Carl was inside his bunk to sleep off his hangover.
Trevor spent the morning walking around the flightline.
He walked up to his Corsair, where Staff Sergeant Buddy Bourne, with a Marine Corps emblem tattoo on his forearm, checked out the engine.
“Is she okay?” Trevor asked Buddy.
Buddy turned around and saw Trevor. “You must be one of the new pilots?” Buddy asked.
“Yeah. Trevor Walker and this is my plane,” he said, then stuck out his hand.
“I’m Buddy Bourne, your mechanic, and she’s in great shape. I’ll make sure she’s kept that way,” Buddy replied while shaking Trevor’s hand.
“Thanks,” Trevor said, then walked off and looked at the other mechanics who worked on the other planes.
Later that day, Trevor met Ben, Carl, and Henry for lunch at the chow tent.
Carl leaned over to Ben’s ear to talk privately. “Why is he playing ball?” he asked quietly after hearing the news from one of the other officers.
Ben ignored Carl’s question, which pissed him off, and he stormed away.
An hour after lunch, the Fireballs and the Raiders met in a field fifteen feet from the ocean. They found huge leaves for the bases and home plate. Since most of the Marines didn’t have baseball gloves, they shared.
The Fireballs took to the field. Ben was in left field.
Trevor was in center field. Carl was in right field. Dave was the third baseman. Kurt was the shortstop. Henry was the second baseman. Hall was the first baseman. Larry Moore was the pitcher, and Greg Pitt was the catcher.
Colonel Weaver is the umpire, so there are no arguments with his calls.
A bunch of enlisted Marines walked over to the side of the field to watch the game.
Mike Booth walked up to the plate with a bat. He got into position and took a couple of practice swings. He stared at Larry to signal that he was ready to play ball.
Larry wound up and threw the ball.
Mike whacked it to the left field just over the shortstop’s head.
Ben ran toward the shortstop and got under the ball. He caught it and threw it back to Larry.
Fred Harvey walked up to the plate and stood in position.
Larry threw the ball. Fred whacked it for a grounder that went past the first baseman and out to the right field.
Carl got in position and caught the ball. He threw the ball to Hall, but Fred made it to first base.
Hall threw the ball back to Larry.
Gary Reid walked up to the plate and took a couple of practice swings. Larry threw the ball when Gary was ready. Gary whacked it for a grounder to Henry.
He caught it, immediately ran over, touched second base, and then threw it to Hall, but they missed the double play.
“Out!” Weaver yelled.
George Watson walked up to the plate, immediately got in position, and looked mean like Ty Cobb. Larry threw the ball, and George whacked it to center field.
Trevor got nervous when he knew it was coming at him, and he ran towards the ball but went too far. The ball went over his head and landed 20 feet behind him.
“Trevor, you idiot,” Carl yelled out, running over to the ball at the same time Ben ran over.
Ben got to the ball first and threw it to Henry. The ball arrived too late as Gary ran fast and made it to third base.
“You’ll get them next time,” Ben told Trevor to make him feel better.
Then Harold Bateman came to the bat and immediately got into position. Larry threw the ball at Harold.
Harold whacked a grounder between the third baseman and shortstop.
Ben ran from left field and caught the grounder. But it was too late as Gary made it home, and Harold made it to first base.
Ben threw the ball back to Larry.
Eric Moody walked up to the plate and took a couple of practice swings. Larry threw the ball when Eric was ready at the plate.
Eric whacked it for a high-fly ball to center field. Ben ran over and got under the ball, and he caught it.
The Fireballs ran off the field while the Raiders took to the field, where they exchanged gloves.
Henry walked up to the plate and took a couple of practice swings. Then he got in position, ready to bat the ball.
Fred was the pitcher, did his windup, and threw the ball.
Henry whacked the ball, and it was a grounder between the shortstop and the second baseman.
The Fireballs at the sideline cheered while Henry raced and made it to first base.
Carl walked up to the plate and immediately got into position. Fred threw the ball at Carl.
Carl whacked the ball out to the mid-left field, and it was missed by the outfielders.
Henry ran to second base, and Carl made it to first base.
Kurt walked up to the plate and got in position. Fred threw the ball, and Kurt whacked it for a pop-up to the shortstop, and it was caught.
“One out!” Weaver yelled.
Kurt walked back, disappointed in his teammates. “That’s okay, Kurt,” Carl called out.
Dave walked up to the plate and got in position.
Fred threw the ball, and Dave whacked it for a pop-up to the third baseman, who caught the ball.
“Out!” Weaver yelled out.
Ben walked up to the plate.
“Ben, Ben, Ben,” chanted half of the Fireballs.
Ben got in position and was ready. Fred threw the ball, and Ben whacked it for a grounder past the third baseman. The left fielder raced up and caught the grounder. He noticed the bases were loaded and threw it back to the pitcher.
Trevor walked up to the plate, a little nervous.
“Bring us home,” Carl yelled out from second base. Trevor looked nervous while he glanced over at Ben on first base.
Trevor got in position, and Fred threw the ball. Trevor swung at the ball and missed.
“Strike one,” Weaver yelled out.
The catcher threw the ball back to Fred.
Fred wound up and threw the ball at Trevor.
Trevor swung at the ball and missed.
“Strike two,” Weaver yelled while the catcher threw the ball back to Fred.
Fred did another windup and threw the ball.
Trevor swung at the ball and missed again.
“Strike three! Batter’s out!” Weaver yelled.
Trevor looked embarrassed when he dropped the bat at the plate. He walked out to the field where Ben.
“You’ll get them next time,” Ben said with a pat on Trevor’s shoulder.
Then, while Ben walked over to the center field. Carl walked up to Trevor.
“Who the hell taught you how to play baseball? Your mother?” Carl asked, then ran off to the right field.
Ben heard Carl and glared at him. “Leave him alone, Carl.
It’s only a game,” Ben yelled out.
“You would never teach me, Grandpa Carl,” Trevor replied under his breath while walking off to the center- field, where his glove waited on the ground.
The game continued for another hour.
Ben made some great plays and whacked in six runs.
Carl made some excellent plays and whacked in two runs.
Trevor struck out three more times. He hit the ball once, and it was a short pop-up to the pitcher who caught it.
Trevor also missed all the hits that flew out to the center field. The Raiders were beating the Fireballs by one run.
Ben paced amongst his teammates while Trevor walked up to the plate.
“Okay, Trevor, we need two runs to beat them. I know we can do it,” Ben called out.
Carl was on third, and another runner was on second base.
“We have two outs, so don’t screw this up, Trevor!” Carl yelled out.
Trevor looked nervous while he got in position at the plate.
Fred wound up and threw the ball.
Trevor looked determined while the ball zoomed at him.
He whacked the ball and stood in shock for making that hit, a fly ball way out to the center field.
Trevor looked so proud of himself while he ran to first while the outfielder missed the ball.
Carl rounded third.
Then, the sound of airplanes filled the air.
Everybody immediately stopped and looked fearful at the sky because they all knew they didn’t have any missions up in the air today.
They all looked toward the ocean and saw six Zero’s that raced over to the island 100 feet off the water.
“Take cover!” Weaver yelled out.
They all scattered to the nearby jungle.
The Zeros fired their machine guns and strafed the field.
Bullets zinged all around the field, killing four Marines who didn’t make it to the jungle in time.
The Zero fired their machine guns at the rest of the Marines while they ran into the jungle.
The Zeros banked and ascended to the right, then flew away. Inside the jungle, Ben, Carl, Trevor, Kurt, Dave Henry, and some other Marines lay low amongst the vegetation.
“I need five guys to get those bastards. Who’s going to join me?” Asked Ben.
Carl, Henry, Dave, and Kurt raised their hands, indicating they would help Ben.
Ben looked at Trevor and gestured for him to join the action.
Trevor looked nervous about going on this mission.
“I know you can do it, Trevor,” Ben said with a tone of confidence.
“He’s too chicken,” Carl said and followed with a chicken sound.
Trevor debated in his mind while Ben gave him pleading eyes. He raised his hand, feeling brave.
“I hope you won’t freeze again,” Carl said.
“Stay off his back. He’ll do just fine,” Ben snapped at Carl, and then he gave Trevor a look of confidence.
Hall scooted over to them while the sound of Zeros was closer, and more machine gun was heard shooting up the base.
“What the hell are you guys planning?”
“We’re going after those Zeros before they return for more,” Ben said.
Hall looked at the determination in their eyes. “Go get the bastards,” he affirmed.
Everybody watched while Ben, Carl, Trevor, Henry, Kurt, and Dave raced through the jungle toward the flightline.
After a few minutes on the flight line, Ben, Carl, Trevor, Henry, Kurt, and Dave raced to their Corsairs while the Zeros flew around and headed back to the airstrip.
Three Zeros dove at the B-25 bombers on the flightline, and they fired their machine guns and riddled the bombers with bullet holes.
The three other Zero’s dropped bombs on some other B-25s, and they exploded into a fireball.
Ben, Carl, Trevor, Henry, Kurt, and Dave quickly climbed up and entered their Corsairs. They started their engines while the Zeros ascended, banked to the left, and then headed out to the ocean.
The six Corsairs taxied to the end of the runway.
Ben’s Corsair took off down the runway and was soon airborne.
Carl’s Corsair took off down the runway and was soon airborne.
Trevor’s Corsair took off down the runway and was soon airborne.
Kurt’s Corsair took off down the runway and was soon airborne.
Dave’s Corsair took off down the runway and was soon airborne.
All six Corsairs raced in formation at 4,000 feet after the six Zeros, which were 5,000 feet above them.
From inside his plane, Ben saw the Zeros ahead at their 2
o’clock position.
“Okay, Fireballs, it’s revenge time,” Ben called into the radio net.
Inside his plane, Trevor looked nervous while he flew in formation.
“I know you can do it, Trevor,” Ben said from the radio net. Trevor smiled and became brave, seeing Ben wave at him from his plane near his left wing.
The six Corsairs ascended up after the Zeros.
Ben had one of the Corsairs in sight and fired his machine guns. Smoke poured out of that Zero, dove down, and then crashed into the ocean.
“One down, guys,” Ben said from the radio net.
The other Zero’s scattered off in different directions for safety.
The rest of the Corsairs each picked a Zero and gave chase.
Carl had a Zero in his gun sights. He fired his machine guns and watched while the Zero smoked and dove down to the ocean.
Carl banked his plane to the right and ascended off into the sky. “I finally got me another one,” Carl called out from the radio net.
“Good job,” Ben replied from the radio net.
Kurt had a Zero in his gun sights. He fired his machine guns and saw the Zero smoke, which then spun down to the ocean and crashed.
“I got one,” Kurt called out from the radio net.
Kurt banked his plane to the right and ascended.
In all the excitement, Trevor lost sight of the Zero he was chasing. While he craned his neck to locate this Zero, some bullets hit his plane. “I’m hit! I’m hit!” Trevor called out from the radio in a panic. He looked at his instruments, and everything appeared to be healthy.
“He’s coming back after you, Fireball Fourteen,” Ben called out from the radio net.
Trevor looked all around the sky and couldn’t see the plane.
“I don’t see him,” Trevor called out in a panic from the radio net. From Ben’s Corsair, he saw the Zero while it chased after Trevor’s plane. “I’ll get him Fireball Fourteen,” Ben said from the radio net.
Ben dove after Zero while Trevor makes evasive maneuvers to keep Zero from getting his gun sights on Trevor’s plane.
Trevor heard more bullets hit his tail section. He looked at his instruments, and everything still looked normal.
Ben got the Zero in his gun sights and fired his machine guns. The Zero smoked and spun out of control while diving into the ocean.
“I got him, Fireball Fourteen. You’re safe. Is your plane flyable?” Ben asked from the radio net.
Trevor did a barrel roll with his Corsair. “She’s fine,”
Trevor said when he emerged from the roll.
From inside his plane, Carl saw Ben’s Corsair down below.
He looked around, and no other planes were in sight. Then he saw a Zero race after Ben’s Corsair and got an evil smirk. “You have one coming after you, Fireball Ten,” Carl called out in the radio net. “I’ll help,” Carl added.
Carl raced after the Zero that chased after Ben’s plane. Carl had Ben’s plane in his gun sights.
Inside Trevor’s plane, he had that Zero going after Ben in his gun sights, and he fired his machine guns.
The Zero smoked and dove down to the ocean, then crashed.
Trevor did another barrel roll to celebrate his victory. “I got him for you, Ben,” Trevor said while coming out of the barrel roll.
“Thanks, buddy,” Ben replied from the radio.
Then Trevor flew over and got next to Carl’s Corsair.
From inside his plane, Carl had Ben’s Corsair in his gun sights, but then he saw Trevor’s plane flying even with him and got disappointed.
“I’m hit! I’m hit!” Dave cried out from the radio net. “My engine is on fire! I’m going down!” Dave cried out in a panic.
The other Corsair pilots watched while Dave’s plane tumbled to the ocean.
The Zero raced after Dave’s plane.
“I don’t want to die!” Dave cried out from the radio net.
The Zero fired at Dave’s plane again.
From Trevor’s cockpit, he watched when Dave’s plane exploded into a fireball. His eyes welled up, seeing burning pieces of Dave’s airplane floating to the ocean.
He saw the Zero fly away, and without thinking, he raced after the plane.
“Where you going, Fireball Fourteen?” Ben called out from the radio net.
“I’m going after the bastard,” Trevor replied from the radio net. Trevor raced his Corsair after the Zero and caught up with him. The Zero made some evasive maneuvers to keep Trevor off his tail.
Trevor made other evasive maneuvers and stayed with the Zero.
Trevor had the Zero in his gun sights and fired his machine guns. The Zero exploded in a fireball.
Trevor watched while burning pieces of the Zero floated down to the ocean.
“Great job, Fireball Fourteen!” Ben praised Trevor. “Let’s head home,” Ben added from the radio.
All the Corsairs gathered together and flew in formation.
They headed back to Engebi.
Later that day, all five Corsairs landed back at Engebi.
They taxied past the burning B-25s, where numerous Marines tried to extinguish the flames.
They parked their Corsairs and shut down their engines.
They all got out and climbed down their fuselages.
Ben, Carl, Henry, Kurt, and Trevor left their planes.
Ben placed a hand on Trevor’s shoulder. “You did good, Trevor. Didn’t he do a great job, Carl?”
Carl gave a fake smile. “Yeah, he was a true ace,” he mocked.
Henry and Kurt nodded in agreement while they walked past damaged and destroyed Corsairs.
Trevor looked proud, then sad. “Poor Dave,” Trevor said.
“I know. Some good men are losing their lives here,” Ben replied with a comforting tone.
Hall ran up to the guys. “Did you get them?”
“Yep. There are six fewer Japs to worry about,” Ben replied.
Hall smiled. “Great! Weaver wants all the pilots in the briefing tent.”
They all followed Hall to the tents.
Ten minutes later, the briefing tent was packed, and all the pilots waited for Colonel Weaver.
Weaver entered and headed to the front of the tent.
“Attention!” one of the officers yelled out the second he saw Weaver.
Everybody in the ten snapped to attention.
“At ease,” Weaver said, and everybody sat back down.
Weaver walked to the front, where a Marshall Islands map was on a stand.
Weaver looked sad while he stood before the pilots.
“We lost a total of twelve Marines during that earlier raid,”
Weaver told them.
It was a somber mood in the tent.
“Who led the charge after the Zeros?” Weaver asked while looking around the tent at the pilots for an answer.
“Lieutenant Grayson,” a pilot yelled out.
Weaver looked at Ben amongst the pilots. “Who authorized it, Lieutenant Grayson?”
“I did, sir. I didn’t want those nips coming back and killing more Marines. Besides,” they ruined our ball game,” Hall told Weaver.
“The Fireballs were losing anyway,” one of the Raiders yelled.
Everybody chuckled.
“I know. So Ben, did you get all of them?” Weaver asked.
“Yes, sir!” Ben yelled out.
“Good,” Weaver said amongst a round of applause. “But Dave Brooke lost his life,” Trevor yelled out to make sure everybody knew they lost another friend.
The tent got quiet with sadness.
” Dave was a good man,” Weaver said and looked saddened.
Everybody in the tent nodded in agreement.
Then Weaver looked seriously at everybody. “Now, we received some earlier information from intelligence where they intercepted radio transmissions from the Japanese. They believe the Japanese are building a new airstrip somewhere in the Marshall Islands,” Weaver informed everybody.
“Let’s blow the bitch up!” one of the pilots yelled out.
Numerous other pilots cheered in agreement.
“That’s our goal. But first, we need some recon to locate it,” Weaver said.
All the pilots looked determined to win another battle.
“Go get some rest. We’ll start tomorrow. Dismissed,”
Weaver said, and then he walked down the aisle while the pilots stood at attention.
All the pilots left the tent after Weaver was gone.
Back in the Humble Abode, Ben, Carl, Trevor, Kurt, and Henry entered. They walked up to their lockers and removed their flight suits.
Trevor hung his flight suit in his locker. He glanced at the calendar and marked off May 9th on his calendar and counted down the days.
“I have two more days,” he thought, wondering if he would survive.
After they got redressed in another uniform, they all relaxed in their bunks to wind down from this sudden mission.
Ten minutes later, Ben, Trevor, Carl, Kurt, and Henry fell asleep for a nap.
Later that evening, Ben, Carl, Henry, and Trevor went to the chow hall. Tonight’s cuisine was Salisbury steak, mashed potatoes, and corn.
“I’m sorry about my performance during today’s baseball game,” Trevor told everybody.
“We’re not professionals either,” Henry replied.
“My father never had the time to teach me since he was busy with his job,” Trevor said. “Plus, my grandfather won’t take the time either,” Trevor said, glaring at Carl.
“Why are you looking at me?” Carl asked, bothered by Trevor’s glance.
“Don’t worry. I’ll give you some pointers. It’ll give practice in case I have a son,” Ben told Trevor.
“In case I have a son,” Carl mimicked Ben under his breath in a sarcastic tone.
Trevor liked that his real grandfather gave him some pointers for playing baseball.
Later that night, Trevor walked around the flightline while everybody else slept. He walked up to his plane and looked it over. He walked over to the tail section and saw the numerous bullet holes. Trevor stuck a finger in one of the bullet holes.
“He shot you up pretty good,” Ben said from behind Trevor.
“I’m surprised I wasn’t a goner,” Trevor said when he saw Ben walking up behind him.
“By the way, I talked to Rodney. He’s the one that paints the Jap flags on the planes. I told him to paint three on your plane,” Ben said, then walked Trevor to the cockpit area.
Trevor looked up and saw three Jap flags painted on his plane, indicating he shot down three Japanese planes. But seeing those painted flags didn’t make him feel like a hero.
“I saw Dave die today,” Trevor said with sadness in his eyes.
“Me too, and I saw numerous of my other buddies die also,” Ben said while patting Trevor’s shoulder. “Let’s get some sleep,” Ben added.
They walked away and headed back to the Humble Abode.
Back in the Humble Abode, Carl got up, decided to write Diana a letter, and hoped she would write again.
“Dear Diana, It’s hell here in the South Pacific. We lost another friend today, and his name was Dave Brooke. He volunteered to go on a spur-of-the-moment mission that Ben requested. We decided to go after some Japs after they strafed out a baseball game. How dare anybody interrupt a baseball game! But don’t you worry, Ben is doing just fine, and he’ll have me watching his back while we keep you safe from the Japanese.
Love, Carl,” he wrote in his letter.
He folded the letter sea, led it in an envelope, and wrote down her address. He tossed the letter in his locker and lay down on his bunk.
Ben and Trevor entered the tent and walked to their lockers.
Carl sneered at Trevor while he got undressed to his tee shirt and boxers.
The three fell fast asleep.
The sun rose, and it was May 10th. It was a cloudy day at Engebi.
After their preflight briefing with Colonel Weaver, the Fireballs and the Raiders lined up at the runway.
Then, one after the other, they were airborne within fifteen minutes.
Later that morning, the five Fireballs flew in formation at 8,000 feet over the ocean. Hall was the squadron leader with Ben, Carl, Trevor, Kurt, Henry, Larry, and Greg.
Above and behind them at 12,000 feet were the five Corsairs of the Raiders.
They approached the Ailinginae, Rongelap, and Rongerik islands 50 miles away.
“Okay, Fireballs, it’s quiet without any Zero resistance.
Let’s buzz around the islands and see what we can stir up,” Hall told everybody from the radio net.
“We’ll be ready if any Zero’s come after you,” Fred said from the radio net.
Hall dove his Corsair down to Ailinginae Island.
Ben dove his Corsair after Hall’s plane.
Carl, Trevor, Henry, Kurt, Larry, and Greg dove their Corsairs to Ailinginae.
The beach on Ailinginae looked so peaceful. Then, the roar of the Corsair radial engines was mixed with the waves crashing on the shoreline.
The Fireballs raced over the shoreline 50 feet in the air.
The Fireballs raced over the island 50 feet in the air.
The Raiders flew at 12,000 feet above the island.
The other of Ailinginae was peaceful when the Fireballs raced over the island 50 feet above the deck.
Then, the Corsairs flew back over the ocean and ascended.
The Raiders flew above them at 12,000 feet.
“That island is dead,” Hall called out from the radio net.
