Their Fizz- Band of brothers

There Was No M

While the weather was still terrible, her boys were still fighting pretty much every day. They were exhausted and Gene, Spina and herself weren't much better off. Gene tried to make them take shifts going to the line and 2 staying at the aid station but Flo just always went to the line. She always said when Gene complained, "I know where my strengths are and I won't be able to do my job properly knowing that your in danger". Poor Gene couldn't really argue with that, so he let her do her job, mind you, he was rushed off his feet as well, man after man came in with all sorts of injuries or other ailments. Flo when the men were not in battle spent all her time in the aid station, treating the boys for trench foot, shell shock and bullet wounds. But some of the lads came to the hut for a chat, to talk about what they're struggling with and Flo was always ready with a cup of watery coffee or tea and a friendly ear to listen. What she didn't realise was this kindness was all that kept some of the men going, all the men knew she truly was the heart of Easy.

The men noticed their medics draining and running on pure adrenaline. In the field it looked like they could run up Currahee to the original Toccoa men, but in the aid station their movements were slower and they took more time to react in their sleep-deprived state. Yet all the men were sleep-deprived, with constant artillery barrages, battles and guard duty the men were only sleeping a couple of hours at most during the entire 24 hours of the day. Flo and Gene were faring slightly worse, obviously in battle they couldn't sleep but then there was the patients who needed round the clock care and then the evacuee's paperwork and making sure the men were taking care of themselves, well with all this to worry about Flo didn't even have time to write a letter to her family, let alone time to sleep. She and Gene would take it in turns in shifts when they could snatch a few minutes. Even when she did close her eyes and drift off, Flo kept seeing her friends injured or dead and hear the dreaded "MEDIC" call in her sleep and she would wake up clutching her medic bag ready to run to the man's aid.

She just sighed and got on with her job. Helping people was her job in this war and sending men home to their families was what she was going to do, not caring the personal cost. Except her boys didn't really accept this philosophy she had given herself and they made sure she at least ate once a day and drank enough to keep her going, but if they fussed she would get annoyed and snappy, so they kept it to a minimum to keep her in a somewhat good mood. One day Bill told her "Flo if we're worried about you we can't do our job properly". To which she replied "Bill, the same goes for me with you, I'm fine, I do not want special treatment because I'm a girl. I am simply doing the same job as Gene, yet I don't see you all fussing over him". Bill left it that, he couldn't argue with her logic.

Gene watched her with fascination, she had a runny nose and a hoarse voice but still carried on like there was nothing wrong. She was moving boxes and checking their stocks while talking to the men on the beds who were waiting to be moved back from the line. One afternoon she did Gene's job for him while he was sleeping for once and took the clipboard with the stocks lists to the CP, she was becoming slightly worried about the lack of medical supplies getting through to them due to the roadblocks, but she just had to make do and mend. 

She opened the door and noticed Winters sat at a desk with a typewriter rubbing his forehead, she quickly saluted as he nodded at her and she continued her way to the main office where she found a Col Dobie commanders talking to Sink, Nix, Strayer, and Heyliger. "The boats are set and ready to go, but we don't know where to put the men when we bring them over the river,they need medical attention really" Dobie was saying. As the rest of the officers had clueless looks on thier faces, Flo spoke up and said "Sir, if they need medical attention then me and doc roe would be happy to help, bring them to the aid station. How many men do you have?"

Dobie stuttered for a minute "Umm 149, thank you Pvt...?"

"Hilton Sir"

"Hilton, yes they've been hiding in German-occupied territories across the Rhine since the battle of Arnhem. You certain?" he studied her face "You don't look too clever," he said noticing her voice kept cutting out and sporadically returning and she kept wiping her nose on her sleeve.