10.
Col. Sanderson's House, 6ish in the morning.
Jordan and Rachael peeked into the room where their Aunt Angela was, sound asleep with her three girls on a piles of blankets, sleeping bags, and pillows.
The two quietly pondered.
"Maybe her house caught on fire?"
Rachael scrunched her face up in thought, "Maybe. That would explain why Mom and Dad were out all night."
Jordan nodded. He then leant against the door and tried to figure out why their family never hung out like normal people. It seemed they only got together when there was a disaster.
He then looked back to his sister, "Think they'll come out climbing today?"
She shrugged, "Maybe."
There was a planned trip for the base kids to go out to the local state park and climb down to the waterfalls, led by none other then Colonel Steele's wife. It was an activity not only to get the kids out and off base, but also out and doing something energetic since it was summer. Put on by the officer's wives it was for all kids.
Both kids turned and watched as Diana hurried down the hall past them in a pair of maroon scrubs. She waved, told them that there was fruit and stuff to make omelet's as she hurried down the stairs.
Rachael and Jordan waved, then looked back at their sleeping extended family.
Rachael mused, "Ten bucks says Dad gets her to quit by tonight."
With a raised eyebrow, Jordan considered the bet. "Ok…I have ten on the end of the week."
Downstairs…
Sanderson leisurely sipped his coffee, having gotten off the phone with one of the wives. He couldn't remember her name but was pretty sure she had felt him up when he danced with her at the general's birthday party.
He scanned over the morning's paper for any mention of the night's happenings.
No mention of Eversman or VanBlack in the article about the attack. His day was looking up.
And then Diana ran through the kitchen, filling her thermos and grabbing a banana. In a pair of scrubs with her backpack over her shoulder.
Suddenly he was annoyed.
Calmly he set down his half empty or half full mug, "I thought you quit."
While she filled her thermos she grabbed the sugar and poured the creamer in the purple metal cup. "I still do call…and the occasional shift off base. Remember?"
"No."
Diana rolled her eyes and began to dump sugar in her cup.
He then told her, "One of the wives on the committee called. Apparently Steele's wife backed out of the trip…apparently her implant popped and she has to have it fixed, you're next on the list to take the kids to the park today?"
Diana nodded and grabbed a banana while stirring her coffee and putting the creamer away, "Not a problem."
He waited for her to add something.
Anything.
When she twisted the cap on her thermos and began to devour her banana, Sanderson finally added, "You were at the hospital all night the other night and doing wives stuff yesterday, plus last night you were up with me."
She stared, her cheeks bulged like a chipmunks from the banana she was chewing. She walked to him, kissed his cheek, said something and ran out of the kitchen.
Sanderson looked upwards.
They had the talk before. She knew she didn't have to work. She knew he would have preferred her to stay home with the kids and the wives. She knew they no longer needed her to work. She knew that he was more then capable of supporting all of them.
Sanderson knew she knew all of this and wondered just how he was going to get her to quit her job.