the vietminh
in the fifties. this is different. if i get a deposition with any proof of
duc's involvement, i’ll contact you upon
my return. good. dismissed. gib came to attention and left. against his better judgment, he looked forward to seeing
dany. had she recovered from the initial shock of her mother's death? he hadn't been able to forget the look on her
face the puffiness beneath her eyes, showing how much she'd cried. moving between the long rows of tents, he made
his way to his own recalling ma ling's severe censure about showing up in uniform, gib decided that to keep the peace
he'd better slip into civilian clothes. his tent was small and spare, including a metal bunk with a thin mattress on it, a
metal locker where he stored his clothes, an office desk and a phone. the plywood floor was swept daily by vietnamese
women who worked on the base, but sand inevitably crunched beneath his flight boots. grabbing a towel, gib headed
for the hastily erected plywood showers that stood at the end of the row of tents. on some days, the grit of marble
mountain felt like burrs under a saddle as far as gib was concerned. the fine sand got trapped inside his dark green
flight suit and chafed until his skin was raw and bleeding. then fungal infection could set in, becoming a nightmare of
trying to get rid of the leaky abrasions with ten dug cycles of penicillin. he shook his head at the thought. yeah, great
climate they had here. right now gib wanted a lukewarm shower to cleanse his crowded, exhausted mind almost as
much as to wash the sand off his body drying himself afterward, he padded down the row of tents in his shower
thongs, the white towel wrapped loosely around his narrow hips. it would be a welcome change to get out of his one
piece flight uniform and into a set of clean civilian clothes. back at his tent, gib pulled on a light blue short sleeved shirt,
fresh underwear and tan slacks, then quickly ran a comb through his short dark hair, taming it into place. feeling semi
human once again he borrowed a yellow citroen from an arvn officer friend and headed toward dany villard’s
plantation. as gib drove along highway 1, which would eventually lead to 14 his mind strayed to the passing countryside.
the afternoon heat was building across vietnam, the sun burning down from a bright azure sky to touch the top of the
triple canopied jungle. the smells that surrounded gib were many from pungent and acrid to cloyingly sweet. to him,
vietnam was a land of extremes, but more than anything, it was one of the most beautiful places on earth and,
unfortunately, rapidly becoming one of the deadliest. as he drove down the villard plantation's long redbrick driveway,
gib saw the few vietnamese peasants working along the boulevard look up in curiosity. but their faces gave away
nothing of what they thought or felt about his intrusive presence. at the house, gib climbed out of the citroen. the need
to see dany was nearly overwhelming in one sense, yet uncomfortable in another. as he took the steps two at a time,
gib tried to search for why he was drawn so powerfully to her, but no answer was forthcoming. all he knew was that
thinking of dany brought a lush flow of feelings that he'd thought he'd lost by being in combat for nearly two tours. and
he couldn't afford to feel like that not here in vietnam with the rigors of combat he faced every day he knocked at
the screen door and waited patiently for ma ling to appear. ma ling answered his knock, her broad brow wrinkling
instantly when she saw who it was. yes? she demanded. gib spoke slowly. i’m here to see miss villard. ma ling's scowl
deepened, but she reluctantly opened the door. come, you go through house. miss dany out with workers. gib nodded.
thank you,” shaking her head, ma ling led him through the teakwood halls to a rear door. go out there, she ordered. you
find her there. gib thanked her and, leaving his briefcase near the back door, stepped out once more into the sunshine.
