by H. P. Munro
Lily put her violin down and collected their glasses passing them to the breathless women; she raised her glass up.
“To Stotty!”
The others sat up and clinked their glasses together.
“To Stotty!” they repeated.
***
Life returned to normal the next day, they rose early went to breakfast, completed their Ground School classes and headed out to the flight line. It was getting close to sun down and their class was still out using every ounce of sunlight they could to fly to build up their airtime before graduation. Foster watched the class coming in to land, ticking off the planes and pilots in her head as she counted her girls back in like a mother hen. She stamped her frozen feet on the hard ground, lightly dusted with snow that had appeared overnight, her breath frosting in front of her face.
“They all in?” Captain Hardy asked coming up behind her.
“We don't usually see you down on the flight line sir,” Foster remarked as the red-haired man rubbed his gloved hands together. “All in bar the Bay Four girls,” she watched the sky nervously for any sight of their planes.
“I wanted to check that they went up okay, it's their first day back in the air,” Hardy said softly. “And despite what you might think Foster, there is a heart beating in this chest.”
Foster smirked looking at the captain out of the corner of her eye, “Yes Sir, it just that sometimes I think the medals on your chest make it hard to hear it beating.”
Hardy guffawed at her comment.
“I will take that on board. Thank you,” he smiled shaking his head slightly.
The hum of engines in the distance stopped further conversation. Squinting into the sky Foster sighed as she spotted five dots in the distance.
“They're flying formation,” Hardy remarked noting the positioning of the planes.
Nodding Foster smiled at him, “I think they're about to say a final goodbye.”
They looked up at the low flying planes overhead, the plane at the lead of the formation pulled up and out of the arrangement peeling off west. Foster and Hardy saluted watching the plane fly into the fading sunset.
Chapter Nine
December 1943 – Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas
Their last weeks on base were a frenzy of activity as they crammed for exams and flew every spare second they had. They had received with much excitement their newly approved Santiago blue uniforms that they would wear during their graduation.
Taps had just been played and the lights of their bay snapped off, plunging them into darkness.
“I wonder where we'll be based?” Lucy mused aloud studying the shadows on the ceiling.
“We'll find out in a few days, they usually post the orders a couple of days before graduation,” Marjorie replied.
Adrienne snuggled deeper under her blankets for warmth, “Well, wherever we get put, we have to stay in touch.”
Lily felt her chest tighten, she felt foolish. In all of the activity and focus on graduation, the thought that they would split up after graduation had not occurred to her. She spoke quietly her eyes seeking Helen, “We only have a few more days together.”
“Which is why we have to stay in touch,” Adrienne repeated.
The bay quieted as the women drifted off to sleep one by one, the sound of steady breathing and soft snores soon filled the room that had been their home for five months.
Still thinking about the separation that could soon be forced upon them, Lily lay unable to sleep. She pulled her blankets from her bed and as she had done countless times before she rose and slipped into the cot beside Helen. The blonde stirred and sleepily whispered, “Was I having a nightmare?”
“Shh, no. I just wanted to hold you,” Lily whispered in her ear.
Helen smiled and sighed happily. Her eyes sprang open as she felt a warm hand start to wander beneath her pajama top.
“What are you doing?” she hissed quietly as she felt fingers graze her breast.
Lily gave a soft chuckle against her ear, “Checking your wobble pump.”
Any protest that Helen was about to mutter was stilled as she felt Lily's hand trail down her stomach and underneath the waistband of her bottoms.
“You need to be really quiet,” Lily whispered. “I need you and we might not have a lot of time left,” she started to dot kisses beneath Helen's ear as she felt the blonde woman push her body further into hers, writhing against her touch.
Helen closed her eyes and concentrated on Lily's caresses, as Lily's rhythm increased she felt the pressure build within her and, conscious of making any noise, she turned her face into her pillow burying into it to muffle the sound that she was unable to stop from leaving her lips as her body shuddered into a climax.
***
Two days before their graduation, they were sitting around the wishing well discussing how their Morse Code examination had gone, when Foster came up carrying envelopes.
“Ladies, I have your orders,” she smiled, waving the wad of papers she had in her hand.
They stood up nervously waiting to see what duty they had been assigned to. She handed them their envelopes, which they tore open quickly like children at Christmas. Adrienne gave a quick fist pump as she read the contents of her envelope.
“Fleet Command,” she said. “In Romulus, Michigan.”
Marjorie grinned, “They always put the tall ones in Fleet Command. I got Engineering Command, Bainbridge, Georgia.”
Lucy sighed disappointed, “I'm going to Bryan, Texas. Engineering too.”
Lily opened her papers, “Fleet, Las Vegas.”
She looked hopefully at Helen, her hope falling as she saw the look in Helen's eyes.
“Dodge, Kansas. Training Command,” she said quietly, her tone full of sadness.
Foster smiled, sensing Helen’s reticence. “Dodge is a good one; you'll probably get to fly all sorts of planes there.”
