Forward, Children!

de, the ivy climbing its brick walls. He guessed the tower might be 12th century. The clock face was of bronze and brass. The time was 8:10

those goddamn hedger

Denniso

st from the ancient bricks and mortar, the big clock leaned, crumpled, its gears protruded, a hand tore off, brass inlay twisted,

s, feeling that he had seen ti

eloped streets. With another glance at the base of the clock tower, Dennison leaned against his tank and witnessed the destruction as wave after wave o

eath? Where was man's dignity? His sanity? Landel had a broad grin on

ing to them for years: fucking around with their

the war was dra

. what a s

his tank against opposition: kill. He wished he cou

ges. The blades gleamed in the bombed sun. Zinc's face shone, clean and fresh: after several days of good food and sleep he appeared rested. Th

t that pretty town ... listen ... listen. Ah, there goes a rou

began dickering with the carburetor, adjusting it to a faster, more dependable i

d V-8, good hors

oer: tumbled bricks, fallen beams, smashed glass everywhere: four-by-fours, bent girders, bent pipes, an

me on the port side. Rough terrain had knocked off some of her grousers. Zinc knew how to nurse the Chrysler engine but it drank excess wa

the open turret, feet dangl

. Peeling a stick of gum he chewed it quickly, spitting on the floor, longing for his 18-foo

weather, lie back, drink beer, toss the cans over ... Millie crawlin' over

letter ... job with the county welfare ... what a screwy kid ... beer and m

. Isaac, when you get back, sure ... you'll s

my letter

that dumb town, clean it up proper ... okay, I got the signal ... yeah, I

ontoon bridge across the river: radio reported it should be a routine cros

idge had craters and shell

mplained

idge w

t the bus might keel over on the port side; the motor went sluggish; treads

, that guy's good. Se

rings in the cushion jabbed him and he tried to avoid them by inching to one side. He wanted a drink. He

he remembered the pattern of hedgerows and remembered the route they had to follo

exhausts smoking, GI's streaming past on the starboard, jogging by th

gingerly: he edged to the starboard, increasing his speed

again! Hang on! Nah, have to cut speed ... have to give those guys a chance ...

Landel yelled. "Wat

roached the town, water sloshed acro

floated across the pontoons in front of Dennison. He wallowed through a quagmire at the last pontoon; down she

rrain suppor

ere min

ngineers had had ample time to plant mines, there was no doubt about that: earlier Landel had picked up radio warnings: th

d lost eight tanks to skillfu

und to avoid a pile of rocks a fa

ndel belted th

ka

ool think

e side. The ground held. They climbed toward Bretten. Smoke foamed out of a tree. A shell exploded. Climbing higher, 9 ran into machin

Nazi gunners raked their underbelly it would not be because he was slow: wh

f starboard, a Pers

ot in the smoke he shot low, retracing, raising the

ay ... I've got y

ncreasing, hitting against the white walls, oozing out the ports, clogg

as rigging the tripod, another hoisting the barrel: gun, knapsacks, rifles, and ammunition spun into the air. Machinegun slu

burst

e forces yanking at the treads, hammering at the armor plate, sluggin

dumped their shirts on seats and floor. The sky crackled. The sky flamed. Dennison let th

made him snap open his mouth and hang his

vance, Land

shell hole gaped directly in front; he swung his bus expertly. His mind was numb: he was unafraid: he felt he w

e rubbed then over his trou

l sig

e

ate, watched the gas gauge, the eng

mbs were

dge. Look at those infantrymen retreating ... now we'll cross that plowed field ... other M4's ...

Several houses appeared out of the smoke trap; riflemen fronted one of the house

ed when the ba

ps! He tried to signal Landel but a plunge of the machine almost pitched him ou

n any

Nazi trick, Dennison thought. Then he saw another GI and identified them as Americans. The nearest GI had

o their bus and beat on a forw

s," the GI

el yelled. "

" the serge

ude

at Landel's leg pad

HERS. USE RADIO. MIN

our bus around,"

radio," the s

yelled, rea

ok over the

nd; other tanks grouped around

lking, urinating, smoking: as soon as they could they donned shirts and jackets: the earth,

ed-yellow apple, b

rinned as

tain, have on

or

an apple and fo

l named Jim Moore, ran up, flopping h

he matter with you

not hear him

in

ha

.. mine

re, Jim. Have an apple!" Jim shuffled over, flo

ts!" Lan

d another. Apples ... apples ... we stand around

might have information, instructions. Dennison had climbed inside, and was radioing: perhaps information was

planes ripp

pproached Denn

helmet had been ripped; he carried shirt and jacket

he mine?"

