Later the next day, Margaret went back to see the Colonel. Mrs. Potter offered to watch the child for the day. She said that she would stay with Emily for the day if Margaret would stay with the Colonel. He didn't like to be left alone, but wouldn't admit it. Mildred was going to spend the night with him. The nurses would bring in an extra bed for her so that she was comfortable.
It was about eleven in the morning when there was a knock at the front door. Mildred was expecting a guest, and hoped it was him. She opened the door to see a tall man with dark hair at the door. "You must be Hawkeye," she smiled.
"The one and only," he said with a boyish smile. "It's nice to finally meet you Mrs. Potter. I can see why the Colonel missed you so much."
"You're a flatterer," she smiled. "Come on in," she invited. "I'm so glad you could make it. Sherman will be very happy. He didn't know you were coming."
"You're very good at keeping surprises from him, aren't you?" He said as he walked in and shut the door behind him.
"It comes with years of marriage," she said.
There was a little girl in the living room that caught Hawkeye's attention. She was standing by some toys looking at him shyly. "Hi," he smiled. He looked at Mrs. Potter. "Is this one of your grandchildren?"
She looked at Emily standing there looking scared and alone. "No," she walked over and picked up the child. "This is Margaret Houlihan's daughter, Emily."
Hawkeye was stunned. "Margaret's? Is she here?"
"She's at the hospital with Sherman. She took the day shift, and I'm taking the night. She doesn't know you're here either. I heard that you two were good friends, and thought that it would be a nice surprise for her."
"It's a surprise to me," he said looking at the little girl Mildred held. He could believe that Margaret was there, but he found it hard to believe that she had a daughter. But there was no mistaking that that little girl was hers. She looked just like her. "What did you say her name was? Emily?"
"Yes," she smiled. "It's Emily. Can you say hi to this man?"
"Hi," she said.
"Hi Emily. You look like your momma." Emily played shy and laid her head down on Mildred's shoulder. Hawkeye smiled at Mrs. Potter. "God, she looks just like her mother, doesn't she?"
"Yes," she agreed. "Would you like something to eat? I was just about to make some lunch for us."
"Sure. Do you mind if I put my suitcase away?"
"Go right ahead," she said. "It's upstairs, second door on the right. The bathroom is right across the hall."
"Thank you," he said making his way up the stairs.
Hawkeye sat down and ate lunch with Mildred and they got to know each other a little. It was very odd sitting there with a baby that he knew was Margaret's, but hadn't seen Margaret since they said goodbye in Korea. It was strange to think that she was married and had a baby. He hoped she was happy, because that's all he wanted for her. It seemed to be something that was hard for her to find, but he knew that she could, and she would. Apparently she had found it now. He couldn't imagine Margaret not being an excellent mother.
Hawkeye got Emily to open up to him by making her laugh. Soon she was playing with him, and wanted to be with him. It didn't take long for her to warm up to him. He got her to take a nap, and then he and Mildred talked for two hours.
Soon after Emily woke up, she picked Hawkeye to be her new best friend. He played with her and tickled her, and threw her up in the air. He was rough and gentle at the same time. She just fell completely in love with him.
She was getting a little antsy when it was approaching dinner time, so Hawkeye took her outside. Margaret had told Mildred that Emily would get fussy when she was hungry, and that the best thing to do was keep her mind off of it. Mildred passed the information onto Hawkeye, and he took care of Emily for her.
"See the horsies?" He asked her as they approached the fence. "Can you say 'hi' to them?" Emily was in his big strong arms and smiled at him. Then she looked at the horses and waved hello. "What does the horsy say?" Emily made the sound and looked at Hawkeye proudly. "You're a smart baby. I bet Mommy spends a lot of time with you."
"Momma," Emily said sadly. She missed her mother, and it got worse when she was hungry.
"She'll be here soon," he said. "Look," he pointed. "Look at the horsy run." Emily watched the horses, and Hawkeye breathed a sigh of relief. He narrowly escaped a crying fit from the seventeen month old.
Hawkeye and Emily stayed out there for a while watching and talking to the horses. Then they played with the dog for a while. He wanted to give Mrs. Potter enough time to get dinner done, so that when he and Emily went back inside they could eat right away.
Mildred was inside preparing dinner for herself and her guests. After dinner she was going to go to the hospital to spend the night with her husband. She figured that Margaret and Emily would be more comfortable today than they were yesterday. From what she heard about Hawkeye, she didn't think that he would have any problem making himself comfortable.
Mildred looked up when she heard the front door open. It was Margaret. "Hi honey. Are you hungry?"
Margaret smiled at the greeting. "I'm starving. The lunch at the hospital was disgusting." Margaret said as she walked towards the kitchen where Mrs. Potter was.
She smiled, "They certainly aren't known for their food. How's Sherman doing?"
"He's doing well. We talked almost all day. He didn't sleep as much as you said he has been. He even looks better than he did yesterday."
"I'm glad to hear that. Did the doctors have any new news for us?"
"Not really," she answered. She looked around and didn't see her daughter anywhere. Emily usually ran to meet her when she came back, even if she was only gone for an hour. "Where's the baby?"
Mildred looked up from the salad that she was tossing, "She's outside."
"Outside?" Margaret asked with confusion. Emily was too little be outside alone, and she knew that Mrs. Potter wouldn't let that happen. "Whose she outside with?"
Mildred smiled, "Her new best friend."
"What?"
"Go look," she said. Margaret walked over to the back door. Mildred watched out the kitchen window.
