Jason’s story with life after being shot down in Germany continued.
It was peaceful in the German countryside except for the sounds of the Messerschmitt’s attacking the formations of B-17 bombers a few miles away.
In a large field of a small farm that contained numerous huge boulders, ten cows grazed.
The Sweet Bird glided down to the field, with two engines out, landing gear down.
It headed toward the trees at the other end of the field.
The Cows continued to graze in place, unaware of the big airplane that was headed in their direction.
The Sweet Bird scrapped the tops of the trees while it descended to the field.
The wheels of the Sweet Bird touched down in the field.
The Cows finally scatter out of the way.
The Sweet Bird rolled down the field then the right landing gear smacked into a rock, and it snapped off. The right-wing scrapped the ground.
The nose of the Sweet Bird plowed into the field.
The nose smashed into another large rock, and the nose section cracked open while the Sweet Bird flipped over and landed in the field with a loud bang.
The dust soon settled, and the field got quiet again.
There were a small farmhouse and barn at the other end of the field.
Lucas, a forty-five-year-old German farmer, rushed out of his barn after he heard the sounds of the Sweet Bird crashing in his field.
He looked in the direction of his field.
He got furious at the sight of an American bomber that crashed on his land. He got even more enraged when he couldn’t see his cows in the field and thought they ran away.
He rushed back inside his barn.
At the Sweet Bird, Jason, Kirby, and Andy dragged Gerard out of the wreckage.
They dragged him fifty feet away from the wreckage and lay him on the ground.
Jason knelt by Gerard and felt for a pulse on his neck. He looked devastated while he looked back at Andy and Kirby. “He’s gone.”
From the Sweet Bird, Don and Jerome dragged Mark out of the wreckage.
They dragged him over to Jason, Andy, and Kirby.
They placed Mark next to Gerard. “He’s dead,” Don told Jason.
Jason and Andy looked back at the Sweet Bird and saw Robert and Warren drag Mike out of the fuselage.
They dragged Mike over to the other crew members.
They placed Mike next to Mark.
“He’s a goner,” Robert told Jason.
Jason, Andy, Kirby, Robert, Warren, Jerome, and Don all looked down at their three dead crewmates. They all took a few minutes to grieve over the loss of their fellow friends.
“Let’s bury them and leave before the Krauts show up,” Jason told everybody.
Lucas suddenly appeared with a pitchfork in his hand, and he was furious. “You stinking Americans!” he cursed out in German behind their backs.
Jason, Andy, Kirby, Robert, Warren, Jerome, and Don all turned around and saw Lucas with the pitchfork in his hand. They knew this German was pissed.
Lucas quickly stabbed his pitchfork deep into Andy’s chest.
Andy’s eyes widened in shock, never expecting to be stabbed with a pitchfork during the war, and he collapsed to the ground.
Jason, Kirby, Robert, Warren, Jerome, and Don all whipped out their pistols and aimed them at Lucas.
By the time Lucas realized he had made a mistake by stabbing Andy, it was too late. Jason fired off a shot, and the bullet hit Lucas in his forehead. Lucas flew backward and landed on the ground dead.
Jason and everybody rushed over to Andy.
Andy looked up at Jason, and he wheezed, and blood oozed out of his mouth.
Jason held Andy’s hand, as he could sense he wouldn’t pull through.
Andy wheezed and coughed up more blood.
Kirby, Robert, Don, Jerome, and Warren watched over the field for any other German civilians that might want to kill them.
“I, I, I don’t know if I can be your partner now,” Andy strained to tell Jason.
“I’m so sorry for the way I acted when I thought I lost Cindy,” Jason said with a remorseful tone about his behavior.
“That’s okay,” Andy replied then he wheezed and coughed up some more blood.
“I’m cold. Really cold,” Andy said then he wheezed.
“I know,” Jason replied.
Andy’s body trembled a little then he exhaled his last breath, and there was a blank stare in his eyes.
Andy’s hand went limp in Jason’s grip.
Jason’s eyes well up at the sight of his dead friend in front of him.
Kirby, Warren, and Robert continued to look the field over for any more threats.
“There’s a storm coming,” Warren said when he saw some black clouds heading in their direction.
“There’s a farmhouse over there. We can hide out there for the night,” Kirby added when he spotted the house.
Jason stood up and looked at the approaching storm and farmhouse.
“Okay, let’s stay at the house and wait out the storm,” Jason told everybody. He looked at Warren and Robert. “Go back to the plane, destroy the bombsight and get the maps,” Jason ordered.
“You got it,” Warren replied.
Warren and Robert dashed off to the Sweet Bird.
After Warren and Robert came back from the Sweet Bird with the maps and confirmation that they destroyed the bombsight, they all headed over to the farmhouse.
