Hell Hath None 3- Ghost of You, MCR
SO I decided to put chapter titles with songs that relate to the content of the chapters. I changed the others to match. Hope you guys like this one.
She had been gone for two months. Collier had been damn near silent for two months, as had his squad. No one approached them to get on them for their excess violence and take no prisoner attitude. Every time they caught an SS Officer, Collier questioned him about Jack and when they got the answer "Dead" he had the officer killed. He would not accept that. Boyd would not accept that. Grady would not accept that. Gordo would not accept that. They would keep asking, keep trying. There was no way she would be dead, she wouldn't go that easy.
The first week had been hell for everyone. Collier had been furious and taking it out on everyone. He rode Grady harder than usual and bitched out Boyd and Gordo more often. After one particularly nasty day, Boyd approached him about it.
"Don, you been on us a lot more." Boyd said quietly to him one night. "We know you didn't get her killed. She's not even dead." Collier sighed and looked at his friend.
"I didn't do anything to save her." He said pressing his lips together before bringing a cup of coffee to his mouth. Boyd clapped his arm.
"Nothing we could have done. Damn Germans were hiding. Could have been anyone." He said before pausing. "We'll find her, man." He assured.
"We better." Collier stated firmly.
He let up after that, but they were all quieter and firm. The only time they even came close to smiling was the day they got a letter from her nephew, Norman. He had actually written letters to them as well. They learned he had done it for her first group, too. He was a sweet kid and they enjoyed his and his grandfather's wit. They had responded to him in separate letters, but they had also decided to tell him that Jack had to go do a "special job where mail can't go." Undoubtledly, her parents would be receiving the letter of her death soon. They felt it best to leave it up to the parents to decide what to tell Norman.
From what they could tell, her parents kept it quiet because he sent them letters again, along with a letter for her to read when she got back. They all responded in their own letters, promising to give it to her when she got back. Collier kept the letters he sent to her in his inner coat pocket. They refused to believe she was dead.
At one point, they men and the tanks entered a town that had a large pile of burning bodies. The flames had died down, leaving chard skeletons and the smell of burnt flesh. It was enough to make even the men of Fury to gag a bit. What they didn't expect to find was a few American soldier's clothes surviving. They had to go through and see if they could find clothing to identify the fallen men. Gordo was the unlucky man to find Jack's hat. He picked it up slowly, his body running cold.
"Guys. Guys, you need to see this. I found her hat." He explained as he called over the others. Grady was the first to get to him. He snatched it out of Gordo's hands.
"How the fuck do you know, man?" He yelled as he looked for a way to tell. Boyd agreed.
"It could be any soldier's hat." Bible agreed desperately. Collier took it from Grady and looked inside.
Private Jack Edwards
Collier sighed through his nose. "It's hers." He said as he briefly showed them the name. Gordo was right. Collier inspected it. There was blood staining it and a bullet hole on the front. The bill had been singed, but not too badly and it was covered in mud. It could be cleaned.
"The fuck are you gonna clean it for? She dead, man. She been dead." Grady bit at Collier. He just stared at his loader, calm faced and answered quietly.
"For her nephew." Grady backed off. That night, Collier spent his time cleaning the mud and blood out of the hat as best as he could. A part of him believed she was still out there, still alive. The other part of him finally had come to terms that Jacqueline Edwards was dead. Her number came up and God brought her home. And he was so angry that her death had been at the hands of a fucking Nazi soldier. Hadn't they promised her they would get her home? They broke their promise, she was dead. Shot in the head. The gun must have been close to her head, or close enough to leave burn marks. There was no exit would. That bullet that ripped her from this world would stay lodged in her brain tissue.
After he finished cleaning it, he climbed inside the tank and put it on her seat. Gordo went to touch it but Collier stopped him, telling him to leave it alone. The tank had broken down and Grady was still trying to fix it. They could all hear the German's coming. The sound of bombs echoed in the distance.
"Coon-ass, any time, sweet heart." Collier called out to him. Grady bitched at him, why he's always kicking him and not to calm him that.
"Yeah man, vamanos." Grodo said agreeing with War Daddy. Collier and Gordo went at it aout speaking languages.
"You tell him it was for the war, Bible?" Collier said to Boyd.
