I walked in amongst the men, making sure they were okay and that none of them had wounds they hadn't feel like disclosing the first time I had asked. As Roe was tending to those with minor injuries and told me that he had everything under control, I decided it best to head back to HQ and deal with the wounded Germans before they were sent off with the military Intelligence. "Hey Lewis," He turned over his shoulder. I beamed a smile. "Hey Betty," He finished his lighter out for me as mine had refused to work since the jump. "What does the good Colonel want with Dick?" Lewis smiled his "I know but you don't" smile. "Colonel Sink is promoting Dick to Battalion XO." I almost choked on my cigarette. "He's leaving Easy?" I felt panicked as though someone was taking something special away from me. The look of horror was written all over my face. "But…he…" I didn't want to say "can't", because it was clearly evident he was going up to Battalion. "Aww you'll be alright Betty, just means that you'll have Moose Heyliger to hang around with!" His comments didn't make me feel any better and my face said as much.
"When are the boys going to be told?" Lewis looked over my shoulder. "In the next couple of days I think. Sink is reorganising battalion staff after Major Horton and some of the other 3rd Battalion officers got killed this morning."
"They got Major Horton?" Lewis just nodded. Whilst it was the enlisted men and platoon officers who did the majority of the leg work, the Battalion officers weren't bullet proof in their HQs either, as some of the guys thought. Sink and Dick were making their way back over to where Lewis and I were smoking.
"Lt. Reedman Do you have the bill for this attack?" Sink never called me Betty. It was either Elizabeth or Lieutenant Reedman.
"Yes Sir I do. Twenty-two wounded and one KIA." It felt sad to just say the one, but then it would have been worse to say anything higher.
"Prisoners Dick?" Sink would have all of the after action reports on his desk within a few days, but he liked his information hot off the press.
"There's seven back in the cage at the moment and I have sent eleven back to join them." Sink mulled over the information before turning to me. "Reedman, see what medical attention they need before they are handed over to MI. I don't want them Krauts shouting that we didn't treat them right." It was one of the few orders, I didn't openly acknowledge. I didn't like the idea of treating the Germans, but there was nothing that I could do about it. Sink's driver Private Loraine returned to start the jeep. Sink clambered into the front, talking about something to Lewis that was way above my pay grade. As the jeep rumbled on and Sink was snapping of salutes to everyone we drove by, Lewis nudged me to get my attention.
"We have to treat them too?" He asked as he dug around in his fatigues for his smokes. Handing him one of mine, we did the round robin of passing cigarettes and lighters back and forth.
"Yea thought you would know that?" I breathed out the smoke. "They fall under the Geneva Convention of 1929, which means that we have to give them medical aid whilst they are our prisoners." Lewis frowned. "Just doesn't seem right does it? They're the ones trying to take over the world, they're the ones that caused all this goddam mess and now because WE kicked their asses, WE have to look after them? Someone somewhere is thinking with half a brain cell." I could see his argument. But as a medic, I couldn't allow the politics to affect me. It didn't matter that any one of the men I was about to treat, could have had a brother, father, cousin or uncle in Africa who was the one that threw the mortar that killed Henry. It didn't matter that the man who governed their country wanted to take over the entire world, wanted to exterminate everything in his path who didn't submit to his will and which in a roundabout way had led to my brother's death. I couldn't let my feelings get in the way even if I hated them, every single last one of them.
Surveying the pairs of eyes that looked at me, it was a mixture of fear and relief. Fear over what was going to happen to them and relief over the fact they didn't have to fight anymore. Spina and Roe had already started tending to the wounded. "What have we got Gene?" I asked whilst he was bandaging a prisoner's head.
"Most of 'em are shrapnel scratches. I haven't checked all of 'em. Think dere are a couple with bullet wounds sat in the far corner, but I don't speak German an' Liebgott hot tailed outta here once he dropped them all off."
I rolled up my sleeves and motioned for Spina to come and help me.
"Ist jemand von euch verwundet?" Are any of you wounded? I asked. After some murmuring between them, a couple of the men stood up and pointed to various parts of their body, but there was a boy sat in the corner, more than likely scared out of his mind, nursing a blood soaked jacket sleeve.
"Du kommst mit mir." You come with me.
