January Dawn (7 page)

Teague placed several painful punches into my side before rolling me off of him. He stood, took a step toward me but got cut off by the sharp sound of blank shot discharged from Alex’s weapon.

“Don’t move, Teague,” Alex said, blue smoke listlessly drizzling from the yellow muzzle break of his rifle.

“You think you can scare me with a couple of blanks?” Teague took another step toward me. Alex fired three more shots.

Teague stopped in his tracks and didn’t say a word. He stood there glaring at me with his shadowy eyes. He had blood on his lips. In the midst of the tussle, the two other men ran off into the woods, but a third materialized from the shadows and approached us, the bright white beam of a flashlight in hand.

“What do we have going on here?” It was Drill Sergeant Quinn.

“Drill Sergeant, we just came upon Corporal Teague sexually assaulting Private Carrigan,” Alex said, still pointing the gun at Teague.

Carrigan was on the ground with her pants hallway pulled down to her ankles. She was semi-conscious and mumbling something under her breath.

“Is that so?”

“Yes, Drill Sergeant. It was him and a few others. I saw two of them run off that way.”

I used my sleeve to wipe the blood from underneath Carrigan’s nose and I signaled for Shannon to help me pull her pants back up. After sprinkling a little water from my canteen on her face she regained full consciousness. She looked up at me, but only saw my shadowy outline. She immediately started fighting back, pushing the palms of her hands against my chest while trying to crawl backwards away from me.

“Leah, it’s me. Stop. It’s Tennpenny. You’re okay now.”

She recognized my voice and threw her arms around my neck. I held her close as she sobbed uncontrollably. I looked at Shannon in disbelief. He shook his head in equal astonishment.
How could this have happened?

Through the pale back glow of the flashlight I could just make out Drill Sergeant Quinn’s face. He had a placid demeanor, neither happy nor unhappy, and his movement didn’t seem pressing. Something seemed off. If this was Elroy, he’d be popping veins in his head screaming right now.

“I don’t know anything about a sexual assault, but I did see Private Tennpenny there physically assault Corporal Teague.” Quinn shined his light on Teague’s face, blinding him and exposing the crimson blood on his lips and chin.

What? We didn’t attack Teague. We were stopping him.

I helped Carrigan get on her feet. Her hands shook wildly as she buckled her pants.

“Did he…?”

“No,” she said, her voice quivering.

She was bleeding more from her nose. I wiped it away with my sleeve again.

“With all due respect that’s not what happened, Drill Sergeant. Corporal Teague here was…”

“Save it, Redman! All five of you are declared KIA. You stumbled upon an enemy patrol and failed to correct the situation. Teague, you’re dismissed. You may continue your mission.” I couldn’t believe it.”

“What patrol, Drill Sergeant?” Shannon asked.

“Me,” Quinn said. “You failed your mission Private Shannon and in the process of failing, you managed to steal valuable military property.” Quinn snatched the TC tablet out of Shannon’s hands. “I ought to write all of you up for insubordination.”

“Insubordination?” Alex said, still shocked.

“Redman, you will shut your mouth or I’ll throw your ass in the stockade for the next week. Do you understand? Good. Now proceed one click east of here where you will wait on the side of the road to be picked up and brought back to base. Dismissed.”

I could see in Alex’s face that he had more words to say, but I put my hand on his shoulder and shook my head. There was no use.

Alex was lividly cussing out Drill Sergeant Quinn as we sat on the curb waiting to be picked up, but brooded silently during the ride back. Carrigan was still shook up and didn’t say anything. I wanted to comfort her, but didn’t know how.

The whole ride back felt eerily disappointing and confusing. One minute, we were passing with flying colors and the next, we stumbled on a sexual assault. And we got stuck smack dab in the middle of Drill Sergeant Quinn’s sick cover up.

“We ought to tell somebody when we get back,” Shannon said.

