AIR ACE VERSUS HEIDEGGER'S HORROR
by Vanessa Lawrence
(continued from part 1)
Chapter Four
Chuck Dennison swooped as low as she dared over the wreck of the
G-1B. It had hit pretty hard and was blazing from end to end. A short
distance away a group of people seemed to just be staring at the inferno, but
an occasional bullet still whizzed by the Sky Shark's canopy, showing that all
the fight had not gone out of everyone down there. There was no way to
determine whether or not Von Schmuck had survived the crash, and it was
far too dangerous to try to land and find out.
She surveyed the scene for moment, then muttered a mild curse and
turned the battered Discombobulator south toward the distant lights of
Guatemala City.
As they flew through the soft, now tranquil tropical night, both
Chuck and Larry took turns on the radio trying to convince the capitol's
airport radioman that a serious emergency really existed. There were two men
on duty in the control tower, but both were disinclined to believe the ravings
of two unknown gringas. They also refused to put them through to the
police, or the army, or even the American Embassy.
On the other hand, they were more than willing to make a wide range
of salacious comments, and lewd suggestions. Their English vocabularies
seemed to extend far into that end of the language. Chuck was so mad she
could hardly think straight. The fires of combat still simmered through her
veins, and the constant underlying ache of her dear friend's death only made
it all hurt that much more. The men's lack of respect, the absence of even
rudimentary good manners, and the patronizing, and propositioning over the
radio was surprising and infuriating. At Larry's suggestion she broke off
contact and bored into the blackness with fury raging in her brain.
After a minute or two's stony silence Chuck suddenly pulled a sad
little smile. She turned to Larry and confessed, "Y'know, partner; I don't
think I'd believe a story like this if I were on the other end of the radio,
either."
She took a glance down at the well filled front of her blouse and
grimaced. Then she saw the gold neckchain and it's swastika pendant glinting
against her skin. With a snarl she snapped it off her neck, cracked open the
canopy, and hurled the disgusting piece of junk out into the night. There was
an audible "ting" as it ricocheted off one of the prop blades behind her.
"I can hardly believe the whole thing myself.", she admitted. "But
we've got to get down there and somehow convince those two clowns that
we're not just a couple of crazy American dames!"
She stopped for another mental search of possible convincing
arguments and shrugged helplessly. "Feel free to chime in if you have any
ideas on how to go about it, partner.", she said sarcastically.
Larry was unable to reply immediately. She had dug out her compact
and was refreshing her lipstick just then.
* * * * * * * * * *
Eight hours later Chuck eased into the wind and brought her refueled,
rearmed, and hastily patched up Dennison Discombobulator to a perfect
landing at the plantation's airfield. In the landing pattern behind her were
three C-47s filled with disbelieving, but alert, Guatemalan soldiers. The
country's seven flyable P-51D Mustang fighters crisscrossed the brightening
sky overhead ready to deal death to anyone on the ground with fight left in
them.
It had taken some doing but the presence of the Sky Shark, a plane
with a world-wide recognition factor, riddled with bullet holes, a long
distance call to Colonel Jose Cuervo in Mexico City, and a face to face
meeting with the American Ambassador, eventually convinced the
Guatemalans that Chuck might be not be the lunatic woman she appeared to
be.
She'd re-interated to Cuervo details of their recent get together, and
answered all her old friend's questions about it. She told Cuervo things that
only Chuck Dennison could know, having to convince him before he could
persuade the Guatemalans, aware all the while she was doing it that her
soprano voice was making the task far more difficult.
Finally, it was her recounting of a weekend in Naples when Jose,
Larry, and Chuck had been entertained by three sisters they had met at a bar
near the city's main library. She was able to answer Jose's questions about
the sojourn in exquisite detail, slowly changing the man's half asleep,
disbelieving peevishness into a wide awake, shocked, and fascinated
acceptance.
Her standing with the crowd in the tower radio room went cup
appreciably when the renowned Mexican war hero finally vouched for her.
The U. S. Ambassador, C. Crawford Hollidge, had been a long time
friend of Chuck's father. He was a bit easier to convince, having known
Chuck since she had been a youngster. Of course, he, too, was initially quite
perturbed at being yanked out of bed in the middle of the night over what
sounded like the ravings of a completely mad American woman. But, here,
Chuck had the advantage of having a face to face meeting.
Chuck despite her remarkable transformation, was still, essentially,
Chuck. Once the ambassador got past the overall change in her appearance
and demeanor, which was enormous, and was able to observe and make note
of the individual details: the set of her eyes, the basic shape of her jaw, the
characteristic alertness: he began to see the resemblance. In spite of himself
he began to believe her story. Fortunately, anyone who had known Chuck
would have remarked on his resemblance to the red haired woman who paced
with controlled fire before the ambassador in the embassy's high vaulted
reception hall.
The man had questions, naturally; and the scepticism of a long
political and diplomatic career; but Chuck had all the correct answers. As the
distinguished looking older man began to accept that she really was the child
of his old friend his distant, brusque demeanor began to soften.
He began to appreciate why Chuck had been so successful during the
war. How odd, how shocking, painful, disorienting, and degrading must it
have been to have undergone such experiences? And yet, in spite of treatment
that would have driven most men insane, she had managed to maintain her
courage and equilibrium, organize an escape for herself and her friend, Larry,
and foil an unbelievably insidious and carefully planned plot against the
United States almost single-handedly. She may be a woman, but she was
definitely not a woman to be disregarded.
Hollidge was not immune to her physical charms, either. Once he had
determined that Chuck was not a nut he found himself marvelling at the
effectiveness of the Heidegger Gas, and at the grace, presence and poise of
the woman before him. Her hips swayed disturbingly as she paced,
beautifully rounded buttocks outlined enticingly under her tight-fitting
jodhpurs, spike heels clicking loudly on the marble floor of the room. Her
breasts jiggled ever so slightly under her blouse with each step, and her big
beautiful green eyes flashed with intelligence and vitality as she set out for
him the events of the last few days. Her well modulated, sexy soprano voice
did wonderful things to his spine, and, in spite of himself, his attention began
to wander into other areas.
"Enough, Miss Dennison!", he said quickly, slicing into the wall of
argument she had been throwing at him. "I am convinced that you are who
you say you are; and that your utterly preposterous story is, nevertheless,
true!" He began to smile tentatively as she gasped to a sudden halt in mid
sentence, mouth open, ready to pounce on her next word.
He turned to the station security man, who had been standing alertly
by the door. "Ted! Go wake up Colonel Hall and get him down here, now!"
She began to feel much better when the United States, in the person
of it's ambassador, officially endorsed her identity, vouched for her
character, and urged the Guatemalan government to assist and co-operate
with her.