I said pointing at the boy. Spina helped him up and onto the table. He could have been no older than eighteen.
"Wie heiβt du?" What is your name? Whilst I didn't want to be here anymore than he did, it was a way of getting information out of him. "Janik Jasiukiewicz" Spina looked at me as though the kid had three heads. "That don't sound very German Lieutenant!" He whispered. Webster had said that some of the prisoners had claimed they were Polish and not German. But a lot of the men had disbelieved them.
Handing the boy a notepad, I told him to write down his name, rank and unit. He started talking so fast that I couldn't catch what he was saying. He pointed at his jacket, which was soaked with blood.
"Könntest du bitte Jacke und Hemd ausziehen?" Can you remove your jacket and shirt please?
The kid looked as though he was going to cry. He tried to shirk his way out of the thick coat without so much as making a sound. This just wasn't right. Whilst I didn't want to treat these men, I wasn't in this job to watch them suffer either. Pulling my jump knife out of my boot, the boy started to freak out and scream even louder. I told Spina to hold him still. Grabbing hold of the fabric of his coat, making sure I didn't push the knife in too hard, I slit the seam at the top of the jacket, ripping off the arm. Once the kid realised that I was only trying to get rid of the coat sleeve and I wasn't going to hack of his arm off, he calmed down.
"Du musst dich hinlegen, sonst kann ich die Kugel aus deinem Arm nicht entfernen." I need you to lie down for me; otherwise I cannot remove the bullet from your arm.
The boy didn't have the first clue what I was saying; he just kept staring at me. I repeated myself, until one of the other soldiers, who was now stood behind me, talked to him in another language. I turned to look at who was speaking. He was an older man, possibly a commander of some kind. I wasn't completely clued up on the German ranks. The boy lay down, with the help of Spina. I must have looked confused. As he stepped towards me, I took a step to the rear. I didn't trust him.
"Sprichst du Deutsch?" Do you speak German? He nodded. "Was hast du zu ihm gesagt?" What did you say to him?
The idea that I could only speak to a few of the soldiers, because the rest couldn't understand German unnerved me a little. The idea of them jumping Spina, Roe or I had me worried. Turning to Spina, who was setting up the things I would need to extract the bullet, I told him to go and get a couple of guys to 'help us out.'
"I don't care who it is Spina, but go and get someone that's carrying a weapon. Tell them that only a hand full of these guys can speak German and the rest are Polish and I am requesting a little help, just in case. Be quick about it." He headed off out of the room.
Turning my attention back to man, I knew that if I didn't have his help, I would not be able to get the boy to cooperate. "Wer bist du?" Who are you? I asked him. He may have been a lovely man at home, with his wife and children, but the fact that he was wearing the uniform of the most hated and despised country in the world, made my skin crawl.
"Ich bin Gabriel Schumacher und ich bin der Feldwebel dieses Zuges." I am Gabriel Schumacher and I am the boy's Platoon Sergeant.
He offered me a smile and even extended his hand which I refused. Elizabeth Reedman! I could hear my mother's voice whirling round my head. Sorry Ma, but there ain't no way in hell I am shaking his hand. Not after what he has done to people I care about. I looked at him dead panned. There would be no smiles, no emotion. I wanted to patch this kid up and get the hell out of here.
"Ich bin Leutnant Reedman und ich bin die Krankenschwester dieser Fallschirmjäger-Einheit. Ich möchte, dass du übersetzt, was ich dem Jungen sage, so dass ich die Kugel entfernen kann ohne weitere Schäden zu verursachen." I am Lt. Reedman and I am the nurse for this paratrooper unit. I require you to translate what I say to the boy so that I can remove the bullet from his arm without causing any more damage.
I carefully took a look at the boy's arm. There was no exit wound which meant that the bullet was still in there. There was no pain relief for them unless they were going into surgery with the Regimental Surgeon. The part of me that didn't want to see this kid suffer was shouting so loud it was filing my brain. He chose to fight, not my problem. I sounded so bitter and callous in my own head. It felt as though my brain was going to split in two. Giving the kid something to bit on might help him not shout so loud. Standing over him with tweezers in hand, there was little I could do for his tears.
"Ich werde nicht lügen, das wird schmerzhaft." I make no apologies; this is going to be painful.
