::  As Time Goes By  ::

Part 1

Birgit’s Hytte (Summerhouse)
Rjukan, Norway
July 15, 1942
0300 Hours

Clay lay on the bed, his crossed arms behind his head, staring up into the rafters of the rustic summer home. It was finally dark outside. It never ceased to amaze him just how late the sun stayed out this time of year. Further north, he knew, it never really got completely dark. However, the perversity of the sun’s habits paled against the other problems and worries keeping him from much needed sleep.

From Oslo, the limo had taken them to the town of Drammen. There, Birgit had opted to drive them. Clay had sat there, white knuckled as she put the Duesenberg Roadster through its paces. She laughed at his nervousness. "Darling, I’ve driven this road many times."

"Road? Road? I don’t really see a road," he’d countered. However, she was an expert driver, and he soon became more comfortable. The scenery was spectacular and Birgit had played tour guide. The drive should’ve given her plenty of time to fill him in, but she was surprisingly quiet on the subject, saying only that it was all worked out.

They’d arrived in the valley early yesterday morning, and he had to admit that he’d not seen a prettier vista. Waterfalls cascaded down the mountains. She’d driven them through the small town of Rjukan. "Vemork is outside the limits, Darling."

He really wished she’d stop calling him that in private. He understood the need for them to appear to be lovers, particularly at the party she’d hosted tonight. Nearly twenty people had attended. He’d met Nazi officers, showed the proper respect to each one, suffered the snide comments about the superiority of the ‘Master Race.’ Some of the townspeople she’d invited had been of a similar political bent as he and Birgit were pretending to be. In a low voice, she’d pointed out the ones who, like her, were dealing with the Germans for reasons other than personal gain. "The mayor is working with them because he can intercede for the town. If someone from the Nasjonal Samling – Quisling’s party – were in power, we’d never know what the Germans were planning. He walks a delicate line."

In the midst of meeting everyone, she’d nonchalantly introduced the man he’d come so far to see. "Darling, this is Herr Professor Liljedahl."

Clay had played his role well, greeting the man politely, saying, "Ah, yes, Birgit tells me that you might be interested in my company’s gears."

And Liljedahl had responded with near disinterest. "Yes, perhaps. Are you staying long?"

"A few days."

"Well, if you have the time, stop by the plant. I’ll see you for a few minutes in my office."

If everything went according to plan, which never seemed to happen for Clay, then tomorrow, while on a hike through the valley, they’d meet with Liljedahl, seemingly by chance. He’d invite them back to the plant for a brief tour, before offering them coffee in his office. There, he’d allow Clay to take pictures of the documents.

The camera was disguised as a matchbox. While Clay didn’t normally smoke, he carried a well-used pipe and tobacco to justify carrying the ‘matches.’ Simple. In and out.

It should be foolproof. At any time, if there was problem, any of them could call if off. If there were too many Germans lurking at the plant, then Liljedahl wouldn’t bother to take his daily walk, or walk a different route. They’d have three days in which to make the meeting.

Everything was in place, and no one doubted that he and Birgit were anything but fond lovers. And, if he were honest with himself, that bothered him the most. Birgit was beautiful and alluring. Several of the German officers had eyed her hungrily. One in particular had seemed exceedingly jealous of the attentions she’d paid Clay: holding onto his arm, smiling at him, whispering in his ear. For Clay’s part, he’d been attentive, wrapping his arm around her waist while they’d stood side-by-side. He’d told himself that it was necessary for the mission; that Sarah would understand. But it felt like he was cheating on her, and it took him a while to understand why – he didn’t think Birgit was pretending. How the hell was he going to deal with this?

He really hoped he was reading too much into it. They were in enough danger as it was, without Birgit falling in love with him. He supposed that some men would gladly accept the comfort of such a beautiful woman, but then, most men weren’t married to Sarah. Sarah was everything he’d ever dreamed of wanting. Even his infatuation with Grisella held nothing in comparison with what he felt for Sarah. Cheating on her wasn’t an option. However, he was afraid that if he did anything to hurt Birgit, she could ruin the plan. If it weren’t so dangerous, it’d almost be funny. Who’d have thought that Clayton Webb, cold, calculating and focused, would be in this kind of position?

And as if his very thoughts had reached out to her, he heard what he’d feared since telling her goodnight. The step just outside his door was soft, the knob turning almost silent. He thought to feign sleep, but feared what she might do. He’d have to deal with it, now rather than later.

The moonlight kissed her alabaster skin and, for a brief second, he thought to take the easy way out. After all, Sarah would never know. «I’ll know. And I can hide nothing from her.» "Birgit?"

"Diederik?" He’d never told her his real name but even that anonymity provided him with little comfort.

She stepped into the room and he sat up, the sheet falling to his waist leaving his bare chest exposed. He heard her gasp of breath and was, on some level, proud that he pleased her. He struggled to not act like the blushing maiden by pulling the sheet up to cover himself. "Is there a problem?"

"I couldn’t sleep." She took another step towards him. All he needed to do was reach out his hand and she’d be his. The problem would be solved, and Sarah would never need to know. Sarah. And then it struck him why his wife was so firmly on his mind tonight of all nights.

"I understand. I, too, find it hard to sleep," he admitted.

"Are you worried?"

She was at the foot of the bed and he knew what he had to do. He had to hurt her softly. God, he hoped he could do it. "Not about the mission. It’ll happen or it won’t. I’m worried about other things."

"What other things?" Her voice begged him to let her help him, comfort him.

Instead of staying in the bed, he threw off the sheets. For nearly a year, he and Sarah had shared one set of pajamas. He’d wear the bottoms; she’d wear the top. He’d made a mistake carrying over something of his private life into the field. Standing at the opposite side of the bed, he walked over to the window. He wasn’t surprised to hear her follow him.

"Tell me what has you worried."

"I don’t want to burden you." «God, what a cad I am.»

"We are partners, no? Tell me." She was so close he could feel the puff of breath on his skin.

He took a deep breath, then exhaled it slowly. «Here goes everything. If she believes me. Jesus, please let her just leave.» "Forgive me if I was rather melancholy tonight. You’ve been nothing but a true professional. I’m humbled by the way you can pretend to show someone you know so little about, fond respect and affection."

"You make it easy." Her hand was warm on his arm and he shuddered.

He could close his eyes and pretend she was Sarah. No. That would be unfair to all of them. "You flatter me."

"Do I? Then why are you melancholy?" Her hair tickled his skin as she laid her head upon his shoulder.

She deserved the truth and throwing caution to the wind he told her. "Tonight is my anniversary. One year ago, I finally married the woman I’ve been in love with since the moment I laid eyes on her."

Her pain was almost physical. She stiffened and stepped away from him. He waited for some explosion of emotion. "She waits for you at home?"

"No. Although I wish she were safe. But, she’s very much like you. She’s very strong, very independent. She works as you do to make the world safe from men like Hitler and his bombs."

"I see." There was a cold determination in Birgit’s voice now. "And tell me, will you die on her? Leave her as Nils left me? Leave her to seek out the comfort in men that she’s just met?" The raw pain was more than he could stand. Turning, he took her in his arms, pulling her tight against his chest.

