Chapter 10

No sooner had Frank returned from the front lines that the Germans launched their expected attack. The heaviest fighting was located in the sector he was in just the day before. General French had all the confidence in the world that the line would hold. The men had all the equpiment a soldier would need including the newer gas masks that promised to protect the man from anything the Germans lobbed over.

All staff members were on call at all hours. This would commence from the beginning of the German surge to the end when they had to retreat after their attack fizzled out. So the Germans had casualties in the thousands as they didn't reach halfway acrosss 'No Man's Land' before conceding the British and a few French stopped their charge. Flares lit the night on both sides to give the attacker and defender enough to see who they were shooting at.

Although the Germans used six extra divisions in this attack, the Allies knew from aerial reconnaissance exactly when and where this would take place. All the intelligence was given to General French to beef up his lines. Although his staff, Frank included, thought that the famous general threw lives away on his attacks, all agreed that French was a defensive genius.

He had placed his troops exactly where the German assault would take place. The Germans didn't have a chance. All the news that they had received came to fruition. As the first rays of dawn the Germans came upon the battlefield, a barrage of artillary estimated to be one thousand pieces opened up over the entire sector. For hours all the British hunkered down to ride out the salvos of the German guns. Many were killed and wounded but not to the point where they needed to fall back to the second line of defense.

The Brits held up to the Germans. For almost twenty-four hours the bombardment continued. Some cracked under the pressure but most were able to bear this out. Near dawn the next day, the artillary had stopped. The silence was more frightening than the explosions around them. From that time until the first lights from the sun, the quiet was deafening. Men talked just to hear sound.

Then came the ground attack. The British scrambled to their defensive positions. Machine guns barked at the tens of thousands of Germans rushing toward their line. Artillary fell upon the attackers. The carnage was awful. Men by the hundreds were killed in just their first or second step out of their trench. Most were cut down in 'No Man's Land' long before any reached the barbed wire. It was then, the Germans turned and raced back to the safety of their trenches. Many were shot in the back before the whole attack ended. In all, hundreds of British were killed from the barrages, thousands of Germans lay dead or dying in the mud to be eaten by the rats.

Frank always liked Paris. Having money opened a lot of doors for him. The battle had been the month before and now that the front was stabilized, General French allowed him to spend a week in the City of Lights. The Eiffle Tower loomed above the capitol of France and made Frank feel good. He sat at an outdoor cafe enjoying a glass of cognac watching the people come and go. His eye was especially on the ladies who were unescorted. He planned to find a single woman, wine and dine her, perhaps take her dancing and escort her back to his hotel room wanting a night of passionate sex. He had refused to masturbate so he was extremely in need of release.

As he thought of this, a beautiful tall slim woman dressed all in black sat at the table next to his. She was exquisite in his eyes. Blue eyes, black hair done up under her wide brim hat exposing her long thin neck. She reached into her purse and pulled out a cigarette, lit it, puffed. She let the smoke escape her mouth blowing the smoke his way. Frank nodded at her presence and received a smile in return.

"May I buy you a drink?" he asked in perfect French.

"If you like," she replied.

He moved to her table bringing his cognac with him. After introducing himself, he found that her name was Yvette. She didn't bother with her last name and Frank was not interested. Both seemed to know what the other wanted. But protocol in the fall of 1916 was not to hurry this along. She smoked her cigarette and lit another.

"I only smoke two of these a day. Usually in the afternoon. I don't like that my mouth tastes like an ashtray," she giggled a little.

Frank was intrigued by this beautiful woman. She wore clothes for the fall weather. Being in all black brought out her bright blue eyes. He wondered if she were a high class prostitute, a mistress to some rich man, or just a lady out for the afternoon. She had a pleasant voice and when she smiled the area around her lit up.

"Are you on furlough?" Yvette asked, resting her chin on the hand that held the cigarette.

"Yes, I have a week. I just got into Paris a few hours ago. I don't know anyone but I would like to meet someone interesting."