Hearts in Flight

by Patty Smith Hall

  Or was that Maggie?

  “I take it she hasn’t met her squadron yet?” Major Evans asked.

  Filing away his thoughts for later, Wesley sat at attention. “No, sir.”

  Evan’s expression grew grim. “Watch out for her, Captain. Make sure those scalawags treat her with respect.” He focused on Maggie. “Once again, it was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Daniels. Dismissed.”

  Pushing back from his chair, Wesley stood ramrod straight. Maggie mimicked him in a quick salute before turning to leave. He walked to the door and held it open for her. What was he doing here, stuck babysitting a bunch of test pilots and a girl flyer? I’ve always trusted You, Lord, but I don’t understand. First, You take Beth then You stick me stateside. What is it You want from me?

  Much like Wesley’s radio during a bombing run, God appeared to be maintaining His silence on the subject. Wesley walked down the hall leading to the outside breezeway, Maggie quiet beside him. He had barely stepped out into the sunshine when sweat beaded up on his forehead like big drops of rain.

  “Boy, this place sure has changed.” The chain-linked fence clanged out a little tune as Maggie clenched her hands in the metal webbing. “We used to play baseball at this field.”

  Wesley stared out over the tarmac. He could almost see her as she was then, a little bit of a girl, her red curls bouncing as she rounded second in a close game with the neighborhood kids. He wasn’t sure why, but he liked that image.

  She pointed to the building that housed the paint shop. “Right over there was some of the tallest water oaks you ever could imagine. Whenever we came to visit Granddaddy, Jackson and I would sneak over here and climb up as high as we could.” Color flooded her cheeks. “We used to pretend we were flying into battle.”

  Wesley leaned against the fence. “Sounds like you caught the flying bug early.”

  “Not really.” She rested her shoulder against a metal post. “Daddy told us all his war stories of shooting it out with the Germans in the skies right outside of Paris.” She chuckled. “But I wasn’t all that impressed.”

  Her candor startled him. “Really?”

  A lone curl along her neck bobbed up and down as she nodded. “Then Daddy bought his own two seater. I’ll never forget the first time he took me up.” She lifted her face to the heavens, her lips curling into a peaceful smile. “The minute the air lifted Old Beau’s wings and the wheels left the ground, I understood what all the fuss was about.”

  “So, you gloaded your old man into teaching you how to fly?”

  Her throaty chuckle caused a pleasant warmth to spread across his chest. “Daddy thought it would be a good idea to have a few more pilots in the family business. Jack and I applied for the Civilian Pilot Training class at Georgia Tech and got our licenses there.”

  “Why’d you join the WASP?”

  “If you haven’t noticed, everyone in my family has served in the military.” Her stubborn chin raised a notch before she gave a feminine snort. “Okay, so all the guys in the family have served, but being the only girl, I don’t have the opportunities they do. Even though the WASP is a civilian unit, we’re contributing to the war effort.” Her eyes shining, her lips curved up into a satisfied smile. “I’ve waited my whole life to make a difference like this. God finally provided the way.”

  Wesley shifted his gaze to the building directly behind her. His sister had thought much the same way; that flying to protect England was her moral obligation. He’d tried to talk her out of it, tried to convince her that she didn’t fully understand the situation but Beth wouldn’t hear of it. In the end, he had agreed with her.

  Never considering she could die.

  “Come on. We’re going to be late.” Wesley took Maggie’s arm. He nudged her toward entrance tunnel, away from the relics of the past toward the realities of the present.

  A cloud of smoke circled the small group of women as one after another took a drag from their cigarettes outside the main entrance. Wesley opened the door, then stood to the side as Maggie slipped by him. The morning shift had arrived and divided its masses into two orderly lines as if Noah himself had orchestrated the move.

  Maggie tugged at her collar and checked her ID badge for what seemed like the fifteenth time.

  Wesley leaned toward her as they waited. “Nervous, Ace?”

