Chapter 32: Captain Sobel's Resentment
Although Rhys had said a few good words on Captain Sobel's behalf, it was not enough to completely erase the deep-seated loathing the brothers of Easy Company felt for him. But considering Captain Sobel's personality, one could only sympathize with the men's feelings.
The training conditions at Camp Mackall were excellent, but the difficulty of the training was constantly increasing. It was inevitable that some brothers would have issues of one kind or another, which gave Sobel the perfect excuse. Captain Sobel's punishments were used more frequently during this period than ever before, and his methods were constantly evolving, from the old full-gear cross-country runs to cleaning latrines, and to his brand-new invention of forcing men to frog-jump around the camp while soldiers from other companies gathered to watch.
More importantly, Sobel loved to appear in the barracks at any time to conduct major inspections of the men's personal belongings. He would turn out everything from condoms and colorful neckties in their footlockers to unauthorized privately-owned ammunition. And after every one of these inspections, the barracks looked as if they had been ransacked.
Tipper was one of the victims of these surprise raids. In his footlocker, Sobel found several pornographic magazines and proceeded to humiliate him in front of all the brothers of Easy Company.
"We are supposed to fight the Krauts with the rifles in our hands, not with one hand on a porn magazine and the other on your reproductive organ, ejaculating at them!" Captain Sobel said, his tone full of contempt as he insulted Tipper in front of everyone. But the brothers of Easy Company didn't laugh, nor did they take pleasure in his misfortune. They just felt sympathy for Tipper. And after that, Tipper became famous; men from other companies would use the story as a joke to make fun of him.
"He's a demon," Tipper said, cursing Captain Sobel with a venom he had never shown before. "He should go to hell. How can the world allow such a vile person to exist?"
"Don't worry, Tipper," Christenson said, comforting him in the barracks. "A man like him will never be liked by anyone."
Tipper looked frustrated. "But what can I do about it? Can my complaining make Captain Sobel go away? No. Those guys at regiment won't listen to the complaints of a private. Colonel Sink will only protect the officers."
"I wish someone would just kill him," said Christenson, who had also suffered greatly under Sobel. He sighed. "I'm sure there are people who hate him to death, including me. Maybe one day on the battlefield, while we're fighting the Krauts, someone will just put a bullet in his back. God has eyes. To be honest, sometimes I think about it myself."
Although the words were extreme, they were the true feelings in the hearts of every brother in Easy who had been tormented by Captain Sobel. No one could guarantee that it wouldn't happen.
"I never hated him this much before, Christenson," Tipper said, spitting on the floor. "I just disliked him. I thought he was just a pest in Easy Company who got his kicks from torturing people. But now, now it's different. He humiliated me. Maybe one day, I'll be the one to deal with him."
Christenson nodded, then leaned in and whispered to Tipper, "Do you remember Private John Doe from First Platoon, back at Fort Benning?"
Tipper hesitated for a moment, then nodded. He knew Doe. He remembered how Sobel had made a fool of him in front of the whole company, ripping off his patch, his Silver Wings, and his cap insignia, and forbidding him from blousing his trousers. It was a humiliation far worse than what he had just endured. If it had been him, he didn't know if he could have even stayed in the company.
"I know him. He's usually quiet, very sullen," Tipper nodded.
Christenson smiled mysteriously. "Well, I recently heard some people muttering that they want to take the opportunity during a live-fire exercise or on the battlefield to get rid of Sobel. And Doe is one of the ones who made the threat."
"Thank God," Tipper said, smiling and making the sign of the cross on his chest. His mood clearly lifted with this good news. Even if it was just talk, with no real sign that anyone was going to kill the demon, such rumors were enough to excite the brothers of Easy Company.
***
Rhys was worried that such rumors were getting out of control. Once they did, it was inevitable that someone would actually take a potshot at Captain Sobel on the battlefield or during an exercise.
He felt he should talk to the brothers. It was his duty as the First Sergeant, and it was a matter that absolutely had to be kept secret, otherwise other brothers could be implicated.
