Free For Love and Honor by Cathy Maxwell, Lynne Hinton, Candis Terry Page B

made a career in the military, fought in both Gulf Wars, served as an instructor overseas and now back here in the states but I want you to know that I feel as much pride in your service as I do my own son’s.
    We got a fine picture of you on the wall at the diner and everybody here in Pie Town wants you to get well and come back home. We look forward to giving you a hero’s welcome, serving you some decent pie, and making sure you know just how much we appreciate all you have done.
    Maybe when you get out of the hospital, come home to Catron County, and wear that nice soldier uniform, you can speak to the General of the Post Office and get my mail back running at a decent time. You take care now and hurry home.
    Your friend,
    Oris Whitsett

 
     
    Dear Raymond,
    Enclosed in this package that Trina is putting together is a pecan pie I made this morning. It has chocolate and lots of butter and brown sugar and of course, pecans. Frank said you didn’t care for coconut so I left out that ingredient and added half a cup more of the nuts. I thought the pecan pie would ship better than the meringue or fruit ones; and it should stay fresh since we serve it a couple of days past the bake day at the diner and nobody seems to notice.
    I’m not sure if you heard that I now officially bake pies at the diner for Fred and Bea. You know, they used to serve just brownies, maybe a pound cake once in a while, but they’ve never been known for their desserts. I started making pies last year just before the festival, won the grand prize at the bake off, and took a class later that season at the community college on creating tasty desserts. I like fixing the pies and have even come up with a few recipes on my own. I just find one I like and add a little something else or take out an ingredient I don’t care for, replace it with something different, kind of like the extra nuts for the coconut in your pecan one.
    Don Martinez from over at the steakhouse in Socorro drove all the way out to Pie Town last summer just to taste my banana cream. I heard it mentioned that he would like me to come down there and make the desserts for his restaurant but I think I’ll just stay where I am. Fred and Bea pay me a little more than when I was waitressing and when I get orders from customers at the diner, I am given the full amount received. We charge twenty-five dollars for a pie; so I can do real well when it’s a holiday season or somebody is hosting a family reunion. It’s a nice arrangement and I don’t have to drive so far to work.
    When we heard about your accident, the bomb that blew up your army jeep, we all stopped what we were doing and we said a prayer, right then and there. Fred and Bea closed the diner early and then we all gathered at the church and said more prayers. I don’t go to Holy Family Church since I’m not Catholic, but that evening everybody in the whole town showed up. Even Oris came and he hasn’t been to church since they dedicated the building. He drove his Buick, of course, and even brought Fedora Snow, his neighbor from across the street, although he did make her sit in the back.
    Father George read a few passages of scripture. Roger sang a hymn. We lit candles and we prayed. Out loud. Everybody taking a turn asking God to heal you, to let everything be alright, to bring you back home to us.
    Your dad wasn’t there and we prayed for him too. Everybody knew he took the news real hard. Walked out of his garage and just went up into the hills. Stayed up there three days in the worst storm we’ve had all winter. Bernie took his truck up there to find him, but he said he never smelled a wisp of smoke or saw a single print in the snow and you know, Bernie’s pretty good at tracking.
    Of course, Frank came back and even though he doesn’t talk much about it, he seems like he’s doing better now that we know you’re out of Afghanistan, in the hospital in Germany, and doing okay. He’s back to work, at least, which is