Battlefield of the Heart

Veteran Hearts, Book 1

What started out as a bit of research for a sociology paper quickly
turns into much more than Cindy ever expected. But can she survive
Danny’s PTSD long enough to form a relationship with him?

Cindy Waymire, a college senior in search for a topic for an upcoming
sociology paper, finds more than a topic when she meets Army veteran and
college freshman Danny Flynn outside the student union. An undeniable
attraction to this troubled veteran leads her on a difficult and winding
path that brings her to a crossroads — get into a relationship with a
man who has serious mental health problems or turn her back on one of
the best men she’s ever met.

Can Cindy set her fears aside and follow her heart, or will the
ghosts haunting Danny’s mind end their relationship before it begins?

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Excerpt

Chapter One

The late August heat wrapped around Cindy Waymire like a thick
blanket as she walked toward Whitcomb University’s student union. As
much as she loved New Castle, days like this made her wish she lived in
Yellow Knife. The guy standing on the sidewalk just ahead, however, made
her thankful she was in Indiana.

A dark-haired guy with an athletic build, not more than an inch or
two taller than her height of five foot nine, stood scanning the area as
though he was lost. Clean-shaven, with just a hint of a five o’clock
shadow along his jaw, he wore a T-shirt and jeans, both fitting just
tight enough to hint at lean muscles. Cindy considered taking a candid
photo and sending it to her girlfriends, but her cell phone was in her
purse and digging it out would be too obvious. Maybe she could find
another way to share this cutie with them.

His actions reminded her of her own during her first semester there.
She’d had to ask someone where to find buildings so many times. Without
those sympathetic upperclassmen, she would have been perpetually lost.

If he was a new student, that made her the sympathetic upperclassman.
She stopped near him and smiled. “Hi, can I help you find someplace?”

He didn’t seem to hear her. She moved closer, thinking he might not
realize she was talking to him. “Excuse me.”

He twisted and grabbed her wrist with startling speed. She screamed
as he spun her around, bringing her arm behind her and forcing her to
the ground as he said something unintelligible, but undeniably
commanding. As he put a knee on her back and pulled her other arm, she
heard people running toward them and prayed they could help. The guy was
strong and no amount of struggling did any good. He just tightened his
grasp on her wrists and applied more pressure with his knee, making it
difficult for her to draw in a breath.

“Danny, let her up!” a male voice said as the running steps stopped
beside them.

“He’s a threat.”

He? Before Cindy could figure out what the guy was talking
about, she felt some of his weight lift from her back.

“She’s a noncombatant, Sarge,” a third male voice said.

The grip on her wrists loosened. “What?”

“You’re in the States, man.”

“Crap!” He released her wrists, and his weight lifted from her
completely.

She scrambled to her feet, grateful she could breathe easily again.
Turning around, she found two guys flanking the one who had attacked
her.

“Are you okay?” the one on the left asked, his brow furrowed.

She drew in a shaky breath and tried to calm her racing pulse. “Um,
yeah, I think so. Thank you for rescuing me.”

The guy in the middle looked so remorseful that she couldn’t help a
bit of sympathy as he spoke quietly in a pained tone.

“I am so sorry. I didn’t realize what I was doing. Are you sure I
didn’t hurt you?”

“Yeah, I’m okay.” Her wrist was starting to ache where he’d held it,
but the way he hung his head made her hesitant to admit it. From the
look of him, he didn’t need any more guilt. She noticed the two guys on
either side of him looked unusually concerned when they glanced at him.
Were they worried she’d file charges against him, or was it something
more? “Are you okay?”

He dropped his gaze.

The first rescuer nodded toward the student union.

The other guy touched her attacker’s arm, and they walked to the
building.

Cindy watched them go, and then returned her attention to the
remaining rescuer.

“Danny’ll be okay,” he said, moving closer.

“What happened?”

“He had a flashback. By the way, I’m Josh Teague.”

“Cindy Waymire.” She rubbed her wrist. “What did he flash back to?”

