Close Enough

Chapter Seven - Return to Duty

Bonnie had gotten up early in order to follow the news from Germany.  The first newscast, an almost verbatim recitation of an AP report, had confirmed the damage to the journalist's van, and also that an American soldier had, in fact, been injured and taken to a German hospital.  Her heart had leapt into her throat at that news, but she had quickly admonished herself to follow Betty's advice.  Neither the soldier's name nor his unit had been given, but she took some comfort from the report's wording: "injured" versus "wounded".  There was a significant difference in meaning between the two words, and she couldn't believe a respected news organization like the Associated Press would use the wrong one.

At 11:00 a.m., Bonnie went into the kitchen to fix a couple of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and pour herself a glass of milk.  The top of the hour usually held the most advertising, and she was confident she'd be able to fix the small lunch and return to the news, before the commercials ended.  When she came back into the living room with her sandwiches, though, she saw that it had taken her a little longer than she had planned; the commercials were over and the newscast had already resumed.  She turned up the volume on the TV.

"...United Nations.  The USSR's statement said, in part, that they are "committed to peace" and that they were releasing the statement,  rather than some other member nation, "in order to demonstrate the unity enjoyed by the members of the Warsaw Pact."  When we come back, we'll be going to the Pentagon live via satellite for an update.  This is CNN."  Her deep relief at hearing the news brought tears to her eyes.  It still might be Mark in the hospital, but at least he'd be able to recuperate in peace.

Shortly after noon, the phone rang.  When Bonnie heard Mark's greeting, she almost burst into tears again, but managed to maintain her composure fairly well.  Mark told her a little bit about what had been going on.

"It was looking pretty scary for awhile and there's still some behind-the-scenes stuff going on, I guess, so all I'm allowed to say is that I'm fine.  Do you feel better now, sweetie?" Mark asked.

Through her sniffles, Bonnie replied, "I feel lots better, now that I've actually gotten to talk to you.  I'll be okay, honey."

"Okay, good.  Well, I have to go now.  Now that the excitement's over, we've got a training mission to complete.  I'll tell you everything I can about all this in about ten days.  I love you, Bonnie.  Bye!"

***

Epilogue -

The following announcement appeared in the November 1980 edition of Armee Rundschau, an East German Army publication:  Fallen -- Private Joachim H. of the Motorized Rifle Regiment "Hans Kahle" lost his life in September training to defend us all from Imperialist aggression.  Comrades in his unit were shocked and saddened by his loss, saying that he had always been an example to them all.  A memorial service is planned as part of the ceremonies commemorating the parent division's twenty-fourth anniversary.

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Chapter 7 word count = 526 words
Final total word count = 7124 words