Chapter 7

Operation Little Switch prisoner exchange commenced. Without warning, ambulances pulled into the compound. It was time to say goodbye to those that helped him so much. West was almost to weak then to raise his head. The Officers had hidden messages in his crutch and bandages. Lists of prisoners names and those that had died in captivity. Messages to their families and a report from the Captain with a special note about West. They did not want him mistaken for a rat. There were three other sick or injured men in the prison to be released so it was made sure they would vouch for West. The remaining twelve men released were rats. Two chose to stay as avowed communists. Twenty-three were kept in the prison including the Officers. Then the gut wrenching moment came when West was loaded into an ambulance knowing if he was leaving his friends in that terrible place. They shook his hand, "Good luck son" Captain Ross said. West somehow didn't mind the Captain calling him that. He'd taken care of him when he was helpless and saved his life. The Officers watched the ambulances pull away with relief. That kid had become so emaciated they didn't know if he was going to make it.

The ride over the deeply rutted roads was excruciating. West tried to stay conscious and remember all the things they had told him, he gripped the crutch full of precious messages to his chest. By the time medics carried him onto a ship he was feverish and soaked with sweat. After a day on the ship two men came to debrief him. West was sick from the medicine and trying to hold down the bland food they gave to starvation victims. It annoyed him, he really didn't want to talk about anything just then. He had turned over all the messages. But they insisted so he told them a brief summery of his story. He asked them when the other prisoners were getting out. They brushed off his questions, and for some reason were more interested in what the enemy interrogators had asked him and what he had told them. They got pushier when he said he hadn't told them anything. "You mean to tell us you didn't even tell them your name?" One of the men asked incredulously. "They had my dog tags, why would I need to tell them. I'd been shot in the head and couldn't even understand what they were saying. " West answered. They kept up the questioning and West got the sneaking suspicion that he was being interrogated again. "They really didn't want to know anything from me, I think they just wanted to injure me to piss off those Officers." Then they started asking questions about the Officers and their "conduct" West, became exhausted and irritated ended the session abruptly by saying he was to sick to talk.

West had been taken aback by the accusatory tone of their questions. He thought his ordeal would be over but the ship was making him claustrophobic. He had constant re-occurring dreams about the massacre and his friends still imprisoned. The medicine made him terribly sick and itchy all over. He wondered why they hadn't flown them back on an airplane instead of this boat that was taking forever. He started feeling a lot better when he got to Walter Reed Army hospital. The Doctors told him he could probably make a full recovery if he worked hard at rehabilitation for a long time. Some of the therapy was rather painful but he did like the pool for rehab patients. He'd never had one available to him before. He also really enjoyed being around women again. Some of the nurses were real pretty, he was at their mercy so had to be on his best behavior. At first he was embarrassed to have girls helping him with everything but he got used to it quickly. As he recovered he would joke with them, his charm made him a favorite patient on the ward.

At first he was forced to wear a metal brace that alone set off his claustrophobia. After a while he was able to get rid of it and use a cane. It was a great pleasure just to go outside on the hospital grounds and sit on a bench watching squirrels frolic. As he got better in comfort he was still tormented by nightmares and thoughts of his friends left behind. He wrote letters to the wives of the Officers letting them know he was in a cell with their husbands and that they were all right and how much they had done for him. Then he wrote to some of the men in his platoon's families. Those guys had been pretty decent to him. He wondered how he had survived when all those men with nice families had died. It was pretty tough when he got to Jeff's family. West had never had a kind loyal friend like him. He had been snatched away so brutally, writing to his family was almost unbearable. He soon got a reply from them, they thanked him for being Jeff's friend. He had written them about bringing West home for the holidays so they knew he must have been a good friend. They asked that he come visit when he had the chance. He also received a message from the Officers wives. They wanted to meet with him soon. West really didn't want them to come to the hospital so he arranged to go to the Air Force base where they lived. He looked foreword to leaving the hospital for a short trip. He had a lot of money saved up so he took a cab, another new experience for him.

