Can't fall even harder (Band of brothers/Richard Winters)

XIV. Carentan was better on postcards

It was morning now, Easy company counted a number of men really smaller than what should've been, they all were preoccupied for their friends. Isabelle was talking with Nixon about her jump when some of Easy men arrived, she could see Floyd and Blithe and others. Happyness overcame her, they lost a small number of men during the jump.
"Are you ok Isabelle?" Lew asked, "Yeah, I'm happy we didn't lose many" he nodded, but the moment was soon cut out by Welsh, "Easy company o the road!" he yelled
"On your feet. Let's go! Stand up, Here we go! Today, people! Listen! it'll be dark soon. Light and noise discipline from here on. No talking, smoking or grab-fanny with the man in front of you.
"Where we headed to?"
"We're taking Carentan."
"Sounds like fun."
it's the only place where armour from Omaha and Utah Beach can head inland. Until we take Carentan, they're stuck. Taylor's sending the whole division." Welsh said
Then Luz started imitating Taylor's voice and said: "Remember boys, give me three days and three nights of hard fighting. . . . . . and you will be relieved."Everybody laughed, his joke was the funniest ones, he could make every man laugh even colonel Sink.

"Lieutenant, I'll take point," Hoobler said
"Hoobler will be a lead scout. Blithe, glad you could join us." Welsh said smiling towards the boy,
"Thank you," he replied.
''Another thing to remember, boys" Luz started again imitating Taylor," flies spread disease. So keep yours closed", "Good one Luz" Perconte said, while they all were chickling, Isabelle found her position and was now ready to start the march, they march the whole night losing contact with Fox company a couple of times but in the end, they were able to arrive at the city.

France was a beautiful country with all its gorgeous landscapes, all its elegant countryside's houses. Unluckily Isabelle wasn't there to be a tourist, she has always wanted to see the world, not in that way, what she saw was something she was going to remember.
Destruction, desperation, sadness, fear, hopelessness, not just her friends, citizens, normal people that before anything of that started lived their life happily, now they were sad, poor, scared of their future.

She has always wanted to see the world, not like that.

Before she could process they arrived where they were needed, Carentan, a beautiful city in the north of France, precisely in the region of Normandy, its fabulous background was now theatre for the cruellest of human's acts, war. It broke her heart to think about all the beautiful places in the world ruined.
They arrived at the entrance of the city, every one of them was in position.
Isabelle was far behind the line, she and all the other medics needed to stay covered.

There was silence, no sounds were heard from each side.
Winters was talking with Welsh and in a moment the assault began.

Welsh Luz and two or three other men started running toward the city, but nobody was following them, the 2nd platoon was supposed to come right behind the 1st, but no one moved, Welsh and Luz were covered behind a wall, they were alone while the Germans started firing.

There was no more silent, broken by the gunshots and Richard's yells to the men:
"Get them out of there! They're in the open! Go! Go! Get them going, Buck! Follow me, Easy! Move out! Move out, men! Go! Move out! Move out! Get yourselves out of that ditch! We have men getting killed out there, Blithe! Move! You got no cover there! Go! Spotter! Upstairs window! Left! Follow me! Get out of those trenches!" He was yelling at them, but they were not moving, he started taking them out of the trench one by one until after three or four they started going by themselves.
The assault was cruel, they had to enter in each house and control if there were any Germans, it was dreadful, Isabelle was still behind, she and Eugene went their separate ways. Now she was kneeled down near a house trying to stop a haemorrhage on the leg of a Pvt. she found the bullet and was now pushing on the wound to block the bleeding, after a moment she bandaged the injury, but was soon called for another wounded, she finished as soon as possible and after leaving the man leaning on the wall, she started running towards the voice.ANd like this for three and four times, she managed to save all of them but the fifth time she was called something happened.

Another bullet, this time on the chest, it was difficult, she did all she could but there was nothing more to be done, the man died while her hands were searching for the bullet.

Another first.
The first time a man died while she was treating him, the first time she couldn't save a life.

She stood there, looking at the man before her, lifeless. She took his platelet, and read the name, she wanted to remember the name of the first man she wasn't able to save.

She was still there looking at the figure of the man when she heard someone call her.
"l need a hand over here! Medic!"
She ran as fast as her legs could take her, she ran so fast that she stumbled on a rock and fell down, her knee was bleeding but she didn't stop, no she wanted to save that life, she needed to.
She arrived where she was needed and there was Lipton laying on the ground injured, he had a piece of metal on his cheek and some blood was flooding out from his right leg, she kneeled down.
"Lip! Hey, Honey" She said looking through his eyes, he was scared, preoccupied, he looked towards his legs, it took a moment for her to understand why he looked there, but when she did, she immediately ripped his pants looked to see if he was seriously injured.
"You're okay, Lip. Everything's where it should be." She felt relieved, he was ok and the wound wasn't that bad, he too was now tranquil knowing there wasn't going to be permanent damages.
She healed as much as she could his wound, then took him to the healing centre.

After the fight all the medics were assigned needed at the healing centre, the wounded had to be taken care of, Isabelle was running around, helping as many as she could, the image of the man praying to live still vivid in her mind encouraged her to work.
She was bandaging a man's leg when she saw coming in a figure she didn't want to see there, she called immediately another medic to finish the job and started running towards Winters.

"Dick!" she yelled frantically
"Oh my God, why are you here,"  she said analyzing his body to see if there were any injury.
"Calm Isabelle," he said, but she wasn't calm, she was still looking for any type of bloodstain, "Why," he said putting his hands on her shoulders, she lifted up her chin to look at him, "It's honestly just a scratch, I took a bullet on the leg, could you help me please" she released a breath she was holding and nodded.

Isabelle was trying to find the bullet, absorbed in her work, she didn't see the way Richard was looking at her, he was admiring the way her brows were furrowed obviously in concentration, and the way she was absorbed in her work.
"There she is." She said taking out the piece of metal,
"You're lucky it was a ricochet. Just caught a piece of it.
"Stupid."
"What?"
"Nothing, I just feel stupid, I should've been more careful"
"Yes you should've, but you were lucky enough to have a second chance so don't waste it; You gonna be able to stay off it?"
"Doesn't look that way." he chuckled
"Well, you gotta try, huh? For me."
"Well.."
"What've we got planned?"
"Well, we expect a counterattack. Carentan's important to them."
"Any idea when?"
"We're not waiting around to find out. Battalion wants us to head east, set up a defensive position. With the flooded fields, it's the direction they'll come from."
"You gonna be, all right? Or at least try to" she pleaded, he saw how her eyes were full of worry she was really preoccupied for his life, he didn't like to see her so worried, so scared, he tried to comfort her as much as he could, using his most reassuring tone: "Yeah. I promise."

Isabelle didn't feel secure, how could she.
The next day they moved to the countryside near the city, the only way the Germans could've tried another attack, it was difficult, there were lots of fatalities. Isabelle worked really hard, but she couldn't help them all.
Luckily the armoured arrived and they won the battle.

The price though.

After the battle, they were given some times out, they were going to return to England and relax for some time, but their presence was still needed in France so they didn't return to England till the 9th of July 1944, 33 days after their arrival in Normandy.