Giggling Sam says, “I guess I can go sleep with Grandma Maggie if I do.”
It took a week for me to heal fully. Kathryn didn’t take quite as long, she wasn’t sunburned as badly as me. My Mom laughed saying, “What you expect that’s the first time your ass actually saw the light of day.”
It’s a good thing Sam didn’t have a bad dream that week, she still couldn’t resist one night when she got lonely she did come to bed with us. Fortunately I was in better shape and I did roll over and let Sam sleep on my chest.
Sam says, “Daddy I love hearing your heart beat it says love you all the time.”
Kathryn giggles at hearing Sam. She asks Sam, “What is mine saying?”
Sam holding her head to Kathryn’s breast smiles and says, “Mommy, your says the same thing.”
Now giggling Kathryn says, “That’s because I love you my beautiful little Sam.”
Sam asks, “Daddy does that mean you love me too.”
Giving Sam a kiss on her forehead I reply, “Of course Sam I love you. You and your Mommy mean more to me than anything else in this world.” Sam and Kathryn both give me a hug and a kiss.
Sam stays with me and we talk as Kathryn goes and gets our lunch, just sandwiches from downstairs glass of milk for Sam and sweet tea for us. We review Sam’s home schooling she’s getting ready for the final tests this afternoon for her first grade subjects. She seems a little nervous that is why were actually going over the work. She may be nervous but she gets every one of the questions correct.
Smiling I tell her, “Sam you know all the material for the first grade. You’re going to pass the tests easily.”
Sam brightens at hearing that she asks, “You’re not just saying that to make me feel better?”
With a chuckle I say, “No my big girl. You know all the material so the tests are going to be easy for you.” Of course they were, Kathryn gave her the test and I graded it. After I finished the first subject test, I show Sam just how well she did. She didn’t miss a single question. Sam seems to relax a little on her next test and even went faster. By the time she finished her test on the last subject it looked like Sam was actually enjoying the experience. She did perfect on the entire battery of tests. I even sent a fax to Ms. Clark.
Ms. Clark calls back and spoke to Sam congratulating her on finishing the first grade. Ms. Clark got me on the line. She informs me that Sam’s adoption was nearly complete. They only had to do a number of visits to ensure Sam’s welfare over the next three months. December 14 will be our final signing for Sam’s adoption paperwork, after that Sam will be all ours.
She also informed me that Capt. Davis again wants me to allow him to visit. Ms. Clark couldn’t even give him our phone number but she could pass along a message. She faxes me the message Capt. Davis requested just that day that I get. It basically has his phone number and the best time to call him. The Captain only taken a week’s leave and has more than a month available that he wishes to spend with Sam.
I reluctantly give the Capt. a call that evening, he only gotten off work and just returned home shortly before I called. We talked for a few minutes and he explained why he needed to see Sam and why it was so important to him. Sam’s father was his best friend and he was the best man at their wedding. He and Sam’s mother was in the same unit.
The day of her death they were on the same mission, he was in the lead vehicle and missed an IUD. It exploded beside his vehicle and he was injured. Sam’s mother drags him out of the vehicle which was on fire, which definitely saved his life.
On her way back to get another injured soldier they received small arms fire from a group of insurgents. Sam’s mother takes a round but still managed to save the other soldier. She doesn’t stop until she reaches cover with her. Even dying she returns fire on the insurgents.
Sam’s mother received a bronze Star and Purple Heart. Sam has never received those metals for her mother. Her father’s actions were very similar. He too received a Purple Heart although Capt. Davis doesn’t know the exact events other than what the award reads.
The Capt. continues, “I and Sgt. Hansen owe Nancy our life. There were only the two vehicles that day and only six of us. Nancy pulled us from the vehicle and returned fire. While the two of us were unconscious she protected us. If she had just taken cover she may have survived, but if the insurgents took her it wouldn’t been good. She held them off long enough for us to recover. We came to and return fire as Nancy ran out of ammo. More insurgents showed up just as our backup arrived and we had air support arrived too and give suppressing fire so we could evacuate. I didn’t even know of Nancy’s injuries until then.” I can hear the sadness in his voice at the loss of his friend.
After a deep breath he continues, “Nancy had these letters she had written to Sam. There’s one for each birthday from her fourth to the twenty-first. I was supposed to get them to her if Nancy couldn’t.
Nancy knew about Nicole, she said that girl is bad news. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to stop Nicole from getting Sam. From what Ms. Clark says, the little she can tell me. Sam seems to be very happy with you. That’s all I want now. It is to know Sam is happy and loved.”
