A man with an open heart is my definition of a hero, Emerson. Remain brave no matter what life throws at you. Remember that a good day’s work is precious no matter what the recompense.
And know that your parents love you very, very much. Always have. Always will.
Please distribute the rest of my letters to my family, and remind the General my heart is with him.
Love,
Amelia Reed
Emerson looked at the General. “But—your wife has been dead for years.”
“Thank you. I’m aware of that.” The General sighed. “That’s never stopped her before.”
“She’s sending letters from beyond the grave?”
The General laughed. “Not from beyond the grave, Sergeant—from the past. She wrote that years ago. Hid it where I’d eventually find it.”
“But—”
“Don’t bother to look for sense, son. You won’t find it, not at Two Willows.”
Emerson let out a breath. “She said she’s happy I’m marrying Wyoming and that we’re staying here. She says you’re in her heart.”
“I never doubted it. She’s in mine, too.” The General leveled a stern look at him. “Don’t ever believe those who pooh-pooh love, Sergeant. It’s the strongest force in the universe, despite what anyone says.”
“Didn’t figure you for a romantic.”
“Didn’t figure you for an idiot.” When Emerson frowned, he went on. “It’s not romance; it’s common sense. Who do you spend your time with in life? Your wife—your kids. Why wouldn’t you give them the best of you? Who else are you going to waste it on—the guys down at the bar?”
“Guess you have a point.”
“Of course I do. What’re those?” He pointed to the smaller envelopes included in Emerson’s hand.
“There’s one for each of the girls. And one for each of their husbands,” he added as he flipped through them.
“What about me? Hmph.” The General sighed. “Guess I had my share of them already.”
Emerson remembered the way the General had cherished each one over the years back at USSOCOM. He’d had a whole stack of them from Amelia, each one dated.
“There’s one for you, too.” Emerson gave it to him. The General swallowed and cleared his throat.
“Well. Would you look at that.”
“Want me to hand these out?” Emerson asked, knowing the General would want some time to himself.
“You do that. And get ready. Big day today.” The General waved him off.
Cass was awake and puttering in the kitchen when he exited the General’s room. He handed her the envelopes for her sisters and their husbands. “They’re from your mother.”
“Oh my goodness.” Cass’s eyes filled with tears as she took them reverently. “I’ll make sure everyone gets theirs. Who is that one addressed to?” She pointed to the one in his hand.
“Wyoming.”
“Better give that one to me, too. It’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding, remember?”
Emerson surrendered it reluctantly. He went back upstairs, gathered his things and came back down. “I’ll be at the Park until it’s time,” he said.
“The Park? Are you sure?”
He nodded. “That way you and Wye can use the whole house while you get ready. Besides, my trailer is nearly ready to move into. Wye and I will be in and out of the main house for a while, still, though, until it’s completely done.”
“I don’t mind that at all,” Cass said. “I’m going to miss Wye.”
“We’ll be less than a quarter mile away,” Emerson pointed out.
“That’s plenty far enough,” Cass said tartly, then softened. “Thanks for being a good sport. It’ll be worth the wait to see Wye later at the ceremony.”
“I don’t doubt it.”
He’d expected to spend a quiet morning at the trailer he’d renovated, but when he arrived, he saw an old Chevy truck parked by Buck’s trailer. Buck was inside it waiting for him.
“Don’t worry—I’m not trying to move in a day early,” he called when they both got out of their vehicles. “You mentioned you’d be here this morning, though. Wanted to give you this.” He pulled something large and flat from the bed of his truck.
“Hold on; let me drop off my clothes inside, first.” Emerson unlocked his trailer, went inside and hung his wedding duds in the closet. He met Buck at the table in the small dining area. “You didn’t have to give me anything.”
“I wanted to—to say thanks. I was having a hard time finding anywhere to live in my price range that wasn’t a complete dump. My girl wasn’t too sure about living in a trailer, but when she saw how clean and roomy it is, she was thrilled. She’s been telling all her friends and can’t wait to move in tomorrow. We’re having a party next weekend, if you don’t mind. We’ll keep the sound down,” he assured Emerson. “I heard you two have a baby now.”
“Talk gets around, doesn’t it?”
“Sure does.” Buck laughed. “Open it up.” He gestured to the present.
Emerson did and was surprised to find a hand-carved wooden sign inside.
“The Myerses,” Buck read out when Emerson held it up. “Figure you can hang it out front and take it with you whenever you two move on. I heard you were thinking of building something bigger up near the main house,” he added.
Emerson had to laugh. There were no secrets around here. “Maybe. We’ll see.” Some privacy sounded fine to him for now. “Thank you for this. It’s great.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll leave you be while you get ready. Last time you’ll have any peace and quiet for a long time, probably.”
“You’re probably right,” Emerson said happily. “And you can go ahead and start moving in any old time. Wye and I will be at a bed-and-breakfast tonight. Tomorrow we’ll start carrying our things over here.”
“Sounds good. But I’ll wait to move my things over until the morning,” Buck said. “You all have enough going on today, I’d say.”
“Well, we’ll have the other trailers ready for move-in on the fifteenth. We’ll finish with
