Kitty’s father had said many times that she had been born with the salt of the sea in her veins, like all the Carters. Two generations of naval officers had been preceded by a great-grandfather who was captain of his own sailing vessel, so Kitty had only been following the family tradition when she aspired toward the WAVES. But she decided that afternoon as she headed back toward Palmetto Island that serving the Canteen was the perfect substitute under the circumstances.
The noise of the motor made conversation difficult, and she was rather glad of it, for the afternoon had been so eventful she had much to think about. First and foremost was her delight in making a service link. And meeting Brad—that was something she would never forget! And Hazel Dawson, too. She sensed it was the beginning of a new and different sort of friendship. She wondered why the thought of Dr. Cary chilled her ardor. Did Brad know why these two seemed to freeze on meeting? She meant to ask him when she had a chance.
Hazel caught her attention, waving toward the receding shores. “Beautiful country—marvelous!” she exclaimed, above the noise of the motor.
“You’ll love it here.” Kitty told her. “I’ll take you boat riding, even if we have to row to save gas. You must see these intriguing marshes, and the beautiful shore lines with the wonderful live oaks draped in Spanish moss.”
“This is my first trip south, in my own country,” Hazel told her.
Palmetto Island now came into view with its many smokestacks marking the sky line. A fringe of palmettoes farther east was lost in the mists where the inland waterways met the sea. Kitty pointed to the western shore where a large white building stood on the point.
“There’s the Bernard General Hospital,” she said to Hazel. “Our house isn’t far away, and the Marine Base is farther east and south.”
Kitty thought she caught a wistful note in Hazel’s voice, and her eyes were almost sad as she drank in the beauty of green marshes, the blue sky, and the bluer sea.
On reaching the island docks Kitty phoned her father as they had previously arranged to send down a car. When she came out of the warehouse where she had used the phone, Lieutenant Cary was gone.
“We could have taken him up with us,” she said, embarrassed that she had failed to invite him specifically before she had gone to phone her father.