Hello again! :)

First of all, I would like to thank my steadfast reviewers: bethrodrigues.77 (Thank you so much for the sweet review! I'm really glad to hear that you liked the part with Gene and Denham. To tell you the truth, I wasn't sure if I'd written it well enough... :) As for Joe and Jess and their "situation", all the answers you're looking for are in this chapter. By the way, expect lots of action here... and in the chapters to come. ;) ), Amanda (Oh, thank you very much! I couldn't stop smiling when I read your review... It's always nice to hear from you. If you have any ideas or suggestions for this story, be free to send me a PM. :) ) and vintagecowgirl101 (Oh, my... thank you so much! :) I'm really glad that you're enjoying the story so far. I don't want to spoil the surprise, but I can tell you this: expect a few twists in the following chapters. :) ). Your support makes this story up and running!

And now... enjoy in chapter 26! :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Band of Brothers. This is purely of entertainment. It is based on the HBO miniseries and no disrespect is meant towards the real men of Easy Company.

Chapter Twenty-Six: A Divine Intervention

It seemed as if the whole room had suddenly frozen. I didn't move an inch from the door as I stared at Lieb. And he kept gawking at me, completely still. In the yellowish light of the lamp, I could see tha his mouth was half-open in shock.

I had no idea how much time had passed. But, I knew one thing. Everything around us was unbelievably silent – if you didn't count Ralph's snoring in the room next door.

All of a sudden, Lieb sprung up from the bed and shouted:

"What the hell are you doing?"

"What are you doing?", I replied just as loudly.

He frowned. "I was on goddamn guard duty, until now! I found this place and decided to have some sleep. That was when you jumped me in the middle of the fucking night!"

"I jumped you?" Pushing myself off the floor, I looked at him in bewilderment. "And you were a real picture of innocence!"

His lips quievered in anger. In the end, he raised his hands in the air. "Jeez, I didn't know it was you! I thought it was one of them Dutch girls..."

I glared at him. "Do I look like a bloody Dutch girl?"

He almost lashed out at me. But, before he managed to do that, I heard something. Actually, the only sound outside the room had just stopped.

Ralph had stopped snoring.

And, judging by Lieb's expression, he was aware of that, too.

I could feel my heart beating like mad against my ribs. For just a second, I imagined Ralph peering inside the room, telling us that he had heard everything. I also thought of Eugene and how would he take news like this...

Holy smoke... If I hadn't messed things up before, I definitely did now. My eyes kept darting from the door to Lieb, while I was searching for a perfect explanation for everything. I bit my lip hard, trying to come up with a good story.

That was when Ralph snored again.

Hand on heart, I had never been so happy to hear somebody snoring, let alone Speen. Making a step back, I leaned against the nearest wall. In the meantime, Lieb gazed at me and let out a quiet sigh.

Jeez, that was a close one! I quickly placed a finger over my lips, telling him to be quiet. He soon nodded in agreement.

However, it didn't last long, when he furrowed his brow at me.

"Wait a second...", he said in a low voice, "If you didn't know it was me... who the hell were you making a move on?"

I was sure that I instantly blushed. My cheeks seemed as if they were on fire.

"That's none of your damn business, Joseph", I muttered.

I thought that he would smirk and push on with his questions. However, that was when the look on his face changed. Just a second before, he seemed surprised and a slightly confused. But, all of that was replaced with complete disbelief.

"Holy shit..." His eyes suddenly widened. "You and Doc Roe?"

"Shush!" I raised my hand again, giving him the sign to be quiet. Ralph was still asleep in the neighbouring room, but I didn't want to take anymore chances.

In the meantime, Lieb ran his fingers through his hair, staring in front of himself. He had obviously found it hard to believe the latest news.

"Look, I'm sorry, all right?", I asked quietly, "This is all a huge misunderstanding. If I knew that it was you in that bed, I wouldn't have acted the way I did!"

"Well, you're not the only one who feels sorry."

