"Nurse!" I yelled, my arms elbow deep in the abdomen of the young man in front of me. "Nurse!" I cried out again. Renee came bursting through the archway. She said something in French, my best guess was that it was a curse, and ran over to me, mopping up the excess blood so that I could see what the hell I was doing.
This scene was becoming all too familiar. Being covered up to my armpits in blood, operating in an unsterile environment, MacGyvering my own surgical implements to perform delicate procedures. It was a non-stop, unforgiving job and I was lucky if I got a half an hour of sleep between the time when I finished with one round of patients and had to operate on the next round. The continuous mortar rounds and enemy gunfire insured that I was never out of patients.
I was bone weary by the time I had finished with the young Corporal and sent him off to recovery. He had a 50-50 chance of making it through the night. He would have to be constantly monitored and though I had every confidence in the two nurses, Renee and Anna, I knew how to tell the difference between a normal and abnormal pulse and I knew that was something that would have to be monitored closely.
I walked up the steps and out of the makeshift hospital, taking a deep breath of fresh air. The air in the church was muggy and damp with the resonating smell of blood, bodily fluids and death that permeated through the whole building. I found a pile of junk that had once been fine furniture and sat down heavily, bringing my knees to my chest and resting my head on top of them. I was worried about George and Buck, I had heard neither hide nor hair from the E Company since I left the line. That, along with the stress of performing surgery in an archaic setting was really taking the life from me. I rubbed at my arms, flaking the blood off and noticed how much smaller my wrists had become. The bones in my hands seemed more predominate and my skinny fingers seemed even slimmer. I gazed down into one of the numerous puddles that littered the ground and saw the hollow, sunkenness to my cheeks and my eyes. Dark rings encircled my eyes and my chapped lips were almost white.
I sighed and leant back, wrapping my arms around my knees. I groaned as I rubbed my hand through my hair, closing my eyes and thinking back to the situation that had brought me here.
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"Benny." Roe said as he dropped into the foxhole. George and Buck were still on either side of me so it created a very claustrophobic fit. "Winters wants to see you." I sighed deeply, knowing that this moment was coming. Buck rubbed my shoulder and George gave me an encouraging smile. I forced a smiled back at them and stood up, following Roe as he exited the foxhole. He kept stealing glances of me out of the corner of his eye as we made our way to Battalion C.P. I knew he wanted to ask me why I had lied to him about college, but he didn't know how to bring it up and I was grateful for that fact. I had no idea what I would say to him and I really wasn't in the right mindset to try and make something up.
We finally made it the C.P. and I walked into Winters' makeshift office/quarters to see him and a grinning Nixon watching me. I greeted the officers and Winters nodded for me to have a seat. I did so hesitantly, looking between the two Captains.
"Well Jo, it seems you have a hidden talent you've been keeping from us." Nixon grinned at me as he said this and I had to stop myself from glaring at him. Instead I turned to the blue eyes of Captain Winters.
"You're a surgeon." Winters stated.
"Not really, sir." I said.
"So Speirs was lying, you didn't perform a life saving procedure on that Dog Company soldier?" He raised an eyebrow at me and Nixon snorted.
"I did, sir." I replied, ignoring the other Captain.
"So, help me understand this Benny. You performed a surgical procedure, but you have no training as a surgeon." Winters said as he rested his elbows on his knees.
"No, sir, I've had the training." I replied.
"But you're not a surgeon?"He questioned.
"Not technically, sir."
He sighed as he leaned back into his chair.
"You're not making any sense, Benny." he declared as Nixon chuckled. "care to explain just what the heck is going on?"
"Yes, I have been to medical school, but I never got to truly finish. I made it part way through my internship, but then this," I gestured around me, indicating the war in general, "happened and I just… ended up here." I finished lamely.
Winters was silent as his gaze pierced through my soul. I began to fight the urge to squirm, his eyes seeing through me in a way Speirs cold glare never could. He sighed and sat up.
"Doc Roe tells me that the evac hospital is being run by two nurses and a few medics." I turned to look at the man who was leaning against a desk off to my right. He momentarily held my gaze before quickly looking off at something in the distance. I interpreted this as being his disappointment in me and it cut me deeper than I ever thought it could. I swallowed down the emotion and turned back to look at Winters who was still studying me.
"Sir?" I questioned, afraid of where this conversation was heading. He looked to Roe.
"They're in desperate need of a Surgeon." Roe said, his thick Cajun accent and deep voice cutting through me as I felt the coldness in his words.
