April took it and read the scrawl on the page, hand flying to her mouth as she recognized the cruelty of his words.
Your mother wanted to send a parcel to you, but there will be nothing coming from us, Eva. No words of comfort, no parcels, nothing. I told you if you said yes to marrying that man and going off nursing that you’d be banished from this house and nothing has changed. You don’t make a fool of me and get away with it, so don’t come crawling back and expect to be welcomed. And don’t try to contact your mother, she no longer has a daughter and neither do I.
April looked up, carefully folded the letter again, and gulped as she passed it back to Eva. ‘I’m so sorry. That’s just . . . I don’t even know what to say. And your mother won’t help? I mean, she wouldn’t defy him?’
Eva shook her head. ‘My mother’s never stood up to him before, so I don’t expect it to start now.’
April knew she had to tread carefully. Charlie had been a good man with a strong sense of duty from what she’d gathered, and she knew that his parents had sent parcels to Eva after he’d died, so surely it wasn’t Charlie who’d caused the rift?
‘Can you ask Charlie’s family for help? If you ever need to?’ April asked gently. ‘Or your brothers?’
Eva shook her head. ‘I couldn’t. Going to them, it would just be so painful without Charlie. And my brothers will stand by my dad; they’ll believe whatever he tells them.’
April took Eva’s other hand and held tight to both of them, not blinking as she looked into her friend’s eyes. ‘Well, whatever happens, you have me, and you have Grace. We will never turn our backs on you, and you will always be welcome in our home. I mean it, Eva; I’m not just saying it.’
She hugged Eva and rubbed her back, expecting her to fall apart now that she’d confessed some of her story, but when she finally pulled back, she could see that Eva hadn’t cracked even an inch.
‘Come on,’ she said, linking arms again as they started to walk. ‘Let’s go see what we’re dealing with here.’
‘Wait up!’ Grace called, running up behind them and catching April’s free hand.
‘Well, you look excited,’ April said, laughing as Grace swung her hand like a little girl.
‘I am! It might be stinking hot and the middle of nowhere, but I’m not going to waste a second when we can be exploring!’
April liked her sister’s enthusiasm, so she decided not to point out that however exciting it might seem to land somewhere new, they could be posted for months with no running water and more people in one field than should ever be permitted. Not to mention the fact that any day now they could be overrun with patients that would make Pearl Harbor seem like a cakewalk.
‘Take cover!’
April dropped the tray she was carrying to the ground with a clatter as she crouched down low, cringing at the unmistakable noise of shells being fired. Since they’d arrived, she’d become used to hearing loud noises without completely losing her composure, but as bullets peppered the roof of the hospital, she tucked low beneath the hospital bed and held on to the legs, bracing herself for the worst.
‘What in God’s name is going on!’ she called out. ‘Don’t they know we’re a hospital?’
Eva crawled up beside her, pushing a flashlight in front of her. ‘Apparently they still haven’t painted the white cross on top yet.’
April’s skin burned as anger pulsed through her. ‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’
She knew from the serious look etched on her friend’s face that she wasn’t joking.
‘Come on,’ April said, forcing her trembling legs to work and picking up what she’d dropped. ‘If we think this is bad, imagine how our boys are going to feel.’
‘If we’re hit, we’re hit—there’s nothing we can do about it, right?’ Eva said matter-of-factly. ‘Hiding under flimsy beds isn’t going to save any of us from a direct hit.’
April didn’t know where Grace was, but she was less worried about her sister than she’d ever been. From the moment they’d set sail, her little sister had seemed to come into her own, blossoming as she flirted her way through their days at sea. It might not be the case after some tough days and weeks nursing, but for now she seemed to be coping just fine. Then again they hadn’t been fired at before; she could be a basket case by now.
‘Don’t let them take me,’ one of the men wailed. ‘Give me a gun—let me protect us.’
April took a deep breath, shutting her eyes as more shells zoomed over them but trying hard not to jump this time. Eva was walking down the row with her, and she gave her a quick smile.
Some of the patients were hysterical at the noise, others were crying or silently rocking back and forth, and as April looked around, she wasn’t even sure where to start. Dealing with wounds and breaks, she’d been trained for that, but the psychiatric ward was different. These men weren’t right in the head; they’d seen things and done things that had affected them so badly it broke April’s heart. And aside from medicating them to induce sleep and reading them stories or feeding them, there was little they could do to make life any easier for them.
‘Hold me,’ one of the men cried. ‘I want my mama. Mama!’
She saw Grace then, huddled beside a bed and holding someone in her arms. It was one of the youngest soldiers they were treating, barely nineteen, and she could see that he was half tucked under the bed, half clinging on to Grace. April gave her a little wave and received a smile in reply. Grace might not be great with blood, but she was proving to be excellent when it came to bedside manner and treating their patients with love and compassion.
Another flurry of bullets pinged overhead, and April set down her tray and clenched her fists to stop them from trembling.
‘I’m going to go out there and give them a piece of my mind if they don’t stop soon!’ one of the other nurses yelled.
