Deserter
Chapter 4
It was the shortest preparation time they had ever had. Garrison came trotting down the steps to where the men were lounging in the courtyard. The weather was mild and they were taking advantage it. He waved them over to the steps and told them to come inside, they had a mission leaving in ten minutes. There was some grumbling but they obeyed. The truck taking them to the airport was too noisy so they sat in silence. Actor, as usual, sat beside Garrison and tried to find out what he could.
"It is that serious?"
"Yes."
"Where are we going, if I may ask?"
"Poland."
Actor sat back and considered. He had never been to Poland, though he had had an encounter with a woman of Polish nobility. She had been past her prime, but had loved with abandon. Such a warm response to his advances and she in turn had introduced him to such wealth. Augustyna, where are you now, he wondered. Fortunately the truck was too dark for anyone to see the flicker of a smile that came unbidden to his face.
The flight was cold, rough and loud. The old plane they were assigned had been in enough fights that it had at one point been gutted and then pressed back into service. Secretly the cons had hoped that it would make it, at least to their drop-zone. From there the pilot was on his own.
The light was fading by the time they had landed and buried their chutes. Looking around, Garrison had led them to a grove of trees. Chief scouted around to be sure they were alone and then Garrison cleared a space on the ground. Picking up a stick he drew a few landmarks including a river and a road.
"This is where we are, in this area," he started as he indicated an area off to the side. "This road leads to the harbor but to get there it has to cross this bridge. Allied Command wants to draw the German forces here, over the bridge, then blow the bridge cutting them off from reinforcements."
"So we're here to blow the bridge," said Casino.
"Not exactly."
"Of course not, that would be too easy" he said sarcastically.
"Don't they have Resistance fighters for that? Can't they do it? Not that we don't just love to fly over and blow up a bridge or two," said Goniff.
"That's the problem," said Garrison as he looked around at his men. "The Resistance is divided. Some are with us on this."
"And the others do not want to bridge destroyed," added Actor.
"They do want it destroyed, now. Some of them have families, there in the town. They're willing to fight but don't want their families involved. They figure if they blow the bridge now it will keep their families safe," explained their leader.
"So we are to keep them from blowing it until the Allies are ready. And how far are we to go to do that?"
"I, we, you and I, will go and talk to them, try to convince them."
"And if we cannot?"
"Then," said Casino with a flourish, "the great Actor will have to admit he failed in a con." That earned him an evil glare which he responded to with a bigger smile.
"And what about us?" asked Goniff, attempting to defuse the situation before Garrison had to.
"You three will come along but you will stay quiet and out of the way until it's time to set the charges. Casino, you will work with their explosive expert to set it up."
"That'll be something, Goniff staying quiet." Actor was not the only one Casino rode.
"Can too."
"Enough," stepped in Garrison before it could escalate. "We're to meet our contact," he paused to check his watch, "in half an hour. Let's go." He headed off into the dark, knowing they would follow him.
The meet started as planned. Garrison found the house and knocked on the back door. A short conversation and they were directed to go down the lane to an old out building closer to the harbour. Goniff immediately wrinkled his nose at the smell. The shed was used to store the fishing nets when they were not in use.
"This reminds me of when we used to go down to the docks in London," said Goniff as he lit the small lantern hanging on a side post.
"I wouldn't think the pickin's would be good there." Casino was clearing the top of a barrel so he could sit down.
"Is if ya want fresh fish for yer dinner," he answered with a laugh. Then he looked over at Chief who was checking around the edges of the room. "What about you, Chiefy, smell bother you?"
"What smell?"
Casino looked up from the cigarette that he was trying to light. "What? You can't smell that?
Actor had been talking to Garrison while they waited for their contact to arrive. He wanted to know if the man who was to arrive momentarily was from the blow it now or later faction. That would affect his performance, his act, when the man arrived.
Garrison was concerned about this mission. He was a man of action, a soldier. He was better at physically carrying out the necessary actions not using words to convince. This was Actor's game. Yes, he trusted Actor to do what he had to do but that left him standing on the sidelines. That was not a position he preferred. With all the regular concerns on a mission and this extra concern on his mind he was only half listening to the rest of his men. Casino's tone as he demanded, "what", broke through and he turned to see what had happened.
