Kristy met Alex and Cam that night at a noisy bar in downtown Tacoma called The Spare Room. It was a casual bar with pool tables and darts. There was some no-name cover band singing on the small wooden stage in the corner. She spotted Alex lining up a shot on the pool table while Cam leaned against the tall pub table they had claimed. There was a pitcher of beer with two full glasses and one empty glass next to them on the table, along with four empty shot glasses.

“You started without me.” She smiled at Alex when she approached them. Cam gave her a big, welcoming smile.

“Hey you, it’s been a while.” He put one of his toned arms around her shoulders and gave her a half hug. He knew she wasn’t fond of him. The incident with Alex in high school still left a bad taste in her mouth, but he wasn’t going to hold it against her. He was friendly. A head taller than Alex, Cam was lean, blonde, and lively. He’d kept in decent shape since his cop days and had a certain laid backness to him that Kristy sometimes admired. He would be easy to like under other circumstances, thought Kristy. Suck it up, she told herself. Don’t ruin Alex’s night out.

“Hey, Cam.” She said flatly.

“I got you a glass.” Alex filled the empty glass on the table with beer and handed it to her.

“What? All the work I did last night to get you that girl’s number and all I get is this lousy beer?” They clinked glasses.

“It was a phony number, so it doesn’t count.” Alex laughed. “You want something else? We can get the waitress over here.” He started to raise his hand to signal the waitress.

“No, it’s fine. We’ll get something else when the beer is gone.”

“That won’t take long.” Cam chimed in as he filled his glass again. The band started a new song and Cam dance-walked over to Alex and poured the rest of the beer into his glass before heading to the bar for a refill.

She watched them finish their pool game and enjoyed listening to their friendly banter. It was good to see her brother relaxed and having fun. She joined them in the next pool game and lost. She wasn’t a great pool player, but she’d always liked the game. During the game they ordered a round of shots, and now they were ready for more. The alcohol was beginning to loosen her up and soon they were singing along with the band. She was even making friendly conversation with Cam. Maybe Alex was right about him.

When the bartender announced last call they traded their beer and shots for large glasses of water and got ready to leave the bar. Earlier that day she wasn’t sure she wanted to come out with them, but now she was glad she had.

“I gotta use the bathroom.” Alex walked off and left Cam and Kristy in an awkward silence. They looked at each other and Kristy looked down at the table and picked at her drink napkin.

“I’m glad you could come tonight.” He flashed a wide smile and sipped his water. “I know I’m not your favorite person to be around.”

“Yeah, I’m glad I did too. I wasn’t going to,” she admitted.

“It means a lot to Alex. He misses you when he’s gone.”

Unsure of what to say, she forced a smile and dropped her eyes to the table. She appreciated that he was thinking of Alex. She didn’t know he cared so much about his friends.

“Hey, uh,” Cam set his elbows on the table, “maybe you and I can do this again.” Her eyes widened slightly and he held his palms out toward her. “Relax, not a date. But I know Alex is leaving tomorrow, and I, um, I just thought maybe we could, you know, catch up.” He raked his fingers through his blonde hair and leaned back in his chair. “Give me a chance to change your opinion of me.” He snatched a napkin and the pen the waitress had left and jotted down his phone number for her. She looked at it and stuffed it in her purse. He could see she was hesitant to take him up on his offer.

“Just a thought. No pressure.” He leaned his elbows on the table. She nodded and was relieved to see Alex making his way back to them.

“Ready?” He looked from Cam to Kristy and back.

In the parking lot, Cam and Alex hugged for the last time until Alex was home again. It wasn’t the small one armed bro-hug that some men give their friends, but a tight bear hug you give someone you really care about. The gesture made Kristy smile. When did her brother get so affectionate?

* * *

Early the next morning Kristy went straight for the coffee pot. The coffee wasn’t started yet, so she had to wait a few minutes before she filled her cup. Her head was still a little fuzzy from the night before. While she waited for the coffee, she leaned over the counter facing the living room. She was about to mumble a good morning to Alex when a large wooden box caught her eye.

“What is that?” It was an old, wooden trunk. The metal on the corners was scratched and dented and the latch was a bit rusty. It was dark brown and dusty. One handle was missing and the wood looked warped.

“Relax,” Alex laughed at her reaction. “Gram gave it to me yesterday. She said it was Granddad’s and that he had wanted to give it to dad, but when he died they decided to give it to me. She said she could keep it, but she’s trying to clear out her house, so Cam helped me bring it here. Will you keep it for me? After another ten months I’ll be out and I’ll take it.”

