Danny's War (Rolling Thunder Series Book 3) (2 page)

Danny opened his mouth to allow her to slide the thermometer under his tongue. As soon as he closed his mouth, she grabbed his wrist and looked at her watch, taking his pulse. He watched her look up when another woman walked into the room. Her little dimples creased her cheeks and her full lips formed into a smile. “Good morning, Doctor Rae.”

“Good morning, Risa, how are you today?”

“Very well. The sergeant here has managed his fever and his pulse is normal. He’s looking good today.”

“Wonderful.” Dr. Rae walked over to the side of Danny’s bed. “We were worried about you, Sergeant, you’ve been out for a couple of days.”

Danny’s eyes registered surprise and Dr. Rae smiled. “Not uncommon after the trauma you’ve been through. I think you’re finally on the mend. We’ll remove the bandages in a little while and take a look at your injury. I won’t lie; you’re going to be in quite a bit of pain for some time now. You’ll need extensive therapy and in the end be fitted for a prosthetic, but there’s time for that.” Dr. Rae picked up Danny’s chart and reviewed it. She checked the IVs and looked him square in the eye for what seemed like minutes. Danny became uncomfortable with the doctor’s close scrutiny and fidgeted with his blanket. Dr. Rae smiled softly and set the chart down as she said, “Your color looks good. Your eyes are clear. I’m impressed.”

Danny had no response so he nodded slightly. As Dr. Rae walked away, Danny closed his eyes and sank back into the pillow. The pain was getting worse. He would need pain medication soon or he’d sound like the moaners across the room. Fuck.

***

Winter turned to spring and spring turned to summer, and now fall crept in.

“Okay, so I’ve changed your linens, cleaned the house, and stocked the refrigerator. I have a casserole in the oven and more in the freezer, all you have to do is heat them up.” Janice Schaefer fussed with the pillows behind Danny on the sofa and then stood to her full height of five foot six. She wiped her hands on her hips and took a deep breath before slowly letting it out.

“Honey, please come home and stay with me for a while longer. I worry so much about you. I promise I won’t be in your space all the time.”

Danny’s lips formed a straight line across his pale face. His eyes held the pain and suffering of every soldier who’d dealt with losing a limb and dealing with the months of pain and rehab. He was tired. Tired of everything, worry, pain, guilt, and the feeling that his life was changed in a way he couldn’t begin to comprehend. When he left for the Army, he’d been dating Kathryn Keeting. A week after he got home, she broke up with him. She didn’t blame it on his leg, said she’d changed and the distance of the past year and a half had made her rethink their relationship. Danny knew that was bullshit. He saw the look on her face when she first walked into the house and saw him sitting in his chair. He tried to not blame her, but he’d been reduced to nothing with their break-up on top of everything else.

“Mom, please. Don’t.” Sucking in a deep breath at the worry on his mom’s face, he shook his head. “I’m sorry and I don’t want you to worry, but I’ll be fine. I just need this for myself. I need to move on with my life and I can’t do it at your house. You’ve been great, but…I need this.”

Janice wiped her face with her hands, trying to wipe away the worry. “I know you do, honey. I’m sorry I worry so much, it’s just…” At a loss for how to finish the sentence, she dropped her hand and shrugged.

Danny gripped his crutches and, using them for leverage, stood on his one leg. Janice walked the two steps toward him and he hugged her while leaning on his crutches. “I don’t mean to make you worry. You and Paul can come over every day if you like. I’m not depressed. I just want to start my life on my own. I don’t want to put it off any longer. It’s been nine months of therapy, doctors, and rehab. I need to move forward.”

“Okay, well I’m coming over tomorrow morning to plant flowers in your garden so when you sit on the front porch you can see them. You have a beautiful home and the gardens have been calling for something pretty. Call me early if you think of anything you need. I love you.”

“Love you too, Ma.”

Listening to the front door open and close, Danny took a deep breath and looked around the living room. Now what?

“GOD, I’
M SO DAMN STUPID.
I’m sick of being stupid.” Tammy flopped on the sofa next to Molly, exasperated.

“You’re not stupid, you trusted the asshole and he… well, he took full advantage. That doesn’t mean you’re stupid.” Molly took a sip of her tea and watched Tammy pull her long, sandy-brown hair into a ponytail.

