The tension in Jake’s frame seemed to wax and wane, and he flexed his grip on my hand as we followed her.
“Can you tell me what happened? All Mom said was there was an accident.”
“I’ll tell you everything,” she said as she unlocked the Audi. “I promise.”
A training accident. Jake’s dad had been with a number of other soldiers, airmen, and marines aboard a helicopter when it experienced mechanical difficulties. The challenge hadn’t just been the crash though. They’d gone down somewhere in the Alps, and it had taken time for a crew to get to him.
My stomach cramped at the very idea. Jake sat up in the front next to Klara, while I road in the back.
“His leg is broken in three places,” Klara said. “That’s why the surgery is taking so long—they are having to put pins in and put the bones back together.”
I shuddered, and I was not alone in that one.
“It could have been so much worse, but they were feeling confident.”
Jake blew out a breath. “He goes down in a helicopter crash, and all he does is break a leg?” The dry humor couldn’t disguise the sudden and keen relaxation Klara’s news gave him.
“So far,” Klara said with a wry smile. “They wanted to check everything else. He might have a mild concussion, but considering the way he was cussing when they were wheeling him in, I doubt that will keep him down for long.”
I had to bite back a laugh, and Jake shot a glance at me over his shoulder. “That sounds like Dad.” His eyes warmed though, and I mouthed a kiss to him. He winked. “How long is the surgery?”
“They said twelve hours when they took him back. But they had to do some other exams before they put him fully under. I had already called your mom, but I had to wait for him to be out before I could call anyone again.”
Another reason she hadn’t gotten back to us.
“He didn’t want me to know?” Jake asked, his tone guarded. I didn’t think twice about it, I reached forward and rested my hand on his shoulder.
“Jakey,” Klara said, her voice soft but her tone firm. “Your father is a proud man, do not let this hurt your feelings. It would never occur to him that you would want to know to be here. He has always seen it as his place to protect you.”
“Well, he can’t really do that if he isn’t around, can he?” The harshness in his voice underscored his worry.
“Jakey.” That was it. Just the two syllables delivered in an affectionate if firm tone, and he sighed.
“Klara, I don’t know how to talk to him anymore.”
“Funnily enough, he says the same about you.”
A part of me wanted to gawk at the sights. This was yet another country I’d never been to before, but the rest of me remained focused on Jake. I kept my hand on his shoulder, and he covered my fingers with his own.
“And I’m going to tell you what I tell him,” Klara continued, and I felt more than saw her glance at me. “Love and respect him for who he is, but don’t expect him to change. You are so alike, both of you. So fierce in your devotion and dedication. You also firmly believe you know what is right for your family. You saw him letting Alicia go as a betrayal.”
Jake’s fingers flexed on mine.
“He saw it as his duty, because she was unhappy and he couldn’t make her stay where she didn’t want to be. Neither of us could, nor would we. And she needed you kids. If he’d fought to keep you here, it would have forced her to stay too.”
Jake shuddered under my hand.
“He won’t tell you this and I will deny it if you claim I did,” Klara continued, “but he has applied for two duty changes, he just didn’t receive them because they need him here. When his twenty comes up, he may request early retirement.”
“Fuck,” Jake swore.
“Language,” she corrected lightly, but then we were at the security gate to the base and she was showing her ID. We had to show our passports as well. Jake also had his dependent’s ID. In no time at all, we were through the gate.
“It hasn’t changed,” Jake said as she drove.
“No,” Klara said. “Not a bit. I think some of the kids that were here when you were are still around. Tamara still lives across the street.”
“Trying to get me in trouble?” Jake asked, a hint of a smile in his voice.
“Not at all,” Klara retorted. “First of all, I’d have to be blind to not see how you kids look at each other, and Tamara would be more interested in your girl than you.”
I couldn’t help it. I cracked up as Jake swore, but he glanced back at me with real laughter. “Keep it up and I will spank you,” he threatened, but I just grinned.
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Yes you did. You’re adorable.”
“Ugh,” Klara grunted. “Enough. You’re going to give me cavities.”
But that earned a real laugh from Jake, and I grinned. The more I got to know Klara, the more I liked her. Which was good, because clearly, she was family.
We went straight to the hospital on the base. My eyes were wide at all the activity on the base. There were people from all the different areas of the service too, based on the different uniforms. They were a purple base, or so Jake tried to explain, because there were so many different areas of the service all stationed here. They did a little bit of everything from this base, and it also played host to everything from training to rest and relaxation. Either way, it was a busy place.
I fired off a text to the guys that we were at the hospital and gave them a quick
