In the days since the night terror at Rick's, Cory has stayed at his mother's house. His body continues to heal as Cory starts to move around more and begins to try to work out every so often. While he's semi-barricaded at his mother's house, Tara has brought CJ over, and with their first visit, Tara added Cory to her cell phone account with a brand new phone for him.

They're sitting together at the kitchen table while Lorraine entertains CJ.

"I know I shouldn't have, but I want you to be able to stay in touch with everyone. I hate having to guess and worry about where you are, and CJ is constantly asking to talk to you. He wants to be around his father more, and you need him more in your life."

Cory, still unable to express what he sees in his night terrors, sits there in silence at first. When he hears CJ laugh, his trance is broken, "Huh? Oh yeah. I'm sorry, sweetie. I guess it's not what I expected being home, but you're correct that I do need to spend more time with him. I have an upcoming appointment at the VA in St. Paul, and when I get done there, if you don't mind, that is, I could stay with you a night or two and spend time with my son," Cory replies with a bit of raspiness to his voice.

Tara reaches out with her left hand and places it over Cory's. That's when Cory sees the ring and gives a slight grin, "You're still wearing that ring. I'm sort of shocked, and does that mean we pick up where we left off? I don't know what all this means anymore. I feel lost."

"What we have can be figured out in time. Do I still love you? Yes! Do we pick up right where we left off? No. What we had when you left was uncertain and shaky, and I can't afford that with CJ. You've always been the main guy in my life until our son was born. Can I see us trying to repair or build a new relationship over time? I do. Right now, you need to get your mind healed, and your body needs to recover. Don't get me wrong, that kiss the other night was magical, but my mom and your mom talked to me about making sure we don't make the same mistakes and rush or that things have changed. I can see you're not sleeping that great. You have heavy bags under your eyes, and the stress is all over your face," Tara explains with a gentle rubbing on Cory's hand.

The kitchen door bursts open, and a happy young man runs into Cory's arms, "DADDY!"

CJ bounces into Cory's lap and smiles his bright smile at his mother.

"Are you happy to see daddy?" Tara asks.

"Yes! I want daddy to come home with us. I want him to play cops and robbers and play cars with me. Will you come home with us, daddy, please?"

Cory feels his heart melt and the stress disappears almost immediately, "I wish I could, but soon I will be there. Daddy promises."

The look on CJ's face leaves Tara nearly in tears from trying to hide her laughter. The expression CJ gives his father is the exact annoying glare Cory has had ever since they met in high school. Cory notices the look in tara's eyes and gives her the same glare CJ is giving him, leaving Tara wanting to capture the moment on her phone with a photo.

"Hold those poses! You two look exactly alike, and I want to get that!" Tara says with a quick snap sound from her phone, "Got it! Thanks!"

Their expressions change, and CJ gets down to go to the refrigerator to get himself a juice," "Mommy, daddy, would you like a juice too?"

"Sure, baby boy, bring mommy one."

"Yes, CJ, I would like a juice too. Thank you for being such a thoughtful and polite young man."

Lorraine walks into the kitchen and leans against the counter. Cory has noticed since her retirement and his dad's death that his mother has lost weight. Her clothes are baggier, and her hair has more gray. Cory isn't used to seeing his mother wearing shorts or tennis shoes.

"You think that Tara would raise anything but a proper young man? I know you're both still so young, but Tara grew into a wonderful and loving mother while you were gone. You did good when choosing her, and I know things aren't as they were in high school, but I pray that you both will rekindle that love you had. If not, please be civil for CJ's sake. I want my grandson to grow up happy and know that he's loved by so many," Lorraine tells them as they hang onto every word she says.

"Mom. CJ is my main concern. If anything, Tara and I will work out a plan. We will go over the topics of relationships and whatnot. I agree that CJ is our priority, and I have years to catch up with him. I never knew what you meant when I was growing up about understanding a parent's love for their kids, but I do now. That's why I'm doing this VA thing. I want to be the best father I can be for my son.

Tara gets to her feet and brushes her hands down along her skirt, "You mean 'OUR' son." Cory can't help but stare as Tara bends over far enough to give him a good view down her loose-fitting shirt.

The visit ends, and Tara gets CJ ready to go. Once they're out the door and drive away, Cory and his mother sit down on the newly built deck in the backyard.

"She's a treasure; you'd be stupid to let her go. But, like I told you, when your dad was still alive, she was here as much as possible with CJ. Your dad loved that little guy, and it made his day when Tara named CJ after you. I miss him so much!" Lorraine says while she wipes away a tear.