Helen gave her a half-hearted smile as she thrust her order papers into the pocket of her jacket.
As they walked towards their bay Lily and Helen hung back.
“We don't have to report until January, and we're done here in two days,” Lily said trying to make both of them feel better. “We have almost two weeks leave, we could go somewhere together, New York maybe?”
Helen smiled looping her arm through Lily's, “Christmas in New York sounds perfect.”
***
The day of their graduation dawned, the women rose and instead of their usual beige slacks they donned their blue skirts, each of them stood a little taller in their official uniform. For almost the first time since their first morning, they queued in front of the mirror conscious of their appearance. Lily reached up to fix Adrienne's tie.
“You got anyone coming today?”
Adrienne gave a small laugh, “You know what with everything I forgot to invite anyone, you?”
Lily shook her head, “Nope, I forgot too.” She looked at the others, “Has anyone got family coming today?”
Helen gave a quick headshake, Marjorie nudged Lucy with her hip, “I have my sister, but I didn't invite her, she just showed up.”
Lucy laughed and nudged back harder. “Well I guess it's just us then!” she laughed as Marjorie stumbled.
There was a knock at the door and Foster opened it poking her head round the door.
“Morning Ladies, I hope you don't mind but you have a visitor,” she pulled back and guided a small woman into the bay.
The women gave quick glances at each other, wondering who the woman was here for. Adrienne finally made a small noise as she recognized the woman, the features on her face so familiar but strange to see on another's face.
“Mrs. Stott?” Adrienne said moving forward.
“You'll be Adrienne?” she replied, her accent thicker than her daughter’s but her voice holding the same mischievous undercurrent.
“Yes Ma'am,” Adrienne smiled taking the small woman's hand in her own.
“She said you was tall
and she wasn’t kiddin’,” Mrs Stott said with a sad smile, garnering a laugh from the women. “You’re Lily?” she asked looking at Lily.
Lily nodded, “I am.”
“She said you was tall too but not like a beanpole, no offence,” she said to Adrienne.
“None taken,” Adrienne shrugged smiling.
“She also said your skin was the color of our Maisie.” Seeing the look of confusion on the Lily’s face she moved to clarify her comment, “Maisie’s our prize milker.”
Laughing, Lily replied, “In that case, I’m honored.”
“I can see a family resemblance so you’ll be Marjorie and Lucy?” she asked, nodding her head towards the two women.
“We are,” they replied in unison then indicated who was who.
“Which leaves Hollywood,” she smiled towards Helen. “You’re as pretty as she said.”
“Thank you.”
“She wrote about you all, an’ she loved being with y'all. I just had to come say thank you for what'n you did for her.”
Adrienne gulped back the lump in her throat and gave a small cough.
Adele’s mother patted Adrienne’s forearm, “I hope you don't mind, but I wanted to tell you ‘bout somethin’, cause I don't want your parents to go through what we have.” She opened her purse pulling out a dog-eared telegram and opened it, “I received this from the War Department.” She held out the paper toward Adrienne.
The red-haired woman read the contents, a look of disgust and anger flashed on her face.
“I'm sorry that you found out that way.”
She passed the paper to Lily who gasped in astonishment as she read the telegram, typed in capitals were the words
‘YOUR DAUGHTER WAS KILLED THIS MORNING.
WHERE DO YOU WANT US TO SHIP THE BODY TO?’
Adrienne shook her head in disbelief, “She deserved more than that. She was a good friend and one of a kind.”
Mrs Stott gave a small nod, “An’ by all accounts a lousy baseball player.”
The bay laughed at the woman's comment.
Lily moved forward to shake the woman's hand, “Yes she was.”
They led Adele's mother in and gave her a small tour of the bay punctuating it with stories of her daughter. Mrs Stott filled with pride as she listened to the descriptions the woman gave her.
“We would be honored if you'd stay as our guest, we graduate today,” Helen asked hesitantly.
Smiling a smile that was hauntingly similar to her daughter’s Mrs. Stott accepted their invitation.
***
They paraded with pride and stood to attention as the General inspected their lines. They never wavered during each speech and their excitement grew as they got closer to the part of the ceremony when they would be given their wings.
Finally the visiting General stood with Jackie Cochran with the list of names to be called. They watched as the other members of their class marched up to collect their wings as their names were called.
As Marjorie’s name was announced the rest of her bay mates felt the satisfaction of having completed their training wash over them. They watched as Marjorie marched back towards the line with a broad grin on her face.
When Helen’s name was called, she stepped out of line, marched towards the podium and climbed the stairs. She shook hands with the General who spoke fondly about her father. She moved on to shake the hand of their founder and the very woman who had interviewed her all those months ago.
“Congratulations,” Jackie smiled, pinning the silver wings onto Helen's uniform. Stepping down from the podium Helen caught Lily’s gaze, she marched back to her place, a large grin plastered on her face.
