don’t know. I think it’s that guy that was with Sergeant Cannon and Jeff and the fat guy. He had captain’s bars.”
“What?” Jack asked.
“I guess he might be the other pilot. That would make seven of us, and that’s what Sergeant Cannon said.” Em told Jack to shut up again so he could try to hear. It was no use. He could tell by the authoritative voice that it was most definitely Colonel Roth. Once you heard that tone, you were not likely to forget it; however, he could not make out what he was saying.
“We’ve got to get closer,” Jack said. “I bet he’s talking about where we will be going.” Before Em could say a word, Jack was up and running toward the back of Colonel Roth’s tent.
Em just settled in his hiding spot and waited for Jack to get caught. He watched as Jack got so close to the tent that he could surely hear what they were saying. Then he looked in the direction that Sergeant Cannon and Jeff had gone. He still could not see anything. He stood up to get a better view of the hillside. They had disappeared into the trees. Em could see nothing moving on the hill. He wondered where they could have gone. When he looked back toward Jack, he saw him standing behind the tent. He had his head right next to the canvas. However, what happened next made Em crouch a little lower. He saw the flap of the tent open. Colonel Roth stepped out, followed by the captain that he had seen earlier. Luckily for Jack, they stayed in front of the tent. Em turned around to scan the hillside for Jeff and Sergeant Cannon. He still could not see anything but trees and flowers. Where could they have gone?
Colonel Roth and the captain were talking. Em could see Jack sneaking around the tent so he could hear a little better. Em knew that it was just a matter of time before they were caught. He only hoped that Jack would hear something useful before that happened. Feeling like he wanted to just stand up and be seen, Em slowly began to rise. He looked at Jack, and he looked at Colonel Roth and decided that he would just walk toward the tent. Jack suddenly crouched low and waved his arms frantically at Em. Em quickly crouched back into his hiding place and just sat as still as he could. He thought that he would just let Jack reveal himself. Colonel Roth and the captain were talking. They looked like they were oblivious to everything around them. Jack was moving toward the front of the tent. Em turned around and scanned the hillside for Jeff and Sergeant Cannon. They were still nowhere to be seen.
Em turned around to see Colonel Roth and the captain still entranced in their conversation. The looks on their faces seemed to be deep concern. Jack was only a few feet away. He was inching closer. He was not paying any attention to Em. The colonel and the captain suddenly turned and walked in the opposite direction of where Jack sat. Jack just sat still. The two men walked straight toward the coffee pot. They were completely unaware of anything else around them. Jack stood up and calmly walked back toward where Em sat behind the barrels.
Sergeant Barnes sat in a chair drinking coffee. He had his eyes closed and looked rather comfortable. Colonel Roth approached him. The fat sergeant immediately stood up and tried to look busy. He started to fool with the coffee pot. “Hello, Philip. Can I get you some coffee?” Sergeant Barnes addressed the colonel like they were childhood friends.
“No, thanks, Kevil. I just wanted to let you know what was going on and when we were going to be leaving.” Colonel Roth was still talking with his authoritative voice. Em and Jack could hear him easily.
Jack was now squatting behind Em. “I know where we’re going,” he said.
“What?” Em said this much louder than he had wanted to but still low enough to be unheard.
“You are not gonna believe it,” Jack said. “But right now, we have to get out of here. I don’t want Colonel Roth to know we are here yet. Where did Sergeant Cannon go?”
“I don’t know,” Em said. “Why do we have to get out of here?
“Trust me,” Jack said.
The two of them looked around for Sergeant Cannon and Jeff before they escaped by way of the ditch behind the tent. From there, they made their way up the hill toward the area where Jack had hidden just a while ago. Em knew it was not yet ten o’clock in the morning, so they had plenty of time to get back to the camp before their seventy-two hours were up. They hiked for at least half an hour before stopping by the stream they had followed to get back to camp. Em asked Jack all along the trip about what was going on, but Jack just kept hiking. When he finally got him to stop, Jack reached into his bag and got water. After taking two long swallows, he began to talk.
Twenty minutes later, Em had learned that indeed the captain that was with Colonel Roth was their other team member. The only thing Jack had heard Colonel Roth call him was Murph. All Jack knew was they had flown together for quite a few years. Jack told him that they were talking about the next trip they were taking. He had not heard exactly when the trip was to take place, but by the way they were talking, it would be real soon. Jack also said that there was bad news. Colonel Roth seemed concerned that the new guys might not be ready. He told the captain that Sergeant Cannon had assured him that Jack and Em were ready. Sergeant Cannon’s deepest worry was about where they were going. He told the captain that mainland Japan might be a little too hot a destination for a couple of newbies. Em couldn’t believe what Jack was telling him. Could they really be about to go into Japan? To Em, that seemed literally impossible. This was not a time to go into Japan. Jack tried to convince him that they could make sure that they would get to go. According to Jack’s reasoning, if they could make their way into camp and impress Colonel Roth, then along with Sergeant Cannon’s help, they could convince the colonel that they were ready. Em listened to Jack as he tried to imagine what they would be doing.
Jack sat near the stream and washed the camouflage off his face. He looked like he was taking a bath. He wiped the remaining water from his face and shook his head like a dog. Then he got the strangest look on his face and smiled and said, “She’s here.”
“Who’s here?” Em sat up and looked at his friend. He was not yet comprehending all the information he had just received. Now what was Jack talking about?
“Meredith.” Jack almost drooled when he said her name.
So that’s why he wanted to wash his face, Em thought. In Jack’s twisted mind, he thought he was going to see her. “How do you know that?” Em asked him.
“Colonel Roth told his friend that he had flown over with his family, and they were going to be staying here for a few months. He said they just got here today, and he was taking them somewhere special tonight. If we get back and really impress him and not let on we know anything, I know he will let us go.” Jack looked like he was going to burst. He stood up and started to pace back and forth with his feet going in and out of the stream. “I mean, don’t you think he will take us along with him?” Jack looked at Em and waited for him to answer. After a brief pause, Jack continued, “He’ll have to let us do something after two months of training. We haven’t had one day to relax, and if we will really be going to Japan, he has to let us do something.”
“You really are crazy, Jack. He is not going to take us with him and his family. We’ll probably have some other kind of training to do.” Em never really thought this; he just did not know what else to say. “Besides, we have other things to worry about. Like, why did we have to leave camp? When are we going back? Seriously, if we really wanted to impress him, we would get there earlier, right?”
Em started to do what he always did, and that was worry. His mind would not stop thinking about all that was happening. He could not believe that Colonel Roth was going to take them into Japan. He knew that he would go wherever the colonel wanted him to. He worried about Jack and whatever plan was in his head concerning Meredith. He had to find a way to put a stop to that. He never stopped
