The Quiet Man

"Oh, I guess that explains all the exercising and running you been doing. Soldiers gotta stay in shape. At least they did when I was one."

Tom laughed and said, "You can say that again. I love a lot of things about my job, but sometimes I sure get tired of the exercising and other crap. I get to work with some fine soldiers, though, and that makes a difference."

Tom was assisting an Engineer battalion mobilize on this tour. He had some problems with them in the past because they were weak in the supply area. They had some fine young people in the jobs, but the senior sergeants were lazy and didn't stay on top of the job in two of the subordinate companies. The battalion S-4 (Supply Officer) and his crew did their best to help, but being part time people, the job was just too large for them to keep up with everything. The full-time shop worked with the two companies, but for some reason, couldn't keep them up to snuff. Tom was of the opinion it was because of incompetent people in the subordinate units.

Tom spent the majority of his time with the two deficient companies and slowly began to get their situation straightened out. The Captain S-4 was a big help, but there again, he was somewhat deficient and lacking in job knowledge because he was only part time until they had been mobilized. Three days before the unit was to leave home station, they worked until nearly one AM (0100) before quitting. The soldiers in the supply area were then allowed to go home and told to return at 0800 the next morning.

Most of the men stayed in the Armory or local motels if they didn't live in town. Tom set up a cot and slept in the S-4's office. Shortly before 0700 the next morning the Battalion Commander awakened him. Tom had known the man almost since his first day in the Guard. They were friends as well as fellow soldiers.

When he came fully awake, Tom stood respectfully and said, "Sorry, Sir. How may I help the Colonel?"

"Don't give me that crap, Tom. I've been up almost all night and I don't need any of your shit."

Tom stiffened to attention, even being out of uniform and said, "Yes Sir."

The LTC (Lieutenant Colonel) sighed and sat in one of the chairs in front of the S-4's desk. He said, "I've spent the last two hours on the phone talking about you and pulling strings, Tom. I have some bad news, and I suppose you may be pissed at me for what I've done to you but I think it is for the best for the unit. Oh, hell, stop standing around like an idiot and take a seat. I don't care if you're dressed or not. I interrupted your sleep and I know it."

Tom sat in the other visitor's chair and looked at the Commander worriedly. "Yes Sir," He said once again.

The Colonel rubbed his eyes then stood and walked to the door. He opened it, stuck his head out and yelled, "Sergeant Major. Find someone to bring the Chief and me some coffee, please."

"Yes Sir."

LTC Crockett closed the door once again and resumed his seat. He sighed heavily and said, "I hadn't much more than got to sleep last night when I received a phone call. Captain Jones had an accident on his way home last night and is in critical condition. After they stabilized him he was evacuated to Ft. Benning for further treatment. I now need an S-4 for this unit and I need one yesterday. The Guard, right now, as you probably know, is woefully short of qualified officers for that position. Tom, I pulled every string I could and have approval for you to be appointed as our new S-4. You will be going with us for this tour. I did manage to sweeten the pot for you, though. I convinced S-1 (Personnel) and your normal supervisors to generate a special Officer Evaluation Report and then send your name up for immediate consideration for promotion to CW5. Luckily, you meet minimum time-in-grade requirements and are eligible for consideration for a below the zone promotion. I was assured they would make sure the board selects you. I hate to think of all the markers I have out now because of you. I'm afraid it will take some time for the board to meet and the papers to come down, but since the board is already selected, you should be on the selection list in a couple of months. I know it is unusual for something like this to happen, selecting you below the zone and all, but you're going to earn it and you already deserve it. I even thought about trying to get you a direct commission to captain and we may still go that route if we have to. I have already checked and you meet all the qualifications."

Tom sat silently for a moment. He felt empty, then, he felt almost betrayed, angry even. Damn it, he had already been three times! He was sick and tired of this shit. Quickly, he got control of his emotions. Fuck, he was a soldier. A part-time, citizen soldier for sure, but a soldier and a damn good one. He told himself, 'shut up and soldier, soldier'. He looked at his friend and now, commander and said, "Yes Sir. Is Captain Jones going to be okay? And, I will need to go back home to pick up the rest of my uniforms and close my house before we leave."