"It's for the war Gordo." He said automatically. They had had this argument hundreds of time. Jack would usually pitch in her two cents so it was a hollow feeling for everyone when she didn't say anything. How could she? All that was left of her was her hat.
"What country are we in, Boyd?" Collier asked.
"Germany." He said sullenly.
"Right, Germany." Collier said as he and Gordo still bitched about languages. Bible sighed. Usually Jack was here to get them to shut up. For the last two months she hasn't. A part of him felt a little better finally knowing, finally having that closure. A part of him didn't want to believe it.
"What the fuck you still kicking me for?" Grady bit at Collier. Don furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. Bible and Gordo looked to see what was going on.
"I didn't fucking touch you, Grady." Collier said firmly. Grady grumbled and went back to fixing the wiring. "I'm gonna fucking kick you if you don't get us going in a minute, though." Collier snapped.
Grady grumbled and got the tank running. As they rolled away Grady sat and thought about the kick. It was right where Jack would kick him. She had a habbit of kicking him in the ass any chance she got. It was her retaliation for always getting spun. He spun her so bad once she puked. She was also fighting a stomach bug. Grady almost missed the kicks to the ass. He missed her. They all did. It was odd only having four of them. They were just glad they hadn't been sent a replacement yet.
A week after they had found her hat (it was left untouched in her seat) they had been sent to a camp that was near a city. From there they had to go take a neighboring town. The ride was about three days. They were traveling with a caravan of other tanks and trucks of soldiers. It was just another job for the boys, nothing special. They rode quietly to the town. The people they were traveling with knew to leave them be.
On the second day, one of the tanks in their group had broken down. They set to working on it as soon as possible. While Grady and Gordo went to help, the rest of the men set up camp for the night. Boyd Sat on a small box while coffee was being made, reading his bible. It was cold and muddy. And to make matter worse, it started raining. If there were no clouds, the sun would be about to set. Sergeant Collier paced slowly, aimlessly next to his tank, smoking a cigarette.
Jack was on his mind. How long had she been alive? When did they kill her? What did they do to her? So many questions had been running through his head for over a month. He began to wonder if he had finally lost it. When he saw a familiar silhouette standing at the top of the hill, he seriously considered the possibility that he lost his god damn mind. He shook his head and looked, expecting the figure to be gone.
Jack's figure was still there and making her way down the hill. He gripped his gun and began to walk forward. The rain made it hard to see. He put his hand up to block the rain. Collier could make out her face. He saw her. It was her. She was alive and stumbling through the mud.
Then he saw her hands in handcuffs and the blood all over her face and shirt. He began to walk forward quickly.
"Medic!" He called out. Boyd looked out and up, dropping his Bible in the mud. "Medic!" Collier yelled louder and began to run, yelling for a medic. His shouts had caught Jack's attention. Her head snapped up and she looked straight at him and froze for a second. In that brief moment, relief flooded her weary veins. They were alive, oh god, they were still alive.
She began to run as best as she could to Collier. She could hear him calling her name and for a medic. She could see Grady and Gordo running from a tank in the line. They were hollering at her. Boyd was running from his spot near Fury, calling to her, too but Collier was the loudest. She ran to him, tears of relief (and a little pain) nearly blurring her vision that was already being affected by the rain. She tried so hard to call out but her throat was so sore, she could still feel the bruises. She stumbled as she ran, but refused to let it stop her.
As she neared Sergeant Collier, she pushed her legs to run faster. Faster, please let me make it. I'm so close. She closed the distance between them and Collier had seconds to drop his gun and catch her. She had plowed into him and wrapped her bound hands behind his head and around his neck. He could feel her hands cling to his jacket behind his left shoulder and he wrapped his arms tightly around her thinner frame as he felt it shake with sobs. He chuckled as she buried her face in his neck and he held her, rubbing her back. HE needed to make sure she was ok. Collier gently pushed her back, holding her arms firmly, looking for the source of the blood. He didn't see a cut or wound. It was spread from her mouth and down her face and shirt. Boyd arrived and was taken aback at the sight of her. She was so pale, thin and weary. A strong wind could knock her were running down her face as she smiled. Her hadns sought out someone or something. She grabbed at Boyd's jacket.