"Since you're the closest thing to a surgeon we have…" Nixon trailed off, his ever present smirk directed at me.
"You want me to go to Bastogne." I finished. Winters nodded.
"Give the kid a prize." Nixon laughed and Winters rolled his eyes.
"Do I have a choice, sir?" I asked with some hesitation.
"Nope." Nix answer with glee.
"Of course you have a choice, Benny." Winters shot a glare at Nixon who was unfazed. "But they could really use you."
"Can I at least say goodbye to the guys?" I asked after a moment.
"Sure thing, Benny." Winters smiled. "But you'll be back once we break through the German lines." He assured. I nodded and stood up. "Be back here in ten." Winters ordered and I acknowledged him before turning and leaving in a daze.
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"What?" Buck nearly yelled.
"I'm being sent to work at the hospital in Bastogne." I repeated as I rubbed my face with my hand.
"Shit." George growled as he puffed his cigarette.
"Yeah," I agreed and stole the cigarette from him, taking a puff and handing it back.
"For how long?" Buck asked, his blue eyes taking on that wildness I had seen in them before. I silently cursed myself for getting into a position where I would have to be leaving him for any amount off time.
"Dunno, until the line is secured and they can start bussing in real surgeons." I shrugged and looked down at my watch. "I've gotta get going, Winters only gave me ten minutes." I sighed and looked up at my two best friends. "I better not have any reason to see you two there unless it's to tell me that you've broken through the lines at you're there to pick me up and bring me back." I warned.
"Yeah, sure thing JoJo." George pulled me into a quick hug. "You be careful there kid." I nodded and turned to the bear of a Lieutenant.
"Benny, those hospitals,they're..." He swallowed hard and got a far off look in his eyes and I scrunched my eyebrows together in concern. He seemed to snap out of whatever memory he was in and turned his wild-eyed gaze to me. "Just... watch yourself, Benny. Being in those hospitals can really mess with your head." I pulled him into a quick hug.
"I will, I promise Buck." I smiled sadly and waved to them as I made my way back to C.P. I had been walking for a couple of minutes when I looked up to find Guarnere crossing my path.
"Hey! Bill!" I jogged up to him as he stopped and waited for me.
"Benny! Whadda say, whadda know?" He greeted me.
"Look, I'm being sent to Bastogne to work at the hospital and I need you to do something for me."
"Yeah, sure thing Benny," Bill said, dropping his grin as he felt the seriousness of the situation. "What is it?"
"I need you to watch Buck for me. He hasn't been the same since he came back from that hospital. Just… keep an eye on him." I sighed.
"Yeah, no problem." He nodded. I smiled at him and clapped him on the shoulder.
"Thanks Bill." I continued on my way to C.P.
"Hey, Benny?" Bill called out to me. I turned around and raised an eyebrow at him. "Watch yourself out there."
"You do the same." I smiled.
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The ride to Bastogne was…
Awkward.
Roe had come along to introduce me to the nurses and medics who were working at the makeshift hospital and the ride was spent on silence. I stared at the back of his head, wondering what was going through his Cajun mind. I tried of thinking of an excuse of why I didn't tell him about my training but every time I opened my mouth to speak, I would immediately snap it close. I sighed in frustration as we finally pulled up to an old church.
"This is the hospital." He motioned to the decrepit building. I nodded and followed him inside. The smell of death instantly flooded my senses and I had to bring my sleeve up to my nose until I was able to stomach the smell. I followed him down into basement and was instantly horrified. Beds littered the floor and each and every one was filled with men who were bloody and beaten. Men with gaping wounds lay moaning in pain as medics flitted here and there, treating them to the best of their ability.
"Gene." A heavily accented voice called out. I tore myself away from the horrid scene in front of me and watched as a blonde haired woman walked up to Roe, a smile on her pretty face.
"Renee." Roe's face lit up as he caught sight of the woman. I raised an eyebrow wondering what exactly had gone on between the two of them. "This is Sergeant Benally." He introduced me to the blonde, Renee, and we shook hands.
"Sergeant?" Renee turned to Roe and spoke to him in French. I looked back and forth at them in confusion.
"Jo, uh, Sergeant Benally went to med school," his gazed flicked to mine momentarily and I winced as if I had been slapped. "He's the one who tied off the boy's artery."