  A set of emerald green eyes seemed to bore holes through him. If he’d hoped to get a read on the woman, he was sadly disappointed. Maggie shook her head. “More excited than anything.”

  He glanced down the line. Maggie needed a healthy dose of fear. Heck, every person going into battle did and whether she believed it or not, she was about to face her biggest enemy of all--the men in her own squadron.

  “Nothing wrong with being a little nervous, Maggie. Keeps a pilot sharp.”

  “And are you sharp today, sir?”

  Touché. Wesley bit the inside of his mouth to keep from chuckling. This woman just might be able to handle the rough leathernecks under his command. But until he knew that fact for sure, he’d have to watch her like a hawk.

  He drew in a deep breath. “I’d rather be a little nervous than dead”

  The light in her green eyes dimmed slightly, replaced by an emotion he couldn’t name. Maggie fell into silence beside him as the line moved quickly. If he hurt her feelings, well, too bad. Better to bruise her ego than allow her to get herself injured or killed.

  Wesley waited to the side, mentally going over his checklist for the day while the inspector verified Maggie’s ID against his list. Once she was given the okay, she headed for the side door. Wesley followed her into the yard and around a small out building.

  A crowd of people walked with them as they made their way toward the largest building on the lot. Four and a half stories high, the gleaming steel walls disappeared into the pale blue Georgia sky. On one side, crews stood atop scaffolds, the railing lined up along long tubes of welded metal moving down the assembly line until it reached the open air fourth wall. Across the room, row upon row of tables sat, sparks flying as men and women behind protective mask sauntered the small bolts and seams necessary to put the B-29 into action.

  “Holy Cow!” Maggie exclaimed, her eyes wide with excitement.

  “Impressive, isn’t it?”

  Maggie’s simple nod caused Wesley to smile. The thought of so many people coming together for the common good, the trust placed in them to build these planes and transport them to our troops all over the world, was never lost on him. Nor did it seem lost on this woman.

  A sense of humility and awe rose inside him. “I come in here sometimes after I get off duty to watch these guys. Now, every time I climb into the cockpit, I think about the sweat and determination these folks put into every part of their work.”

  “It reminds me how important each and every one of us are in this battle.” She glanced at him. “I imagine that’s how you felt flying with the RAF.”

  Wesley grimaced at the wonder in her voice. Duty hadn’t driven him into enlisting in the Royal Air Force. Flying for his majesty had been the only way to keep the peace in his family.

  “Captain?”

  Something in the way she spoke, with a gentleness that threatened to put a dent in the steely armor encasing his heart, caught him off guard. She almost sounded as if she cared. She didn’t know him. But if she did, once she learned of the mess he’d made in England, she’d never speak to him again. Just like his grandfather. He’d have to keep his distance, but how, when he’d promised Merrilee to keep Maggie safe.

  “Miss Daniels, it would be best if you remember our mission here and avoid personal chit chat. Here, these men consider you the enemy,” he snapped, his voice harsher than he intended. “Welcome to the war.”

  “At ease.”

  Only Maggie couldn’t release her stance, not with a dozen set of eyes bearing down on her as if she had a bull’s eye on her back. Granted, their reaction wasn’t anything new. She’d dealt with this kind of response at every airfiel
d she’d been assigned.

  But, this time felt different. Some of these men were her neighbors, childhood friends of her cousins. Why, she had sprayed Ernest Cunningham’s fields for free when he fell and broke his ankle a couple of years ago. And Matthew Cobb had asked her to the homecoming dance her sophomore year. But you wouldn’t know it now, not from the stony look of disgust on their faces.

  “As I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, we have a new crew member joining us today.” Wesley walked the length of the tarmac, then turned. “I’d like to introduce Miss Maggie Daniels, one of the ladies in the Women Air Force Service Pilots.”

  A low whistle hissed behind her. Heat rose in her throat, the rapid sound of her heartbeat banging in her ears. She curled her hands into tight fists. One thing her cousins had taught her was a good right hook. If any of these guys thought she wouldn’t lay them out flat on their backside, they had another thing coming.

