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wound.” He replaced his glasses onto his nose. “It should not encumber you in any way, once you have regained your mobility.”
    Joel gave a hesitant nod. Things were going as well as he’d hoped. Then why the unsettled feeling in his gut?
    “Your arm should also be as good as new,” Dr. Dupont said, “in a short time.” He glanced at Joel, then away, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed hard. “There is something else I must discuss with you, though. I shall bring over a chair.”
    The grave look in the man’s black eyes turned the warm broth in Joel’s stomach to ice and set warning bells ringing through his head. His jaw and shoulders tensed with apprehension as he waited for the man to carry over a chair and sit down.
    “As I am sure you are aware, the blast that injured your leg also did damage to your pelvic area.” Dr. Dupont leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “This was noted on your medical card, but the field medics did not know the extent.”
    It was Joel’s turn to swallow hard. Why couldn’t he get any moisture to his mouth? “What is the extent?”
    The doctor released a heavy sigh and stared down at his open palms. “Are you married, Corporal Campbell?”
    The question caught Joel off guard. “Um…no.”
    “No children then?”
    He fought a surge of annoyance, reminding himself this man didn’t know him. “No, sir. I’m going to find a special girl after the war, then start a family.”
    “Then the best way I can explain your condition is this.” Dr. Dupont met his gaze straight on. “While you will be able to enjoy every physical aspect of married life, when you do take that step, you will not be able to father a child.”
    “I…don’t understand.” He’d heard the words, but their meaning seemed to be garbled in his head.
    “You can have a normal physical relationship with your wife, Corporal, but you will not be able to create a child.”
    Joel shook his head as the doctor’s grave announcement at last registered. The man had to be wrong. Joel was going to be a father someday—that was part of his plan.
    “I am sorry,” Dr. Dupont said quietly.
    Although he wanted to lash out at the man, reject the pity in his tone and eyes, Joel knew the prognosis wasn’t the doctor’s fault. “Thank you for telling me.”
    Dr. Dupont stood, but he hesitated, his hand on the back of the chair. “You can still lead a full life, Corporal. Things like this, whether of our own making or not, have a way of turning out for the better. If we allow God to work in our lives.”
    The speech, however kindly meant, only fueled the anger that was fast replacing Joel’s initial shock. What did this doctor know of his plans? Plans that had been full of hope and promise not five minutes ago. Now his dream of marrying and having a family had been obliterated as easily as the men in his squad had been yesterday.
    He gave Dr. Dupont a wooden nod in response, then watched with relief as the man walked away. Alone again, or as alone as he could manage in a room full of men, he tried his best to breathe through the crushing emotion pressing against his chest. Why would God deny him the one thing he wanted most in the world?
    Another unpleasant thought marched forward, bringing the taste of bitter regret with it. If he’d married Rose, then none of this would matter. Even if they’d only been able to have one child before he left to fight, he would’ve still been a father.
    Resentment burned like hot ash inside him. He set the Bible on the bedside table, ignoring the pain the small action incited in his already battered body. He couldn’t read anymore. His faith felt as fragile at that moment as the Israelites’ he’d been reading about. For the first time in his life, he thought he understood the cost of leaving Egypt for the unknown.
    Closing his eyes, Joel tried to close his mind against the questions and doubts swirling there, but he was as powerless to stop them as he was a