ROTC obligation with the army. He went to Afghanistan, and they put the wedding off until he got back. Postponing the marriage had been Samâs idea, because he didnât want to leave a wife behind in case something happened to him. They were married as soon as he returned from Afghanistan twelve years ago.
Sam began working for Sarahâs father, Nat Goren, at Mid-American Trucking. He worked first as a driver, then as a manager, then he bought half the business, and when Nat Goren retired, Sam bought the entire business from him. It had been an extremely profitable operation until the total collapse of the nation, which closed banks and rendered money useless. The collapse had cost Sam over four million dollars.
When Sam went back inside he could smell the aroma of roast chicken with carrots and zucchini.
âMmm, it smells delicious. What are we celebrating?â
Sarah chuckled. âWe are celebrating that we have chicken,â she said.
âReason enough for celebration,â Sam agreed.
âDoes it look like rain?â Sarah asked.
âNo.â
âToo bad, the garden could use a little rain. Dinnerâs about ready.â
âGood, Iâm starved.â
âTell me when you arenât starved,â Sarah teased.
Sarah filled two plates, then sat down to the table with her husband. He reached across the table and took her hand. âI love you,â he said.
âI love you too.â
âI canât imagine my life without you.â
âWhy would you have to imagine it? I havenât found any new boyfriends,â Sarah teased.
âYou just try, Iâll tell them how much you snore,â Sam said, smiling back at her.
âI do not snore.â
âAnd lemons arenât sour.â
They ate their dinner before Sam gathered enough nerve to tell her what had happened today.
âSarah, Iâve something I want to talk to you about,â he said.
âWhat?â
Sam showed Sarah the decree.
âWhat? What does this mean?â she asked, her voice weak.
âIt means we no longer own the company,â he said.
âThey canât just make you sell out to them, can they?â
Again, Sam reached across the table to take Sarahâs hand. âMy love, I wish they were buying us out. They arenât. Theyâre just taking the company, lock, stock, and barrel.â
âNo!â Sarah said, as her eyes welled with tears.
âThere is an alternative,â Sam suggested. âAnother path we could take if you are willing to do it.â
âWhat is that?â
Sam showed Sarah the relocation document. âI want you to read this, and tell me what you think of it.â
She looked at it for a moment, then glanced up at him, her eyes showing some hope. âSam, do you think this is for real? I mean is there really a place where we can go and start all over, away from . . . from all this?â She made a motion with her hand to encompass âall this.â
âYes, I do think it is for real.â
âWell, whatâs the catch? There must be some catch to it.â
âThe only catch Iâve been able to learn about, is that we will be signing over not only our business, but all our propertyâhouse, furniture, and cars. Also, when we report for transport, we can each carry only one suitcase.â
âWell, if weâre leaving Dallas, what good is our property to us? We may as well sell it.â
âUh-uh,â Sam said, shaking his head. âThe truth is, Sarah, whether we take this offer or not, we are going to have to give up our house, and we wonât be paid for it.â
âYou mean itâs not just our business? Theyâre going to take our home as well?â
Sam shook his head. âNo, they are taking our house, not our home. We are our home.â
Sarah paused for a moment, then nodded. âAll right,â she said. âYes, letâs do