"I’m sorry," he whispered.

Her sobs shook them both. Her tears streaked down his skin and he held her, letting her cry it out. Finally, when she tried to pull away from him, he moved back to the bed. Sitting, he placed her next to him. "Tell me about Nils."

She tried to stand, but he wrapped his arm around her, forcing her closer. Finally, in a harsh whisper, she began. "He was everything to me. He was the reason why I stayed. He wanted to help with the resistance." She sniffled and swiped at her eyes. "He sent me here to keep watch on the Germans, to pass on information. He stayed in Drammen. His car brought us here. He loved sports car racing. He taught me how to drive. He was very rich. We could have gone anywhere. But he said helping Norway was important."

"It is, Birgit. I could’ve hidden in America. I could’ve found a job that would’ve kept me safe, but then, I couldn’t shave in the morning, couldn’t stand to face myself. What happened to Nils? Did a plan go wrong?"

She sat up and when he released her, she stood. "No. No plan. He and several important people in Drammen were gradually building a small group. But they never got the chance to strike a blow. That’s what hurts the most. The communists rallied their forces first. They blew up a train carrying German troops to Telemark. The Germans took instant reprisals. They arrested two hundred men in Drammen; Nils was among them."

The tears were gone and now her voice shook with fury. "They shot them down in the square, forcing the townspeople to watch. By the time I heard what happened, the Germans made the townspeople of Drammen pick up the bodies and toss them into a truck. They then picked men to dig a mass grave. They forbad the priests from saying any prayer over the graves." The sky was already brightening and he could clearly see her hurt, anger and desperate hatred. "I will do whatever I can to destroy them." Her face started to crumple again, but he saw her steady herself. "Forgive me for embarrassing you."

"You didn’t embarrass me. You flattered me. Believe me, you are an extremely attractive woman. Any man would be proud that you offered him such the gift of your trust."

For a long while they stood there, gazing at each other, both dealing with their regrets. Finally, Birgit sighed. "Your wife is very lucky. I’ll leave you to get some sleep. We should leave by noon."

Instead, after she’d closed the door behind her, he went back to stand at the window to watch the dawn. He hoped that she’d be okay now. He found himself truly regretting that he couldn’t offer her the kind of comfort that she so obviously needed. However, those thoughts led him back to Sarah. He wondered what she was doing right at this moment. Was she asleep? Was she planning some mischief? Was she upset that he wasn’t there with her on their first anniversary? "I miss you so much," he whispered to the greening scenery before him. Turning back to the bed, he knew what he’d dream of, at least he hoped he would.

He awoke at dawn, groaned and tried to roll back to sleep, but the semen in his pajamas was already turning cold and sticky. Rising quickly, he went to the bathroom to clean up. He had no idea what to do with the pajamas, he couldn’t ask Birgit to clean them. So, once he was dressed, he wadded them up and shoved them into the wastebasket. He made his way to the kitchen where the girl from town who tended the house was already making breakfast. Later, when Birgit joined them, he couldn’t meet her eye. He wondered just how vocal he’d been. Finally, once they were drinking their coffee, she smiled sadly at him. "She’s very lucky indeed." All he could do was blush.

"Well? Are we ready to take our walk?"

All he could do was nod. Together they strolled along the path. They met Liljedahl as planned, and as planned, he invited them back to the plant. Clay kept a careful eye on everything, mentally sketching the place in his head, noting in particular, various points of entry – all carefully guarded. The Germans had assumed security, but the only soldiers he saw were the guards. No Gestapo agents jumped out from behind the huge machinery to point at him and cry, ‘I know you! Spy!’

They drank coffee in the office and Clay quickly took the photos of the documents, changing film as needed, hiding the exposed film back inside the camera recesses. He kept expecting the guards to burst in on them. He expected them to search him as the professor led them to the front door. The professor had his personal car drive them back to Birgit’s house and not once did anyone stop them, demanding to search them.

Birgit felt the tension and, once they were in the back of Liljedahl’s car, she compulsively squeezed his hand. He held it tight and was just glad that the driver didn’t seem to expect them to make small talk.

Once they were inside her house, she hugged him tight. "Oh, my God. We did it!" She laughed before kissing him soundly. He gave into moment and returned her kiss. He felt his control slipping as his hands roamed over her back. They were alive and they had the film.

"Clay?" She pulled back to look into his eyes. She saw the truth and blushed. "I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that."

It took him several moments to get his own emotions back under control. Embarrassment reddened his face. "You’ve nothing to apologize for. It was perfectly natural."

"Thank you."

"No. I…" He shook his head, berating himself for his slip. Was the kiss any different than actually taking her to bed? There were no witnesses they needed to impress. "We better think about getting back. I need to cross over into Sweden as soon as possible."

She nodded and turned away from him. "I’ll pack my things. I don’t think I’ll be coming back here. Too many bad memories."

He felt like a heel. He had to get back to Sarah. Everything would be okay then.

They drove in silence, both refusing to look at the other. Clay wallowed in his guilt, even as he chided himself for being stupid. «The talk last night didn’t change anything. Her feelings didn’t change. I still hurt her.»

They drove past Drammen. Even though they passed several troop trucks and check points, their papers were inspected and they drove on into the countryside north of Oslo. Finally, she pulled over to the side and turned to him. "We’ll spend the night in Skarnes, the guard we can trust won’t go on duty until ten tomorrow morning at the checkpoint between Magnor and Charlottenberg. Once you are in Sweden, you can make your own way?"

"Yes." He patted the belt around his stomach. "I have papers and maps and money. I will make my way down the coast. There…" his voice trailed off. She didn’t need to know.

They took turns sleeping in the back for two hours and then changing places to keep watch from the front seat. Clay didn’t sleep much when it was his time. Things had gone too smoothly. He’d have thought that the guards at the checkpoint outside of Oslo would’ve paid closer attention to him. However, they’d taken one look at her papers and saluted. If she didn’t know much about him, other than the fact that he was married, he only knew that she said she’d lost her lover in the early days of Norwegian occupation. What was going on? He hated that he was having these thoughts. If she was truly a traitor, then why hadn’t she turned him in a dozen times? She hadn’t pressed him for information. What was her game?

It was nearly dawn, and he was taking the last watch when her voice intruded in on his dark musings. "Tell me something?"

"What?" It came out harsher than it should have.

"You’re wife? You say you love her?"

"I shouldn’t have told you about her. I’m sorry."

"But you did and I told you of Nils. If she asked, would you stop?"

"Stop what? Stop doing what I do? No. She’d never ask. She’s as committed as I am."

"It is a pity. You know that you will die."

His fingers tightened around the grip of the gun in his lap. "We all die, Birgit."

"But if you love someone, isn’t that enough? Shouldn’t you be with that person making your own lives better?" He wasn’t sure she really wanted him to answer. He suspected that she’d had this conversation with herself many a night since her Nils was murdered.

"How can your life be better if you ignore what’s going on with your neighbors?"

"But if you die, what difference does it make?"

"I suppose that depends on what you believe comes after."

"After?" She laughed bitterly. "You mean God? You believe in God?"

"Yes. Don’t you?"

"How could God have let Nils die?"

