The Heart's Shrapnel Read online

  He sends them a look that makes it clear they are to remain silent, to my amazement.

  “This base is separate from the actual army base that houses army personnel and their dependents,” he continues. “You are separate from the army itself. You’re here strictly as volunteers since we are currently understaffed. Any questions?”

  Private Jennings narrows his eyes while he looks around at us. Mandy is the first to raise her hand, and for some reason, I’m not surprised. I catch myself stepping back a hair.

  “Are we allowed to visit the actual army base homes?”

  “Good question. Fischer has asked if you can set foot on post down the road. The answer is yes, as you’ll be expected to go there from time to time to treat people who are sick or who receive an injury, but that will be the extent of your admission. Now, if that’s all, there are three vehicles that will take each group to your new quarters for the next few months. The US Army thanks you for your time and service. Wait here for the drivers to load your bags, and then you may get settled. May I suggest that you not worry about settling in too much today? You’ll need your rest. Thank you.” Private Jennings leaves in a sharp, black SUV.

  It’s surreal now that my feet are on foreign soil. But, I can do this. This venture is for me.

  Chapter Three

  Jane

  We pull up to our new home. It is rather small but not as small as they are on base. The officer unloads our things and pulls away, not saying anything to ease our overwhelmed minds.

  Mandy uses the key given to us to unlock the door. “Well, home sweet home,” she says as she uses her foot to shut the door behind us.

  All three of us glance about the room in unison. It’s bare with only a couch, one chair, and a television on a stand in the living room. As we move to the kitchen, Mandy heads down a hallway. The kitchen has the typical basic appliances and a table that seats four.

  Mandy comes from the hallway with a grin on her face. “We all have our own bedrooms. Thank the Lord,” she exclaims.

  “Oh, good,” the other girl responds. It occurs to me that I don’t know her first name.

  “We weren’t properly introduced. I’m Jane Summers.” I shake her hand.

  “Right. I’m Lily Johnson.” Her hands are dainty compared to mine. Fragile.

  Mandy embraces us in a group hug. “We are going to be the best of friends. I just know it.”

  Okay . . .

  When she lets go, I wander over to the table and find the brochure Private Jennings had mentioned earlier in his ‘pep’ talk. It gives us a rather extensive summary of all there is to do off and on base, where all the local shops are, and the work sites. Looks to be several places for workstations, all serving a certain purpose. The building we pick up our uniforms from is just a few blocks up, which reminds me we still have to get our gear.

  “I’m going to put some of my things away and head to the med building to get my uniform and supplies if you both would like to go with.”

  Mandy, of course, is the first to pipe up. “I’m so excited to see what we’ll be wearing. I hope it’s not too drab.” She frowns.

  Lily laughs. “Whatever it is, I’m sure you’ll look wonderful in it. I, on the other hand, leave much to the imagination.”

  I stare at Lily. She has that schoolgirl, nerd thing going on. She’s a tad scrawny, and her wired-framed glasses are too large for her face. But, it works. However, if she ever dolls herself up, she’d be cute.

  “I’d like to go with you if that’s all right,” Lily says.

  “Okay. Great.”

  “Look, I’m beat. Could you get me a uniform, size six, please?” Mandy goes into the bathroom and shuts the door.

  Lily glances at me, and I shrug.

  Walking down the short, narrow hall, I go into the only room left and set down my things. It’s small like the rest of the house, but it has sufficient space.

  Sitting on the bed, I lightly bounce up and down.

  Not too bad.

  I unpack my clothes and put them away. Just as I stow my case in the closet, there’s a knock on my door and I open it.

  Lily stands with her hands behind her back, smiling. “You ready?” she asks with childlike excitement.

  “Yes, just got done unpacking actually. Let’s go.”

  Since the shop is a few blocks from us, we decide to walk. The sky is turning a deeper shade of blue with the night sky to follow.

  “We need to hurry if we want to make it back before dark,” I suggest to Lily.

