The Merc who Cried

He was big. Cropped hair. Rough look. The kind of man nobody would mess with.

Sal and I were in the Keys for a week of fishing and relaxing. We rented a cheap duplex with a ramp and kept the 13' Whaler close by. One afternoon we decided to stop for a beer at a local bar, really more like a lean to scabbed on to the side of a building. The only people there were sitting at the bar. All the tables were empty. We wanted a bit of space and privacy so we grabbed a table a few away from the bar and got a couple of drafts. We spent a couple of hours talking about the world, us and the guys, eyeing us with suspicion, at the bar. The big quiet guy caught our attention. We speculated about what he might be and why he was there on a weekday afternoon. We decided he was a mercenary in between jobs. Back from Africa probably and waiting for the next contract. Clearly a man not to mess with.

About 3 hours into the afternoon we finally needed some food and ordered something. By this time the locals had stopped paying attention to us, figuring, we thought, we were not a threat. Just strangers spending an afternoon like them, drinking and getting out of the sun.

Slowly, the Merc (as we called him) got up from the bar and turned towards us. Strong arms in a camo jacket of sorts hung loosely at his sides. He looked at us without expression. I mean he had a hard look, not a glare exactly, but no joy there. Not mean exactly either. Hard.

He slowly walked over to our table - graceful- powerful- and we thought (as we discussed later) "crap, we're in for trouble now." Then we saw the change. His face softened and tears rolled down his cheeks. He said "You look like nice people. You mind if I sit with you and talk a while?"

We listened for the next hour or so to the tale of his misery over his wife leaving him. He was a gentle giant, deeply hurt and grieving. We never found out who he really was. To us he remains the Merc who cried, and trusted strangers with his story.

Photo: i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/don_veto/army...