Six months had passed without word from her husband and before she knew it, a full year had gone by. It was getting harder to be ok, harder to be the understanding Navy wife when her husband was supposed to be home with her. He had been discharged with full military honors for two years. Two incredibly beautiful and wonderful years he had belonged to her and their daughter and that time seemed to her to have been gone in the blink of an eye. Setting her pen down on the desk, she looked at the design of the car she had been working on shook her head.
She was designing this for him. It was supposed to be his and she had no idea when or if he would be coming home to her. The fears she was normally able to push away until she was home alone in her bed roared to life in her mind too powerful to be silenced and she covered her mouth with her hand. What if he never came home to her? What if he was missing or captured or killed and they just forgot to tell her? How was she going to raise Bella without her father? Her daughter was so very much a daddy's girl that she feared what would happen if Emmett never came home.
Alice wasn't here anymore at their design firm to talk to. Her best friend was at home with her fourth month old baby and her brother. She had found out only a week after their husbands had deployed that she was pregnant and had not been able to tell Jasper. He would be coming home to a baby girl that he didn't even know he had. Rosalie turned and bent over her knees as sobs wracked from her body, her shoulders shaking as her tears burned down her cheeks. Kate, Alice had named her daughter Kate.
She didn't know why the thought of her niece's name was enough to break her, but it was and Rosalie couldn't control her tears any longer. She thought she heard her office door open, but wasn't sure and no matter how hard she tried to regain control over her emotions, she wasn't able to. Arms wrapped around her tightly, strong hands helping her to stand from the drafting table as she was pulled against a man's chest. His hand rubbed over her back and when his voice broke through her sorrow, she wept harder at the knowledge of who was with her.
"Oh sweetheart," Carlisle soothed Rosalie, holding her tightly and kissed the top of her head. "I knew I should've tried to talk you out of coming in."
"I just…I need," she sobbed the words, unable to speak her thoughts as she clung to her father in law and cried into his sweater.
"You need him," he spoke for her and sighed when she nodded against his shoulder. "Come on," he kissed her hair once more before reaching back for a tissue from the box on her desk. "I'm going to take you home ok?"
"I don't…" Rosalie shook her head, sniffling as she tried to dry her still falling tears. "I don't want to go home."
"Then how about you come home with me," he offered her as he took her bag from her desk chair. "Edward and Bella are with Esme's sister, Carmen," he told her. "Alice is already at our house with Kate. Stay with us for a few days. Take some time off."
"I feel like I'll break if I do," Rosalie confessed as he led her out of her large office and down the hall to the elevator. "I need to work."
"You need to take care of yourself more," he told her, a gentle reprimand in his voice. "You've lost weight, Rose."
"It's just a few pounds," she argued weakly and looked up as the elevator doors opened once more.
"A few pounds?" he rebutted softly, with a pointed stare and held his hand out for her car keys. "Try a few dress sizes," he corrected his daughter in law. "And don't tell me you had the weight to lose, because you didn't. You barely eat anymore."
"I'm fine," she sniffled and blew her nose into the tissue as he led her to his Mercedes.
"No you're not," he told her gently and opened the passenger door for her.
He slipped behind the wheel seconds later and brushed a tear from her cheek before starting the engine. He knew that she was watching CNN as much as she could, hoping for any news on the battle front her husband and Jasper had been sent to. The problem was, the only news coming out of that area was the death toll. There was no news on the Special Forces operatives who had been sent in to clean up the rebel activity in that part of the desert. Every day there seemed to be someone new who had been killed, sometimes a rebel, sometimes an allied soldier, sometimes US military member. But never would they release the names of those killed. Never would they tell her that her husband was safe.
It didn't take Carlisle long to reach his house, the three story Tudor home designed and built by his wife back before Emmett had been born. He pulled into the garage quietly, not speaking as he helped Rosalie out of the car and into the house. He knew that her hold on her emotions was tenuous at best and did his best to help steady her. Meeting his wife's gaze and offering her a sad smile, he watched as she wrapped her arms around Rosalie's shoulders to walk her through the house. Moving into the solarium, Carlisle stepped up to Alice, his lips pulling up to one side as he gratefully took his newest granddaughter from her arms.
"How is she?" Alice asked and nodded quietly when Carlisle shook his head sadly.
"Why don't you go rest?" he offered her. "Little Miss Kate and I can have some quality time."
"Thanks Carlisle," Alice said as she stood and kissed his cheek. "You're the best."
