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Sat on the steps which once led to a building that was now gone, Nelly was handed stale bread and cheese by her friends. The cheese came in a tube, reminding her of toothpaste. Nelly set the cheese aside and stuck to the bread for the time being. What she did do, however, was drink a lot of water. Nelly almost finished what was inside her canteen. Belching into her hand, she gave her canteen a shake and then sighed quietly.
"I need more water".
Skip looked impressed. "You sure knocked that back quick, huh?"
"Are you 'gonna eat that cheese?" Alex asked.
"No". Nelly handed him the tube of cheese.
"Thanks". Alex smiled and squeezed the cheese out of the tube and onto a slice of "bread".
"Bread is stale...". Nelly mumbled. "But...it's good...I think".
"What did you eat before?" Malarkey asked.
"Well...Dieter gave us berries – "
"Dieter?" Skip raised a curious eyebrow. "Who's that?"
"A German soldier...I pretended to be German".
Malarkey smiled. "You clever sonofabitch...and you got away with it?"
"For...one night and a day". Nelly replied, "Then I killed him".
Skip cringed. "Bad day for Dieter...".
Nelly huffed out a laugh – which surprised her friends. "Yeah...poor bastard...". With a content sigh, Nelly continued, "Anyway...the berries weren't for eating...but he was dead by the time it reached...you know...". Nelly mumbled, appearing embarrassed.
"Got it". Skip nodded and joked, "You shat a lot – Rodger that".
"Yeah, I was really sick". Nelly's voice quietened. "It...delayed my journey. And I was...just...I had to stop for a while". She said, "Anyway...I just stuck to crackers. But then I ran out of them. So, I didn't eat for a while".
"What about your emergency rations?" Malarkey questioned.
Nelly groaned softly. "Don't tell Joe but...I put those in my leg bag".
Again, Skip cringed. "Yikes".
Snorting, Nelly nodded and ran a hand down her face. "So...". She asked, "What happened?"
Skip said through a sigh, "You 'wanna hear about your insane cousin first?"
Frowning, Nelly looked at Skip. "What?"
"Your cousin and two guys from his Platoon shot a bunch of prisoners on D-Day". Malarkey informed her quietly. And the three friends sat there, staring at Nelly – waiting for a response or some reaction from her. However, Nelly's face remained expressionless. And she continued to stare at Malarkey as if waiting for him to add more to the story. "Wow – okay, yeah". Malarkey said with slightly raised eyebrows. "That's it, Nelly".
Bobbing her head, Nelly's arms rested against her knees. "Okay".
"They gave 'em smokes first". Skip added.
"Like that changes anything...". Malarkey mumbled to Skip.
Nelly shot them a small frown. "Take no prisoners...Ronnie is all logic when it comes to this stuff". She shrugged. "I had to kill Dieter...there's no difference".
"There's more". Skip added quietly.
Malarkey and Alex appeared confused.
"More?" Alex questioned. "When?"
"Okay...". Skip said through a dramatic sigh. "This requires a very open mind".
"What did he do?" Nelly simply asked.
First, Skip told her, "I don't think your cousin is a bad guy, Nelly". He said, "In fact, I think he's swell, alright? He's...a good cousin to you, he's a good leader...".
A frown formed on Nelly's face. "It's bad?"
"Well – it depends on who you ask". Skip said lightly. "Personally? Maybe he could've handled it differently...but that's just my opinion".
"Oh, Jesus...". Malarkey ran a hand down his face. "What the hell did he do, Skipper?"
"Hold on". Alex stopped Skip from continuing. "How are you hearing this?"
"DiMarzio". Skip replied, "A guy from Speirs's Platoon. He saw the whole thing – I don't really know the kid that well but...he heard a few fellas from Easy gossiping and DiMarzio cleared it up for us".
The three of them nodded at Skip.
Skip continued, "Anyway...one of Speirs's Sergeants – a known drunk, by the way – well, he was drunk again, and he was hollering at the Krauts from his foxhole. The kid, DiMarzio, was trying to settle this fucking idiot down, but it wasn't working. So, Speirs comes over...".
Nelly anxiously bit down on her bottom lip.
Skip sent Nelly a frown. "Speirs tells the Sergeant to fall back to Company CP and sober up. But the Sergeants pushing Speirs...he's telling him fuck off and...he's telling Speirs he's chickenshit and he tells him to go fuck himself...".
"Holy shit...". Alex whispered.
"I know, right?" Skip remarked quietly. And he continued, "And then the Sergeant picks up his machine-gun and Speirs says something like; 'don't pick up that weapon unless you intend to use it'. So, this is where DiMarzio tells us...the Sergeant picks up the weapon and Speirs shoots him".
"Dead?" Nelly whispered.