“Let’s head to the next one, Fireballs,” Fred said from the radio net.
The Fireballs ascended to 2,000 feet and flew toward the Rongelap Island.
The Raiders followed still at 12,000 feet.
The beach at Rongelap looked so peaceful, with the waves crashing on the shoreline.
An occasional crab scampered out of the water and across the sand.
The Fireballs dove down toward Rongelap Island. They leveled off fifty feet above the water and raced to the shoreline.
The roar of the Corsair engines scared the crabs on the beach, and they scampered back into the water.
The Fireballs raced above the shoreline of Rongelap.
The island looked quiet while the Fireballs raced 50 feet above the jungle.
The Raiders trailed behind, then 12,000 feet up in the air.
The Fireballs flew 50 feet over the other end of the island and ascended.
The Raiders trailed 12,000 feet above the Fireballs.
“Another dead island,” Hall called out from the radio net.
“Hopefully, the other island will produce some results,”
Fred replied from the radio net.
“Okay, guys, let’s hit Rongerik,” Hall said from the radio net. The Fireballs leveled off at 1,500 feet, and they headed to the last island on their mission.
Rongerik Island looked so peaceful.
Then, the roar of the Corsair radial engines ruined the peaceful sounds of the South Pacific when they flew 50 feet above the shoreline.
The Raiders still shadowed the Fireballs 12,000 feet above them.
The Fireballs raced over the jungle at 50 feet. Nothing.
Then, the Fireballs raced over the other shoreline at 50
feet, and the island was quiet.
The Fireballs ascended when they flew over the ocean.
The Fireballs ascended and leveled off at 12,000 feet and joined formation with the Raiders.
“I don’t believe that new Jap airstrip is on these islands,”
Hall said from the radio net.
“I know. Looks like we got some straight and level training today,” Fred replied with a chuckle from the radio net.
“Let’s head back to base,” Hall replied from the radio net.
The Fireballs and Raiders banked and made a 180-degree turn back to Engebi.
Back at Engebi an hour later, the Raiders took turns and landed. The Fireballs took turns landing on the dirt runway.
All ten Corsairs taxied and parked. The flightline was soon quiet again after all ten engines shut down.
Trevor got out of his plane and climbed down.
He walked over to Ben’s plane and waited until he removed his picture from his console. Ben got out, climbed down, and walked over to Trevor.
They walked over to Carl’s plane.
Carl removed his picture from his console and got out of his plane. He climbed down and walked to the front, where Ben and Trevor waited.
Ben, Carl, and Trevor walked away. “That was an easy mission,” Trevor said.
Henry rushed up to them.
“I love flying when I’m not getting shot at,” Henry said while walking alongside them.
“We got lucky today,” Carl replied, disappointed, and he looked like he wanted some action today.
Kurt, Larry, and Greg ran up to the guys.
” Nobody died today,” Greg said.
Then Corporal Bronson ran up to Ben.
“Lieutenant Grayson, this telegram came in an hour ago,”
Bronson said, then had a smile when handed Ben the paper.
Ben looked a little worried as he automatically felt it was terrible news.
Bronson just had to wait while Ben read the paper, as he knew what the telegram was about.
All the other guys, except Carl, looked curious and hoped it was good news.
Ben looked worried while he read the paper, and then his eyes lit up with joy. He reread the telegram to make sure he read it correctly. He jumped up and down for joy. “I have a son!”
Ben danced around in celebration.
Ben gave Trevor a hug.
He gave Carl a hug.
He gave Henry a hug.
He gave Larry a hug.
He gave Greg a hug.
Hall walked up to them to see what the excitement was all about. Ben gave Hall a hug without thinking.
“Normally, my men don’t hug me after a mission,” Hall said, unsure about Ben’s weird behavior.
Ben realized he had hugged Hall and got embarrassed.
“Sorry sir, I got this telegram telling me my wife had our baby,” Ben told him and held up his telegram. “I have a son!”
Ben beamed in joy again.
A bare-chested mechanic had a wrench in hand when he walked by them, a little curious.
Ben rushed over and hugged the mechanic. The mechanic pushed Ben away, looking like he wanted to whack him with his wrench. He refrained, knowing that would get him thrown in the brig.
The mechanic returned to the Corsairs, a little leery of Ben.
“Congratulations,” Hall said, then shook his hand.
“Congratulations,” Trevor said and shook Ben’s hand.
Larry, Greg, Hall, Henry, and Kurt patted Ben’s shoulder to congratulate him with handshakes.
“Let’s go to Weaver’s debrief, and then we can party tonight,” Hall said.
Ben was in heaven while they walked away and headed to the pilot’s debriefing tent.
Fifteen minutes later, in the briefing tent, Ben, Carl, and
Trevor sat in the front row. Ben couldn’t sit still while thinking about being a father.
Carl sat next to Ben, fuming with jealousy.
Trevor sat on the other side of Ben and was amazed he was around when his father was born.
Colonel Weaver entered the tent.
“Attention!” one of the officers yelled out.
Everybody snapped to attention, and Ben had the biggest grin. “At ease,” Weaver called out while he walked down the aisle. Everybody sat down while Weaver walked to the front and looked at everybody.
“I heard this mission revealed nothing,” Weaver said. Then he saw the massive grin on Ben’s face and got mad.
“And you’re happy about this, Lieutenant Grayson?”
Weaver snapped.
Ben stood up. “No sir, I got a telegram that my wife had our baby. I have a son!” Ben beams, holding up his telegram.
“I have a son,” Carl quietly mimicked Ben sarcastically.
Weaver walked up and congratulated Ben with a handshake and a smile, then he walked back to the front.
“Okay, gentlemen, I guess we still don’t have a clue where that new Jap airstrip is being built. Relax tonight or have a party to celebrate a new member of the Grayson family,” he said.
“I’ll keep you updated if we obtain any new intelligence,”
Weaver said, then walked down the aisle.
“Attention!” another officer yelled out.
Everybody snapped to attention.
“Dismissed,” Weaver said when he reached the flap to the tent. Everybody piled out of the tent after Weaver.
After chow, Ben, Carl, and Henry headed out to the Stress Reliever. Trevor left early to warm up with the band.
The Stress Reliever was packed tonight, and Ben was the center of attention while the news of his new son spread across the base like wildfire.
The band was halfway through their version of Glenn Miller’s Begin the Beguine song.
Ben drank a beer and enjoyed watching Trevor playing the trumpet with the band.
Carl looked like there was something on his mind.
The band finished the song and took a fifteen-minute break.
Trevor placed his trumpet on his stand and headed to the bar. After he got a beer, he walked over and sat down at the empty seat at Ben’s table.
Trevor sipped his beer and looked happy Ben had a son but looked sad at the same time, as he knew Ben would die soon.
He was extremely determined to stop Ben’s death from occurring.
Two Marines walked up to their table.
“Congratulations on being a father, Ben. What’s your son’s name?” one of the Marines asked.
“We’re calling him Robert Carl Grayson,” Ben replied with a huge grin. “Robert after Diana’s father and Carl after my best friend,” Ben added while placing an arm around Carl.
Carl responded with a little smile and still looked bothered by something.
Ben didn’t notice as he was still on cloud nine for being a father.
The Marines patted Ben’s shoulder to congratulate him while they walked away.
Trevor raised his beer bottle. “Let’s have a toast for our new daddy.”
Ben, Carl, and Henry raised their beer bottles and clinked them in a toast. They drank their beers.
Then Ben got worried when reality hit him, remembering he was in a war.
“I just hope this war doesn’t ruin my opportunity to enjoy my son,” Ben said quietly, looking worried.
“We did make that pact. I hope Diana still agrees,” Carl said while he placed a hand on his shoulder for comfort.
“She does,” Ben said, and then he realized Trevor and Henry wouldn’t understand their pact.
“We had a pact that Carl would marry Diana if I didn’t make it home. I didn’t want Diana marrying some stranger, and I know Carl will take great care of Robert and Diana.”
A smirk grew on Carl’s face.
Hall walked up to the table. “Ben, Weaver wants you in his office in ten minutes. Something important came up a little while ago.”
“Yes, sir,” Ben replied, then he got up.
Trevor, Henry, and Carl looked curious while they watched Ben walk away with Hall and leave the tent.
“I hope he’s not in any trouble,” Trevor asked.
“Probably not,” Carl replied, still looking like he had something else more important on his mind.
“I’m going to bed,” Carl said, then he got up and walked to the tent flap.
Henry got up and headed to the bar.
Trevor got up and walked back over to the stage. Later that night, some of the officers were asleep in their bunks.
Some read books, and some played cards to kill time.
Carl lay in his bunk in deep thought while he stared at his photo of the Santa Monica pier.
Trevor lay in his bunk in deep thought about tomorrow.
Ben entered the tent with shiny new Captain bars on his uniform.
Trevor looked and saw Ben’s promotion. He got up and walked over to him with a smile.
“Alright, Ben, you made Captain!” Trevor said while he stuck out his hand.
“Alright, Ben, you make Captain,” Carl mocked Trevor Ben looked proud while he shook Trevor’s hand. “Weaver also made me Hall’s executive officer,” Ben said.
The other pilots rushed over and congratulated Ben.
Carl stayed in his bed and stewed with jealousy.
“Enough of that, and we need to get serious. I need five men for an important mission tomorrow,” Ben asked seriously.
Carl placed his Santa Monica picture in his pocket. “Count me in,” Carl said while rushing to Ben.
Kurt got up and rushed over to Ben. “I’ll go.”
Trevor walked over to Ben. He looked nervous but realized he had to volunteer. “I’m with you, Ben,” Trevor said.
Ben looked proud of Trevor for volunteering for this mission.
Henry stumbled inside the tent, drunk as a skunk. “I’m in the mood for love simply because you’re naked,” Henry sang out at the top of his lungs in a key that doesn’t exist.
Everybody in the tent looked at Henry, who swayed while standing by the tent flap.
“Hey, fellas,” Henry said. Then he got a blank stare and dropped to the ground, then he passed out.
Ben looked disappointed with Henry being drunk. “Forget about him.”
He looked at the rest of the men in the Humble Abode.
“We’re going to help the Raiders escort some B twenty-fives.
They’re going to bomb Japanese aircraft carriers believed to be heading to the Ailinglaplap atoll,” he informed, then looked at the men again. “I need one more volunteer.”
The remaining guys looked at each other.
“I’ll tag along,” Larry called out.
“Great,” Ben replied.
“Are these new planes for their new base?” Larry curiously asked.
“We believe they are. So we better get some rest. Weaver will give us a more detailed briefing in the morning,” Ben added.
They all walked over to their lockers and undressed down to their tee shirts and boxer shorts.
Trevor opened up his locker and looked at his calendar, and he saw the next day was “May 11th, 1944.”
He glanced over at Ben and looked worried.
Carl looked like he was scheming while he watched Ben get in his bunk.
It was fifteen minutes later, and everybody was sound asleep.
Trevor tossed and turned in his bunk as he was having a nightmare.
In Trevor’s nightmare, they were flying their mission, and Ben and Trevor were the only two Corsairs 10,000 feet above the South Pacific.
Trevor knew he was going to save Ben’s life. Then a Zero came out of nowhere and raced after Ben’s plane.
“Crap!” Trevor cried out while he watched the Zero fire its machine guns at Ben’s plane.
“Help me, Trevor,” Ben cried out from the radio net.
Trevor watched while the Zero continued to attack Ben’s plane.
“He’s hitting me, Trevor. I can’t shake him off! Help me!”
Ben screamed out from the radio net.
Trevor raced his Corsair after the Zero.
The Zero made some evasive maneuvers to avoid Trevor.
Trevor made some evasive maneuvers and kept up with the Zero. He pressed his machine gun button, and nothing happened. He pressed his machine gun button again, and nothing happened. It is obvious it was jammed by the funny clanking sound.
The Zero made more fancy maneuvers and was hot on Ben’s tail. It fired its machine guns at Ben’s Corsair.
Trevor watched in horror while Ben’s Corsair ditched in the ocean.
He watched while the Zero banked back around and flew after Ben’s Zero. He watched while the Zero strafed Ben’s plane. Ben’s plane exploded into a massive fireball.
“No!” Trevor screamed out from his bunk while he panicked, waking up from his dream.
Everybody in the tent panicked, with a few dropping to the floor, thinking there was another air raid.
When it was quiet, they realized someone had another bad dream.
Ben got up from his bunk and walked over to Trevor.
“You okay, buddy?” he asked, concerned when he saw Trevor’s sweaty face.
“Yeah, I had another nightmare,” Trevor replied.
“I know. I have dreams where I get shot down. It’s natural,” Ben said while he placed a comforting hand on Trevor’s shoulder.
Trevor looked like he wanted to tell him he was from the future but decided Ben might think he was a nut case and could be locked up. So Trevor kept quiet about his secret. Ben got up and walked back to his bunk.
Trevor lay back down and stared at the top of the tent.
It was another beautiful morning at Engebi with a few clouds in the area.
Everybody was sound asleep inside the Humble Abode except for Trevor, who tossed and turned and hadn’t slept a wink since his nightmare. A few snores from the sleeping Marines filled the air of the tent.
Then Trevor remembered something from that bad dream and shot up in a panic.
He quickly dressed in his fatigue pants and ran out of the tent. Trevor ran through the maze of tents, looking for someone, but he didn’t know which tent. Four replacement B-25 bombers flew overhead while they made their way to the runway.
He saw an enlisted Marine stumble out of his tent, still half asleep. He headed over to the latrine tent. Trevor ran up to him. “Where is Buddy Bourne?” Trevor asked.
The Marine yawned and pointed down the row of tents.
“Two tents to the right,” the Marine said in a sleepy tone, then slowly walked to the latrine tent.
Trevor ran to the tent that the Marine pointed at and went inside.
Inside the tent, Trevor walked down the aisle between the rows of bunks and looked for Buddy. Then he saw a Marine with the Marine Corps emblem tattoo on his forearm. He knew it was Buddy, so he rushed up to his bunk.
He knelt down and made sure nobody saw him. The rest of the Marines were still asleep. Trevor shook Buddy’s arm.
“Buddy,” he said, and Buddy didn’t wake up. “Buddy,” he said again, and Buddy stirred and woke up. His eyes widened with shock when he saw Trevor by his bunk.
“Something wrong, Lieutenant?” Buddy asked, still sleepy.
“I need you to make sure the machine guns on my plane are in working order,” Trevor said.
“Of course they are,” Buddy replied, a little baffled about why the officer would wake him up with that question.
“Listen, I need you to double-check them and make sure they won’t jam up on me. I’m going on a mission later this morning,” Trevor said.
“Don’t worry, Lieutenant, they’re in fine working order,”
Buddy replied, then closed his eyes to return to sleep.
Trevor looked around to ensure nobody heard the conversation, then leaned closer to Buddy’s ear. “I’ll pay you one hundred dollars if you do another check,” Trevor whispered.
Buddy’s eyes popped open when he heard the words one hundred dollars. He sprang up and sat on his bed.
“It’s a deal,” Buddy said with dollar signs in his eyes.
“Good. I’ll give you the cash when you are done and verify it won’t jam,” Trevor said, extending his hand.
They shook hands to seal the deal.
Trevor got off his knees and rushed out of the tent. Trevor walked back and went to the Humble Abode. He felt better as he was afraid his dream was a prediction his machine guns would fail today.
He walked down the aisle and noticed Carl left the tent.
He saw Ben at his locker, putting on his flight suit.
Trevor walked over to his locker and removed his pants.
While dressed in his flight suit, he glanced over at Ben. Then he couldn’t resist, and he walked over to Ben.
“Hey, listen, I have this terrible feeling about today’s mission,” Trevor said with concern.
“Don’t worry about it,” Ben replied. “We’ll be okay,” Ben replied with a reassuring smile.
“No. In that bad dream I had last night,” Trevor said, then stopped and looked around to make sure nobody could hear them. The coast was clear, so he decided to continue. “In my dream, you got shot down. Can someone else go on this
mission for us? I’m really scared this time, and my gut is telling me my dream was predicting the future,” Trevor pleaded.
Ben looked concerned. “I’ve had those dreams, but we’re Marines. We can’t back out of a mission because of a bad dream,” Ben replied, not a bit concerned.
Ben patted Trevor’s shoulder. “Everything will be just fine.
Now, let’s get some chow. We can’t kill Japs on an empty stomach,” Ben said.
Trevor walked over to his locker and discreetly placed the key to the time machine in one of the leg pockets of his flight suit. Trevor looked worried while he walked out of the Humble Abode with Ben.
After some more powdered eggs, toast, and a little coffee, Ben, Carl, Henry, Trevor, Larry, and Kurt finished breakfast and took one last trip to the latrine tent.
It was a long walk to the flightline, and Trevor’s stomach got sour from nervousness.
The Raiders, led by Fred and four of his experienced senior pilots, got inside their Corsairs.
Numerous crews prepared the four new B-25 bombers for the mission.
Larry and Kurt walked up to their Corsairs, climbed up their fuselages, and got inside.
Henry walked up to his Corsair, climbed up his fuselage, and got inside.
Ben, Carl, and Trevor walked up to Ben’s Corsair.
Bronson walked by them with a camera in hand.
Ben saw him, and his eyes lit up with an idea.
“Corporal,” Ben called out after Bronson walked past them.
Bronson walked over. “Yes, sir.”
“Can you do me a huge favor and take a picture of my friends and myself? I’ll buy you some beers,” Ben offered.
Bronson licked his lips, thinking of some free cold beers.
“Yes, sir.”
Ben walked Carl over to the front of his Corsair. Trevor stayed with Bronson, and Ben noticed.
“I want you in the picture with us, Trevor,” Ben said.
Carl got upset. “Why can’t it be just the two of us? Are we still best friends? Right?”
“We’re going to have a talk after this mission,” Ben replied, pissed with Carl’s behavior.
Trevor looked at Carl and saw he was unhappy with Ben’s offer. Then he thought briefly as he remembered Diana showing him this picture.
“Ben, it would be best if two childhood friends stay in the picture. Besides, I’m camera shy,” Trevor said, knowing it would be too strange for Diana to see Trevor in his picture in the future.
Ben nodded in agreement.
Bronson got the camera ready.
Ben and Carl stood in the exact pose from the picture in Diana’s album.
Bronson snapped their picture. “I’ll make you two copies,”
he told Ben.
Trevor thought it was so cool to see the picture he saw back in 1995 actually take place.
“Thanks, corporal. I’ll buy you some beers tonight,” Ben said. “Great!” Bronson said with a smile, then he walked away.
Hall walked up to Ben in a rush with 1st Lieutenant Roger Osborne by his side.
“Good, you haven’t left. Listen, Ben, I want Roger Osborne from Koenig’s unit to go on this mission instead of Trevor,” Hall said.
Trevor looked upset with Hall’s orders.
“Why?” Ben asked, a little upset. “I know Trevor can handle this mission,” Ben added.
“I know, but Roger is a more experienced pilot than Trevor.
Weaver believes we’re going to have strong opposition,”
Hall replied.
“But,” Trevor interjected.
“Sorry, son. Weaver’s orders and make Roger Fireball Eighteen,” Hall said with a tone that he wouldn’t go against the Colonel’s orders.
“See you later, Trevor,” Ben said, knowing he couldn’t change Weaver’s mind.
Hall walked away.
Trevor looked sick while watching Ben, Carl, and Roger climb up their fuselages and enter their Corsairs.
He moped away and wondered how he would save Ben’s life now. He stopped and looked back and saw Ben start his plane. His eyes welled up. “A wasted trip!” he thought.
Trevor got to the edge of the flightline and looked back.
He watched while the five Raiders planes and the five Firebird planes taxied down the flightline like ducks in a row. The four B-25 bombers started their engines.
Inside Ben’s Corsair, he looked at his console, and his eyes widened with disappointment. Crap! He said to himself when he realized he left his Santa Monica picture in his locker.
Ben taxied his plane and was next in line to take off.
He lined up his plane on the runway. He gave it full throttle and rolled down the airstrip.
Ben’s Corsair was soon airborne.
Inside Carl’s Corsair, he removed the Santa Monica picture from his console while he taxied up to the runway. He kissed Diana, then stuck the picture back on his console, wedged between some instruments.
Carl had an emotionless stare while he gave the plane full throttle, and it raced down the airstrip.
Carl’s Corsair was soon airborne.
Trevor’s eyes welled up while he watched Ben’s Corsair fly away in formation with the other planes.
Another Corsair took off from the runway.
Another Corsair took off from the runway.
Then, the four B-25 bombers taxied down the flightline to the runway.
“What the hell am I going to do?” Trevor said while watching the first B-25 roll down the runway and take off.
Trevor eyed a Corsair that was 30 feet away. He glanced at the lonely Corsair while the second B-25 rolled down the runway and took off.
Then, the third B-25 rolled down the runway and took off.
Trevor stared at the lonely Corsair. He couldn’t resist, so he ran up to the Corsair, quickly climbed up the fuselage, and jumped inside.
The fourth B-25 bomber took off from the runway.
A Staff Sergeant mechanic, Rocky McFarlane, worked on the tire under the other wing. He sensed someone got inside the plane and got concerned. He rushed out from under the wing and saw Trevor in the cockpit.
