Page 32 of The Gunnery Sergeant's Ready-Made Family

“Yes.”

“Maybe you should take him down to Annette’s Diner for breakfast tomorrow, I believe they open at six o’clock in the morning, and there is such a lovely view of the park and the bus depot.”

“Chaplain!” Stevie gasped, “Thank you.”

Once the Chaplain left, Stevie flew into action, the clock ticking. She logged into her laptop and opened up a search engine, bringing up a list of every motel and hotel in a ten-mile radius of the base, knowing that Chase wouldn’t be staying too far away. She called the first place on her list, telling the receptionist that she was looking for her husband but couldn’t remember the room number, but he wasn’t there. Stevie was a third of the way through her list when her grandmother returned home from the park with Ranger, the remnants of an ice cream smeared across his face.

“Aunt Stevie, guess what?”

“What sweetheart?”

“I saw Nanna and Poppy,” he answered matter of fact.

“What?!” Stevie gasped, surprise colouring her question.

“I’m not sure,” Stevie’s grandmother shrugged her shoulders, “we were lining up for ice cream and Ranger thought he saw Jenny and Chris. He seemed pretty adamant, waving and calling out. I didn’t see anything, I was paying, and when I turned to look at where he was pointing, I didn’t see anything.”

Could Ranger really have seen Jenny and Chris in town? If they were here, they would know where Chase was, he must be the reason they were visiting. Stevie picked up her cell and dialled Jenny’s number.

“Straight to voicemail,” she covered the mouthpiece as she spoke to her gran, “Hi Jenny, this is Stevie, just wondering if you are in town? I know that might sound odd, but Ranger thought he saw you. Please call me back when you get this, bye.” Stevie hung up and dialled Chris’s number, getting voicemail and leaving him the same message that she left Jenny.

“Do you think they’re here?” Her grandmother asked quietly, Stevie having told her what the chaplain said about Chase’s orders to deploy.

“If they are, I’m going to find them,” she answered determinedly.

“You do what needs doing, I’ll watch the boys.”

“Thanks Gran,” Stevie turned back to her list.

She knew that there was no way that she could let Chase deploy without knowing how she felt about him, she wouldn’t be able to live with that, and it would be too late to see him when he returned, too much time would have passed for them to get past this. She had to find him today, she just had to. She rang the remaining hotels and motels on her list and got nowhere. One place said that they would not give out any guest information, which Stevie respected, and another one didn’t answer the phone. Where was he? Stevie tried both of his parents again and still got no answer. Dare she try Chase’s number? Would he even answer, she knew he had her number programmed into his cell. As Stevie sat there, cell in hand, mentally debating her options, her cell rang, scaring her and causing her cell to clatter to the floor.

“Hello,” she answered breathlessly, scrambling to get back up on her feet.

“Stevie?” Chase’s mum sounded hesitant.

“Jenny! Oh, thank you for calling me back, I, um, I realise that this is a bit of an odd question, but I was wondering if you were in town? It’s just that Ranger thought that he had seen you earlier today and I thought I would check. He’d love to see you if you are, we all would really...” Stevie trailed off as silence met her question.

“Yes, we’re here until Sunday,” Jenny finally responded.

“What? Why didn’t you tell me?” Stevie didn’t even bother to hide the pain in her voice. “Ranger thinks you’re here to see him, obviously you aren’t if you didn’t even call, he’s going to be so disappointed, so upset, but I guess it doesn’t matter anymore what Ranger thinks, does it? I presume that Chase called you, that’s why you’re here, isn’t it? You and Chris have obviously made up your own minds. I hope you enjoy your visit.” Stevie disconnected the phone in a flurry of tears, unable to stop the pain that seared across her chest. Jenny and Chris had been a second family to her for decades, the fact that they would so easily ignore her hurt more than she could imagine. So, that was that then. Chase had obviously told his parents that intended to divorce her and as far as they were concerned, it was a done deal. Stevie guessed that meant Ranger and Finn as well, so now they were back where they started, completely alone with only Stevie and her grandmother to love and nurture them. They would move house, as soon as they could, Stevie wouldn’t stay here until the divorce forced them out, no, she would make sure they left well before that happened. They would have a new school, new friends, and a new life somewhere else. They would soon move on and forget all about Chase, and maybe one day, Stevie would be able to forget that she ever loved him. Stevie spent the rest of the day in a trance, her heart aching with each breath she took, each thought she had. She had felt horribly guilty when she had hung up on Jenny, but that had been replaced by a deep-seated hurt. Jenny hadn’t called back, and Stevie hadn’t called her.