Renee's eyes lit up and she was at my side in an instant, holding my arm and talking rapidly in French. I glanced questioningly at Roe, clueless as to what she was saying, but I could decipher by her tone that she was both happy and relieved to hear that information. She started to pull me deeper into the room and I looked back helplessly at Roe. He just offered a small smile that didn't meet his eyes before he turned and ascended the stairs.
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I was set to work as soon as I had arrived and continued to work through the night and well into the morning. Patient after patient was brought into the makeshift operating room in a steady stream. As soon as I was finished with one, the medics took him away and another was placed in front of me, barely allowing me time to breathe. The instruments were crude and most of them were items I had to go in search of, household utensils or office supplies I had managed to scrounge up that almost resembled the medical tools I had needed.
I finally had a break in the constant flow of patients as the sounds of engines roared overhead. I followed Renee out of the church and looked up as the C-47s flew overhead, dropping much needed supplies around the town. I grinned at the nurse and ordered the surrounding medics and walking wounded to gather all the medical supplied they could.
I left Renee at the hospital so I could coordinate the pickup of supplies. I had just made it back with the third load when one of the medics came rushing up to me. One of the privates I had operated on had woken up in a panic and ripped open his sutures, exposing his abdominal cavity to the world. I dropped the supplies and ran over to the man who was standing in a corner, a knife raised in one hand and his other arm slung across his stomach, trying to keep everything inside of his body. I sent all but one of the medics off, trying to be as unintimidating as I possibly could.
"C'mon Private." I said soothingly, reaching my hand out to him. "It's okay. I'm here to help you." I smiled at the boy, seeing the wild look on his face change into an unsure look. "I'm a doctor," I said and he lowered the knife.
"My unit." He mumbled. "I have to get back to my unit."
"Okay," I soothed. "Okay, we'll get you back. But first I have to patch you up." He looked down into his other hand and pulled it away to reveal pieces of his intestines poking out of his skinny form. I walked closer to him, motioning for the medic to stay where he was when he tried to follow me. I kept my eyes on the boy. "Is it okay if I patch you back up?" I whispered softly to him. He looked up at me and I placed my hand on his shoulder. I rubbed it and felt the tension start to ease out of him. I held out my hand and he gently passed me the knife.
"Yeah, okay." He nodded. I smiled and lead him over to one of the beds, gently coaxing him into lying down on it. I sent the medic to get the supplies I would need to do the procedure and whispered comforting words to the young man as I waited for the supplies. Once the medic came back I had him administer the chloroform we had managed to scrounge up from the town's bombed out pharmacy. The boy slowly nodded off and I administered a dose of morphine to the area before I began the delicate procedure of stitching the gaping hole in his abdomen up.
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I sighed as I wiped the beads of sweat from my brow. I had just finished stitching the boy up and stood back to let the medic cover the wound with a bandage.
"Nice work, Doc." The medic said to me. I smiled at him and nodded, rubbing the small of my back.
"Thanks," I sighed. "Can you finish up here? I need to get some air."
"Sure thing, Doc." I nodded at the medic and made my way out of the church. I passed by a doe eyed Renee as I made my way out.
"You okay?" I asked, she just shook her head and muttered something in French as she waved me off. I sighed and made a mental note to ask her what had happened later as I made my way up the stairs and out the door into the sunlight. I closed my eyes and reveled in the feel of it as it warmed my chilled skin.
"Where were you?" A familiar Cajun voice snapped at me. My eyes shot open and I found myself looking into the stormy blue-gray eyes of Eugene Roe.
"What?" I asked in confusion.
"I said, where were you?" He hissed, his eyes narrowing. "We were calling out for you. What were you doing? Obviously not your job, because your job is to be a surgeon." I was taken aback by the venom in his voice.
"Roe, I…"
"Oh, wait, you're not a surgeon, you just had a few basic anatomy classes." He growled.
"Hey, now wait just a minute…" I began.
"While you were off doin' God knows what, Renee and I were in dere, tryin' ta save someone's life." His accent was getting thicker as his temper started to rise.
"I was sti-"
"He didn't make it." He interrupted again. He stood toe to toe with me, glaring down at me. "It's your fault he dinnit make it! You shoulda been dere. You're da one who's been ta medical school. You shoulda been dere." He turned and stalked off, picking up a box of medical supplies and flagging down a jeep before I could even gather my bearings. By the time I had got my senses back the jeep he had flagged down was already bouncing down the road.