The Guatemalan government responded quickly. Despite a very
limited public awareness within the United States, the U.S. pretty much ran
things in Guatemala. The truth of the Nazi plot was admittedly fantastic, and
the details were quite complex, but Chuck was able to get the Ambassador,
and the American Military Attache at the embassy, Marine Colonel Dustin
Hall, sufficiently briefed on the events and activities at the Punta Gorda
Plantation to set up a preliminary plan for the rounding up the fleeing Nazis.
During her briefing she was much too absorbed with the urgency of
the immediate situation, and the aching blanket of grief she felt over Emil's
death, to give more than a passing thought to Colonel Hall's nice smile, his
obviously great physical condition, and his appealing nervousness in her
presence.
In spite of everyone's intense efforts, it was nearly six hours before
Chuck could amass a sufficient force to lead back to the plantation by air.
Other garrisons along the way had been alerted, and fully half of the small
country's armed forces was converging on the plantation from all directions.
When she had time, several days later, to consider all that she and Larry had
had to do, the co-operation of so many different branches of government -
both Guatemalan and American- that first had to be convinced and motivated,
and the completely implausible nature of the Nazi threat; the six hour gap that
had seemed so agonizingly slow at the time was actually quite remarkable.
Chuck slid back the canopy as the Discombobulator rolled down the
Punta Gorda runway and got her first close up look at the effects of her
earlier strafing runs. The place was a complete shambles. Hanger B was a
pile of twisted and blackened girders and corrugated steel siding that still
smoldered sullenly, sending a greasy black finger of smoke into the air that
slowly drifted off to the southeast. The warehouse area was largely rubble, as
was the barracks compound that slid into view in the grove beyond the
hangers as the plane approached them.
Disorganized and dispirited women, some by themselves, and some
in groups, wandered aimlessly about the area looking for food, trying to
come to grips with what had happened to them. Others stood slack jawed,
staring at the deadly shape of the Sky Shark as it rolled past.
Some had stripped off their uniforms and wore only their underwear.
Many had taken the time to alter their garments, cutting off their trousers into
shorts, discarding their weapons and webbing, removing the too-long sleeves
from their blouses. A lot of them had tried to clean themselves up and do
something with their waist-length hair. Others just sat and stared off into
space, or cried pitifully.
Chuck turned off the runway and taxied back to the pad outside
Hanger A, which was still undamaged. In the rear seat Larry howled in anger
as she saw no sign of her own Curtiss Commando.
"Those Ratzi bastards made off with my plane!", she wailed. "That
crud, Von Schmuck, must have flown it out of here!"
As Chuck cut the engine switch a well groomed woman in a clean and
stylish blue dress came out of the still undamaged hanger and gave her a
friendly wave. The woman dragged a set of chocks from the edge of the mat
and put them around the Sky Shark's wheels with the skill of long practice.
She was blonde, shapely, and seemed completely at ease in her
feminine clothing but, unlike the vast majority of the others, she also seemed
to know what she was doing. Probably, Chuck imagined, she was a
transformed ground crewman who had enough wits left to continue
performing her duties. She moved with the ease and the natural feminine
grace that had surprised Chuck so much after her own exposure to the gas.
As she drew closer Chuck saw that the woman looked vaguely
familiar, too; much the same way Larry had when she had been introduced as
Katrina. Had that only been three days ago??
The girl's blue dress was definitely familiar. It had come from the big
closet back at the Hacienda. Chuck remembered it well from her detailed
inspection of the wardrobe the day before. The woman had obviously gone
through Frau Heidegger's things and helped herself.
The blonde came around to the front of the wing root and smiled up at
Chuck. That was when it dawned on her. The smile was so familiar, so
unique, and so dear to her, that she squealed in delight, her heart nearly
bursting with joy. Leaping out of the cockpit, she practically fell off the wing
in her eagerness to get down, surprising the hell out of Larry, who looked
around wondering if the plane was on fire, or something.
"Emil!!!", Chuck screamed happily as she gathered in the blonde,
tears of joy rolling down her cheeks. "Darling! Emil! I thought you were
dead!!"
The woman spread her arms to receive her friend's hurtling body,
smiling self effacingly through her own tears as their mutual femininity got in
their way. She was indeed Chuck's new friend and recent lover, ...only now
she was as much a woman as was the American.
Their friendship remained undiluted by events but, just as Chuck had
found herself a heterosexual woman, just as she had been as a man, so too
did Emil discover she no longer felt the same emotional intensity or carnal
physical attraction for the red haired American girl.
She had been unconscious when the gas engulfed her. As a result her
core personality had been far more extensively affected. At the primary level
of consciousness she thought of herself as Emily, a healthy young woman
with completely conventional heterosexual wants and desires. Her secondary
mental level had been converted as well. Every fiber of her being accepted her
femininity as completely natural. She was all woman, with no desire to be
anything else.
Only at the tertiary level did a small core of Emil remain. Here resided
his memories of having been a male, and of his life up to that point, but Emil
had little control of anything else. Elements of his male personality had been
shunted into their female corollaries and incorporated into the fabric of the
woman known as Emily, interwoven completely, indistinguishably, lost in
total femininity.
They hugged for several minutes, patting each other comfortingly,
venting pent up sorrows and fears, and relishing the happiness they felt at
their reunion. Emily was crying for joy while Chuck, sailing on an incredible
crest of elation, began to sense, intuitively, that things were now quite
different. The relationship was now more like the one Larry held; that of a
close, dear, personal friend.
Finally they stepped back from each other and Emily, grinning,
turned around rather proudly, showing off her new body and clothes.
"I guess you can call me Emily now.", she said, her voice a light
breathy soprano. "I've accepted it as my fate. It feels normal and natural, and
it doesn't hurt a bit, except the back of my head where that bastard,
Kleinmeister, conked me." She reached up and winced as she felt the lump
on her head. "I find that I'm surprisingly comfortable as a woman."
"I can see you are,... Emily... And I guess I'm not that ticked off
about my own womanhood anymore, either.", she admitted. Then she
laughed. "The mental adjustment we're feeling is evidently a side effect of
Heidegger's Gas. And, of course, it's not as though we have any choice
about it. Is it?"
Larry, being careful not to soil her clothes, slid gracefully off the
wingroot and walked around to join them. "No it isn't.", she concurred
offering her hand to Emily. "I'm Larry DeMille; or I used to be.", she added,
shaking the blonde's hand firmly. "I think I'm going to call myself Laraine,
from now on, though." Her eyes were flashing with a barely repressed rage.
"Those Nazi bastards can shove the name 'Katrina', and that passive,
submissive sex toy persona that Liesl Heidegger invented for me, where the
sun doesn't shine."
