They continued their journey in silence. The only sound accompanying them was the roaring engine of their tank. Sometimes they heard bursts of rounds going off, but they appeared to be fired from miles away that none of them worried it about it.

June had her hatch closed off like Gordo. They were peering out through their optics, seeing just enough of the road to navigate their tank through the rubble left behind by others. Her optics provided her with a slightly distorted view of the world, but after a while she'd grow used to it.

Gordo wanted to break the silence. She had seen him opening his mouth multiple times already, but nothing came out. Instead he seemed to be thinking to himself, opting breaking the silence wasn't the best idea.

For a moment she thought about talking as well, as she noticed he clearly was uncomfortable with the silence, but then she remembered what Collier made her do. He forced her into a position she did not want to be in. Even though it was not the first man she had killed, far from it, it was just that she had rather not done it. June wanted to keep her conscience clear, but the war was proving to be hard on her.

The crackling sound in her earpiece made her jump a little. It was always an indication someone was about to speak.

"This is Wardaddy," she heard her own sergeant speak. "We are approaching a town. I suggest we take up shelter there for the night. Head out early tomorrow. How copy?"

The crackling sound began again as soon as Collier finished speaking.

"Best idea you ever had, Wardaddy."

"You think they have something to drink in one of those houses?" Gordo finally spoke since Collier had broken the silence.

June narrowed her eyes to look at the houses that grew larger and larger as they got closer. What she would give to sleep in a proper bed tonight. Her old platoon never let her. God, she was glad they were dead.

"I fucking hope so," she replied softly.

They gathered all their armored vehicles in the town square. Houses surrounded them and before getting out they quickly looked for any snipers, but the town was eerily empty.

June opened her hatch, breathing in the fresh air. Her eyes scanned the houses. Each and every one of them looked abandoned. The families that once lived in them had packed up what they could pack and left, leaving behind only a haunting presence. The entire east side of the square had been bombed. Plumes of smoke were still going up, as a final reminder of what had happened here. This was the true face of war.

She slid off the tank, patiently waiting for Collier to decide what building was theirs. Gordo and Bible stood next to her, while Grady stayed behind, leaning against the tank. June knew it would take more than killing one nazi to convince him.

"Take that one, three o'clock," Collier spoke after he had spoken with the other sergeants.

June turned her head. Collier had claimed a white family home. The red roof looked like it was about to cave in. The windows were all open. Blue curtains were floating in the wind. The flowers in their little boxes that hung from the windows were still blooming, a sign that whoever had been living there had just left.
"I'll lead," Grady quickly said. He jogged towards them, stepping out in front.

She raised her Thompson M1. Even though the buildings all looked deserted, looks could be deceiving.

With her finger on the trigger she followed Grady and Gordo. Bible covered her back as they slowly entered the building. They entered a hallway with a flight of stairs leading to the second level. Grady immediately disappeared in the room on the left and Gordo in the one on the right. They both yelled "Clear!" after a few seconds and they proceeded out into the kitchen.

June opened the door out in the garden. Her eyes scanned all the bushes, the outhouse, behind the shed, but there was no one.

"Clear!" she too shouted.

Bible now led them upstairs, where they were faced with three bedrooms and a bathroom. They too were empty and they quickly claimed the house as their own for the night.

The boys were soon off looting, trying to find valuable stuff to take home. June never really liked doing that. Instead, she claimed the smallest bedroom which seemed to have belonged to a girl about her age. The wallpaper was a soft pink, with a line roses going around the border. The mahogany furniture looked expensive and it reminded her of her own bedroom a bit.

She let herself fall back on the bed. The only thing she wanted was a good nights sleep. No expensive set of cutlery, gun or jewelry could compare to that.

"You good in here?" Bible asked, popping his head around the door.

June smiled softly. "I'm fine, thanks."

"You want me to find you anything nice?" he then asked.

"No you can all keep it."

Bible smiled and disappeared again. In the background she could hear Grady and Gordo arguing about who had seen a pair of silver candle sticks first.

June tried to block the noise out and pushed herself up from the bed again. She shuffled closer to the closet in the back, wondering what was inside. It seemed like the previous owner of this house was pretty wealthy. Gorgeous dresses were hanging neatly in the closet. June felt some of them were even made of silk when she ran her fingers across the fabrics. What she would give to wear something like that again, but the thought of the remarks she would get turned her off. She would give the boys as little reason as possible to taunt her.

As a mark of her claiming the bedroom, she put her jacket and her weapon on the bed. This bed was hers, at least for this night.