"What's the matter?"
Casino says, "Our faithful Guardian can't smell this."
Everyone now turned to Chief who was standing by the back corner. "Of course I can smell this. I didn't know if he meant the nets or the rat over by the barrel."
"What barrel?" asked Casino, worry evident in his voice. There were several barrels in here but just in case…
"That one yer sittin' on."
That had the desired effect as Casino jumped down and took a step away from the barrel. "Where's this rat?" He peered around the bottom.
Actor stood watching. Chief was playing Casino and it was working. Inside he smiled and thought, Good for you.
"It's around there, just look for it." With a quick look in the corner he turned to watch the safecracker as he peered, gun in hand, around the barrel.
Goniff could not resist. He picked up a pebble and flicked it around the side. The sound it made as it struck the side of the barrel was all it took to set the already tense Casino, off. He jump back and gasped then as he was about to peer in again he heard the snigger. Embarrassed by his actions he turned on Goniff but he was looking at the Guardian. Without thought he raised his gun aiming it at the Guardian.
"Put it down!" Garrison's voice cut through the tension, bringing reason back to Casino. He realized what he was about to do and released the tension on the trigger but not his anger. Instead he threw the gun at the Indian who sidestepped and it clattered against the wall.
"Goniff, bring me the gun." Garrison was way beyond angry. He had not even been this angry when Wheeler had attacked him. Oh, he had been angry but he had known that he would have to gain their respect. And he had. This was something else altogether.
Casino knew he had crossed the line but he had been angry too. No one made a fool of him and got away with it especially a Guardian, one who was out to take his job and send him back to prison. He had wanted to kill him and be done with him. That would show the others that he was not a man to be toyed with. He demanded respect and he would get it one way or the other. He also knew that if he killed the Guardian here and now, Garrison would ship him back to prison to face a murder charge. No respect there. Still he could not let that dog get away with this.
Goniff felt bad. It had been funny to see Casino, big tough guy Casino, jump like that. He was scared of rats. Something to keep in mind. Mind you, the fall out was bad. Blaming the Guardian had not been part of the original plan. It just worked out that way. Funny as hell. But when Casino pointed the gun he realized he had gone too far. From his position he could see Casino's finger on the trigger. He wouldn't shoot would he? He would feel real bad if the Guardian got shot and maybe killed because of him. He had to do something to fix it.
"'ey Casino, it was me that done it, not 'im. It was just a lark. I was just foolin' with ya. Come on Casino, don't be mad. It was funny." He grinned but Casino just stood glaring at him, fists clenched, as he went over to get the gun. He picked it up and handed it to Garrison. Then as an act of retribution he went to the barrel and looked from the other side. In fact he stuck his head right around and withdrew in a hurry. "Cor!. That's disgusting." The look of revulsion on his face said it all. Casino, drawn in, went to look as well.
"It's dead." Drawing back a little closer to sanity he looked at the Guardian. It was a look designed to let him know he was not sorry for his action. "Why didn't you say it was dead?"
"All I said was it smelled." Under his breath he added "chicken."
"What'd you say?" snarled Casino, riled again.
"I said it smelled like dead chicken."
Casino did not want to believe him but knew, from Garrison's stance, that he had to back off. Besides, it could have been what he said. He gave him a, you better watch it, look and went to sit on one of the other barrels after he looked all round it.
Chief wanted out. The tension in here was too much. The smell he could ignore but he hated having to watch his back in here with his own team. "Want me to take the watch?"
Garrison was still on edge. This incident was just one of many that could get them all killed. He had to get them to work together as a team. He also did not want the Guardian to take the watch but after what had just happened he felt a little sorry for him. Through no fault of his own… other than to tell Casino there was a rat there but neglect to say it was dead… he had had a loaded gun aimed at him and then thrown at him. Though a violent man he had held his temper. That was at least good. He tipped his head toward the door and Chief went out. Moments later he was back opening the door a crack and whispering that someone was coming.
