The Marine's Return

by Rula Sinara

  “What’s up?” Chad scratched behind Roosevelt’s ear and kept walking to the patio door. Roosevelt kept to his side and even sat next to him on the top step overlooking the yard. He gazed at Chad and made an odd guttural sound.

  “If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear you just asked me what’s wrong.” That earned a paw on his knee. “You are one intuitive dog.”

  Chad gave him another ear scratch. “Where’s your ball? Go get your ball. Play fetch.”

  Roosevelt didn’t hesitate. He ran straight for the bushes—actually, one specific bush—and came back with the ball. Did that dog know where each of his dozen toys was hidden in the fenced garden? Of all the toys he had stashed, he’d found the ball.

  Chad looked him in the eyes the way he used to look at Aries during training.

  “Get me your red bone. Fetch the red bone, Roosevelt.”

  It was worth a shot. A little entertainment, if anything. Something to distract him from the tingling on his right side. It already seemed to be fading. Lexi hadn’t faded from his mind, though. Nor had the little, wrinkly but admittedly cute face of Baby Reth. But she’d asked for more than he could give. She’d wanted him to be a father and husband. How could he do that if he didn’t even know where his life was going?

  Roosevelt returned with the red bone. Amazing.

  “Good boy. Fetch.” He aimed the blue ball for the tree at the back of the yard. “Think I can do it?” The dog barked. Chad threw the ball. It hit the trunk then zigzagged around the yard, bouncing off the fence on one side and rolling to the other. It was like a perfect shot in a game of pool.

  Roosevelt followed the ball and nabbed it, then suddenly his ears perked. He dropped the toy, ran to the fence gate and barked.

  Intruder alert. Chad hurried to the gate and looked out to the driveway. His dad was there. He was back from getting his cast taken off and probably starving for lunch, though it would be leftovers, seeing that Dalila and Hope had stayed with Lexi.

  Taj was at the clinic, too, with Jacey, as were their new helpers and the new guard. So Chad had worried less about leaving the women and Reth alone. Besides, things seemed to have gotten back to normal there. Without him in the way.

  He sat on the steps again. No doubt his dad had a talk in mind. No doubt his mom had told Ben all about her suspicions that Chad had a thing for Lexi. Suspicions he’d denied. He threw the bone this time and it landed in the middle of the yard. Pretty much where he’d aimed.

  “Fetch is pretty meditative. Especially since Roosevelt never tires and will hypnotize you with his running back and forth,” Ben said, closing the screen door behind him and sitting.

  “He’s pretty sharp. Did you train him?” Chad said.

  “It didn’t take much. He’s got good stuff between his ears. A good nose, too. Not sharp enough to be a tracker, but still good.”

  Chad tore a mint leaf off the potted plant next to him and ate it. It was better than gum. Fresher.

  “Did the KWS team that first scoped the area and the surrounding homesteads not have sniffer dogs? If they did, you’d think the hounds would have picked up on that gangrenous wound and hiding place. Just a suggestion, since I’ve heard a lot of KWS teams are using dogs to track down poachers now,” Chad said.

  “That particular unit didn’t have a canine sniffer. And yes, you’re right, they are useful to track poachers. But it’s a relatively new program and more properly trained dogs are needed than we have in the field. It’s a work in progress. So,” Ben added, “it’s just you and me at the house for a couple of days. Even Jamal took time off to visit his kids. I think he feared eating my cooking. Can’t blame him. It’s pretty awful compared to Dalila’s masterpieces.”

  “Just us guys. We could drink beer and play fetch all night. No women to complain about it.”

  “Sounds good on paper. Doesn’t it? But I hate it when Hope’s not here. Drives me nuts,” Ben said.

  “You two are good together. Always have been.”

  “I don’t just miss her when she’s gone on one of her rural clinic trips. I worry about her.”

  “Then why don’t you tag along? Or convince her not to go if it’s dangerous?”

