Page 46 of The Girls of Pearl Harbor
Grace glanced over her shoulder to make sure Eva wasn’t nearby. ‘I don’t know what’s going on with her. It’s almost like she’s, I don’t know, going through the motions of everyday things without actually being there.’
‘I know,’ April said. ‘But she lost her fiancé, and we know what it’s like to lose someone. Everyone grieves differently, and how long is too long? She’s been through a lot.’
Grace watched a ripple in the water, and as her stomach lurched at the thought it was another submarine, a fish slipped through the water and broke the surface.
‘I think she’s more complex than we realize,’ April said. ‘There’s something going on with her family, or maybe it’s just her father, but I think she’s genuinely scared. The way she looked at me when we talked about her going home, it was strange. I just can’t stop thinking about it.’
‘You think he might, I don’t know, physically hurt her?’ Grace asked. Their father was so kind—aloof and frustrating as anything sometimes, but he’d never raise his voice at them, let alone hurt them.
‘I’m not sure. All I know is that she seemed so strong and confident when we first met her, and now I just can’t put my finger on it. It was almost like the fear of going home was worse for her than actually losing Charlie, but maybe I have it wrong. I don’t know.’
Grace sighed. Her sister was usually right; she always seemed to have the right intuition about what was going on with people and how to help. ‘I hope you’re wrong.’
April smiled sadly. ‘Me too.’
They stood side by side, basking in the warm sun and enjoying the ocean breeze, for almost another hour before they were all called to gather their things and prepare for arrival.
Three hours later, the ship was finally still, and Grace waited patiently with the other nurses to disembark, bumping shoulders with April on one side and Eva on the other.
‘I thought Hawaii was hot,’ Grace grumbled, blowing damp tendrils of hair from her face. It was impossibly hot, the kind of hot that left skin sticky and foreheads dripping, and it was even worse because they were carrying so much. ‘No wonder the people here have such dark skin. Our white skin would probably melt off us if we lived here!’
April laughed, but she didn’t get a rise out of Eva. But when she glanced over at the soldiers who’d already disembarked, she gave Eva a little kick to get her attention.
‘Would you look at them?’ she said. ‘I think we’re carrying more than they are!’
She watched as Eva followed her gaze. ‘Hmm, I think you’re right.’
Grace shuffled beneath the weight of her two packs, one on the front, one on the back, filled with her bedroll, uniforms, gas protection suit, cosmetics, and other bits and pieces. That combined with the two army blankets rolled tightly and slung over her shoulder was causing her to buckle beneath the weight and the stifling heat of it all.
As soon as they started moving, she forgot all about what she was carrying, though, her eyes wide as she climbed down over the side of the ship, heart thudding as she tried to balance, terrified of falling into the ominous water lapping below. She gripped tight to the iron ladder and didn’t let go until strong hands grabbed her around her middle and hauled her down into the little assault boat. She pushed her helmet up, hating how it kept sliding down low over her eyes, and looked behind her at three medical officers and at least fifteen or more soldiers. Grace managed a small smile and received warm grins in return as she waited for the others to come down the awful little ladder.
Once April, Eva, and two other nurses had safely descended, the boat took them to land, and Grace found her feet were unsteady as she stepped out with the assistance of a soldier and looked around her at the long stretch of beach.
They were finally, after twelve long days, standing on Algerian soil, and she couldn’t believe the commotion. There were people with dark skin milling back and forth, interspersed with American soldiers, who stood out with their light-colored hair and skin, and she noticed they were speaking different languages. She was passable at French, which she’d studied for a few years at school, but she certainly couldn’t keep up with the rapid pace at which some of the people were speaking.
‘This is insane!’ Grace hurried to keep up while she gawked around. ‘Did you ever think it would be like this?’
‘It even smells different,’ Eva said, surprising Grace as she touched her arm. ‘Look over there at the fish for sale. That poor man is spending all his time waving insects away.’
As Grace was looking, a booming voice carried on the wind to them, and everyone went silent.
‘Ladies, listen up! You’ll be traveling the rest of the way to Mateur in Tunisia by train. Please walk to the train station in an orderly line, and board when you are called. And try not to keel over in this heat!’
Grace felt her heart start to race again. A train ride? She hadn’t even considered that they might have to travel immediately again, but the thought excited her. She wanted to hang out the window and take in every sight, drink in every part of this exciting new country they were in so she could commit it to memory and tell her father when they returned home. Sweat dripped down the back of her neck now, but she’d long forgotten how uncomfortable she was.
‘I thought we’d be staying here for a while,’ April said. ‘Instead they’re shoving us straight into a train.’
‘Maybe it’s safer,’ Eva said.
‘I think they’re sending us even closer to danger, so I don’t think we’ll be safer,’ April answered.
They walked in silence to the train, and Grace grinned when she saw soldiers pass by as another train departed. ‘Goodbye!’ she called, blowing kisses and waving to the American men on their way. ‘Good luck!’
April laughed beside her, and even Eva was smiling as the soldiers called back and returned her kisses, some of them clutching their chests like she was breaking their hearts.
‘What?’ Grace asked. ‘What’s so funny?’
‘You,’ April said. ‘Something about you draws the boys in like bees to pollen.’
