Hawkeye won the race to the Packard because of his long stride. Once we settled in, he took us out of Eddie's and drove us through town. Then, he took a small side road that soon transformed into a tiny dirt pathway that moved upward. Soon, the Packard hopped up and down with the abuse and we moved with it. I held onto the passenger door. I was sliding back and forth with each bump.

"Can this road get any worse?" I demanded in a panic.

"I told you, the woods here are vicious," Hawkeye replied. "Trees that eat people. Bears that grow tall. Or is it the other way around?"

I sighed, resigned. Hawkeye was in a silly mood. I hope he didn't spoil the visit to Jake's with some nonsense. Then, I realized that it was a way to calm himself. Before long, he was rambling through nursery rhymes that soon transformed to smut. He even turned Jack and Jill in a story of two adults, one with an oversized birdie and the other with a tight futz. I was chuckling as I tried to keep my head from hitting a surface.

It helped him too. Hawkeye stumbled over some of his own jokes, to the point where he almost could not finish them because he was laughing so hard. I had to add commentary before he'd pick up on each story. Once we turned Humpty Dumpty into another shape completely, we were done. We were both in stitches and almost hitting every rock and bush we could find without proper navigation. Luckily, Hawkeye managed to miss the trees.

The road turned less chaotic towards the top of the hill. Hawkeye took a left-hand turn, to avoid a wall of rocks, and he followed it until a series of houses came forth. At first, they were close together. Then, it grew further and further apart. It was at the dead end that he stopped. He parked the Packard and helped me out.

I could not blame him. The terrain was more uneven. With a helping hand, Hawkeye guided me to the house. I noticed that it was a small cabin. It appeared to be one room with an outhouse in the yard out back. Wood and some beer bottles and cigarette butts littered what was left of the grass. Various tools of the survival trade leaned against the house. Patches of snow partially covered them.

Hawkeye knocked and we waited, arm-in-arm. There was no answer after a few minutes. Love tried the door again. When there was again no reply, he tried the doorknob. It was locked.

"Maybe we should go home?" I suggested. I was losing my nerve.

"We can't go home," Hawkeye reminded me.

"Well, we can. The blood should be out of the floors by now."

"Jeanie, the blood isn't out of the floors. They had to be torn apart and replaced. I could not walk over it."

"What are you talking about? I thought Dad was the only one hurt. The living room carpet should have been the only replacement."

Then, the truth suddenly hit me. In Cochran's rage, he did not realize that he was targeted. The MPs were at Mrs. Pettigrew's. Greg was present to see me safe. That would mean that Cochran was ceremoniously shot where he stood and they ensured that he was dead. MPs who saw a maniac will not hesitate to kill. Greg was handy with a gun.

"Oh, my God." I sighed. "He's dead, isn't he?"

"Will that change anything?" Hawkeye eyed me. "Will you come home?"

"I think it's best that you do not say anything," I decided. "I might do something I will later regret."

Hawkeye agreed. His attention soon was back at the door. He was going to knock again when it opened a little. A rifle barrel met us. Immediately, we put our arms up in surrender. We were familiar with keeping peace.

"We're friends!" I called out.

"Chickens, but friends!" Hawkeye added.

Quickly, the gun moved aside slowly. A creak swung the wood backward. Jake put his weapon down, but he did not discard it. He was ready to kill, I noted. I had seen that look in his eyes from Dean. He was alert.

A brave man once requested me…

I shook my head from the nightmare. "Can we come in, Jake?"

Jake said nothing. He moved to one side. Hawkeye and I shrugged our shoulders at each other and entered the one-room abode. Jake locked the door behind him and leaned against it, standing guard with his arms crossed and the gun between them. Hawkeye pulled out a chair for me and stood while I sat.

"What do you want?" Jake demanded.

"It is not for us to take," I explained. "We are here to give."

"We, chickens of the commanding post by the beach, swear allegiance to the guard in the woods," Hawkeye said.