LTC Crockett smiled tiredly and said, "They think the Captain will fully recover, but it will take several weeks or months. You may return home any time you feel you can take the time, but don't spend long there. We still have a lot to do before we depart."

"Yes Sir. I'll get everyone busy and take off later today or tomorrow, at the latest. I should be able to make it there and back in 24 hours if I leave early in the morning."

As soon as the supply section arrived for work that morning Tom called them together. He told them about the accident and informed them he had been appointed the S-4 for the deployment. After the expressions of sorrow and congratulations were dealt with he gave assignments to his Battalion shop and the supply personnel from the subordinate companies. After he was sure everything was progressing as he wished, he told his senior Sergeant, a Master Sergeant, that he was leaving for his home in order to collect the remainder of his gear and take care of closing the place down for the upcoming year.

Tom arrived home well after dark that evening and fell into bed immediately. The next morning he woke up to someone banging on his door. He pulled his pants on and stumbled to the door. He saw Elijah standing there when he opened the door. Elijah said, "I thought ya was gonna be gone for a month, Tom. Are ya back for good now?"

"Hello, Elijah. Good to see you. Come on in. I'm afraid I hadn't gotten around yet. I need some coffee. Can I make you some, too?"

"Don't mind if I do. I've already taken care of the garden. You want me to leave it fer ya?"

"No, Elijah, there's no need. I just came home for the rest of my uniforms and to clean out the refrigerator. I'm afraid my plans have changed and I'm going to be gone a year or so. One of the officers in the unit I was helping was injured in an accident and they cut orders for me to replace him. I'm going back to the sand box again. Could you and Carolyn keep watching my place for me again? Of course, you can have all the garden truck. I have to pack and be back on the road as soon as I can today."

"Well, shore we can. You let us know if you need anything else, son. Don't worry about things here. We'll see to it fer ye." They visited so long Carolyn got worried and came hunting Elijah. She knocked at the door, and after the greeting and an explanation to her, they visited until the coffee pot was empty. Elijah and Carolyn left for home and Tom cleaned up and prepared his home for his long absence, packed his bags and was back on the road by noon. Neither of the men thought about getting Tom's address for Elijah.

The next few weeks rushed past. Not only was Tom settling into his new job, but he had to correct deficiencies in all the books and paperwork for each of the units. He was appalled at the state of their records. Much of the equipment was missing components, some of the inventory that was supposedly there, wasn't; many records were either missing or completed incorrectly. He had to document the shortfalls, report them to the commander and order replacements. The commander then appointed an officer to investigate the shortfalls and assign blame for the discrepancies. Many of the people signed for the missing and damaged equipment were forced to pay for it. This, of course, didn't endear Tom to them, but it was the Army way, by the book. He became known not only as a very knowledgeable S-4, but as a hard-ass, also.

Four months after arriving in Afghanistan, the orders came through promoting Tom to CW5 (Chief Warrant Officer 5), the highest Warrant Officer grade in the army. During the evening Battalion Officers' Call he was promoted and they had a small party for him.

At the six month mark, the supply department of the battalion and all the subordinate companies was humming. They went from, arguably, the worst to the best and Tom found himself almost bored because of lack of work. Occasionally one of the vehicles and some equipment was damaged by enemy action, but it didn't present a problem for the S-4 section. All the soldiers knew how to handle the problem and took it in stride. What they did have trouble with was when someone they knew was injured, and once, when two of them were killed.

Finally, a year after he was called up, supposedly for 30 days, the time came for the advance party to leave Afghanistan for the states. Their job was to prepare the way for the return of the unit. Happiness and excitement rushed through the Battalion headquarters and subordinate units. Tom and the remainder of the officers had some trouble keeping their soldiers focused on the task at hand.

The day of departure from the theater of operations finally arrived. Everyone boarded the planes for the long, long trip back to CONUS (CONtinental United States). The first part of the flight was loud and raucous because of the excitement, but finally everyone was so exhausted they drifted off into sleep.

