Page 29 of Cry Havoc
“Wo haben Sie Deutsch gelernt?” Where did you learn German?Backhaus asked.
“Von meiner Mutter. Sie war Lehrerin. Sie unterrichtete Deutsch. Ihre Familie hatte deutsche Verbindungen,”Tom replied.From my mother. She was a schoolteacher. She taught German. Her family had German ties.
Tom switched to French.
“J’ai appris le français auprès de mon père.” I learned French from my father.
“Était-il français?”the colonel said, seamlessly switching to French.Was he French?
“Non. Mon père était ici vers la fin de la guerre, combattant avec le Viet Minh contre les Japonais.” No. My father was here near the end of the war, fighting with the Viet Minh against the Japanese.
Tom hoped his language skills and the fact that his father and Colonel Backhaus had fought in the same war would buy them some favor in their current predicament.
“Welche anderen Sprachen sprechen Sie?” What other languages do you speak?Backhaus asked, switching back to German.
“Die Navy schickte mich vor meinem ersten Einsatz zum DLI für Vietnamesisch.” The Navy sent me to DLI for Vietnamese before my first deployment.
The CO moved to Vietnamese.
“Ngu?i Vi?t c?a b?n th?nào?” How is your Vietnamese?
Tom stumbled a bit.
“Không t?t b?ng ti?ng Pháp và ti?ng Ð?c c?a tôi.” Not as good as my French and German.
“Was hat dein Vater im Krieg gemacht?” What did your father do in the war?Backhaus asked in German.
“Bewaffnete Widerstandskämpfer.” He armed Resistance fighters.
That struck a chord with the colonel.
“Ich nehme an, Sie sprechen kein Finnisch.” I don’t suppose you speak Finnish.
“Leider nicht.” Unfortunately not.
Tom and Quinn remained at attention as the colonel considered his options.
“The usual $100 and five days of R&R in Thailand is denied. As is the Seiko for your ’Yard. Instead, you will escort the prisoner to CCN,” he said, referring to their higher headquarters, Command and Control North in Da Nang. “And take Amiuh with you. He’s in trouble too. Drop the prisoner and his bag with the interrogators. Stand by in case you are needed. Your R&R is now at FOB 4 in Da Nang.”
“Yes, sir,” Quinn said, responding for them both.
Backhaus relit his pipe and took another draw.
“I hear they call you the Odd Couple.”
Tom and Quinn exchanged looks.
“If you get a chance, see the movie in Da Nang. It’s funny,” he said without smiling.
Tom and Quinn did not quite know how to respond.
“I’ll adjust the report to reflect your prisoner snatch mission was approved by me ahead of time.”
“Thank you, sir,” they both said in unison.
“And gentlemen, stay out of trouble. Get back here in one piece. We have a war to fight.”
“Yes, sir.”