“Who are we going to tell, Shannon? In case you missed it that was Drill Sergeant Quinn back there. For all we know, the other drill sergeants could be in on it too,” Pike said. “It’s not exactly a secret that the majority of First Platoon wants to see Carrigan fail. She’s the last girl. All the rest already dropped out.” He had a point.

“Yeah, but trying to rape her during a field exercise, come on Pike, that’s too far,” Shannon said.

“That prick! When I see Teague’s face again, I’m going beat his ass for what he did.” I could see Alex grinding his teeth in the dull red glow of the interior light of the APC.

I sat back against the armored siding with my hands in my lap. This was the first time I really had to time to think to myself all night. The field exercise had me on some form of autopilot adrenaline rush. Stumbling through the woods, the Humvee ambush, the sexual assault, everything happened so fast. We were out there for hours, but I don’t remember having time to feel anything.

As I replayed the events in my head I remembered how my hands shook before the ambush and how I could feel the cold sweat running down my sides after I confronted Teague.
If this was real combat, would I do the same thing I did tonight? Would I react with the same courage?

Two hours later, the entire company found itself standing at attention on the parade ground in a cold pouring rain. A massive rainstorm moved in just before daybreak. The parade ground floodlights flicked on with an electric
click
.

The rain was icy and the wind hard as General Gammon, with his hands clasped behind his back, moseyed up and down the ranks in a black raincoat. For a while, he didn’t say a word. He eyed the recruits up and down. Zero emotion on his face.

Finally. “Men…tonight’s exercise was created for one purpose. For you to experience failure. Every one of you was given a mission and every one of you failed in that mission. It doesn’t feel good, does it? You won’t forget that feeling anytime soon. Right now, our country is experiencing failure all along its frontlines. We are being pushed back on our heels. The enemy is in our backyards. They are torching our homes, eating our food and destroying our culture.” It didn’t take long for him to get fired up this morning. His voice dropped almost to a growl. “The future is uncertain, that is a fact. For the military, the only certainty is uncertainty. From grunts to the top brass, uncertainty haunts us all. How will I perform in battle? Will I get shot as I go down this road? Will my men survive? Will we win this battle…this war? These are questions that haunt thousands of our soldiers at this very moment.”

Gammon began pacing down the ranks of First Platoon.

“Uncertainty is a bitch, yes, but we can take that bitch by the hand and lead her in the direction we want to go. All it takes is a little ingenuity,” he said, placing his hand on Shannon’s shoulder as he passed. “A little courage,” this time patting me on the arm. “And a little leadership,” pausing in front of Alex.

He must have heard about our so called, “insubordination”.

A mixture of sleep deprivation and icy, wet weather took a toll on everyone. You could see the lines of men shivering and rocking back and forth on their heels. I was cold and tired, but something about listening to Gammon speak made me feel like I could stand there for hours.

“In a few weeks, you all will graduate right here on these parade grounds. After that, most of you will be sent to the forefront of this war to reclaim our lost land and push the invaders back. Some of you will die. This is an uncertain certainty. As a leader of men this is something that I must deal with personally. But, let me ask you, what could be better than dying an honorable death? There is no better feeling than knowing that you gave blood, sweat and tears for a cause you deemed worthy of fighting for. Now, you must look inside yourself to find that cause. For me, there is no cause more worthy than that of our great country. The Confederate States of America needs you now more than ever. The only thing standing between your families and the invading hordes of Yankee vermin is your will to do what is necessary when the time comes.
You
are our last line of defense. Take your successes and your failures and use those to sharpen your instincts, so that you may go forth from here and kick Uncle Sam’s ass.”

The Confederacy
needs me now more than ever. Just give me the chance. I’m ready.

After Gammon’s early morning call to arms, we expected to be allowed to go to bed, but that was wishful thinking. Much to our chagrin, the drill sergeants led us in a day chalk full of exercises.