“Probably Iraq. He just got back from his third tour about a year
ago.” He motioned to the wrist she still gently massaged. “Are you sure
he didn’t hurt you?”

Cindy raised her eyebrows as he held the door open. “What is this,
Military Day at the student union?”

“No, the student veterans’ group is meeting here in a little bit.”

“I didn’t even know there was such a thing.” In the bright light of
the student union, she got her first good look at Josh. He had short
blond hair, hazel eyes, and looked remarkably familiar. “Are we in a
class together?”

He led her out of the way of a student heading outside and studied
her. “I don’t think so. Why?”

“You look familiar.” After three years at the university, nearly
everyone on campus looked vaguely familiar. “Maybe I’ve just seen you
around.”

“It’s possible. Now, let me see your wrist.”

She held it out, and he gently examined it. Despite a little redness
from Danny’s strong grasp, there wasn’t any excruciating pain as Josh
probed and flexed the joint.

Finally, he released her. “I think you have a mild sprain. I can get
something to wrap it with to help with the ache, or I can walk you to
the medical center so you can get it looked at by a doctor. What would
you prefer?”

“I’m hoping I can convince you not to call the campus police on
Danny. He meant it when he said he didn’t know what he was doing. When a
flashback happens, the real world disappears and he sees what happened
in the past. It’s like he’s there all over again.”

“And I happened to take the place of a bad guy?”

“Yeah, it kind of looks that way.” Josh studied her, a glimmer of
pleading in his eyes. “So, are you going to take pity on him and not
report him to the police?”

Should she call the campus police or not? The university would want a
report of the incident, but Danny hadn’t attacked her with any malicious
intent. She was fairly certain he hadn’t even realized she was female.
And he’d apologized and seemed to feel true remorse. After a little more
deliberation, she felt peace about her decision. “I won’t report him,
but I do want to talk to him. I have an insatiable curiosity for what
makes people tick.”

“Actually, I do.” She made a quick decision. “I have to write a paper
for my sociology class, and I’d like to write it on what it’s like for
soldiers coming home and trying to adjust to life after the military.”

“That sounds more like something you’d write for psychology.”

“No, my professor has pointed out how the wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan affect everyone more than we realize, and I think he’d be
interested in finding out how veterans handle coming here while trying
to recover from being deployed.”

“Recover… that’s an interesting word to use.”

She shrugged off a flutter of nerves. “Maybe, but it makes sense to
someone who’s never been involved with the military and doesn’t know
anyone in it. Going by what they show on the news and the psychiatrists
who get interviewed occasionally, everyone who serves in Iraq or
Afghanistan has to recover at least a little before life is normal.”

Josh searched her face. Finally, he gave a single nod. “I know where
you can find a group of veterans who can help with your paper. But
first, you need to take care of your wrist.”

“Would it be too much trouble for you to wrap it? I’d rather not deal
with the medical center.”

“I’d be happy to do it.” He slid his backpack from his shoulders and
dug inside it, coming up with a chemical ice pack. After squeezing it a
couple of times, he handed it to her and slung the pack over his
shoulder. “Put that on your wrist. It’ll help with the ache and any
swelling. Come with me to the meeting room, and I’ll wrap your wrist.
That should give the ice long enough to do its job.”

Cindy pressed the plastic pack to her wrist, and the chill spread,
numbing the ache. Although curiosity rose, she wasn’t comfortable asking
why he carried an ice pack.

“Are you busy this evening?” He gave her a questioning look.

“Not really. Why?”

He wasn’t going to ask her out, was he?

“You can hang out with the veterans’ group and maybe get what you
need for your paper. So far this year we only have combat veterans, but
there were a couple of guys last year who never left the States during
their enlistments. They may come back at some point. Anyway, we’re
usually out of here by nine, although sometimes we go somewhere else and
hang out for a while after the meeting.”

“Will anyone mind me being there?”