Skip nodded. "Yeah, bud. Speirs shot him dead". He said quietly, "DiMarzio added that – uh – the showdown upset Speirs...he said he saw him wipe a tear from his eye. And he told DiMarzio that he had to do it...he had to".
"Shit...". Malarkey uttered quietly.
"Speirs's superior Officers assured him that, it was self-defence and Speirs would remain leader of his Platoon". Skip finished. "And that's about it".
Wrapping her head around all that information, Nelly raised her head and scanned the immediate area. She had to find her cousin. And she couldn't find him sitting down. "I'm going to find him now...". Nelly informed her friends before rising to her feet.
"Go easy on the guy". Malarkey said quietly.
"I will". Nelly assured him.
Because she didn't plan on yelling at Speirs – she doubted her cousin knew Nelly was even back yet. She wanted to make sure he was okay. Nelly left Easy's secured section in Carentan, and she headed toward the right, where Dog Company were located. Speirs wasn't the first person Nelly met – it was one of his Sergeants, Jumbo. And a smile met the older Sergeant's lips.
"Nelly Murray, right?"
Nelly gave the man a nod. "Yeah".
"I'm Jumbo – not really, nickname". He huffed out a laugh. "Anyway, your cousins inside that house over there". Jumbo kindly pointed the house out to Nelly. "He's 'gonna be happy to see you, Murray".
"Thank you, Jumbo".
Walking by the Sergeant, Nelly headed for the house. The house didn't have a door and its roof was practically all gone from shells. Stepping under the doorway, Nelly was met by a square entrance hall. She poked her inside the first room and found Speirs standing in the centre of a sitting room, reading a letter. Not wanting to startle her cousin, she knocked on the wall. His eyes left the letter with a sigh.
"What is...". Eyes widening slightly, Speirs quickly approached Nelly.
A tiny smile met her lips. "Hi, Ronnie". She greeted softly.
Knelt in front of her, Speirs grabbed a hold of her face, checking for cuts. "You're okay?"
"Yeah". Nelly mumbled while she tried to pull her head away from his fingers. "I'm fine".
He let out an exasperated sigh. "Where the hell were you?"
"Lost". She said.
"Clearly". Speirs muttered.
Nelly was confused by his anger. She frowned. "It's not my fault...".
When he sighed again, it didn't sound as angry as before. He sounded tired. "I'm sorry, kid. I was just so damn worried about you".
Nelly's frown softened. She nodded. "I know".
"What happened?"
"I landed and...Germans chased me". Nelly said, "And I ended up in these...fucking woods...and I couldn't get out". She mumbled, "There was this German soldier and...I pretended to be German, and he thought we were friends but weren't because he loves Hitler and then I killed him and then I was lost in the forest still and – "
"hey". Speirs cut her off gently. "Take a breath, huh?"
With a tiny nod, she continued. "And I was sick...and then I found a horse and rode it and then we got shot at and then the horse fell and then...". Nelly frowned. "I shot the horse". She whispered, "I thought...I was going to die...". Nelly could feel tears reach her eyes. "And I was trying to go to Le Grand Chemin...the whole time...the whole time I was trying to go there. But I just kept on getting lost...". Nelly's voice cracked. "And I was in this village and...I was so thirsty and tired and hungry...and then I got Skip on the radio, and he told me to...check my map and...and I found that you were all going to Carentan. So, I went...".
Smiling small, Speirs set a hand on her shoulder.
"He couldn't tell me the name of the town...he had to guide me...". Nelly said quietly, "I was close some of the time I think...I could hear you all fighting".
Speirs gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "You're a smart kid, huh?"
Nelly sniffed and shrugged. "I don't think so...I was lost for six days".
"You got lost, yeah". Speirs said, "But you found your way back". He asked, "Were you scared?"
Nelly gave her head a shake. "Sometimes I was stressed...but not scared – not really. I just...I didn't want to die alone".
Something tore at Speirs's heart at those words. Rubbing a hand across his chin, he nodded slowly. "Yeah". He said quietly.
Nelly set a hand on his shoulder. And stared into his eyes. "You're a good person".
"That was unprompted". Speirs mumbled. "Why do you say that?"
"Because I know". She said to him softly.
Clearing his throat, Speirs's eyes looked away from Nelly. "Oh, you do?"
"Not everyone will be on your side in life, Ronnie...but I will always be on your side".
Huffing out a tiny laugh, Speirs blinked away the sudden sting in his eyes.
Nelly's hand gave his shoulder a squeeze. "It's shit, isn't it?"
"What?" He asked her quietly.
"Combat – it's shit". She explained. "No one really believed me...but I'll bet they'll believe me now".
Head nodding, Speirs looked at her again. "I sorta like the thrill".
Nelly raised her eyebrow – appearing displeased. "That's not the response I wanted, Ronnie".
