Free Hope's Angel by Rosemary Fifield

the rice paddies to take cover in the trees. Nino and Frankie?
    “He
said they’re eligible for the draft until they’re twenty-five, and they don’t
want to go through that, waiting to be called up,” Angie said. “This way, they
choose when, and they’re not just army grunts. Plus maybe they can stay together,
wherever they go.”
    Nino’s
face flashed before her eyes-- the hurt when she refused to go out with him
again. She might not want to spend her life with him, but Nino was special to
her; she’d known him and Frankie since kindergarten. The thought that either of
them might face the horrors of this war terrified her.
    “Not
everybody goes to Vietnam, you know,” Angie continued. “They probably have a
better chance of being sent somewhere else if they enlist.”
    “All
marines enlist. And there are plenty of them in Vietnam.” Connie looked at her
younger sister as another thought entered her mind. “What about Paul Cefalu?”
    Angie
gave Connie an apologetic grimace. “I don’t know. Sorry.”
    “I
doubt it,” Gianna said from her seat on the couch. “His sister told me he just
got an apprenticeship with some electrician in Barre after trying for two years.”
    Connie
felt as though she couldn’t breathe. This war was hitting too close to home.
“When do Nino and Frankie go?”
    “I’m
not sure,” Angie answered. “Ten days, maybe?”
    Connie
drew a deep breath, then turned to look at her older sister. “And when do you
go?”
    Gianna
showed no emotion as her eyes met Connie’s. “I haven’t set a date yet.”
    Connie
nodded, her heart too heavy to pursue the topic further. “Good. I can only take
one tragedy at a time.”

Chapter Six
    Monday,
September 16
    Connie
leaned against her car and glanced at her watch. Her Spanish class started in
twelve minutes, and Greg Fairchild had not shown up to talk about ridesharing.
    She
hadn’t minded the wait itself. Their planned meeting in the commuter parking
lot had provided an excuse to escape the stuffy confines of campus buildings in
favor of an hour in the sun. Autumn had begun to transform the surrounding
trees and shrubbery into vibrant works of art shimmering gold and orange
against the cobalt blue sky, and the air held an invigorating fall freshness.
    But
the time was up and he had not come. Once again, she had no way of contacting
him to arrange another meeting. She was beginning to wonder how sincere he was
about riding together. But then, why should he be, considering they barely knew
one another?
    If
she waited any longer, she would be late for class. She pushed herself away
from the car and walked back toward the brick campus buildings across the
street.
    “Hey!
Connie! Wait up!”
    She
stopped and turned. Greg was jogging down the center of the lot, waving as he
ran.
    He
was breathing hard when he came up beside her, and she took the opportunity to study
his face while she waited for him to catch his breath. He was classically
handsome with strong cheekbones and a square jaw, his good looks accented by
soft curls of chestnut brown and dark-lashed eyes of slate gray.  
    “I’m
sorry,” he said, giving her his perfect smile, “you’re probably heading to
class. I forgot all about our meeting until a few minutes ago.”
    Irritation
replaced Connie’s pleasure at seeing him. “No problem,” she said as she walked
away. “Why don’t we forget the whole thing?”
    “Hey.
I don’t want to forget the whole thing. I didn’t mean it to sound like that.”
Greg stepped in beside her as she kept her eyes trained on the buildings in the
distance. “Look, I’m sorry I forgot. I have a lot going on.”
    Connie
pressed her lips together in annoyance. “All the more reason to forget it.”
    Greg
let out a groan. “Hey, come on. I said I was sorry.”
    She
refused to look at him. “What difference does it make? It’s probably going to
be more trouble than it’s worth.”
    “Nice
try, but you’re not getting out of it that