Kitty's War

by Barbara Whitaker

  “Is he the one you told me about?” Kitty asked.

  Madge nodded and clasped her notepad to her breast.

  The two moved toward the door but were stopped by General Lake.

  “Ladies, I expect to have your notes on my desk first thing in the morning.” He turned to the colonel. “Snyder, make sure they have copies of everything discussed here today.”

  “Yes, sir. I’ll have Kruger get it to them.” The colonel glanced at Lieutenant Kruger who nodded in understanding.

  Kitty and Madge acknowledged the officers and exited the office.

  “We need to compare notes, make sure we got everything,” Kitty commented to Madge in the hallway.

  “Hey, girls.” Lieutenant Kruger caught up to them.

  Madge actually blushed when she heard his voice. Kitty stared in disbelief at her fun-loving friend. She’d never seen Madge react this way to a man.

  “I’ll walk you down,” he continued. “We can go over the documents from the meeting.”

  Kitty hurried down the stairs ahead of the others, anxious to put some distance between her and the handsome officer. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw him grinning at Madge like a mischievous schoolboy.

  Kitty couldn’t shake the feeling that she had seen this man before. She just couldn’t figure out when or where. Since joining up, she’d met so many people that she couldn’t remember them all. Yet such a handsome face should trigger some memory. Maybe it was just her imagination. After all, he had shown no signs of recognizing her.

  They reached her desk. The good-looking officer settled into her chair as if he belonged there, so she stood back waiting for him to realize what he’d done and relinquish her place.

  Madge perched on the edge of the desk, practically in his lap, and gave Lieutenant Kruger her sweetest smile. The way he responded to her attention reminded her of the way Robert Taylor looked at Greta Garbo in Camille, caught in her web of beauty and charm, full of adoration. No one had ever looked at Kitty like that.

  “We still on for Saturday?” He leaned forward and kept his voice at a discreet level.

  “Sure,” gushed Madge.

  “If you can get a pass,” Kitty added, unable to quell her desire to throw a wet blanket on their plans.

  Lieutenant Kruger gave her a solemn look that slowly transformed into a subtle, lop-sided smile.

  Instantly she was transported back to the beach, to that day. Her heart caught in her throat, her ears roared as if the surf were pounding in her head. That face…that smile… No sunburned skin. No swollen, blistered lips. But the same sparkling blue eyes, the same strong jaw line, the same little dimple in his chin. She was staring down at the mysterious man she had rescued, the man who had haunted her dreams, both waking and sleeping, since that day.

  Could it be possible? Could it really be him? Her knees grew weak

  “Kitty. Are you listening?” Madge asked.

  “Sure. I…uh…”

  “I said I’ve already got a pass. And since you won’t go, I’m taking Bertie.”

  Lieutenant Kruger grinned that mischievous little boy grin she remembered. Kitty’s stomach flipped. It was him, but he was looking at Madge, not her. He didn’t remember her at all.

  A pang of disappointment stabbed through her, just like years ago when they’d carried him away before she’d had a chance to talk to him, before she found out who he was, or anything about him. She wrapped her arms around her middle and turned away, unable to watch the man of her dreams flirting with Madge.

  Chapter Five

  Kitty struggled to focus on her typing. She made another mistake and stopped to tediously erase the erroneous letter from the original and two copies. Three mistakes on one letter was unacceptable for anyone, especially a stickler like her.

  She never made mistakes. But for the last two days, her mind kept wandering to the image of Lieutenant Kruger sitting in this very chair flirting with Madge.

  Carefully she lined up the paper so the overstrike would hit exactly the same spot she had just erased. She resumed her typing. Slower this time, she used all her powers of concentration to finish without another error.

  By afternoon she could wait no longer. She found an excuse to visit the personnel office and see if Adrianne had found anything.

  The day before Kitty had hesitantly approached her fellow WAC in the mess hall. She’d forced herself to push through her discomfort at asking a stranger for help. Her bravery paid off.

