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The fighting continued throughout the day. No one got a break or a moment to catch their breath. But at around 1630 hours, they all heard the bellowing roar of diesel engines. Sherman tanks of the US 2nd Armoured Division rolled through the fields at Easy's left, machine guns and cannons blazing. One German tank blew up, then another, under the sudden onslaught of American armour. Pressed by the Shermans and taking casualties, the Germans abandoned their attack. Cheers broke out through the American lines. And they all watched, smoking and smiling as the Shermans pushed those Panzers back. And when the Panzers fell back, the infantry began to fall back. It ended what most would call, a very, very tough day.
Shrugging off her jacket, Nelly took a look at her injured arm. The small piece of shrapnel was still stuck in her flesh. But it wasn't burning anymore – it just hurt now. She winced when her hand grabbed hold of the metal and she began to tug it out – slowly, at first. But then Nelly had to retreat, it was too sore. And while she thought about just leaving it in there, Eugene Roe soon jumped into her foxhole and crouched by her arm.
"What've we got, let's see...". Roe murmured warmly under his breath.
Nelly frowned at him. "Bad?"
"Is it bad?" Roe asked. Taking hold of her forearm, he soon noticed the old bandage wrapped around her skin. A tiny frown met his face and he looked at Nelly. "Is this sore?"
She shook her head. "It's old...".
"Do you want me to take a look?"
"No". Nelly told him smoothly, "It's fine".
Setting her a smile, Roe looked back at her wounded arm. "It's in there alright...but the cuts still pretty small. You won't need stitches or nothing. Just a good wipe and a bandage".
"The metal can stay in?" Nelly almost sounded hopeful.
Smile softening, Roe shook his head. "No...it'll need to come out".
"Okay".
Nodding, mostly to himself, Roe pinched the top of the shrapnel with his fingers. And he could feel Nelly flinch at the touch. He looked at her. "Alright?"
Nelly gave him a faint nod. "Yeah".
"Okay". Roe to her, nice and calmly. "Let's just pull it – "
"Eugene?" Came her small voice.
Roe looked at her again. "Yeah?"
"It's...it's a little sore". Nelly admitted quietly.
"You'll feel better when it's out". Roe assured her warmly.
"Yeah". She whispered and her whisper sounded faint.
His eyes squinted toward her, in a worried stare. "You feeling okay?"
She gave him a tiny nod. "Hm...yeah...". Nelly mumbled.
Roe's fingers left the metal, and he pressed his hand against Nelly's cheek. "Are you sure?" He asked her, "You're feeling a little clammy, Murray".
Nelly's head spun. And her vision blurred slightly. "I feel...a wee bit dizzy".
"Oh, that's okay". Roe's calm voice assured her. "It happens. Uh – just put your head between your legs, breathe nice and deep".
"Sorry...". Nelly mumbled weakly.
"It's alright, it's all okay".
Drawing her legs up toward her chest, Nelly placed her head between her knees. Head bowed to the ground, she breathed in deeply through her nose, and out of her mouth. Roe set a hand on her back, and he began to move his hand between her shoulder blades. "Sorry...". Nelly said to him again quietly.
"What're you sorry for, hm?" Roe said to her gently.
"Just...being all weak and stuff".
"Not at all...you're not weak". He said quietly. "We'll just take this nice and slow, okay?"
"Okay". Nelly whispered. She felt her gut twist with nausea. Nelly wasn't sure what was going on but when Roe grabbed that piece of metal, it made her feel very lightheaded, weak and weird. Taking in a deep breath, Nelly held it and closed her eyes – and hoped the feeling would ease off soon. Roe gave her back another rub. The feeling set off alarm bells inside Nelly's head – as if her brain was alerting the rest of her body that the feeling wasn't right, and they weren't used to it.
"You okay?" Roe asked. "You've gone quiet on me, Murray".
Exhaling shakily, Nelly soon felt her legs and arms beginning to tremble. Her throat and chest grew tight, she couldn't swallow. It was happening again – one of those "shellshock" moments. Nelly's breathing picked up in speed as her heart hammered quickly against her chest. Though her eyes were closed, Nelly felt the world tilt and sway from side to side, as her head spun with dizziness. And then there came that ringing in her ear. She whimpered. "I feel weird...".
Roe gave a tiny nod. "Murray, you've 'gotta slow it down, alright?" He said to her calmly. He had seen this before since jumping into Normandy. But not quite as bad as Nelly. Roe was mostly concerned about her breathing. She was on the verge of fainting and her body was just freaking out over the strange feeling. "Nice deep breath". He coached gently, "In through the nose and out through the mouth".
