go out. "All ready for you, Doctor Love." Relighting the pipe, he nodded at one of the young recruits. "Private Reisberson, if you'd be so kind as to loan this young lady your rifle."
"Uh," said the surprised Reisberson, "yes, sir. Here you go, ma'm. Careful you don't..."
The girl handled the rifle expertly. "Still using the M-l out here, Colonel?" Not waiting for a reply, the blonde stepped to the firing line, which put her a hundred yards from the targets. "Offhand position, first," she said, with the stock against her shoulder, her right hand around the grip and the
9
fingers of her left hand forked just ahead of the balance point. She took a deep breath, held it, and squeezed the trigger.
"Um," remarked Private Reisberson as Jan continued to shoot "Doggone, look at that."
After firing ten shots, Jan lowered the borrowed rifle.
In a moment, the balding corporal came trotting up to them, waving the target the girl had used.
"You better sign her up, Colonel."
The Jungle Patrol commander took the target. "Well, well." he said. Nothing much was left of the bull's-eye of the decimal target. Eight of Jan's shots had hit the ten spot and the other two had penetrated the nine circles next to it.
"Shall we try it from a kneeling position next?" asked the smiling Jan.
The colonel held the riddled target up between himself and the bright sun. "I don't think that will be necessary, Doctor."
The girl shrugged. "Just when I was getting warmed up." She returned the rifle to Private Reisberson.
"Um, doggone," he said.
Hands on hips, Jan was surveying the Jungle Patrol grounds. "Stables over there and then the gym up on that little rise, right?"
"Yes," said the colonel.
"Let's visit the stables next," Jan said.
Karl put his arm around her shoulders and the two of them started off.
After a second, the colonel followed.
A little over an hour and a half later Sergeant Barnum rolled forward in his chair, dropped his rubber bands and a handful of paper clips back in the drawer. He went and looked into his commanding officer's office. The door had stood open for the past fifteen minutes. "It's quitting time and... you look a little odd, sir."
"Well, I feel a little odd, Sergeant," admitted the colonel, rubbing at his left arm.
"I heard you giving those two scientists a license to explore ," said Sergeant Barnum.
"I thought you didn't believe in ladies doing dangerous stuff like that."
"Doctor Love isn't exactly your ordinary everyday lady." The colonel shifted in his chair, rubbing again at his arm.
"What were you all up to outsider'
"Well, Sergeant, the young lady was demonstrating to me that my ideas about her were merely male chauvinist notions with little or no basis in reality."
"Oh, yeah? How'd she do that?"
10
The colonel nodded toward the window, then winced. "First she stepped onto the rifle range and hit eight out of ten bull's-eyes."
"Hey, that's not bad."
"Not at all," agreed Colonel Weeks. "Then she visited the stables, saddled and mounted one of our meanest horses, and took him over all the hurdles and hazards. After which, our Doctor Love dropped in at the gym and bested every man there in judo. She even threw our top man on his ear."
Sergeant Barnum blinked. "I thought you were the JP's top judo man, sir."
"So did I." The colonel picked up his pipe with his sore arm and lit it. "That will be all for today, Sergeant."
"It's enough." Sergeant Barnum saluted and left the colonel alone with his thoughts.
CHAPTER THREE
A soft, warm rain had just stopped. The sun showed up again in the morning sky and fuzzy rainbows flashed in the small oily puddles at the edge of the private airfield. A soot-colored dog hobbled out of the rain-dotted brush beyond the field, came up, and sniffed at a pool of bright water. The dog suddenly cocked its head and hastened back into the brush.
Through the gate in the airfield's cyclone fence a bright-orange compact car, rich with dents
"Uh," said the surprised Reisberson, "yes, sir. Here you go, ma'm. Careful you don't..."
The girl handled the rifle expertly. "Still using the M-l out here, Colonel?" Not waiting for a reply, the blonde stepped to the firing line, which put her a hundred yards from the targets. "Offhand position, first," she said, with the stock against her shoulder, her right hand around the grip and the
9
fingers of her left hand forked just ahead of the balance point. She took a deep breath, held it, and squeezed the trigger.
"Um," remarked Private Reisberson as Jan continued to shoot "Doggone, look at that."
After firing ten shots, Jan lowered the borrowed rifle.
In a moment, the balding corporal came trotting up to them, waving the target the girl had used.
"You better sign her up, Colonel."
The Jungle Patrol commander took the target. "Well, well." he said. Nothing much was left of the bull's-eye of the decimal target. Eight of Jan's shots had hit the ten spot and the other two had penetrated the nine circles next to it.
"Shall we try it from a kneeling position next?" asked the smiling Jan.
The colonel held the riddled target up between himself and the bright sun. "I don't think that will be necessary, Doctor."
The girl shrugged. "Just when I was getting warmed up." She returned the rifle to Private Reisberson.
"Um, doggone," he said.
Hands on hips, Jan was surveying the Jungle Patrol grounds. "Stables over there and then the gym up on that little rise, right?"
"Yes," said the colonel.
"Let's visit the stables next," Jan said.
Karl put his arm around her shoulders and the two of them started off.
After a second, the colonel followed.
A little over an hour and a half later Sergeant Barnum rolled forward in his chair, dropped his rubber bands and a handful of paper clips back in the drawer. He went and looked into his commanding officer's office. The door had stood open for the past fifteen minutes. "It's quitting time and... you look a little odd, sir."
"Well, I feel a little odd, Sergeant," admitted the colonel, rubbing at his left arm.
"I heard you giving those two scientists a license to explore ," said Sergeant Barnum.
"I thought you didn't believe in ladies doing dangerous stuff like that."
"Doctor Love isn't exactly your ordinary everyday lady." The colonel shifted in his chair, rubbing again at his arm.
"What were you all up to outsider'
"Well, Sergeant, the young lady was demonstrating to me that my ideas about her were merely male chauvinist notions with little or no basis in reality."
"Oh, yeah? How'd she do that?"
10
The colonel nodded toward the window, then winced. "First she stepped onto the rifle range and hit eight out of ten bull's-eyes."
"Hey, that's not bad."
"Not at all," agreed Colonel Weeks. "Then she visited the stables, saddled and mounted one of our meanest horses, and took him over all the hurdles and hazards. After which, our Doctor Love dropped in at the gym and bested every man there in judo. She even threw our top man on his ear."
Sergeant Barnum blinked. "I thought you were the JP's top judo man, sir."
"So did I." The colonel picked up his pipe with his sore arm and lit it. "That will be all for today, Sergeant."
"It's enough." Sergeant Barnum saluted and left the colonel alone with his thoughts.
CHAPTER THREE
A soft, warm rain had just stopped. The sun showed up again in the morning sky and fuzzy rainbows flashed in the small oily puddles at the edge of the private airfield. A soot-colored dog hobbled out of the rain-dotted brush beyond the field, came up, and sniffed at a pool of bright water. The dog suddenly cocked its head and hastened back into the brush.
Through the gate in the airfield's cyclone fence a bright-orange compact car, rich with dents
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