by Linda Ellen
Vivian’s eyes widened, utterly surprised at his suggestion. But when Gene drew near and extended his elbow, she took it and smiled shyly at the commander. “Thank you, Sergeant Holland.”
She and Gene headed toward the door to the rear, opposite the one through which Hendricks had departed, as the music began to play again.
Gene closed the door behind them and sucked in a deep breath, striving to release the last bit of spent fury from his body.
Furious was the word – he’d been watching Vivian dancing with his nemesis, and when he had seen Hendricks crushing Viv in his arms like that – and then had the audacity to put his hand on her bottom – he had charged like a raging bull.
But then, once the offender landed on the floor with blood seeping from his busted lips and two of Gene’s friends had grabbed hold of his arms, he knew he’d just blown his promotion right out the window. If so, it was worth it to avenge Viv’s honor and get her away from the filthy hands of a man like Hendricks.
He turned his head and looked down at her as they strolled toward the club’s newly finished swimming pool with its surrounding concrete benches. She seemed to have calmed down. Good. When he had seen that she was upset almost to the point of tears, he had wanted nothing more than to break free from his restraints and slam Hendricks’ teeth down his throat. He shook his head. Normally, he wasn’t a violent man, but his roommate knew just how to push his buttons.
“You okay?” he asked softly.
She looked up at him, her hand holding onto his bicep tightening a bit as she smiled.
“Yes, I am now.” Then with her grin flashing in the moonlight, she added, “Thank you, Sir Galahad, for coming to my defense.”
They both snickered softly as he led her to a bench and made sure she was seated comfortably. He lowered himself next to her and took her hand in his.
“Is that man really your roommate?” she asked, wondering how in the world these two men could share a room, when they were so vastly different.
Gene blew out a frustrated breath. “He told you?”
She nodded.
“Unfortunately, yes. He was transferred here about two months ago and they put him in with me while new barracks are being built. In the morning, I’m requesting a new Bunkie, or permission to move. I’ve had a belly full of Staff Sergeant Blake Hendricks.”
“What an awful man…he’d been drinking. Is that what made him act that way? Is he a mean drunk?” she asked, thinking about a man two doors down from her parents’ house on Cooper Chapel Road who always created havoc when he’d had a few too many.
Gene cringed, hating to even talk about Hendricks. “I apologize for that. He was doing it to needle me.”
“Needle you?” Viv asked, staring at him in the soft light of the moon.
“Yeah…” he wavered, running a hand back through his hair. “He’s always on my case, but more so lately. He acts like there’s some kind of score to settle between us. Anyway, tonight he came in while I was getting dressed and started right in. Your letter was on my bunk and the scumbag picked it up and read it. Then, he tells me that if he didn’t have other plans, he would come to the party and sweep you off your feet and away from me. Then, he shows up. I’m sorry he took his dislike of me out on you, Viv.”
Vivian shivered in the cool night air and Gene automatically raised an arm to wrap around her and pull her against his side so that he could lend her some of his warmth. “He’s a despicable man. Let’s talk about something else,” she declared, giving him a small smile.
“Good idea,” Gene answered softly, leaning to touch his cheek to her forehead.
“So…I’ve never been out here before…I had no idea Fort Knox is so…much,” Vivian ventured, chuckling a bit at her lack of words to describe the immenseness that was Fort Knox.
Gene laughed. “You wanna hear the history of Fort Knox?”
Viv grinned at him and snuggled a bit closer. “Sure.”
“Well, now you see, I’m an authority on everything Fort Knox,” he flashed a boasting smile at her. “Since I was a kid, growing up on a farm in Elizabethtown, I was fascinated by this place. Anyway…it dates back to the Civil War when both Union and Confederate armies – but not at the same time, of course,” he joked, “bivouacked nearby at Fort Duffield.”
“Fort Duffield? I’ve never heard of that.”
“Well…it wasn’t actually a fort. It’s really just a high vantage point near the river with maybe a small building or two, and some tents. That area of the river was like a gateway between the North and the South.”
