“Does he look at me like a soldier…or like a woman?”
Kitty could hear Madge reposition herself in the dark. “Has he made a pass?”
“No. Not really. It’s just that he’s so nice to me.” Kitty thought about the woman’s picture she’d seen in his office that first day. She hadn’t seen it since.
“I thought it was kind of funny, him singling you out like he did.” Madge didn’t spell out her suspicions but Kitty sensed them in her voice. “You’d better be careful.”
“What do you mean?”
“Colonel Snyder has made it plain he doesn’t like having us women around.” She hesitated. “Something happened, before we came. Something to do with one of the British service women.”
“What happened? What do you mean?”
“Oh, one of the nurses told me about it. She didn’t say much. But Colonel Snyder got the girl in trouble over it. Got rid of her. If he thinks something’s going on between you and General Lake, believe me, you’ll be the one to take the blame.”
“But nothing’s going on.”
“Just make sure you keep it that way. And be careful.”
“You gals pipe down. Some of us are trying to sleep.”
Kitty rolled over and closed her eyes. But her brain wouldn’t let go. She ran every moment she’d spent with General Lake through her mind trying to figure out what his intentions were. She’d never been good at reading men. Never been able to pick up the subtle clues other girls saw. Now she feared her stupidity may have already gotten her in trouble.
Chapter Twelve
“Hey, Kruger. Colonel Snyder wants to see you.”
Ted looked up from the map. “What does he want?” He looked back and drew a line. “I need to finish this.”
“All I know is that he sent me to get you. Said to bring you right now.”
“Okay.” Ted sighed. What did he want now? The jerk would drag him away for something stupid, then chew him out because he didn’t finish.
He followed the sergeant to the colonel’s office.
Ted saluted crisply. “Lieutenant Kruger, reporting as ordered, sir.”
“Come in, Lieutenant.” Colonel Snyder waved him into the office. Two other officers stood and the colonel introduced them. “Major Carpenter, G-2, and Colonel DeMille, British Intelligence.”
Ted saluted. “Sirs.”
What the hell do they want?
“Have a seat, Lieutenant.” Colonel Snyder’s smug expression concerned Ted. The man loved it when someone was in trouble. And this time Ted was on the hot seat.
“Thank you, sir.” Ted sat in the straight chair to the colonel’s right.
“These officers have some questions for you.”
Ted nodded and shifted his attention to the two men who’d reclaimed their seats.
The American intelligence officer looked at Ted curiously. “We understand you are acquainted with Gunther Osterhagen.”
Ted hesitated for a minute. It wasn’t a question he expected. “Osterhagen?” It sounded familiar. “Oh, yes. He’s the German man I met in Ellingham.”
“How did you come to meet him?” the English officer asked. His gaze bore into Ted as if he expected Ted to concoct some elaborate story.
“I went into Ellingham—after I got out of the hospital. In one of the shops I heard him talking. His German accent caught my attention.” Ted looked from the American to the Englishman. “Anyway, he reminded me of my grandfather, so I decided to go over and speak to him.”
“What did you say?” the Englishman queried.
“I just introduced myself. I spoke in German and that surprised him.”
“Where did you learn to speak German, Lieutenant?” The American officer must have looked in his file, and he would have seen that he spoke German. Were they trying to trap him?
“From my grandfather.” Ted glanced at the colonel hoping for some support. Instead his smugness told Ted he was on his own. “My grandparents immigrated from Germany to America around the turn of the century.”
“Do you have relatives in Germany?” the American continued.
“Sure, I guess so. I mean, my grandparents have relatives, but I don’t know any of them.”
“How many times did you meet with Osterhagen?”
Ted shifted his gaze to the Englishman. The man was dead serious. “Twice. No, I guess you could say three times. The last time I just spoke to him on the street.”
“And what did you talk about?” Ted met the Englishman’s cold, hard gaze, willing the man to believe him. Finally he looked away so he could focus on his conversations with the old man.
“He asked about my grandfather…where he came from in Germany. I told him what I knew.”
“Which was?”
Ted looked the man in the eye. “They came from a small town near Frankfort. They got married and then came to America.”
“Why?”
“What do you mean? Why did they come to America? I guess they didn’t like what was going on in Germany at the time. Thought they could do better in America.” He looked to Colonel Snyder. “Colonel, what’s this all about?”
Snyder just shrugged and waved his hand toward the other two officers.
The American cleared his throat and adjusted his position. “All we can tell you is that Osterhagen is under investigation by the British.” He looked to his English companion who nodded slightly. “It is possible that your actions may constitute a breach in security.”
“Breach in security? I never said anything to him about the base, or missions, or anything.” Ted couldn’t believe they were accusing him of leaking information to the enemy.
“Never the less, we must investigate.”
The Englishman’s attitude rubbed Ted the wrong way. “So what does this mean? Am I being accused of something?”
“You are being questioned.” A forcefulness, laced with impatience, permeated the Englishman’s voice. He obviously wrestled with maintaining self-control.
“So ask,” Ted replied, also at the end of his patience.
“Did the German tell you anything? About himself?”
