Kitty's War

by Barbara Whitaker

  “Just wait.” Ted tried to laugh, tried to recapture his earlier cheerfulness. His gaze fell on the radio behind the bar. “After we eat, I’ll turn on the radio and get some music.” He turned to Madge. “Wouldn’t you like to dance?”

  “I’d love to.”

  Something about her sweet smile warmed him inside. He couldn’t wait to get his arms around that luscious body. Hold her close and forget everything, at least for a little while.

  ****

  “Can I borrow some pins?” Madge sank onto the cot, her hair still wet and about half of it twisted into numerous tight pin curls.

  “Sure.” Kitty stood and retrieved a small box from the shelf above her cot. She wanted to ask Madge about her “date” but wasn’t sure how to approach the subject.

  Madge fiddled with a curl on the back of her head. “Can you help with this?”

  Knowing the answer, Madge twisted around so Kitty could get behind her.

  Kitty took the strand of hair and twisted it around her finger, then pinned it tight against Madge’s scalp with a bobby pin. She picked up a comb and parted off another strand, knowing her friend expected her to finish the back.

  As her fingers worked, she racked her brain trying to come up with a subtle way to ask about…him.

  Madge spoke up before Kitty had come up with something. “Ted is a fun guy. We had had a great time today.”

  “That’s wonderful.” Kitty hesitated. “What did you do?”

  “Oh, we talked. Drank beer. Danced a little.”

  “Sounds like you had fun.”

  “Oh, I did.” Madge turned her head and flashed her famous smile.

  “Be still.” Kitty tugged at her friend’s hair. “Where’s he from?” she asked casually.

  “I’m not sure. Florida, I think. At least that’s where he was when he joined up.”

  “So that’s where his family is?”

  “I don’t know. We didn’t talk about his family.”

  “What did you talk about?”

  “His adventures. His buddy told a story on him, about him washing out of pilot training. I don’t think Ted liked it when Marty brought it up. But since he did, Ted went on and told us all about it.”

  “How did he wash out?”

  “Oh, he pulled some stunt with a plane, almost hit Hoover Dam.”

  “Wow.” She’d heard of guys flying under bridges but not into dams. “So how did he get to be a navigator?”

  “He said something about the Merchant Marines. I meant to ask him about it, but we got off on the dam story.”

  Kitty’s fingers started shaking. She fumbled with the bobby pins and dropped some on the floor. As she bent over to pick them up, her mind raced. That would confirm her theory. He must be the same man. She knew it.

  She started another curl and tried to sound normal. “You’d think he would have joined the Navy if he had been in the Merchant Marines.”

  “Yeah, you’d think. But he said he was working at an airfield and learning to fly when the war broke out. He wanted to be a pilot.”

  “But he didn’t get his wish.” Doubt clouded her mind again. It had been after Pearl Harbor when she pulled the man from the sea.

  “No, I guess not. But he is flying or at least he was, before he was wounded.”

  Kitty patted Madge’s shoulder. “There. All finished.”

  “Thanks.” Madge reached up and fingered the tight pin curls.

  “I wish I could do that to my hair and make it look like yours.”

  Madge looked at her sympathetically. “You don’t want hair like mine. Yours fits you perfectly. It’s curly on its own. You don’t have to worry with pin curls or perms.”

  Kitty only nodded as if she agreed. Madge would never convince her that her naturally curly mane could ever look as good as Madge’s styled do.

  “On its own is right. It’s uncontrollable. All I can do with it is twist it up and pin it tight. That hair cream you told me about helps some, but…”

  “Don’t start talking about cutting it again. Remember what happened in basic.”

  “Oh, I won’t. At least with it longer I can do something with it, even if it is pulled up tight and pinned.” Kitty lay back on her cot and tried to relax, but she couldn’t get Ted out of her mind. “Are you going to see him again?”

  “You bet!” Madge scooted closer. “He’s the kind of guy I could really get serious about.”

  “You, serious? I thought you were the one who told me to have a good time but never get too serious or risk getting hurt.”

