Jamie Callahan lay in Neuro, intubated and bandaged after catastrophic injuries. Surgeon Rob told Frances “Frankie” McGrath there was little hope and advised her to say goodbye. Frankie placed her talisman stone marked “You fight” and “McGrath” in Jamie’s duffel, kissed his bandaged cheek, and whispered that she loved him as he was prepped for medevac to the Third Field Hospital.

While being rushed to the helipad, Jamie coded. Frankie screamed for the medics to save him as they performed compressions aboard the Dust Off, but she saw the medic stop and shake his head as the helicopter lifted into the night. Devastated, Frankie leaned on Barb Johnson, and they went to the O Club, where they quietly toasted Jamie. Barb then revealed her DEROS date was December 26, deepening Frankie’s sense of mounting losses.

In letters dated September 30 and October 13, Frankie confided in Ethel Flint about Jamie’s likely death, her numbness, and the difficulty returning to the OR without him. Ethel replied on October 9 with tough-love support: in Vietnam, bonds form and are severed, and Frankie must carry on. Frankie resolved to stop replaying regrets and focus on her work, though she continued to miss Ethel and fear Barb’s impending departure.

Major Goldstein summoned Frankie and announced her transfer to the 71st Evac in Pleiku, the Central Highlands near the Cambodian border, warning of heavy fighting and urging her to update her will and write to her parents. Frankie told Barb on the beach; Barb immediately insisted on transferring with her. A new nurse, Wilma Cottington from Boise, arrived at the 36th; Frankie and Barb oriented her briefly, noting the cycle of arrivals and departures and the harsh realities of the hooch.

On October 20, Frankie wrote home, mentioning the Seawolves’ beach party, Ethel’s departure, her impending move to the 71st with Barb, and asking for supplies. She admitted to a recent loss and a funk but affirmed her commitment to nursing and her belief that she was where she was meant to be.

Frankie and Barb flew by supply chopper into Pleiku and were briefed by Sergeant Alvarez amid a red-dust compound of tents and Quonset huts ringed by concertina wire. He warned them to avoid the nearby base and town without escorts and pointed out the ER, Pre-Op, OR, morgue, showers, and a makeshift “Park.” Their hooch reeked of mildew and was filthy; Frankie tacked up a photo of Jamie, and Barb posted images of MLK, Malcolm X, and Muhammad Ali.

Before they could settle, a mass-casualty wave hit from Dak To. As rounds began falling on “Rocket City,” Frankie and Barb ran to OR 1. Under rocket fire and rolling blackouts, Frankie assisted Lt. Col. Harry “Hap” Dickerson, closed a belly wound under pressure, and cared for grievously wounded patients like Private Waite, who had lost both legs. With lights out under mandatory blackout, Frankie held a flashlight in her mouth and worked on the floor amid blood, generators, and constant explosions for roughly ten hours as American, ARVN, and civilian casualties poured in.

When the attack ebbed and power returned, Hap praised Frankie’s work. Outside, the compound overflowed with wounded and the morgue stacked with body bags. Frankie found Barb sitting in the dirt, shaken; they shared a joint in the shell-shocked quiet, traded gallows humor, and Frankie steadied Barb, even as Barb quietly wondered how Frankie would cope alone once Barb DEROSed.