“Okay,” she murmured, gazing up at him as if he were the smartest man on earth. It made him sit a bit taller with pride as he continued.
“So…the US Army decided they needed a permanent post for training the military and chose this area. The government bought about 40,000 acres and most of the buildings of a tiny town named Stithton, a small farming community that was here in Hardin County. Then, they renamed the area Camp Knox, after Major General Henry Knox, who was Chief of Artillery in the Revolutionary War and the first Secretary of War.”
“Why did they choose here?”
“Several reasons – one being rail lines and the Louisville, Henderson, and St. Louis Depot already here and established, that could play a large part in transporting soldiers to the camp. By 1925, Camp Knox had added 33,000 more acres and had become the largest military reservation in the United States.”
Vivian gasped, unable to imagine something so vast. “But, why do they need so much land?”
Gene pursed his lips. “That’s a good question – the answer is that this is a training facility. New recruits need to learn how to survive out ‘in the wild’. This area has lots of thick red clay Kentucky mud, and acres upon acres of rugged terrain and hills – so rugged, by the way, that foot soldiers who’ve marched up and down those legendary hills even dubbed one ‘Misery’ and another one ‘Agony’.” He made a funny face like he was miserable and she laughed at his silliness. “Plus, the recruits are trained on the guns and tanks, so the gun tubes spit out smoke, fire, and boom after boom year-round on the vast empty ranges, and that needs to be far enough away from civilization that we aren’t too much of a disturbance. Now where was I…oh yeah. The Army decided Camp Knox would be the new headquarters for the mechanized cavalry. So, in 1932, the name was changed to Fort Knox and the Army’s oldest mounted unit, the 1st Cavalry Regiment, arrived and exchanged its horses for armored combat cars.” He grinned at her awed expression.
“Then, they really stepped up construction on some of the buildings you may have noticed on your way in – everything from a new hospital, administration buildings, quarters, barracks, and housing for soldiers and officers with families, a movie theater, a chapel…recreation clubs like this one,” he indicated with a nod over his shoulder. “Oh, and I almost forgot – the Gold Vault. I could tell you details about that place that you’d probably think I was making up, like the bombproof roof, poison-gas booby traps, alarms, minefields, razor wire electric fence – and it’s rumored that the lower level where the actual vault itself is can be totally flooded in sixty seconds to defend against intruders. It’s an amazing feat of construction and engineering,” he added, staring out into the dark in admiration.
“Yes, I saw it. It’s quite impressive. It’s a beautiful building, too,” she agreed.
He nodded, “Beautiful, yes, but don’t ever try to approach the gates, they might shoot you on sight and ask questions later.” He was only half kidding.
She gave him a playful push and he chuckled before continuing, “We’ve got new recruits and draftees arriving all the time, so building never really ceases. Part of my job is keeping the construction equipment in fine working order. They’re still raising barracks; many they’re calling temporary, are two-story clapboard shelters. But some are permanent brick buildings. One over to the south of here that’s nearly finished is three and a half stories tall and 455 feet long. Even with all that, we can’
t seem to keep up with the demand. Some guys even have to sleep in tents for a while when they first arrive. At last count, the installation has grown to over 3,000 buildings and owns over 100,000 acres.”
Viv laughed and shook her head. “You know your stuff, don’t you, Sergeant? And to think, all of this has been here most of my life and I didn’t have a clue.”
He gave her a playful salute. “Just the facts, ma’am.”
Her eyes sought out his face in the moonlight as she asked softly, “Gene…you’ve never said, but…will you be sent overseas with the rest of the soldiers?” She seemed to be holding her breath waiting for his answer.
He raised his hand and let his fingers gently play with a strand of her hair. “Well, not all ground soldiers go off to fight. There’s a ‘war’ to fight right here at home, too, that needs men – the support and supply side. If we don’t do our jobs properly, they can’t do theirs. My job is very important, helping stateside where the training takes place, keeping equipment and vehicles – training and non-training – in working order. That will never stop until the war is over. So, the answer is, it’s unlikely, but I guess it’s always a slim possibility, depending on how the war goes. But, if I’m needed over there, I’ll go. Any soldier worth his salt in the United States Army would,” he added with a shrug.