I elbowed Hawkeye. "Jake, we are here to talk to you. You told Dad we could come."

"What are you talking about?" He sounded angry.

It was then that my spy's instincts kicked in. Jake was never this defensive. He was quiet and understanding. This was new. But then again, an old war veteran from the air was more pissed off than most. He was not here in Crabapple Cove – mentally, anyway. He was somewhere in Germany.

The dark eyes were sinister, remembering the Huns he shot down and died before his sight. His greying hair was slicked back by the wind of the aeroplane. His fingers still twitched to pull a trigger. His body is tense, like he hoped that death was not coming for him or his buddies this day.

"Jake, it's us, Jeanie and Hawkeye." I stood up and took a step closer. "We want you to understand that we hold nothing against you. You've done nothing wrong and we cannot blame you."

Jake picked up his gun again and aimed at my heart. "I ain't one for missin', hon," he told me. "I was one for pickin' them out, one by one."

Shaking, I took another step. "Shot me," I dared him. "You won't be the first."

"Jeanie," Hawkeye hissed, "are you insane?" He tried pulling me back.

I made myself out of reach, having my vision solely on Jake and my hands waving at Hawkeye to stop. "I was on the front lines of the war many times. The lines always shifted. I was a survivor of an enemy bombing. I should have died on the table. Shot me. Go right ahead. You won't do anything to me somebody else has not."

Jake kept me in his scope. "Then, you'd suffer the same fate as the man who sent me to you."

"That's right," I confirmed. I played his game. "I can be your victim or I can be your friend. Listen, Jake. Just give me the gun and we can talk. Last I checked, I was Irish and French. I thought it meant I was on your side."

I meant to be funny. Jake didn't think so. He called me a filthy Taig and a Surrender Monkey. His finger went back to the trigger and he could have shot me right then and there, but I was faster. Quickly, I ducked and swiped my feet underneath his and tripped him. The gun shot at the roof.

I grabbed the rifle and tossed it at Hawkeye. Then, I pinned Jake down on the floor. "You think I am going to just let you be some jackass, honey, you have another thing coming to you. Now, calm your ass down and we can talk."

That took some time and we had to leave him be. Jake was still flying over the skies of Germany and thinking he was talking to someone on the ground. When Hawkeye hid his gun in a corner, it left Jake nothing more than pacing. We allowed him that. While he walked back and forth, we had to do something. It was then that I began cleaning the place up. It looked like someone had one long drinking binge and I was not tolerating it. Hawkeye helped, lining up bottles and picking up clothes. Mostly, we found Lucky Lager and Labatt's Ale and some torn shirts

"I never a man so in love with cheap beer," Hawkeye commented.

I found a wooden tub and a board for washing and threw all of the dirty clothes in there. "Or a man who was so lonely in his head."

We continued our tasks. By the time Jake quieted down, the dishes were done and the bottles had been cleaned up. I was right in the middle of washing his clothes when he snapped out of his reverie. When he did, he was chastened and quite worried about us.

"Hawkeye, Jeanie, when did you get here?" he asked. He glanced at the wall, where the dust of his weapon laid. "Wait, where's my gun?"

"It's in timeout," Hawkeye replied. He moved the bags of garbage to one corner. "We had to do something about its behavior."

"I am sorry," Jake announced. "I did not mean to bring you with me."

"It was nothing," I told him as I scrubbed. "We've been there too."

All three of us were quiet, all of war veterans thinking of the days and nights where we did not know where were. Jake glanced around him and saw how clean his cabin was and actually smiled. He helped to put the last of the items away and threw out some of the rotten food on the tables. He also told me to stop washing his clothes.

"I lived in conditions that were considered untidy," I said. "You, Good Sir, have now surpassed the Swamp of Korea."

"I think he is king," Hawkeye added.

"He is missing some fleas and rats."

"They're outside. We might have to be humane and let them in."

"I thought they could survive on their own."