"Alive. You guys are alive." SHE croaked out horsely. Boyd had bent his knees to get on her level and he looked at her oddly while smileing.
"Alive? Of course, we're fucking alive!' He laughed. Grady and Gordo had reached them. She was vaguely aware of their presence.
"Jack. Jack, you ok?" Collier asked. She looked back at him and nodded before smiling and she tried to fight back her tears. It didn't work. "The fuck happened to you?" He asked as he undid her restraints. Pure fear flashed across her face for a second as fresh tears rolled down her face. She found she couldn't breathe and her breathe became rapid and shallow. She began to sway.
"Woah, woah. Hang in there." Sergeant Collier said gently, pulling her into his chest and holding her, trying to get her to breathe before she passed out. He called for the medic over his shoulder again. "Hang in there, kid. Hang in there." He whispered as he put a hand on the back of Jack's head and leaned his head down on top of hers. He was trying to be as calming and as comforting as he could offer her. Her hands slowly came down from being pressed against her chest nervously to wrapping around his sides, and clinging desperately to his jacket.
The rest of the men in Fury looked to each other. What the hell happened to her? Was what they were all wondering. After the time they spent with her, they understood how she worked. Breaking down in panicked sobs was not how she was. It must have been a lot to push her this far. They realized they would have to wait for another time to know. Collier felt her fingers release his jacket and her legs went limp. She was out. Collier had to hold her tighter to keep her up. "Woah, woah, shit." He said as he tried to keep her up. The medics finally arrived and they got her back to the caravan. They took her into a truck. They found bruises on her neck and arms and torso. She had come around at some point. She helped the medics find the severely injured ribs. There was a slight fracture, but nothing too serious. The blood on her mouth and clothes was not hers for the most part and she needed to stay warm. The medics determined she was suffering from hyperthermia. Had she been alone for another day, she would have not made it. Once they got her patched up, they sent her back to her tank. She refused to go anywhere except with her group.
Jack struggled to climb up the tank. She looked back when she felt two hands wrap around her leg and boost her up. It was Grady. She msiled tiredly at him.
"Welcome back, kid." He said in his rough voice. She could only smile softly at him, greatefull for the boost and the welcome. She climbed in and smiled when she saw her hat. She put it on her head, glad to have it back. Some ass hole German took it from her.
There had been an extra jacket in the truck and it was given to her. Jack's old one had been taken from her. She wrapped herself in it and curled up in her little seat. The guys tried to speak to her but realized she could hardly respond. She had started to doze off when someone tapped on her hatch door. Boyd opened it, smiling down at her.
"Hey. Coffee's ready." He said to her she smiled and he passed a tin mug down to her. She beamed at him. "Got some food too. You interested?" She nodded quickly. She was starving. From the way she looked, Boyd wondered if she actually had been starved. He passed down some food to her. It was more than most of them usually got. Collier had given up half of his ration to her. He refused any of his other men to do the same. He felt it was his responsibility to take care of his men. And Jack counted as one of his men.
The men spent as much time out of the tank as they could before it got too cold and rainy for them. When they did finally go in the tank, they made sure to be as quiet as possible. They settled in for the night and quietly talked or smoked. Jack jolted awake and pitched forward in her seat, a hand flying to her mouth. Gordo, who was in his seat next to her, reached over and put a hand on her shoulder.
"Hey man, you good?" He asked. She slowly removed her hand and nodded. She gulped down air before shivering.
"Yeah." She croaked out, her voice still a bit hoarse. "Think I'm getting kinda sick, though." She added quietly.
"Tomorrow we're taking a town. I need to know if you're going to be up to it." Collier stated firmly from his spot. Jack turned in her seat with a look of pure hatred.
"Trust me," She said lowly, "I'm very ready." She said firmly. Collier held her gaze briefly before nodding. She turned back in her seat after he told her to get some more rest. Each one soon fell asleep and they heard the rain patter outside. Jack was warm and comfortable. It was such a foreign feeling.
And they were still alive, too! When she had been held captive, they told her a German squad wiped out everyone who was in that field that night. Seeing them alive and well was enough to ease her into a deep sleep. It could have been the best sleep she had ever gotten if it hadn't been for the nightmare.