Lily smiled as Helen stepped back in line. Her stomach churning as it got closer to her time. She swallowed back a lump in her throat as her name was said and she stepped up to receive her coveted wings. The sound of clapping around her disappeared and Lily was only aware of her heartbeat as she marched quickly towards the stage. She accepted her wings with a deep breath, almost unwilling to believe that it had finally happened. She had done it.
She was a fully trained WASP with the silver wings to prove it.
Chapter Ten
December 1943 – New York
So are you two with TWA?” the female cabbie asked in a thick Jersey accent as she pulled out of LaGuardia Airport, checking the uniforms of the two women in the back seat.
Helen and Lily exchanged a quick smile before the blonde responded on their behalf, “No…we're WASP”
“We're not hostesses. We're pilots. We fly military planes,” Lily added.
The cab driver's eyes widened in surprise, “You're pilots? Well I'll be! It's a real pleasure then ladies.” She grinned into the rear view mirror as she drove them towards the address in Greenwich Village that Lily had given her.
It had been almost two days since their graduation and despite being allowed to forgo their uniform due to their length of leave, neither had been willing to travel in civilian wear on their flight to New York. It had been hard saying goodbye to their classmates in particular the other Bay Four women. Many tears were shed and hugs were plentiful in the hours after graduation.
Marjorie and Lucy had been first to go, the prospect of their long drive back to Oregon urged them to leave almost as soon as the graduation supper had finished and they were released officially. The other three women had stood under the archway that had greeted them on their first day and waved until the white car was a dot on the horizon. Turning back, they had looked towards the base, each of their minds returning them to the first time they had driven underneath the airfields welcome sign adorned with Fifinella. Small smiles grew larger as they looked across the planes standing in rows; the planes that they could now fly as well as they could sign their own names. They weren't sure who started it but the smiles developed into giggles which then transformed into gales of laughter, they held onto each other as the stress and strains of the previous weeks drained from them finally as they walked haphazardly, wiping tears of laughter from their faces, back up the long drive towards the base.
The next morning had seen yet another tearful farewell to Adrienne, as Helen and Lily set off on Helen's motorcycle up to Amarillo to catch a plane to New York.
The journey turned out to be rather an uncomfortable one. Lily's previous experience of the bike had been limited to excursions into Sweetwater, which had not really been sufficient to prepare her for the long journey from Avenger Field with their luggage perched on the bike with them. However, they'd had a pleasant flight east, enjoying the novelty of not wearing leathers and parachutes while up in the air.
Helen had never been to New York before and she felt as though she was in sensory overload. After months of wide-open expanse, the sky now looked very small, squashed between the tops of the tall buildings. The streets were filled with a variety of uniforms; people wrapped up against the bitter cold weather, going about their business, oblivious to the awed face staring out of the cab window absorbing everything as they drove through the city.
Lily smiled watching Helen's head swivel back and forth, every now and again she would lunge across the expanse of the seat to see something out of Lily's window, her face was flushed with excitement at the sights of the city. They pulled into the tree-lined street where Lily's apartment building was. Lily paid the cab driver and walked, grinning, up to Helen who was staring straight up, one hand keeping her uniform beret on her head.
“You live here?” she asked, looking up at the tall red building, laundry hung from wrought iron balconies and the fire escape which zigzagged up the height of the building.
Lily followed her gaze upwards. “Yup, I live here. I should warn you my roommate can be gnarly,” she smiled, walking up the steps towards the door of the building. Her fingers circled keys that she had not held in her hand for months; their familiarity linking her with her life pre WASP.
She pushed the door open and waited for Helen to join her before they climbed the stai
rs toward her apartment. The staircase was filled with the familiar sound of a screaming child. “That'll be three B. Her children scream all the time,” Lily smiled, feeling comforted that although she may be different and forever changed by what she experienced in Texas, her home had not altered.
There was a clatter of footsteps above them. Lily paused recognizing the scampering sound of children. She had been barreled out of the way too many times not to heed the oncoming approach. She looked around and pulled Helen to the side of the stair, placing her arm protectively in front of her as three children of various ages, dressed in warm coats, scarves, hats and gloves piled down the steps at a rapid pace, their momentum carrying them quickly past the two women. The youngest and slowest child came running down picking up his small legs as he attempted two steps at a time in the same manner as his older siblings. His slower pace meant that he was able to take in the women waiting their passing.
“Sorry Mrs M,” he said, pushing his flat cap out of his eyes with the heel of this hand so that her could look at Lily, before dropping his head down to concentrate on his descent.
“Robbie, be careful,” Lily called after the small child.
“I will, don't worry,” his voice drifted up the staircase.
Turning, Lily shrugged, “Five A, they run riot, come on.” She indicated with her head towards the stairs. Helen followed Lily up the steps; they walked along the short hallway pausing at a green door. Putting the key into the deadlock Lily took a deep breath, wondering what would greet her on the other side. She swung the door open and walked through the small hall, putting her case and violin down on the floor and indicated for Helen to do the same.