Out-processing at the base in the States took an almost interminable five days, but finally it was over and everyone was on their way home. Tom spent the night once again in the S-4 office at the Battalion Headquarters before leaving for his home back at Hooterville. He was looking forward to returning home and just relaxing for several days before returning to a more normal existence. He had two months before he had to attend another meeting, and he intended to make the most of them. He wanted to put out a late garden, fish and clean up his place. He was sure it was pretty overgrown since he hadn't been there for a year to keep the weeds cut.

When Tom arrived home he found the driveway overgrown with weeds as he expected. As his truck nosed its way down the long drive he once again thought, 'I HAVE to trim those branches back'. He dropped over the break of the hill and turned the corner where he would normally see his house. He slammed on the brakes to his truck and looked at a scene of devastation. His stomach clenched at the sight before him. His house was gone, burned to the ground. It had not been a very recent fire, either. He could see charcoal and ashes away from the foundation but there was grass and weeds growing through them. Many of the trees surrounding the house were either dead or damaged from the fire. He could see places where the fire had tried to spread and was either put out or went out.

Finally, Tom drove on into the yard, stopped and got out of his truck. He walked around the house looking at the remains with a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. After his inspection of the damage, Tom returned to his truck and opened a beer he took from his cooler. After he drank a large swig, he turned and headed down the path to Elijah's in order to find out what happened to his house and why he never notified him.

When Tom reached the house, he stopped when a large dog began barking and running toward him. He was surprised and somewhat worried because the dog acted mean. Elijah had no dog when he left and he wondered why he had one now. He was almost halfway to the porch trying to make friends with the dog when a woman he had never seen before opened the screen door and stepped onto the porch. She appeared to be in her late 50's or early 60's. After she was out of the small house, she let the screen door slap closed and looked at Tom for a moment then said, "Rex. Come." The large dog stopped barking at Tom and moved up beside the woman.

The woman looked Tom over for a quick moment then said, "Can I help you?"

"Yes, I came to see Elijah. I'm Tom Porter. He was taking care of my place while I was gone. I just got back and found it burned. I want to know what happened."

The woman's voice broke as she answered. "I'm sorry. Elijah and Carolyn are both dead, Tom. Come have a seat and I'll tell you all I know. Would you rather sit out here or in the house? I have some iced tea if you would like some."

Tom felt as if he had been hit in the chest. First his house, and now Elijah and Carolyn. What else was going to go wrong? He said, "I'm sorry to hear that. They were fine people. If it's all the same to you, why don't we sit out here? I spent a lot of time sitting on the porch here with Elijah. And the tea sounds great. Thank you." Tom hesitated a moment and then continued, "That was always the first thing he or Carolyn said after they greeted me when I came over. They always asked if I wanted some iced tea."

The woman smiled and said, "That sounds like them. They did love their iced tea and always offered some to a guest." She then disappeared into the house. After the woman returned with two glasses of tea, she sat beside Tom in what used to be Carolyn's chair. She wiped her cheek and said, "Oh, I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself. I'm Patricia Dawson. I came home to help Mom after Dad died and I've just stayed. I don't know what I'll do now. I lost my job when I came back here and there's not much work around here. I'll have to find a job soon, but right now I guess we're neighbors... Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking."

"That's okay, I understand. I'm real sorry about your folks. How did they die?"

"Well, one evening they were sitting here on the porch when they heard a bunch of loud shouts and gunfire coming from over at your place. That was about five months ago. Dad got his pistol and took off through the woods to check on things. After a while Mom heard more shots and then a car or truck started and took off with a roar. She kept waiting for Dad to return but he didn't. A few minutes later she saw a glow coming from your place and went to check on it and Dad.

"She found Dad lying in the yard dead with his pistol beside him and your house on fire. At first she thought whoever was there shot him but the autopsy, showed he died from a heart attack. Mom was never herself after that. They had been married for 60 years and she just didn't know what to do without Dad. She quit taking care of herself and then got sick early this summer and died. She's been gone a little over a month now. The doctor said she died of the flu, but I think she just didn't want to go on without Dad."

"Yeah, I can see that. I don't think I ever saw a couple more in love and more caring than they were to each other. I really admired that about them."