They stepped back against the walls and waited. A full minute later a quiet knock and the door opened. It was their contact, Tomasz Borkowski, who favoured following the Allies plan. He was there to tell them of their attempts to convince the other group. They had not been successful other than to get them to delay until Garrison had a chance to talk to them. They did not have much time.
Chief remained on watch. It was cold but at least no one was pointing a gun at him. This close to the harbour he could smell the sea, and fish and the drying sea weed. The stars glittered overhead. He remembered nights like this out in the desert. It got so cold at night but if you lit a fire you could not see the stars. He looked around him but there was nothing moving. He looked back to the sky and frowned. Instead of black there was an area of light, green light that formed a line, a band up in the sky. He had never seen anything like it. It was moving, undulating, like it was alive. He remembered the stories he had heard about the spirits. Sometimes the spirits didn't move on but remained tied to an area. Were these the spirits? Were they angry at the intruders? Spirits could kill or bewitch you. His heart began to pound. Looking around again, he moved as fast as he could to the door. Not bothering to knock, he opened the door and slipped inside.
"Warden, there's some'um out there you gotta see."
Garrison had been trying to understand the exchange between Actor and Tomasz. Actor's Polish and Tomasz' English were both poor so there was a lot of repetition as they tried to understand each other. Fortunately the other faction's leader was more fluent in English. The American heard the urgency in Chief's tone. The Guardian was not one to panic so this was obviously important. He moved quickly to the door and slipped outside after him. Unsure what to expect he was startled when he saw the sky. By now there were several bands of green moving, wavering and undulating across the sky. Along the one band were flashes of red. It was eerie, beautiful but definitely eerie.
"That's the Northern Lights. I've seen pictures but never in person." Both men recognized the awe in his voice.
"They won't hurt us?"
"No, we're safe, Chief. It has to do with particles from the sun. I don't understand it but it is beautiful. I once heard that if you whistle it will come closer." He inhaled and pursed his lips, about to try, when he felt a hand on his arm. The grip was strong and the message clear. He relaxed and exhaled silently. The grip vanished. They stood watching the show until began to fade. "I'll get Casino out to take your place." He turned and left, returning to the shed where Actor and Tomesz were just finishing up.
"You, to stay here. I bring Kazio in morning. You talk then." He held out his hand first to Garrison and then to Actor. They each shook his hand and the Pole slipped out into the night.
"Casino, you got the watch. Actor, in four." He was mollified to see Casino button up his coat and head for the door. Minutes later Chief returned and the men settled down to try and get some sleep.
Chief woke just before dawn but lay still, listening and inhaling the cold damp air. Laying here under the tarp he was still cold. Even curled up in his clothes he had been unable to fight off the damp. Maybe if he got up and moving. He did not want to risk going cat so he restricted his listening to the immediate room. Garrison was awakening. Casino and Goniff still slept. He opened his eyes and saw the slight change in the light as the Officer stood and moved about. Silently he sat up and went to join him. He would have liked to warm up a bit before going outside but knew Actor was probably colder. He made sure Garrison knew he was up then went out and relieved Actor.
Forty five minutes later Goniff came out with a sandwich and a cup of tea. By now, the stars were gone, the black replaced by pink and a few high clouds instead of stars. The Northern Lights, that's what Garrison had called them, had been quite the sight. They were beautiful but eerie too. The Warden said they had something to do with the sun but white people didn't know about the spirits. They didn't believe. They didn't know the stories. When he had said about whistling them down, he had had a chill go through him that had nothing to do with the weather. You didn't tempt the spirits. As much as he feared them he wondered if he would see them again.
Just before first light the sea gulls had started. It sounded like back in New York when he had been there down by the water. He scanned the horizon carefully but there was nothing out of place so he ate his sandwich and drank the, by now, tepid tea.
A sound caught his ear and he turned to listen. Something was moving closer. There, two sets of feet, out of step, people. There were two men coming toward the shed. This must be the men from the Resistance. He moved back to the shed and told the others before slipping back out to watch their approach.
