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his heavy body was cold with much sweat.
He was standing thus when the helicopter appeared. It had lumbered in from
the scow, dodging ground fire and flying so low that a revolver bullet could
have destroyed it. Smack in the middle of the rice field it landed and Mike
Forney got out. He wore his green top hat, a new Baron von Richthofen scarf of
Japanese silk and a carbine. Behind him stumbled sad-faced Nestor Gamidge,
also with a carbine. Leaving Gamidge at the copter, Forney ran across the rice
field shouting, Relax, Harry! Everything s under control.
Brubaker shouted, Better dodge and duck.
Why, is there a war goin on?
Look! He pointed toward the trees and as he did so a volley of machine gun
fire spattered the helicopter. Gamidge fell to the ground but rolled over
several times and indicated that he was all right, but above his head the
helicopter burst into flames.
Forney jumped into the ditch and turned back to watch the fire in silence. No
other copter would come onto this field. With flames of noon in their eyes the
two men in the ditch looked at each other, unable to speak. Then slowly Mike
pulled his right foot up.
Harry, he asked. Is this what I think it is?
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Yep.
Scornfully he said, You sure picked a wonderful place to fight a war. Then
he shrugged his shoulders and growled, We might as well get Nestor in here.
Three of us can stand those apes off for days.
He hefted his carbine nonchalantly and started across the rice field to
convoy Gamidge but when the sallow-faced Kentuckian stood up, communist
bullets choppedhim in the chest and he fell. Mike, still wearing his green
hat, blasted the line of trees in pathetic fury, for he must have known his
carbine could not carry so far. Then he ran forward to where Nestor lay but
soon he crawled back to the stinking ditch and tried not to look at Harry.
Is he dead?
Yep.
In silence the two men tried to build protection for their faces, but when
they reached into the ditch for stones, an evil smell arose, so that Forney
stared back at the ditch and muttered, I could have picked a better ... Then
he said bitterly, They were goin to give Nestor a medal.
Why d you bring the copter in here, Mike?
I take care of my men, sir.
How is it aboard the scow? Brubaker phrased the question so as to imply
that Forney would be returning there when this day was over.
It s fair, but carrier duty spoils you.
I liked theSavo , Brubaker said, and when referring to himself he used the
completed tense, surrendering hope.
Forney caught this and said, You know what kills me right now?Thinking of
Kimiko going to bed with that ape from theEssex .
That would be tough, Brubaker agreed.
The two men looked up at the F4U s and Forney asked, How much longer will
they be able to stay?
Not long, Harry replied.
Well, we got nothin to worry about. The jets ll be back.
Harry said, This morning I had a chance to watch jets in action. They re
terrific.
Look at those apes, Mike said, pointing to where communists were starting
to move in. From time to time accurate rifle fire pinked the top of the mound
and Brubaker thought ruefully of people back in Denver who visualized
communists as peasants with pitchforks who overran positions in mass attacks.
Those guys know what they re doing, he said.
But they don t know what they re gonna meet! Mike laughed. Then he suddenly
looked at Harry and said, Why didn t you tell me you didn t have a carbine.
And before Brubaker could stop him, he dashed across the rice field, grabbed
Nestor Gamidge s carbine and stripped the dead man of ammunition. Two F4U s,
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seeing what Mike was doing, roared low and held the communists off while the
Irishman dodged and ducked his way back to the ditch.
Boy, now they ll know something hit em! he cried as he jammed the weapon
into Harry s hands.
Realization that Mike intended to battle it out here made Harry shiver and he
asked, You think there s any chance they d allow us to surrender?
Those apes? Mike asked.
The two Americans piled the last rocks before their faces and Harry asked,
Why do you hate them so much?
Simple. One Sunday morning in the cathedral I heard thecardinal explain it
all, Mike said. A bullet zinged into the mud behind them and Mike grabbed
Brubaker s arm. You understand, sir, I came out here to save you. I don t
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