Sometimes I feel like I’ve been in the service forever, Robert thought as he and his bunkmate and fellow communications officer Jason Carter made their way along the narrow, low-ceilinged corridor of the ship to the mess. He’d been at sea for seven long months, and the life of a sailor, the combination of monotonous routine and constant danger, was wearing him out. Breakfast was the usual that morning: reconstituted eggs, gloppy oatmeal, and coffee so strong and thick Robert thought it could probably hold its shape without the cup.
“OK, think about this,” Jason commanded, his elbows on the table and a utensil in each hand. “It’s morning on the farm in Wisconsin. My mom’s the best cook in the state, by the way. We start with a plate of fresh eggs—fried, with yolks as big as golf balls. Then sausage, four or five juicy links. Mom makes that herself. Then cinnamon bread right out of the oven, and fried potatoes, and a tall glass of foamy fresh milk and—”
“Stop!” Robert groaned. “How am I supposed to eat this stuff now? Besides, you didn’t really eat like that every morning, did you?”
“Every morning of my life,” Jason confirmed. “You work hard on a farm. I’ve been taking it easy since I joined the Navy.”
“Right.” Robert laughed dryly. “This is a real vacation. ‘Get away from it all! Put on your grass skirt and sail the Pacific on the Richmond!’ ”
Jason grinned. “Speaking of grass skirts, today’s washday, isn’t it?”
Robert lifted his coffee cup to his mouth, hoping the steam would hide the flush he felt creeping up his neck. “It might be.”
“Hey, I’m not going to give you a hard time,” said Jason. “I’m glad you’ve gotten in good with that girl. Maybe you can put in a good word for me with her friends.”
“The Japanese?” Robert joked.
“No, the other female POWs, of course. They’re going to be ready for a good time when they get off that island, and I’d love to be the one to show it to them.”
Robert dug into his tasteless scrambled eggs, pretending he was eating one of Mrs. Carter’s prizewinning farm breakfasts. He supposed he didn’t really mind Jason kidding him about Hannah. He probably deserved it for letting himself get so attached to a girl he’d never even seen.
With every month that passed, Robert was more eager than ever for the armed forces to reach their goal of liberating the Philippine islands—and Hannah. Each time they communicated over the radio, Robert felt closer to her. Talking in a code they’d developed together over the past few months, they had managed to tell each other their real names as well as other details about their lives. When Hannah had an extra minute, they’d talk about their families and homes and friends; what they wanted to do when the war was over; which band was better, Jimmy Dorsey’s or Benny Goodman’s. Robert looked forward to Hannah’s transmissions so much that sometimes he almost forgot her messages were considered crucial for strategic purposes.
Robert and Jason finished their meal and reported to the communications center just in time to learn from Captain Danforth that the fleet was preparing to attack a nearby Japanese-occupied island a day earlier than originally planned.
An announcement came over the loudspeaker system. The crew was to man battle stations. “Get ready,” said Danforth. “We’re going in!”
As the Richmond fell in line with the other ships zeroing in on the island, the atmosphere in the communications center grew tense. Robert was on the wireless with an officer from the carrier Springfield when the booming of guns began.
“They’ve landed,” Jason said grimly.
Robert tried to imagine what it must be like to be one of the marines going in on the ground to recapture the island, which was in the process of being bombed from the air by planes taking off from the Richmond and the Springfield. Suddenly, there was a jolt; Robert was flung from his seat.
“We’ve been hit!” Captain Danforth shouted.
Sirens began wailing. A lieutenant rushed in to inform the captain that it was not a serious hit. It was bad enough, though, to warrant the announcement that followed. “All able-bodied men report on deck immediately!” the voice crackled over the loudspeaker. Robert, Jason, and the others sprinted for the door.
On deck, they found two planes burning from the Japanese strafing. As some members of the maintenance crew hurried to carry below the sailors injured in the explosion, another tossed Robert a hose. “Help us put this fire out!”
Obediently, Robert trained the hose on the flames. The sky above was buzzing with planes, both American and Japanese. One aircraft seized Robert’s attention. It was a Japanese plane, and it was heading straight for the Springfield. Robert waited for the plane to fire its guns and then swoop back up into the sky, but it didn’t alter its course. “It’s going to hit the boat!” he shouted.
The plane nosedived right into the Springfield. There was a series of massive explosions; the carrier began to list badly.
“They’re sinking!” Robert exclaimed in disbelief. The Japanese pilot had given his life to destroy an American ship.
The Richmond altered course in order to aid the sinking ship. No sooner had they come within range, however, than the whining buzz of a plane’s engine was heard. It grew louder and louder. Another pilot was targeting the Richmond. There was a blast of antiaircraft guns. The Japanese plane suffered a hit but didn’t veer off. “Run for cover!” Robert yelled at Jason, diving behind a gun turret.
The impact of the plane jolted the ship from bow to stern. Crumpled steel and broken bodies flew through the air. Robert, protected by the turret, was unharmed. But many of his crewmates had suffered a different fate. When he ran forward to help the wounded, the first body he stumbled over was Jason’s.
“Jason!” Robert fell to his knees next to his friend. He slipped an arm under Jason’s shoulders. Jason’s head lolled back on his neck. His eyes were wide open, their expression surprised. His limp body was riddled with shrapnel. He was dead.
Robert slumped in his chair in the communications center, resisting the urge to drop his head onto his arms. He was bone-tired; this had been the longest day of his life.