He held his granddaughter on his lap, her little chubby legs slightly best as she tried to stand on his knees. He met her bright blue eyes with a smile and rubbed his nose against hers when she bounced repeatedly and giggled. Kate was a happy baby, taking after her mother, though her blonde hair and heart shaped face was all her father's. He could see so much of Jasper in the child's face that it made his heartache and he hugged her close as he stood.
"What should we do, Miss Kate?" he asked the baby and laughed when she grabbed his nose in her tiny fist. "That doesn't actually come off, you know," he told her and listened to her laughing squeal at his nasal voice.
He carried her into the living room and laid back on the couch, holding her on his chest as he talked with her. Lifting the remote from the nearby table, he turned on the sound system and set the music low. Debussy was in the CD player, it was one of his favorites and surprisingly one of Bella's too. For being a young child, his eldest granddaughter had a fondness for classical music. Kate, it seemed, did so as well. The tiny girl in his arms was bouncing on his chest, her little toes curling into his sweater for purchase as she tried to stand on her own. He gave a sound or surprise when she fell to her knees, the jolt of her movement knocking his breath out of him.
He looked up as Esme walked into the room, her face a mask of amusement and affection, the distraction just enough for Kate to fall forward and bang her head against his chin. His wife laughed, unable to contain her mirth as Carlisle gave a groan and cuddled the startled infant. It wasn't the first time he'd been head butted by one of his grandchildren and he knew it wouldn't be the last, but Kate seemed to do it more often than either Edward or Bella had. The first few times he had been worried that she had an inner ear issue that hampered her balance. As time went by however, Carlisle learned that Kate actually seemed to enjoy head butting people unless her movement was hard enough to hurt her and then she would cry.
"She's going to be stubborn, I can see it already," Esme teased as she moved to sit next to her husband on the couch.
"Going to be?" Carlisle asked with one brow arched. "Try already is. How are the girls?" he asked as his smile turned into a frown of worry.
"Rosalie didn't even make it to taking off her shoes before she was asleep. I felt pretty lucky that she was already sitting on the bed," Esme said and played with Kate's golden curls. "Alice is…Alice is sleeping, but trying not to sleep. I think she's having nightmares again about Jasper not coming home."
Carlisle nodded as he sat up and leaned against the back of the couch, Kate held in his arms. It was understandable for both women to be upset over the loss of their husbands, even more so because they had been out of the military when they'd been called back to war. Looking up at the sound of the house phone ringing, he watched as Esme hurried to the cordless dock by the window seat to retrieve the handset. He watched her face as she gave her greeting, saw her stiffen and look back at him with wide eyes as the person on the other end spoke to her.
He felt his heart hammer inside his chest as he feared the worst and stood, moving to offer his wife comfort as she spoke to the person on the other end of the line. Her voice trembled as she told the person that her grandchildren were with her sister's family and she nodded to something that was said to her before ending the call. She couldn't speak as she set the phone down with shaking hands and found herself instantly enfolded in her husband's arms. Neither of them saw Alice standing at the far end of the room, leaning against the wooden frame and staring at them.
Alice shook her head, her hand slapping over her mouth as she ran back to her husband's childhood room and threw herself down on the bed. She sobbed into his pillow, the reactions from her in laws telling her that he wasn't going to make it home and she felt her heart breaking. She hadn't heard their words, hadn't heard any confirmation of her fears, but it had been the way Esme reacted to the phone call that shattered her into broken bits. She needed him, she needed Jasper. How could he leave her alone like this?
Alice sat up swiftly, tears still falling from her eyes even as her sobs had fallen into silence. What if it wasn't just Jasper? What if Emmett had been killed as well? What would happen to Rosalie? Alice didn't think her best friend could survive something like this and slipped out of Jasper's room to go to Emmett's. Rosalie was sleeping on the bed, her friend looking beyond exhausted and Alice didn't have the heart to wake her, not even for this. Moving to the bed, she sniffled as she laid down next to her best friend and curled up beside her. It didn't take long at all before she had fallen back into an exhausted slumber.
:::::
The journey over the past year had been a long one, made more difficult by the extension that no one was given any warning of ahead of time. The families hadn't been notified and the unit made up of a mix of Army Rangers and Navy Seals had not been permitted to call home either. It was the curse of being Special Forces, Master Sergeant Aro thought as he stared at the two metal boxes strapped down in the middle of the plane he and his other men were flying home on. This was the part that he hated the most, losing people.
He'd been in the military all his life, his father and grandfather military men as well. He had told himself early on that he would have to get used to losing men on the battlefield, but the truth was the deaths never got any easier. He studied the boxes, the plain tombs made out of metal that were only meant to transport them home in. The men were two of his best, two of his most formidable and cunning warriors. What made their deaths harder to take was that they were also brothers.
