Lucy Dillon is baking cookies when the doorbell rings.<\/p>\n
It is two weeks before Christmas in 2006, and her son Matthew and all his Marine Corps buddies want snacks for the holidays. As usual, they’ve turned to her.<\/p>\n
Matt asked for the cookies and a fruitcake on one of his frequent calls home the day before. He is in Iraq serving his second tour of duty but sounds so casual he could be phoning from down the street. For some reason Lucy doesn’t understand, those boys over there love fruitcake. Maybe it reminds them of home.<\/p>\n
Lucy and her husband, Neal, hear the bell, ask each other “Who could that be?” Neal guesses it is the UPS man. Matt said he sent a Marine Corps flag for the new flagpole in the front yard and that it should arrive any day. Maybe 7:30 p.m. was late for UPS but not out of the question.<\/p>\n
Neal is so sure the flag has come that he doesn’t even look up when he opens the door, expecting to find a package from Matt on the front porch.<\/p>\n
Instead, he sees two pairs of black patent leather shoes. Two Marines stand at attention on his stoop.<\/p>\n
Neal is a veteran, all his boys have served, and he knows what this means. Before the soldiers can speak, Neal quietly asks, “Is my boy dead?”<\/p>\n
Before the sergeants can finish \u201d\u201d “We regret to inform you …” \u201d\u201d Neal Dillon’s knees buckle and he falls. The Marines can do nothing but catch him.<\/p>\n