007: Road Trip

Our free ride

There's a pair of UAZs waiting on us outside.  The major and his men pile into the lead one and tell us to follow them.  I tell Leo to drive and grab shotgun.  Eddie is stuck fidgeting in the back.  I turn in the seat.  "What's going on with you and what do I need to know."

"Nothing Cap.  I don't have a clue."

Leo looks at Eddie through the rearview.  "You know, you always do that thing."  Leo grabs his ear and then rubs his chin.  "That thing, when you lie."

"How the hell would you know when I lie."

"You owe me a hundred and fifty at cards.  I read you like book."

"So Specialist, just what are you not telling us."

Eddie fidgets more in the back seat.  "I, uh.  I used to.  Uh, I mean, uh.  I helped blow up a whole lot of Polish shit."

"Eddie, we've been fighting for years.  We've all 'blown up shit'.  What makes yours different."

He looks down.  "I was a nuclear weapons tech."  He looks back up at me.  "I helped with more than 5 strikes and emplaced charges.  No telling how many I've killed."

"Eddie," softly, "why have you been holding out on us."

"Better you not know."  He waves out the window taking in the whole world.  "I just drive trucks.  Now."

I nod my understanding.  "The major said I would accompany you when the Margraf spoke with you.  Tell the truth.  You did drive trucks when you were doing that, right."

"Oh, hell yeah."

006: Raciborz Intake 2

So we're waiting.  The Poles are calm and we're playing at being cool too.  We're not prisoners, we're not friends, we're in this vague in-between.  So, we're watching them, them us and all of us pretending everything is normal.  I hate the waiting.

Alphabit tries talking up the new guy, Lou.  He doesn't have much to say.  Did ask why Kat's in charge.  Alphabit has this WTF look on his face as he answers that she's the captain. 

Miller comes back with an escort and tells the three of us to follow him back to the Captain.  Great, Doc's standing solo guard and we're marching off.  There's an old admin building there.  Inside there's a short corridor leading to a large central hall with small doors all around.  We turn left and go into the first one.  It must have been some apparatchik's waiting room, peeling off-white paint, a battered desk for the Polish Major and some chairs for us.  Cap's sitting easy while Leo stands behind her doing his translating thing.  No guards.  As we sit, Lou nudges me and gives a nod at the inner office door.  Right, guards will be there.

The Major starts out with a repeat of Clippie's spiel.  Name, rank and serial number.  Then he starts with more detailed questions.  Alphabit looks at the Cap and she tells him to answer honestly.  He catalogs his skill sets, background, language ability and loyalties.  "Do you still consider yourself a memeber of the US armed forces?"  "Duh, yes!"

The 'bit's interview didn't have any surprises.  Lou, on the other hand, is a "skilled macrame artist and makes a mean pulled pork sandwich."  Leo looks like he wants to swallow his tongue as he translates that, shrugs, and then adds a bit, extemporaneously. 

The Major asks back, " Do you have any examples with you?"
"No, my collection is back in Mudhole, Texas."
"I'm sure it is a loss to the local art world."

Then he turns to me.  He runs through the same questions and perks up after I say I've been with a 5th Division since the war started.  He wants to walk thorugh my "career" and I look to Captain Kat again.  She gives me an encouraging nod and I'm off and lying.  Sure, I tell him where I remember us going and fighting as best I can... But what I was doing, "Logistics, I drove trucks."  Sure, someday I'll believe that.

And we're done.  The Major thanks us for our time and the information.  Accommodations have been arranged by the riverside he tells the captain, a unused warehouse.  There will not be a guard assigned, but there are regular patrols in the city.  He is going to speak with his superior this evening.  He'll contact us in the morning to see how we may be of assistance to one another.  Good day.

As we leave Lou let us know, "I'm insulted he didn't ask about my pulled pork sandwiches.  Polish cuisine sucks!"

And Doc and the truck are still there.  Hurrah!

                       ***
The warehouse has an intact roof and no vermin problems.  We drive the trucks right on in and close it up.  Lou gets told where he'll be in the watch schedule and we settle in. 

                        ***
They brought us supper; a large pot of mystery meat with veggies and two loafs of home-bake.  Not much split 6 ways, but it was hot.  Lou didn't bitch about it... much.

                     ***

Morning and Major Stranski drives up with a small guard in a pair of UAZ's.  I'm still rubbing the sleep from my eyes when the captain gets done talking and turns to me.  "Eddie, his boss wants to talk to you."