He wishes that he, too, had a wound, a red badge of courage.. Stephen Crane, The red Badge of Courage
Richard stayed welded to the ground, time stopped, and half dazed he waited for death as more bullets hit the dirt around him spraying chunks of dirt clods around him. Finally the firing stopped. He wondered if he was dead. He could hear the soldiers, carefully approach him.
"Careful, it may be a trap?" someone yelled. "Sarge, he looks like an American, "another one said, "Careful, "someone yelled.
Richard then felt a of a boot and he rolled over, the sun blinded him, and three rifles pointed at his head only inches away. "Sarge,I think he's one of us?"
"Wait, check to see if he's booby trapped?" someone demanded.
Richard looked at the soldiers slowly gathered his senses and muttered, "I'm ...I'm...an Amer...Price, Richard, l0lst"
The sergeant approached, Richard sat up ,the rifles still pointed at him. He quickly gave his regiment number, and ID tag number.
"Damn where the hell have you been?" the Black sergeant yelled,"My God! 'you all right?"
Richard mumbled inherently that he was an escaped prisoner. And quickly the men put him on a stretcher and carried him to the helicopter landing zone. He felt the chopper engine roar and vibrate,and then the surge of take off. The sounds of war were muffled in the distant. A few bullet hit the medivac chopper, but he didn't care, all he wanted was to get out of Vietnam. It was good to hear the American voices, the corpman reassured him that he was out of danger as he started an IV.Richard felt the cool fluid fill his veins,and quench his massive thirst.
The trip back to base camp was short. The first few days were a daze to him. He saw nurses, in and out of his room , smiling beautiful icons, giving him medicines and adjusting the IV. The doctors talked about something like blackwater fever, all he did remembered was that he slept most of the time,waking only for short blurred periods of consciousness. Sometimes he was delirious, sometimes so drugged up that he seemed to melt into the bed. Events happened in confusing order, but he didn't care, he was safe and on the third day was more coherent.
"Hi," a nurse smiled to him as she adjusted his IV. He moved his eyes to hers, watched her carefully, she reached over and patted him on the shoulder," you're doing fine.The doctor said you had malaria. You were really zonko for awhile."
For the next week Richard recuperated in an Army hospital near Saigon. Doctors and nurses came in and out, as well as officers, some wanted to talk to him about intelligence. Richard told them everything he knew, but didn't think he was helpful.
One day, the chaplain came to visit,"son,I got good news for you. You're going home. You'll be leaving tomorrow. In 24 hours.you'll be home. Your family's been notified," the chaplain went back and closed the door, and then sat down next to him,"a a a...We checked our records...It seems that..Well I don't know how to say this.. but we had you listed as a KIA."
"Huh...KIA?"
"Yes...aka, Killed in action." He managed to choke out,"when the rocket exploded, well,someone made an ID error."
He patted him on the shoulder..."but don't worry. We'll take care of that....Oh, by the way. You're quite the hero...If you feel like it, the press would like to talk to you, take some pictures, you know , to show the folks back home."
Richard didn't want to talk to anybody, but that afternoon, a officers again talked to him and, he felt strong pressure to do this uncomfortable situation. Seemed the Army wanted to drum up some good PR.
That night Richard looked up at the TV camera and bright lights staring at him. A reporter jammed a microphone into him face, and Richard turned away, trying to avoid the interview.
"Corporal Price," what would you like to say to the folks back home.... What about that special girl? What would you like to say?""
Richard shook his head, and said nothing.
Another reporter stunned by the silence, asked," bet you're wondering who won the world series, aren't you?"
"...How about a picture of you with the nurse?" the reporter looked around and called to the nurse, "you...come here." he demanded as another reporter, grabbed her arm and escorted her against her will. He motioned to the nurse to come over," we gotta have it look good," the nurse was shoved into the picture, and multiple flash bulbs popped off, and the TV camera whirred.
The officer who escorted the reporters, feeling uncomfortable, patted Richard on the shoulder,"I'll let you talk to the newsmen. They can fill you in on all the news you missed out on. OK?"
Richard didn't say anything, and the officer quickly left.
"It was Baltimore! 'took it four straight, against the Dodgers,"... Still the reporter got no response from Richard, the TV camera whirred on wasting tape, "it was a slaughter...what do you think of that?"
Richard looked him, and blurted out, "get the fuck out of here...Out now. I don't give a fuck about the fuckin' world series...Damn you, get out." The reporter got uptight, "damn you. My buddies are killed and all you think about is the fuckin' World Series, get out...damnit get out."
The nurse now showed the reporters out. All Richard heard was the reporter talking to the cameraman," that shit. We can't use this. Shit, let's go. They wanted this for the six o'clock, we gotta find something else."
Chris shot up from bed, awakened from the frantic banging on his back door. Dovi shouted to him from he next room. Chris looked at his watch, it was three o'clock and damn cold, because Millie always turned the heat down at night, a foot of snow blanketed the ground, and he couldn't imagine who would be out at this time of the night. He opened the door, and saw Lenny ,"shit,Lenny, wait just a sec." Quickly he closed the door, and put some pants on, then he let her in.