  “She will be working with me over the next few weeks in preparation for our maiden flight.”

  “I’d love for such a doll to work with me,” a man to her right whispered. A low chuckle rose up around her.

  “Anyone, and I mean anyone, who is less than respectful to Miss Daniels will answer to me.” Wesley’s voice sharpened into a hard edge. “Is that clear?”

  “Yes, sir!”

  “Reconvene at zero nine hundred hours for our hike to Kennesaw Mountain.”

  Kennesaw Mountain! Sadness welled up in her chest, knotting into a lump in her throat. The last time she’d been to the mountain, Jackson had challenged her to a race. It had been fun, darting in and out of the trees, forgetting that in less than twenty-four hours, her favorite uncle would be on a train bound for the front. He had told her to dream big that day. His words had propelled her forward in those first days after his death and during basic training at Sweetwater. Dream big, Maggie. The knot in her throat loosened.

  I’m shooting for the sky!

  “Dismissed!” Wesley ordered.

  The men broke rank around her. A few glanced at her, but most chose to ignore her as they dispersed to the locker room.

  Maggie picked up her duffel bag and swung it onto her shoulder, glancing around for the ladies’ locker room.

  “I told you they can be kind of rough.” Wesley came up alongside her.

  That was supposed to be rough? She had to bite her lip to keep from laughing out loud. “Trust me, Captain. I’ve seen worse.”

  “I bet.”

  He didn’t believe her. Most folks didn’t unless they’d grow up around boys. Maggie shifted her belongings higher on her shoulder. “You don’t have brothers, do you?”

  “No, a sister.”

  The shadow that passed over his face disturbed her slightly, but she pushed the feeling away. “Well, I grew up with five boys. Cousins, and every single one of them had their own unique way of giving me a hard time.”

  “That’s family.” He crossed his arms over the pale green fabric that spread over his chest. “I’m sure Jackson and the rest of your cousins didn’t allow any nonsense from other men.”

  “No, but you know men.” The weight of her duffle bag pulled on her collar, the only release from the tight band of sweat forming around her neck. “I sure your sister would understand what I mean.”

  “I doubt it. We were very protective of Beth even after she joined the service.”

  So that’s what he’d meant with his comment about needing a few good women. He had a sister and in the service of all things. Probably joined up to serve her country and get away from her overbearing brother at the same time. At least, his remark had been aimed at his sister rather than a girlfriend like she had thought.

  “But you can’t be there all the time.” Maggie replied, ambushed by her slight feeling of relief. “That’s when the other guys swoop down on you.”

  “I bet Jackson and your cousins knew a lot more than they let on.”

  She scoffed. “Don’t bet on it.”

  Wesley laughed. “If he was anything like me, he probably saw more hand to hand combat in the woods behind Merrilee’s house than he ever did in training.”

  If that comment was meant to make her feel protected, it had fallen on deaf ears. Her whole life, she’d been looking through the window, never allowed inside while the boys came and went as they pleased. It was one of the reasons she had waited to enlist with the WASP until all her cousins were safely overseas. She wouldn’t have to listen to their bellyaching.

  Maggie tried to straighten to her full height but her duffel bag weighted down her shoulder. “Don’t kid yourself, Captain. I’m quite capable of taking care of myself.”

  “That’s what you keep telling me.” The humor dancing in his eyes irritated her to no end.

  “Then I guess I’ll just have show you,” she answered, shifting her duffle bag to the other shoulder. This conversation was finished. It was time to prove her point. She headed across the tarmac. Maybe there, she’d find a ladies’ restroom where she could change.

  “Where are you going?”

  She stopped and turned back to him. “To find a place to change. You can’t expect me to go on a five-mile run in this getup, now can you?”

  Maggie had barely turned toward the main building when Wesley was there, blocking everything in her view. Steely blue eyes glaring down at her from over the top of his sunglasses. “What makes you think you’ve been invited on this run?”

