Daddy

Daddys gone

Two men dressed in navy blue uniforms pulled up right beside the house.  When they stepped out of the red car, I saw that they were part of the army fighting Korea, the one Daddy was in.  They were dressed in navy blue, the right side of their coats glittering with shiny medals.  One of them was blonde, the other a brunette.  The blonde one was holding a white envelope, with a gold seal holding it shut.  I watched as Mama stepped out onto the porch, looking dazed and confused.  The two men took off their berets as they handed her the envelope.
"Our condolences," I heard them say.  They each nodded their heads, replaced their berets, and got back into the car and drove away as Mama fell to her knees, screaming in tears.  It was dawn, in the early stages of winter.  It was freezing, frost making the grass glitter.  I ran outside barefoot, in nothing but my nightgown.  I ran to Mama, and cuddled up to her big pregnant belly.  She held me tightly to her, like she was afraid to let go of me.  I started to cry, not even understanding what was going on.  Those mean men made Mama cry, and I wanted them to pay.
But that was 9 years ago, I'm now 16.  Mama never told me what happened that day, in fact we don't even talk about it.  3 years after that, she got remarried to Scott.  The ring from Daddy moved to a chain around her neck, and Daddy's ring was on a chain around mine.  She never speaks of Daddy, and I have no idea where he is.  The last thing I've heard of him was that he was fighting in The Great War.  Mama never told me...
I walk through the front door after school, and see the two mean men sitting on the sofa, Mama sitting across from them on the loveseat, tears streaming down her face.   Scott was at work, and Sofie was at her friends house.
"Wow, so grown up Coleen," said the blonde one. "You were just a little girl last time I saw you."
"Get out of my house now!" I growled through gritted teeth.  But they just sat there, grounded. 
"Coleen? Why don't you take a seat, we need to talk about something very important," Mama looked up through her tears.  I sat down beside her, and I regret doing so.  She handed me an old, worn, dirty envelope. I tore it open, and only read the first line.  It said that Daddy was MIA, that no one had seen or heard from him.  I couldn't read on.
"Daddy's gone?!" I yelled.
"Coleen that's not everything," the brunette replied.  "We found your father's body, three weeks ago.  James is dead..."  He'd said something else else, but I was already on my feet, running to my room.  I slammed the door, and threw myself onto my bed, screaming into my pillow.