The Long and Storied Life of Jose Montoya

The Long and Storied Life of Jose Montoya 50from the border back to Camp Furlong. When Jose was carried off of the truck and immediately takento see the camp doctor they went with him, standing around the examination table and listening to thedoctor's pronouncements.The doctor was of the opinion that Jose would eventually regain almost total use of his leg,although it seemed likely that there would be some lingering discrepancies, and that Jose wouldprobably have at least a slight limp for the rest of his life. That seemed to satisfy the two ghosts, whowalked out of the infirmary and vanished as soon as they had heard this pronouncement. For Jose, itwas news that was only slightly less disturbing than having missed the opportunity to be with LaCatrina. He was not yet even seventeen years old, and already he had been given a handicap that mightstay with him for the rest of his life. He was not sure who would want him, a cripple. Would the Armykick him out? Would the railroad take him back? What woman would ever want a man dragging auseless leg along behind himself? Would he be forced to continue consorting with prostitutes? Wouldhe have to give up American and return to Agua Prieta?These questions and a million related scenarios played themselves out inside Jose's mind overthe next week, a week that he spent at the infirmary under the watchful eye of the doctor. In the end,however, the doctor informed Jose that the leg seemed to be healing nicely, and that he wouldrecommend that Jose be allowed to stay in the Army in a permanent light duty capacity. This was goodnews to Jose, who had been unable to think up a fallback plan should the Army discharge him. At theend of the week, when it was time for Jose to leave the infirmary and finish his convalescence in hisown bunk in his own barracks, the colonel commanding Jose's regiment made a special trip to CampFurlong and awarded him a medal for having been wounded in combat with an enemy. Jose thoughtthat in reality it was a medal for having been terribly unlucky, although to say so to the colonel wouldhave been very impolite. Instead, Jose saluted as best he could from the top of a pair of crutches andsmiled.