Thank you to all who reviewed, that's awesome. Those of you who haven't reviewed come on don't be shy we love hearing your comments. That's what drives us to figure out another chapter and hopefully get it right for you. Some of this stuff is completely made up so just incase, we don't want to offend anyone because I do not understand how the military works that well with ranks and stuff like that. So we are very sorry if anyone is offended in the process and you can correct us if you want to. Well I'm going to stop talking now, and let you get onto what you came here for. Enjoy.

My Soldiers Boots Part 4

Cate lays in her bed knowing what was going to happen today. She could feel it in her bones. Cate had been sick for the last month with a rare cold in the elderly that slowly shut them down. It wasn't painful, but she still had that feeling.

"What are you still doing in bed? We were going for that walk today?" Tris asks coming into Cate's room.

"The doctor should be coming in a few minutes." Susan says from the door. "Would you like for me to call your children?"

"Yeah, tell them to come over after work." Susan leaves, leaving Cate in a room with a skeptical Tris. "You're early."

"I told you these visits are random throughout the day." Tris uncrosses her arms and puts her hands on her hips. "What's this about a doctor?"

Cate doesn't say anything which makes Tris more stubborn and Cate less willing to talk. Finally after minutes of starring Tris brings out some stuff that they use for arms and they get to work in silence. "Are you going to the airport tomorrow?" Cate asks.

"Yes, me, my daughter, and his brother and sister are all going. His mother can't get off of work and his father doesn't want to be there to see the body." She scoffs the next part, "He doesn't want to see the body. What about the rest of us?" She sighs, "Seeing the body going to make it all real and I don't want it to be real."

"We'll there is that chance that the body you see is alive with a few injuries."

"Then there's always that, which I hope is real."

"Choosing a fake reality and not facing reality are the same thing. You are just going to have to face it and accept it. Lord, knows that's what the women did during World War 2."

Tris watches the old woman. "What was it like? Waiting to get that letter, watching others get that letter, hoping that letter didn't go to you?"

Cate stops her exercises. "Hell. We watched and waited, and those who received the letter. I don't know how they felt, but it was hell." She places her hand on top of Tris. "I watched my friends go to the train station to wait for the arrival of their husbands. All of them returned in caskets. Well most of them anyway. Others returned missing a limb or not in the right state of mind. I watched my best friend get beaten, by her husband who was the nicest person in the world."

Tris was really quiet. He came from an abusive childhood. His father abused him until he was 14, then for some reason he just stopped. His father stopped abusing everyone in his life.

"Your husband, he came from an abusive childhood. Didn't he? After I said it looked like you saw a ghost. Are you afraid that's going to happen to you?"

Tris brushes the hair out of her eyes. "No I don't think that's going to happen. He wouldn't do something like that."

"Mrs. Polk?" A man in his early twenties comes into the room. "And you must be Tris? Her physical therapist?"

"Yes." She gets up and packs up a few of her things. "I'm Dr. Reynolds, but you can call me Matthew." They shake hands and he gives her a big smile that makes her slightly uncomfortable.

"I'll just get out of your way." Tris says awkwardly and moves to her bag. Then she moves out of the room, on her way out she hears Cate screech. "She's married to a man in the military, he can kick your ass."

She walks out of the house to her car that she finally decided to drive, thanks to Evelyn. Even though she didn't say where she was going she decided to leave. She didn't want to talk to Susan right now, or Cate, and she rather not spend anytime with Matthew. So she left for the Eaton's house, a place where she does not, but yet has to be.

She wakes up the next morning in Tobias's old bedroom, wondering how she got here. She has slept in this bed before and it wasn't weird then. But now without him here, it was kind of weird.

"How did I end up in Tobias's room?" Tris asks as she walked out in the kitchen.

"Oh I put you in there when you and Becca feel asleep on the couch. He would want you to sleep in there." John said not looking up from his bowl of cereal.

"Jonathon Marcus Eaton how are you still eating? That's like your fourth bowl of cereal." Evelyn says walking in with Becca resting on her hip and Grayson, the 3 year old trailing behind her with his blanket in his little hands.

"What? I'm hungry. Even though my little brother is not here, it's not going to stop me from eating my favorite cereal. He would be doing the same thing if it were me." That's true, Tris thought as she took Becca from Evelyn's hands.

