Posted by hummingbird on 6/16/2014, 8:03 am VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
Chapter Twenty-Five
Bo opened his eyes and looked at his surroundings. He was in in a long room with rows of metal beds. People were milling about talking with and caring for the men resting in those beds. It was obviously a hospital.
He heard a pleasant voice beside him. “Well, Yankee. It’s good to see you open your eyes.”
Bo turned his head slowly toward the lilting British voice. The owner was a nurse, very pretty, with dark hair and green eyes.
“How are you feeling?” the nurse asked him.
“Thirsty. May I have some water?” Bo said weakly.
“Certainly.”
She poured the water and put it in his hand. He noticed his left arm was in a cast and was wrapped up to the shoulder. His left ankle was in a cast also.
“Where am I?” Bo questioned quietly.
“I get to ask you questions first, Yankee. Can you tell me your name?” she asked
“Bo. Bo Buchanan,” he answered.
“And where are you from, GI Buchanan?”
“Originally Texas...but recently Camp Ellis near Chicago.”
“Do you know what year this is?”
“1944.”
“Who is the American general in command?”
“General Eisenhower.”
“Very good, Yank. You seem to be thinking clearly. Are you hurting anywhere?”
“Not at the moment,” Bo answered.
“Very good, Sir,” she answered. “Now that you’re awake, the doctor will want to take a look at you.”
A few moments later, the nurse returned with a middle-aged gentleman who introduced himself as Dr. William Blake.
“Mr. Buchanan...glad to see you’re awake. You’re in St. James Hospital. Consider yourself one of the lucky ones. Patients at St. James are the ones listed as “lightly wounded.”
After asking Bo more questions and looking him over, he said, “Let me tell you about your injuries and treatments so far. You have a broken left ankle and left arm. We had to remove shrapnel from the shoulder and arm as well as the leg before we casted them. You have had some head trauma although we don’t consider it anything worse than a concussion. We are still monitoring your head injury though. Be sure to tell us of any headaches you may experience as well as dizziness or visual difficulties. I guess it’s obvious that you will be off your feet for some time to allow that foot to heal. We are also watching for any infections that may occur as a result of the surgery to remove the shrapnel. Do you have any questions?”
Bo shook his head ‘no’.
“Good. If you do, ask Nurse Catherine...she can relay your questions to me if she can’t answer them herself. We’ll try to have you up on your feet as soon as possible.” He said a few words to the nurse then went on to his next patient.
Bo looked at the nurse. “I assume you’re Nurse Catherine?”
“That’s right,” she said, “but everyone calls me ‘Cat’.”
“That’s appropriate,” Bo said. “You have beautiful green eyes...like a cat.”
“Thank you, Yank. Do you need anything else?”
“Yes...how long have I been here?”
“For six days.”
“What’s today?”
“It’s September 7th.”
Bo nodded. “Will I get mail here? How will my family know where I am?”
“The military goes through a process to inform the family. And if you get any mail, it will eventually be forwarded to you. It takes awhile though. The military has a lot more important things on their minds than mail delivery, you know.”
Bo nodded.
“I need to get back to my duties. It’s good to see you awake today...nice talking to you, GI Buchanan.”
“Oh...please…” Bo smiled. “Just call me ‘Bo’.”
“Bo. Very well, Bo. I’ll check on you later. Cheerio.”
* * * * * * *
Bo received good care at St. James, however his recovery was slow. He had major headaches nearly every day from his head trauma. The ankle wasn’t healing properly, so they had to operate again putting a pin in his leg. Then an infection was discovered where the shrapnel was removed from his shoulder. He was in a lot of pain, so they kept him highly medicated. When he came in and out of consciousness, he would usually find Miss Cat by his bedside. She was a very conscientious nurse...or so it seemed.
* * * * * * *
Miss Catherine Wicklan had worked her way up from the poor backstreets of London. She had worked whatever menial jobs she could find as she got her nurse’s training. She had been working in the army hospital since war was declared by Britain in 1939. She was tired of working her way up...she wanted an easy ride out.
So, like many British girls, she saw the American soldier as that easy ride. When the American GIs arrived in Britain, they came with their charm and money in their pockets. Many British women married them and made their way to America.
As Miss Cat nursed Bo Buchanan to health, she couldn’t help noticing how handsome he was. In the few conversations they had shared, she had enjoyed his kind spirit and sweet smile...and his beautiful eyes! If she was going to get that free ride to America, it may as well be with a handsome and charming GI like Bo Buchanan.
So, she devised a plan and began working toward making it a reality. Her mind was set on immigrating to the United States...as Mrs. Bo Buchanan.