Team Seven had spent the last week in Washington D.C. that coincided with some training sessions. Despite the mugginess of the weather, Team Seven had fun sightseeing around the Capitol, walking around the Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument and smelling the cherry blossoms as well as the Wading Pool.
One place had been studiously avoided; the massive black wall known as the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial. The last day the Seven spent in Washington D.C. changed that.
Josiah Sanchez, Vietnam veteran, was drawn to the Wall and now stood beside it, scanning the names of friends lost in battle. He held paper in which to etch the names on.
JD was the only one of the Seven near him.
The others were a respectful distance away, uncertain as to how Josiah would react to having old
wounds reopened. Though Nathan was the one Josiah was closest to of the team; the others felt that if Josiah reacted in anger, he would not rage at young JD.
Josiah turned around to see JD in awe, looking at the names of over 58,000 killed in the war on the massive black monument. JD was overwhelmed by the families who were touching the names of relatives killed; the men and women sobbing openly, the letters and flowers left by the names of loved ones never forgotten.
Josiah had traced several names of his friends; and was searching through the D's for one of his best friends, John Duncan. Joseph Duncan had been beside Josiah in the fierce fighting that resulted in most of his platoon being killed. Joe had pulled Josiah to safety after Josiah took a bullet in his leg and arm, and was unable to move. John had smiled one last time, patting Josiah's shoulder and reassuring Josiah that he would be fine before a sniper's bullet hit him in the head. Josiah, in serious pain in body and mind, had screamed, cried and held tight to his friend as the medic tried to treat him. The next thing Josiah was aware of was waking up in the hospital with a deep feeling of emptiness.
He had never spoken of most of his experiences in the war. He lingered by the wall, touching and silently thanking his old friend. Then a name below Joseph Duncan leaped out at him; Josiah stared twice in disbelief to make sure he saw the name correctly: John Daniel Dunne. His head jerked sharply around to see JD's head silently bowed, hiding the tears that leaked from his eyes. Josiah then stared at the name again in disbelief; a vision of young JD in a soldier's uniform, lying dead in a Vietnam battlefield.
"JD!" Josiah called, unsettled by the vision. JD walked up to Josiah who held JD at arm's length before embracing him. "Awww, son," Josiah murmured, stroking the dark hair as Buck so often did. "I'm so glad you never had to go through war."
JD hugged Josiah back, overwhelmed. "I'm so sorry you did, Josiah. You, everyone here, were heroes. Just like the World War I and World War II veterans."
"At least they were treated like heroes," a nearby older man dressed in fatigues stated bitterly. "None of us wanted to go and we came back to an America that rejected us." A man beside him, in a wheelchair and missing his legs, nodded.
JD stepped back as Josiah drew nearer the men. "Yes, it was very hard to lose our friends and relatives and come back and treated as murderers. I am so sorry, my friends."
Recognizing another veteran, the men held out their hands and they embraced.
"Son!" shrieked and middle-aged woman, running up towards JD. She clung to a surprised JD, hugging him and crying. "Oh, Danny, Danny, I knew you would come home to your mother; my sweet, sweet boy."
JD awkwardly hugged the woman, uncertain what to do. His hazel eyes met Josiah's deeply lined blue ones and Josiah began walking towards them.
A pretty redhead walking up gently tried to remove the older woman's hands. "Mom, please, this isn't Danny; Danny is gone."
The gray-haired woman still wept, clinging to JD. "My son is here. And I am never going to let him go again."
Another man with thinning black hair went to the other side of the weeping lady. "Mom, Mom, you have to let this boy go. This is not Danny. Please, Mom. I'm so sorry; this is not Danny."
With great reluctance, the still sobbing woman let herself be led away by her son, but her sunken brown eyes remained on JD's troubled face.
The younger woman sighed. "I'm so sorry. Mom has never got over Danny's death; we thought bringing her to the Wall might help her accept it. Danny's body was never found and Mom has insisted for all these years he would come back." She stared at JD and went silent. "You do resemble Danny a good deal; I can see why Mom was drawn to you."
"Ma'am, I'm Josiah Sanchez, a veteran, and this is my young friend, JD. I am so sorry your poor Mother
Is suffering. Have you gotten her counseling?"
"My brother and I have made sure she has had good counseling, but how do you get over losing the most important person in your life? Danny was the oldest and after our father died, Mom clung to him. Again, I am so sorry she bothered you. I'm Julia Reed and that was my brother, Tony. We had better get Mom back to the hotel."
"Ma'am, don't give it a thought," JD said softly. "I know what it is like to lose something – I lost my mother less than one year ago." For a moment, JD choked up. Then he put on a half-smile. "I hope your Mother gets better soon." He reached out tentatively and gave Julia a small hug. She held JD and tears filled her eyes. She studied JD once last time before following her brother.
A few of the other visitors to the Wall stared at JD, who was of the same age their relatives were when drafted. Instead of seeing JD himself, they saw the young men who were sent off to war and did not return.
A greatly moved JD then stood straight at he saluted the Wall and the names on it. Josiah nodded approval and heard footsteps behind him and a voice starting the song, God Bless America.
Vin was slightly off-key, but his heart was in the right place and he was joined by Nathan's deep bass and Ezra's tenor. Chris sang softly and Buck was unusually subdued with his bass. Josiah felt a lump in his throat and could not sing, but turned stood tall and matched JD's salute. JD kept his salute, his eyes filling, and used his beautiful tenor to join in the song.
All at once, everyone at the Memorial joined in, voices mingling and full of emotion. At the end of the song, as one, they faced the Wall and every man saluted while the women blew kisses and tears fell.
Buck moved to stand by JD and Nathan walked to support Josiah, squeezing his shoulder.
Josiah sighed deeply. "Now, I think I am ready to go home." He drew JD into a tight embrace, tousling the dark hair as Buck so often did. And then the Seven step walked in step from the powerful Wall, almost hearing in the wind the voices of the fallen singing God Bless America.
The End