Mary Had a Little Problem Read Free Page A

stopping now. Tom had said too much, supplied something—hope, some measure of reassurance, perhaps—but it was much more than what he’d given her in the past.
    He continued rambling as he walked, quietly reciting the same speech he must’ve repeated over and over again as he met one widow after another. Approaching his vehicle, he finished with a firm, “I’m sorry for your loss, Mrs. Worthington.”
    “You’re sorry,” Mary said, slapping her hand over his wrist before he opened the car door and disappeared out of reach. “You’re sorry? Lieutenant Tolsen, I’ve had enough apologies to carry me through this sorry life, and I’m here to tell you those words will never comfort me at night.
    “Regrets don’t ease my pain. I don’t know for certain that the husband I loved and married really isn’t out there somewhere. You didn’t even bring me his body! You just showed up on my doorstep and told me he was dead. Then, you directed me to some fiasco where you assured me I’d find support, reminding me that my husband gave his life up for a damn good cause!”
    “Mary! Dear God, that’s enough!” Anna screamed.
    Fury spun through Mary’s veins. Any compassion she wanted to feel for Tom was long gone. Yes, he was only doing his job. True, he’d been kind and compassionate, more so than most of the other Casualty Assistance Calls Officers, but that didn’t matter now. Tom knew something more, and he wasn’t telling her. What kind of man kept another man from his wife? What kind of monster was this Tom Tolsen character, and what kind of country had her husband served?
    She shook off that thought. She was a proud American. She just didn’t agree with the military policies concerning bereavement issues.
    Tom took a deep breath. “Mary, your husband is not coming back. The man you loved and married is gone. You have to accept that.”
    “Then why didn’t I see a body?” she asked, shoving him. “Why didn’t you tell me where or how he died? What kind of people do you represent if you can’t look a soldier’s wife in the eyes and tell her some measure of truth when she loses the only man she’s ever loved!”
    “Please, Mary! Stop this!” Anna intervened right as Mary drew her fists tightly together. She might have struck Tom if it hadn’t been for Anna stepping between them.
    She’d had time to think about the way Tom delivered the news that most definitely changed her life, and she wanted to grab his attention. Unfortunately, Anna did a better job there. Tom couldn’t take his eyes off her sister, and it was the first time Mary could recall seeing Anna blush. Funny how she noticed that in the midst of her anger.
    “Tom, this has been a tough time,” Anna explained. “You’ll have to overlook Mary. She hasn’t come to terms with Luke’s death.”
    “Don’t you apologize for me!”
    “No need to explain. I understand,” Tom said, talking around her.
    “Do you think any of this is fair, Lieutenant? I mean, I had nothing returned to me, nothing at all. Is that the thanks my husband received for serving his country?”
    Tom kept a blank expression, and Mary saw right then, she’d hit another brick wall. Tom couldn’t give her what she needed most.
    “I had the world at my feet, a man who loved me with everything he had to give, and now what do I have? Nothing, and that’s all. Don’t you see? I just want peace. Is that too much to ask? I need closure!”
    Tom kept a stiff upper lip, said his farewells, saluted a soldier in passing, and disappeared inside his Humvee. Mary watched Tom’s taillights until the military vehicle rounded an old mercantile building, driving out of sight.
    Mary took a deep breath. The tears staining her cheeks had long since dried. Anna’s lips thinned, and she stormed back inside. Apparently, her sister knew better than to pick a fight.
    The noisy bar was alive with activity now. The last thing Mary wanted to do was return to her barstool and act as if she