For the Love of War

Chapter 6: James Henry

They took her. My beautiful nurse was taken by the Germans.

Though my comrades sat around me, I felt alone. I hadn't noticed how my Little Nurse had taken up so much of my time during the past weeks. I spent more time with her than I did with my brothers. At first, I detested having to be the translator, but as I began to learn more about her, I realized she was perfect. 

She was sweet, kind, and always had a smile on her face, even when she didn't understand what was going on. And her face when she saw me. It would light up like a lantern in the dark. She was always so beautiful, even when she was covered in blood and guts. She never complained. She loved helping others.

Now I was going to help her. 

"Corporal, you haven't eaten." One of my men said.

"You can eat it for all I care. I'm not hungry." I pushed the tray of slop towards the men and they fought over who would get seconds.

My little nurse would have done the same thing. She loved giving to others. She hated the slop. Said it had no flavor. It reminded me of when she gave me that jerky. She was so proud to have given me something, even as little as jerky. She was truly something. 

I stood up and returned to the medical ward. I saw many nurses, but mine hadn't returned. I would've been less concerned if she was lost, for I knew she would eventually find her way back. I could only pray she was close to the woods now. 

I went by her station. Her bag was still there. I took it off it's hook and walked back to my barracks. I dumped the contents on my bed and began to look through them. 

It mostly contained pictures. I knew she was from East Berlin, but I knew little else about her. One of her pictures showed her with her brother, and what appeared to be her parents. Her father had a long white beard and had a pipe while her mother had dark hair swept into a tight bun. It was obviously a few years old, as Adeline looked to be twelve. I had forgotten how young she was. She was seven years my minor. She was only seventeen, forced to grow up too quickly in this God-forsaken war. 

The next picture was a slightly older Adeline next to another girl. They were both wearing school uniforms and smiling, eyes narrowed as they looked towards the camera. She looked so beautiful, even with her sun-blinding smile.

The last picture was of her with a dog, perhaps a family pet. She was laying on the lawn with the puppy next to her. She was so beautiful that I smiled at her. She had her hair long and unpinned, and was enjoying the day off. It was beautiful. 

The last item was a tiny bottle of what appeared to be perfume. I sprayed it and took a careful sniff. It smelled exactly like my little nurse. I sprayed it on my pillow and quickly put everything in her bag which I put under my mattress.

I took a deep inhale of her scent on my pillow.

Home.

-----

"Little Nurse!" I called out in German. Getting permission from my commander, I had decided to take two men with me to look for Adeline. We had returned to the scene of the battle to look for her.

"Ady!" I cried out. No reply. I kicked a nearby tree. Good, I needed to feel pain. It was the only thing I could feel.

"Wait, what is that?" One of my men asked, pointing to a lower branch of the tree I had just kicked.

"What?" The other  asked.

"That! Look!" He was pointing to a red hair ribbon. More precisely, Adeline's hair ribbon. She used it to tie up her hair in particularly messy alterations.

"Little Nurse!" I yelled. I had untied her hair ribbon and clutched it tight to my chest. Adeline was here. My little nurse had been here. 

"I don't think she's still here. Maybe we should head back."

"No. I left her last night. I'm not doing it again." I said, tucking the ribbon into the pocket above my heart.

"Look, man. I don't know what's going on between you two, but at the end of the day, she's still German." One of my guys said.

I pinned him to a tree and tried not to kill him.

"Who do you think you are, disrespecting her like that, especially after what she did for you! If it wasn't for her, you'd be dead right now. So you wouldn't even return the favor for her?" I said, poking him in the chest till the point of where it hurt.

"No, that's not what I meant. Adeline is--"

"You keep her name out of your dirty mouth. Don't you dare disrespect her more than you already have!" I said, shoving him away.

"That's not what I meant, Sir. Please listen. We love Adeline. We all respect her. She's done so much for us in the short weeks that she's been here. And I know the two of you have something going on, good for you. But what happens at the end of the war? Is she coming back to the states? The people will tear her apart. Are you staying here? What is the end motive?" He asked.

"I don't know. I can find out when I find Ady and we can discuss." I said, stalking off. 

Oh Little Nurse, where are you?