Jake interjected. "I had a bad time, I think."

Hawkeye picked up an overturned table. "I think you had more than a bad time. I think guilt made you go back to Germany."

"We are of the committee that is here to help," I added. "We are to absorb you of your sins."

"I thought it was absolve, Jeanie."

"Well, we might as well suck up his negativity. We absorb much of our own in drinking anyway."

Again, Jake cut in before we went around in circles. "Listen, you two. You don't need to be here."

"We do," I replied. "We're not just here to be nuisances. We really meant to talk. You need to come back to town. Nobody can hurt you."

"Not until this fire Mrs. Bretton started is gone," Jake declared. "That snake is willing to see me burned."

Hawkeye and I exchanged looks. Jake was right. Mrs. Bretton had a pretty damned big mouth. This will mean we have a campaign we have to invest in. Dad may have assisted in keeping the locals away, but it does not mean people will forget.

"Then, people need to be reminded of the good you've done," I announced.

"Jeanie, this is not some politician's bullshit," Jake said. "You cannot sweep what I did under a rug. I was wrong. Doctor Cochran took advantage of me."

"And we are here to help with that. We have to make sure people understand that you were on a mission."

Yeah. It was finding my daughter. Who cares about that except for me?"

"Any parent will," Hawkeye clarified. "Have you ever dealt with refugees?"

Jake shook his head. "We shot them. We did not have any care for them."

"Where we were in Korea, we did not kill them." Hawkeye raised his voice. He sounded emotional. "They came in by the thousands. They tried crossing bridges and rivers. We shot them. Those who came our way were looking for their family. To know that they are lost is something I cannot forget. I would not wish that on anyone. I don't know what I'd do if I lost my children."

"You cannot compare me to your war," Jake retorted. His face turned red. "I have not had to run away."

"No, but every parent will have sympathy," I said. "You'll see."

Luckily, Jake calmed down a little. From there, we went quiet and finished our cleaning. We continued in a sort of harmony as fellow witnesses of combat, finalizing the arrangement around the cabin. When we were done, some hours had passed and it was dinnertime. Dad was probably worried about us. He may have known about Jake's state of mind beforehand (if he saw it), but not the results of our labor.

Jake thanked us for our help. "I don't know how you two are going to do this," he mentioned on our way out. "If I cannot leave home, I have to make another home elsewhere."

The prospect of Jake leaving was horrible. This was his home. While not too many people knew where he lived, not being able to step foot in a town he sought to escape in was something I could not imagine. We had to hurry then.

"Leave it to us," Hawkeye reassured him. "If we cannot sway the hordes of mother bears, nobody can."

~00~

Hawkeye and I had Jake on our minds in the coming days and we planned on how we were going to rehabilitate him in the community. But we also had more on our plates than that. We still had yet to choose a property for the new clinic. Fielding called us at Eddie's to remind us that construction can start in four months' time. We had to choose a plot by Christmas or lose the contract.

We had been in contact with some real estate persons. It was difficult to run with the many that vied for our attention. Finally, we randomly picked one – The New England Real Estate Company. While they were in Searsport, our helper (Shawn Floyd) still had an eye on Crabapple Cove and immediately took us for long rides through beachfront properties and in-town lots that did not make sense to us. So far, none of them seemed to fit the image of the clinic we were looking to build. Then, I had an idea.

We were heading back to Eddie's from yet another useless trip through Crabapple Cove. Hawkeye was frustrated with the man who was working with us. He thought that we were not being listened to. He also believed that Shawn Floyd was eying me up and down and pretending that I was naked. Hawkeye was a jealous type and never liked other men glancing in my direction.

We were almost at Eddie's when I asked Hawkeye to stop the car. He was worried. He pulled over and faced me. He asked me what was wrong.

"Do you know where you picked me up?" I could not remember the spot and sought to think. "The night I walked out?"

Hawkeye grimaced. "That's on the other side of town. There's no development there."

"So? We can be the first."

