"Mortar!"
It seemed the Germans wanted to attack earlier than they thought.
Just as Winters was about to move everyone out for an attack, the Germans started to hammer them with mortars. As soon as someone called out, they all dove for cover. Abbey was inside the foxhole, rifle clutched to her chest, while her helmet fell and covered her eyes.
Mud and dirt shot up from the ground, as well as bits of trees and shrapnel.
And soon, they started to fire back.
Mortars, machine-guns, grenades, rifles – Easy gave them everything they had.
This was hedgerow to hedgerow fighting.
In order to spot a target, they had to climb under the hedgerows.
For Abbey, that was no problem. She slid under the hedge with ease and took cover in a ditch on the other side. From that position, she had a better view. Abbey would look for Germans who were in clear sight. They'd be jumping to their machine-guns or running from cover to cover.
Abbey shot a few down.
And re-took cover shortly after.
"Keep shooting! Keep shooting!"
The NCO's and officers were yelling, while running up and down the line.
Taking in a deep breath, Abbey turned back around and looked through her sight.
When a target was spotted, she'd fire out and take cover again.
And while this was going on, F Company, who were on Easy's left flank, broke and fell back. Which then exposed D Company's right flank, so it had to fall back too. Which meant Easy were alone and isolated. It's right flank up against the track and it's left flank in the air.
Abbey re-loaded her rifle.
She had no idea German tanks started to come out from nowhere, it seemed.
She heard someone exclaim; "where the hell did they come from?!"
But Abbey couldn't guess what he was on about.
It wasn't until Toye yelled,
"Abbey! Get back! Back!"
She turned around, facing the field again.
The tank was rolling across the field, it's machine-gun firing out.
The tiger grumbled and rattled down the grass, sounding like an angry lion.
Turning back around, Abbey grabbed the edge of the ditch and pulled herself up.
The bullets started to hit against the hedge.
Lying on her stomach, she crawled towards the hedge and slid back through underneath, where Toye helped her out when her arms and head appeared from the other side. Back on her feet, Abbey ran down the line, hoping to find a good position.
"The left, Abbey!" Toye yelled after her.
For a moment, it was just madness.
Easy were left to on their own.
And everyone was lobbing what they had at the enemy.
Abbey ran halfway down the line, keeping to the left, like Toye had told her. She jumped over fallen down trees and ducked from the fire heading their way. Abbey didn't know how many tanks were out there but one of them was heading towards their left flank and was trying to break through the hedgerow.
But that wasn't one of Abbey's immediate concerns.
For when she jumped into a foxhole, which she thought was empty, Abbey soon heard something different reach her ears. It was someone screaming – really screaming, frightened for their life. It turned her stomach and her heart swelled with something heavy. She turned towards the noise and saw Blithe.
His hands were over his ears, eyes screwed shut.
And he was screaming something fierce.
It felt like someone had just punched her in the gut.
Because it reminded her of when she was younger and didn't want to go to a party. Abbey fell onto the ground and sat on her knees. Her rifle dropped onto the ground, as did her face, which sunk into a deep sadness.
"No! No!" He screamed.
"No! Mum! No!"
Swallowing, Abbey blinked and reached forward.
Both her hands soon grabbed his shoulders.
She could feel the tremors rattling his body.
Granted, the whole earth was shaking from the 88's and mortars but Blithe was shaking the most. God, he was shaking so bad. Abbey was worried – very worried. She had never seen it happen before; she had only felt it.
She gave his shoulders a firm squeeze.
"I'm here!" Abbey called out to him, "Alby, I'm here!"
Blithe's eyes snapped open.
He looked dazed, scared and lost.
And his eyes soon landed on Abbey's.
Tears running down his face.
Clenching her jaw, she gave him a nod.
"I know, Alby!" She said, "we end this now and it all stops – I promise!"
Blithe was still shaking, Abbey could feel it.
Letting go of a shoulder, she grabbed his rifle.
Abbey placed it onto his chest, "you have to fire this!"
His face crumbled again, "Abbey, I-"
"you can!" She told him, "of course, you can! You have done it before!"
Abbey gave him another nod.
"I will stay with you, until it stops being scary!"
Blithe's lips quivered, another tear rolled down his face.