"I may be a woman, but I'm sure as hell not going to be their kind of
woman."
She turned to Chuck with a raised eyebrow. "What about you, green
eyes? What are you going to call yourself? I know you can't be too happy
about Von Schmuck's choice of 'Fiona'."
Chuck shook her head and grimaced. "Don't even remind me.", she
griped, blushing. "I haven't had time to give it any thought ...until now,
Laraine.", -she made a point of using her friend's newly chosen name-, "But
you're right. We can't let those cruds have even that much of a victory."
She paused for a moment, arms still around the others, her face a
picture of concentration. "Charlotte?", she muttered, verbally testing names
as they occurred to her.
"Charlene?"
"Carla?"
"Nah, none of those feel right. Carla is close, though..... Wait a
minute! ... How about Carole!"
She stopped for a minute, rolling the idea over in her mind, poking it,
prodding it, considering from all angles.
"Yeah! That's It!", she beamed. "From now on I'm Carole
Dennison."
The name seemed to fit in her mind like a long sought piece of a
jigsaw puzzle. Happily, with that suddenly vital detail settled, she linked her
arms with her friends and started off toward the Hacienda. "By the way,",
she added, squeezing their arms playfully, "My friends can still call me
Chuck."
The three of them laughed in a very ladylike way as, behind them in
the dim light of a tropical pre-dawn the Guatemalan soldiers piled out of their
transport planes and fanned out to secure the perimeter of the plantation.
Some time later Carole was able to pry a report from Major Gomez,
who was in charge of the Guatemalan troops. The Nazi's had kept very
careful records. Every person on the plantation had been meticulously
documented. There were no males to be found in the area, but all of the
women they had rounded up had been easily identified through the photos in
their paybooks, which, being good German soldiers, they kept on their
persons.
A careful inspection of the plantation had turned up groups of women
trying to hide in the fields and out- buildings, and the bodies of seventy nine
killed in the strafing attacks were strewn around the airstrip and the perimeter.
Carole personally sought out the laboratory building where she confirmed in
her own mind that the crumpled, frightened looking figure of Doctor Leopold
Heidegger with the bullet between his eyes was, in fact, dead.
He was extremely dead, and with him went any immediate hope of
any of them returning to their original sex. There had been a fire in the room,
and in the storage area next door. Evidently some of the chemicals had ignited
during the strafings. All of the records of the doctors research were
completely destroyed.
A survey of the women gas victims demonstrated a fairly narrow
range of types. They were all apparently in their early twenties, healthy, and
quite comely as a group. A further 178 people were missing or unaccounted
for, including Ingo Von Schmuck, Wilhelm Oldendorf, Liesl Heidegger, and
several other officers.
Emily, having been vouched for by Carole and Laraine, was able to
provide them with considerable details of the Nazi exodus, Ten trucks had
headed south, and Larry's C-46 had headed east after taking off, although
Emily had been unable to find out where they were all headed. And she had
not been able to learn anything about Von Schmuck, survival, injury, escape,
nothing! She did, however, give them complete details of their entry into the
country, and the names of those who had helped them.
Distressingly, some of the names were those of Americans,
employees of the Amalgamated Fruit Company, the huge American firm that
controlled most of the agricultural produce of Guatemala. Major Gomez
radioed a warning to all stations and towns in the area to be alert for trucks,
and large groups of foreign women. He was annoyingly sure that they would
have them all in the bag by nightfall.
Carole wasn't nearly as confident. She had carefully searched the
wreckage of the big Dutch fighter plane and found no sign of the crew, nor
even any blood. She was all too aware that Von Schmuck was a vicious,
determined, and resourceful woman. And Liesl Heidegger was a bitch on
wheels. With at least some of the resources of the Amalgamated Fruit
Company at their disposal, the Nazis were going to be far harder to catch than
Gomez imagined.
The members of the group that had fled had to be regarded as well
disciplined, well trained, and probably well armed. It absolutely infuriated
Carole the way Major Gomez just assumed that his men would have an easy
time dealing with the fleeing Nazis simply because they were mostly women.
She wanted to kick him in his smug superiority, and nearly did, a couple of
times.
On the other hand, he was kind of cute, ...if you liked the tall, dark,
and handsome type.
Carole, Laraine, and Emily quickly saw that the Major and his men
were going to be of little help without serious prodding. They quickly
formed their own group and pooled what they knew with what they were able
to deduce from personally questioning the prisoners, and from the physical
evidence about the Haceinda.
Ingo Von Schmuck had indeed fallen victim to the gas. According to
the descriptions from several of the quite submissive prisoners she was now
a tallish, strikingly beautiful, dark haired woman with a curvacious figure.
Her gunner, the one who had proven so skillful during their aerial
battle, and whose name they now learned was Wilhelm Oldendorf, had been
turned into a petite, busty blonde with big blue eyes that rivalled her breasts
as attention getters.
The large women's closet in the Hacienda had been carefully and
selectively picked over. Luggage was missing, as was a car from the garage.
Emily reported that there had been several men who escaped
transformation. These included several officers. Since Laraine's C-46 had
been taken it was safe to assume that a pilot was among the men. It was only
too apparent that enough time had elapsed for the group in the C-46 to have
fled the country, but they knew that Von Schmuck, Liesl Heidegger, and
probably one or two others, had fled in the missing car. That fact led Chuck
to believe, maybe it was just wishful thinking, that the C-46 might still be in
Guatemala.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
On the outskirts of Huehuetenango, near a cluster of crudely built,
straw roofed houses, the Mercedes encountered a roadblock. There could be
no turning back. That would only lead to disaster. The time had come to find
out if the hastily conceived disguises they'd adopted for the road would hold
up under examination.
Liesl put out a hand to Oldendorf, who was cocking her Luger in the
front passenger's seat. "Be a good little girl, Wendy.", she cooed soothingly
in English with a cultured American accent. "Let mommy talk to the nice
policemen. Your little friend there," -she patted the cool angles of the pistol.-
"should stay out of sight unless it's absolutely neccessary."
"Wendy", who was beginning to get caught up in spirit of her
disguise, smiled sweetly and hid the pistol under the voluminous skirt of her
pretty pink dress, one of the ones Liesl had bought for her little secret love
games with Kleinmeister. They had strapped her breasts down with a tightly
wrapped sheet and dressed her in a pink pinafore dress with lace trimmed
white cotton socks, and white leather children's shoes with buckled straps
over the insteps. Her hair had been woven into pigtails tied with pink
ribbons, and a feathery fringe of bangs brushed her forehead. With her face
devoid of makeup she looked about eleven or twelve years old.