Grayson climbs on his father's lap and begins to play with spoon that lies on the counter. "So what time do you want to get ready to go to the airport?" John asks.

"They're landing at 12 and we are going to want to be there early, maybe leave here at 10? I think that will give us enough time."

"Yeah that works."

"Well I'm glad that you two figured that out, I'm going to work. Don't bother calling me or telling me the news, I don't want to know. I don't want the news to affect how I work today. Promise me that you won't call or text me no matter if I do, okay?"

"Promise." John and Tris say together.

John watches his mother walk out the door, and slam the door behind her. She does this a lot. She drowns out her feelings in work, and whatever she feels affects how she works that day. He's grown up seeing it. Her mother will he thinking of her son all day and still get nothing accomplished. She used to do that with their father, that's when she would worry about how he will feel when she gets home.

Tris winces as the door slams then goes to get ready. She finds some clothes that she brought over for her and Becca and continues to get ready like a robot. Everything she does feels like it takes forever. Hours feel like eons, minutes feel like years, even breathing feels like it takes centuries to accomplish.

Finally as she is doing folding some clothes for her and Becca she hears some talk through the music of her IPod. "Tris, let's go." John says standing in the entry way of the living room. Sarah stands behind him, slipping on her sweatshirt.

Women and children, brothers and husbands, stand around waiting for their loved one. Everyone holds signs with that person's last name on it, so that when the person comes it will be easier to find them.

Uriah hunts Tris down and hugs her. He looks so lost, she had never seen him that way. Uriah feels lost and cold. His brother has left him without any word and if he is alive, he's going to kill him, for putting him in a position like that.

Shauna, Zeke's girlfriend wheels up to them, with their son on her lap. She kinda gasps when she sees John. She probably remembers hearing of the fight that they had before Tobias left. They both left the fight bleeding, Tobias begged Uriah not to say anything to Tris when he brought him home. He said that she had enough to worry about with Becca and all. It was John's fault that they got into that fight. Uriah hopes the bastard feels awful.

Sarah watches them from a distance make their small talk. As the youngest of two very rowdy, thinking-that-they-know-everything-brothers, she knows when to stay out of the spot light. They were the ones that everyone looked at, both extremely athletic, not to mention really smart. But out of the two of them she always like Tobias better. Maybe it's because he's not as cold as John or maybe it's because she just knows him better, but when her brother disappeared she's the only one who did not seek comfort from others. Maybe that makes her cold, or its because she can still hear him say 'Be brave' to her on the other side of the line when he called her.

Becca waddles up to Sarah and begs for her to pick her up. Tris watches them and slightly smiles. Sarah has always liked Tris, and always respected her. She knew that before Tris met her brother, that she dropped out of high school, got her GED, and became emancipated. She went to college early and she met Tobias. They dated and she learned that she wanted to become a physical therapist and have her specialty in sports medicine, but she also works with veterans and the families of veterans get on their feet. Tris was kind and loyal, and was always a sister to her. Kendra is okay, but she didn't get along with her as well as she did Tris.

"Are you ready to see Daddy?" Sarah asks her niece, bouncing her slightly.

"Daddy." The almost two-year old coos.

Becca is definitely a Daddy's girl. That was for sure the minute that she saw Tobias hold the small baby. Every time that Tris talks to her husband over the computer Becca is always their trying to get his attention. It was hard not to watch her though. All of her movements were deliberate and she is able to get into trouble faster than anyone else that she knew.

People soon started to quiet down as they began the small ceremony for the fallen. Six caskets are brought into the room, families look at them all expectantly, hoping for them to be opened to see the person inside. All hoping the person inside didn't belong to them. Men in uniform, all looking injured lined up in a straight line behind them.

Sarah scans the line hoping to find the familiar face that she was hoping to find. Nothing. She doesn't see him at all. Tris stands beside her, biting her lip and looking away, knowing what happened to him. Sarah gets a sour taste in her mouth and purses her lips, she allows a single tear to fall. "Where's Daddy?" Becca whispers.

Then they begin to name all the fallen. Daniel Clementine, Al Rexford, Skye Larson, Wesdon Frank, Tyler White, Thomas Van, and Simon Zammers. Tris looks up and looks at Sarah and John. Sarah watches John cross him arms and look into the line again. Tobias does not stand in that line.