"I don’t know. I don’t ask myself those questions. I do what I think is right." The doubts he’d begun to experience about her were almost overwhelming now. "Why do you fight the Nazis? If you don’t believe in anything, why do you even bother?"

"Because I believe in revenge. The men who killed Nils will pay." She sat up, and in the dawn light he could see the passion in her eyes. "What else do I have now?" She pushed opened the back door, stretched and went out of view for a few minutes. All around them were trees and wilderness. The towns here were small farming communities. The farmers would be eating their breakfasts. When she returned, he took a moment to find his own privacy, secretly hoping that she’d leave him. He’d strapped the ‘matchbox’ to his body. There was nothing in the car that he needed. It would take longer, but he could make it on his own.

"Come, it is time to leave. They change the guards at seven. Dolf, the guard who will allow you to cross, will be on duty."

"Why is he helping us?"

"He’s not. He’s helping me." Her words were chilling.

"Why?" he demanded.

"Why do you think? Some men do not have your strong puritanical morality, Darling." The biting response felt like a slap and an unreasonable feeling of jealousy flared inside him.

"I don’t like it."

She looked at him, and then scoffed. "It’s not for you to like or dislike. You have what you came for, now leave Norway to the Norwegians." With that, she climbed in behind the wheel. "Get in. I want to be back in Oslo by nightfall. I have a party I can attend."

He stood there glaring at her. "I can make it on my own."

"You’d like that? I embarrass you? Or, do you fear me?"

"I don’t know what I feel. I just know I don’t like it. I don’t like the fact that you…"

"That I what? Sell myself for the cause?"

He could see the determination behind the shine of tears, and he felt even guiltier than he had before. "I don’t like the fact that you put yourself in danger." He blushed. "Sorry. That was really dumb of me."

This time her laughter was less bitter, almost the timber that he’d found himself so attracted to over the past few days. "Very dumb and perhaps very American, no? Come, we will go."

The border guard was not alone. There was a truck at the opening in the barbed wire fence and Clay counted no less than six German infantry carefully checking the contents. The driver was being searched thoroughly. All the blood drained from Clay’s face. "Turn around."

"We can’t. There’s a truck pulling up behind us," she said calmly. "Don’t worry, Darling. Dolf will not let me down."

"I’m not worried about Dolf. It’s the others. The captain there looks like he’d like nothing better than to catch us out."

"My papers will get us through."

"How can you be so sure?" he demanded. He felt for the gun in his pocket, already knowing that they had no chance.

"Trust me."

The guards must have been satisfied that the truck and its driver posed no threat to the Reich because they finally waved the man through the checkpoint. Birgit put the car in gear and pulled up to the captain of the guard. Her papers were already in her hand. "Good morning," she said brightly.

The captain glared into the car at Clay. "Your reason for leaving the country?"

Birgit answered. "My friend has an appointment with the Swedes."

"And you are?" Again he ignored Birgit who was beginning to let her anger show.

Clay prayed his papers, vaguely worded, would be enough.

"Excuse me, captain," Birgit purred. "We are running rather late. If you will check my papers first, perhaps that will answer many of your questions."

The captain turned his cold glare to her. "Indeed. You seem awfully anxious for me to check your papers. Why is that?"

"Because, they usually get me what I want!" she snapped angrily. Clay swallowed his groan as she shoved them at the captain.

"So? Frauline Quisling, this says that your uncle has approved your passage through the country."

Clay was shocked beyond words. How in God’s name had he not known that she was the niece of the betrayer of Norway?

The captain didn’t appear to be very impressed. "Your papers appear to be in order, but then I wasn’t interested in checking your papers. Step out of the car. I want to talk to your friend."

She turned and looked at Clay, who accepted that the game was over. She gave him a slight nod and he saw her thigh flex. He pulled out his gun and before the surprised captain could raise the alarm, he was dead and Birgit was gunning the engine.

The Duesenberg was a heavy car and it smashed through the wooden gate with ease. Clay shot one of the border guards as he raised his rifle to his shoulder. Turning, he got off another shot. "Duck!" he cried as the remainder of the soldiers, those not huddled around their fallen leader, took aim.

The car seemed to rock as a dozen bullets penetrated or binged off the heavy steel construction. He felt one bullet wiz past his nose to shatter the windshield. Across the dead man’s land the Swedish guards were standing at the ready. He prayed that a Swedish bullet wouldn’t kill him. The car jerked and he grabbed the wheel, helping her stay on the track.

Thankfully, though guns were poised, they raised the gate and allowed them to enter Sweden. A dozen soldiers surrounded the car. "Shut it off, Birgit," he sighed. He could deal with the Swedes. "Birgit?" He turned and cried out. "No!"

One of the soldiers opened the door on her side, but she slumped into Clay’s arms. The blood trickled from her lips. He felt the warmth stain his shirt and he realized she’d been shot in the back.

"Darling?" she whispered.

"Yes?"

"I’m sorry. I won’t be able to help any more."

"You’ve done so much." He felt the tears track down his face.

"You really think there’s a God? You think that I’ll see Nils?"

He wanted to assure her that she’d be fine, but he knew better. "Yes," he said. "I think that you will see Nils very soon."

"Good," she sighed. "I really did love him very much. You reminded me of him. She’s very lucky, darling." Her eyes fluttered shut and her death rattle seemed to shake him to his very soul.

Kate’s (Meredith’s) Apartment
Port Moresby, New Guinea
August 7, 1942
Late Afternoon

Kate folded a dress that she hadn’t worn in over a year and carefully packed it into the one suitcase that she could take with her. Bud would be by first thing in the morning, if he could get through the enemy planes. She was very proud of him and the service that he was doing for the British, acting as a merchant airman flying short hops between New Guinea and the Australian coast. He’d wanted to sign up, particularly when AJ told him how his brother had died. However, she and AJ had talked him out of it. Now he’d fly her and her unborn child to safety. She stood, resting her hand at the small of her back. She just hoped that the baby wouldn’t be early. It was easy to pinpoint her due date. "Only did it once," she told the clothes resting before her. "September 15^th." That gave her an entire month to get settled; although she couldn’t remember what comfortable felt like.

When AJ had heard that she wanted to remain in Darwin, he’d sent word to Harriet. She would be arriving in Darwin with her son as soon as possible. "She tells me the house is getting very crowded in Sydney," AJ said when he’d told her. Kate didn’t argue. Frankly, she’d welcome the female companionship. There were so few European women left in the city. Most had fled early in July when it became apparent that the Japanese were pinpointing the British garrison. The Australians were doing their best to hold the northern line, keeping the Japanese Army pinned down on the Dutch side of the Island.

Since being released from the hospital early in June, AJ had spent most of his days conferring with Commander Flagler as well as the British and Australian forces, pointing out Japanese camps on the far side of the island. Natural curiosity made her wonder just how big his account at the Barkley’s branch bank in Port Moresby was. It must’ve been pretty hefty, because he’d bought a boat, named it the Venganza, which was Spanish for Revenge. He’d taken up Victor’s original quest, making his way around the islands spying and running supplies to the watchers. He’d made one attempt to reach Bougainville, but choppy waters and a Japanese destroyer turned him around.