The two men, wearing heavy coats and hats against the cold moved up the walkway and open the door before stepping inside. These men looked younger than the one last night. They must be the ones who had family in town.
His heart twisted. Guardians didn't have families. GCAT drummed that into them from the day they got there. No woman could ever love a Guardian. It just wasn't possible. Christine had said she loved him but she didn't know, he never told her. He was too afraid that they were right. And in the end she hadn't loved him. They were right. She had told him to stop running and go back. He had gone back but not to GCAT. Never.
Meanwhile, Actor was working his magic. The new comers, Kazio Pasternak and his brother Melik, were adamant that the Germans must not be allowed into the town. They had wives and children there. They would not allow them to be slaughtered. Actor commiserated then suggested that they be moved to safety.
"How? And where could they go?" asked Kazio. He was a handsome man with thick black hair now in disarray due to the removal of his hat.
"If we tried, the Germans would see them leaving and know something was going on. We can't take that risk," added his brother. There was a strong family resemblance physically and apparently emotionally as well.
"How many women and children are we talking about?" asked Actor calmly.
"You must understand, my friend, we are a small village. Everybody knows each other. Many are related, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces. We could not take our wives and children and leave the others to die." Kazio sounded heart sick at the thought.
"How well do the Germans know the village?" Both Poles looked confused. "Are any of the soldiers from around here, the village, for instance."
Melik bristled. "We are not traitors. No one from our village would join the German army. You wrong us."
"Please," said Garrison stepping forward. "Let him finish. We mean no insult. It is important to know these details so we can help you." Garrison did not know where Actor was going with this. He hoped he had a plan and was not just fishing.
"I am sorry," said Actor apologetically. "I did not mean to infer that anyone was a traitor. What I wanted to know was if the enemy might know the truth." Actor had them back. They still scowled but they were curious.
"The truth? The truth about what?"
"Yes," said Actor warming to the com, "the truth about the festival." Yes, from the look on their faces, he had them back. "The festival of how the women came to the village." Now they were really confused and looking at each other in puzzlement. "Each year your village celebrates by re-enacting the arrival. All the women and children are loaded onto the fishing boats and they go out to sea. The men stay back and try to prepare a meal, but of course it is a failure. Then…"
Kazio brightened. "Rather than sneak the women and children out, we …"
"But what about the old men. They cannot be left behind," pleaded Melik.
"Those who are too old to fight must go help with the children," said Kazio getting into the spirit. "This will work. This is a tradition that would be restricted to this village. That way the Germans will not know the truth. This is good. Melik and I will go into the Village and tell the others. The boats will be prepared and ready for the festival." He smiled.
"A festival dedicated to our wives." Melik was grinning from ear to ear.
"The German command will be finding out about the Allied attack in less than an hour," said Garrison. "It will take at least four hours to mass the troops and get them here so you will have to have everyone to safety before that. Can you do it?"
"Yes. This festival, the celebrating starts after the women return. And the Germans are defeated and we are all safe." Kazio was pleased.
"Melik, I was told you are the explosive expert?" Garrison watched the smile fade from his face.
"I am a fisherman but last winter I spent some time at the mines to earn extra money. I learned some while I was there."
"Good. Casino?" he called looking to where he knew he had been. "Melik, this is Casino. He knows explosives too. You will work together to wire the bridge. We brought extra sticks, caps and wire, just in case."
"The foreman at the mine will not miss what was taken. His eyesight is not too good," he added with a smile. The men shook hands all around. The plan was working. All they had to do was carry it out.
The brothers went off into the town to spread the word. Kazio would explain to the small German contingent as his brother notified the people to get ready. Meanwhile Casino and Garrison went to inspect the bridge. They had crossed it in the dark and now wanted to see it in the light.
"It's a good solid bridge, shame to blow it up," said Casino ruefully.
"Can you do it?"
"Yeah. There's always a way."
"Let's get back and wait for Melik."