  “That’s right. But this is different. Ted’s a fun guy, but he’s got a strength about him. He’s suffered some losses, like the pilot training and his crew going down, but he still can laugh and have a good time.” Madge pulled back her blanket and slipped under it. “And he’s a gentleman. A sweet-talking gentleman.”

  Kitty looked over at the woman who had been her closest friend, her only friend, for months. The girl who knew her way around, especially around men, had disregarded her own advice and had fallen for a man. Kitty squirmed under her own covers and rolled onto her side so Madge wouldn’t see the tears stealing their way down her cheeks.

  Why did she have to fall for him? The man I’ve dreamed of for two years. Now he’ll never see me. Why would he? Madge is perfect, and she wants him.

  Chapter Six

  Sis,

  Got your letter. Our best bet is to try to meet in London. I will send you a wire when I get leave. I’m due for some time off. In the meantime, butter up whoever you need to so when you get my wire you can get a few days and come to London. Sounds like you’re not too far out. You should be able to make it in to the city by train easy. We’ll kick up our heels and have a real reunion.

  Milton

  ****

  “Kitty, can you proofread this for me?” Sally stood at her shoulder.

  “Just put it there.” She nodded toward the left of her typewriter. “I’ll look at it after I finish this.”

  “Thanks. You’re a peach.”

  Kitty focused on her notes. What she found most difficult was blocking out all the people, the sounds, the commotion around her. She reminded herself how their work supported the war effort. It had to be as good as the mechanics who repaired the airplanes, as accurate as the map makers, treated with as much care as the ammunition handlers. The paperwork mattered, too. Planning, strategies, reports, orders all played a vital part in winning the war.

  She quickly rolled the finished pages from the typewriter and began proofreading. She prided herself on her accuracy, yet she knew she made mistakes. The trick was to catch them herself and correct them before anyone else saw them. And she’d perfected her technique for erasures to a point that someone had to look very closely to spot any corrections she’d made, even on the carbons.

  This time no corrections were needed. She smiled, pleased with herself. She loved the sense of satisfaction at having done a good job. Why didn’t everyone feel the same? She picked up Sally’s pages and scanned the typed words absently picking up her pencil to mark a mistake.

  A male voice caught her attention. She fought the urge to look up. Instead she focused harder on the task at hand. Sixty seconds and two marks later, she laid down the pages and looked around. Lieutenant Kruger leaned over Madge’s desk a short distance away. They kept their voices low until Madge giggled. Ted’s deep laughter rippled across the room. Heads came up, drawn to the melodious sound.

  Kitty pushed back her chair and stood. She could not stop herself from staring at the two who held the attention of the entire office. Ted basked in the attention, but Madge appeared uncharacteristically ill at ease as dozens of eyes watched her.

  “You’d better go,” Madge told him, “before the sergeant comes back.”

  “Okay, babe.” Ted grinned and turned to face the room. He took a sweeping bow. “Good day, ladies.” Then he waltzed from the room as if he were royalty.

  What a ham. Kitty shook her head in disapprova
l.

  “You’re just jealous,” Madge commented, as if she’d read Kitty’s mind.

  “I’m not jealous. I just wish he wouldn’t come in here and disrupt our work.”

  “Work isn’t everything.”

  “It’s what we’re here for. You two can go and kid around after your shift.”

  Madge smiled broadly. “Don’t worry. We will.”

  Kitty handed the papers to Sally. “I marked the errors. Only three.”

  “Thanks, Kitty. I’ll fix them right away.”

  “Be careful. Don’t rub a hole in the paper like you did yesterday. Do it like I showed you. Then you won’t have to start over.”

  “I’ll be careful,” Sally assured her.

  Kitty glanced back at Madge, who’d returned to her typing, yet she still smiled. Kitty had to admit, if only to herself, that she was envious. No man had ever paid her that kind of attention.

  Somehow Ted managed to stop by every day. Some days he showed up twice. And every time he made a fuss over Madge. No wonder she absolutely glowed with happiness.