The breath through the nose sounded like a motorbike engine revving – it was quick, sharp and uneven. And the breath out her mouth ended up with Nelly choking. Roe gave her back another gentle rub. He had a permanent frown on his face – both worried and feeling bad for the girl. It was worse than the episode in Edinburgh and at the train station. It was so noisy. Shots were still being fired every so often and the burning tanks creaked and groaned loudly. Nelly tried to take in deep breaths, but her airways felt constricted and her chest too tight.
If Roe couldn't get Nelly's breathing under control, he'd have to give her something – and he only had morphine that could help. "Come on, Murray...it's alright. Just breathe nice and deep".
Raising her head, Nelly kept her eyes closed. The breathing was worse than the episode back at the train station and in Edinburgh but Nelly could feel herself grasping strands of reality quicker than last time. It was just a feeling – the fainting sensation – that's what bothered her so much. Taking in a deep breath, Nelly sounded less like a motorbike engine and more like someone trying to breathe after a long run.
"Good". Roe murmured gently. "That's good, Murray".
Again – she breathed in through her nose and out through her mouth.
It got better, Nelly continued until she could swallow again and until her chest didn't feel as tight. Opening her eyes, she looked at Roe. "Better". Nelly whispered – her voice sounded exhausted.
Roe said to her warmly, "Should I take it out now and fix you up?"
Her heavy eyes looked toward the medic. "Okay". Nelly whispered. Her body was too exhausted to put up a fight and battle her brain. Nelly slouched back against the side of the foxhole.
Roe's fingers pinched the metal and Nelly didn't flinch like before. In a matter of seconds, he easily pulled the tiny piece of shrapnel out of her flesh. "There we go...all done". Roe said to her warmly.
She hummed out a faint laugh. "At least I...didn't panic". Nelly joked.
And Roe almost laughed. "You had me worried for a minute".
With the shrapnel out, Roe cleaned the small wound with sulphur powder and bandaged her arm up. He then held up her jacket and Nelly stuck her arms through the sleeves before she slumped against the side of her foxhole. Her eyes closed and she fell into a light sleep. Roe fastened up her jacket, protecting Nelly from the cool evening chill. And then he sat down next to Nelly.
Roe stayed with her while she slept.
...
They suffered nine wounded during that counterattack for Carentan. It had been a very long day. And at 2300 hours, they were relieved and pulled back into the town itself. Winters made sure his Company were bedded down somewhere warm for the night. The men of 2nd Platoon sought shelter inside a barn. They slept on straw, sleeping with ease that a couple of guys were on outpost duty, keeping everyone else safe. Waking up early the next morning, men sat up and made themselves warm coffee over the Sterno stoves. And they ate thick D ration chocolate bars for breakfast. The chocolate bars tasted like boiled potatoes and could crack a tooth. It was hardly sweet. Nelly didn't know until that morning that Lieutenant Winters had taken a hit in Carentan. A bullet went into his leg, just by foot. And he was currently in a hotel room, resting and he put Welsh in command of Easy for the time being.
Walking back from the "latrines" Nelly spotted Welsh beckoning her over. Picking up her pace, Nelly soon reached the Lieutenant. He was sipping on a cup of coffee Guarnere had made him – no milk, no sugar but it was warm.
Welsh snorted and told Nelly, "I'm half tempted to Irish this coffee up, Murray".
Nelly's head cocked to the side with a tiny smile. "You should, sir".
"Ah – devil on my shoulder". Welsh joked, "Not today".
"Is Lieutenant Winters okay, sir?"
"Man's resting, Murray. He's great". There was still some humour in his eyes. "Actually, he got a visit from Colonel Sink this morning. He's mighty impressed we held our flank. And on top of all that praise, Sink wants to put Winters forward for a Congressional Medal of Honour for what he did at Brecourt".
Nelly's eyes widened softly.
Welsh smirked. "I know...crazy, right?"
A soft smile soon settled on Nelly's face. She nodded. "He deserves that, sir".
"He would". Welsh agreed. "But that's not why I called you over". A tiny grimace settled on his face – causing Nelly to frown. "Colonel Sink mentioned something else...he has a job for you".
Shocked, Nelly pointed to her chest. "Me?"
"Yeah – you, Private Murray". Welsh confirmed. "Recon mission".
