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Route 803 entered Carentan as a gentle downward slope, with shallow ditches to both sides of the roadway. In town, it merged with another street to the right at a forty-five-degree angle. Together, they formed a slanted T intersection, dominated by a hotel that sat straight ahead, looking down the 803. Houses and shops lined both sides of the village street. That intersection was Easy Company's objective. And already, one man got shot in the behind. Lieutenant Lavenson, a former Easy Platoon Leader, went off into a field, hiked down his trousers and squatted. His white buttocks gleamed in the moonlight, making him an inviting target. A shot rang out and Lavenson yelped in pain as a bullet struck his behind. He was dragged to safety. That all happened one hour ago. It was now 0550 hours – kick-off started at 0600 hours.
Behind the crest of the hill, Welsh got his men into position. At 0600 hours, Winters ordered for his machine guns to open fire and Welsh led his Platoon forward as Winters signalled for Buck to get his Platoon ready. No sooner had Welsh jumped off than a German machine gun in the hotel ahead came to life. In a perfect position to dominate the road, the MG-42 spat flame and death at the charging GIs. Welsh and six other men braved the storm and pushed into town, taking cover behind the nearest building. However, the next man in line, Sergeant Radar, put his head down and froze. Like cars in traffic, the rest of the Platoon backed up behind him and, suddenly, on both sides of the road, men hunkered down in the ditches, heads low, immobilized.
Winters was horrified. Not only did he have seven men on their own in the enemy-held town, but the rest were in danger as well. Stopping under fire was the worst thing they could do; it converted them from men into targets.
"Move!" Winters yelled above the roaring MG-42. "Move! Don't stop!"
Heads stayed down, and Winters's words went unheard. And from behind Winters, he could hear Strayer shouting, "Move out, Winters! Get those men moving!"
No longer their soft-spoken, level-headed, not likely to yell, Lieutenant, Winters blew his cork. Oblivious of his own safety, he leapt onto his feet and ran into the middle of the road. "Go forward!" He yelled, "You can't stay here! Move! Move!"
Winters was a sitting duck for the German gunners, and he knew it. He had become the only visible target, and the machine-gunner did not neglect the opportunity. Bullets churned up the ground at Winters's feet and buzzed around his ears like mosquitoes as he bounced back and forth across the road, frantically grabbing men, yanking them to their feet and pushing them forward.
"Get going!" Winters yelled, "You're 'gonna die here! Move!"
The men were stunned, less by the German fire than by the sight of their mild-mannered Lieutenant suddenly transforming into a raving madman. At first, they gaped at him in awe, then, at last, the discipline kicked in. Sergeant Radar moved out, followed by another man, then another, until all were charging ahead under the withering fire. Winters ran with them, and he encouraged them forward. Several men were hit, and they fell. The German gunners were still focused on Winters and his advancing men.
And as they reached the top of the slope, the firing suddenly stopped. As if by magic. Winters's eyes found Welsh and his men were still crouched by that building, they hadn't moved. The rest of the men appeared confused, while they fanned out on the streets of Carentan. Keeping low, Winters set his orders and rushed over to Welsh. It was eerily quiet in their section of the town. As stunned GIs and Germans tried to figure out who silenced the machine-gunners.
"One of your guys?" Winters asked while setting a nod toward the hotel.
"No". Welsh appeared just as confused. "Maybe a misfire?"
"Maybe".
The two Officers looked back toward the hotel and soon watched, as the door opened.
And Nelly stepped outside.
Smiles brightened their faces. "Well, I'll be...". Welsh whispered.
She rubbed a hand down her exhausted and muddy face. And once her face was uncovered, Nelly could see them – she could see her Company. Heart in her throat, a weak smile met her chapped and cracked lips. Nelly couldn't believe it; she had actually done it. The relief was utterly overwhelming. Knees buckling and legs wobbling, she struggled to stand. Upon hearing German voices from the top window in a house, Nelly started stumbling away from the hotel's entrance.
And then a hail of fire began heading her way.
"Run!" Winters ordered her loudly, "Nelly, run!"
Getting out of their momentary shock, Easy Company returned fire and started to flush the enemy out of buildings with grenades. Nelly fell to her knees and ducked her head, avoiding flying glass and hot shrapnel. Leaving his position, Winters raced out onto the street and ran toward his fallen soldier. Once he reached Nelly, he leaned down and picked the girl up and into his arms.
"Clear out those buildings on the right!" Winters ordered as he carried Nelly to cover. "Keep firing! Don't stop! Pour it at 'em boys!"
