A Soldier's Journey by PATRICIA POTTER Page B

I don’t think...” Eve started.
    â€œYes,” Andy said. “I think I would like that.” Anything to delay meeting the gazes and sympathy of the others. She was still shaken, still trembling slightly within if not outside. “I think Joseph would, too.”
    Nick’s face lit up like a sudden burst of fireworks. He reached for her hand and led her through a hall to a closed door. There was trust in that hand, trust she didn’t have for herself. Joseph stayed at her side as the boy led her to a bedroom and opened the door. Four dogs looked up, two from dog beds on the floor and two on the bed. Two raced over to her, and the other two regarded her warily.
    â€œThis is Lulu,” Nick said of the young dog who jumped on her. “She’s pretty new. But she’s learning. And the beagle is Miss Marple. She’s a thief. The two shyer ones are Captain Hook, the Chihuahua, and Fancy.”
    She was enchanted by the names as well as the obviously odd collection of dogs. Fancy was...the homeliest dog she’d ever seen. Yet her happiness at meeting someone was endearing. Joseph sniffed each dog, then returned to her side, apparently convinced she was in no danger. She stooped and petted each of the dogs and was rewarded with licks.
    â€œMom calls them her motley crew, but I don’t think they’re motley at all. When I asked what it meant, she told me to look it up in the dictionary,” Nick said.
    â€œAnd what did it say?” she asked, completely enchanted.
    â€œComposed of diverse, often incongruous elements,” he recited like a small scholar.
    â€œAnd what does incongruous mean?”
    â€œI looked that up, too.”
    â€œAnd?”
    â€œI didn’t understand completely. Different , kinda.”
    â€œWell, your dogs are different, and in a good way,” she said. “They’re different in the way they look, but they’re alike in that they love you.”
    He beamed. “I like your dog, too.”
    â€œHe’s my first one. You might have to give me some advice.”
    â€œIs he a military dog like Josh’s?”
    â€œNo, but he’s been trained to help me.” It was the first time she’d admitted to anyone other than Dr. Payne that she needed help.
    â€œJosh has nightmares,” Nick confided. “I’ve heard him. Amos helps him, too.”
    That didn’t seem right. Josh had appeared so confident, so in control. He was starting a new business, had taken a wife and gained a child...a rather precocious one, at that.
    They were interrupted by a knock. “Dinner’s ready,” Stephanie said.
    Andy nodded. She concentrated on controlling the tremors that sometimes continued after a PTSD incident. That was what she called it: an incident.
    She was self-conscious, embarrassed, unsteady, even nauseous, but she darn well wasn’t going to show it. She stood. “I think I should wash first. I have dog all over me.”
    â€œThat happens around here,” Stephanie said.
    Andy went into the bathroom, washed her face and looked at herself.
    She looked washed-out. She walked unsteadily into the dining room. Joseph stuck so close to her she almost tripped against him.
    Then she was at a table loaded with food. The steaks had been cut into individual pieces and looked a bit charred. But no one said anything. Instead, they dug into a huge salad and baked potatoes.
    She listened as Nate and Josh talked about the new inn. “Susan, our manager, is not that excited about the name. She’s great at marketing and thinks we should look at something more...descriptive than Covenant Falls Inn.”
    â€œI like Covenant Falls Inn,” Eve said.
    â€œWe haven’t finalized the sign yet,” Josh said. “Any suggestions are welcome.”
    He turned to Andy. “I heard you’ve been delving into some of our newspapers. Find anything interesting?”
    She tried to think of