Taps are played then the ceremony is over. Zeke walks over to meet with his family. Tris, John, and Sarah are pulled away by an officer to a corner. "This is General Marx." The officer says to them and walks away leaving them with the general.

"Are you the family of First Sergeant Tobias Eaton?"

"Yes sir." John says firmly, looking the general in the eyes.

"First Sergeant Eaton was not returned because his body was not recovered along with two other men. We do not know what happened to him, as of right now he's been MIA. As of right now recovering the men are in our best interest. It is believed that they were taken by a group of Insurgents from a town near by. When we do find him you will be contacted right away."

"Thank you sir." John says and they leave the general in the corner. Tris takes Becca and they try to make their way out of the room, but are stopped by a family.

"Excuse me are you the family of Four? I mean Tobias Eaton." A soldier says and a few join him.

"Yes." Tris says pulling her daughter closer.

"When you see him can you please thank him for us. The man saved me, if it weren't for him, I would be dead right now."

"Yeah." Another one joins in. "The man is crazy, tell him thank you from Monkey."

"Tell him thank you from Rex, Monkey, and Bumpers." The first one says shaking her hand. Tris and the others shake hands also and then they leave her alone to make it out of the room without any other interruptions.

"So since your here I expect some good news." Cate says from her bed starring at Tris across from her.

"Not really."

"Oh?"

"He wasn't there, alive or in a casket. He's MIA."

Cate stares at her. That's worse than dead. Not being able to know where your loved one is, at least if they did die you would know where they are at. "Well that's worse than being dead."

"Yeah I guess." Tris says stiffly.

"How does it make you feel?"

"I'm pissed, and I'm not here for a therapy session from you."

"Well if you are here for one of your 'magical' sessions then I suggest you leave cause you won't get anything done with me. The doctors are giving me only a few more hours to live. I'd rather not have them spent on getting me to walk."

Tris pushed off the wall that she was leaning against. "I know your daughter told me. I came here to talk and get as much advice as I can."

"Don't go skinny dipping in a public place if you are not confident on what you have." Cate says sarcastically.

"You know what I mean."

Cate glares at the younger woman. "I'm trying to get you to laugh, so laugh. You are going to die young and hateful if you do not laugh. That's what my husband told me."

"Ha ha." Tris says with no emotion.

"There you are on your way already. Now what do you want to know. The fount of wisdom is only running for a limited time here girl."

"Give me some advice that you had on life, in what to do in tough situations."

Cate sighs and starts naming off stuff. "Don't eat yellow snow. Never let go of the memories. Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer. Never take advice from a person who doesn't understand what you are going through. Don't let something as stupid as spilled milk break up something that's good. People die, but others take their place. Do not marry your second cousin. If you get pulled over, make sure you look sexy and if the cop is a woman your fucked. Stay in touch with your children, and embarrass them as much as humanly possible. And when you have lived as long as I have then you get away with more stuff so be as bad as you want. Enjoy aging and don't fight it. And remember that you have the power to control the outcome of most things, how you deal with the situation will help you with it."

"That seems like a lot of stuff that I already know."

"Then you are a smart girl that has been through more stuff than most. You've seen life in more situations than others have. And later tonight you will look at this and shake your head thinking about it cause even though its true its not that helpful. Just deal with things on step at a time and love life."

"Thanks Cate." Tris says and she places her hand on top of hers. "I hope that when you go its peacefully and I hope you get to see your husband again."

"I do too. I hope you get to see yours too. I'm sorry that you had to go through something like this, but if he is dead, then I want you to do one thing."

Tris raises an eyebrow.

"I want you to tell your daughter about him and how you fell in love and how you felt about him the first time you met him. What that one little thing about him that drives you crazy and the something that he did for her that still apart of her."

"Okay. We fell in love over Christmas break of his senior year of high school. I hated him when we first met, I thought he was a person who thought only of himself, but he was closed off and I opened him up. He always leaves his shoes by the doorway and it drives me insane when they sit there smelling up the room. And he named her. Rebecca Jade Eaton. He named her and that will live with her always."

Cate nodded and Tris slipped out of the room to head for home.

Oh what happened to Tobias? Hmm...we know. Well this story is coming to an end soon. Haha, hoped you liked reading this and please review.