Trent's letters are read by A tearful Gwen between rounds at the convelese home in Ontario.
Courtney is suffering in a POW camp after serving barely one year as a nurse in Singapore. The dashing and brave redheaded Soldier from the fleet of men including Tyler whom she stowed away to safety with Pt Justin Awali and the horrid Colonel Mcclean, was Pt Scott Len. The two had fallen in love between the bombs and constant destruction, hot weather and invasion seeing them loaded onto cattle trucks forcefully and taken to separate camps, literally a barbed wire fence to separate them.
Courtney is losing nurses around her to Cholera beri beri and starvation but her resolve keeps het spirit alive. Despite the horrors shes endured to keep her body alive she would never say a word. It is a shame most fowl of any Woman. This was needed to secure the many now orphan children food and antiseptic creams for their wounds.
The Geneva convention was refused by the Imperial Japanese Army and the Womens camp bore the same level of physical punishment and brutal starvation and work under the pressure of batons hitting against flesh in the beyond stifling hot weather of the Eastern Island.
When the rain poured at night, Courtney, covered in a set of rags, her hair torn and face dirty, stumbled in bare feet toward the electric wire. There she saw him, standing ...his eyes were sunken and his body sallow, that his bones were on display as though they were protruding out. Surviving on rice, lizards and whatever snakes and other bugs and wildlife they could capture on the harsh terrain by the river while working on an air strip for Changi Airport, Scott stood metres away letting one tear fall past his hollow eyes.
"I remember the kiss"
"your body"..."everything' he choked out the sweetest worlds the brunette RC Nurse ever heard.
Barely a whisper in the dark, fading into the rain. She understood and her heart, still beating had skipped. It had done so for him.
This brave Private from Winnipeg who risked his life to save those families and his comrades. To wrap his arms around her waist and press his lips against her cherry red mouth one more time before they came and hit him across the back of the head with the force of ten men and the butt of a bayonet. She screamed and was kicked, punched in the nose and dragged upon her hair toward the cattle truck. Laying in bruises and pain she lay with crying children and Lonely Mothers around her.
The nurses knew a certain death awaited them.
This death rumor was ever the more apparent as the nurses were matched past fields of blood, limbs and unfortunate men and women who had succumbed to such brutal deaths at the hands of the enemy.
What was to be done though? The allies were outnumbered.
Geoff lay in a straw made cabin, laying down on the concrete in sheer agony.
He remembers Tyler leaving. He cried out at night for Bridgette and to be able to join Tyler and see his Bride Bridgette and family again. Part of him feels he never will.
The soldier had grown his hair, his body was reduced to skin and bone. He was too weak to gather food and too badly beaten to continue to the airfield. Within weeks of being kicked and thrown around at the Camp in Changi, Geoff Alogen had lost his strength pretty quickly. The wound in his legs were ulcerated and festering with pus. Maggots had been placed on one but they had eaten past the rotten flesh and into his skin tissue. His shin was now bone, like that of an animal carcass. Holding Scott's hand he handed over three letters.
"G...g..give these to...he coughed. "Bridgette"
Scott took the letters and nodded solemnly.
As Geoff's body gave into sceptic shock and dehydration he let go of Scott's hand.
Scott wept and saluted. "Goodbye Pt Algolen".
Bridgette was nursing behind the front lines outside of Normandy and had already seen her share of blood, guts and shell-shocked men, ravaged by the explosions that took so many lives and saw other mem collapse and bash their heads against their helmets aswell as drink themselves silly.
Nursing a soldier's amputated leg
Bridgette smiled and offered sweet words
She gave her time, her training and her compassionate spirit. So the men in those knew knew they were heard.
It was not until she took her leave and visited her Family home
That she received the deadly news
Bridgette Alogen was now a widow
Falling into Lindsay's arms she cried until the tears ran dry
Tyler wrapped an arm around her and all three of them proceeded to cry
Noone could have prevented what horrible fate was to come.
"Two years was not near enough" she cried.
"His life had just begun"
While his Body wasn't sent back until 1946
A memorial was placed for him
with a cross made from white brick
Bridgette knelt beside the grave, a cross on top of the field.