I walked over to a pile of rubble and dropped myself down onto it. I sighed and ran a hand through my hair, sucking in a deep breath as a sob racked my body. The stress of the past two days and the lack of sleep had finally gotten to me. Roe's anger towards me was just the straw that broke the camel's back. My breath became fast and uneven as I tried to hold back my tears. I scrubbed my face with my hands, rubbing the grittiness from my eyes. I coughed, clearing out the sobs from my throat and breathed deep and slow.
Once I was sure my moment of weakness was over, I stood up and brushed off my uniform. I noticed the blood door countless men and townspeople had seeped into my O.D.s turning them a murky brown.
"Medic!" Someone yelled as a truck pulled up in front of the makeshift hospital. I was running towards the truck in an instant. "We need some help over here!"
"What is it?" I yelled as I jumped in the back of the truck.
"Guy's shot through the stomach." He answered. I looked at the injured men in the back of the truck, triaging them.
"Put pressure on the laceration on this guys arm, it will have to wait until I'm done with the other's stomach." I ordered as I jumped from the truck and helped carry the wounded man into the church.
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I broke out of my musings and sighed deeply as I rooted around in my pocket, bringing out an almost empty pack of cigarettes. I pulled one out and ran it under my nose, taking in its scent as if it were a fine cigar. I placed it between my dry lips and lit it, sucking it deep and holding it in, allowing the nicotine to do its job and ease my rattled nerves. I held the cigarette between my fingers and closed my eyes, tilting my head back. I hadn't felt this exhausted since Ranger School.
I must have drifted off to sleep because I felt a sharp pain in my fingers and my eyes snapped open to find that my cigarette had burned itself down. I sighed and dropped it in the puddle, gazing forlornly at all that was left of my coping mechanism. I laid my head on my knees and closed my eyes, drifting off into a world surrounded by wildflowers, the sweet smell of honeysuckle and the rushing sound of the river flooding my senses.
"Annie!" My Opa called out to me. I turned and saw him standing there, his blue eyes twinkling and his arms spread open wide. I smiled as I ran to him and threw myself into his embrace. The smell of his aftershave and cologne immediately surrounded me in warmth and comfort and I knew I was finally home.
"Oh, my baby." He whispered into my hair and placed a kiss on the top of my head. I let his warmth and the safety of his presence overwhelm me. He pulled away from me and smiled. "I'm so happy you're home, my Annie." He said, squeezing my shoulders gently. "You've been gone for so long!"
"Opa, you wouldn't believe where I was!" I said as I basked in the love he was sending me. "I was in WWII, Opa! And I was fighting alongside the men of Easy Company, Major Dick Winters' company. I fought in all the battles I had read and studied about at the Point."
"That sounds like quite the adventure." He smiled and led me over to a large rock by the river where we sat side-by-side, our feet dangling in the cool mountain water.
"It was. I met George Luz and Buck Compton and they became my best friends. I gotta see Winters in action, Opa, and he was such a great leader. I hope that one day I could become at least half the leader he was." I gushed about the strange travels.
"And did you accomplish your mission?" Opa asked me.
"Mission? What mission?" I asked in confusion. His smile dropped from his face and was replaced by a deep frown. He looked off into the distance at the great mountains that loomed over the ranch. "What mission, Opa?" I prodded. He turned back to me and smiled sadly.
"You have to go back now, my baby." He said.
"No, Opa! I want to stay here, with you!" I cried as I felt a tug start to form in my chest.
"You can't, baby. You must complete your mission." I reached out for him as he said this, feeling myself being forcefully pulled backwards.
"Opa!" I screamed out as I was pulled further and further away from him. "Opa!"
"Opa!" I awoke with a start and found myself staring into the deep green eyes of Renee.
"Are you alright, Jo?" She asked. I brought my hand up to my face as the strange dream buried itself deep into my mind. I glanced around me and noticed I was still sitting on the destroyed furniture.
"Sgt. Benally?" Renee asked again and my gaze snapped to her.
"Yeah, I'm fine." I ground out, forcing a fake smile onto my face.
"I'm sorry to wake you, but more men are on their way in." I nodded and stood up, stretching and pushing the dream from my mind as the first jeep pulled up with the next round of the wounded men.
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The story is going to get more intense from here. We got our first look at the 'Effect' aspect of the story, and it is going to start to be played upon more in the coming chapters.
Thank you to my reviewers, loveonspeedial, Azrael's Darkest Secrets, VendingMachine, and britt. Your reviews mean the world to me and they are what keep me writing this story! Thank you so very much. I love you guys!
I hope everyone is enjoying this story, and if you are please leave me a review!
Thank you all!
Amanda
Edited 07/11/17