In her kitchen, she sat staring at the piece of paper. It took her several tries to steady her hand enough to pick up the receiver. But once she'd calmed down, her slightly trembling fingers dialed Frank's number with a soldier's precision. The effort made her smile. Rotary phones were terrible things; most likely invented by a man. Definitely not made for a woman's fingers.

When the last number had been dialed, she waited, breathlessly for the inevitable click. When it happened, her heart skipped a beat and the phone began to ring. While she waited, she rehearsed what she was going to say.
"Hello, darling, it's Margaret. How are you?"
But when the ringing continued, she knew that she should have hung up. It was a sign. But the soldier in her held onto hope that if she waited long enough she'd get to hear his voice. If only for a moment. Still, she could only hold onto that hope for so long. She was about to hang up when the ringing stopped.

"Hello?"

The breathless voice of a woman could have only belonged to one person; Frank's wife. Margaret froze. She hadn't counted on this. But common sense told her that she should have known it could happen.

"Hello?" The woman's voice held a slight tinge of aggravation.

"Um yes. I'm calling-"

"Hang on a second. I just walked in the door."

The phone muted as though the woman had put her hand over the receiver. Margaret could just make out the words.

"Mary, I've told you five times already! Stop tormenting your sister!"

Margaret swallowed hard, trying to ignore the reality that Frank not only had a wife, but three daughters as well.

"I'm sorry about that." The woman apologized. "Who is this?"

An impossible question with an even more impossible answer.

"This is… I'm calling from Denver… Colorado."

"I'm familiar with it."

Margaret grumbled at the agitation and sarcasm in the woman's reply. Her first thought was to say something sarcastic in return, but she didn't want to talk to

this woman at all. She wanted to talk to Frank.

"I'm trying to reach a Lieutenant Colonel Frank Burns. May I speak to him, please?"

Her request was met with silence that seemed to go on forever.

"Hello? HELLO?" Margaret shouted, no longer concerned about the annoyance in her voice. "Are you there?"

"Y-You want to speak to Frank?" The voice was timid now, completely unlike before Margaret had made her request.

"YES! Aren't you listening to me?"

"O-of course." The woman's voice became shaky. "I heard you, but I'm afraid that speaking to him is impossible."

"Like hell it is!" Margaret yelled. How dare Mrs. Louise Burns forbid her to speak to the man she loved-or thought she loved. She was never really sure. But she

forced herself to calm down. "Look, I'm sorry for yelling. I need to speak to him right away. It's… it's urgent."

"I understand and I'd be happy to let you speak to him, but like I said it's impossible."

Now Margaret's irritation returned. "You mentioned that. But why? Why? Why won't you let me speak to Frank?"

Again the question was met with silence, followed by the soft sound of sobbing and followed yet again by the sound of a thud; perhaps the receiver hitting the

floor. Once again she froze. Frank's wife was clearly upset by her request to speak to Frank. Did she know about their affair? Had she figured it out? Or worse,

had Frank told her everything?

"Please… Just for a moment." Margaret pleaded. "Just for a moment and then I promise I'll never bother you again. Look, my name is Margaret Houlihan… Um,

Major Margaret Houlihan. Frank and I were stationed in Korea at the 4077 Mobile Army Surgical Hospital and I just-."

Louise Burns' sobbing grew even louder, which annoyed Margret to no end.

"Oh for God's sake, why can't I speak to Frank?" Margaret demanded.

The silence that followed was deafening, but nothing could have prepared Margret for the response.

"Frank's dead."