My Country Tis of Thee

"And now?"

"Things can still be tough. I have the dreams sometimes. Wake up sweating and it takes me awhile to remember where I am. But Luke is great. He's cool if I call in sick for a few days while I get myself back together." He stared at the glass.

"They right you know. We got to stick together. Take care of one another. No one back here understands. No one knows what it is like."

Mike placed his hand on the man's shoulder. "That's what I aim to do my friend. I bought the bike so I could do a bit of traveling and check in on some old friends. See if I can help out the way Luke helped you."

Larry nodded. "You a good man to the Corps," they both laughed at the joke.

Kay walked over and kicked Luke in the shin. The bear woke and sat up as if coming out of hibernation. "What? I'm here, Kim Lee," he cried out.

"You damn well better be, because I called her fifteen minutes ago. So unless I miss my guess, we better start hauling your butt towards that door before that banshee comes tearing through my place screaming and turning over my tables and chairs."

Motioning to Mike to get on one side of Luke she went to grab the other, but Ty stepped in. "I got this one sweetheart. You get that brother settled in the back room while the Jarhead and I hand this one over to his true love," he chuckled.

Kay nodded, "All right. Larry, can you walk on your own?"

The man saluted, "Yes, Ma'am. As much as I would love to have them arms wrapped around me, I think it is safer if I made it on my own steam."

"Damn straight it is, buddy," said Ty as he and Mike used their combined strength to lift the grizzly.

Kay began clearing the table as the men headed towards the door. "Hey, Mike. Come back sometimes. The place ain't always like this. Just when the boys take it over for one their wakes. We usually a pretty fun place to hang out."

"Thank you, Ma'am, but I'll be heading out in a few days. If I'm ever back in these parts though."

"Yeah, bring your lady with you next time."

Mike nodded as pink stained his cheeks. "Yes, Ma'am."

They had barely made it out the door when another Harley barreled up to it. The creature driving it defied explanation. With a black helmet shrouding its head and clad in leather from head to toe, it resembled some mythical creature of darkness.

Except for its size. It was miniscule. Even straddling the bike, Mike could tell that it was barely five feet tall and could not weigh even a hundred pounds. Having tried to maneuver such a machine when he was about the same size, he marveled at the creature's physical strength.

"You good for nothing, crazy old man. What you think you doing? I told you to come straight home this time. But did you listen to Kim Lee? No." The creature screeched as it removed the helmet. Hair as black as coal fell about a face that refused to reveal its age. Despite lines about the eyes and mouth, the woman's features could have been those of the child that Mike had first thought she was.

"Kim Lee, baby," Luke slurred.

"Don't you Kim Lee me you sorry excuse for a man," the woman said as she boxed the giant about his ears.

"I'm sorry, baby. Honest, I am. But I ran into a new friend." Turning to Mike for help, he pleaded, "This is Master Sergeant O'Malley. The man I told you about yesterday. I just wanted to have a couple of beers with him, sweetie. Talk about the Corps and old times."

"Old times, nothing, old man. If you want talk to your friends, I tell you bring them home. I cook. They drink and eat. Then sleep it off at the house. Not in this place. Not with that woman. Jezebel."

Ty stepped forward. "Miss Kim, you know Kay is a good woman. She keeps these guys straight. Just like you do."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. But you know as well as I do that these two used to," kicking Luke in the shin she continued. "That my worthless husband used to warm that whore's bed between wives. Well, no more. I not having you round her no more. You mine now."

Luke bent forward and brushed a kiss across the hellion's lips that were still set in a frown. "Aw, baby, don't be like that. You know me and Kay ain't nothing but friends now. Besides sweetheart, I have always been yours. Since that day I first laid eyes on you forty years ago. No other woman has ever had this old heart."

"Gees man. Have some dignity," complained Ty as he and Mike pulled the man towards the SUV that was parked across the lot. Kim Lee followed behind. Mike might not understand a word she was saying but he knew cursing when he heard it.

Luke leaned into the man, "You take lessons, boys. You got to sweet talk your way out of these things. Women can't resist sweet words and good loving. Ty, I know you might have the good loving down with Kay but it's them sweet words you gotta do now."

