TDTLBU Chapter Fifty-Eight

The day was fading fast into night. Paris behind them, French countryside and the German border ahead, the first division was scattered over the hills, preparing for their next moves. Ronnie had a worn and tattered map spread over his knee and was trying to decipher it in the dim lighting. Sandy found a flashlight and held it over Ronnie's shoulder, frowning at the markings on the map. Sandy couldn't make head or tails out of it.

"What we need here is Stan," Ronnie muttered. "He was much better at this stuff than I am."

"Heh. Stan's back home with his family right now," Ralph muttered darkly. "Lucky guy."

"You'd sure think lucky if you got your left arm chopped off," Sam rolled his eyes. 

"If that's what it takes to get home, I'll do it," Ralph turned away and stalked off into the shadows. 

"He's missing Linda," Sandy grinned. "And I don't blame him. I'd probably chop off my arm too, if it meant I could be with Rose. By the way, Chief, you've still got lipstick on your face."

"Aw, shut up," Ronnie wiped the back of his hand over his cheek, only succeeding in smearing the lipstick worse and leaving another trail of grime. 

"Where're we going next, Chief?" Andy spoke quietly, not lifting his head. He had been holding out well, poor boy. He never said much, just pushed on and did what he was told to do. But the sorrow and loneliness in his eyes was terrible. He was wasting away for home. 

"Germany," Ronnie spat out the word as if it was poison. "We've gotta take Aachen."

"What the heck is Aachen?" Sam cried, laughing. "Aachen as in my back is achin'?"

"It's pronounced "Ah-ken"," Sandy said indignantly. "Mensch! You guys, your pronunciation is terrible."

"German city," Ronnie answered. "We'll be heading that way. Early tomorrow. We'll get reinforcements too, before we cross the border. Get plenty of rest, okay? Specially you, Andy, ya look like you're gonna pass out."

"Maybe I will," Andy grinned wanly. "Get better sleep that way. No nightmares."

✯✯✯

Mac found Katie in the courtyard. She was sitting with her lap full of letters, but staring off into the distance without reading them. They seemed almost to smell faintly of apples and cinnamon… a homespun aura revealing the simple background from which she came. He sat down beside her without a word and she turned, smiling faintly up at him. 

"Hi," she offered by way of greeting. He didn't answer. Reaching out, he picked up her wrist, cradling it gently in his big hand. The dark red marks of fingerprints still bruised her skin. Her face turned pale and she pulled her arm away.

"No need to worry about that," she spoke cheerfully. "I'm just fine."

"I hurt you," his voice was barely above a whisper. "I promised I wouldn't…"

"That's nonsense, Mac. You didn't hurt me. Just an accident, that's all. I know you wouldn't do that on purpose. And the marks will go away soon."

He shook his head, looking half-dazed. He reached for her hands again, taking both of them in his. His touch was soft, almost caressing, as he bent his head to meet her eyes. She hadn't realized that strong and calloused fingers could be so gentle.

"I'm sorry," he murmured earnestly, his eyes brimming over with sorrow and pain. "I won't ever hurt you again. I won't ever let anything hurt you. I promise." His tone was deadly serious and she dropped her carefree attitude immediately. She could see by the look on his face that he meant exactly what he said and it touched her in a way nothing ever had. Mac was not a man to be taken lightly. 

"Thank you," she whispered back, not knowing what exactly to say. He smiled then… not his usual impish grin, but a warm and eager flash of happy gratitude. Lifting her hands to his lips he kissed her bruises. 

"I love you, Katie."

She was stunned into silence. What could be said when a man told you he loved you? She studied his face a moment, wondering if he truly meant it. Or was it merely a profession of friendship? What she saw in his eyes startled her. It was love, true and deep… the love of a man worth having. Her eyelids fluttered and she dropped her eyes. Her heart was pounding wildly and she realized that he was still holding her hands. She slowly withdrew them from his grip and slipped them beneath her apron as if to hide them from view. She could not look up at him again. In a flash, she saw Jerry standing before her, just as he had been the last time she saw him before he was sent overseas, his sailor's cap cocked sideways on his head and his eyes dancing with life and energy. He had been so excited to go and so she had swallowed the lump in her throat and gave him a happy send-off. That had been the last time she had heard those words from a man… I love you. 

Shaking her head to clear her mind of the painful memory, she searched wildly for an excuse to rid herself of the current awkward situation. She wasn't ready to deal with such things.

"Would you look at the time," she laughed nervously, glancing at her watch. "I'm due back at my shift in five minutes. I…"

"I'll walk you back," Mac grasped his crutches and rose quickly. If he was disappointed with her seeming to ignore his profession of love, he didn't show it. Katie nodded, allowing him to walk at her side as she directed her steps back toward the main hospital building. But she didn't speak and she kept her head down, eyes trained on the ground. They parted without another word. She returned to her work with only half her mind on what needed done. Idly, she picked up Mac's medical file and paged slowly through it. Her heart felt heavy when she saw the red stamp on the final page… "approved for discharge". The date was set for tomorrow.