Chapter 44
"The floorshow seems to be over now. They're breaking up
their little act and going their separate ways, although they
seem to know what they're doing. Here come some of
them down the trail carrying an unwieldy looking object. It
might be a field piece of sorts, but it seems
rather elongated. Hell no, it's not a gun, it's a. . ."
You pause while your mind attempts to grasp what your
eyes are telling it. "It's a boat! It's an assault
craft! Just like the ones we use for river crossings
and stuff.". . ."Great God! Why in heaven's name. . ."
mmmThe captain's
voice drops off, then comes back strong and rapid. "I've
got it! I see it all now. They're going down
to the water, probably at a point between beaches Red
and Blue, and will launch an amphibious attack. They'll sneak
up behind us and land exactly where we did and
try to cut us off from the rear. They'll do
everything possible to look like a bunch of Americans from
the shore, so they won't arouse any suspicion. Naturally, they
won't be fired on because our men are coming in
all the time. Oh, my aching ass! How could we
have been so dumb? That's why they made things so
easy for us. Listen. Can you see how many boats
they have?". . ."I don't know. I counted four already, but
they're jammed up one behind the other all along the
trail. Some of the men are carrying small outboard motors
and others are lugging rubber containers made buoyant
mmmwith balsa
floats, which will probably be used to send supplies in
to shore. There are about twenty men assigned to every
boat, and at least one of them has a flame
thrower. As far as I can determine, each unit is
under the command of an officer, and more of an
effort is being made toward jungle discipline: They've
mmmquieted down quite
a bit and apparently expect to achieve complete surprise.". . .
You hear a strangled distortion over the telephone and then
silence. "Did you say something, Captain?" There is no answer
and your mind is bludgeoned with comprehension. They cut it!
They must have found the wire and snipped it. Get
out of here! Leave the reel and handset behind.
They'll pounce on the area in a minute, if they
haven't got your surrounded already. Egan is watching you
mmmapprehensively.
"They found the wire. Help me get this damned harness
off, will you?" He squirms to your side and together
you unfasten the buckles. Your hands are trembling. Hurry, Hurry.
Over your head now. You shove the telephone equipment into
the bushes. You hear the sound of approaching feet, and
your heart runs down to the cellar of your being
three steps at a time. Frantically you churn through the
leaves and the stems and the thorns and the twining
roots. Which way? Any way, as long as it separates
you from the Japs on the trail and your pursuers
behind you. There's an open stretch ahead. Run across it
and maybe they won't notice you because everybody looks like
an American around here anyhow. But they'll spot Egan. He's
tall. Oh, Christ, what a time to be tall. Your
legs are free and they catapult you into the clearing.
There is a yell and you hear a shot and
the high-pitched whirr of a bullet. A vine cracks you
across the face, but your sensations are dulled and edgeless
and any feelings you may have are strictly from memory.
So much of your past still lies ahead of you.
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