," sai

y tanks

's the

pp

ha

an a

t hea

t d

aret

it ... dan

n his clothes. Squatti

in th

ai

get i

s wait here,"

inside ..

he

le, picked it up, and cleaned it warily. Landel and Dennison settled onto their se

ly, read his wristwatch, and wiped his face with the back of his hand. Grease streaked his jaw. He thought it must be blood till he stare

eidelberg ... we had spent two or three weeks there

ank, began to fling his mind: Landel ... loo

g the Neckar, boats and bridges, chi

that had a heraldic glov

, a slender girl, very blonde, ver

ams

ht Landel

nd passed it

t. No mi

what they're doin'

consulted

hotter so they stripped and climbed and wormed 9 and filed through a woodland and crossed a field. The battle swept around them. Battle without immediate barrage

to see a flock of sp

slope he saw J

you doi

ng toward t

bra

nt: they were sprawled in a maw of bicycles, smashed machi

terday. Last night's rain had soaked the dead men ... their

red as he

mplacement on the next crest, its sandbagged front standing out. Dennison signalled

green, brilliantly green: vaguely, Dennison tried to figure out why the green was different: his brain was too tired to register.

of power b

nd deeper. They were trapped in a runoff, a swampy catch basin--mud and water under tractionless treads. Sweat poured down Dennison's

ed, "we're stuc

andel s

note, Den

over

l scr

e tank. In

and jittery scrawl maddened him; he thought angrily: we can't crawl out of here-

his fac

over the armor plating. Battening their ports they checked

ir gunfire, using all of his skill:

bled to the r

odies slapped. Locating their canteen, Dennison passed it to Zinc who drank, cantee

ne gun butt he drowsed, trusting Landel, Captain Fred Landel. If the bastards

were trapped in the

dy else wi

s beat. Ba

tank could d

a requiem

.. what t

as a long

pily, he fingered his automat

ardment seemed to

tower was st

ifted, perceptio

and walked in the fog: that was in Tunbridge (or was it Tunbridge?): that was the night he had slept with Raymonde: the hearth in her room had a Solomon

t hammering soun

nge, Zin

e, to be a

hell rocked the

uttoned his shirt and zippered his jacket and licked his lips and listened: was Landel shouting? Was it dark outside? It seeme

for Dennison, Landel pu

ey'll shoo

the radio ... I ge

r Landel's eye

their rescue: frantically, he clawed

... get help

ey'll cut

turn my gunfire ... w

" Denniso

Land

Dennison

l was

g the gun accurately: there was no return fire when he f

del had mad

to the seat, wond

face was repulsive; his warped bod

estimated that four or five men had done the job: why had they selected this location? The emplacement looked old, a

sle

c w

uns and ate. Cheese, K, chocolate bars. Without tasting anything they ate everything. The radio was out because the battery was low. Water was oozing over the floor: the bus had sunk that far. They had t

elling except i

as c

... yeah, they poked fun at my hair ... Red ... Red ... banter across his dad's grocery counter ... why you little Jew

yourself a job, boy, the sooner the better. Life had been stupid until Millie came along, Mil

teeth and stuck between them and clotted his palate (the bar had thread

e Sunday comics; someday he'd find a 32-footer in the classifieds, Buick engine, cabin good condition, sleeps 4

ening: it was ugly, heavy, a part of the armor

his hairs. He searched with the help of his flash. On his belly the engine scar

the eye of the compass. He swayed, let himself sag, when he

floated on

of wind, whistle of death. Fear had its changes too. Fear was possessive. T

ur genitals crawled inside your body. Your penis crawled

ctu

... turn out your flash ... you've got to get out of that bus ... crawl out ... tell

to the engine and

ay here

sun on the river: The torpedo raced toward Persepolis, sand, Persian sand, sun, flies, flies on the ruined city, flies in the shah's palace: another ruin to the

e building? Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa lay on the floor. Gold was was

ed, he sagged against the wall; then, peering out, he realized the sky was a flame above the empl

d the sand bags

said to Zinc, han

the light from the sky, nothing. Landel ran for it. H

town and the clouds he thought h

k, somebod

he

s La

aited,

ash and fumbled about for their canteen. Shaking its near-

t taste

t's

?" Zin

s light enough for us to se

t Landel?"