They gazed at one another for a moment and he could tell she was thinking, or maybe even praying, that he wouldn’t be called to do that particular duty. Suddenly, he was overwhelmed with the desire to kiss her, as the thought of their last kiss – on the front porch of her parents’ house – came rushing back in full detail. He leaned in and she raised her chin, her eyes fluttering shut…
Just as their lips met, the door to the club opened and Sgt. Lowe stuck his head out to holler, “Hey Banks! Miss Powell! Mrs. Holland said to get in here so her husband can cut his cake. She says she’s tired of cutting rugs!” He added with a laugh.
Viv and Gene looked at one another and burst out laughing as he took her hands and hauled her gently to her feet.
Then holding hands, they ran together to the door.
CHAPTER 12
Mid-morning the next day, Gene knocked on the door of Capt. Moore’s office and entered at his command.
When he did, he paused for a moment as his eyes met those of Sgt. Maj. Holland sitting in a chair in front of the desk. He saluted both men and stood awaiting further orders.
“At ease, Sergeant,” the captain said, returning the salute and motioning with one hand, “Have a seat.”
Gene swallowed uncomfortably and cast a glance at the sergeant to his left. The sergeant major smiled, encouraging him with a wave to be seated. “Relax, Sergeant Banks. This is just a ‘put our heads together’ meeting.” The man’s smile told Gene that the sergeant major hadn’t changed his mind from the evening before; that he didn’t intend to have him reprimanded for punching Hendricks in the mouth.
“I wanted to get Sergeant Holland in the loop on this investigation and get his ideas,” the captain explained.
Gene gave a nod and relaxed in his chair.
“I’ve been doing a bit of investigating myself, Banks,” Sgt. Maj. Holland began. “I think the culprit may suspect we’re closing in, because none of my supply rooms, nor the warehouse, has reported any more discrepancies since the initial ones were found. The Captain said that you saw something while on stakeout last Saturday?”
Gene sat a bit straighter in his chair. “Yes, sir. I was hiding out across from the entrance when a jeep pulled up. A man and woman got out, went over to the doors, and talked a bit. I could tell the woman was wearing a nurse’s uniform and I could see the man pointing and gesturing. I admit, however, that I was too far away; I couldn’t see them clearly enough to identify them, just hair color, height, etc., and I couldn’t hear anything they said. But I knew that neither one had any business being at the doors of the warehouse at 2:00 AM. Other than that, however, they didn’t do anything suspicious enough.”
The captain nodded and shuffled through some papers, picking one up and remarking, “This is a list of everyone the MP’s stopped or saw with a jeep that night, and I’m having them check into alibis now. I think we should have things narrowed down in a matter of days.” He handed Gene the list and as he scanned it, his eyes widened just a bit when he came to one name. However, he quickly squelched the reaction.
Before Gene could ask if the captain was going to assign him to stakeout duty again that evening, the man said, “Sergeant Holland has ordered one of his men to watch the warehouse tonight, Banks, in case you were about to ask. You have the weekend free.” Gene grinned in spite of himself and then the captain added, “Oh, and I understand from Sergeant Holland that you and the sergeant who bunks with you had a bit of an altercation at his party last night…over a certain young junior hostess from the USO in town. Miss Powell, I believe is her name?”
Gene’s heart instantly began hammering in his chest. Oh no, here we go… The captain could, of course, override Sergeant Holland’s decision to forgo his reprimand, and that could very well bring a grinding halt to his promotion. Well…whatever happens, he’ll just have to accept it and go on.
He moistened his lips. “Yes, sir.”
The captain moved his papers to the side and picked up a file, which he opened and read several items while Gene began to sweat. He had dreaded going back to his room the night before, knowing another confrontation was a given, but his “roommate” hadn’t been there. The idiot had disobeyed a direct order and had not confined himself to quarters! Idly, Gene wondered if the fool had gone AWOL.
