Harriet’s Date

Cory’s voice interrupted, ‘General McCullough, an urgent strategy meeting has been called. It starts in ten minutes. Your presence is required.’ ‘Uncle Hershel, I heard your aide,’ Harriet said, relieved. ‘You should go. I know how busy you are.’ Hershel sighed. ‘All right. I’ll call you another time, then.’ As the call ended, Harriet stared at her phone thoughtfully. When she was five, her parents were both killed on the battlefield. Uncle Hershel took her in and raised her as his own. He was never married and didn’t have any kids. Harriet called him Uncle, but saw him as a father figure. The bond between them eclipsed that of mere blood ties. She’d never questioned his guidance. Yet, should she follow Uncle Hershel’s advice unquestioningly? Elias was a good man, and she knew he respected Uncle Hershel as much as she did. But was that enough to make him a good husband for her? Harriet wrestled with the thought, then eventually drifted off to sleep. *** On day two of special training, Harriet sweated profusely as she trained alongside her fellow soldiers. Her mastery of skills and tactical prowess garnered unanimous respect and awe. During a well-deserved break, Harriet wiped the sweat from her forehead and quenched her thirst with cool water. Her face flushed, she absentmindedly swiped her mouth with the back of her hand. Spotting a familiar figure in her line of sight, she set the bottle down and hastened to his side. Elias was wandering around campus, his thoughts consumed by a familiar sense of unease. His pursuit of answers regarding his parents’ deaths had once again hit a roadblock. Over sixteen years had passed. It was inevitable that many of his parents’ army acquaintances had either retired or passed away. The few contacts he’d managed to track down were initially eager to reminisce, but the instant he brought up the weeks before his parents’ murder, they clammed up. Some of them definitely knew something but were too afraid to speak up, even after such a long time had passed. That in itself told Elias something. Whoever was responsible for his parents’ murder was likely still alive, possibly holding a position of significant power within the army. ‘Elias!’ ‘Harriet.’ He quirked an eyebrow, roused out of his reverie. ‘We’re still in a military facility, undergoing training. It’s best you address me as General Westwood.’ Reluctantly, Harriet yielded. ‘Understood, General Westwood.’ ‘Good.’ After a beat, Harriet flashed a smile. ‘General Westwood, are you free tonight? I’ve got something important to discuss.’ ‘We can discuss it right now.’ ‘But I’d rather not do it in the open, in front of so many cadets.’ ‘Okay, tonight then.’ ‘In that case, I’ll come to your dormitory, if that’s all right.’ ‘No,’ Elias countered firmly. ‘It wouldn’t be appropriate for you, a young lady, to visit my barracks.’ ‘Really? Well then, let’s meet here.’ ‘Agreed.’ Harriet waved goodbye to Elias and jogged away. She’d made up her mind to propose a marriage alliance with Elias—in name only, of course—which would ease the pressure from Uncle Hershel on both of them. Returning to the field, Harriet continued to train until the day’s end. She skipped the mess hall and instead headed straight to the health centre. She found the young doctor leaving an examination room. ‘Can we talk for a moment, Callie?’ Under Angelia’s watchful gaze, Callie complied, following Harriet out of the building. ‘Harriet, what’s going on?’ ‘I plan to clear things up with him tonight.’ ‘Him?’ Callie tried to recall their earlier conversation. ‘The man who’s been, um, struggling?’ ‘Yup. He’s actually a good friend of mine. I’ve known him since I was twelve, and it’s been sixteen years now.’ ‘You two must be close, then.’ ‘Not really. I mean, yeah, we get along, but after I enlisted, our meetings are rare—no more than five times a year, if that. He’s in the army, I’m in the air force. So, you know.’ ‘Is he at the academy right now?’ Harriet nodded. ‘He’s the reason I came here, actually. To see how he’s doing. My uncle—I should say, our uncle—demands a detailed report.’ ‘Your uncle?’ ‘Uh-huh. Both he and I were adopted by my uncle. We lived under the same roof for a while before he joined the army.’ Callie listened quietly. ‘My parents died when I was five, and my uncle took me in,’ Harriet explained, sensing her unvoiced question. ‘Oh, I’m so sorry.’ Callie touched Harriet’s arm gently. ‘It’s fine.’ Harriet shrugged. ‘My uncle gave me a pretty good life. Gave him one, too. My uncle hopes I’ll be with him, and I think, maybe I want that too.’ ‘Well, do you have any romantic feelings towards him?’ Callie noticed Harriet didn’t refer to her friend by name, and thought it was done to protect the man’s privacy. After all, no man ever wanted to admit they had an issue in the bedroom. But then, if he was really ‘frigid’—to borrow Harriet’s term—then Harriet’s decision to confess her feelings to him was a bold and admirable one. ‘Romantic?’ The lieutenant colonel shrugged. ‘I don’t exactly know my type, but I’m pretty certain I don’t hate him. He’s also a soldier like me, so we have that in common, at least. If I have to choose between him and a random guy who doesn’t understand the military life or me, I’d pick him, no doubt.’ Callie wasn’t sure how to respond. It sounded like Harriet was talking about a comrade in arms, not a boyfriend. But she admired her frankness. ‘Sorry for dumping all this on you.’ Harriet smiled at her. ‘It’s just that I don’t often get to talk to a girl close to my age. And you are married, so you’d understand.’ ‘Um…’ Callie picked her words carefully. ‘I understand you are about to ask a man who practically grew up with you, who’s both a comrade and a friend, to be your boyfriend?’ ‘Not a boyfriend,’ Harriet corrected her. ‘To be my husband. Or if he thinks that’s too fast, then my fiancé. I’m kind of pushed for time here.’ Callie scratched her head. Should she offer her good wishes or cautionary advice?