  Adrianne proved to be a kindred spirit of sorts. She took pride in her work and understood Kitty’s concern for her friend’s welfare. What Kitty didn’t tell Adrianne was that Kitty wanted to know about Lieutenant Kruger, not for Madge’s benefit, but for her own. She had to find out if he was the man on the beach, as her instincts screamed, or if he just looked like the person she remembered.

  Adrianne looked up and nodded when Kitty entered the office. She pulled a manila folder from a drawer and led Kitty to a table in the corner so no one could overhear their conversation.

  “I can assure you of one thing—he’s not married,” Adrianne said confidently.

  Kitty nodded. “Good.” But the good news did not relieve her anxiety. “What else did you find?”

  Adrianne opened the file and took out a single sheet of paper.

  “Nothing here is confidential. I want you to know that. Just basic information, but I’d prefer you not share it with anyone. Or say where you got it. I don’t want any trouble.”

  “I understand. I won’t tell anyone.” Fighting the urge to grab the page from Adrianne’s hand, Kitty forced herself to breathe normally and relax. She didn’t want Adrianne to question her motives.

  Adrianne passed the handwritten page to Kitty. She quickly scanned the information.

  2nd Lieutenant Theodore R. Kruger II

  Enlisted 1942—Jacksonville, Florida

  Initial Training—Camp Blanding Florida

  Pilot Training

  Pre-Flight and Primary—Santa Ana, California

  Basic—Chico, California and Advanced—Kirkland Field, New Mexico

  Navigator Training—Hondo Field, Texas

  Assigned to 600th Squadron of the 303rd Bombardment Group

  Feb. 1944 Assigned to Allford Airbase, England

  Wounded; Reassigned to 2nd Wing Headquarters

  “Was there anything about what he did before the war?” Kitty asked.

  Adrianne reopened the folder and flipped through it.

  “No.” She shook her head as she continued to turn pages. “Oh, here’s something.” She placed her finger halfway down on the page. “Under next of kin he has his mother listed in Jacksonville, Florida, and he also has his grandfather listed in Nashville, Tennessee. Is that any help?”

  Kitty nodded. “Yes. Thanks.” She folded the paper and slipped it into her pocket.

  Suzanne had written months after Kitty went home that the mystery man had been on a freighter that sank off the coast of Florida. If Kruger was from Florida, could he be the same man? A strange queasiness settled in her stomach. Maybe it wasn’t him, she hedged, almost hoping Lieutenant Kruger was an entirely different person.

  “Is he the one you remembered?” Adrianne’s question brought her back to the present.

  Kitty didn’t know how to respond. “I…I don’t know. But thanks for your help.”

  She was almost out the door before she remembered the other thing she wanted to ask Adrianne. She turned and retraced her steps in time to catch Adrianne before she settled behind her desk.

  “Is there any way you can find out where the First Infantry is stationed?” Kitty kept her voice low.

  A little surprised at Kitty’s question, Adrianne glanced around before she responded. “That kind of info is pretty hard to come by. Why do you want to know?”

  “My brother. I promised my family I’d look him up, you know, make sure he’s okay.”

  “Doesn’t he write?”

  “Sure. But that’s not the same as see
ing him.” Another WAC opened a file cabinet nearby, and both women watched her in silence. She glanced their way as she slammed the drawer shut.

  When she was out of earshot, Kitty continued, “I haven’t seen him for almost two years, since he went overseas. I’ve just got to find some way to see him.”

  Adrianne looked sympathetic. “Okay. I’ll see what I can find out. Give me his name and outfit.” She slid a piece of paper in front of Kitty. “I’ve got a brother in the Pacific. Last letter I got was from Australia, I think. You know how they censor stuff. He said he was ‘down under,’ so I took that to mean Australia.”

  Kitty nodded. “You’re probably right.” Kitty started to go but stopped herself. “Thanks again. And if I can ever do anything for you, just let me know. Okay?”

  Adrianne smiled. “I will. Don’t worry about that.”

  ****

  Ted looked up when the two WACs pushed through the pub’s heavy wooden door and stood for a moment surveying the dim interior.