  Life wasn’t fair. He was my dream. He was the one who was going to come back into my life and sweep me off my feet, just like in the movies. Instead, he had reappeared and swept her best friend off her feet. Worst of all, he didn’t even remember her.

  She tried to shake off the bad feelings. She was happy for Madge. She really was. And she was determined not to feel sorry for herself. Someone would show up some day, and he’d love her for who she was. And she’d love him with all her heart. And they’d live happily ever after, just like in the fairy tales, just like in her dreams.

  For now she’d do her job. Work to win the war so they could all go back home to start the rest of their lives.

  ****

  Maps spread across the large table. Ted studied the area around Berlin, Germany, and compared the aerial photos with the map. Carefully he marked the location of the factory the bombers would target. This information would be critical. If he marked it incorrectly, then the bombs could fall on useless, non-military locations. He drove the thoughts of civilian casualties from his mind. There were always civilian casualties, but it couldn’t be helped. And his guilt would not stop the bombing. He had to do his job, to the best of his abilities. Only ending the war would stop the killing.

  “Lieutenant Kruger.”

  Ted looked up. Colonel Snyder stood in the doorway.

  Ted straightened and saluted the officer. “Sir.”

  The colonel sauntered into the room, giving a casual salute as he moved. “Do you have the flight plans for tomorrow’s target?”

  “Not yet. It’ll be a tough one for the bombers. Heavy flack through here”—he pointed to an area on the map—“and here.” He pointed to the second area, his mind plotting alternate approaches.

  “This target is critical,” Colonel Snyder insisted. “We must eliminate the enemy’s ability to continue. Destroy their morale. And we must control the skies.” The colonel continued to move around the table, his focus on every detail.

  “Yes, sir. I understand. I was just thinking about how the bombers should approach the target. We had heavy losses the last time.”

  “Work it out, Lieutenant. We must disrupt their production of war materials, even if we cannot completely destroy it.” He looked up from the map and caught Ted’s gaze. “Do what you can but remember, losses are inevitable. We must focus on destroying the target.”

  Ted stood straight and faced his superior officer, trying to remember how many missions the man had flown. It wasn’t many. Not enough to fully understand what the men he sent on these missions had to endure. It didn’t matter, not to Snyder or any of the brass. They were running this war. All he could do was follow orders.

  “How many planes are we sending?” Ted asked after a few moments.

  “All the available planes in the wing. Maximum effort.”

  Ted fought to contain his emotions. The brass used ten percent losses as acceptable. On the last mission to Germany, the losses had been over twenty percent. Too many. But Snyder didn’t care.

  “Perhaps if we approach from the northeast, through here.” He used the pointer to show the colonel where he meant. “Maybe they wouldn’t expect that. There might be less flack. Fewer fighters.”

  The colonel nodded. “It might work. But they’ll spot us when we cross the coastline, send the fighters. Then the fighters warn the anti-aircraft batteries.” He shook his head. “You know there are no surprises over Germany as long as the Luftwaffe is flying.” He pointed to the map again. “Besides the city is ringed by anti-aircraft guns.”

  “Yes, sir. I know.” Disheartened as he was, Ted had to do his job.

  Colonel Snyder walked around the table and looked at the map from a different angle. “Go ahead and plot a course. Then we’ll go over it and see how it works out.”

  “Yes, sir. Give me an hour or so to work out the details.”

  The officer nodded and headed for the door.

  “Colonel.” Ted drew a deep breath and asked the question he’d been withholding for over a week. “Have you considered my request for transfer back to the bombers?”

  Colonel Snyder stopped and frowned at him. “I don’t understand why you would want to put yourself in such danger. Not when you can contribute as much or more right here.”

  “I’m a trained navigator. I want to finish my twenty-five missions. After that I could go back to the states and train the new guys. Pass on my combat experience.”

