Thanks to Great-Enchantress for the review - I'm working on reading Bonnie Blue Flag, but right now what I read is being dictated by someone else. About Eisenhower - he was Supreme Allied Commander, in charge of all Allied Forces in the European Theater, so James would be under Eisenhower's command, however indirectly.

For several days James rested at Marie's, gathering strength while he listened to Nazi propaganda on the wireless. It would actually be scary if it was true. James didn't buy into the optimists' belief that the Third Reich was on its last legs, but he knew it wasn't nearly as powerful as the wireless said. From what he had heard before being shot down, Germany's production was down, that they were being steadily pushed back by the Reds, and that they had been all but kicked out of Africa and Italy.

In the evenings, James had far more interesting things to amuse himself than the Nazis' broadcasts. Marie Alouise was by far the most enchanting and alluring woman he had ever met. Every time James looked into her deep blue eyes, his heart melted. There was such innocence behind those eyes, an innocence that the war had shattered. As she told the tale of the last five years, James found himself aching with sympathy for the girl, at least at first. By the time she had told him everything, his blood boiled with anger.

What made it worse was the realization that there were thousands, maybe even millions of stories like Marie's.

At dawn on James's fourth day in France, Pierre Malreaux returned to find Marie and James curled up on the sofa in front of a dying fire. The Frenchmen coughed loudly.

James and Marie both jumped.

"I see you to have gotten to know each other." Marie and the pilot both blushed. Pierre only smirked. "I've devised a plan that will get you to Carentan. As soon as night falls, I will arrive here with a Nazi staff car and a Nazi officer's cap. You'll wear the cap and play fascist and I'll be your driver. We'll be driving you from another town to Carenten, where you'll be meeting your mistress."

"Really? A mistress? I like this plan," James quipped. Marie scowled at him.

"Be ready." With that last remark and a twirl of his mustache, the French rogue left.

James turned to Marie with a grin on his face. "You hear that? I'm actually going to get back to England! I can't wait to get back into the cockpit and give Hitler what I owe him!" he gushed.

However, his enthusiasm faltered when he saw that the scowl was still on Marie's face. "What's wrong, babe?"

Suddenly Marie was livid. "I can't believe you. You've gotten shot down, nearly died, and the moment you get back you're going to do it all again?" "You got lucky once, James – you're not going to be that lucky again. Next time they're going to…to…kill you!" All of her anger had faded in that short burst and the last words came out as a sob.

James pulled her close. "They're not going to kill me."

"Don't go back up there James!"

"I've got to. Hitler's a madman. He needs to be stopped before more families get torn up, before more girls lose their families and their innocence."

"Please don't go back. Don't leave me."

James shook his head sadly. "I've got to go."

As daylight began to wane, the airfield became abuzz with activity. Along with the usual fighter patrols, an enormous armada of transports had been rolled out onto the runway and thousands of paratroopers milled about.

Sergeant Bradford and a few of his fellow NCOs sat in a cluster atop a few crates. "You know," he said as he held up the mussette bag, "I don't trust this."

Ricky shook his head. "I'm sure they've jump-tested it. It'll be fine."

"Schmitts is right Mitch," added one of the other sergeants. "It'll be fine," he repeated.

"Come on guys, you've jumped. You know just how fast we go. You guys can use them if you want, but I'm carrying my Thompson over my shoulder."

"You're going to choke to death," said Ricky.

Mitch was about to further debate the issue when Captain Keane walked over. The enlisted men jumped to salute, but the Captain shook his head. "At ease boys."

"What's going on Captain?"

Keane smiled grimly. "This is it fellas. Get your men together and get to your planes. We'll be leaving in twenty."