“Not much. He’s from Bavaria, near Munich, I think. Said he came to England during the first war. Why would he come here to live if he supports Hitler?”
“Does he support Hitler?”
“I don’t know.” Ted saw the curiosity in their faces. “We didn’t talk about anything like that.”
“What did you talk about?” the Englishman kept pressing.
“I don’t remember exactly. I was trying to speak German, and I’m pretty rusty. I tried to remember things I talked about with my grandfather so I could remember the words.”
“What things?”
“About where they live. My grandfather is a butcher. I remember telling him that. And that my father is dead and my mother remarried. Stuff like that.”
“This is important,” the American interjected. “Did you tell him anything about what you do in the Army? About the base or the bombing missions?”
“No.” Ted hesitated. “He saw the wings on my uniform. Asked about them. All I told him was that I was in the Eighth Air Force, and I’d been wounded.”
“What else did he ask?”
“He asked about my wounds. I just said I was okay. I didn’t tell him how I got wounded or anything. I knew not to say anything about the bombing missions.”
“When did this conversation take place? At your first meeting?”
“Yes, most of it. The second time was in the pub. He came over to me and talked for a few minutes. Said he was glad to see me, that I was doing well.” Ted thought again about what he’d said. “He asked me to come to his house, for tea.” Ted looked at the Englishman. “And when I saw him on the street the last time, he asked me to visit him again. Do you think that means anything?”
“He may have been trying to get you alone so he could question you further.”
“Well, I didn’t go. Didn’t even think about it.”
The major turned to address Colonel Snyder. “Until this matter is cleared up, Lieutenant Kruger must be removed from his current position.”
“Hey,” Ted objected.
Colonel Snyder stared him into silence. “That will not be a problem. I will assign Lieutenant Kruger to duty where he will have no contact with any sensitive information.”
Ted gritted his teeth to keep from exploding in anger. What were they going to do with him? Assign him to the guard house?
“Your request to return to flying is now out of the question,” Snyder continued.
The Englishman stood. Taking his cue, the others stood.
“Colonel, we will be in touch.” The Englishman saluted and left the office.
Colonel Snyder nodded at the major who silently acknowledged and followed the English officer.
Ted wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do so he stood awaiting instructions.
Snyder sat behind his desk and adjusted his chair. “Lieutenant, consider yourself off duty for the remainder of the day. Report back to me in the morning. By then I am sure I will have something to keep you occupied.”
“Yes, sir,” Ted muttered. He managed a feeble salute before turning to leave the room. He opened the door, then looked back at the colonel. “Sir, I’ve done nothing wrong.”
A hint of a smile crept across the officer’s face. “Then you have nothing to worry about.”
****
“Please, just this once.”
“I’m not going to the Officers’ Club,” Kitty said as emphatically as she could.
“Just give him a message. Tell him I’ve got KP and can’t make our date. That’s all you have to do.”
Kitty would do anything for Madge. But this was too much. She didn’t want to meet Ted. Not even as a favor to her best friend. She needed to stay away from him. Far away.
Madge moved closer and almost whispered. “How many favors have I done for you? What about the time I saved you from the MPs?”
Kitty cringed. Why did she have to bring that up?
“Just go over there and talk to him. His message sounded like he was upset about something. Tell him I couldn’t come, but I sent you. That he can tell you what’s going on, and you’ll tell me later.” She turned to go. “If Lois hadn’t gotten sick, I wouldn’t have KP, and you wouldn’t have to do this. But it can’t be helped.” She reached the stairway and called back over her shoulder. “Thanks, you’re a doll.”
Kitty sat at her typewriter and sighed. How did she get into these things? Ted was Madge’s boyfriend. She didn’t want to be around him, and from what she could tell, he didn’t want to be around her.
She thought of that night at the mess hall. Maybe it was only her. Maybe he wouldn’t mind if she showed up instead of Madge.
What had she gotten herself into?
****
The Officers’ Club and the Enlisted Men’s Club sat side by side. The two, almost-identical Nissen huts shared a graveled patio area with wooden benches and tables the patrons could use when the weather permitted.
Kitty hoped to find Ted outside waiting for Madge. No such luck. He was nowhere to be seen.
She could just leave, tell Madge he wasn’t here. But Madge wouldn’t believe her. So she eased over to the entrance of the Officers’ Club. When a couple of lieutenants came out, she decided to take a chance and speak to them.
“Excuse me, sirs. Have you seen Lieutenant Kruger?”
The younger of the two men grinned. “Who’s askin’?”
“I’m looking for him.” She wasn’t about to give them her name, not if she could help it.
He looked her over, leering in a way that made Kitty consider turning on her heel and leaving when the other one spoke up. “Try out back. I saw him earlier—shooting baskets.”
“Thank you.” Kitty looked them in the eye and spoke clearly to let them know she wasn’t intimidated.
She followed a path through the weeds to the back of the building where several men played basketball on a makeshift court. Bare chests and undershirts designated the teams. Before she could pick Ted out of the fast-moving group, one of them went for a lay-up and scored. He came down hard on his rear end. When he looked up laughing through the pain, she recognized him.