with

, let

oor, cap off; Dennison unbolted the turret; as he spun a bo

e any g

gren

the cab. They thought of putting the bus in action. Could be safer than wandering. What

s," said

the dam

helmets: there appeared to be eight or ten, plastered with mud, soppi

Kernie. You

own ... o

power," sa

as

get a battery ... get Mack to help you ... bring

r help, hours ag

achine gun emplac

out ... crew's d

oo

woods ... We'll put your bus on ro

wired a

," said Dennis

placed scraps, logs, branches, replaced the battery, the engine fi

ted toward the rear. Easing the bus forward, on a rise, the water

b, stuck, climbed. With a wild teetering the treads grabbed and rolled away, ro

d beside

he periscop

dial light, they s

. He followed the remains of a paved road. Smoke mushroomed. Instinctively, he wobbled the tank. A shell hole gaped. Then another. A shell careened, spraying shrapnel. The cushion crushed against

w dirt and r

waited, clingin

whined, then b

outed over the port side, another shell at the rear. Something rattled and clanged. Light spat: every aper

like a monkey, something Neanderthalic: he doubled up on the fl

Christ, not to vomit. Opening his mouth over

binson's arms ... dust, all that heat, arms, hands, wrists, arms ... we got away ... we got

he shelling's stopped ... I'll dr

what w

mballe ... they were hacking off her breasts ... they were hacking off her legs ... Do yo

little Renault: he was seriously wounded: nob

urinating o

ould they do? They could do their damnedest and he would go AWOL. But now, n

im it was his duty to figure it out: he must unravel

aned forward and wet his lips with his tongue. Fingers and ar

ying soldiers on the living room floor: he had his troop in line and roll

earted music. The chimes of the library tower struck ten o'clock in solemn notes. A girl was skating with him, Cathy B

was o

eter; the greenish face of the chronometer was trying to say something; he inched forward

, got to estimate ... estimate the damage ... g

gether they left the bus, the air acrid with smoke,

t tread. Plates had been torn out and the entire tread had been folded back like a

ioned Zinc i

oy our maps

ouldn't

not repea

ed them underfoot. Thinking of clips for his automatic he shoved them into hi

," he

ition," Zi

ave

ch ...

Landel's shells; the floor was a mess of

t the l

hts

g expanded inside him: a vague, battered sense of freedom: freedom? He wasn't

s they slogged down a slope: he was sorry for his Isaac Jacobs, so small, so vulnerable

were sometimes useless. They thought they remembered a farm house and argued about it, then stumbled on, uncertain. Seeing lights they b

ear: shellfire had blasted the small, gothic thing: its altar was a contrivance of boards and tarp and cross. They entered through a gapi

neck bandaged, face drawn, hand to his mouth, his beard peppe

d hoped Lan

rubbed his hands over his jacket, unsteady, hating his grime: he smelt his own

ng down. The beautiful window had died. Coleman lanterns sputtered on tables, pews, ledges. Dennison and Zinc headed for

neck injury paining him. "What'

etless, his filthy face and clothes a

ked at Lande

pattered; he raised an arm, stopped, resentful of his cr

me..." Why should I make excuses: c

e for," Den

st walk off

t in mothballs

k a long l

. we lost a trea

iling, knowing that sleep was goi

other machine,"

down on it, moaning. Far off, he heard Dennison say something ab

a cockroach was busy ... there had been swarms of cockroaches in Panama, cockroaches,

g a word, nine of them at a table made out of a door, an army cook doling grub: the men

he handle was forming a half circle. Something peeled off in his mind: he felt he was at home: the fork had a "D" on it: Mama was

church, most of the

. if it ain't D

... Hi,

had participated in attacks with Dennison, always helpful: both were New Yorkers,

guys make out

st our

9

was biting a se

out the minefie

" said Vic, squeezing

e tanks?" ye

't know how many..." Elbows on the table he covered his

. they know they're licked but they make us fight on and on. Dumb. All that waste of life." He picked

eutenant at the table. "We

street fighting

n't k

inc, liking his cup of cof

ng their towns as they

hem on the r

n officer was asleep over his food; medics

iding the wounded, a GI on guard, in case of fire. Soon every sag in the hay and straw slept a man. A sergeant ha

and hovered: toward morning there was a lull and during that lull water began to spread throughout the church. Someone thought it was the rain ... but it was not r

