Colonel Beck walked toward his house with General Louden, Major Franks and Gray Anderson. They'd been discussing the military situation for hours, and he'd called for a break and invited them to dinner when it became clear that they'd need to keep going late into the night. Fortunately, Heather was cooking spaghetti and could easily add three plates.

He heard a muffled giggle from above, and spotted Anna in the oak tree, 'hiding'. He turned to his companions, but spoke so that Anna could hear him.

"Hmmm, I wonder where Anna is. She usually comes to greet me when I come home. She must be in time out or something." He sighed dramatically about his 'misbehaving' daughter.

Anna swung down from the low branch, hanging by her knees.

"I am not in Time Out!"

Edward grinned at the sight of his daughter hanging upside down, long brown hair dangling. It had leaves in it. The rest of her wasn't exactly clean either. He heard chuckles from either side of him.

"There you are!" he said, coming up to her. Her head was at the same height as his, and he kissed her forehead. "I didn't see you, all covered in leaves." He picked one out of her hair and held it in front of her to emphasize his point.

"It's camouflage."

"Indeed. Now get down here and wash up for dinner. When you're done, you can set the table for six."

"Do I hafta? I just got everything set up." She crossed her arms. He looked up at her things in the tree. Heather had started to make a treehouse with Anna; at this point it was just a platform.

"You can come back after dinner. Now come on." He reached up and caught her as she released her grip on the limb. He carried her into the house, flung over his shoulder like a squealing sack of potatoes.

"Oh my, look what the cat dragged in." Heather said, sticking her head out of the kitchen.

"Yeah, someone's been creating her own ghillie suit."

"Well she needs to take it off. Dinner will be ready as soon as the noodles boil."

He swung Anna down and she scampered off to the bathroom. He turned to his guests. The general and the major seemed surprised to find the local liaison here, cooking dinner at the colonel's house. Heather and Edward had agreed to keep work and personal lives separate, so the visiting officers hadn't seen them 'together'. Beck gestured to the living area.

"Make yourself at home. What would you like to drink?"

"Water's fine." General Louden said. The others nodded agreement.

He went into the kitchen and kissed Heather on the cheek.

"Smells good."

"Right out of the can." She smiled at him. "So how late are you going to be up tonight?"

"Don't know."

"Is this going to be a working dinner?" she asked.

Edward understood what she was really asking. As part of keeping work and personal lives separate, he'd briefed her on when and how to address him. At work, they continued much as they had; it was either 'sir', or 'Edward', depending on who else was present. Today had been unusually full of sirs, due to the presence of the visiting senior officers. Outside of work, though, she could call him anything she wanted. ("Anything, Pookums?" "Well, almost anything.") However, this was the first time he'd brought work home.

"Never 'sir' me at home. I don't care who our guests are."

She nodded, stirring the noodles as he poured drinks. He carried the drinks out to the table. Anna came through the living area on her way to get the dishes. Edward snagged her as she passed, picking out leaves she'd missed from the back of her head.

"Daddy!" She squirmed in his grasp.

"You missed a few." He put the leaves in the trash and ran his fingers through her hair to smooth it out. "Now let's see your hands." She displayed them. "Good girl." He released her and she continued to the kitchen. Beck just smiled, watching Heather hand Anna the silverware. He went back in to put the sauce on the table, not noticing the amused looks from his guests.

Dinner was pleasant; they discussed things of little consequence and watched Anna nearly make it through dinner without getting sauce on her bib.

After dinner, Anna ran back out to play. Being comfortable and full, the adults were content to continue their discussion out on the porch instead of going back to the office. Heather and Edward sat on the porch swing, where they could keep an eye on Anna in the tree. They discussed the general local situation. Heather was able to inform the visiting officers about recent happenings as well as several local personalities. The conversation turned to resources.

"So the factory is producing what, exactly?" the major asked.

"Mortar shells, mostly. A few other things." Beck said.

"Yeah, they're real good at making mortars." Gray added, his tone dark.

Edward sensed Heather's uneasiness. Finding those items had led to her imprisonment. He grasped her hand. She gave herself a quick mental shake.