She flung herself on him, mumbling, whimpering all at the same time.
"Lenny,..Lenny, take it easy, it's all right."
Chris held her and she hugged him tightly and wouldn't let go. "It's OK,hey...it's OK" Chris dumbfounded stroked her back until she calmed down. He thought, she was on a bad drug trip, Karl dumped on her or something terrible happen. Perhaps a fight with the parents again?
"It's OK... it's OK,"Chris still held her tightly.
Dovi got up and peaked into Chris' bedroom and saw Lenny hugging him, dressed only in jeans, bare chested, and barefooted.
"He's, he's..." Lenny couldn't get the words out," he's, he's ..."
"Easy, take it easy...take a deep breath" Chris said, "it's gonna be all right. He...who?"
He's alive,...alive," she hugged him tighter screaming over and over again.
"Who, Who's alive?"
Richard..,Richard, he's alive"
"Lenny," Chris held her firmly with both hands on her shoulders, "Lenny, you gotta get you head together...It's a bad dream." Chris shouted trying to straighten up Lenny delusion. Then he put his arms around her and stroked her back.
"No,no,no," she whimpered wiping her tears on his chest. she looked up to his face, sniffled, "it's for real, he's alive. Mom talked to him on the phone...He's alive...Mom called me...she talked to him on the phone, he was captured, by the Vietcong," she stuttered,"aaa and hhhe escaped. He'll be in Los Angeles tomorrow."
Lenny let go of Chris, the first time since she came in, wiped her teared eyes on her coat sleeve, and blew her nose on a napkin Chris gave her, "I don't believe it, but he was alive, all this time he was a prisoner of war. I'm so happy!"
She hugged him again, and Millie appeared in the doorway and turned on the overhead light, and looked at Chris disapprovingly. The whole house was awake but with fast talking Chris explained the situation, and Millie went back to bed, but with one last warning,"OK, I don't know what's happening, but get a shirt on, and some shoes."
Chris smiled, hugged Lenny again. She wiped a tear from his Chris' happy eyes,"I love you so much...I had to tell you first. Karl doesn't even know."
"Where is he?"
"Chicago, to see his folks, something about his father, in the hospital, a heart attack they think."
Richard had a long flight to Los Angeles and the next thing he knew he was at the Wodworth Veterans Hospital. Once settled in his room, he was told that in the next three weeks he would be evaluated. He walked into the television room. A group of patients, lounged in chairs, some stood, others played cards, all smoked, and smoke hung heavy in the room. Some wore street clothes, others, just wrinkled stripped hospital gowns, some were neat, others had tussled hair, and were unshaven.
"...the last item tonight are reports that General Westmoreland, requested at least a hundred thousand more troops for South Vietnam."
In unison, those watching yelled,"Boo..ooo."
"...Rumors are that the United States is planning a new offensive, this time into the strongly Communist held Mekong Delta. Premier Ky, last month fired General Dang Van Quang criticized for resisting United States efforts to increase anticommunist activity in the area. With the removal of Dan Van Quang, the United States is now free to take a more aggressive stance.The region is suspected of having 80,000 Vietcong, one of the last remaining strongholds in South Vietnam."
"Hey, turn on 'Combat"'"someone yelled in the back.
"Change the channel. I don't want to watch this shit."
Richard looked passively at the TV but reacted when he heard the last patient speak. He had heard the voice before. He looked around to see where it came from. He slowly walked up to the front of the TV set.
"Down in front," someone yelled in the back.
"Fuck off,I'm lookin' for someone," Richard said as he
stared into the darkened crowd, but couldn't recognize anyone.
"Price.... damn it can't be...Price...Rich, is that you?" said the voice which came out of he darkness. The dark shadow got up and walked to the front,"shit, you look just like...No,it can't. You're names Price?"
Richard looked at Jason, smiled,"It's me."
" Fuckin A, I knew they blew that ID...I just knew it. 'never believed it." they hugged each other tightly.Tears came to grown men's eyes.
"Jason, what the hell are you doing here.Damn I thought I would never ..."
Jason interrupted, "look at you, all in one piece, how'd you... survive the rocket. There was nothin' but a ball of fire."
"What's this?" Richard looked at Jason's missing leg.
"Left it in Nam, stepped on a claymore, blew the leg to shit, missed this,though," Jason smiled as he cupped his genitals with his hand," come on, over here, you gotta tell me everything."
Richard and Jason stayed up half the night, talking about the war. Richard told him the details of his capture, and escape, but completely neglected to tell what happened to Whit. He led Jason to think that he escaped by himself. Jason told him about the squad,"well, you know that Eddie got greased, so did sarge, were you gone by then?"
Richard nodded no.
"Damn we had only four days left, he got it with a bouncing Betty, stepped on it and it jumped up and blew his fuckin' head off. And Bobby, we don't know what happened to him, just disappeared one time in battle. We looked all over, like for you, but there was nothing."