Pressing her face against Winters's shoulder, Nelly's arms weakly went around his neck. "Sir...". She whispered.
"I've got you, kiddo...I've got you...". With Nelly's arms wrapped around his waist, Winters carried her toward a building and gently set her down against a wall.
Crouched before her, Winters took out his canteen, unscrewed it and placed the opening by her mouth. Nelly began drinking the water and she grabbed a hold of the canteen. Looking over his shoulder, Winters double-checked to make sure his men were doing their job. He turned back to face Nelly and set her a soft smile. "You gave us quite the scare, Private Murray".
With a tiny huff, Nelly nodded. "Yeah...".
"I'll get you to the aid station".
But she shook her head. "I can fight, sir". Nelly handed Winters's canteen back to him and slowly got onto her feet. "I just need an American rifle".
"Use that one for now". Winters said, "I'll get you a rifle after – go find your Sergeant".
"Yes, sir".
Headset on locating Toye, Nelly moved out from behind the building and began rushing across the road. She kept low to avoid incoming bullets and shrapnel. Ducking for cover behind a house, Nelly peered out from the corner and spotted Toye leading Jackson past the hotel and toward a factory. She followed them. Nelly's boots pounded against concrete, as bullets dug tiny holes onto the pavements and road. Toye and Jackson were halfway up a set of metal stairs, which would take them toward the side entrance of the factory. But above them, a German poked his rifle outside of a window and aimed down at Toye.
Very quickly, Nelly held up Dieter's rifle, set her target and fired. She put a bullet through the German's hand, forcing him to drop his weapon. Toye and Jackson, startled by the noise ducked and soon flinched when the rifle hit Toye on the top of his helmet.
"What the fuck?!" Toye exclaimed.
But Jackson smiled. "Joe...".
"What?!" Toye was clearly pissed off.
"Look".
Following Jackson's stare, Toye soon spotted Nelly walking toward them – the smoke still billowing out of her rifle's barrel. A large grin spread across Toye's face. "I knew it!" He yelled, "I knew you weren't fucking dead, kid!"
Just as Nelly was about to share his smile, she spotted the same German she hit toss a grenade out of the window. "Joe, Jackson – watch out!"
"What!"
The grenade bounced off the top of Toye's helmet and was sent flying over the metal stairs, where it went off on the ground. The stairs rattled; the earth shook a little, but they were fine. However, Toye let out a sigh and muttered, "That's the third fucking time...".
"That Kraut's still in there". Jackson told Toye, "I'll go get him".
"Be careful, kid". Toye warned him.
"Will do".
Approaching the stairs, Nelly climbed up them and reached her Sergeant. "Hello".
Toye raised an eyebrow. "Hello? You've been missing for six fucking days, and I get a hello?"
She frowned softly. "What do I say?"
He didn't respond – Toye pulled Nelly into a bone-crushing hug instead. He let out a long and heavy sigh of relief. "Glad you're back, kid".
Smiling below his chest, Nelly nodded. "Me too".
Pulling back after a few moments, Toye looked down at her. "You're okay?"
"Better". Nelly said.
He clapped her shoulder. "Good, so – "
Whatever he was about to say got cut off by the sound of an explosion going off nearby. It shook the earth violently and caused the metal stairs to tremble. Nelly lost her balance and almost fell backwards but Toye grabbed a hold of her webbings and pulled Nelly toward him.
"Mortars!" Winters yelled below them, "Take cover!"
With nowhere else to go but in, Toye pulled Nelly inside the factory. On the landing, they spotted Jackson on the floor and a dead German close by. Jackson was unconscious and bleeding from the side of his head. Toye knelt next to his guy and gently pulled Jackson's upper half across his lap. Reaching for his med kit, Toye brought out a bandage and pressed it against the large wound on the side of Jackson's head.
"Is he okay?" Nelly frowned.
"I think so". Toye replied. "I've 'gotta get him out of here".
"I'll cover you".
"Alright – let's go". Picking Jackson up, Toye tossed his wounded soldier over his shoulder. "Go to the front, let's avoid those damn stairs".
Leading the way, Nelly rushed down a set of wooden stairs and reached the factory's ground floor. Pushing a set of large doors open, Toye went first, and Nelly prepared to fire. The streets were going under a serious bombardment. Limbs went flying in the air, and mud, glass and stone spewed up from the earth. Debris and hot shrapnel billowed out like large drops of dangerous rain. It was smoky, dusty and hard to see much of anything. Nelly decided to take the lead on their quest to get Jackson to the aid station, which was close to the road by the intersection. Toye trusted Nelly enough to lead but was apprehensive – they just got her back, after all.