  What a dish! His luck had really turned around. After all, it wasn’t every day that a guy got close to a girl who looked like that.

  He had almost reached her side when Madge flashed that brilliant smile. His pulse raced.

  “Hi, handsome,” she said.

  “Hello, yourself.” He grinned like a fool. No use trying to be sophisticated around this one. It would never work. “Who’s your friend?”

  “Bertie DeWitt. This is Ted, Ted Kruger.”

  The nervous girl managed a weak salute. “Lieutenant.”

  “Oh, don’t worry about that, not here.”

  Someone brushed his shoulder, and Ted turned to find his friend, Marty.

  “Aren’t you going to introduce me?”

  Ted took Madge’s arm before Marty got any ideas. “Marty Wasserman. This is Madge and Bertie.”

  Bertie started to salute then caught herself and stuck out her hand. “Bertie DeWitt.”

  Marty took her hand. “Nice to meet you.”

  The girl flushed and giggled while she pumped Marty’s hand up and down.

  Good, Ted thought. Keep Marty occupied so he won’t make a move on Madge.

  He gave “his girl” a winning smile and grasped her arm more firmly. “We’ve got a table.” He steered her toward the corner of the pub. Marty and Bertie followed.

  Ted held the wooden chair for Madge. “Bertie, why don’t you sit here, beside Madge.”

  Bertie smiled, and Marty shot Ted a glare before grabbing the chair for Bertie. Marty didn’t miss much. He knew Ted had intentionally put the girls together so Marty wouldn’t be tempted to flirt with Madge. But Marty’s reaction didn’t bother him. Ted had made it plain before the girls arrived that Madge was his, so hands off.

  After seating the girls, Ted went over to the bar and ordered a round of drinks. Glancing back, he compared the two females. The dark-haired Bertie was tall and slender and might have held a certain attraction in the right outfit. The uniform did nothing for her looks or her figure. On the other hand, Madge’s killer shape could not be hidden. In her WAC uniform, she reminded him of Betty Grable in that war movie she made with Tyrone Power, the one he’d been racking his brain trying to remember the title of since the first time he saw her. She had the actress’s blonde hair, classic face, and blue eyes. And though he couldn’t get a good look at her legs beneath that long skirt, the rest of her could pass for the pin-up girl’s double.

  The waiter appeared with a round of dark, English beer.

  Ted offered a toast. “To the defeat of the Nazi’s.”

  The others raised their glasses, and to his surprise, several of the pub’s patrons joined in the toast.

  “Hear, hear!” a man at the neighboring table chimed in.

  “Down with Hitler!” said another patron.

  They all drank to their common goal.

  Bertie giggled and nudged Madge in the ribs. Madge clinked her friend’s glass, and they both took another sip. Their laughter bubbled forth, and without even knowing the joke, Ted found himself laughing along.

  Ted wanted to know more about the blonde beauty beside him. “You never did tell me where you have been hiding. Where’s home?”

  “Minneapolis,” she replied. “And what about you?”

  Evidently she didn’t want to talk about herself. “Oh, I’m from a lot of places. But I’ve never made it to Minneapolis.”

  “Well, where were you when you joined up? I assumed you joined.” She’d deftly turned the subject back to him.

  “Of course, I joined. I wasn’t going to wait around until they drafted me. What I wanted was to fight the Japs. But the Nazi’s will have to do.” He took another swig of beer.

  “You didn’t answer my question.”

  She was persistent, he’d give her that. “I was in Florida when I signed up. There was an air field near Jacksonville where I’d been working. Took some flying lessons. Figured I’d learn to fly. Might come in handy.” He took another sip, and she followed suit. From the inquisitive look, he knew she was waiting for him to continue the story. He preferred to tell the abbreviated version and avoid talking about his family. “Anyway, the Japs attacked us, so I decided to sign up for the Air Corps.”

  “So you wanted to be a pilot?”

  “Sure. Everybody wants to be a pilot. I got in to the cadet training, too.” She was hanging on his every word. It was heady stuff, the way she looked at him as if fascinated by anything he said.

  “Then why are you a navigator instead of a pilot?”

