As he climbed, he fought against the weather, the cold, and his own fatigue. As the last of his energy fled him, his steps up the rise became a struggle. With each step, his feet sank deeper and deeper into the ever-growing volume of snow on the ground.
Reaching the top of the hill, he paused and looked down into a small valley below. His eyes caught the faintest hint of dull yellow light through the murk. His dry and cracked lips turned faintly upward as a new emotion warmed his frozen body, hope. Ignoring his pain, and the ever present cold, he hastened towards the inviting glow. As he approached, he smiled in relief, I made it!
The glow, came from a tent that had been set up at the base of a large fir tree. The snow-covered branches seemingly reached around the tent as if the tree were embracing it. Smoke wafted lazily from a pipe that jutted out the top of the dark gray hued shelter. The branches of the tree broke up the tell-tale cloud of smoke up as it drifted upward. The positioning of the tent ensured that the smoke emerging from the pipe, would not give the location of the tent away to the invading Soviets.
Hale slipped through a flap and stepped inside. He was immediately greeted by a blast of warm air. Sighing in relief, he collapsed to the floor of the tent, exhausted. A man with penetrating blue eyes loomed over him, “Hale?”
Hale let out a groan as the warmth of the tent began to thaw his frozen extremities. He took a deep breath and smiled as the warm air flowed into his lungs helping the feeling to return to his numb body. Lieutenant Maki looked down at the red stain on Hale’s shoulder and said, “You’ve been injured.”
The blond-haired man squatted and pushed Hale over onto his side, “I need to get this pack off, so I can see what’s going on with you.”
Hale held up a hand as he said, “It’s fine, just a flesh wound.”
The Lieutenant’s lips pursed as he said, “A flesh wound? That’s an awful lot of blood for just a flesh wound. Let’s have a look.”
Hale nodded. He carefully slipped his right arm out of the straps of his pack. As he did so, his face twisted into a frightful visage betraying the pain he was feeling. With a dull thump, the pack dropped to the wooden floor of the tent. He then slid his rifle off his left shoulder and gently placed it on top of his pack.
The exhausted sniper then unfastened the buttons of his white overcoat and pulled it off. As he did so Lieutenant Maki gasped, “It’s still bleeding.”
Hale swooned as his thoughts dulled. His superior officer knelt down, and helped pull Hale’s sweater off. Several more layers of clothing later, Maki had reached the bandage. He gently pulled it off as Hale grimaced, “I was right. It’s still bleeding.” Maki said.
The Lieutenant stood up, walked to the back of the tent and opened a large grey chest. Pulling a box with a red cross on it out of the chest, he returned to Hale. He opened the first aid kit and pulled a small packet out. Quickly ripping the top off the packet, he poured the contents of it over Hale’s wound as he said, “This will help to stop the bleeding.”
Hale nodded dully. He looked over at his shoulder. His mind tried to process what he was seeing, but it was clouded by fatigue. A moment later awareness fled as his exhaustion and blood loss overtook him.
Hale opened his eyes. The pleasant smell of brewing coffee filled his nose. His head was laying on something soft. A pillow? He thought. He and looked down at his injured shoulder. It had been expertly wrapped in a clean bandage. Unlike the bandage Hale had applied earlier, this one was not soaked in blood.
Noticing that Hale was awake, Lieutenant Maki stood and walked over to Hale, “How are you feeling?”
“Better.” Hale replied.
“Good. You want some coffee?” Maki asked.
Hale nodded, “Yes sir.”
“You don’t have to keep calling me sir. It’s just you and me in here right now, and I’m not that much older than you.” The Lieutenant replied.
“What should I call you then sir?” Hale asked.
“Maki is fine.”
Maki returned with a tin cup full of steaming black liquid, “Sorry, I don’t have any sugar or milk.”
Hale looked up at him and reached for the cup, “Thank you.”
Hale took a small sip from the cup. The warm liquid slid down his throat. After nearly forty-eight hours in the cold, Hale relished the feeling of warmth in his core.
“Are you hungry?” Maki asked.
Hale meet Maki’s gaze and smiled, “Famished.”
“I’ve got some venison and hardtack. I’ll get a stew going on the stove.” Maki said.
The Lieutenant walked across the tent and began rummaging around the stove. Hale took another sip of the coffee and sat up. He looked around. The tent had a small black stove situated in the middle of it. A small pipe, like the stove made from some black metal, connected to the top of the stove. The stovepipe continued upward to the ceiling of the tent where it jutted upward through a small hole.
Lieutenant Maki stood over the stove. He wore dark grey uniformed pants, but like most of the soldiers of Finland who lacked a full proper uniform, he sported a non-regulation wool sweater. The sweater looked like it had been lovingly knitted by hand. Maki looked back and saw Hale’s eyes on him, “My wife made this for me.”
“It looks really warm.” Hale said.
Maki smiled, “It is. The wool came from our heard of black faced sheep. She spun the wool herself into thread and then knitted it.”
“You are a lucky man to have woman love you enough to take that kind of time making you shirt.” Hale replied.
“Indeed. Is there someone special you are fighting to protect?” Maki asked.
“Other than my sister, and parents?” Hale replied.
“Yes.” Maki said.
Hale’s thoughts drifted inward for a moment as the memory of that last afternoon with Nea filled his mind. He jerked himself back into the present before the growing warmth in his loins gave his thoughts away, “Her name is Nea.”
“What was she like?” Maki asked.
“Someone I grew up with. The daughter of the couple that owned the farm down the road from ours. When we were younger, we used to play dirty tricks on each other all the time. Then our relationship evolved.” Hale said.
Maki chuckled, “Oh I bet it started evolving the moment you both began growing hair in new places.”
Hale flashed him a look of anger, “It wasn’t like that. She became my friend and confidant. We talked for hours about our innermost thoughts and desires for the future. Over the years it became unimaginable that such a future wouldn’t include the other.”
The Lieutenant left the stove and walked up to Hale, squatting, he met Hale’s gaze and put a hand on his uninjured shoulder, “Peace my friend. I did not realize the depths of your feelings for Nea. It’s tradition for soldiers to talk lewdly of what we left behind at home.”
“I just can’t talk about Nea like that. Even though we…” Hale’s voice drifted off as his thoughts returned to that afternoon in the woods.
“I can see she means everything to you.” Maki stood and ran his right hand over his chest almost caressing the sweater, “My Sade evokes such feelings within me as well. It is good to have such thoughts of a woman. It fills our Finnish hearts with fire.”
Hale nodded in understanding, “We will need that fire if we are to keep the invader from our homes.”
“Exactly,” The Lieutenant stood and brought a second tin cup over to Hale, “Drink up, I’m not a great cook, but this will help your strength to return.”