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She turned away from me back to the desk right before her phone rang.
What the hell? It was almost like she knew it was going to ring.
I listened to her give the USO hours and what kind of snacks they had available for children. When she finished the call, she turned back to me with another scary smile.
“Follow me.”
She walked very slowly, which didn’t match her brisk manner when I first walked into the space.
“You go by Code, not Codell, is that right?”
I nodded.
“Well, Code, just know the days of walking the tightrope between rules versus rights are done. From now on, the path of justice will be clear.”
I stopped short. She couldn’t know what I’d been involved in the last couple of years of my life. Not even Jase knew.
Suddenly she sped up. “Come along, Code, I have other customers coming,” she said briskly.
“What path are you talking about?” I asked.
“The next chapter of your life, of course.” She pointed at an open room. “This is the family area.” The space was bigger than I expected. Comfortable chairs, a few service members scattered around, on laptops or sleeping. Subdued. Clean. A haven from the chaos of the main terminal. I followed her in a daze. We walked down a longer hall, and got to a quiet room. Five oversized leather chairs, two of them occupied. One man had a service shepherd sitting next to him.
“Let me introduce y’all. This is Tyler Marconi, retired Army.” The man tilted his head. “He’s headed to Montana, and this is Seth Hansen who is going to South Dakota with Gomer, who he just adopted. Gomer recently retired.”
I nodded to Seth as well.
“Men, this is Lt. Colonel Codell Drakos, Army. He’s recently retired as well, aren’t you?” She looked back at me. I nodded.
“Is there anything I can get y’all?”
“Just point me to the coffee?” I asked.
“I’ll show you.” Tyler stood up.
“Thank you, Tyler.” Blessing beamed.
Tyler took me around the corner where I could grab a hot cup of black coffee. It was strong enough to strip paint. I followed him back to the library and dumped my backpack and settled down.
My phone buzzed. Jase.
Jase: I was checking flights out of Atlanta. Weather’s shit. Is your flight cancelled?
Me: Yep, flight cancelled. Might not fly out til tomorrow. I’ll let you know.
Jase: Perfect. Gives me time to hide Bonnie's good towels before you use them.
I almost smiled.
“You doing okay?” Tyler asked from the chair beside me. “I’m only asking because Blessing’s thrown both Seth and I for a loop.”
“She has?”
“Yeah, she’s either a really nice kook, or some kind of oracle.”
I took a sip of coffee. “Or a little bit of both.”
Seth looked up. “That might be the right answer.”
“I’m going to see if I can get some shut eye.”
“Good luck,” Tyler said seriously.
It was nice being around some of my own. They got it.