“Oh, cool.” She walked over to admire the old trunk that had been in her family for so many years. She ran her hand over the top and brushed off some of the dust. The wood felt fragile under her hand. She could feel all of the cracks and dents and the rough areas of the metal, almost like it was revealing all that it had been though over the years. “This was Granddad’s?”

Alex joined her next to it. “Yep. Cool, isn’t it? Can I leave it with you?” He asked her again.

“Of course.” She flashed him a big smile. “But we can’t leave it here. Um…” She looked around her apartment. “Let’s put it in my room.”

They each lifted an end and carried the trunk into her room. They set it next to her dresser on the wall opposite her bed.

“Did Gram tell you about all the stuff that’s in here?” Childlike excitement filled Kristy’s voice.

“Yeah,” He unlatched the top and gently lifted it. The rusted metal that made up the hinges scraped together. “These are postcards from most of the places he visited.” He handed her a stack of yellowing postcards from Germany, Denmark, Poland, and Austria. She looked at each of them carefully. “And these are his ribbons.” He showed her a block of small rectangular pieces. Each had a different symbol on it. They slid onto a small metal bar that had a pin on the back. A metal chain caught her eye. She gently picked up the old piece of jewelry.

“What’s this?”

“That’s a St. Christopher locket. Gram said she sent it to him when he was overseas. Said St. Christopher is supposed to guide travelers and keep them safe. I asked her if she wanted to keep it, but she said it belongs with his things.”

She turned to him. “You should take it with you.”

“I thought about it, but I’d be terrified of losing it. If it hadn’t belonged to Granddad I might.” He shrugged.

“I guess that’s true. If you lost it I’d murder you, so,” She placed the locket back into the trunk and closed the top. “I’ll keep it safe.”

“Oh, thanks a lot. I’m going to take a quick shower.” Alex chuckled and took his pile of clothes into the bathroom. Kristy went to the kitchen to check the coffee. She was excited to see it was done and she quickly filled her cup and headed to her room to get ready.

Kristy and Alex picked up Claire to make the trip to Sea-Tac Airport. Once they arrived, Alex took his bag out and stood on the sidewalk in his uniform. He first hugged Claire, then Kristy.

“I’m so proud of you,” Claire told him. “I love you.” He hugged her again.

“I can’t wait ‘til you’re home for good,” said Kristy when he came in to hug her. “Take care of yourself. Love you.”

“I will. Love you, too.”

As Claire and Kristy stood in front of their car and watched him walk away, both of their eyes started to water. They hated watching him leave. The women held hands and watched him until he disappeared into the airport crowd. They climbed into the car and drove away until next time.

* * *

Kristy offered a tired grunt as she wrapped her hand around the coffee cup Jordan handed her on the way into her office. “Ugh. Thank you. I swear some days I need a caffeine drip.”

“I know the feeling.” Jordan chuckled at her.

It had been just over three weeks since Alex had left. Kristy had written him two letters, but hadn’t heard back from him. It wasn’t like him not to write, but it wasn’t unusual for the mail to take a while. To keep it off her mind, Kristy had been spending time helping Claire clean out the rest of Henry’s belongings and getting to know Jordan.

Kristy and Jordan had become great friends. She didn’t have many close friends, and Ariana’s hours at the hospital sometimes made it hard to get ahold of her. It was nice to have another friend around. Plus, he was nice to look at.

“So, happy Friday.” Jordan nudged her as they walked. “Any weekend plans?”

“I’m going dancing.” Kristy announced excitedly.

“Sounds like a good time. You guys gonna get crazy?”

“She definitely will. I haven’t decided yet.” Kristy shrugged. “What about you?”

“I don’t know yet.” He glanced at his watch. “Ooh, I have to get going.”

“Thank you for the coffee. Really, I needed it so much.” She waved at him as he left her office.

Late that morning, Kristy’s phone rang. She was engrossed in some research for a story. She let her phone call go to voicemail so she could finish her project before lunch, but it immediately rang again. This time she pulled out her phone to check it. Gram’s picture was flashing on the screen. Just as she pushed the button to answer her phone, Claire hung up. She called Claire back right away.

“Kristy,” Claire’s voice trembled.

“Gram? Are you okay?”

“No.” Her voice was weak; almost a whimper. “You need to come over. There’s a sergeant from the Army here. He said something’s happened to Alex.”