“It’ll be fine. I’m sure they’ll be interested in helping you with
your paper, too.”

Cindy followed him into a meeting room with half a dozen men in their
mid-twenties to early thirties sprawled in chairs at round tables. She
spotted Danny off to one side, talking to her other rescuer and an older
man.

Josh led her to a black guy with glasses. “Hey, Corbin, you got a
roll of self-adhering elastic bandage on you?”

Cindy glanced at Josh, her mind on high speed. She’d expected him to
go to the tiny general store on the first floor to get something to wrap
her wrist, not ask a friend for it. What kind of guys carried first aid
supplies with them?

“Yeah,” he said, his gaze sliding to Cindy. “Who’s your friend?”

“Cindy Waymire.”

Corbin reached into the backpack lying on the floor and pulled out a
rolled, light brown bandage. “Here you go.”

“Thanks, man. I’ll bring this back in a couple of minutes.” Josh led
Cindy to an empty table and had her sit down. He dropped into the chair
beside her, and then loosened the end of the bandage. “Give me your
wrist.”

She held out her arm.

The fluid movements of his fingers indicated he’d had a lot of
practice. When he finished, he tore the material and gently pressed to
make sure the bandage was secure.

“How does that feel?”

She flexed her fingers. There was enough support to prevent most of
the discomfort. “Much better.”

“Good. Keep the ice on your wrist for a few more minutes. I’ll be
right back.” He carried the remaining bandage over to Corbin.

A tingle of awareness lifted the hair on the back of her neck, and
she glanced around, certain someone was watching her.

Danny looked even more contrite than the last time she’d seen him —
something she wouldn’t have believed possible if she weren’t seeing it.
He must have noticed Josh wrapping her wrist. He said something to the
guys he was talking to, and then he walked over to her.

“Mind if I sit down?” Danny asked quietly.

“Go ahead.” She gave him a friendly smile and waved her hand at the
chair Josh had vacated.

He lowered himself into the chair, his gaze on her bandaged wrist. “I
thought you said you were okay.”

“I am.” She spoke gently. “It’s just a minor sprain, and it doesn’t
hurt at all now.”

He glanced toward Josh and Corbin, who were talking a few tables
away. “Did he tell you what happened?”

“He said you had a flashback and probably didn’t even realize I was
there.”

“Would you believe I didn’t realize you were American until Alex told
me you were a noncombatant?”

“Who did you think I was?”

“Doesn’t matter.” Danny shook his head and looked away. “The point
is, I’m sorry. Most of the time I’m fine, but sometimes stress will get
to me or something will trigger a memory and I relive some stuff.”

“Can anything be done to keep you from reliving it like that?”

“Therapy, time, maybe medication. I’ll know for sure if they ever
figure out what works for me.” The vulnerability in his gray eyes made
Cindy want to give him a hug. “I hope you don’t think I’m crazy. I’m
not. I’ve just seen a lot of stuff, and I’m still trying to deal with
it.”

“Josh said you did three tours in Iraq.”

“Actually, only the last two were in Iraq. I was in Afghanistan for
the first.”

“I can’t imagine doing even one tour in either place.”

“It’s what I trained for.” He glanced around the room. “It’s what we
all trained for. It was our job to go over there and fight for our
country.”

She studied him for a moment, sensing his pride as a veteran, and her
curiosity prompted her to ask another question. “Would you go back?”

He met her gaze and, for the first time, she saw strength and
determination in it. “If they asked me, I’d go back right now. The job’s
not finished yet.”

Josh stepped up in front of the group. “I’m glad you all came
tonight. Before we take care of business, I’d like to introduce a
visitor. Cindy, come up here for a minute.”

Why hadn’t he warned her he planned to bring her in front of the
entire group? She’d thought he’d introduce her to a few veterans after
the meeting. Fighting back a flutter of nerves, she set the ice pack on
the table and joined him, noting the curious expressions. She prayed
they didn’t think she was intruding.