"I don't know who owns the property. It might not be up for sale, Jeanie."

"Well, let's find out. Can we ask Shawn?"

Hawkeye grunted something akin to assent. He started the Packard up again and soon got us back to Eddie's. From there, he used the kitchen telephone and called Shawn. I did not hear the conversation (I was trying to navigate fights between children in the back room). Hawkeye approached me when four little ones were in corners and either sniffling or pouting. He had a smile on his face.

"It's property for a business," he told me gleefully. "Shawn said we can look it over tomorrow."

I was so excited, I whooped. I grabbed Hawkeye and we began dancing around the room. We were so close to achieving this dream! We were steps away from having our own place for a business.

As we twirled in a loving dance, Hawkeye reached for a radio. A song came on came and we slowed down. We both laughed. Hawkeye too was thrilled about this prospect, although the location was questionable to him.

Now, I don't want to lose you,
But I don't want to use you
Just to have somebody by my side.
And I don't want to hate you.

I don't want to take you, but
I don't want to be the one to cry.
And I don't really matter to anyone
Anymore, but like a fool, I keep losing
My place and I keep seeing you
Walk through that door.

But there's a danger in loving
Somebody too much and it's sad
When you know it's your heart
You can't trust.

There's a reason why people
Don't stay where they are.
Baby, sometimes love just ain't enough.

Now, I could never change you.
I don't want to blame you.
Baby, you don't have to take the fall.
Yes, I may have hurt you,
But I did not desert you.

Maybe, I just want to have it all.
It makes a sound like thunder.
It makes me feel like rain.
And like a fool who will never
See the truth, I keep thinking
Something's gonna change.

But there's a danger in loving
Someone too much and it's sad
When you know it's your heart
They can't trust.

There's a reason why people
Don't stay where they are.
Baby, sometimes love just ain't enough.

And there's no way home
When it's late at night and
You're all alone.
Are there things that
You wanted to say, and
Do you feel me beside you
In your bed, there beside you
Where I used to be?

But there's a danger in loving
Someone too much and it's sad
When you know it's your heart
They can't trust.

There's a reason why people
Don't stay where they are.
Baby, sometimes love just ain't enough.

I don't know why, but towards the end, the song made me want to cry. The words hit me harder than I expected. When it winded down, the tears in my eyes were heavy and coated my face. Hawkeye did not realize anything until his shirt was wet. The radio switched to another song, something with a little swing, and he wanted me to move with the beat. I had no desire to continue.

"Jeanie, what's wrong?" he inquired when he halted. His fingers traced the trails. "What's the matter?"

I shook my head. For some reason, I was crying harder. It was loud enough that the twins began wailing and Dad was knocking on the door. Then, when Eddie joined the chorus, Hawkeye had to quiet everyone.

First, he picked up Patrick and Danielle and handed them to me to handle. Next, he went to the door, explaining to Eddie and Dad quickly that I was having a moment and to leave us alone. He slammed the door shut and returned to me. I was still upset, so he pulled Patrick from me and bounced him around the room. Danielle began to calm down and was soon pulling my hair.

Shannon and Annabeth thought that this was the end of their timeout and crept closer to me to hug my legs. I eyed them evilly, but they ignored me. Hawkeye saw this and told me that they had enough time in the corner.

I sighed. "Why do you have to interfere?"

"Because they're mine too," he pointed out.

He was right, of course. Hawkeye had every right to speak up about the children. This time, I decided to let it go. I let the girls hold me.

Another song came on. This time, Hawkeye forced me to forget what was bothering me and sang along on the top of his lungs. He was also dancing to the song and kissed me every opportunity he got. It made the children point and laugh hysterically. Then, they were off and moving around too. Danielle became my partner as Annabeth and Shannon formed a circle around me and spun.

It was too much fun. This time, love was enough to forget my woes.

Total fluff! Lyrics are from the Patti Smyth song "Sometimes Love Just Isn't Enough".