The sergeant walked around to the other side of the boy and gripped his hand. I knew where the bullet was lodged which I hoped would make it easier to pull out. Inserting the tweezers, I gripped the bullet. The boy bit down on the leather strap in his mouth, he was determined not to show any weakness. But his twictching wasn't making it easy. Every time I had a grip of the bullet, he would flinch and I would lose it.
"Ah! Sag ihm, dass er aufhören soll sich zu bewegen; sonst werde ich die Kugel nie heraus bekommen." Ah! Tell him to stop moving; otherwise I will never get the bullet out.
I was getting frustrated, with my own conflicted feelings and at the boy. The sergeant said something and the boy instantly stopped moving. "About time." I muttered under my breath. Taking a firm grip of the bullet, I twisted slightly and pulled. Dropping the round onto the table, I applied sulphur and a bandage, just as Spina walked through the door with Bill and Shifty Powers.
"Ya need some help Bee?" Bill asked from across the room. Wiping my hands on a cloth, I walked over to where he was standing, whilst Spina finished up tending to the lad.. "More a little reassurance that if anything goes, wrong shall we say." He looked at me. Confusion was written all over his face. "Bee? You wanna explain?" I patted myself down for my cigarettes only to have Bill hand me one and his lighter. "Der krauts Bill." My accent always came out when I spoke to Bill. It felt nice, for a nanosecond made me think we were back home, taking across the backyard wall. "SS krauts at that! Dey killed Dukeman and Miller and Van Klinken. Dey killed them and it pains me dat I have to treat der asses!" Bill just sat there and smoked. "Yous been 'anging round with Liebgott too much!" He said with a smile and I slapped his arm. Since the little scene in England, Bill and I hadn't really spoken about Joe. "It's got nutting to do wit Joe and you knows it Bill. Dese bastards killed your Henry and my Daniel in a roundabout way. Dey are scum and you knows I'm right." There was no answer, no confirmation at what I was saying.
"So apart from the fact dat you want all the krauts dead…" I turned to look at him. "I am a nurse Bill, I swore an oath, just like you did, but mine says dat I have to save life, no matter who dey are, no matter what friggin language dey speak, I'm the schmuck who's gotta patch 'em back up. How can I do that, if all I'm thinking is how I want to kill 'em!" I threw my cigarette butt on the floor. My train of thought was interrupted by the commotion going on outside the room. "What the hell?" I left Bill to finish up his cigarette whilst I checked out what all the shouting was about.
"They don't deserve to be treated! THEY'RE NAZI BASTARDS!" Joe was having a go at one of the medics who was helping a German POW back to the holding room. "Cpl Liebgott! What the hell is goin' on out here?" I shouted. The poor medic looked scared out of his wits. "Carry on Private. Corporal…a word?" Joe took a step towards the young lad, making him flinch. Grabbing hold of his wrist, I pulled him into a side office.
"What the hell was all dat about?" Joe's eyes flashed with anger. "They're Nazi's Betty. Cold hearted murdering Nazis! I mean…they're SS for Christ's sake." Everyone knew about Joe's toxic hatred for them, I more than most, but this was getting ridiculous.
"Dat maybe, but you can't go around beatin on them. They are protected Joe. If you hurt them, it'll be you that'll end up in the clink." His eyes were fierce. Something I had never had directed at me before. "But they hurt Boyle, Webster and Alley. They," He pointed at the door. "They killed Dukeman." I looked him square in the eye. "They…killed my brother Joe!" Technically that wasn't true. It had been the Japs at Pearl Harbour who had killed Daniel, but in a roundabout way the Germans could be blame. "Don't you think I know that they killed all of our boys? Don't you think I remember the look on their faces when they don't make it? When it dawns on them that they ain't never going home again? No more ice cream Sundays, no more 4th of July fireworks, or Thanksgiving. Don't you think I know dat them bastards in dere took away dere chances of ever havin' what we have now?" He wouldn't look at me. Lifting his chin, I looked him square in the eye. "You don't need to be angry with me." But the fierce hatred was still there. "Do you want to treat them?" I leant against the desk. "What?" The question knocked me a bit. "Do I want to? God no!" I have more reason to hate the Germans than most, but it's not about whether I want to Joe. It's about what I have to do, what I am ordered to do." He frowned ever so slightly, not sure if he fully understood.