  Colonel Snyder stepped closer and narrowed his gaze, looking straight into Ted’s eyes. “I think there’s more to it than that. I think you want to put yourself in harm’s way.” He hesitated a moment. “Does this request of yours have anything to do with the fact your original crew was shot down after you were wounded?”

  Ted started to deny it, but he couldn’t. He had to be honest with himself as well as the colonel.

  “I admit that’s part of it. But I was trained to fly missions, and I’m no better than anyone else. Why should I stay behind here when others are putting themselves in danger every day?”

  “Well, I need you right now. So get to work.” He spun on his heel and departed.

  “But you’ll think about it?” Ted called after him.

  Let me get back up there where I belong.

  ****

  Ted lit a cigarette and strolled at a leisurely pace in the general direction of the castle. He was in no hurry to return to the planning office. Colonel Snyder had been deep in conversation with General Lake when he’d left the officers’ mess, so he figured he had a little time to relax before tackling the night’s task. Let the brass argue it out before he spent any more time on it.

  He paused and looked around. A few men headed for the Officers’ Club. He wouldn’t mind dropping in for a beer. On second thought, he’d better not. Colonel Snyder wouldn’t like it if he smelled it on his breath. Ted needed to stay on Colonel Snyder’s good side so he’d approve Ted’s request for a transfer.

  Looking back toward the castle, he saw a WAC emerge from the building. Why would Madge be working late?

  It didn’t take but a minute to realize that the WAC wasn’t Madge. She didn’t walk with that distinctive style, almost a swagger that dared men to look. No, this girl had a different air about her. Confident, yet relaxed. Not military at all, despite the uniform.

  She looked familiar. As she drew closer, he recognized Madge’s friend, Kitty. The prickly one. The one who pretended she didn’t like him. He’d caught her looking sideways at him more than once, so he knew it wasn’t true. She probably thought with Madge around that she didn’t stand a chance—which was true. Not many women could measure up to Madge. But Kitty wasn’t bad. She had a sort of quiet appeal. Some guys preferred that to the flashy types like Madge. He, on the other hand, liked having the prettiest girl on base on his arm, the envy of every man around.

  Before reaching the spot where he stood watching her, she took a path that cut a
cross the once manicured lawn toward female territory. The Army believed in keeping the women separated from the men. From the warnings they’d gotten about fraternizing with the female soldiers, he half expected them to put up a fence and string barbed wire to keep them safe. But warnings hadn’t deterred the red-blooded American airmen. And he was no exception.

  A little female companionship tonight would make a nice distraction. He threw down his cigarette butt and strode toward her.

  “Hey there,” he called as he came closer. He didn’t want to scare her.

  She stopped and turned. Even in the dim light of dusk, he could see her body tense. She straightened to attention and saluted. “Lieutenant.”

  “You don’t have to do that,” he chided as he casually returned her salute.

  “I don’t want to be accused of disregarding military protocol.”

  Ted chuckled. “Are you always so formal?” He cocked his head sizing her up. “Don’t you ever let go? Relax a little?”

  She didn’t reply but the tension in her body spoke volumes. She was nervous, didn’t want to be alone with him. Interesting.

  “Running late for supper, aren’t you?” He kept his voice light, not threatening.

  “I should make it…if I’m not delayed.”

  She wasn’t very good at her attempt to get rid of him, but she’d given it a try. He wasn’t about to let her off so easy.

  He grasped her elbow and turned her back toward her destination. “I’ll just walk with you. Make sure you get there okay.”

  Rather than respond, she resumed her trek at a quicker pace. He hurried along beside her, determined not to let go of her arm. She wouldn’t get away that easy.

  “You don’t like me, do you?”

  “I wouldn’t say that.” She glanced his way. “I’m just concerned for Madge.”

  “Oh, don’t worry about Madge. That girl can take care of herself.”

  He couldn’t read her thoughts, not hurrying along at this pace. Her face showed only determination.

  They crossed the main road and cut between buildings to reach the road into the WAC area. Finally she spoke again. “She likes you, a lot.”

  Madge, she’s talking about Madge. “And I like her.”