The Richmond had only been damaged by the kamikaze plane, and finally, after a hair-raising skirmish, the American forces had routed the Japanese from the island. Another battle won, but at what cost? Robert thought dully. So many men were dead. Never again would Jason reminisce about the farm and his mother’s cooking.
Thinking about Jason, Robert remembered that that day had been Hannah’s day to use the secret radio. She had probably tried to signal him, but received no response. If anything could make him feel better, it would be the sound of Hannah’s voice. If only he could contact her at will. How could he go another week without speaking to her?
At that moment, the telegraph machine behind Robert began clattering. He spun in his chair and began decoding the message. It was incredible news on the European front. At long last, Allied troops had landed on the beaches of Normandy. The liberation of France from Nazi occupation had begun!
Robert showed the bulletin to Captain Danforth, who gave him the nod to make a general announcement. Solemnly, Robert relayed the news to the rest of the crew. When he finished, his back was a little straighter as he sat at his post. The sacrifices being made were tremendous, but Robert believed—he had to believe—that ultimately the cause was worth it.
“Why the double guard?” Joan whispered to Hannah as the five women marched across the compound to the building where they did their wash.
Out of the corner of her eye, Hannah glanced nervously at the two Japanese soldiers. “Everything’s getting tenser around here,” she whispered back. “They know the Americans are almost here.”
“Thank God!” breathed Joan. “Oh, Hannah, do you think we’ll be rescued soon?”
“Any day now,” Hannah predicted.
It was September, and Hannah knew from her last communication with Robert and from the continued buildup of Japanese forces on Mindanao that Halsey’s fleet was closing in. Mindanao is their next stop! Hannah thought happily as she plunged her hands into the soapy water of the washtub. Soon they would be free. Soon she would walk on free soil... phone her parents... and finally meet her contact on the Richmond, Robert Wakefield.
Hannah was lapsing into a daydream about Robert when the conversation between the two soldiers caught her attention. In almost two and a half years, she’d learned quite a bit of Japanese, far more than her captors could have guessed. Now, although she pretended to be listening to the chatter of Nettie, Pam, Joan, and Debbie, she focused on the words of the guards.
“Twenty more planes arrive today,” the first guard informed the second, “and more will come tomorrow.”
“Is it really a good idea to leave the central Philippines so weak in order to reinforce southern islands like Mindanao? What if Mindanao isn’t the first American objective?”
“But of course it is!”
“You only say that because it’s what our commanding officer believes,” the second soldier sneered.
“He knows better than you,” the first rejoined. “And if you know what’s good for you, you won’t question his policy.”
Hannah bit her lip. She knew that what she’d just heard could be of great interest to the approaching American fleet. It was more important than ever that she make contact with Robert that day. But how was she going to sneak off with two soldiers on guard?
Nettie had the same question. While the women were hanging their laundry to dry, she hissed at Hannah, “How will you get to your radio today, Hannah?”
“I don’t know, but I must. Help me, girls! We need an idea. It’s going to take more than a little idle conversation to distract these two.”
“I have an idea,” said Pam. “When we’re wading in the stream, I’ll pretend to slip and fall and hit my head on a rock. I’ll fall with my face in the water, and Joan and Nettie will start screaming that I’m drowning. Both guards will come running. That’s when you go to work.”
“But you’ll have to make it fast,” Debbie cautioned. “The way things are around here, if you get caught today of all days...”
Hannah didn’t want to think of what the Japanese would do to her—to all of them. She couldn’t think about it, or she’d be too scared to go through with her mission. “It’s a good plan,” she praised Pam. “Let’s go for it!”
The moment came, and Pam performed her part like the best actress on Broadway. Drawn by Debbie and Nettie’s shrill cries, the two guards rushed to the fallen girl. Hannah, who’d strolled in the opposite direction, dashed behind the reeds. Her heart pounding, she signaled the Richmond. Please be there, Robert, she prayed. Please be fast!
“Pacific Star?”
“Sea Eagle!” she exclaimed. “I have urgent news.” Quickly, she relayed the contents of the conversation she’d overheard. As she spoke she suddenly realized the implications of the information she was passing along. It might encourage the armed forces to shift their strategy; they might postpone the rescue of the POWs on Mindanao. But Hannah knew she couldn’t think of her own welfare first.
“Sea Eagle, I can’t talk any longer. We’re under heavier guard than usual.”
“Be careful,” Robert begged.
“I will,” Hannah promised. “Over and out.”
Her hands shaking, Hannah rapidly reburied the radio. She rose to her feet just as a Japanese soldier rounded the stand of reeds. Hannah gasped, putting her hand to her heart. The soldier lifted his rifle, pointing it right at her chest. “What are you doing?” he barked.
“I saw a pretty little salamander,” she said in broken Japanese. “I was trying to catch it to show my friends, but it ran into the reeds.”
“Didn’t you hear the shouts?” the guard asked her.
Hannah tipped her head to one side, playing dumb. “What shouts?”
The soldier grabbed her arm roughly and dragged her back to the stream. Hannah knew she would have some bruises, but she didn’t care. She was too thankful that he hadn’t noticed the disturbed earth at her feet, where the radio was hidden.
“You are too much trouble. No more walks by the stream,” the guard muttered as he herded the women back to their cell.
Hannah’s heart contracted painfully. By good fortune, she had succeeded in getting a message to Robert that day. But would it be the last time she ever heard his voice?