After her call with Jenny, Stevie had almost decided to just pack up and leave immediately, to leave Chase in the past where he wanted to live, and to agree to the divorce he seemingly wanted, but the moment the thought entered her head, she dismissed it. She couldn’t do that; she knew she couldn’t. If she ached this much with just the thought of getting divorced, then there was no hope of her being able to walk away unscathed. This is why she was currently sitting in her car at three o’clock in the morning, parked opposite Annette’s Diner, a thermos of hot coffee and half a dozen roast beef sandwiches courtesy of her grandmother sitting on the passenger seat, waiting for Chase to show up. Stevie knew from farewelling Kyle that the soldiers deploying generally started showing up a couple of hours before their departure time, leaving room for last-minute farewells and sorting out gear. She was counting on it today, wanting to, needing to speak to Chase before he left, needing enough time to tell him exactly how she felt, to make him understand, to make him hear her properly before he went overseas. This would very likely be her last chance, her only chance, to see him, to make him understand how she felt before he left not only the country, but her life. Everything was riding on this, she had to find him, to speak with him, she just had to, otherwise, she would regret it for the rest of her life. Stevie sent up a silent prayer. Dear Lord, please, please help me find Chase, please open his heart to hear the words I speak, please help him to see the truth in my words. Amen.

It was freezing in her little car, the chill had already started to creep into the early mornings, although most of the days were still nice and warm, pleasant enough for the boys to still play outside and go to the local swimming pool. Stevie didn't dare put on the engine to turn the heater on, she was trying to blend into the carpark at the local park, not draw attention to herself, so she pulled her jacket tighter around her body and sunk down further in her seat. She watched as soldiers started to trickle past, straining her eyes to see if she could find Chase in the dark, tapping her foot impatiently while she waited. If she knew which car he would arrive in it would make things easier for her, but she didn’t. When she had come downstairs to leave this morning, Kyle’s truck had been parked in the driveway, the keys in the letterbox. Stevie could only assume that Jenny and Chris were driving him here, but aside from knowing they had a large car, she had nothing else to go on. She briefly thought about ringing his cell phone, but dismissed that idea almost immediately. He was unlikely to answer, if he even had his phone with him at all. She wondered where all of his stuff was, it wasn’t as if he could take it all with him overseas. It wasn’t until there were twenty other soldiers milling around that she saw Chase, her heart lurching painfully at the sight of him, his duffel slung over his shoulder, his head sporting a crew cut.

She was out of the car and sprinting towards him before she had time to think about what she would say to him, before she had time to change her mind and to scurry back home. She had to do this, she knew that, if she didn’t, she would regret it for the rest of her life.

“Chase.” He kept walking, although a few of the other soldiers shot her curious glances. “Chase!” Stevie shouted as loud as she could, and saw his shoulders stiffen and his steps falter before he kept walking. “Don’t walk away from me soldier,” Stevie smiled when this got his attention. Chase stopped and turned around slowly as if he was facing his executioners instead of her, which she realised, is exactly how he must be feeling.

“Stevie,” Chase greeted her when she reached his side, his parents standing awkwardly a short distance behind them. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

“From what I hear, you weren’t expecting to see me ever again.”

“Stevie-”

“No, you listen to me,” Stevie interrupted, stabbing her index finger into Chase’s chest, “it is my turn to talk, and for you to listen. You owe me that much at least.”

Chapter Twenty-One

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