A Company of Heroes

The 2nd Breaking Point

Chapter 15 this is the second toughest chapter yet.

 Chapter 14:

Over the week since Guarnere, Compton and Toye had been pulled off the line, Easy Company had been securing their position opposite of Foy, Donnie had been relentless which had worried the veterans of Easy, Lipton had been worried about his buddy and understandably everyone knew it. Lipton always reminded Donnie of his older brother Eric and it had made him smile seeing signs of the wise advice Eric had given him.

They had been sitting in their foxhole as Lipton watched Donnie scratch his face like crazy. Donnie had noticed he had been growing a beard but it had gone unnoticed as Lipton smirked without laughing despite it being funny as he finally said, "You got a problem, bud?" "Yeah, I'm glad your having fun with this" "Oh I am having fun, looks like your growing a little stubble" "I will shoot you, Lip don't tempt me" Lipton kept laughing in amusement at the fact as he said, "You ever been taught to shave?" "Yeah, Eric taught me when I finally got him to go out with his current sweetheart" "When are you going to do it?" "When we finally get off the line" Lipton nodded as he saw Donnie's smile grow wider, Lipton knew he was regaining his old self, but he had a bad feeling it wouldn't last for long.

January 10th 1945

It was a quiet night in the woods, Donnie had been walking with Muck and Penkala back to their hole when the artillery had begun to pound their position, it was terrifying as they jumped into their foxhole soon they found Luz out of his foxhole as he was stumbling and tripping around as they shouted out to him, "Luz, get in here" Muck shouted as Penkala shouted for Luz as well, "Come on Buddy!!" Donnie watched as Luz tripped and a shell had come down close to him.

Luz wasn't even moving and Donnie had raced out of the hole heading towards Luz as he checked for a pulse seeing he was alive as Donnie pulled him up and shouted to him, "We gotta move Luz! Come on!" the two then made their way back to Muck and Penkala's foxhole where they had been screaming for them to hurry.

The artillery was too strong and the two of them were on the ground as another shell had hit close. There had been a bright light but Skip and Alex had not been in front of them anymore.

Donnie refused to believe they had been killed as he stared at the foxhole before he turned to Luz and picked him up saying, "WE GOTTA GO NOW!!" they then made their way to another foxhole as they saw Lipton drag the two of them into his hole the bright lights around them kept going on as Luz started screaming, "MUCK AND PENKALA!!" "WHAT?!!" "MUCK AND PENKALA GOT HIT!"

Soon a shell then took out their cover and everyone groaned as they heard the ringing in the ears but when the artillery had stopped. They had breathed easy but Donnie he just stayed silent, he knew how close to death he had come in the close shaves with the artillery. Warren Muck and Alex Penkala, his good friends had been blown apart from the artillery. Lipton, Luz and Donnie had been sitting the foxhole stunned. A moment later they all heard a high-pitched whistle coming down. Donnie had prayed that he didn't die.

But his fortunes had been good once again, as the shell turned out to be a dud, everybody else just stared at it, Lipton and Luz lit up a cigarette each as Donnie didn't do anything as he stared at the shell.

The next day everybody then gathered around Skip and Penkala's empty foxhole, Donnie only stared at it in silence, his hands shook violently ever since that near-death experience, Donnie had clutched the rosary in his hand.

It had finally begun to sink in for Donnie, his friends were gone and it his fear finally realised, his guilt had finally gotten to him, there was going to be no more Skip, no more Penkala, not even a mention of Fay Tanner Skip's girl, it had killed him and Donnie was finally broken.