The next several hours passed in a blur. I signed forms, gag orders, and secrecy documents stacked to the ceiling. Then the interviews began. First there was Lieutenant soandso, then Captain whatshisname and so forth. They wanted to know everything. Who I had talked to, where I’d been, what I had for lunch. They asked me the same questions in different ways to see if my story changed. I recognized the game; I played it often enough. I stuck to the version of the truth Danny and I had agreed upon. No aliens, just a brick wall. I couldn’t tell if they bought it. By the time they were done with me the sun had set.
As I drove home, I wondered if I had done the right thing. Danny wouldn’t change his story, would he? We both knew the penalty for withholding evidence but our killer had already been caught. No other stiffs had been plasma blasted and hopefully no more would. Besides, the Army wouldn’t put any stock in wacky stories about creatures from another planet. They had real fish to fry.
A black sedan drove away as I pulled up. Sonofabitch. I wasted no time getting into the house. Betty was sitting at the kitchen table, her face drawn.
“Sam?” I could hear the quiver in her voice.
“Yeah, honey.” I sat down next to her and took her hand in mine.
“They…they asked me so many questions. I told them I didn’t know anything, that I don’t want the details because they just make me worry. They even asked Sarah what she knew.” She shook her head and tried to blink her eyes clear. “Why would they do that?”
“Because they want answers they don’t have. Aw, Boop, I’m sorry.” She buried her head in my shoulder as I pulled her close. I closed my eyes and focused on breathing. Getting angry right now wouldn’t help anything.
After a while, Betty found her voice again. “Is everything going to be ok, Sam?”
“Of course it is. What makes you say that?”
She swallowed hard then lifted her head to meet my eyes. In seven years, I’d only lied to her a handful of times and every time she knew it right away. She let me know it, too, after I’d managed to hang myself with my own rope. Since then I’ve stopped trying to hide the truth from her. If I didn’t believe everything was going to be a-ok I wouldn’t have said it.
“I’m late.”
It had been a long day. Even on my best day I’m not too quick on the uptake when it comes to skirt stuff. I blinked a couple of times before I got it. “Oh.” I blinked again. “Are you sure?”
The corner of her mouth turned up. “I’ll have to call the doctor to be sure, but I’m definitely late.”
I wrapped my arms around her and squeezed. “That’s the best news I’ve heard in a long time, honey!”
She melted into me. We stayed like that for a while until I noticed I was being watched.
“Come on in, Sarah.” My daughter was standing in the hall and as soon as I spoke to her she broke into a big smile. She padded over and gave us both a hug.
“I’m glad you’re home, Daddy.”
“Me too, sweetie. Did the Army men bother you today?”
She pulled back and those blue eyes pierced mine. “No. But why did they have so many questions?”
“Well, they don’t know exactly what’s going on so they have to ask questions to figure it out. You know when you ask me why the sky is blue or water is wet?”
She nodded.
“That’s what they were doing. They keep going until they get an answer they like, but before they do it’s questions over and over again.”
“But I couldn’t give them an answer, Daddy. Does that mean they’re going to ask more questions?”
I rubbed the back of my neck. “I don’t know. Probably.” I thought about Danny’s reluctance to sweep this under the rug and my face clouded over. “Unless they got answers somewhere else.”
“They shouldn’t be asking me questions because I don’t know everything. You know the answers, though, Daddy. Why don’t they ask you?”
She had no idea how right she was. My lips curled into a smile. “I don’t know everything, either, honey. I’m flattered that you think I do, though.” I patted her head. “Why don’t you go play? Mommy and I need to talk a little more.”
“Ok, Daddy, I love you!” She scampered out of the kitchen. I looked at Betty and smiled wider.
“We should celebrate tonight, let some of this stress go.” I put my hand on her knee and squeezed. “Whaddya say?”
Betty smiled back. “That sounds perfect.”
And we all lived happily ever after.
That’s what I’d say if this was some kinda fairy tale but it ain’t and that’s not what happened.
The Army kept asking questions. Every case we worked that was even a little bit weird was classified and the investigation taken over by the government. Brass watched our every move. Danny had kept his mouth shut but he was antsy. He didn’t like the Army under normal circumstances, let alone when they were trying to tell him how to do his job.
As for me, I followed orders. Which is not to say I was some sort of boyscout, I just had the wisdom earned by making mistakes. I had a family to provide for, a family that was about to get bigger by one. I literally couldn’t afford to get it wrong. I didn’t like being babysat any more than Danny did. Every time we got a case yanked out from under us it made us angry. I breathed until it passed, Danny went to the bar and drank. After a couple of months we settled into a routine. After a couple more months it almost became normal.
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