  “Because I trust her. She’s smart and cautious. She never goes without her crew, and I picked her driver...someone trained, if you know what I mean. And I taught her how to defend herself if necessary. Plus, I finally came to realize that I was going to worry no matter where she was. She has her regular pediatric clinic just blocks away, here in the city, and I even worry when she goes there. Accidents and bad things can happen anywhere at any time. You and I know that firsthand. As marines. And you must understand, after the random, out-of-nowhere way your mama Zoe was killed, how hard it was for me not to think of the worst-case scenario every time Hope left for work.”

  He did understand. He remembered how agitated Ben would get while Chad and his siblings were eating breakfast, until Hope called to say she was at the office. She’d been so patient with him. So patient with all of them.

  “Did Hope tell you to sit me down today?”

  “No idea what you’re talking about.”

  Yeah, right.

  “I get what you’re saying, Dad. You trained your mind. But if you’re referring to Lexi, it’s different. You were already a father.”

  “I didn’t know how to be one. I had to learn that, too.”

  “You also had your own career after the marines. You didn’t have the same kind of injuries I have.”

  “I struggled to find my place, just as you are, and at first I had no clue what I was going to do with my life. At least not what I ended up doing. I figured it all out based on one crucial starting point. I knew whatever decision I made, it had to include my children and Hope or I’d die a miserable, lonely man full of regrets. And I told you once and I’ll say it again, nothing can hold you back. Not even the loss of a limb. Just don’t lose your heart and will. Keep the people you love in your life and the rest of the pieces will fall into place.”

  “It’s different.”

  “We’re a lot alike, you and I. Hope used to joke about how you’d imitate me as a kid and how we act the same sometimes.”

  “I don’t see it.”

  “I don’t, either.” Ben chuckled. “But my point is, we do have some things in common. The marines for one. Falling in love with healers. Go figure. A doc and a nurse. Both strong women who want to save the world. I’ve got to wonder what that says about us.”

  “That we need healing?”

  Roosevelt looked between the two of them as if he could understand the conversation.

  “So you do love her, then?”

  “What?”

  “You didn’t object when I said we both fell in love with healers.”

  He had him there. Chad threw the ball.

  “Why are you here, Chad?” Ben pressed.

  “I want to go back to the marines and serve in whatever capacity they’ll let me.”

  “I’m going to ask you one more time. Why are you here?”

  Chad paused. Ben was questioning him returning to the marines? Of all people, he thought his dad would be the one to say suck it up and get back out there. Didn’t he see that Chad was defined by the elite pride that made him a Special Forces veteran? Or was Ben trying to tell him he was running away from something, just as Lexi had?

  Was he being a coward?

  “I’m not sure anymore. I don’t know where to be or how to be. Besides, I can’t go back to the clinic now. I broke it off with her. Told her I was going to try to reenlist.”

  “Now, why would you do that?”

  “Because she wanted more than I could give, and my purpose has always been to serve in the military, to be more.”

  Ben hung his head and sighed.

  “Son, Hope once begged me to ask her to stay with us, a
nd I told her I couldn’t. All I had to do was ask. She had been willing to give up life as she knew it because she loved us that much, but I had loved her too much to let her sacrifice everything she’d worked for. I couldn’t live without her and you kids loved her, too, so we traveled to the other side of the world just to find her and be with her. Can you imagine what our lives would be like...what we would have missed out on had I let her go? And in the process, I learned that the hardest job I’ve ever taken on, and the one I’m proudest of, is being as good a father and husband as I can be.”

  Chad didn’t answer. He took in a deep breath. Maybe he was the one who’d earned the name Mwoga. He was nothing but a coward. Afraid of change. Afraid of loss. Afraid to love.

  “She told me never to speak to her again.”

  Ben laughed and Roosevelt’s ears perked again.

  “Boy, you really did a number on her. Beg. Roosevelt here can show you how. Honestly, though, ask yourself one question. Can you live day after day without ever seeing her or her baby again? Or knowing, in the future, that someone else might sweep in and steal her heart? Will you go to bed every night wondering if she’s okay? Or how her day went? Or if there was something you could have done to make their lives better, or to make your relationship work?”