. no, it ain't rainin' ... maybe it poured somewhere ne

of the church and it seemed to be inches deep: as the guard stood on th

what

oding," the

the church the guard began waking men, asking everyone to spread the word: already the water was ankle deep. T

hubbub wok

ooded out," som

on wok

igher on the pile of straw and hay; putting o

e do

tsi

at

ybody

ost

gettin'

flooded straw to wake him: he woke with

opened steel flood gates up the river ... the Roer

men lay: the swift moving water carried straw, h

shlights!" so

the l

guy a

d the church ... ever

uating GI's o

gh the rising flood, its black-out lights weak. Shelling had resumed but it was in the distance.

ngster who had a serious stomach laceration: he got

ot me bad ... Eeee ... not hard, D

very savage, told the tan

rdedly at the ceiling as the doctor gave him an injection: he had

or ambulance," the doctor suggested

cured stret

and the two-way sputtering began as officers conferred by the tarpaulined a

ng through muck. Lifting it, he recognized it as the stray the officer had been holding. The collie pup's belly and paws were

hole area is flooded ... hell ... You an' me an' Landel are to transport wounded guys

. in the

gonna do

the church ...

e or two wide in p

the tank is--the

... I

ch, he placed the pup on a pew. "Gotta go, old

nd the church: a ditch drenched them to the knees: swearing, they floundered ahead, p

her!" Zi

ka

tor: the cab was jammed with wounded, some standing, leaning

ennison asked Lande

et's pull out of this goddamn place ... lights out ... we leave the wounded at a Red Cross station ... (he jabbed the map

rying to familiarize himself with the Lee: he had piloted others but this one was different and he wanted to work out any differences; the engine pow

t was

well: no flooding here. Beyond this slope there was supposed to be a road; he was to follow t

leg. "It's my knee ... shrapnel ... Aaah-hhh!" Pain-sobs gushed out

your knee,

to position, re-bandage. Dennison crouched beside him, using his flashlight: again and ag

omehow he managed to find room, his face rain streaked, satchel in hi

andel s

k

e bus: pain, from his neck wo

e Red Cross

ex

rass waving in the rain: some of the barrels were moulded: the road curved in a long curve; there, at the

d a jack under

hey climbed out; Landel climbed back into heat, b

ce to move around. Landel, making every effort to shake his pain, hanging to the sides of his seat, was remembering Pana

boomed i

ecting shoelaces of black smoke; as he drew nearer

came th

and wet his lips with his tongue

a lot of tall gr

want

ls ... the Lee rolled and rolled again ... they passed under trees ... they passed a giant barn with two cows visible in a sta

t the guys who had burned

x

was rain

gged windmill was

losed his eyes and hung on, worried

ack over his shoulder. Girders jabbed out of ripped apartments. Burning beams

men sniped from

," Landel

ed its windows and wall: the bow seemed to be raiding for meat and potatoes. Gunfire shredded the gla

lemen

et, trees alo

e up to a counter and order a loaf of whole wheat..."four center-cut

nted Gex? What would the USA do with Ge

y?" he yelled

he tank; other GI's spewed from an aperture left by a shell; Denni

eted floor, clothes on wardrobe hangers, a toilet ... on a brass plate: Dr. H

in the doorway w

arpshooters ...

er garbage in an alley, saw a piece of sky, a

an dragging a wounded comrade, both crawling on hands and knees: the wounded man seemed to be shouting:

sluggishly, as if running out of gas, and Dennison worked the choke. As he glanced through the periscope he noticed the GI walking on the sidewalk, swinging one arm, talking as he

on rev

th sides, he saw something drop from a second floor--a mat

second floors machine guns raked a GI patrol,

s whipped arou

o longer

to clear, Dennison moved along the street where machine gunners were mounting their gun in a building

r attacks was returning, muddle

ow: stop: not any more: not any more: Gex is a ruin:

l drink, remembering the apple

walking alo

get off t

at are you

you he

rist,

and wet his lips

med. Zinc fell. Landel grabbed hold of Dennison and beat him with his fists, the pain in his wou

u? What's wrong with

d: he could not understand why the Lee was out

deafness, he h

you ram t

wh

you hit t

ted for seve

know what

into this wa

nt bl

lone!" Zin

!" Lande

.. that's all,"

ers, their guns silent, the enemy nowhere. Stopping at a barricaded intersection, where trees had fa

benches and crushed benches, paths that stopped suddenly: a small bronze figure was still upright under branche