Finger leaving her chest, Nelly nodded slowly. "No rest?"
Smiling with sympathy, Welsh shook his head. "I'm afraid not". He said, "But you won't be alone. You can pick two men to go along with you".
Thinking back to their fierce battle yesterday, two names immediately came to mind. "Hughes and Burges". She said, "I'll take them, sir".
"You'll also have radio contact". He added, "With me and Battalion HQ – that's a direct line to Lieutenant Nixon". A smirk played on his lips. "I suggest you don't bother Nixon in the early hours, Murray. That man works better at night".
Mildly amused, Nelly nodded. "Right, sir".
Welsh gave her a nod. "You got your map?"
Reaching into her jacket pocket, Nelly brought out her notepad and opened it.
Welsh peered down at the map. "That blue bits us, right?"
"Yeah, sir".
"Alright...so you 'wanna head here – south". He said, "Couple of miles outside of town. Between hill30, Pommenauque and La Taute". He told her, "Keep it between three miles. You have to stay in range for radio contact – and we don't want you going too far anyway, it might be dangerous".
"Okay, sir".
"I wouldn't engage with the enemy". Welsh advised, "Not unless you have to".
Nelly nodded, appearing as if she already knew that.
Welsh smiled. "Of course, you already know that". He said, "You've done this a lot".
"I'll take extra ammo and grenades". Nelly decided, "To be prepared".
"Oh – here". Setting his cup of coffee onto a wall, Welsh reached by his belt and soon handed Nelly his binoculars. "You'll need these".
"Thanks, sir". She said softly while placing the strap around her neck and tucking the binoculars inside her jacket. "How long?"
"Ah – Colonel Sink didn't say". Welsh mumbled. He sighed and then told her, "If it gets sticky, pull back here. Don't play hero".
Pulling a slight concentrated frown, she nodded. "Okay, sir".
Smiling, Welsh clapped her shoulder. "Alright, trooper. Good luck".
Richard Hughes and Thomas Burges weren't that impressed to be leaving, however, they agreed to go along with Nelly on their recon mission. After a somewhat sweet farewell to Easy Company, the three troopers packed up and left Carentan. Heading south, they took the same intersection road they previously secured and made their way into the countryside. Passing by their previous battle sight and moving further south, Nelly was soon smack-bang in the middle of hill30 and Pommenauque. She decided to set up their first position behind a hedgerow, which had a gap in the middle for looking through. Next, they had to build an outpost – a camouflaged one at best. It had to somehow match the hedgerow and the muddy ground. Nelly began to dig a deep and large hole by the hedge while Burges and Hughes chopped branches off trees.
The hole was deep and big enough for all three of them. They set branches, mud and stone atop of the hole and around it. Nelly created a slope on each side, where they could be on the lookout. And in the centre, is where they'd rest and sleep. The next part was the easiest, they just had to sit, wait and look. Taking a slope each, they peered out of tiny windows between branches and mud. And almost straight away, they saw enemy movement. Around eighty yards from them, she saw a Platoon of Germans.
"They're here". She whispered.
"How many?" Burges's whispered back.
"A Platoon".
Hughes let out a tiny sigh. "Whenever I'm with you, Nelly, we get into trouble. From now on, I'm staying the hell away from you".
"They're setting up camp". Nelly continued to tell them, "They're making a home there".
"Weapons?" Burges asked.
"I just see what's on their person". She said, "Small arms for now".
"So...we're marking them down as southwest?" Burges set his rifle down and brought out his notepad. Another order given to them was to write down the time, place and any information they had on the enemy.
"Yeah". Nelly confirmed quietly. "There's only two hedges. And they're digging in behind them".
Burges wrote all that down.
"Outposts...". Nelly continued to say quietly. "Oh...yeah, that's close".
Hughes's eyes widened. He turned around and looked at the back of Nelly's head. "What?"
"We have one outpost sixty yards in front of us". She whispered. "To our right".
And they stopped and listened.
They could hear the Germans talking but only faintly.
The German voices only raised when they started to argue. Nelly snorted. The two German soldiers were arguing over who should dig the outpost. It was like a game of tennis; the shovel was the ball and it kept being passed back and forth to each man. Eventually, their Sergeant came marching over and shoved the shovel into a man's arms, which settled the argument.
"Anything else?" Burges whispered.
Nelly gave her head a shake. "No".
They were in for long days and even longer nights.
Recon missions were awful.