  She nods, making her ponytail sway from side to side.

  I’m pretty sure we’re safe here, but two young women out at night on their own is never a good idea. Not in today’s world.

  “There it is,” Lily points to a plain, rectangular building that says US Army Medical.

  “That was easy enough,” I remark as we walk up three wooden steps. Grabbing the handle, I try to turn the knob. “It’s locked.”

  Lily moves closer and tries the doorknob as I step aside. “You’re right. This isn’t good.”

  “Well, I’m sure they know a group of us came in today. Plus, the brochure said it would be open until nine . . . er . . . 2100.” I place my hands on my hip and look at the surrounding buildings. A smaller version of this one with the word “Office” over the door comes into view. I immediately perk up.

  “There.” I point.

  “Oh, Good.” Lily sighs her relief. “That would have been a disaster. If we show at work tomorrow without uniforms, we might be sent home.”

  She’s probably right. Private Jennings doesn’t seem like the type of person to mess around.

  “Where are the other girls? You think they came as soon as they dumped their things off?”

  “Probably. But I think we’ll be fine.”

  We walk up a few steps, and I peer into the window through the blinds, squinting to get a better view. “Oh, there’s a lamp on.”

  “There is?” she asks and peers in.

  If they have a night watch, we will look like a bunch of burglars. But, to be honest, I’m more concerned about being prepared for my first day tomorrow.

  I move around Lily and knock three times on the once red door, now sun bleached and peeling. I wait for a response.

  “It’s open,” shouts a voice on the other side.

  I steal a look over at Lily, who is nervously biting her nails. We open the door and enter.

  “Yes, can I help you, ladies?” Behind a desk is a portly woman in her late fifties. She looks friendly enough.

  When Lily doesn’t speak, I do, “Yes, we’re the new volunteers. We were told to get our supplies and uniforms for work tomorrow.”

  The lady gets up and flips on the lights, brightening the whole building. Once she sits at her desk again, she looks us over before grabbing a thick handbook with a worn cover curling around the edges from years of use. She flips to the page she wants and asks us for our names. Once we give them, she checks our names off.

  “Okay. I will make your name badges with your titles. Fill out this piece of paper and give it back to me.”

  She hands both of us a form.

  I remember Mandy needs her things, too. “Ma’am, there’s another woman living with us. She asked for us to check her in.”

  She eyes me with a raised brow over the rim of her reading glasses. “I see. And, did she expect you to get all of her things, too?”

  Shoot! I don’t know what to say. I swallow the lump in my throat.

  “She’s just tired and asked if we could get it for her.” I’m so nervous that I bite my lip hard enough to draw blood, leaving a metallic taste in my mouth.

  “Her name and house number please.” The woman steadies her pen while waiting for my response.

  Looking over at Lily, I find she’s not going to give me the courage I need, and so I turn back to the lady.

  “Mandy Fischer, house number three.” My voice trembles slightly, giving away how nervous I am.

  She loo
ks up. “Thank you. Have a seat over there and fill out the form. Bring it back when you’re finished.”

  After she dismisses us, she makes a phone call, probably Mandy or whomever is in charge of all of us. God, I hope I didn’t just get her in trouble. Of course, it’s not really me who did, but still.

  Lily keeps glancing at the woman.

  By the time we finish, she is off the phone. We walk back to her desk and wait while she steps in the back to make our badge cards. She returns about five minutes later.

  “These should be on your person at all times. They identify who you are, what you do, and gets you into certain buildings like the med building, for instance. Just place it up like this” —she raises the badge to demonstrate— “and it should scan. Here is Mandy’s badge as well,” she says, giving me a disapproving look.

  So much for thinking she’s nice. Not that she’s terrible. I just have a feeling she’s being courteous since it’s our first day. I doubt she’ll be as pleasant the next time.

  I can’t get out of the office fast enough, and I wonder if Lily feels the same way. We walk faster on the way back than we did coming here.