Silver chains were laid on top of the screw-bolt lids, dog tags attached at the ends. The plane shifted, turbulence rocking the C-130 to the side and the chain closest to him fell to the deck of the plane. He undid his safety harness and moved quickly, catching the ID tags before they could get lost in the shuffle of bags and bodies. His jaw clenched as he returned to his seat, the pad of his thumb rubbing over the pressed metal as he memorized the feel of the name printed on the tag. It was the younger of the two brothers, the one everyone called "Fox" simply because he could get into and out of danger faster than anyone else.
He felt his eyes water as he studied the piece of metal, the man's young face and blond hair appearing before his mind's eyes in vivid detail. He was one of the easiest people to get along with in his unit, the man having an outwardly easy going nature that could turn serious in a heartbeat. He was fierce as well, fast and cunning. He could slip into a building or house that was being held by hostiles without anyone knowing he was there until it was too late to fight back.
He had fought hard and well, giving his life to save that of a child. A tiny little girl who had been kidnapped by the rebels and though she was an orphan, the hostiles had still believed she could be used as some kind of bargaining chip. He had gone into the building with the intention of taking out the leader and his immediate subordinates, but the sight of the little girl lying starved and beaten in the corner had stopped him. The unit had rushed in behind him to provide support and the hostiles, fearing an outcome they hadn't wanted or prepared for, had turned to shoot the child.
He brought the dog tags up to his face, kissing them as one would a religious medal, before lowering them once more to his lap. This man had put himself between the child and the bullets. His flack jacket had absorbed four of the shots before finally giving way under the volley of AK-47 rounds and without a second thought, his brother, the other man lying sealed in a metal box, had thrown himself over top. They had died together, each sacrificing their life for someone else's and somehow allowing the rest of their team to be successful with the mission it had taken them a year to complete.
He looked around at the rest of the men strapped into the hard metal seats around him, the nylon belt holding them in rows along either wall of the aircraft. Each of his men had their eyes focused on the boxes, those that weren't sleeping anyway, Aro thought with a touch of melancholy humor. They were all exhausted, beaten down by the fight and further burdened by the loss of their comrades. He knew that he should at least try to get some sleep, but he doubted he would be able to. Each time he closed his eyes the deaths of these two brave men played before his eyes and it was all he could do not to cry as his broken soul wanted to.
He had to wait just a little longer. Only a few more hours to reach the military base, a few hours after that and he would be home wrapped in the comfort of his wife's arms. He couldn't wait to see his daughter either, Renata would be having her sweet sixteen in just under a month and he couldn't imagine not being there for that. One of the men a few seats down on his right began to hum a familiar song, three of the other men beginning to hum as well before the song was given words and the men around him gave way into a tenor-baritone chorus.
I'm just tryin' to be a father, raise a daughter and a son
Be a lover to their mother, everythin' to everyone
Up and at 'em bright and early, I'm all business in my suit
Yeah I'm dressed up for success, from my head down to my boots
I don't do it for money, there's bills that I can't pay
I don't do it for the glory, I just do it anyway
Providing for our future's, my responsibility
Yeah I'm real good under pressure, being all that I can be
And I can't call in sick on Mondays when the weekend's been too strong
I just work straight through the holidays, and sometimes all night long
You can bet that I stand ready, when the wolf growls at the door
Hey I'm solid, hey I'm steady, hey I'm true down to the core.
The tears Aro had been fighting were once again clogging his throat as he listened to his men sing and as he looked around he noticed that no one was ashamed of their tears. The men around him had dirt and paint covered faces that were wet with their tears. He took in a deep breath and raised his voice into the mix as the moisture gathered in his eyes fell upon his stubble roughened cheeks.
And I will always do my duty no matter what the price I'm an American Soldier an American I'm out here on the front lines, sleep in peace tonight An American Soldier an American
I've counted up the cost, I know the sacrifice
Oh and I don't want to die for you, but if dyin's asked of me
I'll bear that cross with honor, cause freedom don't come free.
Beside my brothers and my sisters, I will proudly take a stand
When liberty's in jeopardy, I will always do what's right
American Soldier, I'm and American, Soldier.
Beside my brothers and my sisters, I will proudly take a stand
When liberty's in jeopardy, I will always do what's right
I'm out here on the front lines, sleep in peace tonight
American Soldier, I'm an American, an American, an American, Soldier.