Tom sat and looked over the small yard while he thought about his friends. Finally, he turned to Patricia and said, "So, do you have any idea what happened to my house?"

"The fire marshal inspected the remains and said you could get a report from their office when you got back. He left a card with the address on it. I'll find it and get it to you if that's okay. I'm not too sure where it is right now. I think he determined it was arson. There appeared to be some equipment in the house that might have been used to cook Meth. He thinks a gang moved in to cook up some Meth and they partied too loudly and Dad heard them. When Dad arrived and then dropped dead he thinks they panicked and torched the place before they left. The Sheriff caught three men driving an old truck a week later coming from another abandoned house. They found a meth lab in it when they searched it. The tire tracks matched those in your yard, so they closed the case. I'm sorry."

"Yeah. I just wish we had only lost the house."

"Thank you. I wasn't home much, but I really miss them. Do you know what you're going to do now?"

"Not exactly. Rebuild I guess. I didn't have much insurance, so whatever I do will be small."

"Oh. You can stay here tonight if you want. I know Dad and Mom would want me to invite you."

"Thanks, that's okay. I guess I'll just go back home though. I'm used to rougher living than this and I need to decide what I'm going to do."

"Well, if you need anything, let me know. Why don't you at least come over for breakfast in the morning?"

"Okay, thanks. What time?"

"About 8 if that's okay? I don't get around as early as Mom and Dad did."

Tom returned to his place and drove his truck down the trail to the old stone building near the river. He found a spot to pitch a tent, then had a quick supper from the lunchmeat and bread he had in his cooler. After that he wandered down to the stream and caught a couple of fish for his food the next day. It had been a long day so he went to bed as soon as it was fully dark.

To his surprise, except for waking once to take a leak, Tom slept over nine hours that night, waking slightly after 0630 the next morning to sunlight slanting through the tree leaves and birds flitting around chirping merrily. After taking his morning leak, he made a fire in an old fire pit and made a pot of coffee. While it perked he got out one of his chairs from the truck and sat enjoying the morning and thinking about all he now had to do. It went without saying he was going to stay on his land. He did dread all the hassle he would have to go through to get his insurance money and build a place to live. He really wanted to just chill for the rest of the summer when he got home. Now, that wasn't an option.

When he walked back to the fire for his second cup of coffee, he looked over at the old stone building on the bluff over the river. It was nearly covered in English ivy and looked almost like one of the old stone houses he saw pictures of in Scotland and Ireland. The windows he could see were dark holes in the building, partly obscured by the ivy.

After pouring his coffee, instead of walking back to his chair Tom wandered over to the building. He marveled once again at the construction. The walls were almost three feet thick and so well fitted together almost no mortar was used. Atypically, the roof was made of slate instead of wood shingles or thatch. When he entered the building through the front and only door he stepped into a gloom almost as dark as night. What little light there was coming in the six small windows and the open door showed a dusty interior cluttered with years of accumulated leaves, nutshells and other detritus left by the wind and critters. To his surprise, however, he could not see any holes in the roof or indication on the dirty floor that the roof leaked when it rained.

Stepping off the building, the interior dimensions appeared to be about 24X30 feet. There was a large fireplace on the front wall to the right of the door when you entered the building. It even had the hardware still attached to hang a cooking pot over the flames. You could swing the pot out to stir it, then push it back over the flames. There was a built in grate to set other pots on over the flames, also.

Tom returned to his chair and sat drinking his third cup of coffee. Before he sat down, he turned his chair to look at the old building. He was sure it had, at one time, been someone's home and a very comfortable one for the times at that. He felt a spark of excitement and a smile graced his face. It wasn't a large home by any means, but it was only a couple of hundred square feet smaller than the one that burned. He was sure he could renovate it very cheaply and have a great home once again. It might even be better than the one that burned. Yes, he was going to do it. The location was, in some ways, even better than his old house. The same small stream flowed past this house, also, on its way to the river, and there was a nice view of the river, besides. He could still have his garden where it always had been and even expand if he wanted into the old yard. He could clear the trash from the fire away and roof over the basement of the old house for a barn or storage or whatever. The resulting 16 by 30 foot building would be very useful.