Now the American fleet was close at hand and she knew yet another campaign was in the offing. As head of the American Legation, she was apprised on some military details, but she’d received most of her information from AJ himself.

She wondered if AJ would return in time to see her off. It wasn’t that she was afraid to go down to the port by herself. Even as big as she was, she didn’t see herself as infirmed – no matter what Corporal Ducky Mallard said. The young man had adopted her, treating her like a sister, even fighting one of his buddies who had questioned her marital status. She hoped AJ would make it back. She’d long ago accepted that Victor had made his decision to surrender himself, saving AJ. "He had no way of knowing about you, sweetie." She rubbed her stomach, trying to calm her child who seemed determined, of late, to tap dance most of the day.

She shut the case and grimaced as she tried to latch it. She didn’t strain herself; Ducky would do it when he returned with their lunch. "Poor kid, what’s he going to do after I’m gone? I hope Flagler keeps him here." She heard the door downstairs slam. "Ducky?"

He didn’t answer and as soft steps made their way up, an unreasonable fear took her. She stepped out into the living room and listened. This was the room where Meredith had been attacked. There was still a dark stain on the floor under the new rug. She went to her desk and reached for the service revolver that she’d carried everywhere anymore.

"Kate?" came the familiar feminine voice.

"Oh, my God!" Kate squealed. "Meredith!"

The reporter walked into her former apartment, dropped her suitcase and started to reach out to Kate. However, she stopped and stared at Kate’s belly. "Oh, my God," she breathed. "Uhm…"

Kate didn’t bother to answer. Instead she took the remaining two steps and awkwardly hugged her friend. "I can’t believe it. When did you get here? How did you get here?"

Meredith exhaled, then laughed softly. "I arrived about thirty minutes ago, much to the consternation of a Commander Flagler."

Kate smiled and waved her hand dismissively. "I can imagine. Commander Flagler is a bit of a stuffed shirt. But he is in charge of the small command here." She almost asked if Meredith had seen AJ, but something stopped her. She wasn’t even sure if he was still on the island or had taken off on one of his ‘fact-finding missions.’ «I know he’s looking for Victor, but he refuses to admit it.» "But how did you get here?"

"Well, I’m an official war correspondent, assigned to Southeast Asia. Like my uniform?" She stepped back and modeled the khaki colored fitted jacket over her slim skirt. "I came over on the Astoria, which just sailed in from Pearl. I got a lot of great stories, but Admiral Halsey made it clear that he didn’t want me on board for the next big battle. I’m going to have to have a long talk with him. However, I have plenty of stories to send back and I thought, since I had to be here anyway, that I’d use the Teletype machines downstairs." She took a deep breath and then finished, "Is that okay?"

"Okay? This is your place. After the consulate was bombed, I had no place else to go. AJ said you wouldn’t mind." She bit her tongue and turned away.

"So?" Meredith kept her emotions under control. "Have you heard from him?"

"Who? AJ? Yeah. I talked to him a couple of weeks ago. You heard what happened?"

"No." Meredith settled into the sofa and looked around her former apartment. "Tell me. I take it that Mr. Galindez…"

Kate had no idea why, but just the sound of his name from Meredith’s lips was too much. She burst into tears and Meredith was at her side immediately, holding her, pulling her to sit down. Rocking her in her arms, Meredith softly demanded the story.

Punctuated by hiccups, Kate finally told her of the failed mission to rescue Tom Boone, of Mike Roberts’ death, Victor’s sacrifice, AJ’s return and the fact that she’d been ordered to the relative safety of Australia. "So you can have your apartment back. Ducky, my Marine, is driving me to the waterfront later tonight. Bud is going to fly me down to Darwin."

"I don’t know, Kate," Meredith stood to look out onto the street below. It was now filled with various countries’ soldiers, sailors and marines. "Something’s brewing. I can’t imagine that they will allow a civilian plane to take off and I don’t think you can fit into a Wildcat."

"Thanks." Kate hugged her belly. "You really think that something’s going to happen?"

"Yes. The Navy has been damned good about letting me report. I got free access to Pearl. They’ve done a remarkable job of rebuilding the boat yards and the airfields. I wanted to stay on board the Astoria, or better, transfer over to the Enterprise, but Halsey sent word that I was to be sent ashore. I can report on the activities from here until the worst of the battle is over."

"You know where?" Kate whispered.

"No, but I can guess it will be pretty close by."

"Well, I better be ready, regardless. I want a nice Australian hospital for the baby."

"Can I help?"

"Can you close my suitcase?"

"Honey, I’m good at that." After securing the clasps on the trunk, Meredith turned and asked. "Anything else?"

Kate snapped her fingers. "Yeah. If you don’t mind? This morning I dropped my lipstick and it rolled under the dresser."

"Lipstick is too precious a commodity." Meredith eyed the dresser and sighed. "Big old monstrosity. I swear, if it hadn’t already been here I’d never have paid for it. When I close this place down the new owner will have to take it as part of the sale." She tried to peer down between the wall and the heavy mahogany chest, but it was pushed up against the wall. Sighing, she looked around the room. "Ah. The broom."

Kneeling down, then lying flat on the floor, she swung the broom handle back and forth. A pen, the lipstick, and a small canister flew out under her onslaught.

"Hey! What’s this?" Kate pointed to the cylinder.

"Heavens!" Meredith huffed as she stood, dusting the front of her clothes before stooping to pick it up. "It’s a canister of film." She pursed her lips. "I wonder from where?" Looking toward the living room she bit her lip. "My darkroom equipment?"

"Ducky and I moved it downstairs to the office. It’s all there. Sometimes Bud or other people stay in the guest room."

"That’s fine. I’ll run down and see if there’s anything important on this roll." She started for the door. "When are you leaving?"

Kate shrugged. "When Ducky gets here."

"Okay. Don’t go without calling me."

Meredith hurried down the staircase leading to the first floor office. She was rather surprised to see everything but a bare desk and the Teletype carefully packed, neatly labeled. The back room was filled with more boxes, clearly marked as dark room equipment. She worked diligently for over an hour unpacking the necessary pieces, trying hard to keep her mind off of AJ. For over a year she’d dreamed about returning to him. The scenarios that she played out as early as last night were profound and utterly obscene. She grinned as she set up the trays for the chemicals. She’d been a nun ever since she left him. She didn’t expect him to have been celibate. After all, he was a man. Men were different. In fact, she could admit, here in the dark as she tested the red lights, that when she’d first seen the bulge in Kate’s stomach, a ripple of jealously had shook her. But she remembered how the Spanish smuggler and Kate had looked at each other and was saved from embarrassing herself.

Thirty minutes later she was ready to start. She didn’t know what she’d expected, but as the images slowly appeared through the solutions her heart beat wildly. "Of course," she muttered. Memories nearly three years old came tumbling back. She remembered taking these pictures. It was during one of her first solo forays away from AJ. Choiseul Island, just south and east of Bougainville. She tried to remember the details and one startling thing emerged: There’d been a lot of Japanese on the island, even then. She’d hurriedly hung the pictures up to dry. Why had she forgotten? Of course, those were the early days with AJ waiting on Bougainville and her taking pictures of everything that moved. She’d not been as familiar with the make up of the islands then; hadn’t realized that so many Japanese were unusual.