“Well, good thing I wasn’t all that emotionally invested in him. Jerk. But, what am I going to do now? Gawd, this is embarrassing. My life is over.”

Molly smiled and patted her friend on the knee. “You deserve so much better. You’ll find someone great, don’t you worry. You’re amazing. As for the other thing, well, you have nothing to be ashamed of. You’re beautiful. Actually, I think I’ve heard the word,
hot
, several times.”

“That doesn’t help, Mol. Gah, this is disgusting.” Tammy pulled at her newly-created ponytail.

Molly stood to leave. “Gotta go, Tam, taking pictures today for a kid’s birthday party. We can go out later if you’d like.”

“I can make us supper here if you don’t mind. It’ll give me something to do when I get home from Stateside. Pizza?” Tammy stood and shoved her hands in the pockets of her worn jeans. “I don’t want to go out in public for a while.”

Molly threw her purse over her shoulder and smiled. “Sure. I’ll be here around six. Why are you going to work on a Saturday?”

“I want to work on my mural. We’re looking for financial benefactors and I want finish as much as I can.”

Tammy walked her friend to the door and locked it behind her. She watched out the window as Molly got into her car.

Walking back to the kitchen to clean up the breakfast dishes and put away the leftovers, she made her plan for the day. She decided to go to the grocery store on her way home from the veteran’s home. She loved working there. Her grandfather used to live there, and when she was little, her parents would take her there to visit.  She grew up wanting to work there with the veterans, to be a part of making their lives better. She didn’t consider it “going out in the public” in the sense that she wanted to avoid being seen. Most of the veterans were older, so she doubted they would know of her indiscretion.

***

“Hey there, Gerry, how are you today?”

“Well, Tammy, it’s great to see you. You working on the mural today?” Gerry’s kind, blue eyes sparkled as he smiled up at her from his wheelchair.

Tammy wrinkled her face and let out a heavy sigh. “Yeah, I think today will mostly be touch-ups here and there.”

“I’ll stop by in a bit. I’m setting up a mean card game for later on. You want in?”

Tammy smiled. ”Not this time, I’m afraid you gentlemen would have all my money in no time. Besides, Molly’s coming over for supper tonight. Which reminds me, she’s photographing that big veteran’s ride Rolling Thunder is putting together. Have you heard of it?”

“Veteran’s Ride? I’ve heard about that ride. You know, we should get a bus and go see the bikers take off.”

“Actually, that’s a great idea, Gerry. Rolling Thunder Motorcycles has this ride every year. From what I’m told, the proceeds they collect go to help local veterans with their various needs.”

Gerry’s smile spread across his face. “That’s perfect for us. I’m going to talk to Diane in activities and see if she can organize that. Maybe we can help in some way.  See ya around, Tammy.”

Gerry turned in his wheelchair, and, after a quick wave goodbye, rolled himself down the hall. Even in his sixties with no family, he was always in good spirits and trying to organize activities for the other veterans. Tammy watched him roll away, amazed at his zest for life. He’d been through so much. He lost his wife and only son in a car accident fifteen years ago and still maintained a happy disposition. She could learn something from him.

***

Tammy stood back, admiring her work. It looked good, very good. All she managed to do today was a bit of touch-up. Her creative juices just weren’t flowing. She laid her brush on the table and picked up the rag lying alongside her paints. As she was wiping the paint from her fingers, she heard the door open and quietly close. She turned to see Sally, the director of the veteran’s home, and her boss, walking toward her, her posture unusually stiff and her face molded into a frown.

“It looks beautiful, Tammy. You’re very talented.”

Tammy’s lips turned up at the corners as she looked back at the mural of veterans in various wars up to present day. She’d been working on this mural for the past few months.

“Almost finished. I still need to add Operation Enduring Freedom to it.”

So far, there weren’t any veterans here from this war. That’s why she waited to paint it last.  She’d spoken to many of the veterans here before embarking on her mural painting journey. She wanted to paint the scenes accurately and many of the veterans were very helpful in sharing their experiences and more than willing to help her convey their story properly. She learned so much from these men. Their strength and endurance was astounding.

“There’s time.” Sally took a deep breath. “Tammy, is everything okay with you?”