He frowned again, but with a slightly concerned look. In a few steps, he went back to the bed and sat on its corner. But, he kept looking at me, even when he said:

"If someone finds out about this, I'll be in much deeper shit than you."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really?"

"Oh, yeah. So... I won't tell no one if you don't."

For a moment, silence engulfed the room again. And then my face lit like a light bulb. Perhaps this mess wasn't so big as I had thought. I shortly nodded, before I replied:

"Deal."

XXX

Dear Neve,

I'm sending you a small gift from Holland. Everything's okay here for now. There wasn't any trouble since we had arrived. I would gladly tell you where we are, but those bastards from the brass keep censoring the mail. They don't want any information to fall into the enemy hands... or something like that.

However, I can tell you that things are happening faster and easier than in France. Hand on heart, that made me think a lot. Perhaps the lads had been right all the time. Maybe I'll really be home soon, so don't start working on the Christmas tree without me!

And how are you, Nevie? How are you putting up with the new school year? I know that I should be home with you. And I'm really sorry that things turned out this way. But, I want you to remember this: as soon as the first snow falls, I'll be on your doorstep again. And I just can't for that day to come.

Stay safe. And don't be sad.

With love,

Jess

When I folded the letter, I took out a small pressed tulip. Although the flower was dry and completely flat now, its petals still had the same colour of the sun. I gently tucked it inside the envelope, along with the letter. And then I hid the whole lot in my back pocket.

I almost desperately wanted to send this home. But, with everything that was going on, I wasn't so sure that I would get that chance soon.

The lads and I moved out of Eindhoven and went on their way, with me in tow. In a few days, they liberated the towns of Veghel and Uden. Our next stop was Nuenen – which was, believe it or not, the birth place of Van Gogh.

To my surprise, the trip to Nuenen was easy. I flew above the town a few times and checked the area for any enemy activity. However, there was no activity at all. The Dutch town underneath me was so quiet, as if it had been deserted. Perhaps that wasn't too far from the truth.

As soon as I landed, I sent a message to the lads. And then, Easy Company was on the move again, ready to secure its next destination.

While they were slowly approaching the town, I was watching them from a nearby field. Leaning on my Spitfire's wing, I observed everyone through my binoculars. Most of the lads were sitting on bulky British tanks, which were rumbling and rolling down the road, one after the other.

Jeez, they must be having loads of fun... Smiling a bit, I moved my gaze to the town. Most of the houses had wide gardens in front of them. I noticed that many still had flowers, especially yellow ones.

I couldn't help, but sigh. Some time ago, this must have been a beautiful place to live in. And now, it almost seemed like a ghost town. I glanced at the first row of houses, which had huge haystacks placed nearby.

That was when I noticed something strange.

What the... are those haystacks moving?

For a heartbeat, I thought that I was having heatstroke... or something similar. What was happening in front of me must have been some sort of a hallucination.

However, it wasn't. Through the lenses of my binoculars, I could clearly see huge things like pipes poking out of the hay. Before I knew it, one of the haystacks begun moving down a narrow road. As it passed a corner, a large pile of hay fell off it, revealing the colour of German tanks.

That was when my breath hitched. Oh, my goodness...

The Germans had camouflaged them. That was why I hadn't seen them when I had flown above the town. However, that wasn't the worst thing.

I had made a mistake. And now, Easy was going right into a trap.

Shit... They had no idea what was going on. Feeling my stomach coiling, I jumped off the plane's wing and went for the cockpit.

However, before I could touch it, a shot rang out. A bullet grazed the top of my plane, followed by a bright spark.

I dropped the binoculars and hit the ground as more bullets came. My jaw clenched when the whizzed not so far from me. I tried to find out where they were coming from, but I couldn't see even the glimpse of the shooter. All I saw was the Spitfire's right wheel, a foot away from my head.

There was no bloody way I could take off now. I had to make a run for it – and leave my bird behind.

I swallowed hard just by thinking of it. I clearly wasn't one of the lads. I couldn't just pick up my gun, move on and hope for the best. Without my plane, I was almost useless. But, as they said, there would be a first time for everything.

