Chapter 2
My squad and I made our way over the small country road, on the outskirts of Ramelle. We sped by abandoned farmland surrounded by barbed wire fences and filled with some sort of yellow flowered crop that I couldn't make out due to the speed at which we were traveling.
"Hold on to your skivvies" Sergeant Claymore advised
"Captain Beckett wants to see you guys right quick."
"Well maybe you should go faster then Sergeant, Maybe you'll finally get airborne." The young Sergeant looked at me and smiled.
"Well" he said, "I always wanted to be a pilot."
"Well your running out of time, you wont be alive much longer with the way you drive." I replied.
"I have to warn you Sir, Captain Beckett just came from a desk in England. He knows everything about war, by the book, but he's never actually been in combat."
"Great" I sarcastically replied.
We rolled into a small outpost containing an aid station and a communications tent, at about 3:30 pm. There were wounded and exhausted men moping around, blood staining their uniforms. Their Platoon commanders, or Squad leaders were forming up the Men who had enough energy to continue the war. They would take what could be their last look at their friends and proceed on to an unknown future.
"You Lieutenant Morgan sir?" A young Second Lieutenant asked.
"That's the name."
"Captain Beckett will be out in a couple of minutes, He said you can go get some coffee and a carton of cigarettes, they're giving them out in the communications tent for some damn reason. Sir."
"Okay thank you Lieutenant." I said.
"Alright men, Get out of the jeep and go get some coffee and cigarettes, in the communications tent." I commanded.
I was tired and needed coffee bad, but I thought it was important for the men to get the coffee first. Reiben and Upham looked especially exhausted, I saw the need for them to be first in line.
"Alright men, you guys go get it first."
"Yes Sir" I'd never seen Reiben so willing to follow an order
I was happy to get some real coffee. I hadn't had a good hot cup of coffee since the day after the invasion. I barely got a break after the gunfire stopped on Omaha Beach. I was Given Lieutenant Briggs's platoon after the young officer's untimely death on the blood-stained beach. Immediately afterwards my new platoon and I set out to take out a Wehrmacht company causing trouble on the right flank of the 29th Infantry division. Almost half of the platoon was lost between the beach and Ramelle.
I was next in line when I heard a deep booming voice. "Lieutenant Morgan, Is there a Lieutenant Morgan here?"
"Yes Sir" I replied "I'm Lieutenant Morgan"
"I'm Captain Beckett, The new Charlie company commander." He explained, "I was sorry to hear about Captain Miller."
"He was a hell of an officer, and a good man, Sir."
"I know," He said "Miller was up for a promotion to Major before he got it."
I couldn't believe the irony "Damn" I muttered
"Sorry for taking you out of line Morgan, But I got some coffee and a box of cigars in my jeep for my senior platoon leader." He stated
"Oh, would you like me to go get Lieutenant Hardy, Sir?" I asked.
"Lieutenant Hardy was killed this morning, A Kraut sniper shot him in the spine while he was in his jeep. His medic tried to stop the bleeding but Hardy was dead before he got here." He stated " That makes you the senior platoon leader in the company."
"Yes Sir" I reluctantly accepted the position.
The tall middle aged Captain handed me a cup filled with coffee strong enough dissolve a military issue bayonet, and a box of Havana cigars that he said he acquired from his nephew who was a business man in Cuba.
"There's some ammo out by the communications tent for you and your men." The Captain explained. "Your mission is to take your under-strength platoon to a little town called Leduc and set up an artillery observation point in the best place you can find one. There's a church with a tall roof, Get into the attic, it might be the perfect place to set up.
"Has the town been cleared yet sir?" I asked, Full well knowing the answer to my stupid question.
"No, You and your platoon will have to do the job, we sent in a probe earlier, looks like you're up against elements of the 16th Wundulkaumph group. They have no armor and no artillery backing them. The krauts have concentrated their big guns on the Limies and the Canucks coming out of Sword, Gold and Juno."
"Yes Sir, I'll take my platoon in the back door here." I said pointing a spot on the beaten up map the Captain was holding.
I started back towards my platoon when the Captain interrupted my concentration.
"OH Lieutenant, There's one more thing" he said in a somewhat disoriented tone "You have to hold that town, At all costs."
"Yes Sir" I replied as I swallowed my heart
"How old are you Lieutenant?" Captain Beckett asked.
"I'm 23 Sir" I replied
"My god" He said in Disbelief "I would've taken you for 40."
"That's what war will do to you sir, it makes Men out of Boys. When I get home my girlfriend isn't even gonna know who I am when I step off that boat."
"Here's hoping she does Morgan. Good Luck."
"Thank you sir"
I walked back to my exhausted platoon finishing my cup of coffee. I lit up a Cigar and sat down beside Sergeant Claymore. I looked my platoon over. Their faces were darkened with the grime received on the battle field. A soldier didn't have a lot of time to clean up after a battle, this coffee was a blessing, courteousy of our brand new company commander, with a heart of god, who had just sent me and my men to what could be our final stand. When I began to speak, their eyes seemed to peer right through me. I took out my map and began pointing out and explaining various points on the map.
"Alright" I began "This is Leduc, now the Brass thinks that this little stink hole of a town would be the perfect place to set up a forward observation post."
"That's where we come in right sir?" a Private named Mike Everett asked
"That's right Everett, we're the forward observers. I know the job sucks but someone has to do it." I explained, "We also have to hold the town against any kind of counter attack. We'll be reinforced after we take the town."
"wait a minute," Reiben demanded "You mean we gotta take a town, Guarded by Krauts, With an under strength platoon, and hold until the Brass is ready to reinforce us?"
"That's pretty much the jist of it Reiben, Complaining wont solve anything." I replied
"FUBAR"