Disclaimer: The Rat Patrol is not my property. They come out to play sometimes, then I send them home.

Coincidence

By Suzie2b

Private Pettigrew was standing watch on a rocky cliff that had been formed by recent blasting that had been done to make the road below. The wind and afternoon heat felt like a blowtorch as he stood with his back to the sun. All was quiet, which tended to make him uneasy. Tully glanced back at his friends. Sergeants Troy and Moffitt were plotting a course that would allow them to intercept a German convoy while Private Hitchcock was checking the jeeps engines and gas tanks.

Tully turned back as he heard a sound—a quiet cracking sound. The only reason he heard it was because of the silence. Startled birds broke noisily from the cover of the nearby scrub. Tully frowned as he looked around, but saw nothing. He couldn't see the rocks and dirt that was sliding down the cliff face below him.

The ground suddenly rumbled under his feet and Tully started to back away. Then there was a loud snap as the granite gave way. Troy, Moffitt, and Hitch looked up at the sound just in time to see Tully disappear. They scrambled to the newly formed cliff edge to see the body of their friend twenty to thirty feet below on a ledge.

Moffitt said, "When they did the blasting, the rock must have fractured. It was only a matter of time before it collapsed."

Hitch said worriedly, "Tully's not moving. We gotta to get to him."

Troy looked down at his injured private. "Bring one of the jeeps up here and get the rope."

Moffitt said, "That may not be a good idea, Troy. If there are any other fractures, the weight of the jeep might set them off."

"What do you suggest?"

"Hitch and I will go to Akko. It's little more than a way station, but we can bring back enough rope and help to get Tully out of there."

Troy said, "You won't be able to get there and back before dark."

Moffitt nodded. "I realize that, but what choice do we have?"

Troy sighed. "Yeah. Okay, you two get going. Leave me with your walkie-talkie."

After Moffitt and Hitch left, Troy secured one of the radios to the rope from the jeep. Then he carefully lowered it down to the ledge and sat down to wait.

##################

Tully's eyes opened slowly. The first thing he became aware of was the throbbing pain in his head. He reached up and touched the right side, then looked at the blood on his fingers. He said quietly to himself, "Well, that explains the headache."

When he tried to sit up, pain shot through Tully's back and left leg that forced him to lay still. As the pain subsided some, he looked around and realized he was on a ledge several hundred feet off the ground. Tully groaned quietly as he remembered what had happened.

Something moved against his arm and when he turned his head, he saw the rope and heard Troy's voice say, "Tully, can you hear me?" He followed the rope up the cliff and saw someone standing at the top. The rope moved again and Troy said, "Pick up the radio."

Tully found the walkie-talkie lying next to him and took it off the rope. He pulled up the antenna, keyed it, and said in a shaky voice, "Sarge?"

Troy sounded relieved as he said, "Yeah, Tully, it's me. How bad are you hurt? And don't tell me you're fine."

"I'll admit I've been better. Headache … back hurts … left leg might be broke … a few cuts and scrapes."

Thinking of the possible back injury, Troy said, "Don't try to move around."

Tully grimaced as pain flared through his body. "You don't have to tell me twice, sarge." There was short pause, then, "When am I getting out of here?"

"As soon as Moffitt and Hitch get back with help."

There was silence for a few seconds, then Tully said, "The closest place is Akko. Guess that means I'm gonna be here a while."

Troy said, "Afraid so, buddy. Just try to rest. I'll be right here."

Tully was losing his fight to stay conscious as he said, "Thanks."

##################

The sun was going down when Tully opened his eyes again. The pain grew worse as he started to shiver. He looked at the rope dangling down the cliff face and discovered a bag tied to the end. Tully found a canteen, a blanket, and a dose of morphine. With a whispered "thank you" he pulled his shirttail up and injected the pain killer into his abdomen.

In the waning light Troy could just make out Tully's movements and said into the radio, "How's it going, Tully?"

A quiet voice came back, "It's goin', sarge. Thanks for sending down the stuff."

"Did you take the morphine?"

"Yeah."

Troy nodded. "Good. I'll send down another dose when you need it. Cover yourself up and drink some water."

Tully slowly and painfully got the blanket situated over himself, then took several swallows from the canteen. It was a while before Troy heard Tully's voice again. He sounded groggy as he said, "Sarge, you still there?"

Troy had a blanket wrapped around his shoulders as he sat in the dark with a machine gun and the radio in his lap. "I'm here, Tully."

"Do you remember the first time I drove with you?"

Troy smiled. "I sure do. You were as cocky as you were green."

Tully said, "I was scared of you."

Troy was surprised. "Why would you be scared of me?"

"I was afraid of messin' things up. Afraid of makin' you mad."

"We were a new unit. We had to learn our way around each other."

Tully's voice was fading. "I didn't want to … get you killed, sarge."