Everyone in the tank Fury was sleeping soundly, each man glad to have Jack back. There was a sense of peace around them and the feeling that everything was going to be ok. It was almost comical as well. She really just wouldn't die. They had talked about what name to give her, she had definitely earned it.
Each man was ripped from his sleep when they heard the loud banging of a hatch door opening violently. Collier straightened up and was the first to be fully awake and aware. He was just able to catch a glimpse of Jack's legs leaving the tank.
"What's going on?" Boyd mumbled as he sat up.
"What the hell, man!" Grady mumbled. "It ain't time to get up yet."
"The fuck was that?" Gordo asked and looked over to Jack's seat. "Where the hell did she go?" He asked. They heard her roll off the tank and land in the mud. Rain fell into the tank and Gordo closed her hatch as Collier climbed out of his to see what was going on. He leaned over the side and saw Jack on all fours, throwing up everything she had eaten and then some. She was getting soaked in the rain. Collier climbed down and knelt next to her. Her eyes were wide with shock but still looking down. She had yet to register he was there. Collier could hear her mumling something to herself.
"Oh god, so much smoke, so much smoke. There's so many. So many of them, so many. I can hear them, I hear them. I have to get back. I have to keep going. I have to keep going." She said to herself as she tried to stand up. She fell back into the mud and threw up again. "Oh god I can smell them. I can smell them burning. They're all burning." She sobbed quietly.
"Hey, man. What's going on?" Gordo called quietly. Collier turned and motion for him to quiet down. The men sat on the tank, watching. He turned back to Jack.
"Jack, where do you have to go?" He asked, wondering if she was still asleep.
"I have to find my group. I have to find them. They said you're dead but you can't be dead, you're not dead but I can't breathe. I can't breathe." She said as she gasped for air.
"Why can't you breathe?" Collier asked, trying to talk her through whatever memory she was reliving.
"So much smoke, oh go so much smoke. I can smell them all burning. I have to go I have to find my group. I have to go they're gonna find me!" She yelled and forced herself up. Collier grabbed her belt and kept her from running off into the woods. She began yelling. "No! NO! No! They're gonna catch me! They're burning! All of them burning! Burning! Burning! I have to go! Let me go! Please you have to let me go!" She screamed as she struggled and kicked. Collier lifted her off the ground to keep her from running. He put a gloved hand over her mouth and bent over, covering her to keep her restrained and confined to him. He held her close to him, hoping that his presence would help her realize where she was. She close her eyes and screamed against his hand for a few minutes before she began to calm down. He felt her torso expand with each deep breath she took.
"That's it. You're ok. Keep breathing." He coached her. He slowly removed himself from her and she braced her hands on her knees. "You good? Jack, are you good?" He asked. She nodded before vomiting again. Hardly anything came up. She spat and wiped her hands against her mouth. Collier turned to the tank and Grady tossed him a cantine of water. She took it gratefully and used it to rinse out her mouth before drinking.
"I don't think you're getting sick." He commented with a small smile. She returned it and shook her head as she ran a hand through her hair. It had gotten longer, longer than Boyd's. "What was that about?" He asked in a tone that let her know she wasn't going anywhere until she answered. He breathed out heavily through her nose.
"German base camp they held me at. They had couple of prisoners. One day they decided to move the camp. Me and a small handful had to go with them but the rest were shot and their bodies were burned. They actually took us to one of the concentration camps for a few days. You should see what they do to them there. Burning, starving bodies everywhere. I'm not even sure some of the people walking around were alive." She answered quietly. "It was hell. I can still smell the smoke."
Collier nodded and decided not to press her further. He looked back up to the top of the tank. The guys had gone back inside. He looked back to her. She was so tired.
"We're gonna get you better. You're safe now, you understand?" He asked her she smiled at him and nodded. "Good. Tomorrow make sure you get something to eat." He said as he began to climb up the tank. Before he could get off the ground, Jack reached out and hugged him around the waist. He paused for a second before turning and hugging her back.
"Thank you." She breathed quietly into his chest. He smiled to himself and gently kissed the top of her head. She was ok now. She was alive. She was with them. She was home.
Happy Valentine's Day! Sorry if it's so short. Lemme know what you think.