Basic Training used to be a twelve week long program, but because of the war, the Army cut back to eight weeks to get soldiers to the front quicker. The drill sergeants didn’t have time to give us the chance to relax.

Exhausted and dreary-eyed, we complied with every command the drill sergeants gave us. They even marched us through the obstacle course once more, this time with full eighty-pound packs on our backs. During all this, the weather never let up. The rain soaked us, adding a few more pounds to our already heavy load.

While on a six mile run in the afternoon, Alex and I tried to convince Carrigan to report the sexual assault to Drill Sergeant Elroy. She eagerly resisted. She didn’t want to add any more humiliation to what she had experienced already. Only after threatening to go to Elroy ourselves did she finally promise to say something.

I was sitting with Alex during chow that evening when Carrigan came back from her meeting. Her eyes were puffy and red.

“How did it go?”

But before she could answer, Elroy’s booming voice silenced the mess hall.

“Tennpenny.” He had his normal scowl on. “Front and center.”

I hustled out of my seat on the double and stood at attention in front of him.

“Follow me,” he said.

I matched him step for step as we walked to the main officers building, a large, rectangular brick structure with dark windows that reflected the gray sky.

Elroy was only in his early forties, but his hair was already an ashy gray. I always wanted to ask him how he got the scar that ran down the left side of his face, but I thought it was a question best left unanswered.

To the platoon, he was a hard man, but exceptionally fair. Heaven knows he had seen his fair share of war. That’s why I knew that what he was teaching us could save our lives in the long run.

We approached a door at the end of a long corridor. The windows were frosted and had bold lettering on it that I couldn’t read it. Elroy knocked.

“Enter,” A gruff voice answered from inside.

I entered the room and snapped to attention directly in front of the desk with the click of my boots announcing my presence.

General Gammon sat with his back to us, leaning against the corner of his desk. He was examining a map of the Confederacy that was taped to a chalkboard. Elroy stood at ease by the door.

“At ease, Tennpenny.” Gammon got up, came around to the front side of his desk and leaned against it again. He crossed his arms and said, “I want you to tell me exactly what happened last night.”

I started from the moment we were dumped on the side of the road. I explained how Alex and I bumped into Pike and Shannon and how we ambushed the Humvee and how we heard screams for help. I told him that I saw Teague sitting on top of Carrigan, beating her, and told him what Drill Sergeant Quinn had said to us. Throughout my testimony, Gammon merely nodded without emotion. He seemed cross when I finished. The corner of his mouth arched downwards in disgust.

“I’m glad you showed up when you did. Otherwise, it could have been worse. I had a long conversation with Private Carrigan about the matter. She seems to be fine. I’ll have her checked out by a doctor as a precaution nonetheless. As for the accused instigators, Drill Sergeant Quinn has been relieved of his position. He’ll spend the remainder of the war at the front. The two attackers that ran off have yet to be identified, but I assure you, when I find out who they are, they will be dealt with accordingly. As for Corporal Teague…well, that’s a whole nother story.” Gammon scratched the back of his neck with a flare of frustration. “It’s a vile crime that he committed. Despicable, frankly. He deserves to be facing a court martial right now. Instead, all I can do is strip him of his rank. I’ll bump Redman up to platoon leader.”

“Sir?” I asked, appalled at this strange turn of events.

“I know it’s not what you wanted to hear, but my hands are tied.” He opened his mouth to say something, but held it back and paused, “What I am about to tell you does not leave this room. Do you understand?” He went from being visibly upset to downright serious in a flash.

“Yes sir.”

“I would like to see Teague thrown in the stockade as much as you do right now, but the higher powers that be have deemed that unnecessary. Some of the top brass have their eyes on him. Teague’s a disgusting human being, but also a helluva soldier, and there is a tug-of-war match going on right now between multiple higher agencies that are vying for possession of him. Now, this goes way above my head Tennpenny, and I’m not happy about it at all.”