Lenny got off at LAX and made her way to the terminal. Chris. Phyllis, Jim, and Karl all took up a donation to send her out. She was excited. She never been in such a big city. But the only problem was that her parents were also coming, she didn't know when, but hoped that they would not cross paths. Bounce off the ramp, then up long halls and finally got her bag, and got the bus to Wilshire and Veterans in Westwood. From there she walked the short distant to the VA hospital.
She wasn't used to the sunny warm seventy threes degrees in California, it oppressed her. She just left St. Louis which was in a middle of a cold spell, going from five degrees to seventy three was quite a shock. Everybody on the bus looked at her strangely, with her heavy Winter coat across one hand and the other hand carrying a small bag. She was glad she followed Chris' advice, "travel light, believe me, you'll thank me."
At the hospital, she got directions, and walked impatiently down the long corridor, her footsteps echoed as she walked, her heart pounded with excitement, and curiosity. She came to an open area, where a group of patients sat, visited, smoked cigarettes, some watched TV, other played cards. She immediately saw Richard and scampered to him and stood by him as he watched TV."
"Hello handsome," she smiled and waited for him to turn around. On seeing her he jumped up, and hugged her so hard that he picked her up off the ground.
"Lenny...Lenny, it's so good to see you."
They both felt a little awkward at first not knowing what to say. But gradually both relaxed. Richard took her coat and bags to his room, then they went for a walk outside. He briefly talked about the capture, but Lenny didn't push him for details.
Finally he said," you know mom and dad are here?"
"Yea...I don't know if I want to run into'em or not."
"Mom told me what happened...I think she wants to make up with you."
"Oh Richard, I don't know, they hurt me so much.I have to lead my own life, they won't let me. I think you can understand that?"
"Richard laughed,"yea, I know, Dad wants me to go on the force, say he can fix it for me."
"You don't want to?"
"I don't know what I want, 'just need time to think. But it's like you say, dad just doesn't listen, he doesn't understand. I've changed, something happened, I got a lot of thing to sort out."
Richard memory shifted back to Nam, the violence, the dead Vietcong, Eddie in his lap, dead, Whit's head flying through the air, the story they told about Sergeant Elvis Pricket, laid out on the stretcher with his head blown off, and the flies buzzed around, in delight, in the hot humid country of Vietnam.
Lenny stayed a few more days, avoiding her parents as much as possible. She felt the icy stares from her dad, but her mom, looked anguished and wanted to talk to her, but knew her husband would object. She could not disobey, and that subservience made Lenny even more hateful of her for not fighting back and hateful of him for enslaving her.
Chris' mother had invited him to Kansas for Christmas but after some thought decided not to go. He had such a good visit last Summer and he was afraid that things might go sour. Besides Christmas wasn't his holiday anyway. He really hated Christmas, everybody runnin' around singing, and all that shit.
Phyllis went home and so did Diek, Kathy went to Chicago, Karl stayed in Chicago since Lenny was in California, Jim and Chris stayed in Carbondale, and occasionally they would do something together, but Chris was not much for parties or socializing at Christmas. He kept to himself, tried to keep busy, and waited for the season to end. To him Christmas day was the worst, even though he oftened was invited to eat Christmas dinner somewhere. But he always found some excuse not to go. One nice thing about living with the Chinese and Dovi, was that they stayed around over Christmas vacation, thus a source of companionship.
It was a long year, the war increased, the world became more uptight, the antiwar movement more aggressive, especially the students who espoused confrontation. Johnson escalated the war, the Vietcong matched every phase of escalation and so did the antiwar movement, which got more aggressive, hostile, and serious.
The movement was growing. No longer was it the old line pacifist, and a few students. No longer was the antiwar movement just a select few, but had more support from the students, working people, professionals, professors, grandmothers, and high school students spoke out, to varying degrees of opposition.
Although polls still showed that the great majority of
people supported the war, some thought they did so because Johnson played on their conscience to support the boys in Vietnam. But more and more Americans got nervous. The hawks, too were upset with the draft card and flag burning actions of the militant protesters. Thus they too became more militant.
Chris wondered when and if ever the continued escalation would end. He was disillusioned with peaceful protest. It didn't help, he hated the military, the Johnson bureaucrats that spoke in terms of balance of power, the domino theory, living up to commitments, world prestige, all abstract terms but translated to reality, meant bombed out villages, napalmed kids , and gunned down civilians. Millions of episodes, happening everyday, impervious to the arrogance of the policy makers, and military generals. Something inherently evil existed in the government, something so vile that it stunk, and he had to oppose it, oppose it until it is destroyed.
Jim felt the same way, and often they talked to each other about this, but never to anyone else. After the arrest at the Union, both now were paranoid about the government. They knew they were watched, they knew that they had to do more than just march down the street, that didn't work. They had to become more confrontational, even the idea of destruction played across their minds.
One thing Chris realized this past year was that the United States government embarked on a war for total victory. Only a defeat would end the war,only then would they be forced to remove the troop. That day would come,the Vietnamese answered each escalation with their own, forcing the United States to increase it's efforts. Chris knew that sooner of later, the escalation would go too far, maybe the Chinese would get involved, perhaps the Russians, maybe they didn't need their help, afterall, the Vietcong held their own again the most powerful nation know to man.