"Kate!" The bellow from the hallway penetrated the thick walls of the lower storefront. All thoughts of photos that answered so many questions dissolved.

In her haste, she almost knocked over one of the tables of chemicals. She became tangled in the heavy drapes that served as double protection against light penetrating the darkroom should someone ignore the sign on the door to stay out. For one moment, she thought she’d managed to lock herself inside the small room. Frantically, she twisted the knob with one hand, pounding with the other until the door sprang open. She stumbled across the room to the door leading to the staircase.

"Kate!" AJ called again as he began to climb the stairs.

The opening door at the top of the stair muffled the sounds of Meredith’s jerking open the door from the office. Kate stood there, immediately taking in the entire scene. It was obvious that AJ didn’t know Meredith was standing there just behind him.

But before she could say anything he continued, "You might as well unpack. You’re not going anywhere until after the battle — not then if it doesn’t go well." Both women could hear the worry in his voice.

Kate took a deep breath. "Does Ducky know?"

"Yes, I saw him down the street. He’s bringing dinner for the three of us. I’ll sleep on the boat tonight. But Flagler said Mallard is to stay here on guard. Just in case some of the troublemakers take the opportunity to act up.

But Kate wasn’t worried on that account. The nationalists had become very quiet lately. Word was filtering across the boundary between the two sides of the island. No one believed the earlier Japanese promises of autonomy anymore, ‘after the foreign devils’ were driven from the Pacific. She didn’t concern herself with that possibility now. She was too focused on the woman standing at the foot of the stairs. Even from this angle, she saw the look of longing mixed with uncertainty. "Well, that’ll be okay. Will you do me a favor?"

AJ started to continue his climb up the stairs. "Sure."

"I need a case that’s in the office. I was going to just get it when I left, but if I’m staying, I’m going to need it." By the time she was done with the hastily made up reason to get him to turn around, AJ was almost at the top of the steep stairs. Sighing, he turned to make his way back down.

Neither AJ nor Meredith heard Kate close the door. He stood there staring down at Meredith, convinced that the hallucinations that’d haunted and helped him during his trek through the New Guinea jungle had returned. He closed his eyes and shook his head before carefully opening them again slowly. His eyes traveled over her body taking in every detail.

She too reacquainted herself with the reality of the only man she’d dreamed of for nearly four years now. «He’s thinner and he looks so tired.»

"It really is you," he said though he wasn’t sure he spoke out loud. Gripping the handrail for dear life, he made his way down until they stood inches apart in the vestibule of the back landing.

She tried to keep it light. "Yep, it’s really me. I just keep coming back to the..." And then, she was in his arms being crushed against his chest, her mouth being ravaged by his. One hand cupped her head; the other held her tight as if he were afraid that she might disappear yet again.

Both ignored the door from the outside opening. Neither heard the embarrassed cough.

"Come upstairs, Ducky. We’ll be dining alone," Kate’s voice called down.

Corporal Mallard eased around AJ, then hurried up the stairs.

Meredith was in a daze, overwhelmed by his presence. How long had she dreamed of this moment? From the day she left him, if she were being honest. When he pulled her outside into the warm afternoon, she wasn’t aware of the people around them, only him. The once familiar, now foreign, smells faded as she focused on his scent. Everything narrowed to his arm around her, leading her. She wasn’t even sure that she caught more than half the words he spoke. "...did you get in?" "How long?" "...get here?"

Utter happiness bubbled up as laughter. He joined her and several men, hurrying past looked at them funny, but it barely registered.

"...hungry?"

She stopped and his smiling eyes once again met hers. "Only for you." She said it boldly, with no shame, although her cheeks were flushed.

His eyes blazed, and for a moment she thought he could sweep her up into his arms. He contented himself with taking her hand in his and hurrying down toward the water.

The harbor was nearly empty. Only a few fishing boats could be seen amongst the patrol boats. At the entrance of the harbor, they could see an Australian destroyer, its guns pointing to the sky. Gun emplacements dotted the shore and the points that formed the harbor. "I think that the Japs will be occupied for a few days. It should be safe," he said.

He helped her down onto the boat, which looked so similar to the one they’d been on that fateful day over a year ago when poor Sharkey had died. But all that faded to a grim background as he motioned her to go below.

The cabin was almost sterile in its neatness. Maps were spread across the one table at the end of the room. A small galley ran along the port side, a bunk covered in a brightly colored native-woven cotton was directly across from it, on the starboard side.

"It’s not much. But..." His voice trailed off, but not before she heard the anxiety in his voice.

"Well, it’s not home," she whispered. "No orchids," she added just to make sure he knew she meant Selau and not Manhattan. She turned to face him. "None of that matters, AJ." And she launched herself into his arms, holding him tight. "Oh, God," she sobbed. "I can’t believe I found you again."

He embraced her, holding her to him, kissing her hair. "Hush. You’re here. For however long we have, now is for us. Nothing else matters."

She pulled back to gaze up into his eyes. She saw the truth there. They’d soon be parted, but they wouldn’t think of that now. Loosening her hands, which had been locked around his neck, she dragged her nails across the corded muscles there. She reveled in the sound he made, not quite a growl, although she’d never accuse him of purring. He closed his eyes, standing perfectly still. Taking that as permission, if not a silent plea, she continued to pleasure herself by touching him. Bringing her hands across his broad shoulders, she sighed happily. "I’ve missed this so much. So lonely without you, AJ."

He recognized her pain, and it almost broke his heart. But as her hands came to the button on his shirt he shed his guilt and regret – at least for the moment.

She concentrated on freeing each button from its hole. She wanted to rip it off him, but instead, turned the act into sweet torture. "I’ve missed undressing you, touching you, smelling you."

"Well, darlin’ I’m afraid the smell…"

She buried her nose in his chest hair and inhaled deeply. "Pure you."

His hand tangled in her hair, gently pulling her back for another long kiss. Her hands weren’t idle. Soon, his pants hung open and she was tugging at his underwear. He laughed and stepped back. "Minx, you’re a bit overdressed, you know."

She stepped back and loosed the first button of her fitted jacket. However, he quickly took control. "My turn," he growled. He managed the task quickly, making no pretense in teasing. When he was done, he yanked the jacket down her arms, pulling her back against his chest, pinning her tightly while he ravaged first her mouth, then the soft tissue at her neck. She squirmed, grinding herself against him, demanding more.

"Please, AJ. Too long. Need you now."

"Want you, too." He freed her arms, tossing the jacket across the boat. He was already unzipping her skirt before the buttons of the jacket struck something metal. He lowered her to the bunk, jerking the skirt away. Her shoes clattered to the deck and he stood there before her panting, his eyes dark with passion. He kicked his pants away. When she reached out for him, he grabbed her hand. "Don’t. Too close. Wanted you for so long. Needed you."

She gasped at the truth. He didn’t need to say the words; she knew. He’d been with no one since she left. A man who’d made no formal vow had been more faithful than her ex-husband. Leaning back seductively, she offered herself to him.

He knelt on the deck before her and freed the stockings from the garters of her girdle. "Hate these things," he muttered. "Like your body. I’d keep you naked if I could." And she knew she’d allow him to do so. No one had ever made her feel the way he did.