He nervously approached the house and rang the bell. Unsure of how the women would react, what if they started crying or something? When the door swung open he knew that it wouldn't be a problem. Two smiling but determined looking women greeted him. They led him to the living room where they had coffee and sandwiches waiting. Then Captain Ross's wife spoke, "Thank you Arthur so much for your letter, our husbands have been listed as POW's now instead of MIA's. We think you should know that we head an organization of POW - MIA wives. We have demanded accountability for our husbands. We've been labeled as troublemakers and malcontents because we keep knocking on congressmen's doors, the chiefs of staffs anyone who will listen. I guess we've been a real thorn in their sides. We are not going to settle for their explanations that our husbands are just "gone." We know about the confessions they sighed, now they have been accused of disloyalty to our nation. We are not going to stand for this treatment of our husbands!" Please tell us anything you can about them. West left out "The horrible details" just like the Officers had requested, he instead emphasized how they had saved his life and the lives of other Americans. As he talked he noticed the Captain's two daughters spying on them from the staircase. They were just as he described eight and five. He sure hoped their dad would be coming home soon.

West was resting from his day out, he did not want to take a lot of pain medication, He'd seen junkies in the street and knew how fast one could become addicted. He preferred to rest after activities until the pain subsided. He was listening to a mystery program on the radio when two men entered the room. He could tell right away they weren't Doctors. He guessed they were from intelligence. He tried to be patient with their questions but when they asked him if he felt as if any American soldiers had conducted themselves in a "Less than honorable manner" he knew they must have meant the Officers. West's voice took on the clipped rhythm it did when he was angry. He glared at them and said, "Those men were tortured beyond human endurance, their families threatened. Unless you can tell me what you're doing to get them out of there I have nothing more to say to you!" He turned over to face the wall. "Private West you can be charged with insubordination and dishonorably discharged if you don't cooperate." One of them said. When he did not react they left. I don't care if they throw me out of here on my cane! He thought, then grimly he remembered, the army owns that too. Well, I lived by my wits before the Army and I can again, he vowed. Some of the nurses heard the altercation and went for the head nurse. She gave the men a scathing look as they left. Having her patients harassed was a new phenomenon. The General in charge of Walter Reed would hear about this.

One day West was at the hospital canteen looking over the book rack. A girl walked up next to him and asked him to suggest a good book. At first he was unsure that she was really talking to him. He looked around to see they were alone, He asked her what kind of books she usually preferred. She smiled sweetly at him, It was startling, for a moment he wished he could disappear. Knowing he must look like hell he decided to play it cool. They briefly discussed titles then he asked her if she'd like to sit down for coffee or a soda. She had seen him there a few times and asked some of the nurses on his ward if he was a respectable boy. They all seemed to like him so she had decided to approach him. He asked her to meet him again. Her name was Jenny Myers and she worked as a secretary in the administration wing of the hospital. Back in the ward he couldn't get the girl off his mind, he wanted to know everything about her. At the same time he worried, what if she knew he had been in so much trouble. Most of the girls in his old neighborhood had a screw loose. Eager to drop a kid on you so they could go on the dole, Just as likely to knife you as any street punk. This girl was much different. He was almost relieved after they had dated a few weeks she told him her parents were divorced because of her fathers alcoholism. He had come home from the European theatre a completely changed man who drank all day and woke up screaming at night. She was raised by her Grandparents. They had much more in common than he had guessed. He told her about his family, leaving out "the horrible details."

Father O' Brien visited as soon as he found out about West. "I'm so sorry this happened to you Arthur!" He felt partially responsible for West's suffering. West just shrugged "At least I escaped the city, wasn't much of a future for me there" He joked. "Mr. Daider wanted me to apologize to you. It was his first teaching job and he's afraid he handled things badly. He wanted me to ask if he could visit sometime." West nodded, he knew he had set out to make trouble that day. He sure wished none of it had happened. To Daider the whole West incident had been fortuitous. It had given him an ally and mentor in Father O'Brian at a time he was ready to quit teaching. The Priest gave West some pictures of his grandparents. Now West understood why the Priest always seemed to stare at him, he looked very similar to his grandfather. He told him his grandmother still lives in Arizona and badly wanted to hear from him. He told West more about their friendship and discussed forgiveness of his parents. When West expressed the desire never to see his mother again Father O'Brien said that was perfectly O.K. He shouldn't subject himself to that. West told O'Brien his story about the massacre, the Officers and about the harassment he faced from the military authorities. West was concerned the other men would face the same treatment upon their return. "I don't know whats wrong with the country nowadays Arthur." The Priest lamented. "People accusing one and other, trials, this 'Red Scare' must surely end soon. I'm going to talk to some people I know and put in a word for you lads. No one should have to go thru what you've told me about."