April cringed. Despite it all, some of the nurses just didn’t seem to grasp that they were in a war zone. If they stepped foot outside, they’d surely be dead. They haven’t seen it, she thought as she reached for the medication to help put her patients to sleep. They haven’t seen their best friend gunned down or seen the anguish and terror of war in their own backyard. Most of the nurses had come fresh from training in their home cities; there were few of them posted to North Africa who’d been witness to Pearl Harbor.
‘Calm down,’ she whispered, stroking a man’s face, careful to avoid his bandaged eye. ‘I’m not going to leave you.’
Stepping foot outside now would be suicide, but come morning when the fighting was over, she’d paint that damn white cross on top of their building herself if she had to.
‘Make it stop,’ one of the men whimpered. ‘Please make it stop.’
April held his hand and waited for the medication to take effect, hoping it made him drowsy and let him drift away soon. Whatever he’d seen, whatever demons were haunting him, she had a feeling they might stay with him for the rest of his life.
‘April?’
She fought the urge to duck as another round of shelling echoed out, turning when her name was called. And then her heart raced for an entirely different reason.
‘I was told I’d find you here. Can you be spared?’ Dr. Grey asked.
April glanced down at her patient, willing him to find sleep and not letting go of his hand. ‘Of course, as soon as I’m done here. Where do you need me?’
‘Surgery,’ he said grimly. ‘I’ve just been called in, and it’s going to be a long night.’
She tried not to show how excited she was that he’d singled her out and wrestled with the fact that she was so eager to be back in surgery. Those poor boys with mangled bodies broke her heart as she nursed them through their recovery, but she was fascinated at the idea of being there as Dr. Grey worked his magic.
‘I’ll let the others know to watch my patients,’ she replied. ‘Just give me a moment.’
‘It’s good to see you again, April,’ he said as he ran off through the ward. ‘G
et something to eat from the cafeteria first, though; it’s going to be a long night!’
April felt eyes on her and noticed that Eva was watching her. She shrugged and Eva smiled back, and April wished there was more she could do to see her friend’s face light up. Maybe next time she’d have to throw herself at Dr. Grey and really give Eva something to smile about.
Less than fifteen minutes later, while quickly gulping down the last of a piece of bread, April found Dr. Grey. He was bent over a patient with another nurse standing beside him, and she hated the tickle of jealousy she felt when the nurse leaned into him.
‘Huh-hmm.’ She cleared her throat and smiled when he turned to see her.
‘Thank you for joining us, April. Eloise, you’re excused.’
The other nurse hurried away, and April didn’t think she was imagining the frosty look she shot her.
‘If you already have assistance, I’m happy to join your next surgery?’ she asked, hoping the other nurse heard before she disappeared out the door behind her.
There were three beds in the compact space, but they didn’t have too many casualties yet, and she hoped it stayed that way. Grey was working on the far bed, his patient already unconscious, and the anesthetist came back into the room as they were speaking.
‘Not at all. Eloise was just assisting me with some preparation.’
April moved closer. ‘What are we working on today?’
Dr. Grey glanced at her, and the second she saw his arched brow and surprised expression, she knew she’d pushed too far.
‘You,’ she stuttered. ‘What are you working on today?’
He smiled, his eyes crinkling warmly as he turned back to the patient. ‘We’ll be amputating the leg above the knee,’ he said. ‘The damage is irreparable, and it’s better to do it now before gangrene sets in and we end up taking the whole thing anyway.’
April stared down at the patient, focusing on his leg and the mangled state of his toes.
‘Is it so far gone already?’ she asked.
Grey looked irritated, and she took a step back, placing her hands on the instruments that were already waiting. She swallowed hard at the sight of the saw and hoped he wasn’t going to ask her to help with that part.
‘Yes, April, it is. I’m not going to do a minor surgery to remove his toes now, only to have to put him through an amputation in a week or two when someone else realizes the limb can’t be saved. We’re too busy to be operating on these men twice.’
She nodded. ‘Of course. I was only trying to understand. I’m very passionate about nursing.’
His face was hard to read, but she saw him exchange glances with the anesthetist. ‘April, your job is to listen to what I need and make sure I get what I ask for, but I appreciate your interest.’
Her face burned as if she’d been slapped. Why hadn’t she just kept her mouth shut? But as she prepared to assist the doctor, she couldn’t help but look down at the patient’s strong, muscular legs and wonder if the right decision had been made. Even if there was a risk of having to amputate later, wasn’t it better to do anything possible to save a man’s limbs so he could walk again?
‘I’m sorry for being so forthright,’ she said, apologizing again. The last thing she wanted was to be taken off his service. ‘I truly am grateful to be assisting you.’
This time his smile reassured her, and she wondered if perhaps she’d imagined his irritation.
‘Of course. I can see that you enjoy the procedures and that you’re learning; it’s why I like working with you so much.’
April nodded and breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
‘Saw,’ Dr. Grey said, all business again as he held out his left hand.
April inhaled deeply and reached for the instrument as her heart banged in her chest. ‘Saw,’ she repeated.
And strong stomach or not, she almost heaved all over the floor when the metal teeth snagged flesh on the operating table in front of her. Tears filled her eyes, and she blinked them away as she listened to Dr. Grey issue instructions, his brow slick with sweat as he carved the bone, back and forth, back and forth.