Fuck! As another bullet zipped above me, I tried to crawl away. Dragging myself through the tall grass, I moved away from the plane. I felt like my heart was beating inside my throat as I was moving.

Spitting out some dirt, I raised my head slightly. And then, through the blades of grass, I saw Easy Company. For some reason, the tanks had stopped in the road. But, the lads still had no clue was was waiting for them.

It didn't last long when it dawned on me. I had to warn them.

Oh, bloody hell..., I muttered to myself.

Crawling further, I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down. But, that didn't help much. For a second, I thought that I would get a heart attack soon.

I bit my lip as I moved a bit more through the grass. That was when I pushed myself off the ground and ran.

My right side begun burning as I sprinted through the field. Silently hoping not to trip on something, I gritted my teeth and went towards the road.

When I finally reached it, I didn't stop. Instead, I ran to the first British tank in the row. I dashed past a replacement – a lieutenant probably – who shouted:

"You! What the hell do you think you're..."

Brushing him off, I gazed at the lads on the tank. Some relief washed through me when I recognised Bull Randleman among them.

"Bull!" Almost gasping for breath, I kept running in his direction. The replacement grabbed my arm, trying to pull me back, but I kept shouting: "You... you have to turn back! We got...!"

I was cut off when a single shot echoed. Without a warning, it tore through the silence – and through the lieutenant next to me. I screamed when he collapsed on the road, lifting a small cloud of dust.

"Clear the tracks! Move it! Get behind the...!"

Bill's shout vanished as havoc wreaked. Bullets whizzed almost from nowhere and ricocheted against the tanks.

I hit the ground again, almost trembling in fear. All of a sudden, somebody grabbed my arm and begun pulling me towards the first tank. As I was dragged over the road, I saw something moving nearby.

That was the replacement, who had been shot.

I couldn't believe my own eyes. He was coughing and struggling to get up, with one hand clutching his neck. My mouth went half-open as I stared at him.

Jesus Christ, he's still alive!

"Medic up front!", somebody bellowed, "Medic up front!"

A medic I didn't know emerged from the dust and ran towards the lieutenant. But, then another shot rang. The medic crumpled to the ground, shouting and holding on to his leg. The sound of his screams made my blood almost freeze.

They all vanished from my sight as soon as I got behind a tank. And then I saw Don's worried face in front of mine. Perhaps he was the one who had helped me.

"Jess?", he shouted, trying to be louder than the gunfire, "What's goin on?"

"We have company!", I shouted back.

Don looked at me in disbelief. However, he didn't have the chance to say anything, because a loud rumble came from down the road.

The source of the rumbling wasn't a plane – that was certain. But, whatever it was, it was slowly coming closer. Just a few seconds later, I noticed a huge, bulky shape appearing in front of us. It was a tank.

However, it wasn't British.

"RUN!", Don hollered.

I didn't even managed to blink, when he grabbed my shirt and pulled me to my feet. Swallowing thickly, I ran after him across the road and into the town. We barely got behind the first house, when I heard a loud screech behind us.

And then one of the tanks fired.

It seemed as if twenty thunders had hit the same place at once. I yelped and huddled on the ground when the windows above me shattered. Small pieces of glass dropped on me almost like downpour.

"Jess! Jess, you okay?!"

Don crawled to the place where I was. I raised my head, shivering from head to toe.

"I... I think so!"

"Good! Come on, let's go!"

In the next moment, we were running again. This time, our goal was the other side of the nearby street. But, as soon as my foot touched the concrete, bullets showered the entire place. Dust chucked up in the air, while Don and I stumbled backwards.

"Damn it...!"

I quickly looked around. And then I saw some lads in the distance, crouching behind a house. Perhaps this was the place I should go next.

"Don! Don, this way!"

I tugged his sleeve in that direction. As soon as he nodded, we both got up and made made a run for it.

My dog-tags rattled around my neck as I sprinted. With Don in hot pursuit, I trod through a small gate and somebody's garden. A few moments later, I fell on my knees and crawled through a hole in a fence. And then I got up and continued running.