Reaching the car, Ty shoved Luke against it as he jerked the door open. "I don't need no god damned advice from you on how to handle Kay. You had your chance you sorry son of a bitch. I'd kick your ass right now if I didn't know that Kim Lee was going to do it for me."

"Damn right, I am," Kim Lee added as she pushed her husband into the passenger's seat and secured the belt about his hulking mass. Turning back to the men, she addressed them. "Ty, thank you. I so sorry. I keep him away as long as I can. I promise."

"It's all right, Miss Kim. These guys just need to blow off steam every now and then. You know I don't take it personal. You take care of the old coot," said the man as he shook her tiny hand.

Kim Lee turned towards Mike. He shrunk under the glare as if something in those deep black eyes could see into the souls of men, read their deepest thoughts. And he had way too many to hide.

After a moment, she extended that tiny hand that he noticed was perfectly manicured with bright red talons. He took it reluctantly and was surprised at the strength of her grip.

"You come to dinner at house Monday night," she commanded. "Call shop and Caleb give you address. Six o'clock. He should be sober by then."

"Ma'am," Mike began, but the woman held up her hand.

"No argument. You come." Turning back to Ty, she said, "You take care of Old Man. Let Larry ride her back to shop when he sober tomorrow."

Ty nodded, "Yes, Ma'am. I'll lock it up tight inside the bar tonight."

She handed the man her keys and walked around to the driver's side. Mike stood in awe as she climbed into the massive vehicle, marveling that she could reach the peddles. The two men stood in silence as she drove off.

Ty was the first to break the silence, turning to Mike. "You need me to call a cab for you too? I can put your bike in the bar too."

Mike shook his head, "I'm all right. I swear."

"You better be. I ain't dealing with Kay if anything happened to you, Jarhead."

Mike laughed. "Yeah, I don't envy you dealing with that one period."

Ty shook his head. "I think the Colonel and Luke might be onto something. I think it is about time I got some things straight with my little man eater before I have to kick some nice guy's ass because he ain't got your good sense to know when to politely turn her down. Thanks again for that."

Holding out his hand, Mike added, "My pleasure, man." This time Ty did not feel the need to break his fingers as they shook hands. A small blessing that Mike was extremely grateful for as the tiredness settled into his bones.

It was not the drunken stupor that he had hoped for but he hoped that the beers would relax him enough that the dreams this night would be of soft, mocha skin and thick, dark curls beneath his fingers as he worshipped the thing he could never have.

Straddling his bike, he caressed the hard steel the same way that he longed to touch her namesake. "Esther," he whispered as he listened to her engine purr and imagined that soft lilting Southern voice purring his name as he made love to her. Some men were not as lucky as Ty, Luke and the Colonel. Sometimes all a man had for comfort was his dreams.

CHAPTER FIVE

Mike looked around him with shock. He was not certain what he expected, but it certainly was not this. Maneuvering Esther around the circular drive-way, he pulled up in front of the sprawling brick and glass edifice that Luke called home.

The center of the driveway was filled with a rock garden, small water fall cascading into a koi pond below and even a statue of Buddha. The place screamed money. Big money. Sure, Mike knew that the man was the premier Harley Davidson distributor in the area. But still? Nothing about him spoke of this kind of wealth.

Dressed in his dusty boots, old jeans and a t-shirt Mike felt decidedly under-dressed. When he had phoned Caleb earlier for the address, he had asked what to wear and the man said nothing fancy. But clearly their definitions of fancy differed. For a moment Mike contemplated running back into Laguna or even Huntington Beach, see if any of the shops were still open. Maybe find something else to wear, perhaps khakis and a Hawaiian shirt like the Colonel had worn Saturday night.

But before he could turn Esther's engine back on, the bear burst through the dark wooden doors and descended upon him.

"Hey buddy, I wasn't sure if you'd have the nerve to come after the ass I made of myself the other night," Luke said sheepishly, his cheeks ruddy with embarrassment.

"Bring man into house, idiot," came the shrill call from the door way.

Mike looked up to where the tiny creature stood in the open door way. In lieu of the black leather, she wore a loose fitting sarong this night. Its bright red, orange and yellow patterns were an almost perfect match to the shirt that Luke wore along with his shorts and flip flops. Mike smiled realizing that he was not underdressed after all.