She made her way downstairs again, where most of the noise seemed to be coming from. June noticed that Collier now had arrived as well. He was seated at the kitchen table, his feet up the table and a week old newspaper in his hands. She admired his knowledge of the German language.

Curiously she started to explore the kitchen. When she found the pantry she noticed that it was still stocked. Cans of soup, meat balls, eggs, stale bread. Her fingers found a jug of milk but she quickly smelled it had spoiled. Her stomach rumbled at the sight of the food.

"I can cook us some dinner, if that's okay?" she offered, turning her torso to face Collier.

He lifted his eyes from the newspaper. "By all means. We could use a good meal."

And so she spent the next half-hour preparing the stuff she had found. The smell of warm tomato soup quickly filled the kitchen and it didn't take long for the rest of the platoon to find their way to the source of the smell.

While Gordo and Bible quickly hurried towards her to see what she was doing, Grady remained at a distance. He sat besides Collier and stared in front of him.

"Bible, can you help me with the plates?" June asked.

It took him a few seconds to locate the plates but he pulled them out quickly enough. June went by them one by one, filling large mugs with the soup since she couldn't find anything else that fast, and dressing their plates with eggs and meatballs.

She couldn't wait to dig in herself, but before she was able to, Bible cleared his throat.

"Really?" Gordo complained. "I don't want it to get cold!"

"He'll be brief," Collier ordered sternly.

Bible nodded and continued to say grace. It had been a while since June heard someone say grace. While the rest of them had closed their eyes, she couldn't help but glance at the platoon that surrounded her. For a moment, they looked like a family, waiting to tuck in their dinners. For a moment, they didn't look like soldiers.

They didn't waste a second after he had said amen. They all dug into their food as quickly as they could, shoving their eggs in their mouths. Gordo had found a stash of liquor they had been drinking from as eagerly as they had been eating their food.

"How long will we be staying?" Grady asked. June noticed how he had avoided eye contact with her at all costs.

"As long as we have to," Collier said. "I'm hoping we can stay here for another night."

"Would be a good idea," Bible agreed. "We need some supplies anyway. We've almost run out of rations."

"Ammo is running low as well," Grady noted.

June ate the final bite of her meat ball which she washed down with a gulp of the wine Gordo had found.

"I'll try to make it happen," Collier said.

"This was delicious, June," Bible said.

She smiled thankfully. "There is still some left which we can eat tomorrow. Or we can bring it if we have to leave."

Her eyes met with Collier's. She tried to read his expression but it proved to be impossible. His face was blank. Maybe he was trying to read her expression as well.

June spent the rest of the evening cleaning herself in the bathroom. She had locked the door tightly before turning on the tap to check if they were still working. There was no warm water, but she didn't mind washing herself with the cold. She just wanted to be clean, rub off the dirt and the blood. It was as if she started with a clean sheet.

After she was done she slipped across the hallway, her wet hair up in a towel. She had quickly put on her pants and shirt again, as she didn't feel comfortable about walking around in just a towel, not with four (probably) drunk men around.

"June," she heard someone say when she was halfway across the hallway. She turned her head to see Collier was talking to her. By the looks of it he had claimed the master bedroom right next to hers.

She carefully entered his room, standing on her tiptoes as her feet were still a bit wet and she didn't want to make the dirt of the floor stick to her soles. She raised her eyebrows awaiting for him to speak.

"You're doing good," he spoke. "You're a lot better than I expected."

Butterflies were rising in her stomach and all of a sudden she felt nervous. "Thanks," she stumbled, overwhelmed by the compliment. She was not used to this level of kindness. In an instant she had forgotten all about the prisoner of war she had to kill.

"The guys seem to like you as well."

"Well," June said, cocking her head, rubbing her exposed feet against the back of her leg. "I don't think Grady likes me that much."
"He doesn't like being put in his place. He'll come around," Collier assured her. "I've already sent a telegram to your commander, telling him he does not have to expect you back."

"Thank you," she stumbled again. "Thank you for giving me a chance. I know that must be hard, since I'm a woman and all."

"I'll admit I was hesitant at first, but then I remembered it is often the women who are the strong ones."

June nodded gratefully. She had really hit the jackpot with this platoon. She would take extra care to make sure she wouldn't fuck this chance up. She would never forgive herself if she had to be transferred again.

"Well, girls see more blood than boys anyway," June chuckled a little awkwardly and she was almost sure she saw Collier smile a little as well.


A/N: I'm glad you all like the story so far. I really enjoy writing it :) Today's also my birthday haha. Anyway, I hope you liked it and please leave a review!