  There it was. That tricky question. But he’d perfected his answer.

  “Well, I’d had some navigation training when I was in the Merchant Marines, so they thought I’d fit better as a navigator.”

  Before Madge could open her mouth to ask about his time in the Merchant Marines, which is where he was steering her, Marty chimed in.

  “That’s not the way I heard it.”

  “What did you hear?” Bertie encouraged him.

  Ted raised his hand in protest, but it was too late. Marty had that gleam in his eye and couldn’t resist telling the tale.

  “Well, as I heard it,” Marty started. “Ol’ Ted here was almost through pilot training when he decided to take a little joy ride.”

  “No.” Madge gasped, but her expression told him she was dying to hear more.

  “Yep. He took his plane, a big B-17 bomber, and flew it down in the gorge of the Colorado River. Flew it upstream till he came to the Hoover Dam. He was flying so low he had to pull up fast and barely cleared the dam.”

  “Did you get in trouble?” Bertie asked, clearly amazed at the story.

  “Sure he did,” Marty answered.

  Ted sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. Marty didn’t have to enjoy telling it so much.

  “He got chewed out by his commanding officer, and when the brass found out, they kicked him out of pilot training.”

  “Oh, Ted. How awful.” At least Madge expressed sympathy for him.

  “I did it on a dare,” Ted offered his only defense. “One of the other guys was supposed to go with me. He chickened out right after we dropped into the gorge.”

  “You mean he got smart.”

  “What I mean is that he wasn’t good enough and he knew it.”

  “But what if you had hit that dam?” Bertie asked.

  Since Marty started it, Ted decided to make the most of the story. “Actually, the thing showed up sooner than I expected. I was busy watching the cliffs on either side when we rounded a bend in the river, and there it was.” He glanced at Madge. She was hanging on his every word. “This big block of concrete right in front of us.”

  “What did you do?”

  “I pulled back on the stick and gunned the engines.” He paused for effect. “It was close, but we cleared that dam by, oh, maybe two or three feet.”

  “But you could have been killed.” He heard the concern in Madge’s voice.

  “Not a chance,” he assured her.

&
nbsp; “Problem was the whole crew could have been killed,” Marty interjected. “And the plane could have been destroyed.”

  “Yeah. The brass was more concerned about me crashing the plane.” He saw Madge’s frown and knew he needed to explain further. “That was before they had the B-24. And they didn’t have the production of planes up to where it is now. So the ones we were flying were precious. But we were in no real danger.” He wasn’t about to admit how terrified he had been.

  Marty laughed. “You’ve got more confidence than anyone I know.”

  “I just knew what I could do, that’s all.”

  “Too bad the brass didn’t know what you could do. Or maybe you’d be flying bombers now instead of drawing up flight plans for the Ops Officer.”

  Ted saw red. His throat tightened, and his jaw clamped down hard trying to contain the anger his friend’s thoughtless words aroused. He knew Marty didn’t mean to provoke him. The guy was only smarting off. But the old pain still haunted him.

  He should have been a pilot. It came as naturally to him as walking. But he’d taken his medicine, accepted that he wasn’t going to fly planes anymore, and made up his mind to become a damn good navigator. Rollins had understood. Had let him take the controls, several times, on the longer missions. Once fighters had come at them, and he’d struggled to control his instinct to evade. He’d held to their position in formation while Rollins manned his gun. The memory brought a stab of pain. His friends were gone. And he was grounded, which was even worse. He couldn’t even avenge their deaths.

  “Waiter,” Marty called, bringing Ted back from that dark place.

  Madge must have noticed his change in mood. She placed her hand on his, but he couldn’t look at her, couldn’t let her see his weakness.

  When the waiter arrived Marty asked, “What’ve you got to eat around here?”

  After reciting the limited menu and hearing their choices, the man disappeared.

  “Don’t expect much out of the food,” Ted warned them. “I’ve eaten here before. It’s okay for English food, but you’ll find out they don’t cook like we’re used to.”

  “Anything has to be better than our mess,” Bertie commented.