"Dad was a good father. I miss him too, and I'm sorry for being gone. When I read that letter, all I could see was this red blinding fury."

Nothing else is said between them for a while. Cory sits in the chair, soaking in the sun until Tara tells him that she and CJ made it home safely via text message. Cory spends the rest of the day combing over his car, topping off fluids, and listening to the radio.

On the day of Cory's VA assessments, he and his mother stay in a hotel in St. Paul. The day begins with a physical.

"All right, Mr. Dubois, I need you to strip down to your underwear and relax on the seat. Then, I'll begin with taking your blood pressure and heart rate," the nurse instructs while she looks over Cory's military medical records, "I also see you were injured not long before your discharge. If you don't mind, I need you to remove your shirt to check on the healing and condition of your wounds."

Cory sighs and gently tugs his shirt upward. The nurse's attention goes from the screen to Cory's torso and bandages and helps him gently remove the coverings to see his wounds and surgical scars are healing nicely. There are no signs of inflammation or any irritation.

"These are looking great, Mr. Dubois. I saw in your file that you were a Surgical Assistant. That makes things easier, knowing you can take care of these in a professional manner."

"Thank you," Cory says with some moderate blushing on his cheeks.

There's more silence between them, and soon the nurse finishes up and leaves the room, which is when Cory slips back into his shirt and relaxes on the exam table until the doctor walks into the room.

"Good Morning Sgt. Dubois, how are you feeling today?"

"I'm okay, sir. The soreness is almost gone, and my body doesn't feel like swiss cheese. If I could sleep more than a couple of hours, that would be an improvement," Cory divulges.

"Night terrors?"

"Yes, sir."

"Any vomiting? Shakiness? Sweating with these dreams?" The doctor asks.

"Yes, to all the above," Cory replies, with his voice quickly getting shaky.

The doctor goes to the computer and adds everything Cory says into his medical file.

"From my understanding and correspondences with your former superiors, you had a near-death experience. You probably feel these events are still fresh in your mind as normal, but I won't prescribe anything for sleep. What I will do, is send you to our group therapist. Maybe, if you can talk about what happened in a controlled group in private and share your pain with others, you can mentally begin healing. Unfortunately, all of these things have permeated into your subconscious, and with no one to talk to, they built up, and your mind can only take so much before it explodes with these terrors."

The only thing Cory can do is nod his head. He's heard from others he's helped and treated at the hospital unit talk about the horrors of battles and firefights. Yet, in the back of Cory's mind, he can't weigh what he's been through with those who have faced the Grim Reaper face-to-face with the hostel battles throughout the other regions of the war. So his concentration is pulled back to the exam room when the doctor talks to him again.

"Sgt. Dubois, hello. Are you still with me?" He pauses to allow Cory time to focus, "Are you okay?"

"I am, I'm sorry. I faded out, remembering some of the tales the others who were treated at the combat hospital told me when I helped out the nurses on their rounds."

The doctor sits and listens while Cory gives details without names about some of the horror stories from the war-torn regions.

"I can remember the smell of the heated sand in the recovery rooms—the blood-soaked bandages and wounds from bullets and items that were stuffed into IEDs. I can see my fellow soldiers going into surgery and being there for amputations and emergency surgeries when shards of metal and bone would travel through the bloodstream to vital organs. They didn't make it most of the time, and those who would pull through became a shell of themselves or vegetables stuck in bed for the rest of their lives."

The doctor's decision to place Cory in a therapy group with a psychiatrist for one-on-one sessions seems to be a no-brainer. He turns back to the computer for the immediate referral and then finishes the examination by listening to Cory's heart and lungs.

"Physically, you're recovering wonderfully. The pain is fading, and you feel like you can move without ripping your body into pieces is great to hear. I have your referral in to begin seeing my colleague, Dr. Clark. He's wonderful at helping those who have lived through the drastic drama, and yes, Sgt. Dubois, you have been through it yourself. But unfortunately, not everyone who has PTSD sees combat. So, I'll finish updating your file, and you, sir, are heading to the third floor and checks-in with the receptionist behind the glass. All you do is give her your name and take a seat. I want to see you back in six weeks to finish checking over your wounds, and then we will go over anything else. Take care and be safe."