At first she had rebelled at the idea of playing a child, but the delicious
falseness of the image had begun to appeal to her as they rode west. She had
tried speaking in a tiny little voice, and adopting the awkward mannerisms of
a child on the verge of womanhood. The results had been surprising and
quite effective. As she practiced, the role quickly became more natural and
convincing. By the time they neared Huehuetenango she was actually having
fun being a little girl.
"OK mommy.", she replied in her little girl voice. "I'll be good. Can I
have a present if we get past the nice policemen without having to kill them?"
"We'll see, dear. But you'll have to be a very good little girl." Liesl
Heidegger, too, was beginning to find a strange enjoyment in their little
adventure.
In the back seat, her dark hair gathered into a white net snood held
with a white plastic barrette, and displaying a few touches of makeup to
highlight her truly remarkable eyes and full sensual lips, Inga Von Schmuck
stopped sulking, straightened up, and made an effort to look pleasant, pretty,
wide eyed, and innocent. She was wearing a navy blue, short sleeved blouse
with white polka dots, puffy sleeves, and a deep vee neckline, over a short
white skirt. Her magnificent legs were beautifully displayed in nylon
stockings, while her feet were tucked into open toed, white leather, sling
backed, high heeled pumps. White button clip-on earrings accented the points
of her jawline.
She was supposed to be the older daughter; willful, flirtatious, self-
centered, naive, and impractical. The shoes alone were totally inappropriate
for a trip through rough country, a nice touch she thought. She took off her
sunglasses, squinted at the suddenly brighter morning, gave her head a
haughty toss, and folded her perfectly manicured hands demurely in her lap.
Just beside her, in a beautiful white leather shoulder purse, lay a
loaded and cocked Walther PPK with the safety on.
Frau Heidegger eased the Mercedes into neutral and gently applied the
brakes as the sleepy squad of rumpled looking policemen got to their feet and
stumbled into something approaching alertness. She brought the big
automobile to a halt beside a thin, mustachioed officer and smiled her
warmest for the man. For her role as the mother of the two younger girls she
had pinned her light brown hair up and put on a soft purple felt fedora with a
broad gros grain band and a feather on the right side. She wore it at an jaunty
angle, and had turned the right side of the brim up and the left side down. A
stylish lilac colored blouse fit her well, while she favored a wide brown belt
and a long, narrow, side slit beige skirt over her pretty and practical brown
leather high heeled boots. She was wearing expensive gold jewelry and was
the image of the fashionable wife of a rich American fruit company manager.
"Buenas dias, senores.", she said, apparently beaming with pride at
her meagre Spanish. "Hablan Ingles, espero?", she added pleadingly.
The officer smiled ingratiatingly. "Si ...er.. Jess, senora. I spik ver'
good Ingles, no?", he thought.
Liesl's smile grew even warmer. "Oh thank God, Captain I'm afraid
my Spanish is not quite ready for anything important. What brings you to the
road at this early hour? I hope there are no banditos operating in the vicinity."
"Oh no, senora.", he temporised. "Eet ees nottin' like daht. To tell
jew dee troot they tol' us ver' leetle; jost to put up a barricade an' to check
thee papers of ev'juan thot came alon'. Some trouble back to thee east, I
theenk."
"That's a relief. I was worried for a minute. It's comforting to know
that you men are on duty. My daughters and I have only just come down to
your beautiful country from the United States to join my husband. He works
for the Amalgamated Fruit Company. Perhaps you know him; George
Wainwright?"
The police lieutenant nearly jumped out of his uniform. George
Wainwright was one of the most powerful men in Guatemala. He had the ear
of El Presidente, Juan Jose Arevalo; and the company he worked for
controlled most of what went on in the country. The policeman's manner
became even more obsequious, bowing and grinning like an idiot.
"I hov never met Senor Wainwright, bot I certainly know hees name.
Eet ees a great pleasure to meet jew Senora Wainwright."
Liesl sensed that it was going well. She had the man eating out of her
hand. "I'm so sorry, Captain.", (she was well aware that he was only a
Lieutenant), "I have completely forgotten my manners. I am Elanore
Wainwright; and these are my daughters." She turned to Oldendorf who was
playing at being bashful at the moment. This is my younger daughter,
Wendy. She's going to be twelve in three weeks. Say hello to the nice man,
Wendy."
Oldendorf was showing real talent for the role. She cringed against
the far door and blushed prettily, squirming, and refusing to look directly at
the cop. "Hi.", she said softly at last.
"You'll have to forgive her, Captain.", Liesl chided the apparent
youngster gently. "She's very shy, and this is the first time she's ever been
away from home."
Lieutenant Hector Alonso Benitez was overwhelmed that such an
important person should even think of apologizing, or explaining anything to
a simple peasant such as himself. These Americans and their Democracy
seemed largely blind to class distinctions. He took off his hat and bowed.
"Good mornin' to jew, leetle lady. You have nottin' to fear from me. I am
Hector Benitez, an' I hov a leetle gorl jus' about yore age. Her name ees
Maria."
Oldendorf stopped squirming and sat up. A big smile grew on her
angelic features. "You do?", she asked, apparently interested for the first
time. "Can she come over to our house to play?"
"Not right now, dear. Maybe on our next visit." Liesl demurred.
Turning to the policeman, she decided it was past time to get to the point.
"What can we do for you this morning, Captain?"
The man looked uncomfortable. He always hated having to deal with
important people, particularly when they had the connections to hurt him far
worse than he did them. This had the potential to be just such a case.
"I weel need to see your papers, senora. Yours, and your lovely
daughters."
In the back seat "Heather Wainwright" stiffened a bit and reached for
her purse very carefully. "Mom" caught the move and flicked her a look of
disapproval. Liesl smiled again and began rummaging through her own
pocketbook. After a moment she came out with a very real looking American
passport. It was one of a number she and her late husband had kept ready for
emergencies. Before they left the Hacienda she had stamped it with a new
customs entry stamp for the airport at Guatemala City.
"Here is mine, Captain.", she said apologetically. "I'm afraid the
children's are in one of the bags in the trunk back there. The customs men
tossed them in when they finished the inspection at the airport." She turned to
the back seat. "This is my grown up daughter, Heather. She'll get them for
you."
To Inga Von Schmuck, now a twenty year old American girl, she
said, "Heather, help the men find your papers. I think they're in the big
brown bag,... or maybe the black one."
"Heather", who had found herself the center of attention for the other
five men of the roadblock crew, frowned petulantly, but got to her feet. She
knew perfectly well that, while Liesl may have covered herself with forged
papers, there were damn sure no passports or visas for "Heather" and
"Wendy" buried in the luggage. If they had to show them they were going to
have to kill these lice-ridden buffoons. "Very well, mother," she replied as
she stretched slightly for her audience, favoring them with a dazzling smile as
she did so, "but I think all that stuff is on the bottom of the pile."