After some time, the house and the lads finally came within my reach. I stopped and plonked myself behind the wall, barely breathing. Don came right after me, swearing under his breath.

"Jesus...", somebody muttered.

I blinked when I saw Bull crouching nearby. Don and I had actually reached his squad – and the replacements in it. I bit my lip again when I saw how worried those lads looked. Hand on heart, I was worried, too...

That was when I saw a familiar face among them. His jaw was clenched as he was grasping his rifle. As soon as he saw me, his lips parted in surprise.

"What on earth are you doing here?"

"Long story, Mike", I replied, making his brow furrow. He tried to tell me something, when Don suddenly asked:

"What now?"

"We gotta take out that tank", Bull answered quietly.

What? I raised my eyebrows, almost completely bewildered. Slowly, but surely, I turned around and peered behind the brick wall. I soon found the reason why the lads were so quiet.

Not so far away, I spotted another German tank, covered in hay. Just by seeing it like that, standing next to a house, made my stomach coil again.

Like that wasn't enough, there were also Germans standing nearby. That was more than a good reason for the lads and I to be quiet. Some of them didn't even dare to move as they waited.

"Whaddya need?", Don asked in a low voice.

One of the replacements sent him a short, lopsided grin. "A divine intervention would be nice."

He barely finished the sentence when another explosion rattled the ground. We all winced in the same time and pinned ourselves against our cover.

Holy mackerel... I bit my lip for the hundredth time. I had no idea how we would get out of here. If that bloody tank decided to aim at us, it would easily blow us up to kingdom come. Judging by the lads' faces, they were having the same doubts as me. Don frowned, while Bull gazed at the houses beside us.

But, then a familiar Geordie accent broke the silence.

"I think I can help, sir."

My eyes widened in disbelief. Only one person in Bull's squad had that accent.

"Does anyone have grenades to spare?", Mike whispered.

Grenades?! My gaze darted from him to the others. Bull gave Mike a doubtful look, which made me almost sigh in relief. Thank goodness that the Yanks didn't trust the British newcomers that much...

"There is a way", Mike added, dead-serious, "I can go there and sabotage it."

At that moment, I wished to get up and smack him in the head.

"Michael, that's a bloody suicide!", I whispered, "You can't possibly...!"

"Do it."

As soon as I heard that voice, my heart dropped and smashed into the concrete. Bull had just agreed to let him go.

Oh, God, this can't be happening! I watched in complete disbelief as two of the lads – I think they were Hashey and Garcia – handed over their grenades. Mike took them and begun tying them together with one of his bootlaces. He also added something from his pocket, which I couldn't quite see from my spot.

With every passing minute, I felt worse and worse. My jaw clenched when he picked up his makeshift thingamajig and crawled to the edge of the wall.

His ice-blue eyes met mine for a brief moment. I slowly shook my head, begging him not to go. However, he just turned around and looked in front himself.

"Ready, Sullivan?", Bull asked, cocking his rifle.

I could see Mike swallowing hard. "Aye, sir."

"Go, then. GO!"

With a quiet rustle, Mike jumped out of cover. The second the stepped into the open, he sprinted towards the tank. Meanwhile, the whole squad got to its feet and fired at the Germans on the other side, providing covering fire.

Swallowing hard, I watched my wingman swiftly moving away. To tell you the truth, he was running faster than I had ever seen him. His back was bent as he avoided the rounds, struggling to reach the tank.

My breath hitched when he ended up just a few meters away from the bloody thing. The Germans, who were occupied with Bull and his men, didn't even notice him. I crossed my fingers, silently praying that Mike would succeed and get back quickly.

But, then then the tank moved.

At that second, I was sure that my heart jumped all the way to my throat. While the hellish machine rumbled to life, Mike stopped to his tracks.

"Sullivan!", Bull hollered, "Get your arse back here!"

A moment later, Mike turned around and ran. However, after just a few steps, I saw how leg got caught in something.

He lost his balance and crumpled to the ground... right in front of the tank.

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