took place eighteen months later. Avery waited at the altar, watching proudly as Elliott lumbered slowly up the aisle, watched over by Manny, who was ready to aid him. Two army medics watched from the back of the church, shaking their heads in wonder.
The pair had dispensed with the normal tradition, where the bride would walk up to the groom, because Elliott had set himself the target of walking unaided by the day of the wedding. It had driven his rehabilitation team crazy, and they had advised him not to push too hard. But a Marine never listened to doubts—or medical advice.
And there was the issue of the new baby, which was due any day now. Avery had also faced
difficulty in walking, and had needed careful assistance to get to the altar. Contrary to all medical opinion, ‘Mister Fertile’ had managed to father another child, and this time there was no doubt as to the father’s identity. Avery’s dress bulged at the front, a sure sign she was having a boy, her mother said.
Beside her, Alice bounced on her heels with excitement.
“Be careful you don’t wake the babies,” Avery warned. She cast a glance at the newly-born Manda, and her own little Ellie, sleeping side-by side in their buggies.
“Sorry, sorry,” Alice whispered, barely able to contain herself. “It’s just so exciting to see him walking without crutches. He’s worked so hard.”
“Manny’s new arm looks good too,” Avery commented. The left sleeve hadn’t been empty for some time. Manny had volunteered to trial a whole series of prosthetic arms for wounded veterans, and would often be seen playing ball with kids in the park as he got to grips with the untried tech of bionic arms.
“Yep. He can open jar lids for me now, and yesterday, he put up a picture all by himself. The wonders of technology.”
“And here we are, two new moms about to marry our very own robocops.”
“Our supermen, you mean. And you’re not a new mom. You’re on your second already.”
“I’ll be a new mom for the second time if he doesn’t get here soon.” She rubbed her bump absent-mindedly.
“He’s doing his best,” Alice reminded her.
“I know. I was kidding.” Elliott had been a wonder since the funeral, calling at the house every day, and taking Avery out for meals and shopping trips. He was so attentive that she had fallen in love with him, and when he’d confessed his feelings for her one winter’s night, they’d kissed eagerly and spent the night together.
Two days later, her baby girl had been born, and she’d named her Ellie, after the man who had taken such good care of her.
Elliott had turned out to as perfect a father as he had been a partner, protecting the little girl with a fierce passion. When he asked Avery to marry him a few months later, she had no reason to hesitate. A week later, she was delighted to hear Manny had proposed to Alice.
“Obviously the guys talk about us at work,” Alice had observed.
“Obviously.”
A loud cheer filled the church when Elliott reached the altar. Climbing the two steps unaided was beyond him for the moment, and he accepted Manny’s help gratefully.
THE HEALING HEART Page 54