“The military is not what it used to be. We lack the gall that we had back in the day. Honor and valor was the mantra that we fought by. As an officer you were a member of the elite. It was a prestigious distinction that shared its weight in honor and responsibility. Now, pfft…now, there’s a bunch of half-wit morons in the top brass that care about nothing but themselves and do nothing but bring shame down upon this great country and its military traditions. They are driving this country into the dirt, do you see that? There’s only a few of us old dogs left. It’s all about politics now. The military is rife with political brown-nosers and not enough real, hard-ass officers.”

The veins in Gammon’s neck bulged as he slammed his fist down onto his desk.

“Our President is an imbecile. I served alongside that scoundrel back in the day, did you know that? Redman’s father too. We graduated from the military college and moved up in rank together. Silas Redman is a good man. Don’t let anybody tell you otherwise.” Gammon retreated into the recesses of his mind.

After a moment of silence, Gammon moved from his desk and signaled me to follow him, “Look at this,” he said, pointing to the map.

“Do you understand this map?”
That’s a strange question to ask.
But I nodded anyway.

“This here is Richmond,” he said, pointing to a spot near the top right corner of the Confederacy. It had two little flags pinned on it, one red and one blue. “Richmond is our nation’s capital. It’s a beautiful city with a proud history, but I digress. At the beginning of the war, we moved the entire government out of Richmond and relocated them to Montgomery, Alabama. Our boys have been fighting for that city tooth and nail for twenty-one months now. It’s the poster child of our national honor. If we lose that city, the people will lose their will to fight.” Gammon lit a cigar he had sitting on his desk and puffed out a blue cloud of smoke.

“We are holding pretty strong there at the moment, but elsewhere we aren’t doing so well. The U.S. has started skirmishes out in our western states. They send enough forays across the border to keep us on our toes, but the main fighting is taking place here in the east. In Tennessee and Missouri we are being pushed back a few miles a day. We’re spread too damn thin there to do anything but delaying actions.” With the cigar wedged between his fingers, Gammon swiped his hand down the right side of the map, tracing the coastline. “The entire Atlantic coast from Virginia on down to the southern tip of Florida belongs to Uncle Sam. They’ve been hovering off the coast for some time now, waiting for an opportunity to strike. And our Navy can’t do a damn thing about it, because they’re holding up down here in the Gulf of Mexico. We’ve lost command of the sea, we’re losing air superiority and our ground forces are dwindling. Do you understand why I’m telling you this, son?”

“Not exactly, sir.” It was a lot to take in.

“The President wants to fight out this conflict to the very end. That’s a mistake. This country won’t survive. Best case scenario is that we would last until Christmas. Worst case scenario would see Montgomery being overrun by the end of summer. And that seems more and more likely as the intelligence reports keep coming in, detailing some sort of attack along the eastern seaboard. If I was in charge, we’d be singing a different tune right now.”

Gammon put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed with an iron-like grip.

“Son, its young men like you that will help save this country.”

“How, sir?”

“Stay true to yourself and to your country. Keep doing what you are doing and you could be very useful to me down the road.”
What did he mean by that? Stay true to myself?

“Drill Sergeant Elroy keeps me up to date on everything that goes in First Platoon. He’s seen some flashes of brilliance in you, Tennpenny. And based upon what I’ve seen, I believe you’ll make a good officer someday.”
An officer? I don’t want to be an officer
.

“I aint no leader, sir.”

“There are many different types of leaders, son. You don’t have to be a mean, tough son of a bitch like me or Drill Sergeant Elroy. You don’t even have to be good with words. You can inspire others through your actions. What you do defines what kind of person you are. Do you know who you are Private Tennpenny?”

There’s that question again. Why does everyone keep asking me that
?

“Not yet, sir,” I said in all honesty.

“I think you underestimate yourself.” Gammon almost spoke softly. “You’ve done things that have gotten you to where you are today. Those actions helped shape who you are.”

