I am going to miss reading all your support and comments every time I post a chapter! They mean so much! I hope you are all enjoying the story still as it wraps up. Including this, four chapters to go!

November 11, 1945

One by one, their friends left them. Evelyn lost track on the amount of stops they made along the way to the west coast, but it was well into double digits.

With a pang, she watched their forms disappear on the platforms as the train pulled away once again. Soon it was just Christenson, who was snoozing on the bench across from them. She passed the time by fidgeting with the buttons of Liebgott's dress jacket.

He stirred underneath her, brushing a hand through her long hair. "Where are we?" he murmured.

The sunlight had just begun to peek over the horizon. Evelyn glimpsed through the gap in the curtain. "Well, the mountains are gone. I think we're getting close."

Sure enough, a call came down the line from the conductor that Oakland, California was the next stop, about fifteen minutes away.

Liebgott nudged Christenson with the toe of his boot. "Pat," he hissed. "Hey, Pat." Nothing. He grinned, raising his voice slightly. "Christ, Cassidy, hurry up and put your brasserie back on."

Evelyn smacked him hard immediately at the same time Christenson's eyes popped open. "Whazza? I'm awake."

She rolled her eyes as Liebgott chuckled. Christenson frowned miserably when he found her fully clothed. "Where are we?" he yawned.

"Our stop is next, Pat," she replied, stretching her arms above her head. Her own words began to sink in. Her family was only minutes away.

She began making sure her pack wasn't missing anything. The Army was shipping their trunks out at a later date. Her nerves began to build, and she ended up checking and rechecking the same pocket again and again until Liebgott stopped her with a hand. She dragged her eyes to his and he gave her a soft smile. "It's just your family, Cass. Not a company of krauts."

Evelyn grinned back. "I know. I'm being stupid." She dropped her voice so that Christenson couldn't hear. "It's just been so long since I've seen them. And now without Jack…" Her voice cracked as she trailed off.

Liebgott brushed his lips across her forehead before meeting her eyes again. "They love you. When you see them, all this will fade away." He kissed her again. "And before you know it, I'll come knockin' on your door and you'll wish you only had your brothers to give you hell."

She laughed before leaning her forehead against his and closing her eyes. He followed her lead and did the same as the train began to slow as it pulled into the station. "You have my number?" she murmured.

He nodded against her. "Still in my pocket where you put it. I'll give you a ring in a couple of days. Let you have some time with your family."

"And you with yours."

Christenson cleared his throat. "We're pulling in, Evie." His face held a strange expression she'd never seen before, but before she could try and understand it, it disappeared again.

With a sigh, Evelyn stood with Liebgott. Christenson held out his hand to him and they shook, grinning. "Bound to see ya soon, Lieb. Take care of our girl, alright?"

Liebgott smirked and nodded. "As if she needs it. Tougher than all us guys put together."

Evelyn snorted and rolled her eyes, but smiled. She put her pack on her shoulder and walked out into the corridor with Christenson and a handful of other riders, Liebgott close on her heels. As the train hit the brakes, she leaned into him until it finally pulled to a stop.

Turning to face him, he quickly leaned down to kiss her softly. He brushed his fingers through her hair. "I love ya, Cass, and I'll see ya soon," he murmured.

She gave him another kiss and a pinch on the rear end as the people in front began to move forward. "You bet your skinny ass you will, Liebgott."

Evelyn started to move away, walking backward towards the exit. He threw her a wink. "Kinky."

Rolling her eyes she gave him one last smile. They were already separated by a wide stretch of eager travelers. She had to mouth back, Love you too.

Evelyn and Christenson walked a short way after waving goodbye to Liebgott as the train continued on its way. Near the end of the platform were a few groups of people. Seeing as he was so tall, someone shouted his name almost immediately when he was spotted. He turned and grinned to her. "Well, it's been fun, Evie."

She grinned back before leaning up on her tiptoes to give him a hug. "I'll see you around town, Pat. You've got my address?"

He nodded when they broke apart. "And you have mine?" He grinned again when she nodded back. "Then I'll see ya soon, doll."

He began moving away from her but stopped and turned back to look at her. The strange look was back on his handsome face. "You really do love him, don't you?"

Evelyn blinked, surprised by the question. She nodded. "I do."

Christenson grinned again. "I can only hope to find what you have one day." He gave her a wink. "I'll see you around, Evie." And then he jogged forward to be immediately engulfed into the arms of several family members.

