He had his hand on the office door and was about to walk through. “Trust me, string bean.”
She sighed at the nickname. “If I have to.”
“You do.”
Cait didn’t have time to wonder what he was up to; she had a list of jobs that would keep her busy straight until five o’clock. Time to get moving.
***
Joe didn’t waste any time tracking down John Gannon. Before he could even ask her to give them a chance to talk privately, Cora Gannon told him, “I think I’ll head into town and see if I can catch up on the latest down at the diner.”
She was smiling when she bent to pat Jamie on the head on her way out the door.
“Smart woman,” Joe said.
Jack’s dad was grinning when he motioned for Joe to have a seat at the kitchen table. “Married me, didn’t she?”
Joe had to agree. Sitting across from Jack’s dad, they discussed what John knew about Jack’s injuries and the events surrounding them and Joe’s idea to help Jack have closure. When he found out about the Christmas cards Cora continued to send, Joe knew what he wanted to do.
“So, we each take three of the starred names from Cora’s Christmas card list,” he suggested. “I still can’t believe she sends cards to everyone of the men who served in Jack’s battalion.”
“That’s my Cora,” John said with a soft smile.
“So,” Joe said, “we see if any of the men who were wounded that day are willing to come to Apple Grove.”
John’s eyes met Joe’s. “It’s a good plan. I think it’ll work.”
“It wouldn’t be this easy if your lovely bride hadn’t been so dedicated to sending Christmas cards to our service men and women.”
“She started that first Christmas Jack was in Iraq, wondering if there were marines or sailors who didn’t have family to send them cards. It snowballed from there.”
“Why did she make a note of the marines who’d been injured that day?” Joe wanted to know.
“Cora activated the prayer chain as soon as we heard about it but wanted to make sure every person on the chain knew the names of the marines who’d been injured when Jack was.”
Joe shook his head. “You’ve got a gem there, John.”
Jack’s dad grinned. “Don’t I know it!”
Fingers crossed, Joe Mulcahy and John Gannon began their quest.
***
Cait was so tired she wanted to crawl onto Jack’s bed and close her eyes—just for a little while. But she knew if she did, she’d sleep through the night. She was torn between being grateful that Mulcahys had so much work and wishing they didn’t have quite so many jobs.
As she walked up to the house, Jamie barked and the back door opened. “Hey there, sweetie,” she said, dropping to her knees and wrapping her arms around the little dog.
He lavished her with kisses while she giggled. “Jack is so lucky to have you,” she said, burying her face in Jamie’s neck fur.
“He’s lucky to have you too, dear.”
“Hi, Mrs. Gannon. I didn’t see you there.”
Jack’s mother sighed out loud. “Cora, remember?”
Cait nodded. “Um…right, sorry, Cora.”
“That’s better. As far as why you didn’t see me, you were too busy with this little rapscallion.”
Cait grinned. “He is, isn’t he?”
Cora smiled. “Reminds me of our old dog Jake.”
“Jack said the same thing. He really misses that dog.”
“He was family—even if he was furry and used to get mud all over my clean floors whenever it rained. It was so quiet once he was gone.”
“I know. Jack was devastated when Jamie’s owner finally showed up to claim him.”
Jack’s mom smiled. “I heard the whole tale down at the diner earlier today. Those McCormack girls are doing a wonderful job keeping that place running. Hard workers, those girls, but long hours. How do they do it?”
Cait eased Jamie off her lap and stood. “I’m not sure. One thing I do know: they’ve always been hard workers.” She looked up and met Cora’s gaze. “Mrs. McCormack was like a second mother to me. Meg was too, but it was different, being that she was my big sister.”
Cora nodded as she held the back door open. “I understand. Now, why don’t you come on inside? I’ve got some nice solar tea brewed. You can take a glass upstairs with you while you get cleaned up before dinner.”
“Oh, but I have to—”
“Take a break. You can come back down and help me get dinner going if you want.”
“I do.”
Jack’s mom made a shooing motion with her hands. “Then get a move on, Caitlin.”