  Chad hadn’t slept since he’d left her. He had been wondering all of those things since returning to Nairobi. What if she met someone else? Like that new guard. Would he have any more right to be jealous than Tony had from his grave? Could he let her go?

  Roosevelt licked the back of his hand then curled up at his feet.

  Or maybe he’d licked his ring finger because he agreed with Ben.

  Being away from Lexi really was jumbling his thoughts. He needed to convince her to hear him out. To forgive him.

  But he could use a wing man. Or a fur man, in this case. The pieces were falling into place.

  “I have an idea, Dad, but you won’t like it. In fact, you’ll probably kill it before it takes its first step.”

  * * *

  LEXI DIDN’T SEEM happy to see Chad step out of the chopper. But that wasn’t the only surprise he had for her.

  “You brought your dog with you? Did you really think he’d make me forget what you said the last time you were here?” Lexi was cradling Reth in the sling she wore.

  Man, it was good to see them again. Roosevelt sniffed her feet, but otherwise stayed close to Chad. Poor guy seemed a little nervous with the new surroundings. Chad couldn’t blame him. He was nervous, too, though for other reasons.

  “Roosevelt is technically my younger brother’s dog. My sister got him as a puppy for Philip, but he couldn’t take him to college, so he’s been bonding with my dad instead. He’s, um, good with kids. Clean. A good listener. Trainable. Loves hugs. Is loyal and a good protector.”

  Her brow furrowed and she cocked her head. “Are you giving me the dog’s résumé or yours?”

  He gave her a lopsided smile.

  “Both?”

  “No use in applying for a job if it’s unavailable.”

  Ouch. He deserved that.

  “Except that I wouldn’t call living by your side a job. I’d call it a privilege.”

  For a second her chest stopped rising and falling and she seemed frozen to the spot.

  “Don’t mess with me, Chad. You walked away. Plain and simple.”

  “I messed up. Lexi, all I ask is that you hear me out. Give me two minutes and if you want me to leave and take this adorable, loving dog with me, I will.”

  “I’m not falling for the sweet dog trick, but nice try,” she said.

  Roosevelt let out a two-syllable whine and Chad was pretty sure he caught the flicker of a smile on Lexi’s face.

  “Lex, the fact is, I love you. You were right. There is something amazing between us. A once-in-a-lifetime kind of love. And it scared me because I didn’t think I deserved it or that I could live up to it. And I was also afraid I would lose it if something happened to you or the baby.”

  “Chad—”

  “Let me finish. When I was in Nairobi, I realized that I could recover from a lot of things, physically, but I’d never be able to recover from losing you. And it didn’t matter if I was afraid of not being able to protect you, because if I walked away over something that might happen, I’d have already lost you for no good reason at all.

  “I thought my purpose in life was to chase after the bad guy and fight hatred, but I realized that evil can be fought in more than one way. Maybe I was meant to fight evil by finding love and protecting and nurturing it.

  “I can’t live without you, Lex. I want you and Baby Reth in my life, forever. Walking away from you and what we have would be a mistake. I might as well give up all the rest of my limbs and stop my heart from beating because you’re that much a part of me.”

  She bit her lip and tears brimmed in her eyes.

  “But you said you’d never be happy here. That you needed to go after your own career. I can’t abandon all the people who rely on this clinic...especially the children.”

  “I know. I don’t want you to. That’s why I brought Roosevelt.”

  “I don’t get it.”

  “I’ve worked with dogs before. I had one in the marines—the best—his name was Aries. I trained him and other dogs and screened them for service duty. I want to do the same here—establishing canine units to serve with the KWS anti-poaching units and with Ben’s teams. It hit me that many of the village homesteads not only have acacia fences, but dogs, too. Even Haki had a dog out at his place. There’s no reason why we can’t do the same around here. There’s space to build kennels just out there, behind the bungalow. It would be far enough not to scare patients or violate any medical regulations. And I could help other veterans by bringing them on board. And Roosevelt here would help out, too, but he’d stay with us and guard the clinic and our kids, starting with this little guy. A family dog. A family, Lexi.”