Dennison a

d you g

.. I

some i

mm

your

an

it,

inned b

the wound: all of the time he felt the fresh air on his face and realized he was breat

bandage i

. like

ay

but awfu

to

e's L

for

A

later,

rry Millie wh

Dennis

thi

d them water

some ... i

drank, then it went

t," Land

nod

gilded wallpaper, ormolu furniture, golden carpet. Before falling asleep, Zinc washed and scrubbed with perfumed soap in a basin painted with forget-me-nots. In his sleep he thought of his boat, an

in from the emergency kit, then he added codeine, a double dose in the night

n his mattress, under the layers of drapery: his sub

re snow this year tha

as played back a

dream a man

tte ...

lue scarf around her head: her eyes were marvelously blue: she was smil

," he sa

is jacket. Putting it on, he climbed back into bed, and pulled the

inued to figh

mas was de

Ti

radual curve sliding into another. Telephone lines, on stubby poles, wan

Yardley soap, the rasp of his razor. Maybe, someday, somewhere

he left lane. Heat boiled on its endless tread; noise rushe

usky outfielder, smart, good-natured, with a shock of black

by Dennison's skill and recklessness. His eyes glistened; there was a silly grin on his face; he wanted to be

ward to a ghastly jolt. For several weeks he had been sneaking off, drinking heavily, talking little: he was involved in the art of decep

time at PM, signalling

ght, he doesn't le

the Roer River, Landel was often violent, word and action. He o

meone else," Dennison told

n't cracked up yet! We'll wrangle

as losing speed: he was far to th

d to himself. "If you go slower,

rmor was rust colored, mud and grease smeared, but somebody, at a depot or relay point, had slapped on yell

aved driveway. He was out of his mind. Perhaps not. Dennison had Jeannette's note--dirty and crumpled--in his billfold. Had it for days, unable to reply. Where was he to get it mail

ter

ce on one tread, race on one; then the highway shoulder crumbled and the bus spun over and over into a gravelled di

Landel's arm, and shook it. "She'll catch fire," he bellowed. "Land

elling a

l was

ht, centered her on the road, slowed, and brought her to

face and he wiped it off as

Ben was there: his shoulder injury w

machine guns, cannon, ammunition, t

as alongsi

Zinc and raced for 67, slipping on mud: he dropped the extinguisher but s

bar ... tear open ... let them out! Smoke'

shouted: he realized that PM could not hear

e was ballooning; the Pyrenes were whitening the smoke. Using all his strength he wrenched off the bar a

d, and a great cloud of white smoke, she flopped onto her side. A

67, to force a hatch. Somebody might be there, rea

d: there was less smoke: he struggled to breathe: probably they were dead: Carson, Ben,

the forward ports. Sweat drenched his hands and face. He gripped the bar tighter and

forward ... hit closer t

oke blew away he looked about and saw that nobody was using

starboard door ... I'll hac

n and it gave a hair. He hit it again with every ounc

ay: hurling himself against the bar, the lock

ps, he threw the

moke, crawled

k, Dennison watched them, unseeing, unmoving: glad to be away from 67. He want

nothing anybody can d

dead: they've been dead for ... it's d

ver," h

en said he was going to get wel

as a nic

m the one and

ed and walked about and we

nnison. He waved his fire extinguisher at 67. "They'r

ly understood

the acid of burning rubber, the force of fear ... Presently

ri

red a little idiotic without his helmet, his hair going every which way, but he smil

the shoulder: the sun was ugly in a salve-like cloud: in a wo

the last tanks to pull up,

ank ... did you

N

d over ..

by a

ned

cam

're incinerated to nuthin' ... clothes all

been a truck crash, the cab catching fire--this same incineration. In spite of that vivid Ohio memory he wanted a glimpse of Arthur--no matter how charred. Ar

... maybe that caused 'er to

ay

it he scrutinized the woodland, the intervening fi

ury our guys,"

ni said, filling his pipe, shaking

already." Fools for sentiment. "We've got to shove out of h

reminded him of his father before they imprisoned him:

f did not have much to say: his brown, middle-aged face expressed great chagrin: m

er," he said to Landel.

see her

one tread ... drop to the shoulder ..

ed the Colon

ere ...

binocular int

hose trees ... they're readying a mor

ring, calling

ybody ... into the ta

he time Fraser had spotted the m

to roll. He and his sta

o the driving seat. He permitted himself time for a long, long swig: water was incredible. When you'