Perhaps she’d been better soothing men on the psych ward.
It had been a quiet night, and April carefully carried cups of water outside for Grace and Eva, balancing the three between her two hands. She’d put as many lemon cubes in the water as she could find to rid it of the hideous chlorine taste, but she doubted even that would make it bearable.
‘Here we go, ladies,’ she said.
They’d all worked ten hours straight so far, with another two to go, but all was quiet on the ward. Some days she went to assist Dr. Grey if he requested her or if there wasn’t a lot to do, but they hadn’t been overrun with injuries so far. And despite the heat and the sticky humidity during the night and her itchy red skin from insects, it hadn’t been as bad as she’d expected.
Although she knew that maybe it was simply the calm before the storm.
‘Don’t you think they’re being a bit overcautious on the chlorine?’ Grace asked, pulling a face. ‘This is revolting.’
‘I know,’ April replied. ‘It’s disgusting. I’d rather not drink, but I think we’d expire over here if we didn’t.’
Eva was staring at the sky, and as April followed her gaze, she slowly lifted an arm, finger pointing.
‘Look.’
There was a noise, something crackling in the air, and as she opened her mouth to ask what it was, the sky lit up in the distance.
‘Oh my lord,’ she whispered, clasping her cup tightly.
‘Should we run?’ Grace asked.
Eva’s hand fell over her arm, and April glanced sideways. ‘No,’ Eva said. ‘It’s miles away. We should watch.’
April was transfixed as the dark night sky was suddenly illuminated by what she could only imagine were their antiaircraft guns shooting at German reconnaissance planes. The bullets seemed never ending, a constant supply of blasts over and over again as they pressed together and watched, sipping their water while planes ducked and dived to escape the torrent.
‘It’s like the most incredible Fourth of July display I’ve ever seen,’ Grace whispered. ‘Is that an awful thing to say?’
April wondered about the pilots, about the young men bravely shooting the enemy down. It brought that day back to her, the sight of the pilots’ faces as they smiled before unleashing hell on everyone, how it felt to be caught up in the terror. Get them, she thought. Get every last one of them.
The sky might have been inky black before, but everything was bright now, the night sky more like a brightly colored child’s drawing than the star-filled darkness of only a few minutes earlier. And April couldn’t take her eyes off it.
But as she took her final sip of water, her arm circling Eva as she thought about the fiancé her friend had lost, the sky suddenly went silent again. No more colors, no more noise, no more fighting. The odd stray gunfire echoed, and then there was nothing.
They stood, silent, still staring, until Eva stirred beside her, clearing her throat and moving away from April’s touch.
‘We need to check our patients,’ Eva said. ‘I’ll bet none of them are asleep now.’
April nodded, grabbing her sister’s hand as they hurried back into the hospital. She had this awful feeling that the planes could be behind them, that a German pilot could have them in his sights and be stealthily following them, waiting to fire at the hospital and take them all out.
She kept glancing over her shoulder until they were about to walk in the door to their ward, but there was only ever silence.
‘Oh heavens,’ April whispered as she surveyed the ward. Less than half an hour earlier, all the men had been asleep, and now there were only tangled sheets and bare wire bed bases to greet them.
‘What happened in here?’ Grace asked. ‘What—’
‘They’re under the beds,’ Eva muttered. ‘We should never have stayed outside and left them alone.’
While they’d been watc
hing, their poor patients had been terrified, and as April dropped low to the ground and peered under the beds closest to her, she found the men huddled, most of them curled up like little babies. Some had their mattresses tucked over them, ready for the worst.
‘Let’s start with one each at a time,’ she said quietly, glancing at the other two. ‘We’ll have to medicate them as we go.’ These poor battle-fatigued men were still acting as if they were on the front line, trying desperately to protect themselves. While they’d been out watching the spectacular air display, their patients had been hiding, expecting to be killed.
‘There you go,’ April whispered as she coaxed her first patient out. ‘It’s all over. You’re going to be just fine.’
She wrestled with the first mattress and got it back on the bed, then quickly tucked the sheets in while her soldier-patient dropped to the ground again and curled into a ball, rocking back and forth. It was going to be a long night.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
EVA
Sweat tickled the back of Eva’s neck as she walked, the dry grass beneath her feet crunching as they crossed the field and neared where the planes had been battling the night before. They hadn’t had any opportunities to explore until now; setting up and preparing the hospital had taken up any time they had in between shifts, but they’d been given permission to leave camp today, and Grace had been eager to get out and see what Casbah had to offer. Grace was like a child in a candy store for the first time, desperate to see everything and soak in their new surroundings.
Eva could easily have stayed behind and spent longer in bed, not caring how hot their tent was during the middle of the day, but Grace was having none of it, and April wasn’t about to leave her behind if Grace was dragging her out.
‘Do you think it was near here?’ Grace asked.
Eva looked behind them at where the hospital was located and then in front again, trying to picture exactly where the battle had taken place. ‘I suppose. We must be close, anyway.’
The Girls of Pearl Harbor Page 16