Jason, Kirby, Jerome, Robert, Warren, Don all cautiously walked to the front door of the farmhouse.
They had their pistols ready for any encountered trouble.
“Ready?” Jason quietly whispered to everybody who nodded in agreement.
Jason slowly opened the front door, and they all quietly entered the house with pistols ready.
Jason and everybody quietly stepped into the living room where nobody was visible.
They cautiously walked through the room and entered the kitchen where nobody was visible.
“Do you think that farmer lived alone?” Jerome quietly whispered to everybody.
“That’s possible,” Don whispered back.
“Let’s check the bedrooms,” Jason whispered to his men.
They all quietly walked out of the kitchen and headed down the hallway where it was also quiet.
They peeked into a bedroom where nobody was visible. It was a bedroom for a girl, so they figured someone was hiding in the house.
“Check out that room,” Jason whispered to Robert and Warren.
Robert and Warren quietly entered the bedroom and checked the closed and under the bed.
They walked back into the hallway.
“Nothing,” Robert whispered to Jason.
They all quietly walked farther down the hallway.
They peeked into another bedroom that looked like a boy’s room.
Jason motioned to Jerome and Don to check out the room.
Jerome and Don quietly entered the bedroom and checked under the bed and the closet.
They walked back to the hallway.
“Nothing,” Don whispered to Jason.
They peeked into another bedroom that looked like an adults room where nobody was visible.
“I don’t think anybody’s home,” Warren whispered out to everybody.
They turned around to walk back down the hallway when a whimper was heard coming from that bedroom.
Jason motioned for everybody to be quiet while they went to investigate the bedroom.
They walked around the bed and didn’t see anybody.
Jason peeked under the bed with his pistol and saw Ingrid, the forty-five-year-old wife of Lucas and Carla, the ten-year-old daughter shivering in fear.
Jason stood up and looked at Kirby. “Tell them to get out from under the bed,” Jason told Kirby.
“Get out from under the bed,” Kirby said in German.
Ingrid and Carla slowly crawled out from under the bed, scared to death and were on the verge of crying.
“Tell them they won’t be harmed. I promise,” Jason told Kirby.
“We promise we won’t harm you,” Kirby told Ingrid and Carla in German.
Ingrid’s eyes welled up, and she held Carla tight against her body, as they both were still scared to death of the American soldiers.
“Ask them where her other child is?” Jason told Kirby.
“Where’ the other child?” Kirby asked Ingrid in German.
Ingrid looked scared while she glanced at Kirby. “Wilhelm is at his grandmother’s home,” Ingrid lied to Kirby.
“She said he’s at the grandmother’s,” Kirby told Jason.
“Scour this house for another child. Check the basement if they have one and then check the attic,” Jason ordered Robert, Warren, Don, and Jerome.
“In work,” Warren replied.
Robert, Warren, Don, and Jerome rushed out of the bedroom and started their search of the house for another child.
“Tell her we’re hungry and ask if she could please get us some food,” Jason told Kirby.
“We’re hungry, so could you please get us some food?” Kirby asked Ingrid in German.
“Yah,” Ingrid replied while she wiped away some tears.
Jason and Kirby escorted Ingrid and Carla out of their bedroom.
Jason and Kirby escorted Ingrid and Carla into the kitchen.
While Robert, Jerome, Warren, and Don searched the entire house for another child, Ingrid started making a meal for the Americans.
Thirty minutes later, Ingrid and Carla were quiet and scared while they made a big bowl of Eintopf, a bean soup, for Jason and the other guys.
Robert, Jerome, Don, and Warren searched every nook and cranny of the house and didn’t find another child. Jason believed Ingrid’s story was correct, and the child was at the grandmother’s house.
Ingrid and Carla sat cowered in one corner of her kitchen while they watched the American’s eat the soup.
“Are they going to kill us?” Carla whispered to Ingrid as she was scared to death.
Ingrid looked at the Americans, and she feared the worse. “I don’t believe they will,” Ingrid whispered back to Carla.
Ingrid and Carla continued to stay cowered in the corner of the kitchen while Jason and his crew finished the soup.
After Kirby ate his soup, he searched the house for any weapons that Lucas might have owned. He found a shotgun with some shells, and Jason recommended that they take it with them.
An hour had passed, the storm was over, and Jason and his crew rested after their meal.
Jason walked to Ingrid’s bedroom window and peeked out the curtains. From the windows, it appeared to be quiet out in the field by the Sweet Bird.
He walked out of the bedroom and headed back to the kitchen.
“Warren, Robert, Jerome, and Don, go find some shovels and bury those guys out there including the farmer,” Jason told them.
Warren, Robert, Jerome, and Don walked out the kitchen door and headed to the barn.
Jason and Kirby escorted Ingrid and Carla into her bedroom.
