Yellow Ledbetter

It's Different Now

Three months after Jane was shipped out, life had changed.

None of the kids had never experienced Jane being on deployment... Abree was the closest one to be born when Jane was last overseas.

For about three days, Maura had been shaken. Abree had to help out since Maura was gone a lot helping with the victims.

No one had heard from Jane, but that was expected from what was going on with the war.

Every night, Maura would come home and would pray with her children for Jane before sending them to bed.

***

It was a Friday evening and Maura was sent home early. She walked in and found Kate and Abree making dinner.

"Hey." She said.

"Hi Mom." The girls replied.

"Where are the boys?" Maura asked.

"Tony's showering and I think Brady's writing a song." Kate says setting another plate for her Mom.

"Ok. I'm going to go check on then I will come down for dinner." Maura said.

The girls nodded and went back to making dinner.

Maura went downstairs to the basement. Once Brady had started playing any instrument he could get his hands on, Jane and Maura gladly maded the basement Brady's room so that it would be more quiet in the house.

She walked in and heard Brady's guitar.

"That's really pretty... what's this one called?" Maura asked.

"Don't know." Brady said.

He went back to playing.

"Baby, are you doing ok?" Maura asked, sitting on the edge of his bed.

"Yeah. I'm fine." "Brady you don't have to pretend that-"

"I'm not pretending Mom! I'm fine!" Brady snapped.

"Brayden Rizzoli-Isles! You will not talk to me like that again!" Maura said, sternly.

"It's all different now! Mama's gone, you're gone most of the time. Nonna's busy. Grandma's busy as well. Bree, Kate and Tony are all busy. Whenever I need someone, they're busy! Now I can see why Mama left the military in the first place." Brady says as he stormed off.

Maura sighed. Jane had a better connection with Brady and he was right.

She looked at the paper under his guitar and read the few lines on it:

Unsealed on a porch a letter sat.
Then you said, "I wanna leave it again."
Once I saw her on a beach of weathered sand.

She was confused, but figured it out. He had written so many letters the past three months, but never heard back.

"Oh Lord," She sighed, "why did she have to go?"