Finally, Capt. Moore glanced up and met Gene’s eyes. “Sergeant Hendricks will be moving his belongings to his new quarters…after his forty-eight hours in the stockade are up, that is. The MP’s stopped him for blowing right through a stop sign in a jeep last night, nearly made them run off the road. They escorted him to the lockup. Just to let you know, so you wouldn’t report him as being AWOL.”
Gene barely stopped himself from gasping in relief. “Yes, sir.”
“That’s all, Banks. You’re dismissed.” The captain smiled with a bit of a glimmer in his eyes and added, “Enjoy your liberty.”
“Thank you, sir!” Relief shot through his body as Gene climbed quickly to his feet and gave each man a salute, his wide grin impossible to contain.
As he walked out the door and placed his garrison cap back on his head, he didn’t see the two older officers in the room grinning and shaking their heads in total understanding.
“Welcome again, Sergeant. You’re becoming a regular,” the girl at the door said with a friendly smile. Her eyes seemed to be brimming with some kind of secret knowledge and he wondered if she was one of Viv’s friends.
Gene winked at the girl, paid his quarter, and moved on into the club. The atmosphere was alive with the music of Johnny Burkhart and his orchestra playing You’re a Sweet Little Headache. Gene chuckled and shook his head as he made his way inside. Wonder what Viv would do if I called her that? Nah, I wouldn’t do that, ’cause she’s not a headache. She’s an angel. He quickly scanned the large, already packed room, and finally spotted her right in the middle – and she saw him at the same time. She smiled and lifted her head in a nod as he waved.
He moved to the side and just let his eyes feast on her. She was wearing a new dress – at least, new to him. And man, did she look great in it. It was periwinkle blue with a big square white lace collar and a wide, twirl-able skirt – which at the moment was twirling to beat the band. Gene’s face moved into a grin from ear to ear. That little minx, she’s showing off for me. Look at her go. She and her partner for the time being, a tall skinny sailor in dark blue bell-bottoms and a white “gob hat” were swinging up a storm. Viv was shimmying, whirling, spinning, and moving her feet, keeping up with every move the sailor made. Every time the sailor swung her out, she would face Gene and fling her hand up in the air in a cute little wave. He chuckled and tipped his head back in acknowledgment.
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Soon, the dance was over, and Gene pushed off the wall, heading toward his girl. However, it was the Andrew Sisters’ rousing version of Bounce Me Brother with a Solid Four, and when he reached Viv, she put her hand up to his chest and teasingly shook her head. “Sorry, Sergeant. I have you penciled in for the next slow song.”
At first, he was a bit taken back, but then quickly realized she was right – it was so much better if they could dance cheek to cheek.
He bowed gallantly to another soldier who had come up to ask her, and stepped back joining those on the sidelines. The man grinned his thanks and took Viv’s hand as they started Jitterbugging to the fast, crazy song. When that one ended, the band followed it immediately with Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree. Viv gave him a sweet smile and a shrug, wiggling her fingers at him when another sailor snatched her hand and swung her into the dance with him. For Gene, it was getting a bit old to be watching and not participating. She was just too darn fetching.
Ahh, then finally, the song came to a close, and the opening strains of I Know Why, And So Do You began. Gene wasted no time in getting to Viv’s side as she politely turned down a private with, “Sorry soldier, this one belongs to him.”
Gene took her in his arms, matching his cheek to hers, and let out an exaggerated sigh of relief. “Man oh man, I thought I’d never get to do this!”
Viv giggled and let him glide them along to the lovely tune. “I was beginning to wonder myself.”
They were silent for a few lines, but Gene hummed a few bars, whisper-singing the line about her smiling at him and him hearing gypsy violins.
“Did you get in any trouble from last night?” Viv asked softly as they swayed to the music.
Gene smiled and shook his head gently. “Nah.” Then he remembered his soon-to-be-ex-roommate and added, “Hendricks did, though – the stockade for forty-eight hours. Then he’s moving to other quarters.”