bob
February 1945
After a peaceful night inside the convent, men were rushed onto their feet and back onto trucks – they were moving to a region in France called Alsace, not off the line but to another front. The Germans launched a diversionary operation there, in an attempt to draw the Americans from the Ardennes area. Eisenhower sent the 101st to Alsace to bolster the line. It was a long trip – two hundred miles south and slightly east of Bastogne. The trucks didn't have roofs, men were at mercy to snow, wind and rain; the cold was horrendous. Vehicles travelled at a snail's pace, so men could jump off and relieve themselves. They didn't look so sharp heading to the front now, their fatigues were caked in mud, sweat, dirt and blood – hair was matted, and they all stunk.
They all looked a mess.
Easy Company spent little time in reserve at Alsace and they were soon bound for a town called Haguenau, on the 5th of February. Not much had happened before Haguenau but Lipton came down with pneumonia.
Sat up on her knees, Nelly leaned over the side of the truck and spat out the toothpaste in her mouth. Wiping the remains of paste away, she turned around and sat down again.
"Here's one…". Grant said, "What goes up but never comes down?"
Malarkey and Nelly both answered, "Your age".
Grant's eyes scanned the little book he had carried around since England. "Oh – okay, see if you can get this one…I am always hungry and will die if not fed, but whatever I touch will soon – "
"fire". They both answered again.
With a sigh, Grant looked at the pair of them. "Do you have this book?"
"No". Malarkey replied. "We're just good at riddles".
Determined to catch them out, Grant flicked the pages of his book and grinned. "I found one – it's a hard one…you see a boat filled with people. It has not sunk, but when you look again you don't see a single person on the boat. Why?" The grin remained on his face as he looked at the two friends again.
With a shake of his head, Malarkey looked at Nelly. "What do you think?"
"Not a single person". Nelly said, "They're all married".
Huffing, Grant closed his book. "I give up".
"Where did you get the book, Chuck?" Babe asked.
"An English girl". He said, "She said it was fun – it's not fucking fun. It melts my damn brain".
"She should've given you a book of jokes".
Grant joked to Babe, "No, she should've given you a book of jokes, Jigger".
"My jokes ain't that bad!" Babe exclaimed.
His statement was met by silence.
"Aw, go to hell…". Babe mumbled.
A few of them chuckled and began to poke fun at Babe.
Shifting in her muddy and baggy fatigues, Nelly wondered when they'd arrive at their new destination. Scratching an itch under her nose, her ears soon picked up a cheerful voice. She leaned forward and searched the back of the truck – only to find Webster approaching them. Nelly felt relieved to see him. Standing up, she approached the tailgate.
"David".
Webster beamed at her, "Hey, Nelly".
"Give me your bag". Nelly said and then told Jackson, "Move over a bit, Jackson".
With a long sigh, Jackson reluctantly shifted over to make room.
Ignoring Jackson's sigh, Nelly helped Webster onto the back of the truck. "You're…better now?"
"Oh, loads". Webster happily reported. "A Lieutenant put me in this Platoon".
Nelly nodded. "Good". She said, "You can…be in my squad".
"Jesus, really?" Babe complained aloud.
Webster sent Nelly a tiny smile. "Thanks, Nelly".
Nelly noticed Webster was dressed in washed fatigues – he looked clean. And he looked like a replacement. She didn't even think that Webster had spent all those months in the hospital and didn't go AWOL like most of the men did – she was just glad to see him again. Jackson ended up moving along the bench again, to make room for Nelly, who decided to sit next to Webster. It was clear the men weren't happy to see his return. Nelly hated the thought of him feeling left out or unwanted.
"We were…solving riddles, David". Nelly then looked over in Grant's direction. "Chuck, why don't you – "
"no". Grant replied before Nelly could finish.
"Oh". Nelly said quietly and looked at Webster again. "Well…maybe later then".
"Yeah, maybe". Webster appreciated what Nelly was doing. He forgot how kind she could be. A small smile lifted his face, when he told her, "I missed you, Nelly". Webster was fond of Nelly – the beginnings of a friendship started to blossom between them in Holland. Webster hoped to befriend her.
