Without You I Have Nothing Ch. 04

Ah, yes, the inscription!

To Honorary Major of the 6th Ghurkha Brigade,
.............Peter O'Brien...................
..........Let no man be fooled...............
....The Little One is a man to be feared!....

Peter's eyes twinkled and in his mind he could see the parade ground with the ceremonial march past - with him, all of sixteen years old, fully kitted out in a Major's Uniform, taking the salute of the troops as they swung past the dais.

The music was in his ears as was the crunch of the marching feet and the orders from the Regimental Sergeant Major ringing out across the Parade Ground. What a proud, happy day that had been. The whole regiment knew his story and they were saluting his manhood, his courage and his bravery.

He moved into the main bedroom and knelt at the foot of the bed, overcome with the emotions of the evening.

As he recited the Lord's Prayer, that prayer from his childhood, he sought guidance in his winning of Jennifer. His emotions stretched to breaking point and he felt the presence of two people, one on each side, joining him in prayers.

On one side was the roughness of his father's uniform, on the other the sweet softness of his mother. His mind, unable to cope, allowed him to slip to the floor where he slept.