Troy said quietly, "You're the best damn driver in North Africa, Tully. If I get killed, it'll be because I did something stupid, not you."

"When Moffitt came on board … after we lost Cotter … you put me with him after that first mission. I … I thought I did something wrong and … you didn't want me … around you."

Troy felt his heart fall into his stomach. "Tully, I put you with Moffitt because I wanted him to learn with the best. Hitch is an excellent driver and soldier, but you have the patience and attitude I felt Moffitt needed at the time."

Tully grimaced as his teeth chattered. "I didn't … like him … at first."

"I know, but that didn't stop you from doing your best by him." There was no comment and Troy said, "Tully? Did you hear me?"

There was a barely audible, "Yeah." And then silence.

Troy leaned forward to look over the edge with a flashlight and saw that Tully was unconscious again.

##################

The night passed slowly as Troy watched the moon move overhead. Tully would briefly regain consciousness once in a while. His voice weak on the walkie-talkie, looking for reassurances that the sergeant was still up there. Troy would tell him, "I'm not moving from this spot without you, Tully." Or, "It shouldn't be too much longer."

As time went on, Tully's minutes of consciousness had turned into moments and were happening less frequently. Troy sighed and checked his watch—it was just after 2am. As he pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders, Troy heard a sound in the darkness. He stood up and surveyed the moonlit desert. Three sets of headlights were quickly moving in his direction.

The jeep, followed by a truckload of men and equipment, and an ambulance pulled to a stop. Moffitt and Hitch moved quickly to Troy's side as Moffitt asked, "We got back here as quickly as we could. How's Tully?"

Troy said, "Not good."

A lieutenant joined them and Moffitt said, "This is Lieutenant Weathers. He and his men happened to be at Akko when we got there."

"Sergeant Troy. Thanks for coming."

Weathers nodded. "Not a problem. Sergeant Moffitt explained what happened. What are the chances of waiting for daylight?"

Troy said, "Nonexistent. His condition is going downhill fast."

Another nod and Weathers turned to his men. "Get the lights set up and the generator started! We can't wait!"

One of the two medics stepped up and asked, "Any idea how bad he is?"

Troy replied, "He told me he has a headache, his back hurts, and he thinks his left leg is broken. He hasn't been conscious much the last couple of hours and when he is, he's in a lot of pain. I've sent two doses of morphine down to him. The last one was nearly four hours ago, but he's not coherent enough to give himself the shot anymore."

Less than five minutes later the generator-powered lights were set up and shining over the edge of the cliff. Lieutenant Weathers and a few of his men were checking out the situation when Tully's weak voice was heard over the walkie-talkie asking, "Sarge … you there?"

Troy said, "I'm here, Tully."

"Is it morning?"

"No. Help is here. They've set up some lights. You'll be out of there real soon."

Tully managed, "'kay … I'll just … keep waitin'."

Three ropes were readied and secured to the heavy truck. A stretcher was tied to one with a man on either side. The medic gave one of them a dose of morphine to give Tully when they got to him.

As the men and stretcher were lowered over the edge under Lieutenant Weathers supervision, Troy said into the radio, "Tully, their coming down to get you."

His whispered voice came back, "It's so bright. Looks like … angels."

Tully was unconscious before they got him loaded and secured to the stretcher. Even with the morphine their slow, careful movements were painful.

The return trip up the cliff was slow. The stretcher had to be kept level, which meant the men on the ropes had to be kept level. Lieutenant Weathers stared over the edge, giving orders to the men who were pulling the ropes so they knew if one was coming up too fast.

Once Tully was loaded into the ambulance, Troy went to the lieutenant and put his hand out, "Thanks again for coming, sir."

Weathers shook the offered hand. "I'm just glad we had to make that unplanned stop at Akko. Otherwise we wouldn't have been there when Sergeant Moffitt and the private arrived."

Troy questioned, "Unplanned stop?"

"Yeah. One of the trucks suddenly started acting up. The closest motor pool was Akko." The ambulance pulled out and Weathers said, "Why don't you head out with them. We'll get things picked up here and head back soon."

##################

Tully's back was badly bruised, but there was no serious damage. His left leg was broken just above the ankle and he had a mild concussion. He was also a bit hypothermic, but he was resting comfortably in the medical tent with a bandaged head and a casted leg within two hours of arriving in Akko.

It was midafternoon, a full twenty-four hours since it happened. Moffitt and Hitch walked into medical to find Troy sitting next to Tully's cot. Hitch asked, "How's he doing?"

Troy sighed. "Better. He'll be transferred to the base hospital in a day or two."

Moffitt watched Tully sleep for a bit, then said, "It was a happy coincidence that Lieutenant Weathers had pulled into Akko just before us."

"Yeah, he told me what happened."

Hitch said, "I wonder though. Was it just a coincidence … or was it Tully's guardian angel?"