"I love you, AJ." She sighed contentedly as he pulled the nylons off her legs. However, when he started to toss them away, she chuckled. "Careful darling, those are my last pair. And I have no idea where to get more."

He caressed the silk over her legs, making her gasp at the sensation. Next he tackled her girdle, pulling down, grumbling all the way. That offending article slammed against the stove, joining her jacket and skirt. She breathed a sigh of release that quickly changed to groans of approval when he began kissing his way up her leg. Encouraging him with pleas, she reached down to pull him to her. An almost desperate growl stopped her and she let him move at his own pace. He buried his nose in her sopping panties and she almost wept, it felt so good.

AJ tore the panties from her body. "Sit up," he demanded and soon her bra joined the clothes flung behind him.

She held his head to her as he suckled at her breasts, biting, pulling her nipples deep into his mouth until she cried out. "AJ, please. I need you."

He pushed up off the floor, but before he could shed his underwear she had them down, dragging his cock with them until it sprung back. Capturing it, she stroked him roughly. "Please."

He pushed her back against the wall, spreading her legs. His cock, hard and already dripping pre-cum, poised at her opening. "I love you, Meredith." His thick head parted her labia. He watched her face for any discomfort.

"So big. Wanted you so bad. Please AJ." She whimpered and tried to drive him deeper but he held her thighs, feeding her just a little at a time. She scooted around until they could stretch out on the narrow bunk, he covering her with his body.

"I’m too heavy," he panted. But she held him in place, tilting her hips, spreading her legs until she could lock her heels behind his back.

She sighed deeply. "Could we stay this way forever?" she asked, even as he began to rock and jerk his hips in short, hard thrusts. He was at the perfect angle. Sweat poured from their bodies and the cabin filled with the smells and sounds of two people rutting in man’s oldest ritual. He buried his lips in her neck and she gripped the stubble on his head. Their cries of release echoed through the small room.

It took what little strength and concentration he had left for him to fall to her side. Gripping her so she wasn’t pushed from the bunk, he held her against his chest. "Sleep now."

He woke later and, for a moment, all seemed normal. Even the dried sperm that caked his cock was nothing unusual anymore. However, the smell was different. "Meredith? He called as he sat up. Her uniform was neatly folded over one of the chairs. Her undergarments were stacked on the table. He pulled on his pants, but his shirt was nowhere to be found. Bare-chested, he climbed up on deck. It was dusk and the harbor was dark. Dressed only in his shirt, which covered her legs almost to her knees, she was leaning against the rail looking out at the destroyer protecting them. The only sounds were the water lapping against the boat and thunder off in the distance. The sky was cloudy, but he suspected that the noise was man-made instead of nature’s work.

"Darlin?" He stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "Is something wrong?"

"Wrong? Of course. We’re at war. You may be killed at any moment." She turned in his embrace and arched up for a long desperate kiss. "But I’m glad I’m here, with you." They stood there as the last rays of sun faded away. The thunder continued with a frequency too regular to be a storm. She shuddered in his embrace. "I should be there."

"You’re safe with me."

"For how long?"

He stepped away, releasing her. "I won’t be able to leave for a while." He eyed her carefully, then sighed. "They don’t want me in an official capacity. Too old, I guess."

She kissed his arm, nipping at the rippled muscle there. "They’re fools, to whom I’ll be forever grateful, I think. Not that you won’t get into mischief without the official status."

"Unlike you, minx? News is hard to come by. I take it Mr. Webb managed to solve the problem back in New York. That was the last we heard: he and Sarah were on the case."

"Yes. They found out the answers, or some of them. I think that they were keeping something from me. In fact, I think that’s the only reason why Webb agreed to put in a good word for me at the War Department. Not a lot of women are being accepted as war correspondents. But they were impressed with my knowledge." She stopped and looked up at him. "AJ. I think I know why Taro attacked me."

He looked down at her. "How? Why?"

"I was helping Kate find a lipstick this morning. It’d rolled under that big dresser. Well, I found a roll of film that we overlooked before."

"Was it still good?"

"Yes. And I got some rather disturbing pictures off of it. I’m surprised I didn’t notice it when I took them. Embarrassed now."

"Tell me." He wrapped his arm around her and she snuggled against him, grateful for his presence.

"Choisteul Island. Back in July of ’38. God, it seems like a lifetime ago. You remember?"

He remembered. It’d been a time of regrouping. Palmer was dead, and while he knew things were going to hell eventually, he could pretend for whole stretches, at least when she was with him, that he might have a chance at happiness. Only when she insisted upon leaving him did he dwell on the dark clouds gathering off to the northwest. He’d made his plans, rounded up people he trusted who’d hide on sparse volcanic mountains waiting and watching. "What about Choisteul?"

"Victor had set me down at the village of Taro." She shuddered. "How very prophetic, don’t you think?"

He hugged her tighter. "He’s dead, Meredith. He’ll never hurt you again. God, so much to tell you."

"Good. I met with a missionary there who told me of a tribe in the interior. I hired a guide and we trekked through some of the prettiest rainforest that I’ve ever been in. There were waterfalls and lagoons and the most remarkable squirrels. I have a dozen of those pictures of them flying, gliding really, from tree to tree. The natives were delightful and the village pristine. I felt like I was the first white person ever to visit them. Which is silly, of course. They let me take a dozen rolls of film. National Geographic bought everything. Except the roll I found today. I’d forgotten about the incident."

"What happened?"

He could feel her hot blush as she rested her cheek against his arm. "My guide, a Mr. Strange."

"Hal Strange?" AJ was suddenly furious. "You hired Hal Strange to take you into the interior? Did Victor know?"

"No, AJ." She stepped away and wrapped her arms around herself. "Victor found me a rather nice man, Johnson, if I remember correctly. However, Mr. Johnson was rather indisposed. Drunk as a skunk, really. Mr. Strange seemed quite nice until we left the village. Then he began to live up to his name."

"Why didn’t you tell me?" he demanded.

"Because I handled it." He could hear the pride in her voice. "I made Mr. Strange understand, in no uncertain terms, that I wasn’t interested. Of course, it didn’t hurt that I punctuated my argument with the barrel of my Whebly. Then he left me in the middle of the jungle and I got turned around. I thought I was going northwest, but instead I ended up going southeast. I ended up in Sasamuqa, but not before I came upon this other village. Only now I realize that it wasn’t a village. It was more like a camp. There were natives there, but also a lot of Japanese. They were building something. I took the roll, but didn’t make my presence known."

"Was it a landing strip? Like the one we saw at Sorong?"

"No. I think I remember speculating that it was a plantation. It really didn’t register that it might be anything else. I was just so scared about being lost. A young man, a native, found me. He was very sweet and offered to take me to the coast. I never had to ask for help from the people building the camp. When I reached Sasamuqa, I found a fisherman to take me back up the coast. By the time Victor got me back to New Guinea, I had a dozen more rolls of film to develop. I have no idea when that one roll dropped out of my bag." She paused and looked back at him. The moon was just coming up, painting him in dark relief. "I think now I need to show it to someone. Would you help me?"