  She stared straight ahead, hoping to steady herself. Instead her view of his muscular chest, a rainbow of ribbons pinned to his breast pocket, threw her off balance. Maggie swallowed. She’d never make it five miles on her wobbly legs. “I’ve been given an order.”

  “No, you weren’t.”

  Blast the man! Heat settled in the pit of her stomach. Her family’s protectiveness, she had to deal with, but Wesley Hicks? Thanks, but no thanks. Maggie drew in a deep breath. “Did you order your squadron to prepare for a hike, sir?”

  “Yes.”

  His answer gave Maggie just the ammo she needed. “And am I not a part of that squad?””

  His mouth flat-lined. “Yes, but . . .”

  “But what? How will your men ever trust me in the cockpit if you excuse me from something as simple as a five-mile hike?”

  His eyes narrowed. “Five miles is simple?”

  She had about had it with the man. “The WASP are trained the same way as any man in the Army Air Corp.” She nodded toward the men’s barracks. “Just like those guys, we worked out every day.”

  Wesley hesitated for a moment as if waging an internal battle of his own. “You’re bound and determined to do this.”

  She may hurt like the devil in the morning, but nothing was going to stop from following her squadron up that mountain of granite. Maggie gave him a brief nod. “Yes, sir.”

  The hairs on the back of her neck stood at attention as he studied her from the top of her head to the tips of her spit-shined boots. What was it about this man that sent her in a tailspin?

  “Your foot locker is in the women’s restroom just inside the door to your left,” he finally said. “Report back here in ten minutes.”

  Maggie couldn’t help but smile. “Yes, sir!”

  “Make no mistake about it. If you’re one second late, I’ll leave you behind, Miss Daniels. Is that clear?” He made a sharp turn toward the barracks.

  “Thank you, sir!” Maggie called out as he marched away.

  Hurrying as fast as she could, Maggie hardly made it into the confines of the restroom before slumping against the wall, her legs wobbling beneath her. The first battle was over. She had faced down her squadron’s opposition and managed to come out unscathed. Maggie closed her eyes for a brief celebration. But she would have to remain strong if she had any intention of winning this particular war.

  Turning on the spigot, Maggie splashed cold water on her heated face, not sure if the warmth came from the insults her squad had thrown at her or the brief exchange with Wesley Hicks. She reach
ed for a towel. What had the man been thinking, excusing her from orders? Didn’t he understand that the success of her assignment depended on these men? General Arnold’s words whispered through her memory. Show these boys that this plane is so easy to fly, even a woman can do it. The only way this war can be won is with the Super Fortress.

  Maggie blotted her face with the soft cloth. By the end of the day, she was going to need a hot bath and a dose of Aunt Merrilee’s home cooking. Bending down, Maggie lifted the lid of her foot locker. A piece of folded paper fluttering in the air before landing on the cement floor. Picking it up, she unfolded it. The edges crumpled under her tightening fingertips as she read it once, then over again.

  The only good WASP is a dead one.

  5

  Raindrops splattered against Maggie’s sweatshirt and fanned out over her shoulders and down her back, offering some relief to her heated skin. A light breeze rustled through the thatch of hardwoods, green blossoms shimming in the air like the snowflakes outside of Topeka when she’d delivered her first plane.

  It would have been a perfect day if she hadn’t found that stupid note.

  She didn’t know why it bothered her. General Arnold had warned the girls during training that there might be threats and he’d been right. Not one week had gone by that a girl didn’t find a snake in her bed or a wrench in her blades.

  But this was in her own backyard and aimed directly at her. One thing was for certain. She couldn’t breathe a word of this to anyone, not if she wanted a slot on the flight schedule. If he found out about the note, Captain Hicks would ground her for good.

  Maggie sucked in a breath through pursed lips. The air blazed a fiery path down her windpipe before bursting into frames throughout her chest. A cadence of heavy footsteps echoed against the beaten down trail, the old dirt road between Marietta Square and Kennesaw Mountain.