Tammy’s shoulders sagged as she turned to face Sally. Blowing stray strands of hair out of her face, Tammy flopped in a chair at the table.

“What did you hear?” Sad brown eyes turned to Sally as she took the seat next to Tammy. For a forty-nine-year-old woman, she was very attractive. She’d paid little attention to her hair and looks the past few years since her husband had died. She consistently dressed in business suits and flats, while her hair was blonde and bobbed, with a sprinkling of gray showing through. Tammy wondered why she didn’t color it.
Her
mom wouldn’t be caught dead with gray hair—not yet, anyway.

“I saw the video.”

Tammy’s hands flew to her face to hide as she wailed, “No. Oh, my God, no.”

“DANNY, I COULD USE
your help. You’re so good at figuring this stuff out. Can you come over and help me?”

Hesitating, Danny asked his brother, “Ahh, when do you want to work on it?”

“Today. Grace is working and I want to surprise her. I don’t have any patients today, so anytime you can get here would be great.”

Danny looked around his house; he didn’t have anything going on.

”You haven’t left your house in three weeks, Danny. You have to leave it sometime. Please don’t make yourself a recluse. Let us help you. We love you and worry so much about you.” Softening his voice, Paul said, “Please…I want things to be the way they used to be.”

Biting down his anger, Danny said. “Things will never be the way they used to be again, Paul. I lost my fucking leg. Women think I’m disgusting. People stare at me when I leave the house like there’s something wrong with me. I have fucking nightmares all the time. Things…” Taking another deep breath, Danny softly added, “Things
are
different. We can’t change that.”

Paul looked down at the floor and his scuffed shoes. Frustration bubbled to the surface. He had two and his brother only one. Fucking war. Fucking terrorists.

“Danny.” Shit. “Danny, you’re still you. Your body is different, but you’re still my brother and I still love you. I love you more, not because you lost a leg, but because you sacrificed for all of us to protect what we have here. That’s a debt we can never repay, bro. But, you‘re still the same caring, loving man you were and, you’re going to be an uncle and we need you, man.” Catching the sob trying to escape from his throat, Paul continued. “You’re still you.”

Danny swiped at the tears falling down his cheeks. He lost his leg almost a year ago and it was the first time he’d cried. He looked down at his scarred tennis shoe and watched one of his tears hit the toe and slide to the side. Shit.

“I’ll be over in half an hour. Do you need me to bring any tools?”

Letting out the breath he was holding, Paul said, “I think I have everything we need. Thanks, bro.”

Danny touched the
end call
button on his phone and slid it into his shirt pocket. He walked to the stairs going up to the second floor and his bedroom and made the laborious trek upstairs. He would need his prosthetic leg today.

***

“How the hell do you read these damn directions? This is crazy. It’s a crib for fuck’s sake. There must be a thousand pieces to put together. How big do you think this baby is going to be anyway?”

Paul burst out laughing. “Now you know why I needed you here. It’s mind-boggling.”

They worked in unison for some time, pulling pieces out of the pile and organizing them in a way that would be easy to find. Paul held the directions and read them step-by-step as Danny put the pieces together one by one. Three and a half hours later, they stood back and admired the beautiful mocha colored crib and attached dresser. It stood straight and tall and the brothers were proud of their accomplishment. Paul was proud of Danny. He slid his arm around Danny’s shoulders and squeezed.

“Thank you so much, bro. Look what we did! It’s beautiful. Thanks.”

“I’m home,” Grace called from the front room. “What are you two doing?”

Paul looked at Danny and smiled. “She’s gonna squeal, get ready.”

Turning his head toward the door he called back, “We’re in the baby’s room. Come on back and see what we did.”

Paul and Danny stood together as they were, an arm around the other’s shoulder, continuing to admire their handiwork when Grace rounded the corner and stopped dead in her tracks. They both looked at her, waiting for her reaction. She stared at the crib and attached dresser, frozen in place. Danny’s heart began to race the longer it took Grace to speak. He fidgeted a bit and ran his hand across his jaw…waiting.

Grace finally looked at them and they saw a lone tear slide down her cheek.

Softly, while walking toward the crib, Grace said, “Thank you so much. It’s…” She took a deep breath and swallowed. “It’s beautiful.”