"Yeah, I…I missed you". Nelly said to him quietly. "I…I hoped you'd come back…sooner but… you're here now…that's good, David".
"So, who's in charge of the Platoon now?"
"Oh…". Nelly said quietly, "Eh…Donnie".
Webster didn't ask where Guarnere was. "And you're Sergeant now?"
"Almost…". Nelly mumbled. "I don't know…I'm acting Sergeant. Maybe they'll…find another one to replace me".
Before reaching 2nd Platoon, Webster was given the news about Hoobler, Skip and Alex – and all the other lives lost in Bastogne. It pained him to lose good friends. "So, what's in Haguenau?" He asked, keeping the topic away from death.
"Moder River…Germans are across the river". She said, "We'll have the south bank, they have the north bank".
Webster nodded, "Sounds simple when you put it like that, Nelly".
"Well…that's me…simple". Nelly said quietly to her lap.
"Oh, no, I didn't – "
"did you just call her simple?" Babe sent Webster a glare. "You're back, what? Five minutes and you're already insulting Bricks?"
"No – no, God no…". Webster assured him. "I don't think Nelly's simple-minded at all".
"Then what the fuck were 'ya doing call her simple, then?"
Nelly sighed quietly and looked over at Babe. "He didn't…he said the positions sounded simple".
Babe held his glare on Webster. "I'm watching you, Webster…".
"Yikes…". Webster whispered under his breath.
Nelly stared up at Webster and gently nudged his side with her elbow. "It's okay".
He looked down at her and sighed. "I don't think I'm going to fit in, Nelly".
"Got that right". Sheehy grumbled.
Ignoring that remark, Webster frowned. "Listen, Nelly…I'm sorry about – "
"oh, no, it's…". Nelly cut him off with a shake of her head. "It's fine".
He couldn't help it, Webster wanted to offer his condolences – he knew how close Nelly and Malarkey were to Skip and Alex. But it appeared to Webster that she didn't want to speak about their death. He assumed she found it too hard still.
Nelly said to him, "I'll bet…you're glad Peacock isn't here".
Webster smiled. "Yup". He said, "But he'll be back soon, right?"
"Probably March". Nelly said, "So, you have this month without him". She told him, "When we were at Holland…I stole food from his CP – the man basically had a shop, David".
Webster huffed, displeased. "That doesn't surprise me at all".
"Well…looters were to be punished in the stockade. Peacock caught me and sent me to Winters. But I didn't get punished because Peacock was the biggest looter of all".
"He's such an ass". Webster stressed.
Nelly agreed, "He is".
The truck came to a halt on a muddy and beaten road. They had arrived in Hagnuenau. Men jumped off the back of the tailgates, grabbed their gear and shuffled off the road and onto a street. Most of the houses still had a roof over their heads but bricks were pierced with bullet holes and shaved from shells. Still, the men were free to pick houses south of the town and set up OPs inside. For the first time, they were living inside, rather than digging foxholes – it was a treat for the worn-out soldiers.
Bunk beds were already set up in bedrooms. The only thing houses were missing was plumping and electricity. But it was dry inside the houses, a little slice of heaven for the troops. Nelly let out a sigh – she thought they'd do quite well in Hagnuenau.
...
With the men settled in houses, Nelly headed for Battalion HQ – a large home previously owned by a Nazi dentist. Winters decided to keep all of his Officers inside the home, it was big enough, after all. Bain, 2nd Platoons radioman, was already there, setting up a wire of communication from 2nd Platoon to Battalion and Speirs's CP, which was a bedroom. Nelly walked by Bain, who was lying the wire down across the main entrance, and she found Lipton on the couch – lying down and shivering under a blanket.
"Hello, Lip". Nelly greeted, "You…feel better now". She only thought that because the man was working.
"Hey, Nelly". Lipton's voice sounded rough. "I'm still waiting for penicillin".
"Oh". Nelly mumbled. And then asked, "Have you seen Speirs?"
"Yeah, he's out back in his CP, buddy".
"Thank you".
Before she could walk off, Lipton stopped her, "Has Malark done a list yet? I need to know of the ammo count". Speirs was very busy; Lipton wanted an excuse to keep Nelly out of his CP for the time being.