Wehrmacht!" L

s and wrists, rolled

h luck!" Den

o!" Land

raced ahead; in an instant Dennison passed 67; as they roared

ept the bus at thirty, leery of potholes, treads rolling in

, we didn't get

owbarring had been rough! Well, here was one up for Fred Landel, old eagl

read 8

on muttered th

" Zinc

Olpe lie

s: pulped houses, streets galled and scrambled, downed trees, power pl

he drove past them, that some of the men had been riding motorcycl

n read

ld, went

ick. Goat's milk tastes strong. The desert is yellow in places, streaked, a

the autobahn, raced the tank, v

t assembling an

t he could th

acutely: he felt the drag of the cr

morrow, lame in

teaubriand ... she had read Atala to him, dwelling on the most melancholy passages ... Atala's burial ...

he crewmen as they climbed out, parked to grab some air: the town was dead: alone, on a slab of masonry, Dennison res

o seep out of his brain, wanted some

bombed town than never alone! Better to die

s B-29 was a reconnaissance plane circling lower and lower: the bomber was

were swaying, drifting. A black column headstoned the crash site. Dennison jumped from the garbage pile and informed some of the crewmen. At once s

, lying behind bushes, opened fire with his submachine gun,

e're not Nazis!" shrieked

Some of you bastards talk

ucks a week. Dee is my uncle. I'm in the 321st ... all of us are in the 321st. We just c

eep your hands up!

the tankmen located three more flyers--one with a smashed leg. Someone hacked

looked into Zinc's face: but he was looking at something else: everyone here about the same age, Dennison thought: all trapped. Another kick from death!

ams and plaster: nearly every structure had been shambled. Olpe had been known for its

and led them there: somebody rounded up a medic: Dennison, Zinc, Landel and PM

ut wiring, pulverized bricks and tiles: Dennison walked through the rooms as through a surrealist museum:

od ha

bedded down. Dennison's mind had nothing to tell him so he wriggled underneath the sacking and hunger

od, alcohol, and fatigue. Crouched in a c

Rivas had been fabulous: coco palms in a lush garden, macaws on perches, gardenias floating on the swimming pools

orn in on the black market graft: army supplies, PX supp

s sno

ing to be proud of: muscles were jerking around his mouth: he rubbed the muscles halfheartedly: closing his eyes he tried to think of home but home had not existed for a long time. Mom had been dead

ntful: food began arriving in the early hours: the old walls hear

wishing to talk about his past: most of all he simply wanted to talk. Drags on his Luckies helped. He found a blanket. That helped. With Dennison lying

: fog had seeped in with a yellowish thickness, a thickness that seemed related to old masonry, old walls and

... Panzers

began to drizzle as the Shermans and Lees grumbled forward; then the drizzle changed to a downpour that sloshed over turret, periscope and viewer.

began in Den

ion from the Maquis ... they were trying to round up the Maquis ... they were ... Fritzes ...

least there is something to eat the

e doesn't know how to drive ... funny, Zinc squatting there, as

them past an artillery battery: 88's, 102's and 4.2 mortars were snorting over. General Jake M

y been dire

here were no

bombers w

sputtering m

and gas up, time to urinate, time to drink, t

e straightened a picture on the wall; he listened to the punch of shell

chool, had b

f you know anything special about Siberia? Can you

was it before the Romans? Have schools stopped war? Nobody through all those centuries has ha

ned to the con

ction, someb

ti

goi

ka

ka

settled into the driving seat, checked the controls, thinking fast, confident. Landel gave

hed PM, and t

ind was fastened

r tanks in front. Smoke gnarled the sky. They were in a section of Morb, streets, houses. Port side a shell exploded

e, through a tunnel, Nazis rushed toward 248. They bunched. They fell. Some retr

to account for each man, firing PM's gun: he shouted and fired, shout

own, fo

an improvement on

clos

ple, Greeks, Russians, a cloud, a room, Jeannette, children's face, a cactus in a steamy c

ircling,

l shoo

ed his shoulder on the gun butt: he was angry an

caping, doz

dled a closed door: he chipped off stucco: he fired into a pine tree

at concrete slab!

d not

e tracks

signall

atering from th

heat almost overwhelmed the crew as they worked over him,

down for a count of ten! No,

he aske

ch gas

art

s uncertain, eyes uncertain, w

io had

ck he s

a

er

ailer with a huge camouflage net ... Dennison and Zinc found a patch of grass in front

wed a gr

all right

uh

es all

d," said

e to see

h ... n

oo

oo

ette creasing his mouth: he was no longer in Morb but was tacking

e out of his pocket he scraped grease from his nails, from his fingers: who was that freckled guy, w

men with a flame thrower had gutted a tank: 248's guns destroyed the thrower in a giant swoosh of flames: on the margin of hi

rt

Landel's

tle, Dennison wet his