Love Is a Battlefield

by Annalisa Daughety

  She showered and changed into denim capris and a sleeveless red top. Somewhere in the depths of her closet were some white flip-flops. Her best attempt at a patriotic outfit, despite the fact that she wouldn’t be doing anything festive tonight. No point in getting too fixed up, though. She decided to let her hair air dry, even though it meant there’d be waves to contend with. It was just too hot to use the blow dryer. A bit of makeup and she was ready with an hour to spare.

  The ringing doorbell startled her. She wasn’t expecting anyone.

  Sam at her heels, she went to peek out the window to see who it was. Robert and Zach stood on her front porch, each holding something covered with aluminum foil.

  Kristy opened the door. “Hi. What are you guys doing here?” she asked.

  Robert smiled broadly and held up his platter. “We grilled burgers at Mom’s and brought some for you.”

  Zach was less cheerful with his greeting. “Mom sent you some banana pudding, too,” he said with a frown.

  “Thanks. Come on in.” she directed them to the kitchen table.

  Robert removed the foil with gusto, exposing a platter of burgers and buns. “Ta-da. Marinated in Dale’s sauce. Your choice of American, cheddar, or Swiss cheese.” He grinned.

  “You didn’t have to do this. But I’m certainly glad you did. I’m starving. This sure beats the Lean Cuisine I was planning.”

  Robert laughed. “Well, I hated to think of you spending the whole day working. So I thought we’d bring a little taste of the Fourth to you.”

  Zach knelt down to scratch Sam’s belly. “Good boy,” he crooned.

  So it was possible for Zach to have a good time. She was glad to see it. “Do you have a dog, Zach?”

  He looked up, his hand still stroking Sam’s soft fur. “Not since we moved. Our house doesn’t have a fenced yard, so Dad got to keep our dog.” He frowned. “But Mom says maybe we can get a cat sometime.”

  She met Robert’s gaze. Poor kid. It was no wonder he was so miserable. Parents split, moved to a new town, had to leave his friends and his dog behind. She was beginning to understand Zach’s sullenness.

  “I’m going to try to work on that fence soon,” Robert said. “And then we’ll be able to bring Gingerbread to her new home.”

  Kristy grinned. “Gingerbread? That’s a cute name.”

  A small smile from Zach. “I got her at Christmastime. The very first thing she did was jump in my lap and eat a cookie off the plate in front of me.”

  “A gingerbread cookie?”

  “Yep.”

  She fought the urge to reach out and hug Zach. Underneath his preteen angst, he was probably a really sweet kid.

  “Dig in.” Robert motioned toward the burgers.

  ***

  Ace paced the length of his living room, his tennis shoes squeaking against the newly varnished wood floors. He glanced over at his open laptop, mocking him from across the room. Why was this so hard?

  Words normally came easily to him, but not today. Maybe it was because it was a holiday and his subconsciousness thought he deserved the day off. But at the rate he was going, he’d never finish his current project.

  He thumbed through This Great Battlefield of Shiloh as if it would inspire him, but to no avail. He glanced at his watch. It was time to leave to go meet Kristy. He shut his computer down and grabbed his keys.

  In an odd turn of events, she was waiting for him in the parking lot. And he’d expected to have to wait for her as usual. Maybe she was eager to see him. Yeah, right. More likely, she was eager to get the night started so it could end.

  He pulled his truck into the space closest to where she stood and turned off the ignition. Grabbing his keys and radio, he hopped out of the Chevy.

  “Aren’t you proud? I beat you here for once.” she grinned at him, her blue eyes dancing.

  “Impressive. I figured I’d have time to walk down to maintenance and get the truck before you got here.”

  “I didn’t even think about that, or I would’ve already gone to get it.”

  “Not a problem. I wore my running shoes, so I’ll go.” He motioned at her flip-flops. “You can just wait here.”

  She grinned. “Hey. Don’t make fun of my footwear. I can move quite well in flip-flops, thank you very much. I’ll just walk down with you.”