USS Enterprise
August 25, 1942
1400 Hours

Meredith stood on a jutting outlook, fancifully named Vulture’s Row, watching for the returning planes. Her cameras were dangling from her neck. She had plenty of pictures of the fighting. She’d be able to justify her presence. But she was still fuming. She glanced up to the command center directly above her ‘safe’ harbor. AJ was conferring with Halsey and Fletcher. How dare they! How dare AJ agree to it? It was her film, her discovery. "I suppose I should be grateful that they even allowed me on board!" When AJ had helped her off the small transport plane, both Admirals were waiting on the flight deck to greet him. Upon seeing Meredith, Fletcher was furious. Halsey refused to even speak to her. Spinning on his heel, yelling for someone, "Come and baby-sit this, this, this WOMAN!"

It’d been almost two weeks since she’d arrived at Port Moresby. She understood that they had important things on their minds. The battle for Guadalcanal was still raging; the Marines were making costly headway on that island. Dick Tregaskis had been the lucky stiff who got to land with them. He was sending back dispatches daily. "I should be there!" The frustration was getting to her, even though deep inside she understood that Tregaskis really was lucky if he was still alive. The casualty lists from the landings, as well as the pilots who died giving them cover, were heartbreaking.

It’d taken all of AJ’s considerable persuasive powers to convince Commander Flagler that the pictures that she’d taken nearly four years ago were important. Flagler had maintained that AJ could go, but "women have no place on a battleship! Nimitz will have my rank!" She’d never forget the way AJ had stood up for her. He’d proved his love for her by his fidelity; he proved his respect by obstinately insisting that she be allowed to come with him. Now she wondered if it’d cost them precious time.

"Ma’am? Miss Cavanaugh?" She turned to find a very young man waiting inside the hatch. "The Admiral’s compliments."

"Excuse me?"

The boy rolled his eyes dramatically at her ignorance of shipboard jargon. "They want you in the meeting, ma’am."

"About time. Lead the way." As he led her up to the bridge, Meredith watched the men scurry around her, preparing for the next wave of combat. Most of the planes had taken off, but there was a group who’d just landed. The pilots were impatiently waiting for their planes to be refueled. She almost missed him. "Harm!? Harmon Rabb?" Two men stopped, forcing the other pilots to edge around them.

"Meredith! Dear God," Harm rushed up and hugged her, swinging her around. "What the heck are you doing here?"

"Rabb!" The other man tugged at his sleeve. "We gotta go."

"John Farrow, this is my old boss, Meredith Cavanaugh. Damn! Are you here long?"

"I’m not sure." She saw that Farrow was getting perturbed. "I’ll try and be here when you get back."

"Don’t leave without seeing us!" Rabb turned and punched Farrow on the shoulder. "Relax, Commander. There’ll be plenty of Jap planes left for us."

"Move it!" Farrow nodded briefly to Meredith before pushing Rabb up the steps leading to the flight deck.

"Ma’am? We can’t keep the Admiral waiting, Ma’am," the young sailor insisted.

Meredith stood her ground to watch her friend, and the best damned columnist she’d ever employed, walk jauntily outside. Somehow, she knew the cocky flyer would return, although the look on his friend’s face showed the reality of the situation.

"Ma’am!" The sailor was very nervous by time Meredith finally turned and followed him up to the bridge. It wasn’t like they knew how long it took the boy to find her.

One look on the Admirals’ faces told her that, had she miraculously appeared two seconds after the young sailor was sent to look for her, the men would still be angry at her delay.

"Miss Cavanaugh, now that you’ve found a way to make it on board a fighting ship, perhaps you can be of some use," Admiral Frank Fletcher snapped. Admiral Halsey remained stonily silent.

"What can I do to help?" Meredith fought to keep her tongue under control. AJ looked impressed. But she’d changed a lot in the three years since she decided to make her own way. She’d tasted power and understood the responsibility that came with it. No matter what the War Department or Clayton Webb pushed for, if Bull Halsey wanted her out of the South Pacific, it only took one word and she’d be in San Francisco before she could catch her breath.

"Mr. Chegwidden showed us your photographs. Do you have any idea what they were building?" Fletcher stabbed at one of the black and white squares resting on top of a thick mat of maps.

"It looked like a plantation at the time, which is why I didn’t put much emphasis on remembering it. I was scared when I saw it." She admitted with trepidation.

The two men grunted. Of course she’d been scared. But before she could defend herself, AJ spoke up. "Why there, Mer? Was it because you were lost without a guide?"

She gave it consideration yet again. It’d been four years. But she shook her head. "No. Those islands aren’t really dangerous…at least they weren’t then. The natives didn’t attack white people. They don’t know the concept of rape." Someone behind her gasped but the admirals just glared at her. "I was aggravated that I had to ditch my original guide. I was going to ask for help, but…" She sighed. "I guess you had to be there. They looked so determined, the Japanese I saw, not the natives. Maybe that was the reason. The natives looked frightened."

"Fine." Halsey brushed her explanation away. "What can you tell us about the layout? Do you have any idea where you were? Can you point it out on a map?" His tone said he wasn’t sure he’d believe her one way or the other.

"Yes, Admiral, actually I can," she replied coolly. She’d thought about little else for nearly two weeks. "Do you have a map?"

Fletcher snorted but cleared away her photos to reveal a detailed topographical map marked, ‘Choisteul.’ "I don’t need to tell you that this is highly classified."

"No," she snapped irritably, surprising most of the men on bridge. "I’m not a child!" she continued hotly. "I have a brain, and I can keep a secret AND," she paused for emphasis, "I can help you. Now let me see the map."

Out of the corner of her eye she thought she saw Halsey give AJ a look of approval. Fletcher motioned her to approach the table. She studied the map for a long moment then began to trace her finger along her route. She didn’t speak to the men until she jab a spot on the map. "Here’s where I ditched Mr. Strange. I remember that little village. I didn’t realize how far inland he’d taken me. It’s very primitive away from the beach." She could tell Fletcher was getting annoyed with her travelogue, but Halsey’s grunt urged him to keep still and Meredith to get on with it. "I remember catching glimpses of the mountains to the north and west."

"How did you know the direction you were going?" Fletcher demanded.

"Please." She rolled her eyes. "How would you tell? The damned sun works the same for women as it does for men. Rises in the east, sets in the west. Right?" She sighed at AJ’s aggrieved look "I walked through the jungle, keeping an eye out for snakes."

"That’s the only thing that made you nervous?" Halsey asked.

She struggled. She didn’t need to justify her courage. "Bats don’t scare me and the rats are more like pigs than what we know back in New York. The snakes can be venomous though. The bugs, now," she shrugged, "those will drive you insane." She paused remembering more. "It was the dry season, so at least there was no rain. I finally came to the break in the forest. I was surprised at how large a clearing it was. I would estimate that they’d cleared nearly a mile between where I was standing all the way back to the base of the mountain." She picked up the pictures and began to sort through them. Putting one on the table, she pointed at the dark shape in the background. "You can’t see it well, but there was a road leading up the mountain."

"Damn." Halsey breathed. "They were building a command center."