The man in question met them as they returned and he told them it was all set. Runners were going to everyone's house to help the women prepare for the voyage. Instead of a short trip out to sea, they would be going along the coast to safety returning only after the fighting was over.
One of the village boys was sent down the road on a bicycle in each direction to make sure there were no Germans coming and Melik and Casino set to work wiring the bridge. Several sticks of dynamite were placed in strategic spots and wired to a central fuse that Casino laid along the river bank. He would have liked to be further away but there was only so much wire. He hid the plunger in the weeds and headed back to the bridge to make sure they had left nothing to alert the enemy.
Chief had watched the procedure. He walked the road approaching the bridge then up to the top. If he looked out along the river he could see where the wire crossed a bare part of the bank. Maybe the enemy would be too preoccupied by the upcoming fighting to notice, but what if they weren't? All someone had to do was look and they would see it. He walked over to where the two men were packing up their tools.
"They'll see the wire from the top of the bridge." He was unsure of his position here. He was no explosive expert and maybe a real person couldn't see that but he didn't want the mission to fail. Chief had always believed that if a person treated you right then you did what you could to help them and Garrison wanted this to work. The guy hadn't pressed about the other Guardian. It had sounded like he was going to take care of it. He would take care of him.
"No they won't," said Casino automatically. He would argue with the dog about anything. Besides he was the expert here not him.
"Suit yourself." He tossed it off like he didn't care but inside he figured he would wait until they left then he would do something to hide it. If they had put it down stream, there was better cover.
Melik heard the animosity in Casino's answer. They were on the same side but they were not working together. To succeed, everyone had to work together, just as the men of the Resistance were working together to save their families. These two men could jeopardize that with their anger or indifference. He walked up the bridge and looked. He was right. There was a chance the wire would be seen. He returned to the American.
"He is right. You can see the wire. We must hide it."
"They're gonna be too busy to be looking around for explosives." He saw the worried look on the Pole's face. Casino's first thought was the man was worried about the upcoming action but then doubt crept in. Was he right about the wire? If the Germans found it, that would blow the whole caper. Well if he was right, there was no way he was going to admit that the dog was right about anything.
"Yer both wrong but if it makes you feel any better," he said in a conciliatory tone, "I'll move the wire, okay?" Then to try to cover his actions further he added, "It'll be fine. The fighting will be over before you know it and yer families'll be back, safe and sound." He was gratified by the relief on Melik's face. He moved off to carry out the required action.
The action started with the fishing boats being loaded. The German Major had been angry that they had not been told of this sooner but he had been mollified by the promise of food that would be offered to all when the women returned. Kazio had to smile when he saw the Major helping some of the women onto the boats. This was working.
Actor watched the preparations. In the back of his mind he wondered if this would be a onetime occurrence or if they would re-enact this in years to come. It would be gratifying to think he had been instrumental in the creation of a tradition. His name would not be on it but he would know. As he watched he saw Garrison motion to him.
"Casino and Chief aren't back yet."
"Do you want me to go and see?" asked Actor. As much as he enjoyed seeing the con he had come up with he knew this was only part of the whole plan.
"No. Just keep an eye on this and I'll be right back." He slipped away.
Garrison met up with the other three as they returned. Together they walked back to the town.
"All set, Casino?"
"Yeah." He wanted to put in a remark about that interfering dog but he couldn't come up with anything so he said nothing.
Garrison turned to Melik and asked, "You have someone in mind to man the detonator?"
The Pole nodded. "He was helping his mother and kids onto the boats. Once they leave I will take him back and get him into place." It was the Americans turn to nod.
The fishing boats left, while the men stood on the wharf and waved. Later under the cover of darkness the English commandos arrived, the Germans arrived with first light and the battle was on. Actor and Garrison were in second floor windows, one on either side of the road. From there they were picking off any soldiers that made the mistake of showing themselves. Casino and Goniff were down near the square where they could use mobility to their advantage. Chief had found a spot in the town belfry. Even without a scope he was able to pick off unwary combatants. The explosion had come early in the fighting trapping the tanks on the other side of the bridge. They had lobbed a few shells but they fell short destroying only an outhouse and an outlying shed.
