Bullet Bridge by Len Levinson

Author:Len Levinson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: military action adventure, len levinson, hammerhead division, panzer tanks, pattons third army, sgt mahoney, the sergeant by len levinson
Publisher: Piccadilly Publishing

Chapter Ten

First thing the next morning, a jeep screeched to a stop in front of Hammerhead Division headquarters. Major General Barton Hughes got out of the front seat and marched toward the front door of the building. General Patton had named him the new commanding officer of the division, replacing “Bayonet” Donovan.

Hughes was a tough West Pointer and the former chief of operations at XX Corps. He’d commanded numerous smaller units in the past, held all sorts of staff jobs, and Patton decided he was the best man to take over the Hammerheads because he knew the Hammerheads needed a strong hand to keep them under control.

Hughes was a six-footer, lean and snappy. His face carried acne scars and he wore a dark-brown toothbrush mustache. MPs hollered attention as he marched through the corridors of the building. Aides came out of their offices to see him. They knew that new commanding officers usually drove everybody nuts until they were sure they had everything under control and were getting the respect they felt they deserved.

Hughes charged into the conference room, and the officers there shot to attention. He told them to stand at ease, then shook their hands and asked their names. His voice was brusque and he seldom smiled. He was the kind of commander who ruled by fear and terror.

He walked to the map table. “Are we attacking?” he asked.

“Yes sir,” said General McCook, who still was the division’s chief of staff.

“Where are we?”

McCook pointed out the positions of the Hammerhead regiments, and Hughes listened with a scowl on his face. Hughes wasn’t a very reflective man and didn’t like to dwell on his shortcomings. He didn’t want to admit to himself that he was apprehensive about taking command of the Hammerhead division, which was one of the most famous fighting divisions in the ETO. He didn’t want to consider that he might not be up to the task and that he might make some decisions that would cause the Hammerheads to lose a battle. These fears nagged deep in his heart, but he covered them up with bluster and aggressive behavior.

“I don’t like the way they’re moving,” Hughes said.

McCook had been in the Army as long as Hughes, and he was not easily intimidated. “What don’t you like about it, sir?” he asked.

“They’re not moving fast enough.”

“But they just started, sir. The day just has begun.”

“I don’t give a goddamn about that,” Hughes said. “They’re not moving fast enough.” He pointed at Saarlautern on the map. “I want that fucking city there, and I think we can take it today.”

“Today sir?”

“Yes today. I’m going out to the regiments to see what the hold-up is. McCook, I want you to issue orders in my name to get this division moving faster.”

“How do you want me to word it, sir?”

“Use your imagination,” Hughes replied, a hostile tone in his voice. “You know how to write English, don’t you?”

“Yes sir.”

“Then do it and stop asking so many questions.”

“Yes sir.”

General Hughes stormed out of the conference room, leaving the staff officers around the map table.

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