Happy Holidays! Isn’t it insane to think a year has passed? Thank goodness and good riddance!
While I haven’t been able to post on here as often as I would have liked to, I appreciate you, dear readers, for sticking with me. I hope that next year is better for you and your families.
Today, I’d like to celebrate the holiday season, and reaching 2,500 followers on Twitter, with a chapter reveal! That’s right, here’s the first look at my senior project, Lady Luck (working title).
Special thanks to Cristina Jantz, who helped to edit and provide feedback on the project. If you would like to work with Cristina, reach out to her on tidbitediting.com. Now, onto the chapter.
Lady Luck
Chapter 1: The Jenkville Blitz
April 2, 1941
Brenda Banks stepped out of the limo in her red dress and matching heels. Her small black hat, complete with a feather and a veil, covered the left side of her face. Tonight was for dancing and having fun. She needed a break once in a while, and the Jenkville Lindyhop was the perfect place for doing just that.
Several young men smoking by the entrance in colorful zoot suits turned to stare at her. They cat-called and fanned themselves with their hats.
Brenda ignored them until one tried to slap her rear. She grabbed his arm and pinned him to the ground. “Excuse me! Hands to yourself!”
The man swore at her. Brenda twisted his arm further.
“All right, all right! Sorry!” he blurted.
With a smirk, Brenda waltzed inside.
Hundreds of miles away, the Tokyo-Jenkville goods was stalled over the Pacific Ocean.
“Engine trouble,” the conductor reported. He opened a secret panel and pulled a red lever. 10 freight cars collapsed to reveal four gray German AR-197 biplanes and two zeppelin cabs. Crewmen marched from the rear cars into the zeppelins.
A short man in a black SS uniform watched the operation. The zeppelins, the Graf, and the Amerika took to the air, each carrying two AR-197s.
You war profiteering’s come to haunt you, America, Commandant Grendel thought.
Brenda danced with different men all night. After rejecting five minks, three diamond rings, and a golden necklace, she escaped into the cool night air.
Peecolo tapped the steering wheel as he waited outside. He was thoroughly startled when Brenda jumped through the rear open window, trying to avoid twelve more men.
“Step on it!” she cried.
Peecolo roared away from the Jenkville Lindyhop. “Where to now, madam?”
“Home.” Brenda leaned back against the seat and sighed. “Is this all my life is? Dancing, harassment by bachelors only looking for Father’s money, inheriting an empire?”
Peecolo shook his head. He craned his neck to examine a shadow that had just appeared above them. “Odd! Isn’t that blimp a bit low?”
Brenda opened up the sunroof. She could just make out a...red swastika?
Then the first bomb dropped.
Brenda immediately closed the sunroof to avoid the shower of asphalt and glass. She and Peecolo screamed at the top of their lungs.
“Hold on!” Peecolo slammed on the gas as more bombs hurtled toward Jenkville.
The AR-197s roared to the Navy dockyard. Before the alarm could be raised, they dropped four torpedoes. One struck the quayside, but the rest hit their target. The USS Jenkville’s cargo erupted in flames.
Peecolo swerved around a burning car, honking to alert the throng of people. Residents were setting up bucket brigades to save their homes.
Brenda was glued to the window. “Wait! Stop!”
Once the car skidded to a halt, Brenda ran to a Black police officer, who was tossing debris into the air.
“Peecolo, help us! There’s a kid under here!” Brenda pulled a terrified four-year-old from the rubble while the officer and Peecolo held up the debris. “It’s all right. You’re going to be okay.”
“Carol? Carol?!” a nearby woman shrieked.
“She’s over here, madam!” Peecolo shouted.
The woman ran up and took her daughter from Brenda. “Oh, sweetheart!” She turned to Peecolo and Brenda. “Thank you!”
“Thank you both. I appreciate it,” the officer said. “But you’d best head for safety.”
Brenda stared up at the blimps. You monsters will pay for what you’ve done.
Want to know what happens next? Stay tuned! Lady Luck will be released in the Spring of 2021.
Thank you for reading. What did you think of Chapter 1? Let me know on my social media pages. The links are available on the right hand bar. Thank you again, and I’ll see you on the Tramway.