Trevor quickly started the engine.
“What the hell are you doing?” McFarlane screamed out at Trevor.
Trevor smiled at the mechanic, slid the canopy forward, and locked it. Trevor wore the flight helmet and then taxied the plane forward.
McFarlane ran out of the way and watched in disbelief while Trevor taxied the Corsair down the flightline.
Hall rushed down the flightline to where McFarlane was standing. “Who the hell is that?” Hall asked, pissed when he saw the Corsair taxi to the runway.
“Lieutenant Walker,” McFarlane replied.
“What the hell is that kid doing?” Hall said, then stormed off furious with clenched fists.
McFarlane watched while Trevor rolled the Corsair down the runway and took off.
“Dumb ass officer,” McFarlane said, then walked away, shaking his head in disbelief.
Hall ran off toward the tents.
Bourne watched Trevor fly away in the Corsair. “The bastard never paid me,” he said, pissed.
Hall ran through the base, finally got to the radio tent, and rushed inside.
Sergeant Keith Woodburn worked the radio inside the radio tent while Hall ran over to Keith and grabbed the microphone.
Inside Trevor’s Corsair, he searched the area while he flew.
Then he saw the Corsairs and bombers 7,000 feet above him at his 10 o’clock position.
“Walker, this is Devil’s Den; get the hell back to base,” Hall yelled across the radio net.
Trevor hesitated to respond. “Sorry sir, I need to go on this mission,” Trevor said into the radio net.
“Turn around, Walker, or I’ll bring you up on charges,”
Hall threatened from the radio net.
“Trevor? Where are you?” Ben said from the radio net, a little shocked to hear Hall’s message.
“I need to be on this mission, Ben. I can’t explain, but I need to fight with you,” Trevor said.
“Go back, Trevor,” Ben pleaded from the radio net.
From inside Carl’s Corsair, he had a smirk as he loved the thought of Trevor spending time behind bars.
“That’s an order, Walker,” Hall yelled from the radio net.
“Let the idiot spend time in jail,” Carl said into the radio net. “Shut up, Carl!” Ben yelled from the radio net. Inside Trevor’s plane, he was pissed with Carl’s attitude.
“Understand permission to continue, sir. Thank you!”
Trevor said while he made screeching noises into the radio net.
“Walker!” Hall screamed from the radio net.
Trevor turned off his radio. “This is not going as planned,” he said while ascending at a high rate of climb after the other planes.
Back on Engebi, Hall ran out of the radio tent and raced through the tent area.
He ran to the Weaver’s hut and immediately knocked on the door.
“Enter,” Weaver called out from inside.
Hall opened the door and went inside the hut.
He walked up to Weaver’s makeshift desk, snapped to attention, and saluted.
Weaver saluted back.
“Sir, we have a problem. Lieutenant Walker stole one of the Corsairs and went unauthorized on the mission with the Fireballs and Raiders,” Hall informed him.
“He what?” Weaver looked up at Hall and was pissed.
“He stole a Corsair and went on the mission,” Hall repeated.
“I want him arrested the second he lands,” he ordered.
“Yes sir,” Hall said, saluting, then exited the tent.
The Raiders and Fireballs escorted the four B-25 bombers 18,000 feet above the Pacific, which looked so peaceful.
Trevor's plane flew 20,000 feet behind everybody else and followed the planes.
Below was the Japanese aircraft carrier about 30 miles away.
Then, at 15,000 feet between the Raiders and Firebirds, five Zeros raced after them.
Inside Ben's Corsair, he saw the Zeros at his 10 O'clock position, and they were climbing fast after them.
"Okay, Fireballs, we have resistance coming at ten o'clock,"
Ben said into the radio net.
"Get ready, Raiders," Fred replied from the radio net.
All the Raiders and Firebirds broke formation and raced after the Zeros.
Ben had already outmaneuvered a Zero and had it in his gun sights. He fired his machine guns, but the Zero outmaneuvered the bullets. Ben maneuvered his plane after the Zero.
"I'm hit!" Fred yelled out from his radio the second Ben had a Zero in his gun sights and fired his machine guns.
He missed the Zero, and he turned to his left and saw Fred's Zero while it dove into the ocean. The Zero flew after Fred fired its machine at Fred's plane and exploded into a massive fireball.
The Zero flew away off into the sky.
That sight determined Ben to get this Zero, and he performed some maneuvers. He soon had that Zero back in sight and fired his machine guns.
The Zero smoked and dove into the ocean while Ben fired his machine guns again. The Zero exploded into a fireball.
"Paybacks are hell," Ben yelled out in joy from the radio net while he watched the smoking debris of that Zero float down to the ocean.
Ben saw five additional Zeros that came out of nowhere, and they raced after the B-25 bombers.
"We have additional Zero coming after the bombers," Ben said into the radio net.
"I'm hit, but my plane is fine. I can help," Carl said on the radio net.
All the other pilots replied with the same response.
Ben raced his Corsair after the B-25's. But he got there too late, as two B-25 bombers were hit, and they dove down to the ocean with flames shooting out of their engine compartments.
Carl raced his plane after Ben's Corsair.
"I'm going down!" one of the Raiders called out from the radio net in a panic.
"I got one!" Trevor called out from the radio net.
"I'm hit, and I don't want to die!" another Raider called out from the radio net.
Ben had another one of the Zeros in his gun sights. He was determined to knock this one out of the sky and fired his machine guns.
The Zero exploded into a fireball.
Ben watched while the burning debris from the Zero floated down to the ocean.
Ben raced his plane after another Zero he knew he could knock out of the sky.
Inside Trevor's Corsair, he strained around to find Ben's Corsair. It was difficult since it looked like a bunch of bees with the Corsairs flying all over the sky chasing the Zeros.
"I'm hit!" Larry cried out in a panic from the radio net.
Trevor's heart raced briefly as he thought it was Ben, but he realized Larry had gotten zapped.
He saw Larry's Corsair tumble down and crash into the ocean.
"I got me a Zero," Carl called out from the radio net.
"Another Zero is gone," Ben said from the radio net.
Trevor felt relieved when he heard Ben's voice on the radio net. Trevor saw another B-25 tumble to the ocean with two engines on fire.
"I don't want to die. Help me!" one of the bomber crew members cried out from the radio net.
Trevor's eyes welled up, overhearing all this death in progress. Then he saw another Corsair with its engine on fire tumble down to the ocean, and his heart raced, thinking it was Ben. "I got another Zero," Ben said from the radio net.
Trevor looked relieved but also felt sad for a fellow Marine, but he didn't know which Marine just bit the dust.
Trevor craned his neck out his canopy window. He saw the Corsair and Zero engaged in a dog fight below.
Then, at his 2:00 o'clock position, about 2,000 feet above him, he saw another Corsair and Zero make evasive maneuvers.
They both collided, and each sheared a wing off.
The Zero and the Corsair planes tumbled down to the ocean.
"I don't want to die! Please, Lord!" Kurt cried out from the radio net while his plane tumbled to the water with the Zero.
Trevor saw another Zero tumble down to the ocean with its engine on fire.
A Zero dove did a kamikaze into the remaining B-25, and they both exploded into a fireball. It rained debris down to the ocean.
"I'm going down!" the last Raider cried out from the radio net. Trevor looked around his canopy windows for Ben's Corsair and couldn't spot his plane. He panicked and got scared. "Fireball ten, where are you?" he said into the radio net.
Ben didn't respond, so Trevor looked around in a panic.
"Fireball ten!" he cried out again into the radio net.
Ben had a Zero in his sights inside his Corsair, and he fired his machine guns. The Zero exploded into a fireball.
"I'm kind of busy, Fireball fourteen," Ben replied from the radio net," Ben replied. At the same time, he maneuvered around the flying debris from that Zero. "There, got another one," Ben added into the radio net.
Inside Carl's Corsair, he craned his neck to look the area over. "Who survived?" Carl said into his radio net.
"Fireball fourteen is here," Trevor said from the radio net.
"So is Fireball ten," Ben said from his radio.
The other pilots didn't respond, and Carl smirked as he only heard Ben's radio response. He got an evil look while he ascended up into the sky. His look indicated he wanted to eliminate the only competition he had for the love of Diana.
Inside Trevor's Corsair, he looked around for Ben and Carl's plane. He smiled when he also didn't see any Zero's.
"Where are you Fireball fourteen?" Carl asked from the radio net.
"I'm at eight thousand feet," Trevor replied into the radio net. "I'm at six thousand feet," Ben replied from the radio net.
"Fireball ten, you have a Zero hot on your tail," Carl called out in a panic from the radio net.
Trevor craned his neck and maneuvered his plane to see the Zero but couldn't see the pane.
"Crap, I'm out of bullets," Carl cried out from the radio net. "I can't see the Zero!" Trevor called out in a panic from the radio net.
"I can't see you or the Zero," Ben said from the radio net.
Then Trevor heard that scary sound when bullets penetrated his plane.
"I'm hit," Trevor cried out. But nobody responded from the radio because Zero had earlier shot at Trevor's vertical stabilizer, and his radio antenna broke off and was whipping around in the wind.
Trevor craned his neck around his canopy to see Zero chasing after Ben but saw nothing.
Trevor heard more bullets penetrate his plane and quickly looked at these gauges. He seemed relieved when everything appeared to be normal with his plane.
Trevor did a barrel roll, thinking the Zero was hot on his tail. But what he didn't know was that it was Carl's plane shooting at his Corsair.
From inside Ben's Corsair, he looked around his canopy windows. "Fireball eleven, you out there?"
"I'm here," Carl replied to the radio net.
"Fireball fourteen, you out there?" Ben said and waited a few seconds, but Trevor didn't respond. "Fireball fourteen, you out there?" he said again, and Trevor didn't respond.
From inside his Corsair, Carl looked around the area.
"I'm sorry to say that I believe that a Zero got Fireball fourteen," Carl said into the radio net.
Carl had a satisfying smile while he looked out his canopy window and saw Ben's Corsair 1,000 feet below, and he was alone.
He looked at the Santa Monica picture and smiled. "It's just you and me, Ben," Carl said into the radio net.
"I can't believe what just happened," Ben said from the radio net and paused for a few seconds. "I'm sorry to hear that Trevor got hit," he added from the radio net.
From inside his Corsair, Trevor looked around in a panic to see Ben or Carl.
"I'm not hit!" he yelled into the radio net, but it took a few seconds for him to realize his radio was damaged. "Damn, I can't transmit," Trevor said out loud in frustration.
"Fireball ten, you have a Zero on your tail!" Carl cried out from the radio net.
Trevor searched out his canopy window but couldn't see Ben or Carl.
Ben looked around his canopy window inside his plane for the threatening Zero.
"I can't see him, Fireball eleven," Ben said while searching his canopy.
From inside Trevor's plane, he frantically looked out his canopy for a sighting of Ben.
Then he spotted Ben's Corsair 2,000 feet below his plane.
But he noticed a Zero wasn't on Ben's tail. He watched while Carl's Corsair dove after Ben's plane.
"What the hell is he doing?" Trevor asked, a little confused.
Trevor looked suspicious while watching Carl's Corsair dive after Ben's Corsair.
Inside Ben's Corsair, he got scared when he heard bullets penetrate his engine compartment.
He noticed oil spewing from his engine compartment, splashing all over his canopy.
"I'm hit!" Ben cried out into the radio net.
"I wish I could get the bastard for you, but I'm out of ammo," Carl replied from the radio net.
Ben opened his canopy and slid it back while he peeked outside for visibility. "I have to ditch," he said into the radio net while he poked his head out his canopy to see.
"I'll watch over you," Carl replied from the radio net.
From inside Trevor's Corsair, he was furious when he saw Carl shoot at Ben's plane. "Bastard!"
Then he saw his opportunity and dove down after Carl's Corsair.
From inside his plane, Carl watched while Ben made a safe landing in the ocean.
He banked his plane and heard bullets penetrate his Corsair from the belly, with some of the bullets flying between his legs.
Carl frantically looked around his canopy, then did some evasive maneuvers, knowing it had to be Trevor.
Trevor saw Ben's Corsair float in the ocean from his canopy, and Ben wasn't visible.
He heard bullets penetrating his engine compartment.
He heard Carl's Corsair zoom away.
"I can't unbuckle my belts!" Ben cried out in a panic from the radio net.
Trevor dove his Corsair in the direction of Ben's Corsair.
Ben frantically tried to release the straps inside his plane in the ocean. He couldn't get them loose and saw Carl's Corsair circle back.
"What the hell is he doing?" Ben asked while he continued to attempt to get his harness loose.
Carl's plane dove at Ben's plane while it floated in the water.
Then Trevor's Corsair suddenly whizzed a couple of feet by the front of his Corsair. Carl panicked, quickly banked and ascended to avoid a collision.
Ben saw the close call between Carl and Trevor from inside his plane.
"What the hell are they doing?" Ben said while he looked confused.
Then he watched while Trevor ditched his plane in the water twenty-five feet from his plane.
"These guys are acting whacky," Ben said while he looked at Trevor's plane for signs of life.
Trevor quickly released his harness from inside his plane while watching Carl's Corsair bank around for a return shot.
Trevor quickly got out of the cockpit and didn't see his leg pocket ripped on the fuselage while he rushed out and stepped on the wing.
Trevor jumped out of his wing and jumped into the water.
He quickly swam over to Ben's Corsair.
Carl's Corsair dove toward his and Ben's plane.
Trevor swam to Ben's plane and got up on the wing. Ben frantically tried to unbuckle his belts.
"I need to get out of here before this plane sinks," Ben told Trevor.
"You have bigger problems than that," Trevor said, removing a knife from the pocket of his other leg.
"What do you mean?" Ben asked, a little confused. Trevor and Ben saw Carl's Corsair fly about 20 feet off the deck, racing at them.
"Is that Carl?" Ben asked.
"Yes, and he shot you down, not a Zero. And if I don't get you out, he'll kill us both," Trevor said while he finished cutting the harness straps, and Ben was soon freed.
Trevor grabbed Ben by his shoulders. Ben cringed in pain while Trevor yanked him out of the plane as he was shot in his leg. He threw Ben into the water and jumped in himself.
Carl's Corsair raced at them while Trevor pushed Ben deep into the water.
From under the water, they saw bullets hit the water and then hit Ben's plane.
They swam away underwater toward Trevor's plane.
They stuck their heads above water when they felt it was safe. They watched while Carl's plane flew away and then banked to fly back at them.
They trod water while they watched Carl's Corsair fly 20
feet above the deck and head back at them.
Then they heard Carl's machine guns fire while he strafed Ben's Corsair.
Trevor pulled Ben under the water just as Ben's Corsair exploded into a fireball.
Bullets zinged in the water all around them. Then it got quiet, so Trevor pulled Ben back up to the surface of the water.
They trod water and watched Carl's Corsair ascend and bank to the right.
"What the hell is going on?" Ben asked, totally confused.
"He's trying to kill us. That's what he's doing!" Trevor replied while he looked at his Corsair. He got an idea and quickly swam to his plane.
"Why?" Ben asked, then turned and noticed Trevor wasn't beside him. Then he saw him swimming over to his plane.
Ben saw Carl's Corsair race at them twenty feet off the water.
He's coming back!" Ben yelled at Trevor, and then he went back under the water.
From under the water, Ben heard and saw the bullets from Carl's machine guns while he strafed the water and hit Trevor's plane. Then he heard Trevor's plane explode.
Ben heard Carl's Corsair fly away, and then he quickly stuck his head above the water.
He looked around the area. "Trevor?" he yelled out, getting concerned when he could see him in the water.
Then Trevor resurfaced with a life raft, and he was able to get out of his plane in time.
Ben looked stunned as he watched Carl's Corsair do a barrel roll while he flew away.
Carl had to return to base as he was running low on fuel.
Ben watched while Trevor inflated the life raft.
While Carl flew back to Engebi, he rehearsed his story to tell Colonel Weaver. Then he rehearsed his story to tell Diana when he returned home to Santa Barbara.
Major Hall and Colonel Weaver were in the radio tent with Keith.
“Fireball ten. Come in, Fireball ten,” Weaver said into the radio microphone.
“This is Fireball eleven,” Carl replied from the radio net.
“Update on the mission, please,” Weaver ordered.
Carl looked around the area inside his Corsair, 6,000 feet above the ocean.
“Everybody’s gone, and I’m the only survivor, and I’m low on fuel and out of ammo,” Carl replied into the radio net.
Then he turned off his radio and fired his machine guns and kept firing until he was out of ammo, then he turned his radio back on.
“Fireball eleven. Please respond,” Weaver said from the radio net.
“Sorry, sir. I missed your question if you had one,” Carl lied into the radio net.
“Where are you?” Weaver asked again from the radio net.
Carl looked out his canopy. “I’m about thirty miles east of the base,” Carl replied from the radio net.
“We’ll be waiting for your report after you land,” Weaver said from the radio net.
“Yes sir,” Carl replied into the radio net.
Then, while he flew closer to Engebi, he rehearsed his story again. His eyes widened with a great twist to his lie.
He looked at his fuel gauge and saw it was approaching empty. He started to worry if he would make it to the runway.
Engebi, Hall, and Weaver stood on the flight line with other Marines. Weaver looked at the sky in a pair of binoculars.
Then he spotted Carl’s plane while he was on final. “He’s on a long final,” Weaver said.
Then everybody could see Carl’s plane while it flew closer to the base.
“His engine quit. He must have run out of fuel,” Weaver said while he looked through his binoculars.
The flightline got crowded while the Marines watched while Carl’s Corsair glided down to the end to the end of the runway.
Four Marines ran over with fire extinguishers, ready for an emergency.
Carl’s plane touched down with a few bounces, and then his plane coasted to a stop.
Weaver, Hall, and everybody ran over to his Carl’s Corsair.
Carl slowly climbed down his fuselage and looked ever so sad, as he was a good actor. Then, as soon as his boots hit the dirt, Carl dropped to his knees and sobbed. “They’re all gone!”
Carl sobbed a great pretend sob.
Ted assisted Carl to his feet.
“What happened, son?” Weaver asked.
“We tried, but the Zeros got the better of us, and all the bombers were shot down while some of the Zeros did a kamikaze into some of the other bombers,” Carl said between sobs. “Bastards!” Hall replied, and all the Marines around him nodded in agreement.
Then Carl schemed in his mind. “But that’s not the worst part,” Carl said while he pretended this would be difficult to say.
“Lieutenant Walker,” he said, then stopped for a dramatic effect.
“I wanted him arrested for stealing that Corsair,” Weaver said. “What happened to him?” he yelled, interrupting Carl’s last comment.
“The bastard shot down my best friend,” Carl cried out and dropped to his knees, pretending to be faint.
“He what?” Hall asked in shock and was unsure he had heard correctly.
Carl looked down at the dirt while he lay. “He shot down Ben. Then he flew back at him and strafed his plane. It exploded, and then a Zero came after Trevor, and they collided when he banked away. Ben never had a chance to get out. Why would Trevor kill him?”
Weaver looked like he was going to blow a gasket. “I hope that bastard is at the bottom of the ocean,” he said.
While Carl pretended to be devastated over losing his best friend, he could only think about Diana.
“Couldn’t you stop Walker?” Weaver asked.
Carl thought for a second. “I tried, but then I had a Zero come after me after I first saw Walker shoot at Ben,” Carl lied while he glanced up at Weaver.
The blood vessels in Weaver’s neck popped out as he was furious. “I would have loved to see the bastard behind bars, but dead at the bottom of the ocean will suffice,” Weaver said, and everybody around him nodded in agreement.
“Go get some rest, Carl. We’ll talk some more in the morning,” Weaver said.
Two Marines helped Carl up on his feet.
Then Weaver saw that there was bloodstain and a hole in the crotch of Carl’s flight suit. “The Japs hit your crotch,” he said. Carl looked down at his crotch and saw the bloodstain and hole. Then realized he was shot, and he felt pain. His eyes crossed, and he passed out and dropped to the dirt.
“Take him to the medical tent,” Weaver ordered. Two Marines picked Carl up and carried him away. Weaver stormed away with Hall, and both were furious about the news of Ben being killed by Trevor.
Henry walked away with some of the other Marines. “I can’t believe Trevor would perform such a horrible act,” Henry said. The other Marines nodded in agreement.
“I’m with you. He doesn’t sound to be the type to kill a fellow Marine,” one of the Marines said.
They walked away in disbelief over the news Carl told everybody.
Thirty minutes later, bandleader and doctor Major Ted Robinson examined Carl’s crotch and found out his right testicle was shot off.
Meanwhile, back in the Pacific Ocean, it was calm.
Ben and Trevor floated in the life raft that Trevor got out of his plane. It was a tight fit, but they were both comfortable.
They saw a dead Jap pilot floating face down in the ocean by debris from his airplane. They felt sad seeing that dead body even though it was the enemy.
Then Ben looked bewildered when recalling what happened. “Why would Carl shoot me down?”
Trevor thought for a few seconds for a possible answer.
Then his eyes lit up with a viable one. “Didn’t he always want Diana?”
“Yes, he did,” Ben replied. Then he thought about Trevor’s questions, which hit him like many bricks. “Our pact! The bastard realized that he could finally marry Diana if I was out of the picture!” Ben furiously replied.