Rhys found an opportunity when the men were gathered together and brought up the topic.
"I know some of you want to kill Sobel." The moment the words left his mouth, some of the men grew tense, their faces unnatural. They clearly had not expected Rhys to bring this up in front of everyone.
"Honestly, a part of me hopes someone does take him out." Rhys's next sentence made all the brothers cheer. But then his tone shifted. "But, brothers, I don't think killing him is a good idea at all. The brother who does it would likely face a court-martial."
This statement silenced the men.
"Alright, brothers, don't worry. Things will eventually get better. In fact, I have a very safe, but absolutely effective method for getting rid of him," Rhys said with a sudden smile.
Now the men were interested. Some cheered, and their previous anxiety was quickly replaced by eager anticipation.
"If we're on the battlefield one day, facing the Germans," Rhys said with a grin, "I will give Captain Sobel a crisp salute when he is in an exposed position, to show my respect for an airborne captain. I'm confident that this show of respect will also attract the attention of the Krauts. Then, the German snipers will surely pay their respects to our American airborne captain… with their sniper rifles."
"Hahaha!" Everyone burst out laughing.
"That way, we save a bullet, and no brother has to go to a court-martial," Rhys said, half-joking. "So now, I think all of you should put away any thoughts of killing Sobel. You know how foolish that would be."
"You're right, Parks! Why should we suffer for a guy like that?" Christenson said loudly.
"That's right!" many others agreed.
Then, Rhys suddenly added, "But let's hope the officers don't find out about this conversation, especially Captain Sobel. Otherwise, he might start saluting those of us he doesn't like. We can't let him learn this trick."
Another wave of laughter went through the crowd.
Rhys knew that his intervention had been effective. Although many of the men still resented Captain Sobel and wanted to get back at him at every opportunity, the idea of actually killing him had, for the time being, vanished from Easy Company. This was good news.
***
A few days after the men's tempers had cooled, a field combat exercise was held. Sobel received a notice to find a few soldiers from Easy Company to act as casualties, to give the medics a chance to practice bandaging wounds, applying casts and splints, and evacuating the wounded on stretchers.
Sobel knew that the men's opinion of him was very low, so he decided to use this as an opportunity to smooth things over. There were also faint rumors that someone wanted to kill him, and though he couldn't find the source, he had become more cautious. He decided to lead by example and personally volunteer to be a casualty.
"If only this were real," many of the brothers said with great regret when they heard the news. Why couldn't this be the real thing?
"Well, I'm not worried about whether it's real or not. It's not worth getting worked up about. But I can't guarantee that the medics at the field hospital will give Sobel a perfect performance," Christenson said with a smile. "Just you wait and see, brothers."
Clearly, there were men from Easy Company among the medics. Of that, there was no doubt.
A curtain was placed over Sobel's head so he couldn't see the people performing the simulated surgery on him.
"Can we begin?" Sobel asked. For some reason, he felt a little panicked. He tried to tell himself that it was just a simulation.
"Captain, although this is a simulation, I hope that during the entire process, if you feel any discomfort, you will adhere strictly to battlefield discipline. You are an officer, do you understand?" a doctor in a surgical mask warned him. "We will be simulating an appendectomy. The whole process should be very straightforward."
"Alright, I understand," Sobel nodded.
Then, he felt a needle prick his arm.
"Why is this a real shot?" Sobel suddenly cried out.
"Captain, you are a casualty right now. Do not delay the doctors' exercise!" a voice shouted. This silenced Sobel, but he soon lost all feeling anyway. He had actually been injected with an anesthetic.
It felt as if he had just taken a nap. When Sobel woke up, he had been moved to a bed in the field hospital. He then felt a sharp pain in his abdomen.
"Damn it!" Sobel lifted his shirt and saw an incision on his abdomen, held together with stitches. It was a nauseating sight. 'Did those damn doctors really cut out my appendix?'
*****
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