But he nodded.
Abbey let go of his other shoulder and took hold of her rifle again.
Blithe slowly started to get up.
And she took his hand, pulling them both onto their feet.
At the edge of the foxhole, Abbey and Blithe positioned themselves to fire.
But she watched him first.
Blithe was still shaking.
His face was half crumbing, while he tried to stay focused. And soon, something went on. Blithe closed one eye, looked through the sight and fired. Abbey watched and saw the whole change. She felt her shoulders drop in relief. And, facing the field again, Abbey fired out alongside him.
It was around that time when Welsh and McGrath headed out onto the field, to destroy the tank who was trying to break through their left flank. McGrath had his bazooka at the ready, the tank spotted them, and its cannon aimed for them. With the cannon pointing towards the sky, McGrath fired and shot right into the tanks unarmed belly.
Even when Blithe wasn't scared anymore, Abbey didn't leave.
The pair of them stayed where they were and fired out together.
The fight lasted for almost twelve hours.
At 1630, sixty tanks from the 2nd Armoured, along with fresh infantry from the 29th Division came up to relieve Easy. The tanks poured into those Germans with heavy 50 caliber machine-guns and charged right into the German hedgerows. It was such a relief to see them get to work.
Abbey lowered her rifle, watching the scene.
While Blithe dropped his rifle and lay down in the foxhole.
It didn't take very long for the Shermans and infantry to push those Germans back.
And Easy continued to fire along with them.
They lobbed everything else they had, happy to see this long fight come to an end. And when it did end, Abbey and Blithe both lay down in the foxhole, exhausted from no sleep and a long fight. Neither of them said anything. They had their eyes closed and could have been asleep.
"Hey…hey guys? Are you two okay?"
Abbey opened her eyes.
She saw one of the tank drivers hovering above their foxholes.
Slowly, she sat up and leaned against her elbows.
The driver smile, "looks like you fellas had one heck of a fight".
Blithe had quickly gotten onto his feet, Abbey didn't notice until he was climbing out from the foxhole. Face pulling into a tiny frown, she slowly got to her feet and climbed out after him. Blithe was walking across the field, heading towards a tree on top of a small slope. Abbey followed him, passing many destroyed tanks and dead soldiers, littered across the field and in front of the hedgerows.
Blithe was standing still.
Abbey stood next to him.
He was looking at a dead German soldier. Her frown furthered and she felt confused. But Blithe didn't say anything, he simply reached for the soldier and took out the Edelweiss from his front jacket pocket. Abbey's lips twitched into a tiny smile.
Blithe placed the flower into his own jacket pocket.
…
"Another one?"
"Okay".
Toye handed her the bottle of cognac.
Abbey took another drink.
She hated that stuff, but it took the edge off.
Swallowing with great difficulty, Abbey handed the bottle back to him.
Smirking, Toye put the bottle down and brought out a cigarette.
"Nice that we get a break, huh?"
She nodded.
"We did good, Abbey". Toye went on, "holding the line and shit – we're good".
"We are". She agreed.
Like others, Abbey was proud of everyone.
And now, the 506th were back in Carentan on division reserve.
To celebrate their victory, Toye and Abbey hid out in a house and shared a bottle of cognac between them. It had been a long fight; they were tired and on edge. The brandy helped them.
Toye leaned back against the wall, cigarette between his fingers.
"I was thinking". He said, "I don't remember much about being a kid".
Abbey looked over at him.
"Like – my head sort of goes blank before I was seven, you know?"
Toye took in a drag from his cigarette.
"We was always poor". He mumbled, "always trying to get money. Dad was a hard ass on me. And man, Abbey, sometimes I feel like a fucking failure".
Her eyebrows twitched, "what?" Abbey whispered.
Toye shrugged, "just how I feel".
"It's very wrong". She mumbled, shaking her head. "You are not a failure, Joe".
He reached for the cognac again and took a long sip.
Abbey rubbed her lips together.
She scooted towards him and leaned back against the wall beside him.
"You think you are a failure because you left school". She stated.
Toye gave a tiny nod.
Abbey bit down on her bottom lip, legs drawing up to her chest.