Evelyn took a deep breath before walking forward and past the mass of Christensons. Her eyes scanned the large area until finally locking onto her mother and two brothers. Immediately, her eyes filled with tears and any strength she had left in her body spurred her forward to run straight into her mother's arms. Both women immediately began sobbing against one another.

Henry and Christopher closed in on them and together they laughed and cried. It began in happiness, thrilled to have Evelyn back again, but as if a switch was flipped inside all of them, slowing turned to sadness as Jack's absence was acutely felt, a hole in the pile of embraces.

Finally, Eugenia pulled away to gather her daughter's face in her hands. "My darling," she murmured before kissing her forehead again and again.

Henry tried to defuse the tension. "Christ, ma, give us a chance to say hello already."

Eugenia swatted at his head, but eventually let go of Evelyn. Henry immediately hugged her close, and Evelyn thought she could hear ribs crack. "Jesus, Henry," she gasped out. "I survived the enemy, and you decide to try and kill me."

As soon as she said it, she knew the joke fell flat, but Henry pulled back and forced a grin anyway. "How ya doing, baby sister?"

She didn't get a chance to respond as Christopher engulfed her. He chuckled against her before kissing the top of her head. "Wait until the kiddos see their Aunt Evvy again."

Evelyn's face hurt from smiling so much. With her arm around her mother's waist and Eugenia reflecting the embrace, the boys walked on either side of them, her pack on Henry's shoulder as they walked to the car. God, it's so good to be home.

After catching up for most of the morning, Christopher and Henry left to wrangle up her nieces and nephew, along with Elizabeth, her sister in law. Eugenia and Evelyn were alone in the house, the older woman immediately fussing over her daughter until finally settling on making some tea. Evelyn tried to ignore the tension that laid heavily in the house, which she thought might dissipate once the boys had left, but still it remained. Instead, she tried to divert it. She sat at the table, watching the familiar scene with a smile. "You look good, ma."

Eugenia smiled over her shoulder before turning back to light the burner. "I was about to say the same about you, my darling." After putting the kettle on, she sat down across from her daughter and clasped her hands in hers. "A little on the skinny side, if I'm being honest, but I can take care of that. Just give me a few weeks."

Evelyn laughed and squeezed her fingers. "A few days is more like it." She studied her mother's face and took in her pale skin and new circles under her eyes that were never there three years ago. She tried to swallow her worry. "I see the boys didn't convince you to sell the house."

Eugenia scoffed and gestured around the kitchen. "And give up all this? Never. Can you believe them? To think your good for nothing brothers tried to bring in an appraiser without my knowledge. I almost boxed their ears."

Evelyn chuckled and shook her head, knowing it was a fake threat. She grabbed her hand again until Eugenia looked her in the eyes once more. "How are you?"

Eugenia immediately looked down at their hands, trying to find her words without allowing any sadness through, but Evelyn heard it anyway. "After Jack…" she sighed. "I didn't really know what to do with myself. I mean, I didn't really believe it for awhile, you know? It's almost been two years, and I still think he's going to come through that door."

Evelyn nodded immediately, understanding exactly what she meant. "I still don't know if I believe it."

"I don't think your brothers do either." Eugenia sighed softly. "It's not as if we haven't grieved for him, we have. He can never be replaced." She paused before sighing again. "But we all have actively not spoken his name." A tear slipped from her eye and she swept it away immediately, as if ashamed. "I think we were waiting to make sure you came home."

Their hands tightened around one another and stared at one another in silence for awhile. Evelyn brushed another tear from her mother's cheek, but her own eyes filled. "I'm home. You don't need to worry any longer."

Eugenia swallowed down her sorrow and tried to laugh, pulling back from her. "You are a grown woman. You won't be calling this house your home much longer."

She didn't miss the deep blush that spread over Evelyn's cheeks and she gave her a sly look. "You can't hide anything from me, my darling. Let me make the tea and you can tell me all about him, although I should scold you for not mentioning anything in your letters."

Evelyn snorted. "And come home to the Spanish Inquisition brought to you by Chris and Henry? Hell no."

December 1, 1945

A few weeks had passed and Evelyn settled into a routine with her family once again. Although Christopher and Henry had their own places, not to mention another family, they visited often, staying for dinner at least on Sundays.

Almost immediately, Evelyn walked to the nearby hospital and began volunteering a few times of week. The nursing school in San Francisco didn't have any openings until the summer, and by then, she wasn't sure where she would be with Liebgott.