"Yes, Ma'am," the men said in unison.

Luke hit Mike on the shoulder as he got off the bike. "So how's the bike? Any problems?"

Mike shook his head. "None. Spent the whole day yesterday cruising the Pacific Coast Highway actually. Perfect Sunday ride. Went all the up to Santa Maria then back down here."

Laughter boomed from the man, "Surprised you walking boy. Don't you know that you have to go slow. Break your muscles in with these machines."

Mike nodded, "Yeah, I know. I've ridden a few times in the past. Those rental things when I had some time off. I just needed a bit of a break. I didn't even realize how far I had gone until I was headed back."

Luke nodded. "I understand. That freedom is why I love my job so much. These girls are special."

Kim Lee smiled in greeting as they came up the steps. "Sergeant Mike, nice to meet you."

Mike looked at the diminutive woman in the bright light of day. Gone was the creature of darkness that barked orders better than many drill sergeants. In its place stood a remarkably beautiful woman. Again he wondered at her age. The few lines about her eyes and couple of strands of grey hair that he had failed to notice in the dim light of the parking lot gave away nothing.

"It's my pleasure, Ma'am. I'm sorry if our party the other night caused you any inconvenience."

"This man nothing but trouble for forty years. What one more night?" she responded as she playfully swatted the bear's stomach with the back of her hand.

"Aw, sugar, you know you love me anyway," Luke teased.

"I love your money, this house. I love America. You, I put up with, old fool," she pronounced as she turned back into the house. She padded bare foot across the marble tiled foray, expecting the men to simply follow her.

"Don't believe a word she says. That woman waited thirty-five years for me to fulfill the promise I made to her that I'd come back for her and our baby girl. Turned down more than a few marriage proposals from what our daughter tells me." The man shook his head as he watched his wife disappear across the designer living room and out glass doors onto the patio.

"I could never get her out of my blood," he declared with reverence. "You ever met a woman like that, buddy? Someone you know you'll never be good enough for, but can't help loving anyway?"

Mike could not force words past the lump that formed in his throat so he simply nodded. Both men stood for several moments in silent revere, lost in their own demons and dreams.

Fate or whatever the hell was out there had granted his paltry wish. His sleep that night had been filled with images of her. Her crown of dark curls spread across the pillow as he ran his hands up and down her full figure. He had worshipped her breasts with his mouth before moving lower still. His name had sprung freely from her lips as she cried out from the pleasure he gave her. That Southern twang that he had heard only when he eaves dropped upon Tommy's Skype conversations. Yeah, he knew intimately the hell of loving a woman you would never be good enough to have.

He had woken the next morning so hard that even the ice cold shower had failed to solve his problem. Instead he had been forced to take matters into his own hands, standing beneath the spray, his hands moving on his hard cock as his mind replayed every image and sound from those dreams. Dreams that had been his only comfort for two years now. But even when he had come, there had been no real relief.

The thought of her had ridden him all day long. The Colonel's words. The way that Ty had looked at Kay. The closeness he had felt between the Hernandez's that had sustained them through what was probably the worst day of their lives. Hell, even the way that Kim Lee had bossed Luke about like a little boy. They all served as a bitter reminder of what he would never have...love.

That should not have been any real shock to the little boy who had lost count of the number of foster homes he had been in. Or the Marine, who had filled his pain with beer and one-night stands. But things were different now.

He did not have the Marines anymore. No one depended upon him for anything. And for the first time in a decade there was nothing to wake up for. No where he had to go. Nothing he had to do. He was as he had been over twenty years before...nothing. A nobody. And the pain of it all was closing in fast. Too fast.

"We better get our butts out there with the others or Kim Lee is gonna box us both upside the head," smiled Luke, breaking the silence.

Mike nodded and followed the man through the living area, noting again the expensive and fashionable furnishing that looked so out of place with what he knew of this down to earth man.

Luke must have noticed his stares because he responded, "Kim Lee weren't lying. She does love my money. But I figure, hell, let her spend it. Seems the least I can do to make up for all those years of having nothing but the hatred of her own people in that god damned jungle hell hole."