Inga Von Schmuck had spent much of the trip thinking about her
situation, examining the way her body had reacted to the make up and the
pretty clothes, scrutinizing her mental reactions and attitudes, and recalling
with increasing comfort the way she had felt when she was around young
Kessler.
It could have been worse, she realized. She could have died at the
hands of that accursed American bitch. It was with not a little horror that she
realized that she could have been wounded, or disfigured. She was, she had
to admit, quite pleased with her beauty, and the power it seemed to have had
over Kessler and the other men back at the plantation.
She was, she had finally decided, in full control of her mind and
body, although her primary brain functions were totally absorbed by the
feminization inherent in the gas. Her body language, gestures, walk, speech
patterns, and social orientation had become naturally female.
At the secondary level Inga thought that she retained all of her old
memories and skills, and actually imagined that she was beginning to see
delicious new possibilities for her womanhood. In fact, she was no longer
repelled by the fact of her femininity, as some of the other gassed men
seemed to have been. She had examined several of the ramifications of her
new situation, and was intrigued, even anxious, to get on with her life.
It was ridiculously easy to play these men. Her smile alone was
enough to make them forget their duty. They couldn't take their eyes off her
as she posed in the back of the huge Mercedes. The quicker witted of them
tossed their rifles to their mates and practically tripped each other to open the
door for her.
As she stepped down prettily onto the dirt road one gallant private
took her hand and helped her alight. She favored him with a steamy smile,
leaned in to give him a close whiff of her perfume, and whispered, "Gracias,
muchacho!"
As the man grinned like an idiot, and his squad mate watched
jealously "Heather" turned to her "mother".
"You were so right, Mother.", she cooed. "Latin men are so polite
and considerate." She, too, was getting completely into her role, and having
fun with her new powers.
As she started for the back of the car Lieutenant Benitez thought of
another way to ingratiate himself with these very influential women, and in so
doing, unwittingly saved their lives. He put out a hand and stopped her.
"There is no need to upset all your belongin's, senorita I can see thot jew are
not banditas Please continue your journey! I am sorry, ver' sorry for any
inconvenience or alarm we may hov caused jew."
His eyes roamed over Von Schmuck's spectacular figure, staying a
moment or two on her legs, before he offered her his hand to assist her back
into the car. As he did he glared over at the hapless private, who backed off
immediately.
"Thank you, Captain.", she offered with real interest coloring her
tone. "I'll be sure to mention to my father how kindly you and your men have
treated us. I was a little worried about coming down here, but with men like
you around to protect us I feel much better."
The man beamed with pleasure. He watched appreciatively as Heather
took her seat, hiked up her skirt, and crossed her legs deliberately. She
moved with the lithe grace of a jungle cat.
He forced himself to turn away, blushing. He did not want to be
thought of as rude. Mrs Wainwright was holding five American bank notes.
She carefully displayed them so that all the soldiers could see them, and put
them in his hand.
"I want to thank you and your men for being so nice, Captain. Please
share these with your soldiers and enjoy them."
He looked down at his hand and saw a ten dollar bill and four fives. It
was the equivalent of three months pay for all of them. Tears came to his eyes
as he thought of what he could do with his share of it.
"Muchas gracias, senora; senoritas bonitas!" He saluted as Liesl put
the car in gear. "Vaya con Dios!"
The three women smiled. Even little Wendy was grinning and waving
timidly as they rolled away to the west and the safety of their friends in
Huehuetenango.
Behind them the soldiers were lining up for their share of the money,
far more interested in that now than in the gringas who gave it to them.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
The astonishingly over-decorated Great Hall of the Presidential Palace
was ablaze with the lights from a hundred chandeliers. The mellow glow
shone through the banks of tall windows on either side, throwing serried
stripes of light through the dark across the courtyard to the lesser buildings
that surrounded the palace, and beyond to the jumble of low, lightless and
ramshackle houses of the ordinary people of the city. Only the important
structures in Ciudad Guatemala had the luxury of electricity, and at night
those priviledged few were easy to spot.
Carole stood near the heart of the blaze sipping chilled white wine as
she swept her eyes over the animated throng that filled that great gilt
encrusted barn. Everyone present was in full sartorial flower, both those in
civilian clothes, and the many wearing Guatemala's colorful and gold-
bedecked, nineteenth century style, full-dress military uniforms. It was as if
the people were attempting to out-glitter the room.
The whole scene reminded her of a movie set from one those Erroll
Flynn costume epics. She half expected to see Nigel Bruce and C. Aubrey
Smith come sauntering around one of the ornate columns in full British Army
dress uniforms of the Victorian era; with Spring Byington and Olivia De
Haviland on their arms.
Earlier, getting ready for the soiree back at her hotel suite, Carole had
felt a little foolish and very conspicuous in her own elegant new ballgown,
but once inside the palace she'd realized that anything less would have caused
attention even more forcefully. Still, crowds were a little unsettling to her,
especially being on the receiving end of the openly curious and often
admiring inspections of the men in attendance. These were constant, open,
brazen, and often downright rude by her own standards of behavior. She
tried to recall if Chuck had ever behaved like a lout with a woman, and
decided that, given her unique sensationalistic situation, he probably would
have. Her initial anger turned to cool distain, and finally, resigned
acceptance.
"If I spend half a day getting primped, polished, and gussied up,",
she had sighed to Laraine at one point in the festivities, "I guess I can't object
too much if the guys take notice."
In the days leading up to the reception she had had the chance to
arrange for credit through the assistance of the Embassy staff. She, and her
girlfriends, had been introduced to the three existing fashionable shops in the
country through the graciousness of the Ambassador's wife, and through
discussions with the wives of several of the, suddenly very humble,
Amalgamated Fruit Company honchos.
Although Carole had been too busy over the previous few days to pay
much attention to it, her core personality, Chuck, had continued to be eroded
by Heidegger's gas. She was dimly aware of her ever growing femininity,
but the more it grew the more comfortable and at home she felt with it.
Shopping had begun as a strange adventure. Her initial interest in the
multitude of new colors and styles and types of clothing now available to her
grew with each minor success at choosing a piece of apparrel, an item of
jewelry, a tasteful accessory. By the second day she was actually having fun.
Annette Hollidge was a kind, intelligent, and charming guide. Carole began
to regard her as a something of a mentor when it came to matters of style.
Now, as she stood in the foyer outside the main hall chatting amiably
with the U.S. ambassador and his wife, she found that she rather enjoyed the
way her escort for the evening, Major Miguel Gomez, gallantly kept her
slightest wish instantly gratified.