Speaking of, Evelyn began chewing a hole in her bottom lip again. He had only called once so far, and briefly, just to let her know that he had gotten home and all was well. Seeing that his family didn't have a personal line, she couldn't exactly get a hold of him. The entire waiting game was disconcerting to say the least.

"Evelyn!" Eugenia called. "Phone for you!"

Evelyn bolted up from her bed and ran down the stairs excitedly. She grabbed the receiver with gusto from the hallway table and held it to her ear. "Hello?"

"Hey, sweetheart."

Evelyn's heart skipped a beat, but hearing Luz's voice instead of Liebgott's could never be a disappointment. Her smile widened until it hurt. "Now who could this be? He sounds too handsome to be anyone other than George Luz."

Luz cackled on the other end and Evelyn found herself holding the receiver tighter in an effort to somehow be closer to him. "You know it, Ev. God," he sighed, "it's so good to hear your voice."

She made herself comfortable in the chair, pulling her knees up to her chest and giggled. "Not as good as it is to hear from you, George. Now tell me - what kinds of trouble have you gotten into and don't leave out a single detail."

Luz snorted and she could hear his smile. "Hope you got some time then, sweetheart. I'm actually on the run, that's why I'm callin'. Do hear that in the distance? That's the cops. And we're headed your way."

Evelyn sighed dramatically. "Shucks, I forgot to tell you. We moved. Guess you're on your own, Georgie."

He cackled again. "I'll always find you, sweetheart. Don't you forget it."

January 3, 1946

After another month, her trunk finally arrived from the Army. Slowly, Evelyn unpacked it. Her fingers played with the beautiful fabric of her fancy dress as she hung it up in her closet with a smile. The water bladders were packed under her bed with a sad sigh and then a chuckle. Liebgott's pilfered crystal champagne glasses, somehow still whole and pristine, sparkled by the window. And Adrianna's earrings were tucked away into a box on her dresser. She stared at them a long time before walking away and down the stairs. As she went by it, the phone rang.

"Cassidy residence."

Evelyn could hear the smirk in his voice. "Hi, Cass. What are you up to?"

Somehow even from across a bay and only through the phone line, her heart pounded at the sound of Liebgott's voice. She smiled wide and sat down on the bottom step. "Hi," she breathed. "How are you?"

Liebgott hummed under his breath. "You know, fantastic as always."

"Sounds about right."

Silence stretched on the line and slowly her smile twitched lower. "My trunk just got her. Did yours arrive?"

"Yep."

Evelyn waited another beat. "I heard from George a few times." More than a few actually. "He says hi and is threatening to call your neighbors until they give in and let you borrow their line."

Liebgott chuckled on the other end but didn't respond. Evelyn couldn't stand it. She filled the silence. "I'm working at the hospital every Monday and Wednesday now. It fills the days." Nothing. "I might add in Thursday as well, but I'll wait a bit and see."

He only hummed in response. And before she could go on and ramble some more, she heard a distant voice and then Liebgott talking to them. He sighed. "I've gotta go, doll."

"Oh," she murmured. "Alright."

"I'll call again soon. You're doin' good though?"

Evelyn held the receiver closer. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm OK." Just waiting on a goddamn man to get his act together. Or at least say more than five words within a minute. But in the next moment, she forgot all that, at least just then.

"Still love me?"

She breathed out a chuckle. "Yeah, I still love you, you fool."

Evelyn could hear his smile on the line. "Good thing, cos I still love ya too. Ain't gonna change neither." There was more voices behind him. Before she could say anything in response, he added, "Christ, I've gotta go." And he hung up.

Blinking, she slowly placed the receiver back in its place. She didn't notice Henry staring at her from the living room. "Who was that?" Evelyn jumped in her seat and turned to look at him. His eyes were narrowed.

She shrugged. "Another soldier." Until Liebgott made more of a presence, she wasn't going to share anything about him beyond her mother.

Henry stopped her trek into the kitchen. "Ma said you're dating someone." Well, there goes that confidant.

Evelyn turned around and crossed her arms, bare foot tapping on the carpet. "And?" She had years experience dealing with her brother and his war against any boyfriends. Or any men in general that showed an interest in her. It seemed nothing had changed.

He gave her a look for her to continue, but she didn't. "And she says it's serious." She shrugged again. "What the hell, Ev? Who goes to war and comes back with a date?"

She rolled her eyes, but bickering with Henry actually felt good. Something normal to focus on while she tried to digest her awkward phone call with Liebgott, the latest in a series of painfully short conversations with him since she arrived home. "His name is Joe, and quit looking at me like that."

