Couple's love story was tested by war

Couple's love story was tested by war -- four times
By Chelsea J. Carter
CNN December 12, 2011

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Both Nathan and Raquel Dukellis served in Iraq; he returned to shut down U.S. bases
On this deployment -- his fourth -- he went back to the city that haunts the couple's marriage
They talk candidly about love's battle with separation, fear and doubt
Nathan says this deployment was like coming full circle -- with the war and with his marriage

Editor's note: This is the second of four stories profiling soldiers and their families whose lives were defined by the Iraq war. The first was published Sunday.

Fort Bliss, Texas (CNN) -- The pictures on the walls at the Dukellis home tell the story of the couple's time together -- and apart.

There's Nathan in his uniform with his comrades. There's Raquel with her sisters. Nathan serving in Iraq. Raquel working.

They're pictured together occasionally -- at their wedding, of course, and in a recent photo, during a vacation in the mountains.

At first glance, Raquel and Nathan Dukellis seem an unlikely pair. She's outgoing; he's reserved.

She has a large, extended family; he is an only child. Both sport tattoos on their arm -- Herman Munster appears on hers; his arm features her name and a skull.
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