“I’m sorry, my friend,” Trevor said. “Did he shoot you down?” Ben asked.
“He tried after I went after him. But I ditched my plane when I saw him coming back after you,” Trevor answered while they looked at another piece, a wing from a Zero in the water.
Trevor looked down at his torn pant leg pocket. He frantically reached down and felt around the pocket. He got worried when he realized he lost his time machine key.
“How will I get home?” it suddenly dawned on Trevor.
Ben looked stumped at Trevor. “Why did you come after us? I mean, you could face jail time for stealing the plane,” Ben said. “I had to. That dream I had last night seemed so real. I had this overwhelming feeling that it was predicting the future.”
Ben thought about his reply. “Well, I’m glad you did. And thanks for saving my life, but Weaver will still have your butt in a sling if we survive.”
“Yeah, I know,” Trevor replied, silently praying he could get out of this mess.
“But I’ll put in a good word, and he just might spare you from a life behind bars,” Ben said with a warm smile.
Trevor looked down at Ben’s leg and saw he was shot.
“You’re shot,”
Ben looked down and saw the bloody bullet hole in his thigh. “I’m okay.”
Trevor looked concerned and hoped he wouldn’t get an infection in the wound.
They saw the body of a dead Marine pilot 10 feet away near some Corsair debris. Trevor paddled with his hands, and they moved to the body.
They got to the body, and Ben reached out, grabbed the back of the pilot’s flight suit, and turned the body around.
They looked saddened when they saw it was Kurt. Ben turned Kurt back around in the water and watched while Kurt’s dead body drifted away.
“Poor Kurt,” Ben said while he watched Kurt’s dead body floating in the waves.
Trevor nodded in agreement with Ben.
It was quiet while they floated away and passed 15 pieces of debris from a few Corsair planes.
Back at Engebi, Carl lay in a bunk in the medical tent. He was dopy from the drugs Ted gave him for the pain in his groin. So he stared at the top of the tent, and a smile grew on his face, realizing he was home free. He was excited to have a beautiful life with Diana.
In Weaver’s hut, he was busy writing those letters to the families of his dead pilots. He hated this part of his job; sometimes, he felt like breaking down and crying.
Back in the Pacific Ocean, Ben and Trevor floated in their life raft. They stared at the sun setting near the horizon of the ocean.
Trevor’s stomach growled, and Ben noticed.
“Me too,” he replied. “But there’s only a limited supply of rations in this raft, so we better conserve,” Ben added.
They closed their eyes, and the ocean’s motion made them sleepy. Their stomachs growled in unison.
Later that night in Engebi, the base was quiet.
The story of how the Fireballs and Raiders were wiped out except for Carl ran through the base like wildfire.
The Stress Reliever was all buzzing about Trevor killing Ben. They were also in shock Trevor would perform such an unspeakable act.
Ted took Trevor’s trumpet and looked at everybody.
“I will do my best to honor our fallen friends except Trevor Walker. The bastard!” Ted snarled, then brought the mouthpiece to his lips. He performed a decent attempt at taps.
A few Marines had tears in their eyes.
In the medical tent, Carl lay asleep from pain pills.
That night, a three-quarter moon shined on the Pacific Ocean. It was a beautiful, peaceful night full of twinkling stars.
The ocean was calm while Trevor and Ben drifted asleep in their life raft.
Then Trevor dreamt he was drifting in the ocean, and the sun was blazing down on him. But Trevor was alone in the raft.
He looked, and hundreds of floating debris from Corsair and Zero planes were in the water.
Then he spotted floating bodies of dead pilots.
First, the raft bumped into the bodies of dead Japanese pilots.
Then, the raft bumped into the bodies of Marine pilots.
Then, the raft bumped into the floating dead body of Ben in the water.
He looked in horror at Ben’s face with his eyes wide open with a dead blank stare.
Then he heard the roar of an airplane that sounded close by. He looked up, and a Corsair was ten feet off the water coming after him.
He watched in a panic while the Corsair flew closer and closer. The Corsair fired its machine guns, and the bullets strafed his raft, and he immediately started sinking.
“No!” Trevor screamed out in the raft, and it caused Ben to jump up in a panic and almost fall out into the water.
Trevor looked at Ben with a scared look.
“Did you have another dream?” Ben asked.
Trevor looked around in a confused daze and then looked back at Ben. “I think so.”
“Damn war,” Ben said, then closed his eyes.
Trevor closed his eyes and prayed another nightmare wouldn’t return.
It was another beautiful and sunny day in Engebi. The morning was quiet while they were trying to continue on with the loss of nine of their friends.
Weaver was in the radio tent, and Keith had sent a message that he needed ten more pilot replacements and planes.
It didn’t look like there would be many future missions until replacements arrived.
Weaver returned to his hut and continued writing letters to the parents. He informed them their sons were patriotic, served their country, and fought bravely to ensure America remained free. He had two more letters to complete to the families of the dead Marines. One was to Diana, and the last was to Trevor’s parents, but he hesitated to write that letter.
He was pondering, leaving out the brave part, and just stating that he regretted the loss of their son. After all, it wasn’t their fault Trevor snapped and killed another Marine.
Bronson entered Weaver’s hut. “Sir, I thought you might want to include this in the letter to Lieutenant Walker’s wife,”
Bronson said, then handed him a copy of the picture he snapped of Carl and Ben at the Corsair before that fatal mission.
Weaver took the picture and looked at it. “Thank you, corporal,” Weaver said, then laid it on his desk.
“And the Western Union grams have been sent,” Bronson added.
“Thank you,” Weaver said and then returned to his letter writing.
Bronson walked out of the hut with another copy of that picture of Carl and Ben.
Weaver glanced at the picture and then started writing the letter to Diana.
Carl was awake and walked to the chow hall tent with a slight limp. He wasn’t in much pain and had to leave bed and walk around since he was bored.
When Carl entered the chow hall, all the Marines saw him, stood up, and clapped to show their support for the loss of his best friend. He felt ashamed of what he did to Ben and Trevor, but there was no turning back.
He ate breakfast, sat at a table, and started eating.
Major Hall walked up with his breakfast tray and sat beside Carl. “I talked with the Colonel; he’s going to put you in for a purple heart and send you home,” Hall said, then he sipped his coffee.
Carl smiled as this was precisely what he wanted.
Then, a Marine close to Carl leaned over. “It’s a good thing they don’t give out a missing nut medal,” the Marine said with a laugh.
Hall tried to resist then. He couldn’t help it, and he laughed.
Carl chuckled along with the comment.
Bronson entered the chow hall and walked up to Carl.
“Lieutenant, here’s your copy of the picture I took of you and Lieutenant Walker,” Bronson said, then handed him the photo.
Carl looked at it, as did Hall and Henry.
“Sadly, that photo will remind you of that day for the rest of your life,” Henry said.
Hall nodded in agreement.
Carl shoved the photo in his pocket but had a thought that he would tear it up when he got to Hawaii.
They all continued to eat their breakfast.
In the Pacific Ocean, Trevor and Ben still floated in their raft and finished munching on some sea rations.
Ben looked around, and all they saw was water. He opened up one of the pockets on his flight suit and removed a small compass. “We’re heading southeast,” Ben stated.
“Are there any bases close by?” Trevor asked, a little concerned.
“Nothing that I recall,” Ben replied.
“Maybe a Navy ship will come out way,” Trevor said.
“Yeah, I just hope it’s not a Japanese ship,” Ben replied.
“I heard a story about a Japanese destroyer that ran over a Navy PT boat last year in the Solomon Islands,” Ben said.
Trevor thought about what Ben said and then recalled hearing about President Kennedy’s PT109 story in high school.
That made Trevor nervous, and he scanned the horizon while silently praying a Japanese ship run over them.
They just relaxed in the raft and floated away.
Back at Engebi, the base was still quiet. The only activity was maintenance on the five Corsairs, the only ones left at the base. Keith received a message in the radio tent that he took and rushed out of the tent.
Inside Weaver’s hut, he just finished his last family letter; it was to Trevor’s address that was really Lloyd’s home.
Someone knocked on his hut door. “Enter,” Weaver replied while he sealed Trevor’s letter.
Keith rushed inside with the message in hand. He stopped at Weaver’s desk, snapped to attention, and saluted. “Sir, a message arrived stating that replacements are on their way,”
Keith said, then handed Weaver the message.
Weaver grabbed the message and read it. “Great,” he said, then collected the eleven family letters and handed them to Keith. “Get these on the way to the States,” he ordered.
“Yes, sir,” Keith responded with a salute and rushed out of the hut.
Weaver picked up his coffee cup and thought about this war. Then he started to ponder retiring as soon as he could get shipped back to the States.
Carl lay in bed and wrote a letter in the Medical tent.
“Dear Diana, I know you must have heard the news about Ben by now, and I wish I were there by your side to help you through this horrible moment. Ben was a hero and wanted to ensure Robert and you could live free lives. I’ve been wounded in the battle that took Ben’s life, and I’m told I’ll be home soon.
I love you, Carl,” he wrote in his letter.
Carl sealed up his letter. He saw a nurse checking on another Marine.
“Miss, can you get this letter out for me?” Carl called out.
The nurse walked over and saw Carl hold out his letter.
“My pleasure,” she replied, then took the letter and walked away. Carl closed his eyes with a smile and dreamt of the day he’d marry Diana.
Meanwhile, a storm came up quickly in the Pacific Ocean.
The waves were high, and Trevor and Ben rode them like a roller coaster. They hung on for dear life, praying they wouldn’t end up in the water.
A bolt of lightning hit the water fifty feet from their raft.
They almost crapped in their flight suits when the thunder followed. They both silently prayed that lightning wouldn’t hit them.
The water soon collected at the bottom of their raft.
Trevor and Ben scooped out rainwater from their raft while riding the roller coaster of waves.
They got most of the water out of the raft by using their hands. Ben then wiped away the raindrops from his compass and saw they were still drifting southeast.
A big wave came, and they clung on while the wave almost capsized their raft.
Later that night, back on Engebi, Carl had a beer in the Stress Reliever. In fact, he was on his third free beer bought by other Marines to show their support for him losing his best friend.
The storm passed out in the Pacific Ocean, and the water was calm. The sky was full of twinkling stars.
Trevor and Ben lay in their raft, and both wondered if they would be found dead in the raft days from now.
It was the next morning, and the sky was a little cloudy. A PBY plane landed on the runway, bringing supplies, mail, and some replacement pilots.
The PBY taxied to the flightline and parked, and it idled its engines.
The door opened, and five fresh Marine pilots stepped out with their seabags. They looked around their new home the second their boots stepped in the dirt.
Corporal Bronson walked up to the PBY with a pouch of letters and other correspondence. He walked up to the five new pilots and saluted. They returned a salute to Bronson.
“Welcome to Engebi; give me one minute, and I’ll take you to meet Colonel Weaver,” Bronson said. Then he walked over to the plane when Petty Officer Hank Cohn brought out two pouches from the plane.
“Good morning, Hank,” Bronson said while he handed him his pouch.
“Hey, Tim,” Hank replied. “Here’s your mail and some other items,” he added, handing Bronson his two pouches.
Hank got back inside the PBY and closed the door.
“Follow me,” Bronson told the five new pilots.
They followed Bronson down the flightline.
The PBY taxied down the flightline to the end of the runway.
Bronson escorted the pilots to Weaver’s hut. The PBY
raced down the runway and was soon airborne.
Meanwhile, out in the Pacific Ocean, there was an island called Namorik, which looked peaceful.
Trevor and Ben’s raft was washed up on the shore, and they were asleep inside.
Trevor woke up and saw they washed ashore on an island, and he looked so relieved. He elbowed Ben. “Wake up, we drifted on an island,” he said excitedly.
Ben woke up, and his eyes widened when he saw Namorik.
“There’s hope,” he said while he looked around. “We better hide this raft in case a Jap Zero flies over the island,” he added, then quickly jumped out of the raft.
Trevor jumped out of the raft, and they dragged it to the nearby jungle.
Inside the jungle, they hid the raft inside some vegetation so it would be out of view from the air.
“Let’s put our survival training to work,” Ben said while he looked around the jungle.
Trevor looked slightly nervous, having never camped out in the wild. So he nodded in agreement and felt at ease, knowing Ben knew what he was doing.
Trevor and Ben, who limped, walked away.
Back at Engebi, Weaver opened up the pouch while Bronson stood by. He removed a bundle of letters, opened up the bundle, and looked at the letters.
He removed the letters from the deceased pilots, one of which was from Diana to Ben.
He removed some paperwork and smiled when he saw what he wanted was at the bottom of the pouch.
“I want everybody to meet me in the briefing tent in fifteen minutes,” Weaver ordered Bronson.
“Yes sir,” he replied, then rushed out of the tent.
Back in Namorik, Trevor and Ben found a spot in the jungle about a quarter of a mile from their raft.
Trevor and Ben broke off numerous branches from small trees and other vegetation. They started building a lean-to for their temporary home, hoping it would be temporary.
Back in Engebi, the briefing tent had all the base personnel.
It was standing room only, and they all believed another vast critical mission was being presented.
Weaver entered the tent.
“Attention,” one of the pilots yelled out the second he saw Weaver.
Everybody snapped to attention.
” At ease,” Weaver said while he walked up to the front.
“Can I have Lieutenant Eastman come forward?” Weaver ordered.
Carl walked up to Weaver with a limp, nervous he might be in trouble.
Everybody in the tent noticed a lump in his crotch from his testicles being bandaged.
“We lost nine good men during the last mission.
Lieutenant Eastman was the only survivor.” Weaver stated then removed a Purple Heart medal from his pocket.
“Because of his war wound, Walker is awarded the Purple Heart,” Weaver said while he pinned the medal on Carl’s uniform.
Everybody in the tent clapped.
Carl felt guilty, but he knew he had to play along.
“And his orders arrived to send him stateside,” Weaver said, patting Carl’s shoulder.
Carl smiled, knowing he would soon be with Diana to start a life together.
Back on Namorik, Trevor and Ben stood back and admired the lean-to they built off a low-hanging tree branch.
“It’s not home, but it will do,” Trevor said.
“It sure beats drifting out here in the ocean,” Ben replied.
Ben took a step away and cringed in pain from the bullet in his leg, and Trevor noticed.
“Go get some rest. I’ll see if I can find some food out there,” Trevor said.
Trevor assisted Ben to the lean-to and helped him lie down.
Ben relaxed while Trevor walked away into the jungle in search of food.
Back on Engebi, Carl lay in his medical bunk and touched his purple heart, which was still pinned to his shirt.
The nurse walked up to Carl’s bed.
“The doctor said you could return back to your own bunk.
And we heard you have orders to leave for home next week,”
the nurse told Carl.
He smiled, knowing he could move on with his new life and forget this war. “Thank you, nurse,” Carl replied, then exited the bed.
Carl limped out of the medical tent and back to the Humble Abode.
Back in Namorik, Ben relaxed under the lean-to. He heard a branch break, and he got a little concerned. He picked up a nearby rock and got ready to throw it.
He heard more branches break while someone walked up to the lean-to.
Ben cocked his arm back, ready to throw the rock for protection.
Trevor appeared with fruit and bananas in hand.
Ben looked relieved. “You almost got stoned,” he said, then dropped the rock into the dirt.
“Dinner,” he replied and looked a little relieved he didn’t get a massive knot on his forehead from that rock.
They immediately munched down on their fruit inside their lean-to home.
At this same moment, Carl ate dinner in the chow hall.
Henry walked up with his food tray and sat down next to Carl. “I heard you’re going home soon,” Henry said while scooping up some mashed potatoes with his fork.
“Yes, Colonel Weaver’s sending me home next week,” Carl replied.
“So, I guess you’ll be going home to care for Ben’s wife?”
Henry asked, then took a bite of what looked like Salisbury steak.
“Yeah, I guess I will,” Carl replied, pretending to be a little nonchalant about marrying Diana.
Then Hall walked up with his tray of Marine cuisine. He sat down at the table on the other side of Carl.
He took a bite of his Salisbury steak and cringed a little as it didn’t taste that great, but it beat starving.
“I still can’t believe Lieutenant Walker would shoot down Ben,” Hall stated, then ate some mashed potatoes. “But he must
have been really pissed at him to steal a plane and fly that mission,” Hall added with a mouth full of potatoes.
“I can’t recall Trevor and Ben ever having a fight. They appeared to be the best of friends,” Henry informed him, then took a bite of his Salisbury steak.
“I don’t know why Trevor would do such a horrible act,”
Carl said, keeping his eyes away from Henry and Hall while he lied. “What a shame. I really thought he was a nice kid,” Hall admitted.
Henry nodded in agreement. “I really liked Trevor.”
On Namorik Island, Trevor and Ben relaxed under their lean-to and looked at the twinkling stars between the trees.
“I wonder where we are?” Trevor said.
Ben thought for a few seconds while he tried to figure it out. “Well, based on the direction we drifted, I would say either Ebon, Kili, Jaluit, or Namorik.”
“How do we get back home?” Trevor asked, really worried.
“I just don’t know,” Ben fretted.
Looking up at the stars, Trevor looked worried and wondered if he shouldn’t have ventured on this harebrained plan. Ben closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
Trevor closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
The sun rose again for the start of another beautiful day in the South Pacific, and it was quiet on Namorik.
Trevor and Ben still slept under their lean-to.
About a mile from their home in the jungle, a small patrol of Japanese soldiers patrolled along the shoreline.
Trevor woke up, got out of the lean-to, and stood up, stretched, and yawned.
Ben woke up and sat up and saw Trevor. “Good morning,”
Ben yawned.
Trevor turned around and smiled and then stretched some more. “I’ll be right back. I’m getting seconds with breakfast,”
Trevor said.
Ben got out of the lean-to and stretched, then cringed in pain as the bullet in his leg still ached.
Trevor came back fifteen minutes later with more fruits and bananas. He dropped them in the lean-to.
“It’s time to use the bathroom,” Trevor stated.
“I’m glad you’re doing that after you got breakfast,” Ben said with a light chuckle.
“I’ll wash my hands in the ocean,” Trevor replied with a chuckle. “Promise.”
He walked into the jungle while Ben sat on the ground, resting his aching leg.
Over at the shoreline, the leader of the Japanese soldiers stopped his patrol when he spotted Trevor and Ben’s footprints and the trail of the raft into the jungle.
He motioned for his patrol to cautiously walk toward those tracks.
The soldiers cautiously followed their leader while he walked along the tracks.
They walked into the jungle, and within five minutes, they found the raft. The patrol leader looked at the raft, and he looked concerned.
“We have Americans on the island,” he raged while scanning the area. “Find them!” he barked out an order.
His patrol cautiously walked deeper into the woods with their rifles ready to kill.
Trevor found a spot to take his morning leak. After he was finished, something caught his attention. He saw the Japanese patrol way off in the jungle, heading in his direction.
He cautiously snuck away, making every attempt to be quiet.
Ben ate a banana when Trevor returned scared. “What’s wrong?” Ben asked, concerned.
Trevor got down and leaned inches toward Ben’s ear. Ben looked a little apprehensive, with Trevor close to his face.
” Japanese soldiers coming in our direction,” Trevor whispered.
Ben’s eyes widened, and he painfully stood up. “We better get out of here before they realize we’re on the island,” Ben said.
Trevor quickly grabbed all the fruit and bananas and unzipped his flight suit. He shoved them inside his suit and zipped it up.
Ben quietly began tearing down their lean-to home, and Trevor helped.
Then Ben motioned for them to leave.
They tried to be quiet while they rushed away in the jungle, but there was occasional twig snapping.
On Engebi, Carl stood at the shoreline and stared at the ocean. He thought about Ben and wondered if he did the right thing. But there was nothing he could do now, as Ben was dead, and he couldn’t reverse the past.
Then, airplane engines were heard flying near the shoreline.
Carl looked and saw five Corsairs flying to the island. He watched while they all took turns and landed on the runway. They were replacement planes Weaver ordered.
Trevor and Ben rushed through the jungle the best they could with Ben’s hurt leg.
They continued to rush through the jungle.
Twenty minutes later, they reached a lagoon and stopped.
Ben removed a map from another pocket on his flight suit.
He looked at the lagoon and then studied his map.
He looked back at the lagoon. “I believe we’re on Namorik,” Ben believed, comparing the lagoon and his map.
“Yep, we’re on Namorik,” he replied with a tone of assurance.
“Now what?” Trevor asked.
‘I think if we get back in our raft, get back in the ocean, head northeast, and go around Jaluit, then east to Majuro. Then, hopefully, a Navy or Marine plane will spot us,” Ben told him. \.
“Let’s get out of here.”
Ben walked with a limp while they headed back into the jungle.
Back at Engebi, Carl walked around the base to kill some time. He left Weaver’s office twenty minutes ago and learned he would return home in two days. He couldn’t wait to put all this war behind him and move on with the rest of his life.
On Namorik, Trevor and Ben cautiously went through the woods undetected by the Japanese patrol and returned to their raft. But they noticed it was deflated because the Japs sliced it with a knife.
“Damn, they know we’re on the island,” Ben said while he looked around for the Japanese.
Trevor looked scared. “What now?”