Turning around to face him, Nelly shrugged one shoulder. "I…don't know, Lip".
"Well, could you tell him to write one out?"
"I'll…do it". Nelly offered. Malarkey had enough on his plate.
"You sure?" Lipton asked.
She nodded, "I'll…do it, Lip".
He sent her a weak but warm smile. "Thanks, buddy".
Nelly stopped again when the door opened, and Webster stepped inside. He gave Nelly a sort of sheepish smile and explained, "Malarkey thinks I should check with Lieutenant Speirs".
With a small frown, Nelly walked over to Webster. "What does…that mean?"
"To see if I should be in 2nd Platoon".
"Fine". Nelly mumbled. "Well…I'm…looking for him".
Lipton mentioned to her, "He's pretty busy right now, buddy".
Nelly faced Lipton. "David…is not homeless". She said, voice serious.
There was a short pause.
Webster looked at Nelly. "Right…uh…well, why don't we wait for him?"
The house still had its grand points. Like the piano, the three-piece-sweet inside the first of three sitting rooms and a bar. Only, the bar didn't possess alcohol now, it was used as Vest and Luz's holding space for all the supply boxes that had flooded in since they arrived. Webster took a seat on the puffy, cushioned stool by the piano – Nelly remained standing.
"Hey, Nelly". Luz greeted Nelly as he passed her.
"Hello".
Luz stopped by Lipton and said, "I'm getting you another blanket".
Lipton waved his hand, "I'm fine, Luz".
"Ah, come on…". Luz said, "Another blanket ain't 'gonna hurt 'ya. Opposite, actually".
Turning around and facing the dusty piano keys, Nelly licked her bottom lip and pressed down on a random note. Pulling an amused face, Webster looked at her and asked, "Do you play?"
"Sure". She said – voice stoic. And then Nelly pressed her entire hand down on a bunch of keys – creating a loud and horrible noise.
The men around her cringed at the terrible sound.
She pressed them again. And again.
"Jesus – give it a break, Nelly!" Luz exclaimed over the noise.
"Who's that?!" Came an annoyed voice. "Who the hell is doing that?!"
Nelly looked toward an archway and saw her pissed-off cousin marching inside the entrance hall. His firm stare looked straight toward the piano and right at Nelly. She stepped away from the instrument and said, "Oh…there you are, sir…I was looking for you".
Webster pursed his lips together to hide an amused smile.
Briefly, Speirs pinched the spot between his eyebrows and let out a tired sigh. "What is it?" He asked – voice as flat as those notes Nelly just slammed.
"Webster…is back from the hospital and – "
"what?" Speirs pulled an annoyed face. "Who the hell is – "
"sir, I'm Private Webster". Webster rose from the seat. "They were wondering if I should be in 2nd Platoon".
"Sure, whatever. 2nd Platoon". Speirs murmured. He stared down at Nelly. "Anything else?"
"He's in…my squad now, sir". Nelly said to him.
"Fine. You're squad". Speirs then warned her, "Stay the hell away from that piano".
Ducking his head, Webster cracked a grin.
And Nelly almost sounded as if she was joking, "Oh…I thought I was good, sir".
Speirs nearly smiled as he gave Nelly's shoulder a tiny nudge. "Get lost, kid".
"Yes, sir". Turning around, Nelly faced Webster. "Come on, David".
Smiling small, Webster approached Nelly and they walked out of the house. Once outside, he cracked another grin and chuckled. "Oh, God…your cousin is right, never play the piano again, Nelly".
"Oh…I needed to find him…". Nelly explained quietly.
"Good tactic". Webster continued to grin.
It was all fun and games for Webster until they were reminded the streets weren't as safe as they thought. A shell whistled across the river and hit a house close by – the two Paratroopers dropped to the ground and took cover behind some steps. As they watched pieces of brick fall and crumble off the house, Webster sighed.
He said to Nelly, "Guess that's my welcome back to combat, huh?"
Nelly took hold of Webster's arm and pulled them both to their feet.
"Yeah…". Nelly said, "Welcome home, David".