He wasn't sure how many times they had sung the song, repeating it in chorus or staggered rounds. The words carried them through, the repeated lyrics touching them deeply in an almost-anthem and he knew that this song, this tribute, had become something more to each of them. It was a way to honor the men who had fallen, their families waiting for them back home and all those that had come before them. This song had become a badge of honor, a symbol of courage and in some ways, a promise of hope.
They faded out in turn just as the plane bounced down on the runway, the motion jarring them and jerking them against their straps. His men were battle weary and exhausted, but for each of those who had been discharged before this mission, they were promised to never again have to serve. The Navy or the Army would gladly welcome them back should it be their choice to return, but no longer would they be called up as they had been this time. Unbuckling the seat straps, they each stood and Aro moved to the metal coffin closest to him, slipping the chain with the dog tags back onto the small hook on the corner.
He waited as the giant ramp of the plane was lowered down and saluted to the men who ran up to assist with unloading the fallen. He nodded to them, signing the papers he was required to as he watched the rest of his men file off the plane to be embraced by their families. The Lieutenant holding the clipboard looked up at him after verifying the service numbers and asked for the names of the two men. Aro looked back at the boxes behind him, the brothers who had made the ultimate sacrifice and nodded before turning back to the young soldier in front of him.
"Their names, sir," the Lieutenant repeated and met Aro's eyes.
"Garret and Alastair Denali."
:::::
Rosalie sat on the bed staring at Alice, her eyes wide and full of disbelieving horror as she shook her head. It couldn't be true, it just couldn't. Emmett had promised her that he would come home, he had promised Bella, and she had never once known her husband to break a promise to their daughter. Alice's certainty was unquestioning, the tears falling upon her cheeks only breaking Rosalie's heart further and she fell forward into her best friend's arms as she released the sobs held inside. She knew that Carlisle and Esme would have received the call first, but as with all the protocols, they weren't allowed to say anything to the wives. The wives had to be notified by the death-callers as she had heard them called back when she and Emmett were living on base.
She heard the phone ring again and looked up wondering how long she had slept to find that instead of it still being the afternoon, it was the morning of the next day instead. She and Alice had slept through dinner and through the night, no one having the heart to wake them to eat. She looked down at her hands; Alice's left hand folded in between hers and took the strength she was being offered as she gave what she could in return. They both looked up at the knock on the bedroom door and Rosalie bid Carlisle entrance.
He didn't say anything at first, the sight of their tear stained faces silencing him, and he moved to the bed. Sitting down in front of the women he opened his arms to them and held them close when they fell against his chest. They didn't say anything, didn't tell him that they knew Emmett and Jasper weren't returning, instead they took the comfort he was offering them and clung to him as they cried. He kissed their hair, rubbed their backs and held them closer still as he promised he would always be there for them.
"Carmen called a few minutes ago," he said when their tears quieted, though both women chose to stay wrapped in his arms. "She and Eleazar asked to keep Bella and Edward for the rest of the week and I told them that was fine. I know you girls have the show this weekend, so I thought it would be best."
Rosalie sniffled as she nodded against his chest and Alice began to cry once more when Esme stepped into the room holding baby Kate in her arms. Edward looked more like her, but Kate was the spitting image of her father. To think that her daughter would never know him, never be able to touch her father or hear him sing tore at her heart until it was bleeding and she felt too broken to speak. Carlisle held her closer, shifting just enough to somehow bring her into his lap while still holding Rosalie in one arm. He rocked them both as they cried, doing his best to offer them soothing comforts.
It felt to be hours that he sat holding his daughters as they cried, but all too soon they were both showered and dressed in the kitchen. Rosalie needed to work, she needed the distraction it provided and Alice would be going in with her. It seemed to them both to be some kind of irony that it would be the death of their husbands that prompted Alice to finally return to work. Esme was more than happy to keep Kate at home with her while Alice went into her work, her love of being a mother and three-time grandmother shining through in every moment.
The rest of the week passed by in a grief stricken blur and half the time Rosalie couldn't remember who she had told to do what. The car she had designed, the sports utility vehicle that was a far cry from sports cars she usually designed was finally ready to show. The color was exquisite, the gun metal grey brushed shining beneath a layer of shimmering lacquer and she reached out to touch the hood covering the three hundred-fifty horsepower hemi engine. Her fingertips traced over the flowing lettering of her husband's name that she had pinstriped herself. She had meant this car to be a present for his return, not a memorial for his death and the reminder felt to be hollowing her out.
"Mrs. Cullen?"