  They set off down the hill, and Ace couldn’t help but admire her red toenails. She always surprised him. Such a neat mixture of tomboy and girlie girl. “Your hair’s different tonight.”

  She raked a hand through her blond hair. “Yeah. I let it air dry, so it’s wavy tonight. And of course, thanks to the humidity, I’m sure it will look like a lion’s mane before the night is over.” she held up a wrist with a band around it. “But never fear. I can contain it if it gets too big and threatens to force us out of the truck cab.”

  He laughed. “Well, I like it. I think it looks pretty like that.”

  She looked startled.

  Why had he opened his mouth?

  “Thanks.”

  They silently climbed in the truck, Ace at the wheel. It seemed that their earlier arguments about who would drive were a thing of the past. Kristy seemed content just to be a passenger. She was quieter than normal tonight.

  “So. You think this’ll be the night we catch the guy?” he asked. “What makes you so sure it’s a guy? it could be a woman, you know.”

  “Fine. You think this’ll be the night we catch the person?” he asked again, emphasizing person for her benefit.

  She laughed. “It probably is a guy. Just giving you a hard time.”

  He was glad to see she was in a good mood. He parked the truck near Water Oaks Pond. The Illinois Monument was in clear view. It had a very large gray stone base, with a regal woman seated on a throne. Mother Illinois watching out for her sons. Since Illinois was Ace’s home state, the monument was one of his favorites.

  He turned the air on full blast. “Soak it up before I cut it off.”

  Kristy unbuckled her seat belt and leaned forward in the seat, nearly pressing her face to the vent. She closed her eyes, the picture of peace.

  He watched as the blast of air blew her bangs off her forehead. He wondered what it would feel like to reach out and run his hand along the side of her face. Her skin looked so soft.

  “Are you watching me?” she asked, her eyes still closed.

  “Yes.”

  “Well, stop it.”

  He sighed and turned off the ignition. The blast of cool air stopped and the truck seemed to fill immediately with warmth. Kristy sat back and looked over at him. “I suppose we’ll be playing round three tonight?”

  “I thought you might be tired of our game.” He smiled. “But I’ve got one doozy of a question for you, though. I spent all day deciding what it was going to be.”

  “All day, huh? I’m intrigued.”

  “Good. Okay, here goes.” He paused dramatically.

  “Well?” she said, her eyes widening in anticipation.

  “Do you think there is only one true love for everyone? And if so, do you think you’ve already met yours?”

  He could see that his question had surprised her. He supposed it was a little personal, but he figured he’d take a shot. She was suddenly engrossed in the walkie-talkie lying on the seat beside her. She turned it over and over, as if searching its exterior for the answer to his question. Finally, she stopped and laid the device down in her lap.

  Her gaze met his in the near darkness. “I don’t believe true love exists,” she said matter-of-factly.

  CHAPTER 33

  A tiny part of her hated him right then for choosing that particular question. Saying the words out loud was painful. But she was tired of running from the truth. And the truth was that at that moment in time, she didn’t believe. She couldn’t.

  “Wait a minute. Let me get this straight.” He shook his head. “You were engaged to be married. You are now dating some guy you met at church. Presumably a nice guy. But yet you don’t be
lieve true love exists?”

  She sighed. She should’ve just made up an answer. Told him what he wanted to hear. But she was tired. Tired of trying so hard to please everyone. It was time to let the ugly truth out. “Yes, I was engaged. And yes, I did love Mark. To some extent. But I never thought he was some great love of my life.”

  “Then why did you agree to marry him? How could you almost spend your life with someone you didn’t even consider your true love?”

  She cleared her throat. “You sound like some kind of fairy tale. Life is not a fairy tale. Real love is hard and messy, and people get hurt.” she shrugged her shoulders. “I guess with Mark I just thought we were pretty compatible. We got along most of the time. We liked the same pizza toppings. So I figured we’d make it work.”