  Once we’re back at the medical building, we both try our badges, including Mandy’s, to see if they work just to be sure. Once we see they do, we enter the building for our things. It’s nothing special, but it has impeccable organization.

  “Hello, may I help you?”

  A young blond woman around our age walks over to us while carrying a box of gauze.

  Lily and I show her our badges, and the young lady examines them.

  She smiles from ear to ear. “Oh, awesome. You’re the new nurses sent in to help?” Her bubbly personality is night and day to the last woman.

  “Yeah, it’s just temporary for a couple of months—however long they need us,” I add.

  She sets the box down on the floor and motions for us to follow her to a row of labeled crates. “Well, glad to have you. My name is Sheila, by the way. These crates are full with the basics like stethoscopes, gauze, thermometers, sterile pads, and so one. Anything more serious in nature needs to be checked out by me or whoever is on duty. But we should have plenty of everything where you work.”

  “Thanks. And our uniforms?” I ask.

  “Oh, yes. Do you know your sizes? If not, I can measure.”

  “I’m a zero to a two. It just depends,” Lily says. Sheila scurries over to a metal cabinet and opens it revealing neat rows of purple. She takes two out for Lily to try on and turns to me.

  “And you’re a four, I’m guessing. They are supposed to be true to size.”

  “Yes, thank you.” I don’t even bother trying on mine. I’m too tired and want just to go back to the house and sleep. I have no idea what tomorrow will bring. “They look a little different than I thought they would.” I thought they would be brown, or green, with pants and a button up shirt. However, that is not the case. These are plumb purple scrubs. Nothing fancy about them except they cinch at the waist.

  “Oh, yes. But, this is to separate you from the actual army nurses. They will be in brown. These will let others know that you’re temp recruits.”

  Isn’t that the reason we wear these badges?

  “Okay. They’re nice,” I respond.

  “I find them to be better form fitting than the others. The brown ones look horrible on everyone, but you didn’t hear that from me.” She winks. “You’re a surgeon?” She takes my newly printed badge and studies it.

  “Well, I . . .”

  “No way. Are you really? How cool is that?” Lily’s excitement is all over her face.

  I laugh awkwardly. “Thank you.”

  “They are in desperate need of you, then,” Sheila responds.

  Chapter Four

  Jane

  My alarm blares into the silence, but I am already awake. I don’t know why I’m so nervous. It’s not like I’m going to be alone in all of this.

  I get up and check if the shower is available. The door is cracked open, so I walk in.

  “Oh, jeez! I’m so sorry.”

  Mandy is standing in front of the mirror, combing her hair—completely naked. She only smirks. “Well, don’t act like you’ve never seen a woman’s body before. We’re all women in this house, and since it is small with only one bathroom, you’ll have to get used to it.”

  “Okay,” I say to myself as I go inside. I’m not all that ashamed of another woman seeing my body, but it’s not something I relish in. But, right now isn’t the best time.

  I quickly start undressing, wanting to make it into the shower before she sees me. As I remove my night clothes, Mandy starts talking as she leans into the mirror applying her mascara. Her mouth opens in the way it does when us women do that.

  “You think there’ll be hot guys there today?”

  I huff. “Well, if there is, they’ll probably be more concerned about whatever’s ailing them.”

  “Honey, have you been around men . . . like, at all?” She gestures with her mascara wand.

  I playfully roll my eyes as I step into the shower, wanting to get out of sight.

  “Dang, Miss Hot-Bod!”

  Her compliment catches me off guard, and I almost fall face first into the tub. Shoot! I’m too late. Thankfully, I’m able to get my bearings and shut the curtain while turning the water on. I lean against the cool tiled wall.

  Did she notice?

  “Now I’m going to chew on celery sticks the whole time we’re here,” She teases.

  I sigh in relief. That was a close call.

  “Don’t be ridiculous. You look great,” I tell her while I frantically wash my hair. I’m not sure if Lily has showered yet or if the hot water is limited.