Carole had to admit that she felt absolutely wonderful. And the facts
that she looked as though she had just stepped off the pages of Vogue, and
really enjoyed getting fussed over by Miguel, didn't hurt her disposition any
either; although the whole idea of being pretty, or of being some guy's date,
was still new to her. Annette Hollidge's personal hairdresser had worked on
her for most of the morning, and that had proved to be quite uplifting as well.
Her hair was beautifully coiffed, and her dark green gown showed off her
figure to perfection.
Everyone in the group was feeling quite pleased with themselves; and
with good reason. The Nazi plot had been completely derailed. Heidegger
was dead, and the threat of his gas was lost with him.
Most of the fleeing Nazis were in custody. Their truck convoys had
run into heavily armed roadblocks set up in their paths with the help of
superb aerial reconnaisance organized by Laraine.
Around her the murmur and babble of the large and festive crowd in
the Great Hall mingled with the sound of a small, but competent orchestra,
which was set up on the balcony near the main staircase. It all faded into the
background a bit as Carole listened to Annette Hollidge's stories about Bess
Truman's almost passionate avoidance of any kind of publicity with only half
an ear.
The rest of her thoughts wandered back over those first few hours of
the search.
As happy as she was with the final results, she was all too aware that
her own initial stubbornness had caused several prime hours to be wasted.
During that first day of the hunt she had initially felt an ever
increasing frustration over Major Gomez's patronizing attitude toward her
and her friends. Laraine, Emily, and herself, had all been combat soldiers
with far more experience than Gomez, or any of his men. But, just because
they now lacked a penis, and had acquired breasts, the man simply ignored
their suggestions and proceeded on his own way. Just an inch away from
physically attacking the man, she had been surrounded by her pals and forced
out onto the front porch of the Hacienda.
"You're losing control, Carole.", Emily hissed at her through
clenched teeth and immobile lips. "And you're not helping the mission, or
yourself, by getting into a pissing contest with Major Gomez. If you just
calm down and think about it for a minute, there are ways to get what you
want."
Both Laraine and Emily had long since freshened up and put on some
of Frau Heidegger's prettiest clothes. Carole had been noticing for some time
that they seemed to be having some success in influencing Gomez and his
men, This had only increased her annoyance.
A few minutes later, upstairs,in the quiet of her former room, Carole
decided that Emily was probably right. There was more than one way to skin
this particular cat. She got out of her now thoroughly sweaty and dirty flying
outfit and took a hot bath, using the delightfully relaxing soak to plan her new
approach to Gomez
Later, when she stood at the open french doors in the Hacienda's
elegant dining room, feeling much better, Major Gomez, acting on a
suggestion from her, bustled about on the phone across the room busily
checking with several of his outposts even though the vast bulk of the Nazi
fugitives were already safely under lock and key.
For the occasion she had chosen to wear a pale green satin cocktail
dress because she somehow sensed that it went well with her coloring. It was
a particularly becoming style with a low cut bodice and a short full skirt that
really showed off her figure. She had taken her hair out of the braid, and she
and Lizabetta had spent some time with a curling iron working it into a
sophisticated, assymetrical arrangement with a smooth crown, fluffy curls at
the ends, and a puff of curly bangs at her forehead.
A search of the upstairs rooms revealed that Liesl Heidegger had
taken most of the good jewelry, but one magnificent diamond and emerald
necklace and earring set had managed to remain behind. They looked
fabulous on Carole, as did a diamond bracelet that had also been overlooked.
'Say what you will about Liesl Heidegger.', she reluctantly admitted as she
inserted the posts into her earlobes, 'The miserable bitch has great taste in
clothes!'
Carole had taken the time to look just right. The process, and the
results, were a source of surprising gratification to her, thanks to the
influence of Heidegger's gas. Her nylon clad legs shimmered in the low
angled sunlight, and the green satin high heeled pumps showed off her
delicate turn of ankle to maximum effect. She had taken special care with her
nails, which had somehow survived unscathed, and she was wearing a touch
of Chanel No. 5, a fragrance that she found really pleasant.
There is an inner glow women get from looking pretty, and knowing
that they do, that was completely new to her; but the successes of the late
afternoon had helped improve her disposition markedky.
Earlier, on her way back downstairs to Major Gomez's temporary
HQ, with Laraine at her side, she had stopped by the kitchen to put a
proposition to her two friends, Liz and Terri. They had simply stayed on at
the Hacienda when the Nazis left, having no place else to go, really. Their
familys would not recognize them now, and would undoubtedly reject them
even if the girls could make them believe their real identities.
They both had been poor local farmers. Liz had been a forty two year
old man, just about maximum life expectancy in that poverty stricken
country. She had had a wife and three sons. Recent inquiries had assured her
that her family should be alright. The boys had already taken over the day to
day running of the family's farm, and fine strong handsome lads they were.
Lizabetta was now about the same age as Carole. The gas had left her
in her late teens. With her looking the way she did, and with the strong
sexual urges imparted by the gas, she had no desire to cause mortal sin to
tempt her boys, or herself. Besides, another mouth to feed from the fruits of
that small farm, and a useless woman at that, might tip the delicate balance of
survival in that harsh existence to the minus side. There was no place for her
there any longer.
Terri had lost her immediate family to disease two years earlier. There
were two of her brothers still in the area but, in her revised situation, she had
no desire to encounter them. She knew their attitudes toward women all too
well. After all, they had once been her own.
Aside from the fact that she had no interest in a sexual relationship
with her own brothers, a prospect she regarded as inevitable if she were to try
to join them, the entire range of life opportunity for a peasant woman in rural
Guatemala was one that had no appeal to her at all.
She had been trying to work her land alone, after she had buried her
family, with little success. When the Germans came in and expanded their
banana plantation they bought her land for what she had thought to be a
remarkable sum, ...and they had given her a job. It had been like a gift from
God; or so she thought. Three days later Doctor Heidegger had given her and
Lizabetta a test shot of his gas, and had been as surprised as anyone when
they turned into women.
Both women were only too happy to accept Carole's offer to come to
the U.S and work for her. There was nothing to keep them in Guatemala any
longer. So, when their new boss suggested that they fix "something nice" for
Major Gomez' dinner, they were only too glad to have an opportunity to
demonstrate their recently acquired culinary skills.
It had turned out to be a very productive dinner. Major Gomez had
almost swallowed his mustache when Carole swept regally into the dining
room from the kitchen, wearing a dazzling smile, and bearing a glass of
chilled Dom Perignon "27" for the man who had been working so hard to
catch those nasty Nazis.
After that, things began to move with incredible speed.
By seven that evening, -the Germans had continued to take their
meals at northern European hours-, the table had been set, and Laraine and
Emily had joined them. The girls were not to be outdone by Carole. They
were dressed to the nines, and had each come to the meal escorted by the
officers they had earlier selected to "motivate."