"How's the situation in New Bern?" The general asked.

"Not quite as good as it is here. Their factory is their main asset. Otherwise, the situation is generally a step behind Jericho. We try to balance that out, sharing Jericho's resources, but they have more people and fewer resources."

"You know, I'd like to speak to the New Bern leadership as well. Can you reach them tonight? We have to leave in the morning."

"I can have them meet us in camp."

The general looked at him, puzzled both at his tone and at why they would move from their current location.

"The Constantinos are not welcome in our home." Beck said.

The major joined the general's strange look. Edward really didn't want to explain. Heather had only recently begun discussing her experiences with him. He knew he was the only one who knew exactly what they'd done to her, that she hadn't been able to tell anyone else. He was not going to tell two people she didn't know without even asking her. Fortunately, Gray cut in with a truthful but suitably vague explanation.

"They are not people you want around your family." Gray said. "They're violent and cruel. In the course of our…conflict… they imprisoned, tortured and killed our citizens. Heather is lucky to be alive."

Their gaze turned to Heather, looking at her with new eyes. She returned their gaze levelly, but Edward felt her tense under their scrutiny, her hand tightening on his. He cleared his throat, drawing attention back to him.

"I can go make the call now."

"That's fine." The general was decidedly less eager to meet the New Bern leadership now.

Beck went inside to make the call; Heather went with him, keeping hold of his hand, avoiding the inevitable awkward conversation if she stayed outside. Inside the door, he put his arms around her. She leaned into his embrace for several seconds, then took a deep breath.

"Thanks, Eddy. I needed that."

"No problem."

The men on the porch made idle chitchat in the gathering dusk. When the door opened, Heather came out, followed by Beck. Beck stopped on the porch, but Heather continued out to the tree. She did not look at the men on the porch as she passed, not wanting to hear any condolences or apologies. Ed was all she needed.

"Sir, is she ok?" asked the major quietly.

"She's fine. Just let it go." He glanced over as Heather told Anna it was time to come in. "He says they can meet us in about twenty minutes." Beck said. "Shall we?" he gestured towards the camp.

When they arrived at their destination, the general wrinkled his nose. This tent was right next to the mess tent trash pile, and the stench was pretty terrible.

"Is this really the best place to meet them?"

"Well, I don't trust them enough to let them in the map room." At the general's skeptical look, he continued, admitting to a lesser motive. "It keeps our talks short. They can't seem to leave fast enough when I offer them a meal." He grinned maliciously. Gray snorted in amusement, then gagged on the smell.

A dirty truck drove up with two men. Even without the briefing, the general was pretty sure he'd dislike them on sight. They were unshaven and dirty, but that really wasn't the reason. Their manner was all the things he disdained – he had no doubt that they were as cruel as he'd been told. They somehow managed to swagger and skulk at the same time.

"General Louden, Major Franks, allow me to introduce Phil and Clark Constantino." Beck's words were courteous, but everyone knew the courtesy was a lie. Phil nodded acknowledgement; Clark looked bored. The officers were somewhat offended, but were relieved not to have to shake hands with them. Seeing as there was no point in wasting pleasantries on them, and instantly coming to the conclusion that Beck was right about short meetings with these two, the general got right to the point.

"We're losing ground. The ASA is pushing us back in this direction. Since we've been building up this area, it may become a target. In particular, the factory. You may want to prepare for an air raid."

"Thanks for the warning."

"Is there anything in particular New Bern needs?"

Phil shrugged.

"More of everything. Food."

"I'll keep that in mind."

There was a pause as conversation lagged.

"Well if that's all gentlemen, let's head over to the mess tent, I could use a cup of coffee." Beck's words were again courteous. A courteous lie.

"We're good." Phil said. "Till next time."

Gray hid a smile as the Constantinos drove off.

"So does anyone actually want a cup of coffee or should we just head over to the map room?" Beck asked.

"I could use one. Get this taste out of my mouth." The general said.

"The garbage or the Constantinos?" asked the major.

"There's a difference?"