  He stared at her as if she had horns growing out of the hair that she could feel getting bigger by the second. “Wait a minute. You were going to commit your life to someone based on the fact that you both liked pepperoni?”

  “Pineapple, actually. And no. It wasn’t based on the pizza topping. I was just using that as an example. Obviously a bad one.” she rubbed her forehead. “Don’t you get it? because I don’t think that fairy tale love exists, the best I can hope for is compatibility. You know?” she looked over at him. Even in the darkness, she could see that he did not understand where she was coming from.

  “I don’t mean to sound like some hopeless romantic, but it makes me a little sad to hear you say this.” He bit his lip. “Have you always felt this way?”

  She thought back. “Maybe not always. I mean, as a little girl I was all about the fairy tales. Happily ever after and all that jazz. But somewhere along the way, I wised up. My dad left us when I was twelve. Pretty soon after that, my aunt and uncle split up. By the time we were in high school, most of my friends’ parents were at least separated.” she shook her head. “Not a lot of happily-ever-after examples, you know?”

  She leaned her head back against the seat. “I shouldn’t have told you, I guess. Now you’ll think I’m crazy.” she gazed at the drooping material on the truck ceiling and ran her fingers along the design of thumbtacks someone had used to keep the material from coming off. “Haven’t you ever just thought that maybe it’s all too much trouble? it shouldn’t always be so hard.”

  “I disagree. Anything worth having is worth fighting for. Worth the tough times. Love isn’t always easy. It’s not supposed to be. But true love is worth it.” He had a faraway look in his eye.

  She expected him to burst out in song any minute. She had him pegged as an ’80s ballad kind of guy. In fact, it was likely that in the back of his closet, there was a box of mix tapes and love letters.

  “Okay. I’ll concede to you that true love, if it existed, would be worth the hard times. But I stand by my initial answer. And I can give you all the examples you’d like. My parents. Mark and me. Brad and Jennifer. Charles and Diana. Scarlett and Rhett. Romeo and Juliet.” she ticked each couple, both real and fictional, off on her hand. “See? All couples who thought they were perfect matches. And we know how they all turned out.”

  “But, Kristy. Those are just a few specific examples. I can give you plenty for the other side. And being a student of history, I’m a little ashamed of you. There are examples of great loves throughout history. They spanned wars and famines and holocausts.”

  How could she argue with that?

  “And I’m surprised at you, Shiloh ranger extraordinaire. One of my favorite love stories comes straight from this battlefield.”

  Somehow, she knew instantly which story he was going to reference. But she didn’t let on because he seemed so excited. “General William Wallace was stationed here at Shiloh in early spring of 1862. His wife, Ann, was back home in Illinois. Throughout the months, Will and Ann wrote letters back and forth, some of them quite romantic. By the time Will was in camp at Shiloh, Ann had a strange feeling. She just knew she needed to go to her husband. She sent a letter, pleading with him to allow her to make the trip to Tennessee, even though it would be dangerous. Will, ever the gentleman, was too worried for her safety. He implored her to stay put, saying he’d be home on leave soon and they’d be together.”

  Kristy took in the soft expression on his face. He really was a hopeless romantic.

  “But Ann was adamant. She had to see her husband and was unable to shake the feeling. She set out on the journey alone, which was nearly unheard of in that day and time. She arrived in Savannah the evening after the first day of the battle and managed to find a boat that would take her to the riverboat stationed at Shiloh, which was serving as a makeshift hospital. Once on board, she ran into her brother, who was serving in the army alongside her husband. One look into his eyes and she knew—her husband was dead. Ann was devastated. She spent the night on the boat, serving as a nurse to the wounded and dying men.”

  Kristy never tired of this story. She’d read the letters over and over again and had even done a ranger program one summer based on the story. But still, she let Ace tell it. Somehow, hearing the story told from his perspective brought it to life even more.