"'ey, Casino. Over there by the church," said Goniff as he skidded to a stop behind the stone wall where his team mate was exchanging shots with a persistent German soldier.
Casino peered around the end, squeezed off a shot and pulled back just in time to avoid the return shot that passed harmlessly inches from his head.
"What about it?" He popped up and aimed but held his fire. Casting about he found another target and fired before ducking down again.
Goniff crawled past his team mate to peer around the end of the wall toward the church.
"Oh no you don't." He aimed and fired twice before pulling back. "'e just went into the church."
"Well, he's trapped there. There's only one way out. You can get him when he tries to leave."
"What if 'e tries to go up to the belfry?"
"Yeah. Can you see Actor or Garrison. Maybe they can take him out from their position."
"Casino, I know you don't like 'im, but Chief's up there. The guy comes up behind 'im, 'e gets shot in the back."
"I never said I don't like him. Besides he'll hear the guy before he even gets there." He peered around the end toward the church tower. There was no sign of a weapon poking through the slats. Was he already dead? The muzzle flash came at the same time as the bullet hit the top of the wall. No, he was still there and firing at him. The Bastard! "If that was your best shot… Two can play that game." Aiming carefully, he fired at the belfry and waited but heard nothing from that direction. Maybe he got him. Off to the side, down the street there were three soldiers slipping doorway to doorway. He tapped Goniff on the arm and crept back to the building and along the side. If he could get to the bakery he and Goniff could pick off those soldiers.
The shooting finally petered out. Actor had moved down to the ground floor and now he peered out the shattered window as a German soldier waving a white flag limped down the street. Blood had soaked his calf. A Polish fighter came out and began pushing him toward the town square. Actor moved to the door and looked down the street. Garrison was walking in his direction so he stepped out to meet him. The two made their way to the square. Goniff and Casino joined them along the way.
Casino had forgotten about the Guardian in all the fighting but now seeing the others he remembered. He had got him. Good. The smile faded from his face as he saw a familiar figure walking in his direction. Damn, he was still alive. He opened his mouth to say 'you missed' but then he would have to explain why he had shot at him. Garrison would get mad and they would be doing laps or KP or some other punishment. He closed his mouth but glared at the offender.
Chief had originally felt bad about it. He had had to make a fast decision. There had been a soldier coming up the ladder. Within seconds he would have had his weapon clear the floor and have a clear shot at him. He could also see the soldier on the ground drawing a bead on Casino. Maybe it was self-preservation but he had fired through the floor at the approaching enemy then turned to Casino's threat. This hurried shot had missed and allowed the enemy to get off a shot before he could finish him. Casino could have been killed. He had thought that he had made the wrong decision but after seeing the look on the safecracker's face he changed his mind. Maybe he should have waited for the soldier on the ladder to clear the floor and shot him then.
The Resistance fighters began to congregate in the square. The leader of the Commandos, a Major Thompson, went off with Kazio. They would contact London and give them the news. Arrangements would also be made for the pick up. Actor was talking to Melik, who had been hit in the thigh, but who insisted he needed to be there more than he needed a doctor. Just like Garrison, thought the con man.
"Ukochany."
The voice from behind his left shoulder purred, a soft, rich female voice, causing him to stop, stunned. He turned to see a woman, dressed in men's pants and shirt. A brown bandana covered her grey hair keeping it off her face. This was a face he knew so well. She had aged, the lines had deepened but her eyes still held the warmth and passion that had entranced him years ago.
"Augustyna," he said as he smiled, his eyes taking on the warmth and passion of hers. "It is so good to see you. I have missed you, inamorato." He opened his arms and she stepped into them, wrapping her arms around him. They stood there each wrapped up in the pleasure of the moment backed by the memories they shared.
"Come." That was all she needed to say as she released her hold and took his hand. Without a backward glance they moved off.
"Don't be long." Garrison had seen the embrace. He could only imagine the back story but they had a little time before they left so he saw no harm.