EPILOG

Hawkeye

In the end we shipped two crates of goods north by freight, lay out on the beach for a couple of days and took in the sights of Gibsonton—both of them, on the same day even. Quiet little neighborhood but I could tell Bets was ready to move on, especially after packing up the house.

I bought Bets a rock, too, figuring it was a little overdue, and she got teary when I slipped it on her finger. Two carats, emerald cut according to the guy behind the counter. Bets had ways of communicating that didn't use words, so let's just say I was thanked and loved within an inch of my life for a while there. Good times. 'Vive also treated us to a going-away engagement party and I did my best to polish off as much of the food and booze as I could in between chatting with the trapeze artists and contortionists who attended. Ah civilian life, never change, never let me go again.

It was a toss -up on how to go north but we settled for a flight into Boston and the train up to Augusta. I have no idea why they call them sleeper cars since the two of us didn't get much sleep. All that slow rocking is catalytic to the libido, frankly, and a lot more fun than checkers.

Dad and Cora met us at the station when the train rolled during the late afternoon and frankly late September never felt so good. Hugging my old man I realized how much frailer he'd gotten but he still managed to squeeze the breath out of me along with a manly tear or two. Cora got her mitts on me too, so I was wheezing by the time I introduced them to my intended and then the hugging started all over again.

I thought I was ready when dad drove us through town but as we did I got a little shaky. Bets put an arm around me and kept asking me questions, keeping me grounded as we passed around the square and over towards Scallop Road.

"Which one's town hall?"

"Big brick building there with the founding father statues. One time I drew mustaches on them for April first," I told her, blinking a lot. Geeze I had no idea that coming back would hit me like this.

"Let's go one better this year and get dresses on them," Bets suggested. "Something in polka dots."

Did I mention how much I love this woman?

-oo00oo-

Turns out the Peabody place was still up for grabs, so we grabbed it.

Dad had been putting half my paychecks into stocks and half into savings so there was more than enough to buy the place and spruce it up. I left that part to Bets and Cora while I made the rounds of the local hospitals and let them know I was in the neighborhood again, albeit in private practice. Augusta General twisted my arm into a twice a month arrangement so I could keep up my body spelunking skills and offered decent money for it so I said yes.

It took a while to relax. Sidney had told me it would so I knew what I was going through was normal-the nightmares and tensing up whenever I heard loud noises not to mention the absolute hatred of any kind of PA system. How Bets put up with it is beyond me except that she had her own adjustment issues and sleepless nights, usually alternating with mine; very convenient.

Around Halloween we got Vernon Hattersley, our local justice of the peace to marry us with dad, Cora, and Mrs. Hattersley as our witnesses. Took Bets to the Harvest festival in the town square for our honeymoon and introduced her to the joys of apple bobbing, haunted houses and haylofts.

Afterwards we had the Talk, and it turned out neither of us was ready. Not yet. It was a hell of a relief to know Bets was feeling the same way I was about it. Maybe in a few months, or a year—the point was that we'd give ourselves time to adjust, and get used to being married first.

We did end up with a cat and a dog though. The cat was my fault; I found it half-frozen on the back step of dad's office and fed it a can of tuna out of pity. Turns out doing that is a blood pact that cannot be broken according to cat law, so Bets and I named him Norman and moved him to the Peabody place in hopes he'd terrorize the squirrels there. Fat chance, emphasis on the 'fat' alas: he's more waddle than warrior. He's also good company when I'm catching up on medical journals or typing, and I've gotten used to his Pillowiness over time.

The dog, though, is totally Bets' fault.

Betsy

I loved Crabapple Cove. I'd heard Ben talk about it at length, but honestly it lived up to what he'd rhapsodized about in all that rambling and more. Ben's dad, Daniel was like an older lankier version of him but a whole lot quieter. I think Cora was a little suspicious of me at first, but when she caught us kissing she softened right up, probably dreaming of the babies to come.

She'd have to wait. I'd been putting off the discussion with Ben out of a sense of concern; after all, he'd gone over the deep end because of a baby and I wasn't going risk setting him back if I could help it. Did I want kids? Yeah, down the line. At the moment just getting back into the swing of civilian life was all that mattered, for both of us.

I think Ben sensed that too, and we bought the Peabody place within the first few weeks. While Cora, Daniel and I started fixing it up, Ben contacted the local hospitals and talked to the county about establishing a clinic between Crabapple Cove and Nobleboro. When Augusta General offered a part-time surgeon position Ben snapped it up and we celebrated by buying a bed that we promptly broke in.

Mind you, we weren't married yet, even though we were staying with Daniel and Cora while the house got fixed up. After the first weekend it was sort of funny to find all four of us at the breakfast table in our pajamas, sharing different sections of the paper and making comments but it was so like the mess tent that it felt good.

It was amusing too, the way the women of the town sized me up. I could tell who had taught Ben, who had put up with Ben and who had dated Ben within minutes of meeting any particular one. The two former girlfriends both looked sort of relieved, and the others just gave me sympathetic pats on the arm.

According to the gossip, Hawkeye Pierce was a classic class clown, (true) who hadn't changed a bit (possibly true) who needed a firm hand, (definitely true) and I was a saint to put up with him. (not really). There were a few good souls like old Lizzie Tremain, the town librarian, who flat out hugged me when she found out I was engaged to Ben.

"That rogue needs somebody with brains," she told me cheerfully, "someone who can see through his high-jinks to the hero inside. Makes you a damned special lady, Betsy Rydersen!"

That helped. So I got to know people and the town itself. Daniel had me come help him with patients on an informal basis for a while and when Mr. Hattersley came in for a check on his lumbago he shook my hand and murmured, "I'm free next Saturday, around ten or so."

"Um, that's nice," I said, humoring him, but he gave me a dry look.

"You and Benjamin need marrying," Mr. Hattersley harrumphed. "I'll waive my fee. See you then."

I was a little put off, but Ben told me later that that was as warm as the JP got with anyone and a deal was a deal, so we got married in the Hattersley front parlor that weekend while Cora cried and Daniel took pictures. Evidence, he called them.

And later, at the fall festival after all the pumpkin carving and pie contests, my new husband lured me into the H4 barn on evil pretexts that involved hunting for snipes somewhere in his pants. I found something quite a bit larger and had to subdue it under the hay, the two of us trying to stay quiet lest the sheep below give us away.

Ben was the one to bring the topic up, looking at me with that earnest intensity he has sometimes and I blurted out I wasn't ready. Thank God he admitted he wasn't either, and we laughed and cried a little together, somehow more connected than ever before. Yes, but not right now—that was our decision. We still needed time to settle in ourselves.

And it was good. Later in the week bossed him around enough to insure he left the house in a great mood and in return Ben encouraged me to accept the position as school nurse to the local elementary. That's where the notice on the staff bulletin board offered up one (1) pedigreed Boston Terrier, quote "free because he's a little shit."

Who could pass on a deal like that? So we ended up with Norman and Rockwell, which sums up our lives in a lot of ways. It's good. I'm looking forward to Christmas, and New Years' and the whole cycle of the year; looking forward to loving Ben and being loved by him in return. We'll never lose our memories of Korea, but we can deal with them together. I've got Ben and he's got me and whatever else comes along, we'll be face it side by side.

And that's what matters the most. I've got someone to love who loves me too—what satin bitch could ask for anything more?

end