Beyond the Point(100)
In light of everything, it became painfully clear to Avery that she’d not been that kind of friend. Not in years. She’d grown envious of Dani’s travels and her wealth. She’d grown cold toward Hannah, too. God—she’d treated Hannah horribly. Her friend had been deployed for more than a year and Avery had done little more than send her an e-mail on her birthday. Kind, loyal, dependable Hannah. For years, Avery had taken advantage of her loyalty. She’d taken her for granted.
The clearest sign of her failure was that somehow, Dani had become the point person for every friend, acquaintance, and distant relative who wanted to express their condolences and find out how they could help. Avery lived down the street from the Nesmiths, and still, a girl who lived five time zones away had become the hub of all communication. It hurt to know that in the years since they’d graduated from West Point, she’d let her relationship with Hannah deteriorate that much. But the more Avery asked Dani what she could do, the less it seemed her friend had any answers. Just pray, Dani had typed in her last e-mail, sent from thirty thousand feet above the Atlantic.
Pray. For what? To whom?
Avery crawled into her freshly made bed with her cell phone and laptop, and tried to stop shivering. It was too horrible to imagine. From what Eric had heard through the 82nd Airborne Division newswire, Tim was killed by small-arms fire in a skirmish in Samarra. Two of his soldiers had been shot, and running to their aid, Tim found himself in the midst of the crossfire. The soldiers both survived. Tim bled out before the medical evacuation team could arrive.
Clenching her eyes closed, she tried to put those images out of her mind. The Tim she wanted to remember was the one at Thanksgiving—sitting at the table, rubbing his wife’s neck. Laughing. Clinking his glass against hers. Or the one senior year, getting on one knee in front of Hannah, surrounded by rose petals and candlelight. Or the one four weeks ago, who’d dropped a key in her hand and smiled, giving her one final salute. She couldn’t just sit here, thinking about him and worrying about Hannah. And so, in a rush of movement, Avery flipped open her laptop and began clicking quickly.
Flights from Austin, Texas, to Fayetteville, North Carolina, weren’t cheap at the last minute. Avery clicked through a list of options on several different screens. Hannah’s family would need to be here when Hannah finally got home. Then, scrolling through her phone contacts, Avery landed on Hannah’s sister’s name. Emily Speer Daniels.
Married with a two-year-old son named Jack, Emily was living in Austin with her husband. Avery had met them several times over the years: a few times at West Point, most recently at Hannah’s wedding. She didn’t know Emily all that well and it was possible that she was overstepping. But Avery couldn’t spend another moment without doing something for her friend.
Holding the phone up to her ear, Avery heard a few voices in the background before Emily answered.
“Avery. I’m so glad you called.”
“I just heard,” Avery said weakly. She paused, aware that the conversation might need to move slowly.
“Yeah.” Emily sighed heavily. “We’re all still in shock.”
“Have any of you heard from Hannah?”
“She’s still in Afghanistan. They still haven’t found a way to get her out of the FOB. Apparently, a sandstorm has shut everything down.”
“Have you guys decided when you might come to Fort Bragg?”
“No,” Emily replied. “We thought we’d wait to hear from Hannah. See when she wants us to come.”
Avery knew she needed to tread lightly here. It wasn’t her place to make plans for anyone else, but then again, she knew the Army well enough to know that it could be several more days before Hannah’s plans were finalized.
“I’ve been thinking,” Avery said. “I really think you need to be here as soon as possible. Things with the Army can move slow. And I don’t know when Hannah will get home, but I do know she’ll want you to be here when she does. I’m just a few streets down, and I’ve got a spare key. I’m not sure how Tim left things. So we can go get the house ready for her.”
Emily was silent for a while, considering what Avery had said.
“I took the liberty of looking up some flights,” Avery said. “I hope that’s okay.”
Emily gave a light laugh. “You’re amazing, Avery. Really.”
“It looks like there’s one leaving Austin on Sunday morning. I’ve shopped a bit, and it looks like a pretty good deal.” It was silent on the line, then Avery sat up in bed. The words that followed bubbled up from a place within her that she didn’t know existed. “Emily, I know this may sound crazy, but I want to pay for your flights. For you, your husband, and Jack. And for your parents, too.”
Avery tried to ignore the dollar signs adding up in her mind. She wasn’t even sure she had that much in her savings account.
“Oh, Avery,” Emily said, voice trembling. “You don’t have—”
“It’s not about the money. I want to.”
“We couldn’t possibly—”
“Please let me. I just need to do something. I’m sitting here going crazy by myself and it’s the least I can do.”
“Gosh,” Emily said. “I don’t know . . .”
“You don’t even have to tell your parents. Just tell them the Army paid for it,” Avery said, then chuckled. “It’s not a total lie. And it’s one less thing you have to do right now. Check it off your list.”