"Look where we are". She mumbled softly, "we are in a town, we had never heard of before. With people watching us, who don't know our names. But to them, we are the ones who are going to clean up the world. One shit storm, at a time. And I don't think they see any one of us as a failure – especially not Joe Toye".
Toye placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Okay, Abbey". He murmured, "I won't say that no more".
"Thank you".
He smiled a little, "no bother".
Leaning forwards, Abbey picked up the bottle and took another drink.
Toye was staring down at his bandaged hand.
He hadn't changed his bandage since Abbey last saw it.
She put the bottle down and followed his stare.
Frowning, Abbey carefully took his hand.
"Let me see it now". She mumbled.
Toye sighed and looked away, "alright – fine".
Abbey started to take off the bandage and was met by an odd smell from his wound. Her nose twitched at the strange stench, but his arm and hand didn't look good; it was clearly infected. Sighing softly, she shook her head.
"This is not good, Joe".
"Shit". Toye hissed, "seriously?"
Abbey gave a little nod.
"Yes. It is infected now". She mumbled, "the shrapnel inside might end up poisoning you".
"Fuck".
Toye sounded pissed off.
Abbey couldn't blame him; she wouldn't want to go off the line either. But she wanted to save her friend and knew she'd need to tell the medic. Abbey hated being the one to get him off the line, Toye really didn't want to leave his squad and friends.
She tossed the bandage away.
Toye glanced at her, "Abbey, watch the guys".
"I will watch them". She promised, "but I will not lead".
Pursing his lips, Toye's head gently thumped against the wall.
"Right…put McClung in charge".
"Okay". Abbey mumbled, "I will get Gene now-"
"nah, wait". Toye said, "let's finish the bottle first".
She complied and handed him the bottle.
They had a few more sips between them before the bottle was finished.
Abbey got the medic after and Roe took one look at his hand and had to evacuate him back to England to treat the wound. She walked with the two of them up to the jeep and Abbey felt a little lost. She didn't want Toye gone either. Not just because he was the best squad leader but because Toye was her friend.
"See you soon, Abbey".
Toye got into the jeep.
"Look after yourself, alright?" He warned her kindly, "don't fuck about".
"Goodbye, Joe".
And the jeep took off, leaving Abbey standing on the road alone.
She didn't know how long she stood there, just staring off into nothing.
But Abbey didn't know what to do next.
There came a noise from behind her.
Footsteps, slowly approaching.
Abbey felt her heart pick up, when it reminded her of Charlie.
Taking in a deep breath, she turned around.
Of course, it wasn't Charlie, that would have been impossible.
It was Buck.
He smiled, "alright, Abbey? Been looking for you".
Soon, the Lieutenant was standing next to her.
"Joe gone?"
"Yes". Abbey whispered.
She could hear a tinge of sadness in her voice.
"Best place for him". Buck commented softly, "you'll see him soon enough".
Abbey looked down at her boots, while her fingers rubbed against each other.
Her head started to hurt a bit. The lump had gone down since, but it hurt from time to time. Abbey figured it was sore now because she was so tired. It had been a long day, after all. The attack started at half five in the morning and lasted for eleven hours, or more.
The Lieutenant placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Come on, you need some sleep".
Abbey couldn't argue with that.
She was ready to drop.
…
Soon, Easy set up a defensive position south of Carentan.
The Company dug in. Neither side was making any infantry assaults south of Carentan, but the incoming and outgoing mail was tremendous. Both sides were receiving reinforcements in artillery and heavy weapons. The Americans from the beach, the Germans from the French interior. Easy were always ready to repel any ground attacks but remained in their foxholes during the day.
Abbey was fairly quiet since Toye left the line.
Not that she was loud before, but she had gone back to being quiet, like when she arrived in Toccoa. Her uniform was starting to bother her; they hadn't showered since England. Every day, they would sweat and couldn't wash it away. Their hair was mattered, they stunk to the high heavens and men were starting to get sick from dysentery and other ailments.
It was making Abbey stressed and on edge.
So, instead of lashing out, she'd keep quiet.
Abbey cleaned her rifle instead or took it apart and put it back together again.
Just anything to keep her head busy.
"Abbey".
Biting her lip, she gave a nod.
Guarnere sighed.
"Hey – look at me".
She stopped cleaning her rifle.