Kirby, with Lucas’ shotgun, kept an eye on Ingrid and Carla while Jason peeked out the bedroom window.
From the bedroom window, Jason saw Robert, Jerome, Don, and Warren walk to his dead crewmembers with shovels in their hands.
Jason moved away from the window and glanced over at Ingrid and Carla who sat on the bed, still scared to death. He felt so bad about forcing his way into their home. But a war going on and they needed to survive.
Kirby watched Ingrid and Carla while Jason studied his maps to determine their escape plans.
The rest of the Sweet Bird crew members were still outside digging graves.
Thirty minutes later, Jason stood outside the farmhouse and looked at the sun while it dropped below the horizon.
Jason went back inside the house and back into the bedroom.
Twenty minutes later, Warren entered the bedroom and saw Jason while he leaned against the wall with an eye on Ingrid and Carla, who were still on the bed.
“We got them all buried including that farmer,” Warren told Jason.
“Thanks,” Jason replied, then looked at Ingrid and Carla. “Take Robert, Don, and Jerome and get some food out of the kitchen. Don’t take it all, just enough for a few days,” Jason said.
“Got it,” Warren said then walked out of the bedroom and headed down the hallway.
Jason and Kirby stayed in the bedroom with Ingrid and Carla.
Ten minutes later, Warren walked back into the bedroom. “We have enough food and supplies. We’re ready to leave,” Warren told Jason.
“Good, we’ll meet you in the living room,” Jason replied.
Warren looked at Ingrid and Carla. “Should we kill them?”
“No way!” Jason replied while he looked at Ingrid and Carla. “Go find some rope,” he told Warren.
“Okay,” Warren replied, then rushed out of the bedroom.
“What are you going to do,” Kirby asked Jason.
“Tie them up but not too tight so they can get out of the rope after we’re gone,” Jason replied.
“Sounds like a good idea. I don’t believe they’re a threat,” Kirby replied.
Warren returned to the bedroom with some rope.
“Here you go Jay Jay,” Warren said while he handed Jason the rope.
Ingrid and Carla looked scared of the rope, and Ingrid’s eyes welled up, thinking the Americans were going to kill them.
“Kirby, tell them that I’m not going to hurt them. I’m only going to tie them up,” Jason said.
“We’re not going to hurt you. We’re going to tie you up,” Kirby told Ingrid and Carla in German.
Ingrid and Carla still looked scared while they huddled together on the bed.
Jason walked over to the bed with the rope. He loosely tied Ingrid and Carla’s hands behind their back.
“Tell them we’re leaving and I’m sorry about the death of her husband. He didn’t leave me any other option since he killed my friend,” Jason told Kirby.
“We’re leaving and sorry about your husband. He shouldn’t have killed our friend,” Kirby told Ingrid in German.
Ingrid and Carla sobbed over being reminded that Lucas was dead.
Jason and Kirby, with Lucas’ shotgun, walked out of the bedroom while Ingrid and Carla still continued sob.
Jason and Kirby walked into the living room where Warren, Robert, Jerome, and Don waited with the supplies they raided from the kitchen.
“Where we going, Jay Jay?” Robert asked.
“I think we should head west to Belgium and hopefully we can find some of their resistance fighters who can help get us back to England,” Jason replied to his men.
“Sounds like a good plan,” Jerome replied.
“Let’s move out,” Jason told his men.
They all walked to the front door and stepped outside.
Jason and his men stood by the side of the farmhouse. “Let’s head west and hopefully find Belgium,” Jason told his men while he pointed in the direction where he saw the sunset.
Jason and everybody walked toward some nearby woods.
“Halt!” a German male voice yelled out from the front of the house.
Jason and his men stopped in their tracks ten feet from the woods, and they suddenly realized they were caught.
Jason and his men turned around and saw fifteen German Infantry soldiers with rifles aimed at them.
“Drop your weapons,” the German officer yelled at Jason and everybody.
Jason and everybody else dropped their pistols on the ground. Kirby also dropped Lucas’ shotgun down on the ground.
The other fifteen German soldiers rushed over and circled Jason and his crew.
“Come!” the German officer yelled at Jason and his men and motioned with his Luger pistol.
The German soldiers marched Jason and his crew over to a waiting truck that was located one hundred feet away by the road.
While Jason and his crew members were marched to the truck, he saw Wilhelm, a thirteen-year-old blonde German boy standing with Rudolph, a fifty-six-year-old farmer, while they stood by a car. He realized that Wilhelm was Lucas’ son and Ingrid sent him over to Rudolph’s house so he can contact the German Infantry at the nearby base.
Jason figured the Germans would take them out into the woods and shot them. All he could think about was not marrying Cindy and having a long life with her while they were marched away from the farmhouse.