Emily, the most recent victim of the gas, and the most thoroughly
affected by it, had decided quite early that morning that Captain Juan
Vasquez, a young, handsome, personable lad from a very wealthy family,
was just the boy to help her try out her new equipment.
Vasquez was in charge of communications, and was the first one to
prove co-operative. Under Emily's subtle guidance he had done a lot to find
the escaped Germans, and arrange the strategic roadblocks that had resulted
in the capture of all the trucks and personnel.
Emily was quite taken with the boy. The two of them were like high
schoolers at the table; giggling, holding hands, gazing lovesick at each other.
If it hadn't been so cute it might have made the others nauseous.
Laraine had latched onto Captain Diego Guzman of the Air Force. He
was dashing, charming, of wealthy family, as were the majority of
Guatemala's officer corps, and not very bright. Laraine had had no trouble
coaxing him to let her fly with him on a noon flight to search for signs of
their quarry, and the boy had been only too happy to let the beautiful
American senorita take the controls of his C-47 that afternoon.
He seemed oblivious to the fact that their sighting of the C-46 at the
AFC airport in Puerto Barrios, or finding the locations and directions of the
truck convoys on two roads heading south, were no part of luck. Acting on
clues obtained through Emily's work with Captain Vasquez, Laraine had
carried out the only effective reconnaissance sweeps of the day. She had also
managed to keep the Captain too entertained to notice her extensive flying
skill and military knowledge.
Carole, catching on rather later than her friends, soon had Major
Gomez eating out of her hand, too. Perhaps it wasn't the way she would
have done it in the old days; the standing close to let her perfume have it's
effect, the subtle and frequent physical contact, -the gentle laying of her hand
on his, the brush of her breasts against him as she thanked him for thinking
of a proper order, the kiss at the finding of the plane, the whisper in his ear to
get the Navy garrison at Puerto Barrios to quietly surround the fugitives
there-, the flattery, the wheedling; but it really was effective when she got her
beauty and charm focussed and rolling.
She discovered that feminine persuasion and manipulation could be
fun, too. She got a real emotional lift out of using her looks, and out of
playing the subtle mental games that women have used for centuries to get
what they wanted. It required her to re-examine her assets constantly, and
work more indirectly and cerebrally. It was a stimultaing intellectual
challenge.
She wondered if it was a uniquely female ability because, in the past
she had always used the direct approach with great success, and had been
utterly dismayed when it had failed miserably, both with the authorities in
Guatemala City the previous night, and again that morning with Major
Gomez and his men.
Close questioning of their prisoners by the Guatemalan troops, -she
didn't want to think too much about what that actually entailed- , had led to
the capture of many more Nazis in other locations. Descriptions of the
principal figures were quickly distributed to all areas of the country, and
several more leads were being actively pursued.
Miguel Gomez, for his part, had belatedly discovered how charming
this American woman could be. She had been thrilled when Guzman located
the Nazi's plane. She had kissed him right in front of the courier who
brought him the message about the capture of the truck convoys. Now,
sitting at the table beside him, she had replaced the Nazis as the center of his
attention. Not only was she easily the most beautiful woman he had ever
seen, but also her evident attraction to him and her enthusiastic ways of
praising his handling of the developing situation at Puerto Barrios had raised
his blood pressure considerably.
At first she had been difficult, demanding, shrill, and moody, no
doubt as a result of having to deal with her reluctant transformation. But, as
the day went on she seemed to come to understand that he knew what he was
doing, and her personality grew far more convivial. He had never known her
when she was a man, and found it impossible to think of her as anything
other than the beautiful and fascinating woman she was.
At the dinner table, he watched her chatting happily with Captain
Guzman and the dark haired American woman. She was so desireable, and
so affectionate when she was happy, like now, that he really regretted not
hitting it off with her earlier. She smelled wonderful, too.
Carole had been sharing some of her aviation experiences with
Captain Guzman. The Guatemalan flier was particularly interested in the
dogfight of the night before. Both Von Schmuck and Carole were already
legendary figures to him from their world famous exploits during the war.
The chance to hear about the only meeting between these two aces from the
victor of the contest was a thrill he would never forget.
It no longer seemed to matter to him that Chuck Dennison was now a
disturbingly beautiful woman. Of course, at first he had been very much
repulsed and frightened by the tales of the Heidegger Gas but, as he had
come to know Carole and her friends, particularly the charming Senorita
Laraine Demille, he, too, had quickly, gallantly, and deliberately forgotten
that they had ever been men.
"..so you see, Captain,', Carole concluded, characteristically soft
pedalling her own abilities, "it was much more a question of the innate
superiority of the Dennison Dicombobulator than any real skill on my part.
Laraine was invaluable in keeping me informed about Von Schmuck's
location, heading, and speed, while the lightness of the control responses of
my good old Sky Shark allowed me to compensate for my diminished
physical strength far more effectively than my opponent could. She is a
superb fighter pilot, to be sure. I just had a better plane,", she turned, and
smiled proudly at Laraine. "..and a wonderful tactical advisor."
"In fact; the whole idea of a second person in the cockpit, acting as a
spotter and tactical advisor, worked so well for us that I'm going to
recommend to the Navy and Air Corps that they seriously consider making all
fighters of the future into two seat, combat team fought aircraft."
She then turned to Gomez and leaned into his shoulder suggestively.
"Speaking of tactical ability, Miguel...," she said smiling, eyes aglow,
promise in every nuance of her body language, "...that was one of the
cleverest things I've ever seen; isolating that mob at Puerto Barrios. How
ever did you think of it?"
He flinched slightly, and grew quite flushed "I..I..ah. Ah.. j, just
knew that Commander Zubizaretta was in port ..a and ..ah it seemed only
natural to bring him in to contain the Nazis until reinforcements arrive in the
morning. It would have taken the nearest Army unit several hours to get
there." His confidence was growing. "It's not that difficult to think of these
details when you've had the training in military matters."
At that point he realised something he had not thought of at the time.
He wasn't a fool. And he was not a bad guy, really; just a product of the
Latin culture with it's tradition of male superiority.
He leaned over happily and gave Carole a kiss on the cheek. "Of
course, if I remember rightly, my dear lady;", he said with real respect, "it
was your inquiry about our Naval forces that gave me the idea to call
Commander Zubizaretta in the first place."
Carole was impressed. She had come to like Miguel a lot better as
things had progressed. After a few subtle nudges from her he really had
begun to press the search effectively. He resisted at first, but then he seemed
to become aware that she had been "encouraging" him, and was willing to
publicly acknowledge her assistance. He was a very cute guy, and he looked
very sexy in his dress uniform.