Wrapping his arm about Mike's shoulder, he led him to a glass case against the wall. It was full of pictures. Pictures that told a story of love and pain. The largest was a silver frame that was obviously a wedding photograph. Luke's smiling face stared out of the frame at Mike, but so too did Kim Lee's slightly overwhelmed one. Beside them stood Luke's son and a breath-takingly beautiful young woman that was almost an exact replica of her mother except for the striking hazel eyes. The younger woman was flanked by a man that was clearly also of mixed heritage, Asian and black. In his arms was a baby girl in a frilly white dress.

"Lots of girls in her position gave their babies up. The orphanages were full of Amer-Asian children that no one wanted. Hell, some even left them to die in the streets. But not my Kim Lee, she kept Jade Su. Did whatever she had to make sure our little girl had a place to live, food to eat and an education."

"I know my wife has scars every bit as deep as my own. So every time I get a credit card bill, I stop and remember that and thank God that I got it to give her cause she deserves every damned cent. More than those bitches that I write alimony checks to every month," he finished.

"Old man, what you doing now?" the voice carried on the sea breeze through the open patio doors. "We waiting."

A million questions danced through Mike's mind. The story that Luke told was just scratching the surface and he knew that. Mike wanted so desperately to hear the rest. To believe that for once good things did happen to good people. That for some people there was happiness to be found at the end of the pain.

It was the only thing that kept him going these days. The thought that the damned money he had saved over the past decade might offer some of his friends hope. That somehow he might use it to bring some relief and maybe a bit of happiness. Before...well, just before.

"Get a move on, boy. I know that sound. We about to have hell to pay," said Luke as he led Mike through the patio doors onto a veranda that overlooked the Pacific Ocean. Waves crashed against the rock cliff upon which the house was built. Their sound blending with the laughter of a dozen or so people that milled about the pool that was the center of attention.

Mike recognized most of the faces. Caleb was there with a pretty brunette woman. A little boy that was only slightly older than Miguel sat on the Colonel's lap as he chatted with Larry at a table off to the side. A huge umbrella offered shade from the still bright summer sun.

Another couple that Mike recognized as Luke and Kim's daughter and the mixed race man from the photograph were sitting at the edge of the pool. Their feet dangled in the water as two children splashed and played nearby. The little girl in a pink bathing suit was about the right age to be the baby in the wedding photo. The boy was a year or two younger.

Luke led Mike over to a bar that was set up near the sliding glass doors.

"What's your poison? Bud? Corona? Or something with a bit more kick?" A smile lighting his weathered face.

"Bud's fine," replied Mike looking around once more. Another Asian woman was chatting away with Kim Lee close to where Mike and Luke stood. He could not understand a word they were saying, but the conversation was definitely animated.

"That's Kim Lee's baby sister Su Kim," explained Luke. "She came over with Danny and Jade Su for a visit this summer. The house is a bit full. Hell, my wife is demanding we buy a bigger one," he chuckled. Pointing to his daughter and her family in the pool, "If we could get Jade Su and Danny to move over here with the grandbabies I would do it in a heartbeat. My little girl not only looks just like her Mama but she's just as stubborn."

"She and Danny run a charity in Vietnam that reunites Amer-Asian children with their American fathers. That's how I found them. I saw this story on the news about them. One look at her and I knew that was my baby girl."

His eyes moved to where his son stood chatting with Larry and the Colonel. "I pissed Caleb off big time when I hopped on the first plane out of LAX to Vietnam. He thought I had lost my mind. Traveling half way across the world to meet a woman that I did not know for certain was even my flesh and blood."

"I love that boy but it took him a long time to come around. He was certain that they were just gold-diggers after my money and an American visa. But I knew..." the bear thumped his massive chest, "I knew in here that they were mine. And I couldn't wait to hold them."

Love shown in his eyes as he watched his wife arguing with her sister, "I went to bring Jade Su home. To fulfill the promise that I made to Kim Lee when they pulled us out of there. I told her I would come back for them."

"Of course, damned politicians, they closed the borders off for decades. I was just a kid then, barely twenty, but I tried my best. I sent hundreds of letter when I got home. The Red Cross, my Senators, the US embassy, anyone I could think of. Hell, I even got my ugly face on the news pleading for information. But it was like they had dropped off the face of earth."