Slowly, her eyes met his.
Guarnere smirked, "better…look, you 'wanna come with me on patrol? Alby's going".
A patrol.
It sounded like the perfect distraction.
Abbey put away her rag and shouldered her rifle.
"Yes". She replied, getting onto her feet.
Guarnere had picked Maxwell and Eddie Joint to go along as well.
Lieutenant Nixon wanted to know the strength of the German infantry opposite Easy's position. The Germans were set by some farmhouses, which were behind a line of hedgerows. Blithe was point man, meaning he was in the front of the small patrol. Abbey was behind him, on his right. Maxwell was in the rear. They crouched down and advanced forwards, along the line of hedgerows.
Blithe spotted a hole in the bottom of the hedgerow.
"Bill?" He whispered, "we should go under".
Guarnere agreed.
Going under was better than over. The hedgerows were ten-feet high.
"Go two go first". He told Abbey and Blithe, "I'll be right behind you".
Just under the hedgerow, was one of the farmhouses.
When Abbey reached the other side, she could see them.
Blithe was moving towards the next source of cover, which happened to be another hedge.
And just as Abbey was getting onto her feet, one single shot ran out.
She crouched down again.
The MG-42 blasted right at them.
Abbey quickly ran across the way and headed for the other hedgerow.
Blithe had fallen to the ground.
Grabbing him from under the arms, Abbey dragged him towards the cover. Once they reached the hedge, she kept her arms locked around him, and pressed his body against the hedge. Bullets zipped passed them, hitting the top of the hedge. It was a good thing the hedgerows were made out of this thick cement, or else, they'd be dead.
Abbey looked down at Blithe and saw that he was bleeding from the back of the neck.
She pressed her hand against the wound, hoping to stop the bleeding.
"Bill!" Abbey yelled, "Bill-"
"don't fucking move!" Guarnere yelled back, "alright?! We're coming to get you, Abbey!"
Her heart was going one thousand miles per hour.
Blithe was squirming in her tight hold.
He was letting out strangled moans of pain.
Abbey rubbed her lips together, trying to figure out what to do.
"Give me some covering fire, Maxwell-"
"I can't see shit, Bill-"
"I don't fucking care!" Guarnere shouted, "Eddie! Come with me!"
Tiny bits of brick and branch started to break from the hedge.
The force of the consistent bullets was strong. And the German never stopped firing at Abbey and Blithe. If it wasn't for this cover, they'd both be dead. She didn't let go of her wounded friend and continued to press her hand against his neck.
Guarnere and Eddie were soon beside them.
He gave Abbey a tight smile, before he and Eddie grabbed Blithe.
"Ready?!"
Abbey took up her rifle and started to give them covering fire.
They crossed the small gap towards the hedge and got Blithe under first.
Once they were under, Abbey ran towards the hedge and followed Eddie through. The Germans fired at them the entire way back to their line, Malarkey, Skip and Penkala started to blast them with their mortar, while the patrol made their way further into the line.
Eddie was yelling and running for a medic.
Abbey got down on her knees next to Blithe.
He had clamed down a little.
His blue eyes were staring at Abbey.
And she was staring back at him.
Then, Abbey's bloodied hand grasped Blithe's.
He swallowed and closed his eyes for a few moments, taking in a few deep breaths. Abbey watched him carefully. Hoping he wasn't about to panic. But Blithe didn't, he remained calm and quiet, just like he was back in training. Her lips turned up into a soft smile. Abbey knew he was going to be fine.
Blithe's eyes opened again.
And with his free hand, he brought out the Edelweiss from his pocket.
Holding it up in front of him for a few moments, Blithe soon placed it into Abbey's pocket. She frowned, shaking her head but he only smiled small in return, with one nod of his head.
Roe soon came rushing towards him.
Abbey let go of Blithe's hand and got onto her feet, giving the medic room.
That was another one of her friends wounded.
Only, Abbey didn't think Blithe would be returning to Easy.
Roe and Guarnere got Blithe onto a stretcher.
"Wait". He whispered.
Abbey raised her head, looking at him.
"You're a good person, Abbey". He said, "give yourself some credit".
Her face dropped.
As did her arms, which fell to her side.
Blithe gave her one more weak smile, before he was carried away.