A smile met his lips. "You want me to agree with you?"
"Yeah".
With a sigh, Speirs rolled his eyes. And joked, "Not everyone in life will be on your side, Nelly – "
"alright, fuck you...". Nelly snorted and let go of his shoulder.
"No, no – let me finish". Speirs harmlessly teased. He said, "To an extent, you're right. However, it's our job to fight in this war. And sometimes you've 'gotta enjoy the ride".
With a faint nod, Nelly told him, "You're still a piece of shit".
Chuckling quietly, Speirs opened his arm. "Come here".
Smile playing on her lips, Nelly accepted the hug. Head on his shoulder, she wrapped her arms tightly around her cousin. "Missed you".
"Missed you too, kid". Speirs mumbled on the top of her helmet.
...
With Nelly back and Carentan secured, 2nd Battalion was ordered to leave the area and head into the countryside to form a protective perimeter around the strategic town. A counterattack was rumoured to happen after the Americans seized Carentan. Easy Company was on Division's far right, their line ending at a railroad track with nothing but swampland beyond. During their march into the countryside, Easy was smack-bang in the middle. And approaching a hedgerow on the high ground two miles outside of Carentan, German mortar and small arms fire hit Easy, stopping the men as if they'd struck a brick wall. Holding the elevated ground gave the Germans an excellent of fire. Dropping and taking cover, Easy lay on their stomachs and returned fire.
For a moment, they were stuck in the centre of the field. Until Winters ordered them all toward the tangle of a hedgerow, just to their front. Nelly, still with frazzled anxiety from being lost in Normandy for six days, almost felt offended that they were being shot at. Standing up to get a better look at the enemy, she fired shot after shot. Until Toye, baffled by her actions, raced back onto the field, grabbed Nelly around the waist and dragged her behind the hedgerow.
"Kid, for the love of God!"
Nelly looked up at her Segreant and yelled back, "Those assholes were shooting at us!"
A few chuckles were heard.
And Toye ended up grinning. "You sounded so American".
Dusk brought a lull to the battle. Men dug foxholes behind the hedge and settled down for the night. Their new orders were to attack at first light in the morning. Sitting in her foxhole, Nelly was pleased to learn they were getting fresh water and more food. And handing her the new supplies was Punchy. Jumping into her foxhole, Punchy set Nelly a grin and sat down next to her.
"How're you feeling, bub?"
"Fine, Sergeant". Nelly replied lightly. And soon smiled while picking up her new ration pack. She changed her answer, "Brilliant".
With a chuckle, Punchy gave her arm a gentle nudge with his elbow. "Yeah...you eat up". He said, "Your buddies say you haven't eaten much. You'll need your strength, Nelly".
Setting her ration pack onto her lap, Nelly looked up at the now, 1st Sergeant. "Punchy?"
"Yeah?"
"Did you ever feel scared?"
Humming in thought, Punchy then let out a sigh and shook his head. "I had no reason to feel scared, bub. I have you guy watching my back".
A smile met Nelly's lips.
Punchy looked down at her. "Are you scared?"
"No". Nelly mumbled, "Is that bad?"
"I think every person handles combat differently". Punchy said, "Some guys get scared, some guys don't".
"Are they scared of dying?"
"Maybe". He replied thoughtfully. "Or maybe they're scared of seeing their buddies get hurt".
Nelly gave her head a tiny shake. "I don't...think about that".
"I think that's probably for the best". Punchy said to her softly. "You wouldn't be able to focus if you thought about that all the time". But he added, "However when we lost you...we worried".
"I could have been dead". Nelly said, "Then you wouldn't have worried".
Punchy cast her a sad smile. "We never thought you were dead for one second".
"Why?" She frowned.
Punchy pressed his finger against her forehead. "You're too damn smart, that's why".
The frown smoothed off her face. "Smart...no...I just...my brain doesn't shut up".
He snorted out a tiny laugh. "Good". He said, "I hope it forever annoys you, Nelly Murray". He added, "Because it sure saved your ass out there".
"It did but...it didn't". Nelly said quietly.
Punchy looked interested. "What saved you?"
"I guess...I just wanted to come home". Nelly said, "Back to Easy".
Punchy smiled softly. "That would keep me going too, bub".
Nelly's hand went toward her chest. "My heart saved me...you lot weren't there but...you still saved me out there".
Huffing out a small laugh, Punchy nodded. And then sighed. "Nope – it's too early in the game to start crying".
Nelly smiled. "Sorry".
Punchy jokingly warned her, "I'll get my revenge".
She huffed and whined, "No, don't...".
He chuckled and knocked her helmet. "Eat up – I'm checking on the rest of the fellas".
"Bye, Punchy". Nelly smiled.
"See you later, bub".