  “Thanks, girl. You know, I saw our outfits and let me just say I’m disappointed. Where’s the class in this system anymore?”

  “Yes, they’re not what I expected either. What time is it?”

  “One sec. Let me check. We should get a clock in here.” She leaves the bathroom and comes in just moments later. “6:30. We need to hurry.”

  I quickly step out and dry off and put on my underwear. My thoughts stray to Lily again.

  “Is Lily up?”

  Mandy leaves the bathroom again, returns with her uniform and puts it on.

  “Yeah, she’s already ready. She’s out on the couch, reading.”

  “Okay, good.” I put myself together as fast as I can, foregoing makeup so I have time to blow dry my hair. It’s wavy, so I don’t have to do much to it.

  I grab my uniform and frantically work at tying my shoes, but Mandy is staring at me with an inquisitive look.

  Oh no. She saw the bruises.

  I wait for her to say something, but she quickly turns away. Her happy-go-lucky mood is gone.

  There’s no time for me to fret about it. It’s nearly time to be out front.

  Pulling up my hair in a ponytail, I head into the living room so we can finish gathering our things and make it outside.

  We make it with just a minute to spare. Thank God. All that hurrying around gave me whiplash.

  One by one, our rides enter into the cul-de-sac and line up in front of our homes–one vehicle per two houses.

  Our ride comes to a halt, and a gentleman steps out to greet us. He’s short but extremely buff. Too buff. I wonder where Private Jennings is.

  “Mornin’ ladies.”

  “Good morning,” we all respond.

  “I’m Private Nole. I trust you slept well. Today shouldn’t be all that busy. The nurses at the hospital will be there to show you the ropes. The bustle of this hospital is nothing you aren’t already used to, just a different area. Now, when I call your name, say ‘I.’”

  We get through the head count, and six of us pile in with our medic bags on our laps to save room.

  The hospital is only ten minutes away. As soon as we arrive, we are ushered into the building where nurses are already taking care of patients. We wait for our instructions.

 
“Okay, so you’re the recruits we were expecting, yes?” A female nurse asks.

  “Yes,” I answer for all of us.

  “Good. Where are my RN’s?” The nurse asks. Mandy, Lily, and the rest of the group raise their hands. “Okay, that was easy enough. I want you all to go to any nurse and station yourself with her or him for the rest of the day. This is your training day. Tomorrow, you are on your own, so pay attention. Got it, ladies?”

  Wow! Only one day to get acclimated with the hospital. They weren’t kidding when they said they were in desperate need.

  Mandy leans in and whispers, “Jeez, what a wench. Anyway, where do you think those other vehicles were taking everyone from earlier? There were like—tons of them.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe to work at the surrounding businesses on base.” There’s got to be quite a few local businesses on and off the post, and someone has to run them. Mandy accepts my answer and heads off to find another nurse to shadow for the day.

  “And that leaves you, Summers. A surgeon,” she reads off my badge.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “That’s wonderful. Follow me. You will need to be with another Surgeon. Just for today.” She leads me down the hall off to the right into a much larger room. There’s already teams of professionals performing surgeries. I stand, watching in fascination. I live for this work. Being a surgeon, I have loads of training. But, being around another surgical practitioner will be nice.

  “Summers, this is Dr. Green. You’ll be shadowing him for today to see how things run around here,” the nurse says before leaving.

  Dr. Green sticks out his hand to shake mine. “As was mentioned, I’m Dr. Edmond Green. Glad to have you with us. We are embarrassingly understaffed.”

  I smile politely while taking in his appearance. He’s a rather stout man who’s balding but is trying to conceal it with a comb-over. His glasses give him a more comical look, but friendly—trustworthy even.

  “Pleasure to meet you. I’m Jane Summers.”

  “Wonderful. Let’s get to business, shall we?” he says, ignoring me.

  “Ms. Summers. As was mentioned, I’m sure, we are highly understaffed. So, after today, you will be on your own.”