bougainvillea grew in bright profusion around the rear of the house, and a small, carefully manicured lawn with a
number of silk trees bordering it made up the backyard. a variety of orchids climbed and hung in the limbs of the silk
trees, their colors and scents dazzling his senses. as always, the calls of birds, each melody different, wafted out of the
jungle that surrounded the rubber tree plantation like a somewhat discordant symphony. screamer monkeys could be
heard, their shrieks sounding almost human in the distance. beyond the small oval lawn row upon row of rubber trees
stretched for as far as the eye could see. to the left sat a small village of thatched huts. as gib
my return. good. dismissed. gib came to attention and left. against his better judgment, he looked forward to seeing
dany. had she recovered from the initial shock of her mother's death? he hadn't been able to forget the look on her
face the puffiness beneath her eyes, showing how much she'd cried. moving between the long rows of tents, he made
his way to his own recalling ma ling's severe censure about showing up in uniform, gib decided that to keep the peace
he'd better slip into civilian clothes. his tent was small and spare, including a metal bunk with a thin mattress on it, a
metal locker where he stored his clothes, an office desk and a phone. the plywood floor was swept daily by vietnamese
women who worked on the base, but sand inevitably crunched beneath his flight boots. grabbing a towel, gib headed
for the hastily erected plywood showers that stood at the end of the row of tents. on some days, the grit of marble
mountain felt like burrs under a saddle as far as gib was concerned. the fine sand got trapped inside his dark green
flight suit and chafed until his skin was raw and bleeding. then fungal infection could set in, becoming a nightmare of
trying to get rid of the leaky abrasions with ten dug cycles of penicillin. he shook his head at the thought. yeah, great
climate they had here. right now gib wanted a lukewarm shower to cleanse his crowded, exhausted mind almost as
much as to wash the sand off his body drying himself afterward, he padded down the row of tents in his shower
thongs, the white towel wrapped loosely around his narrow hips. it would be a welcome change to get out of his one
piece flight uniform and into a set of clean civilian clothes. back at his tent, gib pulled on a light blue short sleeved shirt,
fresh underwear and tan slacks, then quickly ran a comb through his short dark hair, taming it into place. feeling semi
human once again he borrowed a yellow citroen from an arvn officer friend and headed toward dany villard’s
plantation. as gib drove along highway 1, which would eventually lead to 14 his mind strayed to the passing countryside.
the afternoon heat was building across vietnam, the sun burning down from a bright azure sky to touch the top of the
triple canopied jungle. the smells that surrounded gib were many from pungent and acrid to cloyingly sweet. to him,
vietnam was a land of extremes, but more than anything, it was one of the most beautiful places on earth and,
unfortunately, rapidly becoming one of the deadliest. as he drove down the villard plantation's long redbrick driveway,
gib saw the few vietnamese peasants working along the boulevard look up in curiosity. but their faces gave away
nothing of what they thought or felt about his intrusive presence. at the house, gib climbed out of the citroen. the need
to see dany was nearly overwhelming in one sense, yet uncomfortable in another. as he took the steps two at a time,
gib tried to search for why he was drawn so powerfully to her, but no answer was forthcoming. all he knew was that
thinking of dany brought a lush flow of feelings that he'd thought he'd lost by being in combat for nearly two tours. and
he couldn't afford to feel like that not here in vietnam with the rigors of combat he faced every day he knocked at
the screen door and waited patiently for ma ling to appear. ma ling answered his knock, her broad brow wrinkling
instantly when she saw who it was. yes? she demanded. gib spoke slowly. i’m here to see miss villard. ma ling's scowl
deepened, but she reluctantly opened the door. come, you go through house. miss dany out with workers. gib nodded.
thank you,” shaking her head, ma ling led him through the teakwood halls to a rear door. go out there, she ordered. you
find her there. gib thanked her and, leaving his briefcase near the back door, stepped out once more into the sunshine.
bougainvillea grew in bright profusion around the rear of the house, and a small, carefully manicured lawn with a
number of silk trees bordering it made up the backyard. a variety of orchids climbed and hung in the limbs of the silk
trees, their colors and scents dazzling his senses. as always, the calls of birds, each melody different, wafted out of the
jungle that surrounded the rubber tree plantation like a somewhat discordant symphony. screamer monkeys could be
heard, their shrieks sounding almost human in the distance. beyond the small oval lawn row upon row of rubber trees
stretched for as far as the eye could see. to the left sat a small village of thatched huts. as gib
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