Rina entered the barn, then stopped suddenly. Her heart started pounding in her chest. A strange man. This one kneeling, bare-chested, wearing only corduroy shorts and sandals—one sandal, rather. His left leg was a prosthesis. The handicap calmed her slightly—no doubt she could outrun him. Still, she reflexively pulled a .38 from her purse and gripped it in her hand.

“Who are you?” she asked.

The man eyed the pistol, then the woman.

“My name’s Abel Atwater,” he drawled. “I’m a friend of Sergeant Decker. I’m fixin’ up his barn.”

“Sergeant Decker never told me about any man he hired to fix up his barn,” Rina said.

Abel kept staring at the gun. “Well, I don’t think Pete wanted me here while you were here, ma’am. I just came back to get my tools, and I saw this warped board here. No one was around, so I thought I’d do a quick repair before I went home.” Abel started to rise, then saw the woman’s hand tighten around the butt of the revolver. “If you want to go into the house, lock the doors, and call him, I’ll wait until he gets here. Or I’ll just leave.” He chuckled nervously. “Hey, I’ll do anything you want.”

Rina regarded him. Painfully thin, as if he had cancer…like Yitzchack in his final days. Only this one had normal coloring, wasn’t ashen….

She asked, “Where do you know Yitz—Where do you know Peter from?”

“We were in the army together—”

“Peter was in the army?” Rina interrupted.

“Yes, ma’am, he was.”

Rina stared at him.

Abel said, “We did basic together—Fort Jackson, Polk for advanced training. Then overseas to Fulda and Nam—B Company, third squad. Later, they switched Pete from an A-gunner to a medic. He was too tall for footwork….”

Rina said nothing.

Abel asked, “None of this sounds familiar?”

“No.”

“Pete never talks about Nam, huh?”

Rina shook her head.

“That’s old Doc for you—tight-lipped.” Abel patted his prosthesis. “Uncle Sam’s souvenir.”

“I’m sorry,” Rina said.

“Can I stand up, ma’am?” Abel said. “I’m frozen in an uncomfortable position, and that little piece of metal in your hand tells me I’d better ask permission before I move.”

Rina nodded, backed away a foot, and kept her finger on the trigger. Abel stood.

“I’ve got a picture of him and me taken before we were shipped to the Southeast,” Abel said. “It’s in my wallet…in the back of my pants. Wanna see it?”

Rina didn’t answer him. Abel slowly reached inside his pocket and pulled out his wallet.

“See, ma’am? Just a plain old wallet,” Abel said. “Cheap. Not even real leather.”