"Colonel Sink, as Regimental Commanding Officer, is governed by the Geneva Convention to treat all prisoners with respect and dignity, that means giving them SS bastards medical aid." He paced in front of the desk. "Joe." He ignored me. "Joe? Look at me. Please?" I caught hold of his hand. "Look at me, please." He lifted his head. He was so conflicted.
"If you had a choice," I knew where this was going. "If I had a choice, I'd shoot 'em all myself. I swore to protect my country and as crazy and screwed up as it may sound, if fixing em up allows us to get any sort of intel out of 'em then my job is worth it." His face relaxed a small smile creped across his face. "I'm sorry. They killed Dukeman and everyone else we lost and now we are patching the bastards up. It just doesn't seem right." I pulled him closer to me, his hands interlocked with mine. "I know it don't, but if we don't help them, or even kill them, we wouldn't be any better than the Germans." He signed, pulling me into a hug. We hadn't held each other like this for some weeks, and to be back in the safety of his arms, made me realise how much I missed him. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to yell at the kid." Whilst I knew it wasn't the case, the fact that he's rough with prisoners was a different ball game all together.
"I want you to promise me something." He looked down at me, the anger from his eyes gone. "Anything." Alright you said it. "Promise me that you'll not beat on the prisoners anymore. That you'll leave them be." He looked at me and then up at the ceiling as though it would give him some divine intervention. He knew I knew what had gone on. "I know all about what happened Joe. Even though Roe patched the kid up, I still saw the report." He hung his head. "Promise me now, dat you won't do it again, cos it won't be me asking you what happened if it happens again." He nodded slowly, mumbling something I couldn't quite hear.
"I promise Betty. I won't do it again." Smiling, I gripped his fatigues and pulled him in for a longer hug. "I have missed you Joseph Liebgott." I whispered. It had felt as though he had been away for month. The Joe that I know and loved had only just come back. Breathing deeply for his fatigues, I could only smell spent ammunition and blood and whilst to some that may sound revolting, it was nothing unusually for me. He lifted my chin from off his chest. He softly placed his lips on mine. It was like our first kiss all over again, nervous and hesitant. "We can't do this here, not now. Bill is outside and so is Shifty. I would not want him to walk in on us for the second time." I whispered. Whilst I could have quite easily stayed there, I had a small mountain of paperwork to write and file and collate all the information about the Germans we had treated.
"I have missed you too!" He whispered back to me. It seemed impossible to be so close to someone, work with them every day and still feel as though you have been separated for months. "Do you think I can see you later on today? Just the two of us?" The idea weaved it's way around my brain. I wanted to see him, spend time with him, be safe and happy for a few quiet moments. "Well, I have had you taken off duty because of the wound to your neck. I will let you know during my rounds if we can be together." Joe left first as it was I who had wanted to speak to him and not the other way around. Bill was still sat watching Spina and Roe patch up the POW. "Everythin okay Bee?" I nodded. "Yea, Joe was harassing one of the medics who was helping with transferring the POWs. Nothing I couldn't sort out." Bill threw me a look. "Ya know Bee, if Captain Winters finds out…" I cut Bill off midsentence. "Bill, Captain Winters isn't going to find out, because I have taken care of it. He's promised me that it's not gonna happen again!" Bill just nodded. "Ah ha, as long as he knows not to break dat promise, ya know cus what wit you being the only family I got here…" I held my hand up. "Bil, I am not ten years old anymore, I can handle myself!" He held both his hands up in surrender. "I know dat Bee, but I hope you know what would happen to him if he ever hurt you, if ever made you look…unprofessional…" He left the statement open ended. I knew what Bill was insinuating and whilst it was nice to know he wanted to protect me, I knew that I couldn't have that kind of tension between men within the same company. "Bill, I get it. I understand that you don't like the idea of me and him, but like I told you when we was in England. Me and him," I started to whisper, in case anyone was eavesdropping when they shouldn't be. "are for keeps. Just like you are with Frannie. I love him." He looked at me and I knew from the look in his eye, that he knew I was serious. "Well alright den." With that he went to help Shifty.