“Nowhere for us to land. They took the wounded off by boat and brought them to us. It was an ugly business. The hospitals were full to the gills, and still are, two months later.”
“We lost some men there. But it will turn the tides, so it was worth it.” She wondered who decided what was worth it, and how many men one had to sacrifice to turn the tides.
“I hope so,” was all she said, and they walked back to the house and ran into their parents coming back from the family cemetery. They both looked like they’d been crying.
* * *
—
The service the next day was predictably painful, and just what it ought to have been: solemn, respectful, tender, poignant, and no longer than it had to be. Their neighbors had come, friends of their parents’ generation. It was beautiful in a simple way for a greatly loved son who had given his life for his king and country, and would be long remembered as a man and a boy by those who loved him.
Max drove her back to the base when he left, since he had borrowed a car to come. It was easier than waiting for another unscheduled freight train, which was dangerous now anyway. The Germans blew them up whenever they could. They rode in silence much of the time, thinking of their brother, and then chatted for a while. She asked Max if he had a girlfriend, and he said he didn’t.
“It wouldn’t be fair, really. You never know what’s going to happen.” She felt the same way for herself.
“Do you think Phillip did?” she asked, curious. They never spoke of such things, but he might have to Max.
“A hundred of them.” He laughed. “I never knew him to spend more than a week or two with any girl. He tired of them easily, and loved them all.” It sounded about right to her too, knowing her younger brother. It was sad to think that was all over now. A young life ended all too quickly, but he had had fun too, and made everyone who knew him happy. It was something to remember him for.
Max drove her to her dormitory when they got to the base and promised to come and visit her soon.
“You won’t,” she said with a smile. “There’s never time, is there?” She knew he was busy too. “We should try and get up to see Mum and Dad, though, when we can. They’re brave, but they need us now.”
He was quiet for a moment. “We need each other too. You’re a good sister, you know, even if I don’t say it often. Take care of yourself, Pru. Don’t do anything too mad with your Flying Devils, or take too many walking tours behind enemy lines.” He hadn’t liked that story, although she made light of it so he wouldn’t worry, which was so much her style, and part of the bravery he had referred to and respected so much about her.
“You too,” she said quietly. “You don’t need to be a hero. Just get out of this alive. Our parents need us now, more than they did before.” There was a crack in their armor now, and time wasn’t on their side.
“You remember that too,” he said seriously. “Take care of yourself, Pru. I’ll be up to see you soon, to check on you. It’s what big brothers are supposed to do.” She hugged him and he kissed her cheek and drove away a few minutes later, thinking how lucky he was to have her as a sister. She was a noble girl with a heart of gold and more courage than anyone he’d ever known, man or woman. He wished he were more like her. She was an example to them all, and never made a fuss about anything. She just got on with it and did what she knew was right every time.
* * *
—
As the Allies approached Paris in late August, the Germans fought harder, and the Resistance fought back with everything they had. There were more Resistance fighters being killed by the Germans than there had been for a while, and more desperate acts committed by the freedom fighters, blowing up arms factories, munitions dumps, railways, and doing everything they could to hurt the Germans. The Allies were doing all they could to help the Resistance, and the British had sent forces in to rescue Resistance units when it was possible. The Germans wanted all the members of the Resistance dead if the Nazis had to leave France.
There was a midnight call in the nurses’ barracks for nurses needed for a delicate mission. And with the final push toward Paris, the air evac nurses were being pulled in all directions.
Louise Jackson was one of the nurses called on for the highly sensitive mission, which she accepted, and in the circumstances, no one objected to her color. They needed topflight nurses to rescue nine Resistance fighters behind enemy lines. The Germans were closing in on the fighters to kill them, and the British had promised to help. One of the Resistance fighters the Germans were after was the most dangerous agent of the Resistance in all of France. The German High Command wanted him, dead or alive. He was known only as Tristan. The British had been notified that he was gravely injured.