On his feet, Cory heads back to the waiting area and waves to his mother before he walks over to the elevators for the third floor. Lorraine knows better than to ask how it went with the dull look in Cory's eyes. It's a look she doesn't recognize from her son, but one she prays every second she can that this won't last the rest of her son's life. Lorraine wants to see the sparkle and joy return to her son in more than just spurts.

Cory checks in with the receptionist behind a four-inch-thick piece of glass and takes a seat while he waits. Lorraine sits beside him and takes a magazine to read. It takes nearly an hour before Cory is called back into the consultation area. Lorraine goes to the receptionist and asks where the cafeteria is located.

Cory sits on a velvety blue couch inside the consultation room that smells like a forgotten era in treatment from the 1980s. Unable to feel comfortable, Cory crosses his arms and waits. Instead, Dr. Clark lifts his bald head to stare at Cory with his dark green eyes with his fingers intercrossed on his desk.

"My apologies Sgt. Dubois, but as you can tell, more of your generation is coming home mutilated in new ways we haven't seen since the end of the Vietnam War. Even that is an unfair statement because these two wars show us new ways that men and women are getting torn apart in the field. Urban combat and close quarter IEDs make for an ugly outcome on all of your kids coming back home; if you get that far. From what Dr. Tennson put in your file, you were part of that hospital situation. My sympathies to those you lost, and know that here you are safe, and anything you say in this office or group sessions goes no further. However, I will tell you this upfront, if you seem like you pose a danger to yourself, the general public, or any loved ones, I will sign off on an emergency Mental Hygiene Warrant."

The shock of the up-front mention of a Mental Hygiene Warrant hits Cory like lightning to water. Dr. Clark comes across as a bit hostile and cold-natured.

"Wow. Um, that's extreme, but I guess I understand, and if I am a danger, shouldn't I be locked up until it's safe for everyone? The last thing I ever want to do is hurt my mother, my best friends who are like brothers to me, or my son's mother. I couldn't live with myself if I did anything to any of them," Cory says with tears in his eyes.

"And, I believe you, Sgt. Dubois. All of that is a formality to shake you up at the possibility that you know the VA's protocols to protect you and the public if life gets too difficult."

Once more, silence fills the air around Cory. Slowly the shock is replaced by anger and resentment as Cory begins to feel overwhelmed at the idea of being locked away in a padded room with a stray jacket wrapped around his body. The blood rushes to his face, and Cory's pale complexion shifts to a shade of pink.

"I see something has your blood pressure up," Dr. Clark says.

"Yeah, thinking about being locked away if you don't like my answers to a question or if you perceive me as a threat to anyone. I may have my issues now, but I would never intentionally harm my family, friends, or son. Let's get one thing straight, doctor, I will have my bad days, but I will fight tooth and nail and not have my life dictated by the government's view or its bullshit policies. It's been the bullshit NATO policies that have gotten soldiers from all over the world injured or killed. The first time I watched someone die on the table wasn't someone in combat. It was a construction worker for the new NATO Embassy. I'm here as a promise to my family and son to get help, but I'll be damned if I let the weight of an opinion lurking in the back of my damn mind," Cory says in a heated tone.

Dr. Clark gets to his feet with a dictation device in one hand and a notepad with a blue ballpoint pen and takes a seat in a blue leather chair a few feet from Cory.

"That gives us something to talk about for a little while. First, I want to know more about your family and friends. Secondly, tell me about your son, because I saw his name in your file. Still, I'm curious to know how your relationship with him is because I only noticed one take of leave back here to the States for your father's funeral, and in the footnotes, it states that you resisted coming then too."

With his hands resting comfortably in his lap, Cory goes over the details that led to the day in question. From the decision that landed Cory in the recruiter's office to when he was forced to return home for his father's funeral. Finally, the emotions return to the surface, and Cory doesn't realize he's gone from looking Dr. Clark in the eyes to staring at the floor.

Unsure of what's happening in the therapist's office, Lorraine sits in the cafeteria watching the news. Then, out of nowhere, another middle-aged lady sits across from her and opens with small talk, "I take it you're not here for the food."

Lorraine huffs and replies, "That's for sure, and I used to work in law enforcement back home."

"If you don't mind me asking, where's 'home' for you?" The short red-haired lady asks.

"RiverCreek. My son is up with a shrink for his consultation. It kills me to see him with the light out of his eyes, but he's still my little boy, and I feel like I need to be here for him," Lorraine explains in a soft tone.