After months West received a message to call the Officers wives. Operation Big Switch prisoner exchange was taking place. Hand shaking, dreading any bad news he made the call. "Arthur they are being released." Said the Captain's wife. Relief then concern flooded West. The enemy had liked pulling nasty tricks. "Are you really sure?" He asked. "Yes, we've talked to them. They are landing at Andrews AFB. They want you to be there with us to greet them." He quickly agreed and after getting the details hung up. He wouldn't believe it until he actually saw them.

The day came and they all waited on the tarmac. The flight was a little late and West was tiring. He could walk normally without a cane but still had to build up his endurance. The plane landed and dozens of men got off and greeted their families. The Captain and Lieutenant were some of the last ones. West felt a little awkward standing with the family but when the men came they hugged there wives and the girls then they turned to West and gave him a hearty hug and pat on the back. They looked better than he remembered since they had received better food the past months. " Well you coming home with us Arthur?" Captain Ross asked. "No, not today. I have to stay at the hospital for a little while longer." West said. His back was really bothering him now and he had to get back and lie down. "We'll come visit you there," the Lieutenant said.

They ended up meeting over a beer. The Officers did not want their wives to hear them discuss the war. They took stock of their wounds. "They say I'll recover if I keep at it" said West. "My rotator cuff is mangled, might always give me trouble." The Lieutenant had nerve damage to his arm but he was just glad to still have it. The Captain had some trouble with his vision from the beatings that would end his flying career. "Did they ever find anything out about your platoon?" asked the Lieutenant. "They told me that, these were acts carried out by disgruntled individuals, I showed them on a map where I thought it happened and they said it was in the Demilitarized Zone. Unless something changes their bodies will never be recovered. What about Doctor Kim, was he able to get out? I asked the red cross about his family but they didn't have any information about Koreans." "He's still back there" Captain Ross lamented. "I'm going to keep trying to find his family to let them know about him. He saved so many lives at his own risk." They drank their beers in silence. "I'll tell you one thing," the Lieutenant said trying to lighten the mood. "I'm going to move somewhere I'll never be cold again!" They chuckled.

Lieutenant Corso went to school to be an aircraft engineer, And of course moved to a more temperate climate in California. Captain Ross ran his family businesses and took care of his aging parents. He relished being with his family after such a long absence. Instead of testifying against the Commandant, Captain Ross and Private West testified in Senate and Congressional hearings investigating war crimes. Because of the Korean war veterans experience the Military Code of Conduct was revised. Forcing ideology thru psychological torture on prisoners was relatively new in modern warfare. Captain Ross stayed involved in veterans and POW organizations. He really never blamed those that cooperated with the enemy. He knew anyone could be broken, but there was a handful of men that had bullied their fellow prisoners, stole their food, blankets, informed on them. He considered these acts unforgivable since they led to deaths of prisoners. Some of these men were tried and convicted of their crimes. The three friends met often They were pragmatic about the war. They felt different from other veterans, for them there was no victory parade. Their loyalty had been questioned. Sometimes they would hear about the state of affairs in Korea on the news and it would bring back the memories.

True to his word Captain Ross brought West home and made him part of his family. Jenny would join them for picnics, holidays, birthdays, etc. At first it all seemed so phony to West. No one ever raised their voice in the Captain's house. He learned that it was the way a normal family operated. Occasionally Arthur and Jenny would take the Ross's daughters to activities like the zoo or a circus, things West never got to enjoy as a kid. They observed the Ross's closely as they seemed to have domestic bliss. The young couple wanted to get married but didn't want to make the mistakes of their parents so weren't in a hurry. Arthur and Jenny planned a train trip to meet his grandmother in Arizona. Even though Captain Ross offered West jobs he decided to try going to school first. He had no idea what he wanted to do so he started out with some general studies to catch up. Captain Ross offered to tutor him if he ever got stuck. Father O'Brien and Rick Dadier came to visit West at the Ross's house. They agreed later that they had never seen anyone turn around so completely. Arthur West did not even look like the same person they knew before. He had partially educated himself thru reading and met people that would help him. He'd gone from being an angry delinquent to a confident young man that testified on Capital Hill. Things were really looking up for Arthur West.

The End