Ben thought for a few seconds. “We’ll lay low and try to hide from them until I can think of a plan to get us off this island,” Ben replied.
“For how long?”
“I wish I knew,” Ben answered. “Let’s find a safe place to hide. If there is such a place,” Ben added.
Trevor looked worried as things were getting heated while they walked into the jungle.
Twenty minutes later, Trevor and Ben cautiously walked into the jungle, and it was quiet.
Then they heard some noises about thirty feet away.
Ben motioned for them to take cover in some vegetation.
Trevor and Ben quickly ducked into some thick vegetation.
“They have to be around here somewhere,” the Japanese patrol leader told his troops while they searched the jungle.
Trevor and Ben peeked through some branches. They spotted the Japanese patrol searching the jungle twenty feet from their hiding place. They did not move one inch while waiting for the patrol to leave.
Ten minutes later, the patrol was gone, and the coast was clear. They came out of the vegetation and looked the area over. Ben thought for a second, and then his eyes widened with an idea. “They probably have a radio at some base on his island,” he told Trevor.
Trevor wondered what he meant, and then it dawned on him. “I get it. Then we can report their location and ask for them to come to rescue us,” he said.
Ben nodded in agreement.
“Let’s go get some rest. We’ll search for their base tonight,” Ben said.
“I could use a nap,” Trevor said.
Ben limped away, and Trevor followed him through the jungle.
Fifteen minutes later, Trevor and Ben arrived back at their lean-to. But they noticed that the vegetation of the lean-to was scattered all over the ground.
“Do you think they’ll come back ?” Trevor worried.
Ben looked around. “Probably not today,” Ben believed while scanning the area for a safer hiding place. Then he spotted thicker vegetation.
“It’s like this. I sleep for three hours, and you keep guard.
Then you sleep for three hours, and I keep guard,” Ben said.
“Then it’ll get darker, and we can sneak around the jungle to locate their home base.”
Trevor and Ben walked over, got on their knees, and crawled into some thick vegetation.
Ben curled up on the ground inside the vegetation and closed his eyes.
Trevor sat up and waited and watched.
Six hours later, the sun started to settle below the horizon.
Trevor and Ben crawled out of their vegetation hideout.
“Let’s do some searching,” Ben said while he looked around. “Let’s head in that direction,” he said and pointed.
They cautiously walked for twenty-five minutes and saw nothing. Then they heard branches break thirty feet away. Ben motioned for them to freeze and be extremely quiet. There wasn’t any vegetation to hide inside, just a bunch of pine trees.
“They must be close by,” the Japanese leader told his patrol.
Ben and Trevor looked at each other when they heard the Japanese voices. They heard more branches break while the Japanese soldiers walked closer.
Ben looked around for a place to hide, and when he saw a big tree nearby.
“I hope you climbed trees as a kid,” he quietly said. Trevor looked at Ben, who pointed at the big tree. They rushed over, and Trevor climbed up the tree.
Ben anxiously waited while Trevor got twenty feet up into the tree. Then he climbed up the tree with a little pain in his leg.
Ben cringed in pain while they perched on a tree branch, and Trevor noticed. “You okay?” Trevor whispered.
“I’ll be fine,” Ben whispered back.
Trevor saw blood ooze from Ben’s bullet wound as the climb aggravated it when it brushed up against some of the branches.
Down below, the Japanese patrol walked right up under the tree, and they stopped and looked around the area.
Trevor and Ben looked down and saw the Japanese soldiers below. More blood oozed from Ben’s leg and dripped to the ground.
The Japanese soldiers looked around the area for the Americans.
Trevor cringed in fear when a couple drops of blood landed on the top of a Japanese soldier’s hat. He silently motioned for Ben to look at his leg.
Ben looked down at his leg and saw blood ooze out and drip downward. He quickly covered his wound with his hand to stop the dripping.
“It’s getting dark. We’ll continue our search tomorrow morning,” the Japanese leader told his troops down at the tree’s base. The soldiers walked away through the jungle.
Ten minutes later, Ben looked relieved the soldiers were gone, and he motioned for Trevor that they could get out of the tree. Trevor climbed down the tree.
Ben climbed down the tree.
After they got on the ground, Ben looked in the direction the soldiers walked. “Let’s track them and locate their base,”
Ben told Trevor.
They walked off after the soldiers and looked for the footprints in the dirt, which made tracking them a little easier.
For the next thirty minutes, Trevor and Ben tracked the soldiers, and the sun was starting to sink below the horizon.
They followed the tracks until they came upon a clearing.
Ben motioned for them to duck behind some bushes after hearing Japanese voices.
They saw two Japanese soldiers walk by the edge of the jungle by the clearing with rifles slung around their shoulders.
Ben motioned for Trevor to stay in place.
Ben quietly walked out of the vegetation and walked to the clearing. He hid behind a tree and peeked out into the clearing.
He got a huge grin at what he saw, then quietly walked back to Ben in the vegetation.
“Their base is up ahead. We’ll hang here until the middle of the night,” he told Trevor.
It was night, and back at Engebi, Carl sat at the bar at the Stress Reliever. He had the Santa Monica picture in his hand but tore out Ben and Sandy’s body and taped Diana and him together. He didn’t want to show her this modified version of the picture, so he had plans to trash it in Hawaii and tell her he lost it at Engebi.
Carl finished his beer and got off the barstool.
He left the Stress Reliever and walked back to the Humble Abode.
While he walked down the aisle between numerous tents, Henry approached him and stopped. “Well, Carl, I guess this is it. I heard you’re leaving tomorrow,” he said.
“Yeah,” Carl replied, looking anxious to escape Henry.
“I wish you the best of luck and take care of Ben’s kid for us,” Henry replied, then stuck out his hand.
“I will,” Carl said while he shook Henry’s hand.
Carl and Henry smiled at each other and walked away in separate directions.
Carl entered the Humble Abode, where only two officers relaxed in their bunks.
As Carl returned to his bunk, he grabbed his seabag and dropped it on his bed. He looked over and saw that Ben’s seabag was still under his bunk, and his locker still had his personal items.
Carl grabbed his uniforms and shoved them into his seabag but left one for tomorrow’s trip off the island.
I’ll call Diana in Hawaii. He thought to himself while dropping his modified Santa Monica picture into his seabag and zipping it up.
Weaver entered the Humble Abode. The two officers on their bunks saw him, jumped up, and snapped to attention.
“As you were,” Weaver told them.
The two officers got back in their bunks.
Weaver walked up to Carl’s bunk and saw his seabag on it.
“Packing for your trip home tomorrow, son?” Weaver asked.
“Yes, sir,” Carl replied.
“Very good. Listen, I know you’re Ben’s best friend, so I was wondering if you could pack his personal items and take them along with you?” Weaver asked.
“Yes sir,” Carl replied, knowing that if he refused, it could raise suspicions, and he didn’t want that right now.
Weaver stuck out his hand. “Good luck, son,” Weaver said.
Carl shook his hands, and then Weaver left the Humble Abode.
Carl walked over to Ben’s bunk. He reached under it and removed his sea bag.
He walked over and opened up Ben’s locker. He immediately saw his Santa Monica picture and dropped it in Ben’s seabag. He proceeded to shove all of Ben’s uniforms in the sea bag. After he emptied the locker into the sea bag, he zipped it up. He left the bag on Ben’s bunk and returned to his bunk.
He grabbed his seabag and set it down by his locker. He got on his bunk and stared at the top of the tent. He fought hard to dismiss the events of that day in the South Pacific from his mind.
But the scenes of the moments he shot at Ben and Trevor started to haunt him. His eyes welled up, but he knew he couldn’t undo everything, so he continued to fight those taunting memories.
He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
Back in Namorik, Trevor and Ben took turns sleeping in the vegetation. They were starving but didn’t want to get caught while searching for food.
Then, around 2:00 a.m., Ben and Trevor quietly walked out of the vegetation and headed to the clearing.
A half-moon was out, and the night sky was full of twinkling stars. There was enough moonlight for them to see an airstrip with ten Zeros parked in the clearing.
“Is this that new airstrip we’ve been searching for?” Trevor quietly asked Ben.
“Yeah. I believe it is,” he replied. “Let’s move farther down toward the base,” Ben quietly said.
They quietly walked 100 feet farther down the jungle.
They peeked around a tree and saw two large fuel storage tanks near the strip. At the far end of the airstrip, they saw tents, huts, and a bulldozer.
“Why don’t we just steal a Zero?” Trevor suggested to Ben.
“We can’t risk getting shot down by our own planes. After all, they would shoot first, then ask questions later,” Ben answered.
“You were shot down by an American,” Trevor recalled.
Ben thought about his comment then he looked pissed.
“Some best friend. I can’t wait to get my hands around his neck,” he growled with hatred in his eyes.
Ben looked at the far end of the airstrip toward the tents.
“Let’s find their radio,” Ben said.
“Do you know how to use one?” Trevor asked after thinking this could ruin their plans.
“I had some training, as you should have,” Ben replied. He looked at Trevor and wondered why he would ask that question.
“Oh yeah, I forgot,” Trevor answered, hoping Ben believed his line.
They cautiously walked away through the jungle.
Fifteen minutes later, Trevor and Ben peeked around a tree and got a good view of the tents. Then they saw that one of the tents, thirty feet from where they looked, had a radio antenna by the side of it.
“Bingo, we have a radio,” Ben quietly told Trevor.
Then, they saw a Japanese soldier with a rifle and a bayonet knife while he walked around the tent.
“But we have some resistance,” Ben said while he removed his knife from his flight suit.
Trevor noticed the soldier, and he frowned.
“You’re not going to kill him, are you?” Trevor asked.
“It’s either them or us. I don’t have a choice during the war,” Ben replied.
Ben quietly walked away toward the radio tent.
Trevor watched while Ben snuck up on the guard from behind. Ben quickly covered the soldier’s mouth and swiftly slit his throat. The soldier dropped dead into Ben’s arms. Ben quietly lowered him to the ground and then removed his rifle.
Ben dragged the dead soldier back to Trevor.
Trevor looked in horror at the dead soldier on the ground by his feet. He noticed blood oozing out of the soldier’s slit throat and started to gag, then he looked away, and the gagging stopped.
Ben handed Trevor the rifle.
Ben removed the ammo from the dead soldier and handed it to Trevor.
Ben grabbed the soldier’s collar, dragged him to some vegetation, and shoved him inside, so he was hidden from view.
“Cover me,” he told Trevor while he handed him the rifle.
Ben cautiously walked away and went back to the tent.
Trevor got his rifle ready to shoot any Jap that would come after Ben.
Ben cautiously walked around the side of the tent. He peeked around the corner, and the coast was clear.
Ben walked around the corner, slowly opened the flap to the tent, and peeked inside.
Inside the tent sat a Japanese kid who was the radio operator. It was a dreary night, and the kid worked ten hours so far, and he fought from falling asleep.
Ben quietly tiptoed inside.
The radio operator turned around and saw Ben. He was a little sleepy, so it didn’t dawn on him that a Marine was standing five feet from him. Then it dawned on him that one of the Americans he heard could be on the island was in his tent. He jumped up, startled, and wanted to cry out, but nothing came out of his mouth.
Ben rushed him and stabbed the kid in his stomach. His eyes widened in shock over being stabbed. Then Ben gave the knife a few thrusts, and the kid dropped to his knees dead.
Ben lowered the kid to the floor, and he closed his eyelids.
He quickly removed his ammo from the kid’s uniform and put it in his pocket.
Ben rushed over to the radio and sat down. He studied the radio briefly to relearn what he was taught.
Back in the jungle, Trevor looked nervous while he watched the radio hut. Then, he saw another Japanese soldier with a rifle walk to the tent. He got nervous while he debated on what to do.
He cautiously walked to the tent to sneak up on the soldier.
Inside the radio tent, Ben turned a knob for the frequency for their base. He wore the headphones and grabbed the microphone.
“Devil’s den, this is Fireball ten. I repeat, Devil’s Den, this is Fireball ten,” he said into the microphone. There were a few seconds of silence while Ben waited for a response. “Devil’s den, this is Fireball ten,” Ben repeated into the microphone. He paused for a response from Engebi.
Back at Engebi, Keith was asleep in his bunk in the radio tent. “I repeat, Devil’s Den; this is Fireball Ten,” Ben repeated from the radio’s speakers.
Keith’s eyes opened, and he wasn’t sure he heard correctly and thought it was a dream. But instinct made him get up, and he rushed over to his microphone and wore his headset.
“Caller trying to establish contact with the Devil’s den.
Please repeat your transmission,” Keith said into the microphone.
“This is Fireball ten,” Ben repeated from the radio speakers.
Keith’s eyes widened in shock over what he heard.
“Fireball ten? Fireball eleven told us you were dead,” Keith said into his microphone.
Keith removed his headset and ran to the flap of the tent, and he stuck his head outside. “Someone get Colonel Weaver to the radio tent. It’s an emergency! I repeat, it’s an emergency,”
he yelled.
Four Marines were on their way back from the Stress Reliever head Keith and ran toward Weaver’s hut.
Back in Namorik, someone entered the tent. Ben looked and saw that Japanese soldier at the tent entrance. The soldier looked surprised to see a Marine at their radio and immediately took aim at Ben.
Ben froze and swallowed hard, thinking the end of his life was coming within a few minutes.
The soldier’s eyes widened in shock, then fell flat. Then Ben saw a bayonet knife stuck in the middle of the kid’s back.
Trevor entered the tent with a smile. “It’s either him or you, and I choose you,” Trevor said.
“Thanks, buddy,” Ben said, returning to the radio.
“Fireball ten, are you still there?” Weaver’s voice came across the radio.
“Yes sir,” Ben replied into the microphone. Trevor watched the door for more Japs.
“We were told you were dead by Fireball eleven,” Weaver replied.
“No sir, I’m alive. And I’m in Namorik. That’s where the new Jap airstrip is located. I have Fireball fourteen with me.
Fireball eleven shot us down. Repeat. Fireball eleven shot us down and tried to kill us,” Ben said into the microphone.
“Copy Fireball ten. We’ll send help in the morning,”
Weaver replied.
“The new airstrip is on the north end of Namorik. We’ll hide out on the northeastern tip of Matamat. We’ll make sure there’s no air resistance,” Ben answered.
“Copy Fireball ten, and don’t get yourself killed,” Weaver replied.
“Copy, sir. Send airstrike in the morning and a PBY when it’s safe,” Ben said, then removed the headset and reset the frequency to where it was initially set.
Ben grabbed the dead operator and soldier’s rifles and slung them around his shoulders. They grabbed the dead Japanese by their collars and dragged them to the tent flap. They peeked outside, and the coast was clear.
Trevor and Ben dragged the dead Japanese bodies to some other vegetation in the jungle and covered them with some leaves.
Ben looked at the Zero’s across the airstrip and got a smirk.
“We have one more mission to ensure our planes won’t have any resistance.”
Ben grabbed one of the rifles and walked down the jungle toward the planes. Trevor followed Ben toward the planes.
Back at Engebi, everybody was asleep in the Humble Abode.
Weaver entered with Hall, turned on the lights, and stood by the tent flap. Then, he blew a whistle.
Everybody jumped up awake and startled after hearing the whistle. They looked around in a daze and saw Weaver and Hall at the flap.
They all jumped out of their bunks and stood at attention.
“At ease,” he said, and everybody relaxed. Then Weaver looked serious. We just received a radio transmission from Lieutenant Grayson. He and Lieutenant Walker are alive,” he told everybody.
Everybody in the tent jumped up and cheered except for Carl, who looked extremely nervous.
“They’re stranded on Namorik and reported that the new Japanese airstrip is at the island’s north end. I need nine volunteers to leave at dawn,” Weaver said.
“I’ll go, sir,” Henry yelled from his bunk.
Everybody in the tent volunteered. Even Carl volunteered to go on this mission.
“Stay away from Matamat. Grayson and Walker will be hiding there,” Weaver ordered.
Weaver and Hall walked up to Carl’s bunk.
Carl shook a little, and Weaver sensed he was nervous about something.
“Eastman, I want you to unpack Grayson’s seabag and put everything back in his locker.”
“Yes, sir,” Carl answered nervously and rushed to Ben’s bunk.
He unzipped Ben’s seabag and immediately placed everything back in Ben’s locker. Then, when he was done, he rushed back to his bunk.
“Sir, I must go on this mission. Ben’s my best friend,” Carl insisted.
Weaver gave Carl a stern look. “Guards!” he yelled out.
Two Marine Sergeants with sidearms rushed inside the tent.
Weaver glared at Carl, who started shaking in fear and looked white as a ghost.
Everybody in the tent looked shocked while the two guards rushed to Carl.
“Arrest Lieutenant Eastman,” Weaver ordered. Carl looked scared to death. “What for sir?” he nervously asked.
“Captain Grayson and Lieutenant Walker will explain after we rescue them,” Weaver said.
Carl looked ashamed, while his fellow pilots and friends looked bewildered while they watched the guards escort him out of the tent.
Weaver looked at Henry. “You, you, you, you, you, you, you, you and you,” he said while he pointed at the eight pilots for the mission. “Get your flight suits on; we’ll have a briefing in thirty minutes,” Weaver said, then he walked out of the tent with Hall right behind him.
“What the hell did Carl do?” one pilot asked while he got dressed in his flight suit.
“I don’t like the sound of this as it might have something to do with Ben and Trevor getting shot down,” Henry said while he got dressed in his flight suit.
Everybody else in the tent looked stunned over what had just happened with Carl.
Once he was outside the Humble Abode, the guards handcuffed Carl’s arms behind his back and then shackled his legs since they don’t have a jail cell with bars.
Carl’s eyes welled up while he was escorted to a tent used as a brig.
A little later, back in Namorik, Ben and Trevor peeked around another tree and saw a guard by one end of the Zeros and another at the other.
“Are you up for this?” Ben asked Trevor.
“Like you said, it’s either them or us,” Trevor replied.
“Good. Now, we plan to slice all the tires on those Zeros,”
he told Trevor.
“Ah, so the plane’s can’t take off after our Corsair’s,”
Trevor replied.
“You got it,” Ben said, then motioned for them to leave. Ben and Trevor headed off in different directions toward the two guards.
At the one end of the planes, Trevor had his bayonet knife out while he cautiously snuck up and got under a Zero for cover.
The guard walked by the Zero.
Trevor rushed out from under the Zero and snuck up behind the guard. Trevor got two feet from the guard. The guard suddenly turned around, and his eyes widened in shock when he saw Trevor. They stared at each other, unsure about what to do next. Then Trevor lunged at the guard and stabbed the kid in his chest.
The guard looked at Trevor with disbelief, then dropped to the ground, dead.
“I’m sorry,” Trevor said while looking at the dead guard.
Trevor grabbed the guard’s rife, then dragged him away and set him by the tail section of the plane.
Trevor immediately rushed back to the planes and stabbed all the landing gear tires. The tires hissed out air while they went flat. Ben was at the other end and killed that guard, and then he quickly flattened all the tires of two Zeros.
Trevor flattened all the tires of two more Zeros.
Ben flattened all the tires of two more Zeros.
Trevor flattened all the tires of another Zero.
Ben flattened all the tires of the last two Zeros. Trevor and Ben dragged the bodies of the dead guards into the jungle and hid them from view. They quickly removed all their ammo from the guard’s uniforms and met in the jungle.
“This isn’t one of my proud moments,” Trevor said with sadness in his eyes for killing so many young men. “But it’s war.” Ben ran out of the jungle and ran over to a nearby Zero, and Trevor wondered what he was doing.
Trevor watched Ben remove a life raft from the plane and return to the jungle.
“Let’s get to Matamat before they figure out we were here,”
Ben said.
“How’s your leg feeling?” Trevor asked, a little worried. “It hurts, but I’ll be okay,” Ben replied.
Ben and Trevor rushed off into the jungle.
The sun peeked above the Pacific Ocean’s horizon to indicate another day’s start.
On the back of Engebi, ten Corsairs taxied down the flight line and headed to the runway.
Hall was in the lead Corsair, and he rolled down the runway and was soon airborne.
Then, nine Corsairs took turns, rolled down the runway, and took off.
All ten Corsairs flew in formation toward Namorik.
A PBY was eighty miles away and headed to Engebi, as it was summoned to come in after the raid on Namorik to fly Ben and Trevor back to the base.
On Namorik, Trevor and Ben were in the stolen life raft and paddled to Matamat from Namorik.
The Japanese resumed their search for the
Americans. Two patrols with eight soldiers were sent out into the jungle.
Patrol 1 searched the jungle around the base.
Patrol 2 searched the jungle away from the base.
When Patrol 1 searched the jungle near their base, they.
stumbled upon the dead bodies of the radio operator and the other soldier shoved into the vegetation.
They looked pissed while they looked at their fallen friends.
Then, patrol 2 walked up from the jungle.
“We searched every inch of the island and didn’t find them,” the Lieutenant from the other patrol said.
The Lieutenant from Patrol 1 looked around while he thought about where they could be hiding. Then his eyes lit up with the only possible location. “Matamat!” he cried out and pointed in that direction.
Then, the Lieutenant of Patrol 1 looked at the dead soldiers. “Bury them,” he ordered his troops.
The two Lieutenants stormed off while four soldiers grabbed the boots of the dead soldiers and dragged them out of the vegetation.
