The letter was signed, but Barbara did not notice, her thoughts were on its contents. Her prayers had been answered, but at the cost of the life of someone Stephen had loved very much.
She did not have any feelings of guilt. She had not wished his wife's death, nor in any way caused it. But she could not help but wonder about what it meant, to Stephen and to her.
Several months had passed since he learned of his wife's death. Did he still love his wife? Would he always love her?
Where did she, Barbara, fit into his heart now? Had enough time passed? Was he ready to deal now with their love? Was she ready?
A clerk interrupted her thoughts.
"The assignment officer will see you now, Barbara."
A few moments later, Barbara stood at attention before the same officer she had seen that morning.
"It's a volunteer assignment, Barbara. You can refuse it if you wish. Personally, I would. It involves flying into a war zone."
The words excited Barbara. For the moment, she forgot about the contents of the two letters she had just read.
"The request comes from General Patton's command staff."
What could General Patton possibly want me to do? "It seems the general wants you to help rescue a horse."
"A horse?" Barbara exclaimed.
"I don't know the details, but General Patton wants your help in saving one of those white Spanish horses that appear in riding shows."
Barbara knew about the famous show horses. "Lipizzaners, from the Spanish Riding Academy in Vienna!"
The assignment officer was not impressed. "Yes, well, all I know about them is, the Austrians are trying to round them up from various places in the Nazi-occupied countries. With the war about to end, they're desperate to keep the Soviets from getting them."
Barbara hardly had time to digest that, when the woman said more.
"Even with the war expected to end soon, neither the US nor the Royal Air Force can spare a pilot or a bomber for such a mission. Neither can the ATA. But you're an American volunteer, not officially an ATA Girl. So you could take this assignment, if you so wish. Again, my advice is to decline it. It's much too dangerous to risk your life for a horse."
But Barbara wanted the assignment, for several reasons.
It could make her dream come true, of flying a bomber in a combat zone. And the memory of Becky came back to her, and the terrible way she died in the hangar fire.