  “The next morning, before the battle began again, Will’s men went back to the field to collect his body. They brought it back to the riverboat where Ann waited. She immediately ran to her husband’s side once they brought his body on board, but miracle of miracles, he was still alive. Another boat came and took Ann and Will to Savannah to the Cherry Mansion. Although Will was severely wounded, he regained consciousness and was able to talk to his wife, and they were able to say their good-byes. His final words stayed with her forever and were passed down in their family through the letters Ann wrote. He grasped her hand and said, ‘We’ll meet again in heaven.’”

  He looked over at Kristy and smiled. “Now if that isn’t a story of true love, I don’t know what is.”

  “Fine. It is a beautiful story, I admit. But it doesn’t change things for me.”

  “So you mean to tell me that you can’t give me a single example of true love?”

  She rolled her eyes. “Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy.”

  “A nonfictional example? As in a modern-day, someone-you-actually-know example.”

  “I’ll think about it and get back to you.”

  “Fine. And for the record, while I think there are probably a small handful of people in the world who could be my true love, I believe that God has one in particular in store for me.”

  CHAPTER 34

  Ace was horrified. He’d never met anyone who was so jaded about love. It was odd. She wasn’t bitter. It wasn’t as if she gave off an anti-man vibe. In fact, she seemed pro-relationship. Just anti-true love. All that talk about just settling for someone she was compatible with. He thought all women believed in romance. It seemed that he thought wrong.

  The radio on the seat between them crackled, and Owen’s voice filled the silence. “Two-ten to two-fifty.”

  Ace grabbed the radio and mashed the button. “Two-fifty, go ahead.”

  “We can call it a night. There’s been no activity anywhere that we know of.”

  “Copy.” Ace laid the radio back down on the seat.

  As the truck roared to life, they heard the crackling of fireworks. The big display had begun. He glanced at Kristy. “I’ll try to get us out of the trees so we can at least see some of the fireworks.”

  “Thanks. I’ve watched the fireworks over the river every year since I was a little kid. I’d hate to not see any fireworks at all tonight.”

  But as it turned out, time wasn’t on their side. By the time Ace pulled the truck into the parking lot, the last embers of fireworks were scattering over the river.

  “I’m sorry you missed them,” he told her.

  She sighed. “Oh well. Maybe next year.”

  “You want me to give you a ride to your house?”

  “Nah. I’ll just walk.”

  They got out of the truck and started off in separate directions, she toward the residential circle, and he t
oward the main parking lot where his Chevy waited.

  “Hey,” he called.

  She stopped and turned toward him. “Yeah?”

  “Don’t forget. You’re supposed to be thinking of a modern-day example of true love.” He grinned. “I know you can do it.”

  “We’ll see.”

  ***

  Kristy slipped on a pair of old running shorts and a Chi Beta Chi T-shirt from college. She ran a brush through her thick hair and twisted it into a bun. What a night.

  “Come here, Sam.” she stepped onto the deck and held the door open for Sam.

  He ran through, happy she was home. As he began his nightly ritual of circling the yard, sniffing for evidence of General Grant, the cat, or a wayward squirrel, Kristy sank into the plush cushion of the porch swing.

  Ace and his questions. She was impressed that he’d known Will and Ann’s story so well, though. She’d tried a million times to tell that story to Mark, and he’d always been uninterested. Even when she showed him copies of their love letters, he turned his nose up. History is history, he’d said.

  And she knew she must’ve sounded like a major cynic to Ace. But after all she’d been through, first with her dad leaving, and then with Mark leaving her at the altar ... wasn’t she just being a realist? she leaned her head back and looked at the stars. She knew they were so far away, yet there in the darkness of her backyard, they seemed so close she felt like she could reach out and grab one.

  Sam barked his alert bark, and Kristy stood up.

  She peeked through the slats of her fence and saw Ace’s truck in her driveway. Had she left something in the truck tonight? she scooped Sam up in her arms so he wouldn’t run away as she opened the gate.

  “I’m back here,” she called.

  She watched as he made his way to where she stood, one arm behind his back.