Winter in June Read Online Free Page B

your individual abilities, and I hope that you will make this a collaborative experience. As well, we encourage you to seek out other performers in camp. Many of your enlisted men are musicians and actors who would love the opportunity to get onstage and join you in your performances. Take advantage of their unique skills, and give them a chance to shine. And now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to speak to Miss DeVane alone.”
    With that, Molly and Gilda left the room.
    For the first time since we’d left New York, I hummed with excitement.
    â€œCollaborative, my ass,” said Violet. “This is going to be the Gilda DeVane show from start to finish.”
    â€œWhat?” asked Kay.
    â€œNothing,” said Violet. She pulled a flask from her bag and opened and closed the attached silver lid in rapid succession. The noise got my dander up.
    â€œI can’t get over how pretty she is,” said Jayne. “Don’t get me wrong—I knew she was easy on the eyes from her movies, but I just figured half of that was lights and makeup. It’s nice to know that awoman can look that way for real.” It was funny hearing Jayne assess another woman’s beauty. My pal was a platinum bombshell who thought catcalls and compliments were as common as candy, but in Gilda’s world she was average at best. I hated to think what that made me.
    â€œI expected her to be…well…mean or something,” said Kay. “She always plays those kinds of characters. And with everything the slicks say about her, I assumed—”
    â€œDon’t worry,” said Violet. “Your instincts were right.”
    â€œWhat the deuce does that mean?” I asked.
    Violet’s mouth opened and closed as quickly as her flask had. Gilda returned with her arms outstretched, as though she were going to embrace us in one enormous hug. “I’m so glad all those formalities are finally over and done with. I don’t know about you, but hearing all those rules and regulations made my head spin. I forgot this wasn’t just a show we were doing but a show for the military.” We murmured our agreement. I looked for a sign that Gilda was planning on making this whole venture about herself or that she was the sort of self-centered Sally that Violet was determined to mark her as. “I want you all to know how much I’m looking forward to these shows. From here on out, we’re in this together, and not one of us is more important than the other.” She glanced at a wristwatch that seemed to question the idea that we were equals. It was a dazzling confection of platinum and diamonds that made the ship’s chandeliers look shoddy by comparison. “We’ll be pushing off in the next hour, so why don’t we take a look around before the launch? And then maybe we can spend tonight getting to know one another.”

CHAPTER 3
The Charity Nurse
    The ship was set up like a miniature city. In addition to the mess hall, there was a commissary stocked with any number of things soldiers might want to take with them for their next destination. There was a gedunk—which I figured out was another word for canteen—where you could get ice cream, soda, and candy. At the onboard barbershop, two sailors, whose own hair was in desperate need of cutting, were employed to do for you what they hadn’t done for themselves. The ship’s tailor could lengthen or shorten your army-issue pants so they were no longer the standard too short or too long. You took your mail to the post office, where the ship’s newsletter awaited distribution. Inside of the newsletter were fun little tidbits about the men and women aboard the Queen of the Ocean (seen last night: Captain Malloy cutting a rug with a pretty little lass in a WAAC uniform. We sure hope Captain Malloy is more deft in the battlefield than he is on the dance floor), and less entertaining stories about what