The ball bounced her way, so she grabbed it. Memories of her school days flashed through her mind as she fingered the ball’s hard, nubby surface. She slowly dribbled the ball toward the two men who were pulling Ted to his feet.
When Ted’s gaze met hers, her heart thudded in her chest. She caught a shallow breath when she saw his bare chest dusted with sandy hair. She held it as he limped toward her.
A bead of sweat ran down her back. She forced herself to breathe, still bouncing the ball.
“Looks like you know how to handle that pretty well.” The grin spread from his expressive mouth up to his twinkling, blue eyes.
She caught the ball and held it in front of her as if it could stop the unsettling effect he had on her. “I played in high school,” she heard herself say.
He took her elbow and turned her toward the goal. “Well, then, show us what you can do.”
“I don’t…” All she could think about was his large, strong hand clasping her arm.
“Can’t hit the goal, eh?” he goaded.
Forcing herself to focus on the goal, she looked up to gauge the distance. He released his grip, and she tried to relax. She bounced the ball a couple of times and moved to where the free throw line should be. Holding the ball up, she drew a deep breath to steady herself as she set her aim. It had been a long time, but she trusted her ability, honed in long hours of practice.
She tossed the ball. It arched upwards, hit the backboard at just the right spot, and bounced downward through the hoop, just like thousands of times before.
“Wow!” she heard Ted close behind her. “I’m impressed.”
She turned to face him with a little more confidence. She knew how to sink free throws.
“Good shot,” the guy who caught the rebound told her.
“Yeah, that was swell,” one of the others said.
“Bet you can’t do it again.” Ted filled the space around her, his twinkling eyes held her mesmerized. The others faded into the background.
When she didn’t respond, he looked away. “I didn’t think so.”
“I can hit it again,” she spoke before thinking. “I’ll show you.”
He took her challenge. “All right.” He nodded to the guy with the ball.
Kitty caught it easily. She bounced it twice then with the exact same motions she sank the basket, again.
This time the ball bounced back to her. Just as she reached for it, Ted jumped in front of her and grabbed the ball. In two steps he was in the air sinking a beautiful lay-up. This time he made his landing easily.
She smiled. He reminded her of Milton. Always had to get the last shot, score the last point, have the last word.
“You’ll have to play with us sometime,” the tall, dark-haired guy said to Kitty.
“Yeah. Do any of the other girls play?” the shorter one asked.
“No.” She shook her head. “I mean ‘no’ I can’t play with you, and I don’t know if any of the others play basketball.” She forced a smile and glanced around at the other men watching her. “Thanks for asking, but right now I need to talk to Ted…uh, Lieutenant Kruger.”
She turned and walked to the edge of the court, aware that Ted followed close behind.
“Let me get my shirt,” he said.
She stopped near piles of clothes, shoes, and bags and turned to watch him. He bent down to retrieve his shirt. At the sight of his bare, muscled shoulders, she drew in another quick, shallow breath. Her fingers shook so she fidgeted with the button on her jacket to keep them busy.
Take it easy. Try to relax. He belongs to Madge.
He shrugged into his undershirt, then grabbed his shirt and pulled it on. When he finally looked at her, his brows furrowed into a question
. Before he could ask she spoke up.
“Madge sent me. She can’t come. KP.”
He raised his chin then nodded to convey that he understood. Then he turned back to the other men. “Gotta’ go. Thanks for the game.”
He rubbed his left hip, the side he favored, as he walked toward the path.
“Did you hurt yourself?”
“Naw.” He shook his head as he buttoned his shirt. “Just need to work on those landings. Get back in shape.”
She followed him around the hut. “I don’t understand.”
He placed his hand on his left buttock and looked over his shoulder at her. “Flack.” He kept walking, tucking his shirt into his pants as he went. “Need the exercise to strengthen the muscles.”
Kitty was glad he turned back around so he couldn’t see her face because she could feel it burning. First the naked chest, then the reference to his injured butt. Not the type conversation she was used to.
Chapter Thirteen
“You want a beer?” Ted asked when they reached the front of the building.
“Sure.” She nodded, then looked around to see if anyone was watching. She didn’t want any trouble for fraternizing with an officer. When she looked back, she found him smiling as if he was trying to figure her out.
“I’ll bring them out. Just give me a minute.”
True to his word, he returned in a few minutes with two glasses of beer. He walked past her to a bench on the edge of the gravel patio.
“Sit here.” It wasn’t a request, but it wasn’t an order either.
She sat. He handed her one of the beers, and she took a polite sip.
He sank down beside her and winced. “Gotta’ get back in shape. The boys are trying to get a couple of teams together, so we can play a real game.”
When she didn’t respond, he flashed her that silly, little boy grin. “Would you come watch?”
Kitty looked down at the glass of beer she held in both hands. “Madge got stuck on KP. So she sent me to come and tell you.”
“You said that.” He reached over and wrapped his big hand around her two small ones. The smooth glass pressed against her palms while his rough hand radiated heat into her skin. “KP. Good ol’ army. Always got something for you to do, whether you want to or not.”
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