“This is Cindy Waymire. She’s writing a paper on veterans going to
college while adjusting to life after the military, and she would like
to spend a little time with us as part of her research. All in favor of
helping her?” Josh paused, and four hands lifted. After some hesitation
and an exchanged glance, the other two guys raised their hands as well.
Josh turned to her with a smile. “You have your guinea pigs. You can sit
down now.”

She returned to her seat beside Danny, relieved they were going to
help her. She’d been a little afraid they might feel insulted by being
the subject of a paper.

“Now, I’ve been contacted by several local organizations and
professors who want someone to come speak,” Josh said, picking up a
piece of paper. “Anybody up for telling groups about the military?”

Cindy looked around the room as Josh paired volunteers with speaking
engagements. With their apparent willingness to talk about life in the
military, it wasn’t surprising they’d voted unanimously to help with her
paper.

The older man nodded slightly as he watched the proceedings with an
approving smile.

Danny leaned close. “That’s Dr. Logan. He’s our faculty advisor and a
Vietnam veteran who went to college straight out of the army.”

She nodded as Josh moved the meeting on to their upcoming fundraiser:
a dinner to help raise money to send care packages to those still
serving overseas. Cindy remembered seeing the donation jars and boxes
for the military for the three years she’d been a student here. Had
these guys been recipients of any of the cards she and her girlfriends
had donated?

Once the meeting adjourned, several of the veterans introduced
themselves to Cindy, including Alex Dugan, her other rescuer. Alex
invited her to join him and a few others for coffee.

Although her heart pounded at the thought of going anywhere with this
many strange men, she set her nervousness aside and accepted the
invitation. It would give her a chance to gather information for her
paper. Besides, going out for coffee meant they’d be in a public place.
She would be safe enough there.

These guys had all been through things she’d never be able to
understand, and though they seemed willing to talk to her about their
experiences, she worried it might bring up unpleasant memories for them
as it had with Danny. She prayed the evening would be a positive
experience for everyone.

As the group headed out of the student union, Cindy walked between
Corbin and Danny. The falling dusk washed out the brilliant colors of
the campus’s landscaping. A handful of stars already shone in the
darkening sky, visible between trees and buildings. A few pedestrians
strolled along the sidewalks, presumably taking advantage of the
slightly cooler temperature brought by the arrival of evening.

Corbin lifted his eyebrows and waved his hand toward her bandaged
wrist. “So, what did you do that required Josh to wrap you up?”

“Sprained my wrist on my way to the student union.” She didn’t feel
right talking about Danny’s flashback, especially with him on her other
side.

“Oh, I’m writing it for my sociology class. My professor spends a lot
of time pointing out how the War on Terror has affected the way we live
and the current state of the world. Lately, he’s started talking about
the Department of Veterans Affairs and the issues it needs to deal with
in order to provide services to the large numbers of veterans created by
the war.”

“Who’s your professor?”

“Dr. Brixton.” A warm breeze blew a strand of hair in Cindy’s eyes,
and she swatted it away as they turned onto the street leading toward
the diner at the edge of campus.

“Dr. Brixton showed us a photo of his nephew and a couple of his
friends. Josh was one of the friends.”

“Does he know you’re writing the paper for Brixton?” Alex asked.

Should she have told Josh who her professor was for before he offered
to introduce her to the veterans group? “Not unless he knows Brixton
teaches sociology. Why?”

“I figure if he knew you were writing it for his buddy’s uncle, he
might have decided to stay out of it so no one can accuse Brixton of
playing favorites if you get a good grade.”

She lifted an eyebrow. “If I get a good grade? Talk about a blow to
my ego.”

The guys laughed as they dodged around a trio of students talking on
the sidewalk.

She liked these guys and hoped she could develop friendships. With
any luck, she could also meet Lacey. The way Alex and Corbin had talked
about her made Cindy curious. Most people would consider it morbid
curiosity, but she couldn’t help being interested in the human angle of
war and all that went with it. If she could bring that down to a
personal level, so much the better.