On the shoreline of Matamat, Trevor and Ben hid the raft under some vegetation.
“Let’s get going,” Ben said.
“What if they don’t come?” Trevor questions, getting concerned.
“Then we’ll get back in the ocean and try our luck,” Ben replied.
Trevor and Ben slung their stolen Japanese rifles around their shoulders and walked into the jungle.
On the Namorik, ten Japanese soldiers walked to the shoreline, and four carried two life rafts.
They dropped the rafts in the water, and the soldiers got inside them.
They paddled off to Matamat with the determination to find Trevor and Ben and kill them.
Back on Matamat, Trevor and Trevor picked some bananas for their breakfast. They sat on the ground and ate while they rested.
Back on Engebi, Carl sat on his bunk in the makeshift jail tent handcuffed and his legs shackled. His eyes welled up, knowing he was in deep yogurt.
Back on Matamat, Trevor and Trevor stood up and resumed their trek through the jungle.
They soon walked through a clearing in the jungle.
All of a sudden, bullets strafed the ground by their feet while they walked through the clearing.
They turned around and saw the 10 Japanese soldiers at the west end of the clearing with rifles aimed at them.
“Crap, they finally found us, and I bet they’re pissed we killed their friends,” Ben called out in a panic.
Trevor and Ben, with a limp, ran to the jungle at the east end of the clearing.
The Japanese soldiers fired their rifles at them, and bullets zinged all around their feet.
More gunfire and a bullet hit Ben in his wounded leg. Ben dropped to the ground. “I’m hit again!” he cringed in pain.
Trevor rushed over and helped him stand up. He assisted Ben while they rushed to the jungle.
Trevor and Trevor ran into the jungle.
“We need to stop as many of them as possible,” Ben stated.
Trevor knew precisely what that meant, so they hid behind some trees. They aimed their rifles at the clearing for the Japanese soldiers when they appeared.
The Japanese soldiers ran through the clearing and got to the jungle.
Ben and Trevor fired their rifles the second they saw the Japanese soldiers enter the jungle from the clearing.
Two Japanese soldiers dropped to the ground dead, and the other eight soldiers quickly found cover between some trees.
Trevor assisted Ben while they ran through the jungle.
“We only have eight more to get,” Ben said while they ran through the jungle.
The eight Japanese soldiers cautiously walked through the jungle.
Trevor and Ben ran to the edge of the jungle, saw the shoreline, and knew they didn’t have any place to run. Ben cringed in pain from the two bullet wounds in his leg.
“I can’t run anymore. My leg is killing me,” he cringed.
They both hunkered down at the jungle’s edge behind some trees and waited with their rifles aimed.
Ben saw a Japanese soldier cautiously walking in the jungle, and he fired a shot.
The soldier dropped dead in some vegetation. Trevor and Ben scanned the jungle with their rifles. Trevor saw another Japanese soldier, and he fired a shot.
The soldier dropped dead and dropped to the dirt.
Then, the remaining six soldiers hit behind some trees and fired shots at Trevor and Ben.
Bullets zinged near Trevor, and he cringed, thinking he would get shot. He took aim at the soldier and fired a shot at a Japanese soldier, but he missed.
The soldier fired back at Trevor, and the bullet hit Trevor, gazing at the top of his shoulder. He cringed in pain while ducking down behind the tree.
“I’m hit,” Trevor said in pain.
Ben looked concerned. “How bad?” he asked while he looked back at the jungle for another soldier to shoot at.
“It gazed at the top of my shoulder. I’ll live,” Trevor said.
The sound of faint explosions was heard coming from Namorik.
Ben and Trevor looked in the direction of the explosions.
“I wonder if our friends have arrived?” Ben said while more explosions were heard coming from Namorik. Then Ben’s eyes widened with a smile, hearing more explosions. “I like that sound in the morning.”
They looked into the jungle and saw the six Japanese soldiers approaching.
Ben saw two Corsairs fly 50 feet off the ocean and headed straight at them.
“We better run down the beach a little and draw out those Japs,” he told Trevor.
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Trevor replied.
Ben pointed out over the ocean at the approaching Corsairs.
Trevor smiled noticing the planes then helped Ben to his feet. They moved down the beach so the Corsairs would see them and eventually see the Japanese soldiers.
The six Japanese soldiers ran out of the jungle and saw Trevor and Ben rushing down the beach.
They ran closer to the water and stopped. They aimed their rifles and fired.
A bullet hit Trevor in his right calf, and he dropped to the sand, taking Ben down with him.
Trevor looked up from the sand and saw the two Corsairs getting closer.
The Japanese soldiers heard the Corsairs and turned around. They stared in shock while the two planes raced at them.
They ran to the jungle for cover.
Inside Henry’s Corsair, he had his gun sights on the soldier, fired his machine guns str, and the sand at the soldiers, and killed them instantly before they reached the jungle.
They dropped to the sand, and all six were dead.
Henry continued to fly his Corsair over the beach.
Trevor and Ben saw the soldiers drop and the Corsair fly at them.
“Yeah!” Ben yelled while waving at the plane.
Inside Henry’s Corsair, he saw Ben and Trevor wave at him from the beach below. He rocked his wings to acknowledge them and flew over their heads.
“Fireball one, I’ve spotted Fireballs ten and fourteen.
They’re alive,” Henry said into the radio net.
“Good. Stay there to ensure they stay safe,” Hall replied from the radio.
Trevor watched while the other Corsair flew over their heads and rocked his wings to acknowledge them.
Trevor and Ben watched while the Corsairs banked back over the ocean and flew parallel to them.
Back at the Japanese base on Namorik, one of the fuel tanks was on fire from a dropped bomb.
The engines of the eight Zero’s were running, and they tried to taxi. They could barely move because of their flattened tires. With Hall as the lead, the other eight Corsairs swooped out of the air and targeted the airstrip.
Half of the Corsairs broke away and flew at the tent area where the Japanese soldiers scurried for cover. Some stopped and fired their rifles at the planes. The four Corsairs fired their machine guns, and they strafed the tents and killed most of the soldiers.
The other four Corsairs flew along the runway and fired their machine guns, and they strafed the eight Zeros.
It was a domino effect while the Zero’s exploded in numerous fireballs.
The eight Corsairs banked and ascended over the ocean.
All eight Corsairs strafed the tent area with their machine guns, killing all the occupants.
Inside Hall’s Corsair, he looked the area over and realized they got all the Japs. “Devil’s den, our mission is a success.
Fireballs ten and twelve are safe on Matamat. You can send in the PBY. We’ll hang around for protection,” Hall said into the radio net.
“Copy Fireball one; the PBY is on its way,” Weaver replied from the radio net.
“It’s off to Matamat,” Hall said into his radio.
All eight Corsairs flew off to Matamat about fifty feet off the deck.
On the beach on Matamat, Trevor and Ben watched. At the same time, Henry and the other Corsair circled over them to provide protection.
Trevor and Ben hugged each other, ever so happy they had made it alive.
“We made it!” Trevor said while they watched the two Corsair circles above them,
Then they saw while the other eight Corsairs flew over the jungle and buzzed the beach.
“Yeah!” Trevor yelled at the Corsairs while they flew over the ocean.
Inside Hall’s Corsair, he looked at this fuel gauge and realized they needed to return to base or ditch in the ocean.
“Devil’s den, we’re running low on fuel and must come home. Namorik and Matamat appear to be safe. Is the PBY on its way?” Hall asked on the radio net.
“Fireball one, the PBY is on its way. Return home,”
Weaver replied from the radio net.
“You heard the Colonel,” Hall said into the radio net.
Ben and Trevor watched while the ten Corsairs banked around and flew over the beach in formation, and they rocked their wings.
The Corsairs ascended and flew off towards Engebi.
“Where are they going?” Trevor asked.
“Back to Engebi before they run out of fuel,” Ben replied.
They sat down on the beach and waited.
“I couldn’t have done it without you. I can’t wait to tell my son about you,” Ben told Trevor.
Trevor had a proud smile. “Will this allow you to go home?” he asked, crossing his fingers.
“Probably.”
“I hope so,” Trevor replied with his fingers still crossed.
They saw a Navy PBY land in the ocean fifty feet from them.
“Our ride is here,” Ben said.
They both stood up while the PBY idled its engine and slowed down. It floated in the water. The rear door opened, and two Navy men threw a raft into the water. They jumped inside it.
They paddled the raft to Trevor and Ben.
Back at Engebi, Weaver and Hall waited at the flight line and saw the Navy PBY while it turned on final and descended down to the runway.
Numerous other Marines started to gather while the news of Ben and Trevor arriving spread through the base like wildfire.
The PBY landed and rolled to a stop, then taxied to the flightline near the crowd growing larger.
The PBY parked and shut off its engines. The rear door opened, and Ben and Trevor stepped out.
The crowd cheered and rushed up to Ben and Trevor.
“Welcome home!” Henry yelled out while pushing through the crowd to rush up to Ben and Trevor. “We’re so glad you’re alive,” Henry added.
Many Marines also congratulated Ben and ignored Trevor.
Weaver and Hall pushed their way through the crowd with those two Marine Sergeant guards with sidearms.
Weaver extended his hands out to Ben, who shook it.
“Grayson, I’m so glad you’re alive, and thank you for finding that new Jap airstrip,” Weaver said.
Ben looked proud of what he accomplished with Trevor.
Weaver looked at Trevor. “But Walker, I’m going to have to place you under arrest until we settle this issue with you taking off without orders,” Weaver said.
“Sir, Walker saved my life. Can you forget about that little incident?” Ben pleaded.
“We’ll let the board decide,” Weaver replied. Then he saw the bullet wound in Trevor’s leg.
“Get Walker some medical attention first,” Weaver ordered, and then he looked at Ben’s leg. “The same for Grayson,”
Weaver added.
The two guards grabbed one of Trevor’s arms, escorted him away, and headed to the tents.
Weaver walked away, heading to the tents.
Ben got upset watching the two guards escort Trevor away.
Later that day, Trevor and Ben lay in a bunk in the medical tent. They recuperated after the doctor removed the bullets from their body.
Trevor stared at the top of the tent, worried that he was going to jail for stealing that plane. But at least he saved Ben’s life. Ben stared at the top of the tent, worried while pondering how he could save Trevor from going to prison.
Inside the jail tent, Carl lay shackled on his bunk, and he stared at the ceiling. All he could think about was life behind bars for many years, probably for the rest of his life.
One of the guards entered the medical tent. He walked up to Carl and stared down at him. “I thought you should know that Lieutenants Grayson and Walker were rescued and arrived on base within the hour,” he said while staring at Carl and fighting his urge to punch him. “I reckon your trial will start soon,” the guard added, then walked away and left the tent.
Carl just stared at the top of the tent and showed no emotion.
Back in Santa Barbara, Diana had just changed Robert’s diaper when there was a knock on her door.
“Just a minute,” she yelled while pinning the diaper.
She placed Robert in his pen, then walked to the front door. She opened it and saw a Western Union man outside with a serious look. She knew what this meant and got nauseous.
“I’m sorry, ma’am,” the Western Union man said while opening the screen door and handing her the telegram.
Her hands trembled, and her eyes welled up while the man walked away.
Her hands shook while she opened up the telegram.
“We regret to inform you that Lieutenant Ben Grayson was shot down in the South Pacific and is officially missing in action and presumed dead,” the telegram stated.
Diana dropped to her knees and sobbed. She feared the worse that her soul mate was dead.
The Western Union man walked down the sidewalk and got inside his car. He started it up and drove away.
Fifteen minutes later, the Western Union man drove down Memphis Avenue and stopped at Lloyd Bannister’s house.
He parked along the street and got out of his car. He was in a hurry as this was his last message, and he was supposed to meet his buddies for some beers within thirty minutes.
He rushed down the sidewalk to Lloyd’s front door. He knocked the second he arrived at the door.
After a few seconds, the door creaked open, and Lloyd stuck his head out. “What the hell do you want?” Lloyd asked suspiciously and snarled at the man.
“Western Union,” the man replied, then shoved the telegram at Lloyd, who immediately grabbed it and rushed away.
Lloyd looked at the telegram and thought it was a publisher telling him he wanted to buy his manuscript. He immediately opened up and read the telegram.
“Mister Winston Walker. We regret to inform you that your son, Lieutenant Trevor Walker, is missing in action in the South Pacific and presumed dead,” Lloyd read the telegram. He scratched his head, confused over the telegram.” Stupid military.
They can’t even deliver a message to the correct house,” Lloyd said. Then he tore up the message and let the pieces fall at his doorstep. He went back inside his house.
The next day, Ben could return to his bunk in the Humble Abode, where he immediately got his Santa Monica picture out of his locker. He kissed Diana’s picture and then shoved it into his shirt pocket. He lay on his bunk and relaxed while he thought about his wife and son.
Weaver was inside his hut while he prepared for the board that would convene in thirty minutes.
One of the guards entered the tent with something in his hand. He walked up to Weaver and saluted.
“Sir, we found this in Lieutenant Eastman’s seabag. I didn’t know if this was important for the board,” he said then he handed Weaver the modified Santa Monica picture.
Weaver looked at it and set it down on his desk. “Thank you, sergeant,” Weaver said and saluted the guard.
The guard walked out of Weaver’s hut.
Thirty minutes later, Weaver convened the small board in the briefing tent comprised of Major Hall, Major Ballard, and Captain Justin.
Carl sat shacked in the jail tent, and Trevor sat shackled in another tent. Both had armed guards that watched over them.
Ben sat in a chair in front of the officers behind a table.
“At first, I thought a Zero shot at me, but I couldn’t see any signs of him,” Ben said.
“How did you know it was a Zero?” Weaver asked.
“Lieutenant Eastman told me I had a Zero on my tail,” Ben replied.
“And where was Lieutenant Walker?” Ballard asked.
“Somewhere nearby. Exactly where, I don’t know,” Ben answered.
“After you were shot down, then what happened?” Hall asked.
“I ditched in the water and tried to get out of my plane.
But my harness was jammed, and I was stuck. Then Lieutenant Eastman said he would cover me,” Ben said.
“And where was Lieutenant Walker at this point?” Justin asked.
“At first, he was still up in the air, but then he ditched his plane close to my plane,” Ben said.
“He ditched his plane near you?” Weaver asked to make sure he understood.
“Yes, sir,” Ben replied.
“Then what happened?” Justin asked.
“Lieutenant Walker jumped out of his plane and swam over to my plane. Then he cut my harness and helped me out of my plane,” Ben said.
“Where was Lieutenant Eastman at this moment,” Hall asked.
“He was coming after us,” Ben said.
“Coming after you? Meaning to rescue you?” Justin asked.
“No, sir. He was coming after us to kill us. He fired his machine guns at my plane, but Walker pulled me into the water in time. Then, while we swam, Carl flew back around and strafed my plane, and it blew up,” Ben said, then his eyes welled up over the thought of Carl trying to kill him.
“Then what happened?” Ballard asked.
“Walker swam to his plane and removed his life raft. Then immediately after that, Carl flew back around and strafed Trevor’s plane, and it blew up,” Ben said, then wiped away his tears.
“Why would Eastman do such a horrible act?” Hall asked.
“Well, sir, he always loved my wife and couldn’t bear the thought that she married me and not him. I guess he thought that if I was dead, he could marry my wife, Diana,” Ben said.
“We all know you two were best friends from your hometown. So I don’t believe you would lie about someone you cared about,” Weaver said. Then he opened his shirt pocket, removed Carl’s modified Santa Monica picture, and showed it to Ben. “Is this your wife?” he asked.
Ben removed his Santa Monica picture and showed it to Weaver. “This was taken on the day I proposed to Diana,” Ben said while he handed it to Weaver.
Weaver looked over the two pictures and then handed Ben back his picture.
“Sir, please forgive Lieutenant Walker for stealing that plane, as he saved my life. Now I have a chance to see my son grow up,” Ben pleaded while his eyes welled up.
Weaver and the other board members whispered to each other for a few seconds. Then Weaver looked at Ben with a serious look. “Dismissed, Captain,” he told Ben.
Ben got up and saluted the board members, who saluted back. Ben did an about-face and walked out of the tent. “Bring in Lieutenant Walker,” Weaver yelled.
A few seconds passed, and a guard escorted Trevor into the briefing tent.
They stood him before the board members. “Lieutenant Walker, based on the testimony provided by Lieutenant Grayson, which matches your testimony, we’re not going to bring you up on charges for stealing one of my planes. But I’m still going to confine you to your barracks for two days,” Weaver said. “Yes sir,” Trevor replied while he was smiling inside.
“Now, what in the hell possessed you to steal a United States airplane to fight in that mission?” Weaver asked.
“It was a spur-of-the-moment instinct. I had this overwhelming feeling Lieutenant Walker was going to be killed and I had to stop it,” Trevor replied.
“But we’re in a war, and it’s unfortunate, but people die,”
Weaver snapped back.
“I know, sir, and I don’t have any excuse. I’m sorry,” Trevor replied.
Weaver looked at the other officers. “I’m going to send Pearl Harbor a message to have Lieutenant Eastman court-martialed for attempted murder. And then I’m going to have Lieutenant Walker discharged from my corps,” Weaver said.
All the other officers nodded in agreement.
“Board dismissed and confined Walker to his bunk,”
Weaver ordered the guard.
Trevor saluted the board, and all members saluted back.
The guard escorted Trevor out of the briefing tent.
“I need a drink,” Weaver told the other officers, who nodded in agreement.
They got up and walked out of the tent.
Later that day, Ben ate dinner in the chow tent with Henry and was surrounded by numerous Marines. They listened in horror while Ben told the whole story about Carl.
Trevor sat with everybody and had his guard watching over him. Way off in the corner of the chow tent, Carl ate dinner alone while his guard watched over him. There was a brief moment when the guard placed a hand on his billy club and
thought about whacking Carl upside down. But he refrained because hitting Carl wasn’t worth spending time in jail.
The next four days were carefree for Trevor and Ben. While some of the men went on missions, they just relaxed as their flying days were over, according to Weaver’s orders.
Trevor even fulfilled a promise and paid Bourne the cash he promised for double-checking his machine guns.
Ben also bought Bronson a few beers at the Stress Reliever, as he promised.
Five days later, Trevor and Ben were packed and entered a Navy PBY that would start their journey to Pearl Harbor. They looked happy until two guards brought Carl, still shackled, into the plane.
The whole ride in the PBY and the Naval ship was quiet between the two best friends, who never made eye contact.
Carl’s court-martial started in Pearl Harbor the day after they arrived. But Carl surprised everybody and confessed immediately to attempting to kill Ben and Trevor. He decided to be responsible for his horrible actions and take his punishment like a man, hoping they would be lenient on him.
Carl avoided eye contact with Weaver, Hall, Ben, and Trevor. At the same time, he was escorted out of the courtroom with a twenty-five-year sentence in Fort Leavenworth.
The court-martial was dismissed.
Meanwhile, in Santa Barbara, California, Diana’s mother stayed with her to help care for Robert.
Diana cried for two days straight while she tried to cope with the news that Ben was missing in action and knew this meant he was dead.
Two hours later, in Hawaii, Trevor and Ben stood inside the personnel building in uniform with purple hearts pinned to their shirts. They were at the counter for pay and received their honorable discharges. Ben just received his compensation for being at Engebi. The female Corporal Jane Meeker was looking into why Trevor’s pay records were not on file in their office.
“I don’t know where Lieutenant Walker’s pay records could have been filed,” Jane told a coworker from behind the counter.
Ben pondered for a solution. Then he glanced at Trevor’s purple heart. His eyes lit up with an idea to get Trevor’s pay.
“He was wounded in the war. Can’t you scrounge up some cash for him taking a bullet for Uncle Sam?” Ben asked Jane with charming eyes.
She looked at Ben and then looked at Trevor. She pondered a solution. She walked away to her superior’s office.
“It’s alright, Ben. We can leave, and I know the Marine Corps will catch up with my pay,” Trevor said as this was making him nervous that they would find out he was a fake.
Jane returned with an envelope, and she handed it to Trevor. “I’m sure your records will show up in a couple of days, and I’ll get it updated. Here’s your pay,” she said.
Trevor looked inside and saw the cash. “Thank you, corporal,” he said, then motioned for Ben that they should leave.
He opened up his seabag and shoved the pay envelope inside. They grabbed their bags and walked away.
They walked through the office area, headed to the main doors, and soon left the building.
They stood outside the personnel building.
“That court-martial was the hardest thing I have ever done.
The next hardest part will be telling Diana what he did in the South Pacific,” Ben told Trevor.
“Thanks for testifying on my behalf back in Engebi,”
Trevor said.
“It’s the least I could do since you saved my life,” Ben replied with a smile; then he thought of a great idea. “Since we’re both civilians again and have plenty of time ahead of us, I want you to meet Diana and Robert back in Santa Barbara,” Ben offered.
Trevor looked speechless at Ben’s offer. “I don’t know. I mean,” Trevor stuttered, a little nervous.
“I won’t take no for an answer,” Ben insisted. “Okay,”
Trevor replied, a little nervous.
“Great, let’s get to a phone, and I’ll call her to let her know I’m coming home,” Ben said while they walked away.