He paused to let me ponder what he said. There was something that he was trying to hint at that I couldn’t quite catch on too.

“One more thing before I dismiss you. I want you to stand at attention over here and I don’t want you to say or do anything, understood?” He gestured to the side of his office by the window.

“Yes sir.”

What’s this about?

Outside, the sky had opened up again and fat rain drops tapped against the window. General Gammon stepped behind his desk and gave a nod to Elroy. He came back in a minute later escorting in the one person I never expected to see again in my life. Mr. Stephens.

“You little son of a bitch, I oughta kill you.” He started to charge me, but Elroy had him by the collar before he could take two steps. He still looked the same, but now he had a scraggly, gray beard that his crooked nose poked out of. And…
that smell!
He reeked of urine and alcohol.

A panic erupted inside me.
This can’t be. Is Gammon going to give me back? He can’t do that…he’ll kill me.

Then it hit me. If Mr. Stephens was here, then that meant...
those gunshots? Mr. Jeffries?
The utter shock of the past few moments was the only thing keeping me from busting out in tears. Mr. Jeffries was dead.

Elroy had Mr. Stephens in an arm lock, restricting every move he tried to make toward me.

“Calm down, Mr. Stephens. I granted you this meeting out of the kindness of my heart, so you’d be wise not to waste my time,” Gammon said with a tinge of sarcasm.

Without breaking his gaze on me, Mr. Stephens calmed down and shook his arm out of Elroy’s grasp.

“What can I do for you, Mr. Stephens?” asked Gammon impatiently.

“That boy is mine and I want him back.”

“How so?”

“I’m his legal guardian and he enlisted without my consent.”
You liar!

Just when I thought things were going my way. Now, Mr. Stephens is going to take me back and torture me to a slow death for what I did to his house
.
He’s going to strangle me and this time he won’t stop until I’m blue in the face.

General Gammon opened a manila folder on his desk. “The records here show that Private Tennpenny is eighteen years of age. In the eyes of the law, he is a man of his own right. He doesn’t need consent to enlist,” Gammon leaned back in his chair, swirling a pen in his hand and wielding his cigar with the other. “Tell me, what is your relation to Private Tennpenny?”

I stared hard at the wall opposite trying not to make eye contact with him. The sight of him brought back all the worst memories in me. I could see from the corner of my eye that he never really took his gaze off of me until Gammon hit him with that question. He glanced back and forth between me and Gammon desperately searching for an answer, gritting his yellow crusted teeth in aggravation. Finally, he exploded with prideful egotism.

“I own him. He is my property.” The last word came out like a hiss. With an arrogant finger pointed at me, he took a few steps toward Gammons desk. “That boy burned down my house and almost killt me in the process.” He knew that I was scared to look at him, I could feel it. “And that nigger Jeffries.” That got my attention. I looked right into his wayward eyes. “That’s right. I found that nigger standin outside waitin for me as I came stumblin out the house. He came at me with a knife…so I shot him dead.”

With a surprising strength I didn’t know I had, I contained the whirlwind of emotions that swirled within me. I never wanted to kill someone more than I did just then.

“Y’all are both criminals. He got what he deserved. Now, it’s time for you…”

With a haughty, bellowing voice, Gammon stood and interrupted his tirade, “The only criminal here is you, Mr. Stephens. How dare you come into my office and accuse one of my men of being a criminal, when you yourself have committed the most grievous of crimes. Slavery has been outlawed in this country for nearly a century, and yet you have the gall to stand before me and claim this boy as your
property
. Well, let me tell you something, this boy is a soldier of the Confederate States Army and he belongs to me.” With a slam of his fist on the desk Gammon made Mr. Stephens recoil. A pang of nervousness contorted his face as he took the full brunt of Gammon’s anger. “Never would I ever release his soul back into the hands of a low-class, backwoods, bucket of shit like you.”