A reminder of others fighting abroad
To be as tough as steel, for the War is not won and all battles are lost, when you lose someone you know you love
She looked to het friends, her inlaws and Mother then wept at the sky above..
Gwen had finished her rounds and was sitting next to Duncan.
"Read the letters to me" He said, closing his eyes.
"I've read them" she replied. "One per week" she clasped onto the soldier's arm, laying beside him.
"Read them again" Duncan asked, almost pleading to be taken from his thoughts of death and destruction that jad surrounded him so very long.
"Very well"
Gwen pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket. "I keep them in my front apron"
she explained.
Duncan looked at the dark haired nurse and forced a smile.
"Please?"
Gwen nodded
"My dearest treasure"
Where does life and the veil of death open? For I feel I have seen it.
One month into this campaign in Italy and I am unsure what will be made of me.
My company is made of strong fighters.
Spanish, French and Jewish. I fear for the jewish fighters. The Germans will not appreciate this but we do not care for we fight for freedom in this hot terrain.
The marching Gwendolin. That is the worst of all our tasks. Alot of men want to open fire but not me not I. I long to bathe with you at home, our Country of birth where we can dance and hold hands in a field of orchids.
I look at the sky before my Sgt smacks me about the head. Private Daydreamer he calls me. Gwen held back tears remembering Trent's lovable spirit and his dreamer state. Once I have seen and witnessed the horrors for myself first hand I will write. I know of all Women that you my dear sweet Fiance can take these words.
God bless you until we meet again.
Gwen cried and hugged Duncan.
Letter two
Italy
"Gwendoline My dear. O fear I will forget your scent your touch and your voice the silver lining to any heavy raincloud should this war go on any longer. The hot weather wont last forever but oh, then the Winter shall freeze dry our hearts as we have encountered many men wounded and left for dead on our marches. The fighting is too much to bear. There is blood and gore and carnage as far as this soldier's eyes can see. The sun dries the blood quickly but animals feed off the dead. Why am I to be spared this cruel punishment of a shell or machine gun? alas I must press on and pray with a kiss that this letter finds its way to you intact. I shall write when Im in better spirits for my mind is not clear, it has grown thick with dust and dirt from bombs, raids and human flesh. I love you forever my darling Gwendoline.
Trent Cooper.
Letter three
Where does your body start? Where does the world begin? Who is the foe if he was once my brother? The world is twisted around in another way and not one we know. The rain finally came as we packed up for France. I take my leave while in Paris as we expect the invasion has taken its toll on France. They surrendered within hours.
I'm in a tent while the rain pours. I ate a decent meal, the first one I've had in months. Next week I shall write to you and yet I'm denied leave to Canada because troops are needed from All parts of our Free World. Think of me, your Loving Fiance
in 1943/44 the tide starts to turn. The allies gain more ground and progress through Europe liberating france and reaching
D Day ahead and The French liberation are nearby...The beginning of the end is near but how far?
Trents letters display his devotion and hope amidst a turmoltuos time filled with battles and carnage. As this time starts to side with the allies, Trent ventures into Hero territory with a fateful outcome.
While Bridgette was home, she sang for the troops in Central Ontario. The Christmas tree was nearly 9 feet tall and lit up around a white carpet of snow.
As the snow fell..
So did her tears.
Yet she owed this song to Geoff
With a band behind her and Heather standing pretty beside her, Bridgette sang.
Ill remember you
it will always stay that way
you gave your tomorrow
so we could live today
well never say goodbye
to all you sacrificed
I will remember you
tears fell as she sang louder...
Ill remember you
with this photograph beside me
thats all I have to remind me
and for the children all to see
they'll remember you
and how you fought for freedom
theres a hundred million reasons
Why your memory must live on
remember you
it will always stay that way
you gave your tomorrow
so we could live today
well never say goodbye
to all you sacrificed
I will remember you
Geoffs Letters were found at the liberation.
Trent's last three letters will be posted in the next chapter. The last three letters he mentions his deadly plane missions.
Geoffs will be read after the war is over.
Courtney and Scott are alive for now.
Lindsay has a happy surprise for Tyler.