"Ready to...run?" Nelly asked the Sergeant.
"Yeah". Toye replied. "Let's do this".
Taking off first, Nelly's boots slammed against uneven terrain. Large pieces of buildings flew overhead, threatening to crush Nelly. And below her running feet, the ground shook and trembled, as if an earthquake was in the works. Nelly's arms moved from side to side, her hands trying to swat away the dust and glass out in front of her. And she soon stopped, when Lipton just came out of nowhere and flew right out in front of her eyes. He came tumbling down to the ground, his body hunched and leaning up against a wall. But Talbert soon ran in front of Nelly, as he raced to help their Sergeant. Nelly continued to run and looked over her shoulder, making sure Toye was doing the same – he was, and he still had a good grip on Jackson.
Set up in the first building on the northwest corner of the intersection was the aid station. As Nelly grew closer to that road, she could see it. Standing at the top of the road, Nelly held up her rifle and began firing out toward the Germans who were manning that mortar. Her bullets did nothing to silence them, but it gave Toye cover to run along the road and reach the aid station. Staying at the top of the road until her Sergeant and Jackson made it safely to the station, Nelly soon took off back into the damaged streets. A few men were injured during that short but nasty bombardment. One of them was Tipper, who Nelly saw was being carried to the aid station by Welsh and a medic.
And as the dust settled and the smoke cleared, Nelly stopped.
She saw Alex.
When Alex stopped and turned around, he saw Nelly. And the pair of them just stared at each other for a moment. Alex had to rub his eyes and blink a few times, just to make sure what he was seeing was real. Raising her hand slightly, Nelly sent Alex a tiny wave – proving to him that she was in fact, real and not his imagination. With two minutes between them, they both began walking toward each other. And it was Nelly who quickened the pace first, causing Alex to follow into a run. But a run wasn't quick enough – they began sprinting toward each other. Hearts hammering against their chests and tears reaching the corner of their eyes, they raced toward each other. Nelly dropped Dieter's rifle along the way.
And then they crashed and collided into each other's arms.
Holding onto each other tightly, gripping onto jackets for dear life. Nelly's head buried into his chest, while Alex's nose touched the top of her helmet and there, he choked out a tearful laugh – somewhere caught between relief. Nelly's eyes closed tightly upon hearing his tearful chuckle. Though, a tear did end up rolling down her cheek.
After one minute, they pulled back slightly to stare at each other, though kept their arms around one another. Alex stared down into Nelly's eyes. "Hey". He croaked.
"Alex". Nelly said softly. "I'm back...".
He choked out another tearful laugh. "Yeah...I can see that".
A small smile settled on her lips. "I missed you".
"I missed you too". Alex said quietly.
"And...". Nelly whispered, "I love you".
His heart exploded. Alex felt tears reach his eyes again. "I love you too, Nelly".
When Nelly stood on the balls of her feet, Alex thought she'd kiss him on the cheek, but she didn't – Nelly pecked him quickly on the lips instead. And Alex's eyes widened. For a moment, his body stilled in shock. When Nelly lowered herself, she looked up at Alex and frowned.
"Bad?"
Giving his head a quick shake, Alex assured her, "Good". He said, "Great – brilliant".
A shy smile crossed her face. "I've never done that before".
Alex's arms released their hold around Nelly. And he set a hand on her muddy cheek. "I'm glad I was your first".
"Me too". Nelly said softly.
"Nelly – "
"Nelly, you made it!"
Two happy voices soon approached them. Nelly and Alex pulled away from each other, allowing Skip and Malarkey to pull Nelly into a tight hug. Skip actually picked Nelly up and spun her around. "You did!" He exclaimed, "I knew it! I knew you could do it!"
Whereas Malarkey held Nelly but didn't spin her around. "I'm so glad you're okay, pal".
Head buried in Malarkey's chest; Nelly smiled.
It felt great to be back.
"Did I...miss anything?" Nelly asked once the hug with Malarkey ended.
Her friends shot each other a frown.
"What?" Nelly asked slowly.
"We'll fill you in after". Skip said casually. "For now, you need some grub in your belly".
"A new rifle". Alex added.
"That too, yeah". Skip confirmed.
"Water". Malarkey pointed out. "And how about a sit-down, huh?"
"Well...okay". Nelly agreed softly. "But tell me everything after".
"Will do". Skip promised while shooting Malarkey a mild apprehensive look.