"Bull." Fletcher shook his head. "You know as well as I do, they’re running their battles from the Hiei. We’ve been trying to sink her for days now."

Halsey gazed at Fletcher. "And as you know, a flagship can be sunk at any time." Fletcher’s face went from bright red to nearly white. Meredith remembered that he’d been onboard the Yorktown during the battle of Midway. "Let’s hear the rest, Frank." Halsey looked up at Meredith. "What else did you see?"

"They were erecting buildings, in the manner of plantations all over this part of the world, which is why I didn’t think much about it then. But now, after having nearly two weeks to think about it," she couldn’t keep the bitterness from her voice.

"We were rather busy, Miss Cavanaugh," Halsey said. She saw the pain in his eyes. The battle at Savo Island had been a devastating loss, one she’d reported on from Port Moresby. New Guinea had taken a pounding that day. She and Kate had huddled in the apartment.

"Regardless, I thought about it and I remember seeing something that I’ve never seen since during my EXTENSIVE travels throughout this part of the world." Damn you both. Don’t you see I can help you?

"Which was?" Halsey bit off.

AJ finally cleared his throat. "From what Meredith described to me, it sounded like a crude cement manufacturing plant. However, her description was," he smiled at her to take some of the sting from his comment, "vague."

"But cement would indicate a larger, more permanent facility. Damn it. If they’re building bunkers in the mountains, we’re going to lose a lot of Marines." Halsey looked hard at Meredith. "You’re sure about the location?"

She licked her lips and studied the map again. Then she closed her eyes before nodding. "Yes. It has to be there. No other place would make sense with how far I walked and how long it took for the young boy to lead me to Sasamuqa. Here." She traced her finger lightly along the map again. "I can’t be completely sure about where along the base of the mountain. But there was little elevation on the way back."

"We need more intel." Halsey finally gave his full attention to AJ. "Who have you got in the area?"

AJ didn’t meet her gaze. "No one on Choiseul. The closest person still transmitting is Turner on Bougainville. I can find out if he knows anything. But I don’t want to risk radio transmission on it. I’ll go."

She knew better than to make a scene on the bridge of the Enterprise. She saved her strength to figure out how to go with him. Suddenly, claxons clamored throughout the ship. Captain Davis looked over from his command chair. "We have enemy planes coming in, Admiral."

Even as he spoke, another officer was speaking over the sound system. "Battle Stations! Battle Stations!"

"Off the bridge!" Halsey demanded. "Sailor, escort Mr. Chegwidden and Miss Cavanaugh to safety."

AJ and Meredith followed the young man off the bridge, but Meredith had her own ideas of where she was going. "Ma’am," the young man cried.

"Get to your post, son. I’ll watch out for her." AJ ran after her, even helping her wrestle open the hatch. However, when he saw where she’d led them, he pulled her back. "Are you insane!" he yelled, even as he stood there mesmerized by the death that was bearing down on them.

"Let me do my job, AJ!" she yelled as she was getting into position on small balcony. Vulture’s Row, indeed. US fighters were harrying a squadron of Zeros escorting Japanese bombers. However, the Americans were outnumbered, and the attackers kept coming. Even as one of the bombers burst into flames, its deadly payload fell towards the ship. A plume of water rose higher than their perch and Meredith couldn’t help but duck.

Nearby, defeating AJ’s cries for her to come away, an array of fifty-pound guns protected the carrier. Just to their left, a machine gun was manned and firing. Meredith took picture after picture, not bothering to focus.

An enemy plane shot across, tearing up metal and men as bullets raked across them. The machine gun fell silent. She peered over the edge to see the gunner lying dead across the rail. A movement from her right grabbed her attention. "AJ!" she cried as he swung over the railing, and like a trapeze artist thirty years his junior, flipped across the space between them and the gun emplacement. Checking for a pulse, then pulling the boy away, he took up gun.

Taking a second for a quick prayer, Meredith returned to track the process of the attack. She knew that she should get below deck, but she wouldn’t admit her real reason for being out here. The thought of being entombed like those poor sailors on the Arizona was more frightening that dying from a bullet. So she stood her ground and continued to shoot.

She had no idea how long the battle took. She tried to keep an eye on the air battle raging above them. One Wildcat bobbed and weaved like Jack Dempsey in his heyday. One, two, three enemies fell to his blazing guns.

She lost track of him as a violent blast shook the ship. Turning, she raised her camera and knew she caught the horror of death, as their transport plane, caught on the flight deck, exploded, carrying further death to men running away from it. A blast to the aft and her camera preserved the five-inch gun gallery going up in flames.

She couldn’t remember changing film. But she knew that the battle raged for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, Wildcats from the Saratoga joined the Enterprise pilots. She watched in horror as another bomb fell. She imagined she could hear it whistling down on her. She could have hit it with one of her cameras; it was so close. "AJ," she whispered as she waited to die.

The impact, directly below, sent her sprawling, but no explosion followed. She crawled back to her feet and peered over the edge. A gaping ten-foot hole revealed several lower levels of the ship. A bloody arm lay next to the hole. She shot a picture, knowing that no one but her would ever see it.

More carnage grabbed her attention. She continued to shoot, absolutely wild to get it all. The flames, the after shocks racking through the ship, the brave men running, dragging fire hoses. Finally, strong arms enveloped her. "Meredith!" She tried to jerk away, still snapping picture after picture. "Meredith!" Harsher, stronger now. "Stop. It’s over."

"No. No." She sobbed, and finally let go. AJ twisted her around until he could hold her tight, pushing the cameras to either side of their chests. "Oh, God. You’re okay?" she finally managed. Pushing away she looked up into his soot-blackened face. "You’re okay."

"Yeah." He looked behind her. "Dear God. I’d almost forgotten what it was like," he whispered. She knew he was lying. Many a night, long before the war, she’d been jerked away by his thrashing nightmares. "No one should have to go through this twice in a lifetime."

"I know." She turned again in his embrace, the cameras clunking together. Idly, as she always did, she began to wind the film tight, opened the back of the camera and replaced it with a fresh roll. She suspected she could do this in her sleep.

"Look!" AJ pointed. Although there were still flames shooting up in parts of the ship, and although there was a gaping hole just below them, several planes lined up to come home. The first landed and were pushed to the only working elevator. Finally, there was only one plane left to land. Even above the noise, Meredith could hear the sputtering of the engine. "He’s not going to make it!" AJ yelled. Several men stopped to watch as the Wildcat with the smiling cat’s face lost the last of his power.

"That’s Gramps!" Someone called. It was as if the entire ship held its breath.

"Come on, Rabb! You can do it!" A shout went out as the wheels touched the deck inches from a chunk of a plane they’d not been able to clear away yet. Cheers went up then someone shouted, "Get back to work!"

As the pilot climbed out of the cockpit, Meredith, more from instinct that anything else, lifted her camera. Over a thousand newspapers would run the picture of Harmon Rabb, his face a mask of sheer anguish. Titled, The Face of War, it would garner Meredith awards and give substance to Rabb’s vague plan.

"Did someone get the S.O.S.?" His voice was nearly lost amongst the rest of the shouts. Meredith wasn’t sure if anyone else heard him. "Did anyone get Commander Farrow’s location?"

Part 3

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