  He took a step closer, keeping hold of the dog’s leash, and was encouraged by the fact that she didn’t step away.

  “Say something,” he said.

  “I’m not sure what to say. It sounds...perfect. But I’m still not over the shock of you leaving and turning me down.”

  “I’m sorry, Lex. I didn’t mean to hurt you or lose your trust. I’d like to live here and help you raise Reth...as an uncle, if that’s all it can be. I don’t ever expect you to ask me to marry you again.”

  “Good. Because I won’t ever ask again. That was a one-time deal.” Her voice shook.

  “But I can ask you.”

  Her lips parted and a tear rolled down her cheek.

  “Chad, don’t feel pressured to take a risk like that.”

  “I’m a risk-taker by nature, but marrying you wouldn’t be taking one. I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life. Marrying me on the other hand... I don’t know. You’d have to be pretty gutsy. I’m told I can be a lot to handle.”

  That earned a laugh and Roosevelt started wagging his tail.

  “You? Difficult? Let’s just say that your mom and Dalila have been entertaining me with stories,” she said. “I wasn’t sure if their intention was to help me get over you or to embarrass you by sharing. After all, they were pretty upset that you left.”

  “Did they scare you off ever letting me into your life again?”

  “No. It made me love you even more.”

  He took another step closer.

  “So, is that a yes?”

  Roosevelt barked, Reth started crying and several drops of rain mottled the ground.

  “Yes.”

  He brushed his lips against hers then pressed them into a kiss.

  “I’ll never stop loving you, Lexi. I’d gather every star in the Serengeti sky for you if that’s what it takes to make you happy.”

  “You’re all I ne
ed, Chad. You make me happy.” She kissed him and rested her head against his. “Now, every time the rains come and clouds fill the sky and cover the stars, I’m going to think it’s because you’ve gone and gathered them for me.”

  And then, as if on cue, it rained. A good omen. A promise that their lives out here in Kenya’s Serengeti would always be blessed with joy, all of their family and friends and an abundance of love. The promise that, no matter what challenges they faced on their adventure together, they’d always have each other...and as long as they cherished that love, at the end of each day for the rest of their lives, they’d always have a place to return to, a place called home.

  EPILOGUE

  BUSARA. THE HEARTBEAT of their family. A place that had started as a remote and very rustic veterinary research and elephant rescue camp—literally a few tents, a bucket shower and well water—had grown into a truly beautiful sanctuary over the years. Like the sprawling canopy of the Serengeti’s acacia trees that sheltered all life within their reach, Busara embraced all its inhabitants, from baby elephants orphaned by poachers, to critters in need, to three generations of family and friends. It always had.

  Chad leaned back in the wicker chair that sat on the front porch of what everyone referred to as Busara House, built after his Aunt Anna and Uncle Jack married, when his cousin Pippa was only four years older than Reth was now.

  He gazed across the central, open courtyard area of Busara to the wooden elephant pens, the small vet clinic and the old, repurposed framed tents where Pippa and Haki had lived when they were born, much like Reth growing up at their clinic.

  Chad cradled Reth against his shoulder, as Roosevelt lay by the chair. The dog had appointed himself loyal guardian to Reth. Even Mosi, Busara’s resident vervet monkey and prankster, couldn’t rouse more than an eyebrow wrinkle and ear twitching from him when Reth was near.

  It was hard to believe Reth was turning a year old today. Judging from the drool on Chad’s shirt and the elephant trumpeting he’d slept through, the kid wasn’t even close to waking up. He loved going on jeep rides, especially if he spotted giraffes, zebras and other wildlife along the way. That morning, he had worn himself out, laughing hysterically every time the jeep had bounced when they hit a stone or rut in the dirt road during their trip over from Camp Hope.