She continued to ponder her feelings toward Miguel. They were quite
different from the way she had felt about Emil. This was nice. It was an
excitement, a warmth, a physical attraction, a desire to be nice to a nice guy, a
need to make him feel her gratitude. With Emil it had been much more
intense. More heart, less head.
These thoughts led to a wistful look over at Emily who was happily
enjoying the attention of Juan Vasquez. She was easily the most beautiful of
the three of them, and the most thoroughly feminine. While Carole knew that
she still had a few rough edges, and Laraine's sense of humor was a little too
earthy for true gentility, Emily was soft spoken, bright, graceful as a dancer,
and completely at ease with her womanhood.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Chapter Five
Before dawn the day after retaking of Punta Gorda Carole was back
in a more action oriented ensemble. What had begun the day as clean khaki
jodhpurs were now quite dusty, and her white cotton blouse, darkened here
and there with persperation, clung to her curves in the tropical heat. The now
familiar and comfortable high heeled boots were starting to show some very
un-ladylike wear. Her hair was rewoven into a thick single braid, this time
more expertly done by the skilled hands of Lizabetta; and this time was
partially hidden under a broad brimmed Panama hat to keep the sun from her
delicate featues. Emil's old Walther P-38 pistol hung at her hip in it's leather
holster.
Miguel Gomez sat beside her in the open Lincoln Continental as it
sped eastward towards Puerto Barrios and a showdown with the Nazis at the
Amalgamated Fruit Company compound adjascent to the airport there. Three
heavily armed U.S. Marines from the Embassy rode in the front seat while
Colonel Hall sat on her other side dividing his attention between his men and
the woman in the middle.
The big Marine was in a quandry. Carole was an undeniably lovely
woman. His body was almost automatically attracted to her. On the other
hand, his mind was having real problems with the facts surrounding her
womanhood. His initial reaction had been one of pure loathing. The whole
idea of Heidegger's gas made his skin crawl. He had been partially won over
that first night at the Embassy when she had conducted herself as a true
professional. As she outlined the map of the Punta Gorda plantation, and
discussed ideas on assaulting it he found himself grudgingly impressed and
intrigued.
They had been conversing for a couple of hours as the convoy rattled
along the dusty road. She never complained about the heat, or the dust, or
much of anything. On the other hand, she was a font of information about the
baseball season, and showed a keen interest in, and knowledge of the game.
He noted, however, that she packed a small valise with "nessesities",
something he doubted that Chuck would have done.
Behind their car three truckloads of soldiers from Miguel's command
jostled along in the dust, to reinforce the Navy troops surrounding the
Germans and their accomplices.
It was not a very good position for the Nazis to be in. To the north,
the Bay of Amatique was shallow water opening onto the Gulf of Honduras.
Any vessels heading away would be easy to spot and stop, either by the two
small, but powerful, gunboats of Commander Zubizaretta's flotilla, or by the
P-51s that Captain Guzman and Laraine would be leading overhead to
provide an added incentive for the Nazis to surrender.
To the east of the Amalgamated Fruit Company's airstrip lay several
miles of tilled banana fields before the ground gave way to deadly, disease-
ridden, quicksand laden, poisonous reptile and alligator infested swamps that
went on for miles before ending at a desolate, uninhabited beach on the gulf.
To the south, after more impassable swamps, lay the Motagua River, wide
and deadly, inhabited by alligators and piranhas, and crossed by no ferries or
bridges.
To the west, in the narrow stretch of land between Lake Izabel and the
Motagua was the main road in or out of Puerto Barrios, the road Carole and
the army were on at that moment; and one other road branching off
northwestward across a bridge at the narrowest point of the lake toward San
Benito and British Honduras. That road was blocked by a force of a hundred
heavily armed soldiers waiting in ambush at that bridge.
All the reports from the Navy commander at Puerto Barrios indicated
that the Germans were all in the net, and that they seemed to be unaware that
they had been surrounded. They were at the AFC facility on the east side of
the city.
Miguel, acting on the information extracted from the prisoners at
Punta Gorda, estimated that the number of the opposition could be no higher
than forty. No more than ten of those were still men. With three hundred
Navy personnel, and the sixty soldiers he was bringing with him, the odds
were more than eight to one in his favor.
Surely that would be more than enough.
They arrived in the town of Puerto Barrios a little after eight in the
morning and found Commander Zubizaretta at a command post hastily set up
in a peasant's shack about a half mile from the main gate of the AFC
compound. Now that it was daylight the airport was clearly visible in the
shimmering heat that was increasing by the minute.
The view through Miguel's binoculars was even more distorted by the
heat waves blasting up from the concrete road and runways, and from the
corrugated steel sheeting that seemed to be AFCs preferred wall and roofing
material. Carole could see three of the seven machine guns that the energetic
naval officer had deployed around the compound, and the backs of about fifty
of his men, arranged in two lines, in good cover in the heavy vegitation on
the far banks of drainage ditches that completely surrounded the entire
facility.
Ernesto Zubizaretta was a tall, distinguished looking man in his mid
fifties. His wide, ready smile, and a touch of gray hair at his temples only
accentuated his resemblance to movie actor, Gilbert Roland. He was
exaggeratedly courteous and respectful to Carole, a true gentleman. As if that
weren't enough to get Carole's attention, he also went out of his way to
include her in the briefings about the tactical situation, and to seek her
opinions about possible actions to bring the thing to a successful conclusion.
He had a steady, competent, confidence-inspiring air about him as he
pointed out his troop dispositions to Miguel. Carole, even after a cursory
review of his force dispositions, had to admit that, for a Navy man, he
seemed to have a very good feel for a ground combat situation. All of his
machine gun positions had interlocking fields of fire, and every exit, culvert,
drainage ditch, and structure in the complex was covered by armed sailors.
In a truck, carefully screened from view from the compound in a
grove of trees just beside his field headquarters, he had set up his radio base,
and was in touch with all of his detachments via walkie talkies. Off to the
north, about a mile out in the gulf, drifted one of his gunboats, also in the
communications net, ready to provide artillery support. His other gunboat sat
ten miles further out, at the extreme range of it's single 5 inch gun, blocking
the exit from the bay.
Beyond the hidden ring of sailors, about a hundred yards behind the
gate of the fenced-in banana processing facility, and to the left, sat a single
aircraft hanger. The nose of Larry's C-46 protruded through it's doors,
which had been closed as much as possible to try to conceal it. Beyond it was
a row of low buildings which provided housing for American management
personnel, and a large two story structure that had the control tower for the
airstrip mounted on it's roof.
It was in that building that the Germans seemed to be quartered. From
time to time several of them, both men and women, all in civilian clothes, had
been spotted outside the buil