I say to Capt. Davis, “I wish I could’ve prevented what Sam went through as well. As for Sam being loved she is more than you will believe. She has totally won the hearts of the entire family. As for happy you’ll see that yourself. Tell me when and where you can leave from, and I’ll have transportation ready for you.”
Capt. Davis replies, “Right now we are in downtime after our deployment. My replacement is due back on Monday. I can leave next Wednesday after briefing him on Monday and Tuesday. Nearest major airport to me is Killeen-Fort Hood Regional Airport. If you can arrange a flight from there, I will pay at the gate.”
I asked the Capt., “Capt. did you ever Google me?”
Capt. Davis laughs, “Yes I did. There’s seventy two John J Myers in North Carolina.”
With a chuckle I say, “I actually had no idea they were that many. Would you like to know little about me?”
Capt. Davis says, “Yes please. Ms. Clark couldn’t tell me anything other than you are adopting Sam with the blessings of the state.”
I ask the Capt. “How long do you have? I can give the short version, and then answer any questions you have.”
The captain asks me one thing I didn’t expect, “When did you start loving Sam?”
With a chuckle I remember, “It was about 5:15 on July 4, she had just asked my wife if she could be her new Mommy. I know that’s when my wife started loving her too. That’s a day you need to ask Sam about, we have a great story to share with you.”
The Captain chuckles and says, “I guess that’s the only really important thing I need to know.”
I say to him, “Yes sir that is truly the important thing. I can tell you all the rest and you can learn our life stories after you get here. Don’t worry about the ticket. I’ll have transportation ready for you next Wednesday. All you will have to do is just show up.”
He tries to object saying he’ll pay for it. I ask, “Sir, I have never served in the military. But I understand why you do. You do that to protect your family, your friends, and your nation. Please let me do this not only for you but for Sam.”
The Capt. reluctantly agrees, as long as I’m not putting it on a credit card he says. Obviously he hasn’t found anything out about me. So I say, “No Sir, I will not need to put it on a credit card.” We end our conversation at that and say our goodbyes.
The next day Capt. Davis called me he asks, “I know you said I didn’t have to worry about the tickets but Sgt. Hansen would love to come see Sam too. She is something else. She is just as tough as nails one minute and a little kitten the next, all soft and cute but still a Tiger underneath. If it’s a problem I’ll pay for my seat and you can cover the Sergeant’s tickets.”
With a chuckle I say, “Don’t worry about it Sir, I’m sure we’ll have a seat for you in the Sergeant.” We speak for a few minutes and I asked him what time he would prefer to leave. He suggest around eight in the morning. I tell him I’ll have something arrange for them at that time.
I call back the charter company and request a change in passenger manifest. I inform them of Sergeant Hansen’s need for transportation as well. They informed me that it would be no additional charges for only one extra person. I set the time for them and give the names of the two people there to pick up. I transfer payment to them and they sent a confirmation back.
I give the Captain a call back to confirm telling him, “I have Sergeant Hansen’s passage arranged. They will be someone to meet you at the airport at eight in the morning on Wednesday next week. They’ll check your luggage and take you to your departure gate. All you have to do is be there at eight.”
When I tell Sam of Captain Davis visit she gets very excited. She asks, “Can I meet Ron at the airport?”
I answer, “Yes of course we’ll be there to pick him up at the airport in town.”
Sam asks, “Where’s Ron going to stay?”
With a chuckle I say, “I think grandma’s room will be available for the month he’s planning on staying, but I’ll double check with grandma before he gets here.”
That next few days I get a preview about how Sam is about waiting on something, I’m not going to enjoy watching her go through waiting for Christmas if she’s the same. To say the girl is inpatient would be an understatement. I finally asked Sam how you would like to shorten your meeting the Captain by four hours. We will have to fly to Texas and will meet him there at the airport in Killeen.
Kathryn giggles as Sam jumps into my arms. In a loud voice because she’s so excited Sam says, “Yes please Daddy. I miss Ron a lot. He left with Mommy and I haven’t got to see him again.”
Two days before I had arranged for it, Kathryn and I did it as a surprise for Sam. It was also a way that we could introduce ourselves to the Captain. It gives the entire flight time to get to know him. Kathryn and I have even packed Sam’s suitcase while she was playing in the pool yesterday. Knowing how she is about waiting I didn’t want to see her suffer waiting today. Immediately after breakfast we drive to our local airport. A charter jet waits for us and they load our luggage which we only packed for three days. We’ll fly to San Antonio and see the Alamo today and a few of the sites around San Antonio. Then on Wednesday morning will fly from San Antonio to Killeen and wait for the Captain.
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