An hour later, in Santa Barbara, Diana was heating up Robert’s bottle in the kitchen. Her eyes weren’t as red as her crying finally subsided. Robert sat in his playpen in the middle of the room.
Her kitchen phone rang. She walked over and picked up the phone. “Grayson residence,” she answered in a depressed tone. “Diana, it’s me, Ben,” he replied.
Diana looked shocked, as if she heard a ghost. “Ben? It can’t be you. The Marines said my husband is missing in action in the South Pacific and might be dead,” Diana snapped back pissed. “How dare you play this cruel joke on me,” she yelled.
“No, baby. It’s really me. I was shot down, but I survived,”
he pleaded from the phone.
“My husband’s probably dead,” she cried out, and her eyes welled up.
“No, baby. It’s me. I proposed to you in Santa Monica.
We have a son named Robert. We made love on Mexico Beach in Florida,” Ben cried out from her phone.
Diana looked confused for a few seconds, and then she believed her caller was her soul mate. “ Ben? Is it really you?”
Diana cried out and sobbed.
“Yes, baby, it’s me, and I’m coming home for good,” Ben said. “Hurry home, honey. I miss you so very much,” Diana cried into the phone.
“I’ll be home soon, and I’m bringing home a special friend,” he said.
“You’re bringing home, Carl?” she asked while she wiped away her tears. “His mother will be so happy. I’ll have to call her,” Diana added.
“No, honey. Carl’s not coming home with me, so please don’t call his parents. I’ll explain everything when I get home,”
he said.
Then Diana feared the worst about Carl. “Did he get killed in action,” he asked while her lips trembled.
“No. He’s alive. Like I said, I should explain everything when I get home,” Ben said.
“Okay, baby. I love you,” Diana said and hung up the phone. “Daddy’s coming home,” she said smiled at Robert.
While Trevor and Ben were on a Naval ship back to California, Weaver and Hall returned to the war at Engebi.
The day after arriving back at the base, Keith got a message from Pearl Harbor that was really strange. He rushed out of the radio tent and headed to Weaver’s hut.
He knocked on Weaver’s hut door.
“Enter,” Weaver called from inside.
Keith entered Weaver’s hut and rushed up to his desk, and he snapped to attention. “A message from Pearl, sir,” Keith said after he saluted.
Weaver took the message and read it, and then his eyes widened in disbelief. He set the paper on his desk and thought about his next move.
“Go have Lieutenant Foley report to me immediately,”
Weaver ordered.
Keith saluted, then turned around and rushed out of the hut.
Weaver reread the message. “Stupid Pentagon people.
They couldn’t figure their way out of a wet paper bag,” he said while he stared at the message.
Five minutes later, Henry stood in front of Weaver’s desk.
“Read this message,” Weaver ordered while he handed Henry the paper.
Henry read it, then looked baffled and reread it. “I don’t know what to say,” Henry said while he handed back the paper.
“The Pentagon is claiming Trevor’s service number was fake, and it took them this long to figure this out?” Weaver said with a disappointed look. “How the hell can we rely on them to win this war?” Weaver added.
“I don’t know what to say, sir,” Henry said.
“How the hell did he get official-looking orders here to Engebi?” Weaver questioned. “I know you hung around with
Ben and Trevor. Did you hear anything suspicious?” Weaver asked.
Henry thought for a few seconds. “No, sir. He seemed like a Marine. I mean, he knew how to fly the Corsair. How else could he learn to fly that bird if the Marines didn’t train him?”
Henry replied.
“Good point,” Weaver said.
Henry’s eyes lit up when it dawned on him. “I believe I know how he might have gotten fake orders,” Henry said.
“How?”
“Well, there was a Gunny Sergeant. His last name was Sewickley, and he worked in personnel back at El Toro,” Henry said. “What about him?” Weaver said while his interest peaked.
“Gunny Sergeant Sewickley could get you anything, and I mean anything, for the right price,” Henry confessed.
“Anything meaning orders, fake identification card?”
Weaver asked.
“Yes, sir. You could even buy orders to just about anywhere you wanted. We heard he had brothers who helped,”
Henry replied. “One of them worked in the Pentagon and the other in Marine Corps headquarters,” Henry replied.
Weaver didn’t like the sound of that, and that type of crooked behavior always pissed him off. “Thank you, and you’re dismissed,” Weaver said.
Henry turned around and looked relieved that he wasn’t in any trouble. He walked out of the hut.
Weaver grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. He started writing down a message.
Ten minutes later, Keith sat at his radio desk and looked bored, as it was a quiet day.
Weaver entered, and Keith immediately snapped to attention. Weaver motioned for him to sit down while he walked over.
“Send this message to the Inspector General’s office in the Pentagon,” Weaver ordered while he handed Keith the message.
“Yes sir,” Keith replied and proceeded to send the message.
Weaver watched to ensure it got sent to the Inspector General.
Meanwhile, back in California, Trevor sat really nervous on the train. At the same time, he watched it pull into the station at Santa Barbara.
“There’s Diana!” Ben called out so excited when he saw Diana, his mother, Betsy, and father, Jack, while they waited at the station with Robert in Jack’s arms.
Trevor looked and got butterflies in his stomach.
The train stopped, and everybody started piling out. Ben got up with his seabag and walked down the aisle to the door.
Trevor got up with his seabag and followed Ben. Ben and Trevor stepped off the train. “Diana!” he called out and waved at her.
Diana saw Ben and ran over to him.
They hugged each other tight and then kissed.
After seeing them together again, Trevor’s eyes welled up as all his challenges were worth it.
Ben and Diana separated, then he grabbed her hand and walked her closer to Trevor.
“Diana, I want you to meet Trevor Walker. He saved my life in the South Pacific,” Ben told her lovingly.
Trevor looked in awe at the site of a young Diana. She looked so beautiful and different from the one he knew.
Diana gave Trevor a hug and kiss on his cheek.
“Thank you, Trevor,” she said, and then she got this peculiar feeling while she looked at him. “Have we met before?
I have this strong feeling I know you,” she asked.
“No. I’m from Spokane. But you just never know where our paths might have crossed before,” Trevor replied.
Jack, with Robert in his arms, and Betsy walked over.
“Welcome home, son,” Jack said.
Betsy hugged Ben tight and cried so happily her son was alive. Trevor looked at Jack and Betsy and couldn’t believe his eyes. He remembered seeing them when they were really old and lived in that nursing home that smelled funny to a young kid.
Ben looked at Robert in his father’s arms. “Hello, son,”
Ben said while he walked up to Jack and kissed Robert’s forehead. Jack gave Ben his son, who looked so happy to hold him in his arms for the first time.
Ben looked at Trevor. “Where are my manners, Mom and Dad? This is Trevor Walker. He saved my life in the South Pacific,” Trevor told them.
Jack shook Trevor’s hand. “Thank you, Trevor,” he said.
Betsy kissed him on the cheek to thank him, as she was still so emotional about seeing Ben that she couldn’t speak.
“So, where’s Carl?” Jack asked.
Ben and Trevor looked at each other and knew it wasn’t the right time.
“I’ll tell you later tonight,” Ben responded.
“Tell us after dinner,” Betsy said.
Then Jack looked at Trevor. “We would love it if you join us for dinner,” Jack said.
“Plus, since you’re probably tired from your long trip here, why don’t you stay for a few days?” Diana offered.
Trevor looked at their eyes and could tell they wanted him to stay. “It would be my pleasure,” Trevor replied.
Trevor followed them out of the train station.
Later that evening, after a nice dinner of fried chicken, corn, mashed potatoes, and some chocolate cake, they retired to the living room in Ben’s house. Trevor’s seabag was by the front door in the living room.
Ben held Robert in his arms while Diana and Trevor sat on the couch with him. Jack and Betsy sat in nearby chairs. They looked in shock at Ben since he just told them the whole story about Carl.
“He got court-martialed and will spend the next twenty-five years in Fort Leavenworth for attempted murder,” Ben finished his story.
Diana’s eyes welled up. “I can’t believe Carl would do that,” she said, then blew her nose into a hanky.
“Well, he always wanted to marry you. I believe the war allowed him to do just that with our pact,” Ben replied.
“He seemed like a really nice kid. His mother will be devastated,” she said while wiping away tears.
“Poor Ernie. I better go over and see him make sure he’s okay,” Jack said, looking concerned.
Ben looked at Robert and then at Trevor.
“Trevor, I want you to hold my son,” Ben offered. Trevor looked surprised at Ben’s request.
“Are you sure?” Trevor asked, getting nervous.
“Please, you’re sorta like family,” Diana said warmly.
Trevor smiled as he accepted their offer. Ben handed Robert to Trevor.
“Hi, Dad,” Trevor thought while he couldn’t believe he was holding his father in his arms.
Robert looked up at Trevor and smiled. He reached up and touched his face, and then Robert vomited on Trevor’s uniform.
“I’m so sorry,” Diana said, rushing off the couch. She immediately took Robert away from Trevor.
Trevor smiled while he looked at Robert in Diana’s arms.
“It’s not a problem. I’m sure I did that to my father when I was a baby. So Robert’s just paying him back,” Trevor said.
They chuckled over Trevor’s response.
“Come with me, Trevor; I believe there’s one of Ben’s shirts you can wear,” Diana said.
Trevor got off the couch and followed Diana and Robert out of the living room.
The phone rang in the kitchen. “I’ll get it,” Ben said, got up from her chair, and left the living room.
In the kitchen, Ben picked up the phone. “Grayson residence,” he answered.
“Ben, welcome home; it’s me, Mister Eastman,” Ernie Eastman said softly from the phone.
“Hello, Mister Eastman,” Ben replied and didn’t know what to say.
“Listen, I was wondering if you could come by the house tonight. There’s something I want to discuss,” Ernie offered.
Ben hesitated for a few seconds, as this phone call was awkward. “Sure, but I have a friend I want to bring. He was stationed with me in the South Pacific,” Ben replied.
“That’s fine. I’ll see you in a few,” Ernie said, then hung up his end of the call.
Ben left the kitchen and walked back into the living room.
“Who was on the phone, honey?” Diana asked while she entered the living room with Trevor, who wore one of Ben’s shirts.
“Mister Eastman wants me to come over now. There’s something he wants to discuss,” Ben said, looking a little nervous about the meeting.
“Do you want me to come along?” Jack asked.
“No, Dad, but I want Trevor to come along,” Ben said while he looked at Trevor.
“Ah, sure,” Trevor replied, a little nervous.
Ben motioned at Trevor that they should leave. Trevor followed Ben over to the front door.
The drive to Ernie Eastman’s home was quiet between Ben and Trevor in his 1939 Ford. But the trip allowed Trevor to see a little of 1944 Santa Barbara.
They arrived at the Eastman home, and Ben parked his car in the driveway. They exited the car, and it was a long walk to the front door.
Ben knocked on the door, and their hearts raced while they waited. The door opened, and Ernie, now fifty-three years old with gray hair starting to take over his head, appeared.
“Ben, please come inside,” Ernie offered.
Trevor looked in awe at a younger Ernie as he remembered a frail old man in a nursing home.
Trevor and Ben entered his house.
Inside his house, Ernie walked them to the living room. “Please have a seat,” Ernie said in a polite tone.
“This is Trevor Walker; he was stationed with me in the South Pacific,” Ben told Ernie while they walked to the couch.
Ernie walked over and extended his hand. “Pleasure to meet you,” Ernie said with a smile.
Ben and Trevor sat down on the couch.
Ernie paced around the living room while he thought about what he would tell Ben. Then he stopped and looked at Ben and Trevor while they sat on the couch. “We got the word about Carl the other day,” Ernie said, and then he paced around a little.
“I’m so ashamed of Carl’s behavior. So ashamed,” Ernie said while his eyes welled up.
“I’m sorry all this had to happen also, Mister Eastman,”
Ben said.
“My poor wife has been crying non-stop for the past two days,” Ernie said while he paced. “Where did I go wrong?”
Ernie said believing Carl’s behavior was his entire fault.
“You did nothing wrong, sir,” Ben said to comfort him.
“And we also were told how he tried to kill you, Mister Walker,” Ernie said.
Trevor didn’t know how to respond, so he nodded in agreement.
“Well, there’s nothing more that can be said, Ben. Carl will have to take his punishment like a man,” Ernie stated.
“Yes, sir,” Ben replied.
“Well, I guess I’ll see you back in the office?” Ernie said.
“Yes, sir,” Ben replied.
“You can start back in two weeks. I can imagine you want to spend some time with Diana and Robert,” Ernie said.
Ben and Trevor stood up.
Ernie walked up to them and shook their hands. He walked them to the front door and let them out.
Ernie’s eyes welled over the thought of his son behind bars.
It was a quiet ride home for Ben and Trevor.
When they walked into the living room, they noticed Jack and Betsy had gone home, and Diana had the couch made into a bed with sheets and a pillow.
“What did Mister Eastman have to say?” Diana asked while she entered the living room with a pillow.
“How sorry he was that Carl acted that way,” he told her while she dropped the pillow on the couch.
“It must be hard on them,” Diana said with sadness. “War brings out the horrible things in men,” she added.
“I know,” Ben said with sadness from losing his best friend.
Trevor felt terrible for coming back in time, but now he knew the truth behind his grandfather’s original death. The fact was that Carl killed Ben during World War II.
“Trevor, I hope you don’t mind sleeping on the couch,”
Diana said.
“Oh no, that would still be far more comfortable from the bunks the Marines provided us,” he replied with a loving smile.
“I also washed your shirt and ironed it,” she added.
“Thank you,” he replied.
“Well, I’m exhausted, so we’re going to bed,” Ben told Trevor.
Diana walked up to Trevor and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Goodnight, and make yourself at home,” she said.
Ben winked at Trevor, and then they left the living room and turned off the lights. They went upstairs to their bedroom.
Trevor looked at the couch and undressed. He climbed under the covers and closed his eyes.
Then, twenty minutes later, Trevor could hear the squeak of a bed from upstairs. He knew exactly what that meant and tried to block the sound of his grandparents making love with his pillow. But he understood since Ben last saw his wife a long time ago.
Two hours later, Trevor woke up hungry. He got up off the couch and got dressed in his pants.
He left the living room, entered the kitchen, and opened the Frigidaire.
He grabbed the leftover fried chicken plate and sat at the kitchen table. Then he remembered how he would do this during those weekends he spent at Grandma Diana’s house, and she would eat leftovers with him in the kitchen.
He bit into a drumstick the second Diana entered the kitchen in her nightgown.
“Ah, I see we both had the same idea,” she said while opening the Frigidaire and removing the milk bottle.
She removed two glasses from the cupboard and poured some milk.
She walked the glasses over to the table and sat down.
She grabbed a chicken thigh off the plate and started eating. “I just can’t shake this feeling that I know you from somewhere,” she said, then took another bite of chicken.
“If she only knew!” Trevor thought to himself. “Unless you have family from Chicago,” Trevor said.
“We don’t,” Diana said, then drank some milk.
After they finished their midnight snack, Diana had to show Trevor her family photo album. And she showed him some of the pictures he’d seen before.
An hour later, Diana was back in bed asleep. Trevor made sure the house was quiet, and then he walked over to the desk in the living room and opened up a drawer. He looked inside and didn’t find what he wanted. He closed it and looked inside another drawer. He removed a pen, paper, and envelope.
He walked back over to the front door and grabbed his sea bag. He walked over to the couch and sat down. He wrote a note on the pad of paper.
It was another beautiful morning in Santa Barbara.
Trevor woke up to the beautiful smell of bacon cooking in the kitchen. He got up off the couch and looked for his uniform pants. They were not on the floor where he left them last night.
He wrapped the blanket around his waist and walked into the kitchen, where Diana was cooking in her nightgown.
“Good morning,” she said warmly the second she saw Trevor.
“Good morning. Ah, where are my pants?” he asked.
“Oh, I washed and ironed them. I’ll go get them in a few minutes,” Diana said, then drained the grease from the frying pan into a small glass jar and placed the bacon on a plate.
Trevor waited while she walked out of the kitchen.
A few seconds later, she returned with his pants, all pressed.
“Thank you,” Trevor said while taking his pants and entering the living room.
While he dressed, Diana fried some eggs and poured three cups of coffee.
Trevor walked into the kitchen.
Ben entered the kitchen, holding Robert in his arms. He walked over and placed Robert in his high chair.
“Please sit down,” Ben told Trevor.
He sat at the kitchen table while Ben brought the three cups of coffee from the counter.
He sat down while Diana brought over three fried eggs and bacon plates. They started eating breakfast.
Then Diana’s eyes lit up with an idea while she sipped her coffee. “Trevor, why don’t you call your wife after breakfast to let her know you’re on your way home?” Diana suggested.
“Of course. And don’t worry about the long-distance charge. I’ll pay for it,” Ben said.
Trevor looked at their smiling faces and wondered how to escape this suggestion. “That’s really nice of you,” Trevor said, then decided he’d figure a way out when the time came.
After breakfast, Diana and Ben watched while Trevor dialed a fake phone number. Then Trevor waited for a few minutes. “Hi honey, it’s me, Trevor,” he faked a call. Then he paused to pretend she responded. “Yes, I’m on my way home, and I spent the night in Santa Barbara with a buddy I was stationed with,” he faked again. Then he waited to pretend she responded. “Okay, baby, I’ll be home as soon as possible,” he said, then paused. “I love you,” he said, then hung up.
Diana looked happy. “I know exactly how she feels knowing you’re on your way home,” she said while Ben placed an arm around her.
“She really wants me home right away, so I think I better take the next train to Spokane,” Trevor said.
Diana and Ben looked sad that Trevor wanted to leave, but they knew his wife missed him terribly.
“We fully understand,” Ben said but was a little disappointed.
“Why don’t you drive him to the train station?” Diana asked Ben.
“It would be my pleasure,” Ben replied with a huge smile.
Trevor looked at them while pondering an excuse, as being dropped off at the train station would make it extremely difficult for him to return to 1995.
Meanwhile, back at Lloyds house, the mailman approached his front door. He dropped a letter in the mail slot in the door.
The mailman walked away.
Inside Lloyd’s living room, he walked up to the front door and picked up the letter. He saw it looked official since it was from a Colonel Weaver with an APO address, and it was addressed to a Mrs. Trevor Walker but had Lloyd’s address.
“What the hell?” Lloyd said while he looked the letter over.
He opened up his front door and peeked outside. He saw the mailman walk down the sidewalk. He closed the door.
He couldn’t resist and open up the letter. After all, it had his home address.
“Dear Misses Walker, I’m Colonel Weaver, commander of the United States Marine Corps base at Engebi in the Marshall Islands. I was Trevor’s commanding officer, and I’m deeply sorry for the loss of your husband. Sincerely yours, Colonel Weaver, USMC,” the letter stated.
“Stupid Marine Corps,” Lloyd said, then ripped up the letter and let it rain on the floor.
He walked away and went into his kitchen.
In Ben’s home, Trevor looked at Diana and Ben, who waited for his response on a ride to the train station.
“I really appreciate the offer for the ride to the train station, but I just feel like walking, if you don’t mind,” Trevor said.
“Besides, you two really need to spend some time together,” he added.
Ben and Diana looked at each other and smiled as if they’d been looking forward for some time alone for a long time.
“We fully understand,” Ben said, then stuck out his hand, and Trevor shook it.
Ben walked over and picked up Robert from the high chair.
He held him in his arms while they walked Trevor to the front door.
“I can’t thank you enough for saving my life. I owe you,”
Ben said when they got to the door.
“Think nothing of it. Just the job of a Marine,” Trevor replied with a warm smile.
“Stay in touch, Trevor. Let me know if you would like a job with Dad’s construction company,” Ben offered again.
“I will, and thank you for everything,” Trevor replied.
“Remember, you’re always welcome in our home,” Diana said. “If you don’t need a job, please bring Teri to California sometime soon. We would love to meet her,” Ben said.
“Yes, I would love to meet your wife,” Diana added. “I think that will happen in the future,” Trevor replied warmly.
Diana walked over and gave Trevor a kiss on his cheek.
“Bye, little buddy,” Trevor said to Robert. Then he picked up his seabag, opened the door, and left.
Diana looked curious while she stared at the door. “This is so weird,” she said.
“How weird?” he asked.
“I can’t get over this feeling that he’s somehow family.” Ben smiled. “I know what you mean. He felt like a brother to me,”
Ben added.
They held hands as they walked away.
“I thought it was too late to change Robert’s middle name?”
“No, to what?” she asked.
“Let’s change it from Carl to Trevor,” he replied. “Robert Trevor Grayson. I like it,” she replied with a smile.
Trevor walked the streets of Santa Barbara, and twenty minutes later, he found Memphis Avenue.
He walked down Lloyd’s street and saw his 1940 Packard Touring car in the driveway. He looked in awe at the shiny black car he recalled seeing alongside the garage back in 1995, completely rusted through.
“Rats,” he said, knowing he couldn’t sneak inside, so he walked away.
Meanwhile, back at Ben’s house, they received their mail, which included the letter from Colonel Weaver to Diana.
Later that day, Trevor found a café and went inside to kill some time.
He ordered a hamburger, French fries, and a soda. He munched on his lunch while he waited.
Then, after lunch, Trevor walked the streets of Santa Barbara for a couple more hours.