Henry pulled a face. "Like what? Like I'm questioning your choice in men once again? Because I am. He can't be anyone worthwhile, picking up a girl when he was supposed to be fighting the enemy."

Evelyn raised her eyebrows and her eyes flashed dangerously, her joy in the playful banter gone. "Explain to me how exactly you can know that, Henry, when just a moment ago, you didn't even know his name. And he, like all the men and women I fought with, did more than just fight the damn krauts."

He rolled his eyes back at her. "Come on, Ev. You don't exactly have the best track record."

Henry knew he crossed a line as soon as her eyes changed into a deeper, darker color and her lips became white with anger. "Not only is your bullshit unfair to me, but also to Joe. He's nothing like that selfish asshole, who, by the way, was once your best friend. Someone whom you introduced me to. So I'd appreciate it if you trusted me to know what's good for me."

"Yeah, like going off to war and almost getting killed was good for you. Definitely wasn't good for any of us."

Evelyn froze and they stared at one another until Henry broke first. He stepped forward, holding up a hand. "Christ, Ev, I'm sorry. I don't mean that."

She replied stiffly, "Actually I think that's the first honest thing you've said since I've been back." She paused. "Anything else you'd like to get off your chest?"

He swallowed painfully before pulling her into a hard hug. "Yeah, there is." He sighed into her hair. "I'm so proud of you. It might not have been the smartest decision you've ever made seeing that you might not have come back to us, but it sure was the bravest."

Evelyn relaxed against him and hugged him back. "Then don't hold it against Jack either." Henry stiffened this time and she pulled back to look him in the eyes. "It wasn't his fault that he was killed. Sure, we're left behind to try and figure out a way to go on without him, but he died a hero. Forgive him."

It took awhile, but finally Henry nodded minutely. "I knew you'd know what to say, Ev. I can't even talk about him with ma or Chris."

"Quit being stupid. We're all family."

Henry rolled his eyes again and smiled before hugging her again. "Christ, I missed you."

Evelyn closed her eyes against his shoulder. "I missed you too until you decided to question my intelligence."

Hearing the smile in her voice, they broke apart and began walking towards the kitchen together. "You know I'll hate anyone that lays a hand on you, especially after that good-for-nothing ex-best friend and fiance."

"You forget, Henry, I've had a few years of combat training. I can take care of myself now."

"I think you just threatened me with bodily harm, Ev."

"And who said you were the slowest brother?"

Besides spending time with her family and at the hospital, Evelyn only had one other hobby - catching up on sleep.

After years of constant exercise, stress, and worry, her body decided to take any rest she was able to give. At first, she slept deeply and dreamless, only waking after several hours and sometimes a poke and prod from her brothers if they were feeling daring.

But when her exhaustion finally surpassed, the nightmares began.

Flashes of green mixed in with the explosions of white, black and a deep, deep red river that she was swimming in. It cut through the snow, and just when it was seemingly endless, it shattered as if now ice. Wails of pain echoed, bouncing off one another, only getting louder even as the red stream ran dry, but her hands remained wet and crimson.

Evelyn didn't know she was screaming. Not until her mother gently tried to wake her, brushing her hair back from her damp forehead. Even then it took awhile until the nightmare ceased. She sat straight up in bed, heaving, gasping for breath.

"It's OK, my darling," Eugenia murmured, but her eyes gave her away. She was horrified.

Evelyn eventually caught her breath, but pieces of the dream stayed with her, causing her to whimper against her will. Slowly the blood and explosions in the dreary forest disappeared, but her eyes still haunted her. Their deep green color, at first dancing with humor before turning dull and sad, didn't fade.

"Ma," She croaked but then she stopped, unable to form the words she needed.

"What is it?"

Evelyn stared at the bureau, the plain, brown box on top sitting innocently. "Can you… inside there's a pair of earrings. Can you take them? Just get rid of them. Please."

Eugenia didn't question her daughter. She only nodded before brushing her lips across her forehead. Without another word, she stood and retrieved the jewelry, placing them in the pocket of her robe. She paused before asking, "Do you need anything else? Water perhaps?"

Evelyn shook her head. "No, thank you." And with a nod, her mother left her.

Afraid to close her eyes again, she waited several minutes before getting up to go to the kitchen herself, eager to make a pot of tea and wait for dawn to arrive. Anything instead of revisiting the dark canvas of her memories, alone.