"I agree. I'm here from Hudson to visit my daughter. She's been home for almost a year, but she's bedridden. Somehow she managed to survive a brutal beating when her unit came under attack. My Vivian was left for dead with a bullet lodged in the back of the neck from some asshole. I tell you what; these wars are going to ruin our kids. Her husband left her and took their twins back to St. Paul. They come to visit to be nice, but she lays there with all of those tubes, and it breaks my heart every time I visit."

Lorraine covers her mouth with her hands but reaches out to rest her left hand over her lunch mate's hands after a couple of breaths, "I'm sorry to hear that. My son didn't go through anything like that. He was nearly shot to death, and someone saved his life at the expense of hers. You'll be in my prayers. If you don't mind to give me your names?"

"I'm Veronica Waters, and my daughter is Vivian, if I didn't say it earlier. My mind wanders everywhere and anywhere when I'm here. Most people look the other way when you try to talk to them here. It's like we all carry some undiscovered plague or something, but when I saw you sitting here, you seemed like a good person to hold a conversation about more than the weather," Veronica says and wipes her eyes.

By the time the ladies finish bonding and exchange phone numbers to keep each other updated on their kids for support, Cory is finishing up with Dr. Clark. Their session ends because Dr. Clark has a group therapy session. Dr. Clark invites Cory to attend, and Cory goes with the doctor to sit in the back to listen to stories and triggers some of the others in the group to share. Cory listens to stories of those who served in combat and how their lives were shattered. They give details about how each day is a new experience and how their loved ones are a pillar of support once they share some of the burdens endured by the experience of fighting in the wars.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for sharing, and we have a guest here today. A new patient who has seen firsthand the effects of war and is nearly a casualty. Cory, is there anything you would like to share at this time?" Dr. Clark calls out and gestures for Cory to come closer.

Cory pulls the chair into a spot, joining the circle, "Hi everyone, I'm Sgt. Cory Dubois and I served in a Combat Surgical Hospital in Iraq. A band of terrorists attacked my unit to free their leader, but several of us were shot, stabbed, raped, or killed in the process. I was saved by a nurse who gave her life for mine without a second thought. I have a son who is the light of my life, two best friends who would jump in front of a bullet for me, my mother who sees me differently, and a woman I've loved since high school when she moved to my small town; from Arkansas."

A moderately tall and portly man speaks up, "Welcome, Sgt. Dubois, I am former Captain Holden. Thank you for your service and your willingness to save lives. If I may speak for the group in the Blue team, welcome, and it's wonderful to hear you have so much love and support at home. Where do you come from, and what was your life like before the military, if I may ask."

"I was born and raised in RiverCreek. My son's mother lives about forty minutes from here, and my mother and best friends stayed behind in RiverCreek. Before I was a soldier, I was a hockey player for RiverCreek High School. I was the team captain when we won the state title my junior year. When my girlfriend, who is my son's mother, got pregnant, I let my shot at Miami of Ohio go to provide for them. I wanted to become a General Surgeon, and I finished my bachelor's degree in Nursing. So I'm technically a BSN and a Surgical Technician. Still, I haven't taken my exam for my nursing license," Cory reveals with Dr. Clark taking notice of his remarks to try to help him stay on course to become successful in his fields of study.

"That's awesome! It sounds like you have the world at your fingertips. Bravo Sgt. Dubois, and speaking for the group, we hope to see you with us again," Captain Holden says as the group claps and extends their hands out to shake Cory's hand.

The group ends their session with a prayer and snacks of finger foods at a round table with fruit juice. Cory spends time with some of the other members in small talk. Dr. Clark sits in his chair to observe interactions.

When Cory exits the waiting area, he sees his mother sitting in the same chair, "Have you been here the entire time?"

"No, son, I went and had lunch, or what they consider lunch. I talked with a lovely lady who has a daughter who will never leave this place. It's a heart-aching story. How was your time with the therapist?"

"Good. It was good to hear some stories and know there's help here. I guess I'll either look to move in with Tara at some point or find a small place of my own. Luckily, I have most of my earnings from the Army since I never left base or went wild. So I don't have to rush to work, which is nice, but I want to focus on my nursing exam and get my life put back together."

The day at the VA comes to an end with Cory stopping at the appointment station on the ground floor to confirm and set up future appointments. Once he's done, Cory and Lorraine head out for RiverCreek, but along the way, they make a surprise stop at the restaurant Tara manages for dinner. Tara has the sitter bring CJ to Cory, and they all spend time chatting as Lorraine begins to see some twinkle return for the moment in Cory's eyes and feels hopeful about his future.