Then he walked down one of the streets downtown and saw the Majestic Movie House. Trevor stood in awe at the lighted front entrance and remembered hearing stories of his place. He heard it from Carl, who said their construction company got the contract to tear it down and build an office building in 1974.
He looked at the marquee and saw that The Thin Man Goes Home movie was playing tonight.
He pulled a dollar from his pocket and walked to the ticket booth.
He bought a ticket, went inside the theater, and watched the movie.
Later that night, Trevor left the movie house and walked the streets.
He eventually returned to that café and sat down for a nice steak dinner with mashed potatoes, lima beans, and a cup of coffee.
After dinner, Trevor left the café and walked to Lloyd’s house. His car was still in the driveway, and he saw the lights were on in the living room. He walked away down the street.
He returned to the Majestic Movie House and watched The Thin Man Comes Home movie again.
Then, after the movie, Trevor walked around and stopped for coffee in numerous Santa Barbara cafés to kill some time.
He made another walk down Lloyd’s street and walked in front of his house. The lights were off, and Trevor assumed Lloyd was sound asleep.
Trevor remembered Diana telling him stories about how nobody locked their doors when she grew up because house break-ins never happened. Based on these old stories, Trevor felt he could easily sneak into Lloyd’s house.
Trevor sneaked across Lloyd’s front yard and went to his backyard.
Trevor snuck around the rear of Lloyd’s home and found the back door. He peeked through the door’s glass windows and saw the kitchen was dark and nobody was inside. He slowly opened the door and waited. After determining it was quiet inside the house, he stepped inside the kitchen.
Trevor stood by the door while he waited inside the kitchen for Lloyd to come after him.
It was quiet, so Trevor gingerly walked through the kitchen and got to the hallway entrance. He peeked into the hall where nobody was in sight.
He gingerly walked down the hallway and peeked into the den, where nobody was in sight.
He rushed into the den and went to the bookcase, where he knew the safe was located. He removed the books from the shelf, hiding the safe, and placed them on the floor.
He reached up, dialed the number, and opened the safe.
He reached inside and removed the attaché and reached inside.
He smiled while removing the other key from the attaché.
He heard the floor squeak above him, and Trevor rushed out of the room.
He rushed down the hallway and went into the kitchen.
He rushed to the door that led to the basement. He quietly opened the door and went down the stairs. He forgot to close the door behind him since he was in a hurry.
Trevor quietly walked down the stairs. He got to the bottom of the stairs, and he paused. The house was quiet above him, and he felt safe.
He smiled when he saw the time machine at the other end of the basement. Then he heard the floor squeak above him while Lloyd walked down the hallway.
Trevor rushed to the time machine and passed by a pile of lumber and other construction items for making a wall.
Lloyd walked into his kitchen and turned on the light. He walked over to his Frigidaire and opened it.
He removed a bottle of milk and some chocolate cake.
He got a glass and fork and walked over to the kitchen table.
He sat down and poured some milk, then took a bite of cake. While he chewed, he noticed the door to the basement was cracked open. He got suspicious and got up from the table.
Down in the basement, Trevor sat inside the time machine and closed the door.
“I’m home free,” he said while he stuck the key in the ignition.
On the counter, Ben dialed, “October 20, 1995, 2:00 p.m.”
He wanted to relive that time at the airshow to see Henry again.
He reached under the seat, removed the time machine instructions, and read it.
He flipped a switch, and the console was illuminated.
He turned numerous knobs and then pushed buttons on the console.
Someone banged on the door glass of the time machine and scared the crap out of Trevor.
He looked and saw a furious Lloyd who stood outside the time machine.
“Get the hell out of my machine!” Lloyd screamed, then opened up the door.
Trevor grabbed the inside door handle and closed the door.
Lloyd opened the door again.
Trevor closed the door again.
They played tug of war with the door.
“Get out!” Lloyd screamed while they played tug of war.
While they played tug of war with the door, Trevor flipped another switch with his free hand. Then, he turned the key in the ignition with his free hand. A whine was emitted from the machine.
Trevor was able to close and lock the door.
The machine shook, and Lloyd’s hand slipped off the handle, and he fell on his butt.
Psychedelic lights illuminated from the windows, and Trevor got that same strange sensation. He experienced pain throughout his whole body from the time machine.
Lloyd ran to the back of the time machine.
He grabbed the electrical cord and pulled it out of the wall outlet.
But the end of the cord disappeared in his hand.
He turned around and saw that he was too late, as his time machine was gone.
Inside the time machine, the pain dissipated from Trevor’s body. The psychedelic lights disappeared, and the shaking stopped. It was quiet again inside the machine.
It was back in 1995, and the time machine was in the basement of Lloyd’s house.
From inside the time machine, Trevor knew he had returned to 1995 and was back to being James Grayson again when he noticed the junk in the basement. But there was something different this time: sunlight illuminated the basement floor.
“That’s weird,” James said while he looked around and saw wooden debris that filled the basement floor.
James heard the sound of an excavator. There was a crunching sound while the excavator grabbed the time machine.
Then, the machine was tilted down while the excavator lifted it up in the air.
James opened the door but realized he was thirty feet in the air, and jumping out would probably break a leg. He rode it out to see where the excavator would place him.
In the front yard of Lloyd’s house, the excavator turned to the left and placed the time machine over house debris inside a dump truck.
From inside the time machine, James braced himself while the time machine was dropped into the dump truck. It slammed into some wooden debris.
James looked, and the power was still on the machine. He thought about Lloyd and dialed in “June 1, 1944, 2:30 p.m. on the console.
James opened the door and stepped out into the debris.
He reached in and turned the key to the ignition.
The machine whirled.
James slammed the door shut.
He climbed over some debris and saw his 1995 clothes. He tried to grab the clothes at the same second, but the time machine shook the dump truck.
This caused him to fall out of the truck and slam hard to the ground.
He looked up from the ground and saw the psychedelic colors emitted from the machine.
Then he watched while the time machine disappeared. He smiled as he knew Lloyd was pissed back in 1944 for him taking his machine, but he would be happy when it returned.
James looked around, and the coast was clear.
James ran through the front yard to the street.
At the end of the driveway, he saw a pile of Lloyd’s books with his manuscript on top. He got a smirk and grabbed the manuscript, which was now 600 pages thick. He knew Lloyd got his machine back, so he kept the manuscript.
James ran off to his Mustang, still parked down the street.
He got inside it and dropped the manuscript in the passenger seat. He opened his glove box, removed his wallet, and put it in his back pocket.
He started up his car and raced away.
While he raced down another street, he looked at the clock on his dashboard and saw that it was 2:45 p.m. Then it dawned on him that he was late from picking Teri up from work early so she could get her haircut.
He raced his Mustang down the street.
James parked his car in front of Teri’s office twenty minutes later. He got out and rushed inside her shop.
She was working on her computer inside Teri’s office when James rushed inside.
“I’m so sorry, I’m late. Please forgive me!” he pleaded while rushing to her desk.
Teri looked up from her work and looked baffled. “Late?
Late for what?” she asked, then looked even more baffled with him wearing a Marine uniform.
“I thought you wanted me to pick you up at two-thirty for a hair appointment,” James said.
“I saw Gail yesterday,” she replied and started to worry about his behavior. “And why are you wearing that Army uniform?” she had to ask.
He remembered he never changed clothes and was stumped with a response for a few seconds. “It’s the uniform of a Marine officer, and I wanted it for the office Halloween party,”
James said.
“Boys will be boys,” she replied, then looked at her watch.
“I’ve accomplished a lot today; let’s go home early,” she said, then turned off her computer.
They walked to the door, and she turned off the lights.
They left.
James opened up the door for Teri. She saw the manuscript in the passenger seat and picked it up. She sat down, and he closed the door. He rushed over and got inside his car.
“Where did you get this?” she asked while she held up Lloyd’s manuscript.
He looked at her. “Well, I stopped by the old Lloyd house to see if they started demolition and saw this in the pile of debris by the street,” he replied.
“Why did you take it?” she asked.
“Don’t you have a friend from college that works for a publisher?” he asked and cringed inside, hoping that part still happened.
“Yeah, Mandy.”
“This is a good manuscript, and Lloyd never found a publisher. I thought you could give Mandy a call,” he said.
Teri flipped through some pages. “I’ll call her and see if she’s interested,” she replied while scanning some pages. “Too bad he died. It would be a shame if this became a best seller and he never saw any of the money,” she said.
James started up his car. “We could take any profits and donate it to some organization that helps out military veterans that served in the war,” he offered, then drove away down the street.
She thought about his offer. “Actually, that’s a great idea,”
she said while scanning the manuscript.
She finished looking at the manuscript. “What time are you meeting your grandfather at the airport tomorrow morning?” she asked while he turned down another street.
“Yes, the airport. You’re both going to fly up to the airshow in Vandenberg,” she replied.
"Oh yeah, Vandenberg. I forgot,” he responded. “I’m really starting to worry about you,” she said. “I’m okay,” he said, then looked nervous about tomorrow.
The next morning, James’ stomach was full of butterflies while he drove to the airport. He wore his WWII-type A-2
jacket, and it felt weird doing this the second time, but he hoped to see Henry again.
He parked his car and walked to the hangar, hoping this part was still the same.
He walked into the hangar and saw a calendar on the wall with “October 21, 1995” as the date. Then he saw a beautiful restored Corsair F4U with Marine markings.
“So far, everything is the same,” he quietly said while walking up to the plane.
He walked up to the Corsair and was scared to look up at the fuselage. He took the gamble and smiled at what he saw.
Under the canopy were painted “Ben Grayson – Pilot and James Grayson. – Co-Pilot” markings with Medal of Honor and Purple Heart decals.
James wanted to jump up for joy but stopped when he heard footsteps.
“Good morning, James,” Ben said while he walked up behind him.
James’ heart raced when he turned around and saw Ben, now seventy-five years old, with white hair and looking so much older but still in great shape. He walked up to James, wore a WWII-type A-2 jacket, and walked with a slight limp.
“I saw on the way over they’ve finally started tearing down the Bannister house. I can’t wait to start on that project,” Ben said while he patted James’ shoulder.
“I know,” James replied and had a gut feeling that Ben was in charge of the construction company.
Ben looked up at the Corsair. “So, are you ready to perform in the show?” Ben asked.
James looked shocked at his comment. “You mean I can perform in the show?” he asked to ensure he heard Ben correctly.
“Of course. You’re my main co-pilot, and you had the greatest instructor around. Me!” Ben bragged with a smile.
James had a huge grin on his face while he looked up at the plane.
“I’ll meet you there with everybody,” Ben said, then handed James the keys to the plane.
James had a proud smile while he ran his hand along the leading edge of the plane.
“I’ll get a line boy to help get the plane out of the hangar,”
Ben said, then walked away.
James climbed up the fuselage and sat inside the cockpit, smiling while he grabbed the control stick.
Twenty minutes later, James started the engine of the Corsair.
After receiving the proper ground clearance from the tower, James taxied the plane to runway 7.
After he performed his run-up checks, he received clearance again and rolled the Corsair down the runway.
James did a smooth take-off from runway 7.
Thirty minutes later, James ascended the Corsair. It wasn’t long before he flew along the beach and headed toward Vandenberg Air Force Base. He felt like he was back in 1944
with his young grandfather.
Later that day, James leveled the Corsair at 9,000 feet and performed a perfect barrel roll.
James was in heaven, flying the Corsair without the Japanese trying to shoot you out of the sky.
After James landed the Corsair on runway 12 at Vandenberg, he taxied behind the “Follow Me” truck that escorted them to their parking spot on the flightline.
James parked the Corsair, and he shut it down. He exited the Corsair and waited by the front of the plane.
Ben, Diana, and Teri walked to the plane an hour later.
Ben carried two lounge chairs, while Diana and Teri each carried one. They set up the chairs by the nose of the plane and sat down.
A man in a Jeep drove up and stopped.
“James Grayson goes on after the Thunderbirds perform.
Be ready in twenty minutes,” the driver said, then drove away.
James nodded in agreement that he understood the instruction.
It was later during the airshow, and the Thunderbirds were finished performing. James had his Corsair on the taxiway, ready to perform.
Then, the Thunderbirds taxied off the runway.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we now have James Grayson of Santa Barbara, who performed aerobatic maneuvers with his F4U Corsair. And what a beautiful airplane! James’ grandfather, Ben Grayson, was a Marine pilot in World War Two in the South Pacific and fought the Zeros in a Corsair. He shot down fourteen Zero’s during his short tour of duty in the South Pacific,” the announcer said across the loudspeakers.
Most of the crowd eyes the runway for James’
Corsair. Amongst the crowd was Henry Foley, still seventy-three years old, who walked with a bit of a limp with the aid of a cane. The announcement the announcer made was of interest to Henry.
He pushed through the crowd to get a closer view of the runway.
After receiving clearance from the tower, James taxied to the end of runway 12.
Henry watched while James Corsair rolled down the runway and was soon airborne. Seeing that Corsair brought back so many good and bad memories for Henry.
James flew the Corsair out, then banked and flew back to the runway.
“Okay, ladies and gentlemen, James will now perform a Humpty Bump,” the announcer said over the loudspeakers.
James flew the plane horizontally over the runway. He flew into a vertical climb. While in the vertical climb, he did a half a roll. He then flew half a loop straight down into a vertical dive.
He went out of the dive with the same attitude over the runway.
He flew the Corsair away from the runway.
The crowd clapped over James’ performance. Henry continued to watch the show.
“James will now perform an Immelmann,” the announcer said over the loudspeakers.
James flew his airplane over the runway. He flew into half a loop, and when they reached the top of the loop, he went into half a roll.
He flew away from the runway.
Henry pushed his way through the crowd to get closer to the runway. He watched for another fifteen minutes. “For his grand finale, James will perform a Cuban eight,” the announcer said over the loudspeakers.
The crowd looked up at the sky.
James flew his plane straight and level and went into a vertical climb. He rolled the plane right-side up when he reached the top of the loop. He entered a 45-degree dive and leveled out at the attitude he started the maneuver. Then he began a second loop, and when he got to the top of the loop, he rolled the plane right-side up.
He then went off into a 45-degree dive and recovered with the same attitude he had when he started the maneuver.
He flew away from the runway
James banked his airplane around and came back in for a landing.
He landed on runway 12 and taxied near the announcer’s stand.
“And a round of applause for James Grayson and his Corsair. For a matter of interest, his grandfather, Ben Grayson, is a Medal of Honor Marine Corps ace pilot from WWII,” the announcer said.
Henry’s eyes lit up when he heard Ben’s name being mentioned again, as he wasn’t sure he had heard the announcer
correctly. He watched while James had his canopy back and waved at the crowd.
Henry watched while James taxied his Corsair off the closest taxiway, where a “Follow Me” truck waited.
James taxied his Corsair behind the truck, driving him to his parking spot. James shut down his Corsair.
James climbed down the fuselage. He walked over, and Ben brought back the lounge chairs.
“Whew. That was fun,” James said while he relaxed in the chair.
“You did great! I’m proud of you,” Ben beamed.
James had a huge, proud smile after receiving praise from his grandfather.
“Ben, is that you?” Henry’s voice was heard behind them.
Ben’s eyes widened, and he smiled when he turned around and saw Henry Foley approach them.
Henry’s eyes widened with joy when he saw Ben. “Why, it is you! It’s Ben Grayson!” Henry cried out happily.
Henry walked over, and Ben stood up. They shook hands.
“Well, hello, Henry Foley.”
“Henry and I were stationed in WW two,” Ben told James but he already knew that and played dumb.
“That’s nice,” James said while he stood up.
“Henry, this is my grandson, James Grayson,” Ben said while James approached Henry.
James and Henry shook hands.
Henry looked at James, then looked a little shocked. “Oh, my God! He looks just like Trevor Walker from Engebi,” Henry said while he looked James over.
Ben smiled and placed a hand on James’ shoulder. “I know.
Isn’t it bizarre?”
“Have a seat, Henry,” Ben offered.
Henry and Ben sat down while James sat on the flightline.
Henry looked up at the Corsair. “That plane sure brings back the memory of our time at Engebi,” Henry said. Then he looked at Ben and looked a little sad. “I still can’t get over what Carl did. And this guy Trevor,” Henry said.
“I know. He saved my grandfather’s life. I heard the story many times,” he said, then cringed, thinking he shouldn’t have mentioned that.
“Yeah, I told James all about our experiences in the South Pacific while he was growing up,” Ben said.
James felt relieved knowing he didn’t say something wrong.
“I wonder whatever happened to Trevor?” Henry asked curiously.
“I don’t know. After Carl’s court-martial and we got discharged from the Marines, I took him home to meet Diana and my son. He stayed a day, then left. We never heard from him again,” Ben informed. Then he looked baffled. “But the day after he left, we found an envelope inside our living room desk. It was from Trevor, and he left all his pay from Engebi to me to help pay for our son’s college,” Ben added.
“He what?” Henry asked.
“He left all his Engebi to pay for our son’s college,” Ben repeated.
“Wow. Why would he do that?” Henry said.
“I don’t know. I tried to locate him but never had any success. It was almost like he never existed. He sure was a strange mystery,” Ben recalled while he looked at James like he knew he went back in time to save his life.
James pretended he didn’t have a clue what Ben was talking about.
Henry’s eyes widened as he remembered an important detail. “I know what you mean. A week after Carl’s court-martial, something strange happened back at Engebi,” Henry said. “What was that?” Ben asked curiously.
“Well, Colonel Weaver got a message that the Pentagon couldn’t find proof Trevor ever joined the Marines. And remember Gunny Sergeant Sewickley?”
Ben thought for a second, and then his eye widened when he remembered. “Oh yeah, the personnel guy at El Toro.”
“Yeah, him. Because of Trevor’s fake orders purchased from Sewickley, Colonel Weaver wrote the the Inspector
General in the Pentagon. Then the Inspector General discovered a criminal ring between Sewickley and his brother, who worked in headquarters, and another brother in the Pentagon. They accepted money for orders of your choice, as we all knew that back in El Toro,” Henry said while he looked at Ben and James.
Ben looked surprised overhearing that news.
“Sewickley and the other guys got what they deserved, but why would Trevor forge papers to fight in the war?” Ben asked curiously.
“Maybe he couldn’t get in the Marines and really wanted to fight,” Henry responded then his eyes widened.
“That’s plausible,” said Ben
“Oh, yeah, and then we heard that the Inspector General discovered Sewickley had counterfeit money on his possession,”
stated Henry.
“Counterfeit money?” questioned Ben.
James looked away.
“Yes, but he was a stupid counterfeiter,” said Henry.
“How so?” asked Ben.
“The dummy had some dates on the money that was way out in the future. We didn’t hear what dates, but it was in the future. So stupid!” stated Henry.
James still looked away.
“That was stupid,” said Ben then he looked at James.
“Trevor was a good pilot. We wouldn’t have found that new Japanese airstrip if it weren’t for Ben and Trevor.” “I really miss Trevor,” Ben said and looked sad. “I hope he’s still around.”
“Oh, I’m sure he’s probably somewhere thinking about you, Grandpa,” James smiled.
“I wonder whatever happened to Carl?” Henry asked curiously.
There was a few seconds of silence.
“We got word he died in Leavenworth back in seventy-five from a heart attack,” Ben answered.
“What a shame,” Henry said.
“Grandpa, grandma’s ready to go home,” Henry’s granddaughter called out from thirty feet away.
They looked and saw his granddaughter. “Coming, honey,”
Henry said while he stood up. Ben stood up, and they shook hands.
“It was great seeing you again, Ben. And I really enjoyed meeting you, James,” Henry said while he stared at him. “Man, looking at you just gave me a feeling I just returned in time,”
Henry said.
“If they only knew!” James thought to himself.
James and Ben watch Henry walk away, hand in hand, with his grandfather.
Robert, Kathy, Diana, and Teri walked up to the plane.
“You flew like an ace, son,” Robert said proudly.
“That’s my husband,” Teri said while she walked up to him and gave him a quick kiss on his lips.
Kathy walked up to James and kissed him on the cheek.
“Good show.”
“I loved it,” Diana added, kissing James on his cheek.
Then, Angie Madison, a forty-seven-year-old beautiful woman with black hair, walked up with her husband, John, who was fifty years old. “Hi, Mom and Dad,” Angie said while she walked up to Diana and gave her a kiss on her cheek, then kissed Ben on his cheek.
Angie looked at James. “You did great, James,” she said warmly.
James looked at Angie, and for a few seconds, he didn’t know she was her aunt. Then something weird happened, and his mind was suddenly flooded with memories of his new life with Ben as his grandfather and Angie and John as his aunt and uncle. “Hi, Aunt Angie and Uncle John,” James said.
“Well, I think it’s time we head back home,” Ben told everybody.
“James, have fun flying her home. We’ll meet you back at the house,” Ben said while he collected the lounge chairs.
Teri walked up to James and gave him a quick kiss on his lips. “Fly safe,” she said.
“Always,” he responded, and then he watched while his new family walked away.
James took off in the Corsair an hour later and soon departed the traffic pattern from Vandenberg Air Force Base.
He ascended the plane, and when reaching 4,000 feet, he did a barrel roll and headed south.
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