Rosalie turned around to see her assistant behind her and nodded for the girl to come closer. She spoke with her briefly and felt envious of the happy smile tipping the girl's lips. The world moved on, rationally she knew that, but emotionally it felt to be some kind of betrayal. She signed the forms clipped to the board and approved the other changes that had been made. Watching the woman walk away, Rosalie looked up at the lights hanging from the ceiling and blinked back the tears gathering in her eyes. She honestly wasn't sure she would be able to keep it together enough to make her speech and answer all the questions that would be presented tonight, but she didn't have much of an option.
She looked back at Alice as her sister rounded behind the car and nodded her somber approval when she saw her husband's name pinstriped on the car beside Emmett's. Below their names the seals of their service had been painted below. The Navy and Army seal, followed below by the mark of the Rangers for Jasper and the Navy Seals for Emmett. Rosalie didn't need the money that the sales from the SUV was likely to bring in and had decided when designing it that twenty-five percent of the net profits would go to her husband's favorite military charity.
Wrapping her arm around Alice's waist as they moved to stand in front of the heavy red velvet curtain, they stood together as they always did for the introduction to the dual car and fashion show. They could hear the dull roar of the voices from everyone gathered in the audience and bit her painted lips between her teeth as she fought once more not to break down. She closed her eyes as the lights went down in the front of the arena and took in a deep breath as the curtain drew open in front of them. Cameras were flashing in front of them; too many to be able to see clearly, the brighter steady lights of video camera making it difficult to distinguish any person from the next.
She spoke slowly as she gathered her courage and told herself not to cry. It took her eyes a long time to adjust to the flashing lights and just as she thought she might break down, she saw the profiles of two uniformed men standing in the middle of the aisle. She could see the lines of their clothing, knew that they were wearing dress uniforms and shook her head as she begged silently for the military not be making the notification here. One of the television crews saw her distraction and turned their camera in the direction she was staring, the bright light blinding her for a few seconds before allowing her to see clearly who the two men were.
The microphone dropped from her hand to the stage floor with a hard thump, a whine following after, but she was deaf to both sounds. She could hear someone screaming and it took a moment before she realized that it was her. Her hands covered her mouth, tears cascading down her face unchecked as she moved without thought and ran toward the man on the left. He caught her easily, his arms wrapping around her and holding her tightly as the man next to him caught and held Alice in much the same manner.
Amidst a deafening roar of applause and whistles, she kissed him, her heart pouring out of her in sobs as she held him tightly. News reporters were talking behind them, telling the story of the men sent off to war long after having been discharged and having made it home in time to support their wives on such an important night. They confessed to having been home for almost four days, having spent the time hiding away at Carmen and Eleazar's with their children while waiting for the big night and Rosalie punched Emmett's arm, the dull thump of her fist against his rough tunic drawing a laugh from him.
"I love you Rosalie Lillian Cullen," Emmett said as he released her and watched her eyes widen when he stepped back and went down on one knee in front of her. "You've stayed beside me all these years. You've been my wife when it was the toughest job imaginable and I hope you'll say yes to marrying me again," he said as he brought a diamond ring forth from his pocket, present the blue silk jeweler's box to her.
Rosalie sobbed as she nodded, falling to her knees as she hugged his neck tightly and laughing through her tears when he stood, pulling them both to their feet. Alice looked up at her husband, somehow awed to see him standing before her in his dress uniform and frowned as she asked him how he got to the event. When he told her that Eleazar had brought him, Carmen somewhere in the back with the kids, she fell apart into tears once more.
"I have someone for you to meet," she told Jasper, the audience hushed as they watched on and Alice held her arms out for the sleeping baby Carlisle brought to her. "This is Kate," she introduced their daughter. "I didn't find out I was pregnant until a week after you had deployed. She has your eyes," she told him as Jasper took his infant daughter into his arms.
"I have a baby?" he whispered to her as he stared down at the sleeping child and Alice nodded as she cried. "My little Kate. Daddy will always be home," he promised her reverently and Alice choked on a sob as she stared at the man she had feared she would never see again.
"DADDY!"
The two-toned cry sounded from far behind them and the four turned to watch as Edward and Bella came running up to them, their children seeming to fly over the carpeting. Emmett bent down and caught Bella easily, holding his daughter up in the air before bringing her down for a kiss and Alice watched as somehow her husband caught Edward while still holding Kate in one arm. In one brilliant and unexpected moment, the fear and grief that had been twisting their hearts turned into a wildfire of love and joy.
The crowd behind them began to clap, a single slow clap at first that turned into a cascading wave of applause. More pictures were taken as the families were interviewed and neither woman was willing to release their husband as they returned to the stage to finish their presentations. Where their families had been torn apart by the devastation of war, they had once more been made whole by the unyielding power of love.
AN: To all those who serve, thank you for the sacrifice you make and may you all come home.