"And Marvin is?" "Oh, that's Elaine's husband." "Was Earl in the service?" Mary Jo shrugged. "She doesn't say. It's sort of hard to follow because each entry is only three or four lines. Joan writes in this shorthand way. 'Busy today,' 'no letter from Jacob,' that kind of thing." "Can I see the diary when we're finished eating?" "Oh, sure." They continued their meal, with Noelle--finally content--in her baby seat. Mack had obviously changed his views on sauerkraut, since he had two helpings. They cleared the table and Mary Jo made coffee, then retrieved the journal from her room. The night before, she'd read until the words had started to blur. "Did you get to June 6, 1944?" he asked. "No, just to the first part of May." Perhaps because she was afraid of what she might learn or because she was so involved in Joan's day-to-day life, Mary Jo hadn't skipped ahead. "I wonder if she mentions D-day," he said, opening the clasp and flipping through the pages. "'June 6, 1944. Did my washing. No mail from Jacob. Worked hard all day on troop transports.'" "Troop transports? What does that mean?" Mary Jo asked. Mack shook his head. "I don't know." "What about June 7?" she asked, resisting the urge to read over his shoulder. Mack turned the page. "'No mail from Jacob. My heart is broken. Had to tack on 3. Got some 200 w lightbulbs. Wrote letters and emb.'" He looked up. "I see what you mean about the shorthand. I wonder why she's talking" --