Wanda, Part II

As I have said before, I was very fortunate to be in a place where I had great NCO's that were in charge of me. Part of their job was to look after the lower enlisted, to take us under their wings, train us, teach us, protect us, prepare us --- and because of their dedication to their mission, I was very fortunate to be afforded some great opportunities.

My NCO asked me if I wanted to go to a 2 week JAG (71D) refresher course. Promotions in the Army are somewhat complicated. You earn them, yes but through a variety of ways and one of those is any training, education or schooling that you take. So given any opportunity to go to an Army school was a good thing. I was glad to go. The course was located in Hoensfeld which was about 2 hours from Ansbach. The problem was I didn't drive so my NCO said he'd arrange transportation for me. Enter Wanda. Remember her? My NCO found out Wanda was going to the same course as I was and she would be driving so he arranged for me to go with her.

Wanda was a SP4 (E4) that had been in the Army for-ever! She certainly should have been at least an E5 by now but she was --well, Wanda. She was actually a very nice person; very kind hearted, funny, likable but as ditzy and scatterbrained as they come. I knew her but I didn't know her. In the course of my job, I'd talk to her on the phone several times a week and about once a week she'd come to the SJA office to drop off/pick up paperwork.

After our first week of class she wanted to go home for the weekend and asked if I wanted to ride with her. I was glad on two accounts. First, I didn't not want to stay at school for the weekend with nothing to do! Secondly, I was actually missed SSG Newsome. I wanted to go back and see him. So back to Ansbach we headed. Wanda dropped me off at the barracks then headed home. She lived in family housing with her husband and daughter. Her husband was active duty Army (they met in Korea) but he got out of the military while she stayed in so they could still get benefits. He didn't work. I didn't get that but it wasn't really my business.

When I got back to 1st AD and saw SSG Newsome I could tell he had missed me too. He was surprised to see me and said, "I thought you were going to be gone for 2 weeks!" I explained to him Wanda gave me a ride home. So Newsome and I were able to spend some time together. He took me to Burger King for lunch. Ha! Romance at its best? Well, there wasn't much to choose from, trust me.

We had to be back Sunday evening so Wanda came and picked me up late Sunday afternoon but soon discovered she left something at home (I told you she was ditzy -- always forgetting things) so she had to run by home first. When we got to the parking lot she invited me to go up with her. I had never been inside family housing before, which looked a lot like apartments, so I was curious and glad to go up with her. She lived on the 3rd floor, I believe --no elevators!

When we walked into her place it was neat and clean like crazy. She had beautiful furniture all of which had a Korean flare to it --assuming they had purchased it while stationed there. As far as deco style, it wasn't my taste but it was quite nice to see and so well put together. So, I just stood right at the front door not wanting to go in any further because sitting there at the coffee table was her husband and as soon as Wanda and I walked in I could tell he was none too happy she brought up company and also, he really wasn't expecting her back for another week.

There right before my eyes sat this ex-Army Sergeant with the the most insane amount of pot and cocaine I had ever seen. On the table there was a scale and some other equipment --he was measuring all of it out for resale. I think he was also doing a few lines of cocaine himself. Well no wonder he didn't want me around! The feeling was quite mutual. I wanted to bolt out of that place. My first thought was, "You've got to be kidding me! Why is it every corner I turn I run into drugs of some sort?" I was like a magnet to them.

I think I was extra paranoid because of my work in JAG. We handled a ton of drug cases all of which ended with lengthy prison sentences for the accused. As I'm standing at the front door afraid to move a muscle, all I could think was the MP's were going to bust through the door and arrest us all. I had to get out of there. Adding to the awkward situation (putting it lightly) was the fact that Wanda and her husband were screaming at each other. Then I remembered Wanda's little girl. Was she here too? Wanda didn't take long to get whatever it was she had forgotten so we were soon on our way but not before a few more choice words were exchanged between her and her husband. When we left, Wanda was in tears. Once we got out into the hallway I asked her where her daughter was. She said she was home with her husband. YOU MEAN THE COCAINE SNORTING DRUG DEALING HUSBAND WE JUST SAW? OH PLEASE TELL ME WANDA HAS ANOTHER HUSBAND! So I stopped dead in my tracks and said, "Are you kidding me? You're going to leave her here? With him? Like this?" Wanda went on to explain to me, through her sobs and crying, her husband was really a good man and took very good care of their daughter . . .blah, blah, blah -- I couldn't believe what I was hearing. She's going to defend him? We kept walking down the hallway and this just didn't settle well with me. I mean come on! Wanda is in the Army, works in JAG, lives in military housing, stationed overseas, has a daughter --you just can't deal drugs (not that being a civilian living in their own home could deal drugs). We made our way down to her car and I got in. She was still upset and crying and I was still in a semi state of shock - -not so much over what I saw but the fact that she was just going to leave her daughter there but I had decided I wasn't going to leave her daughter there.

"Wanda, you know how much trouble you and your husband are going to get into, right? The best thing you can do is put him out and make a life for you and your daughter. You just can't allow him to deal drugs out of your home --your military home and being he's a civilian, they'd turn him over to the German police and you'd just never ever see him again." She's crying even harder now and keeps saying over and over, "But I love him and I can't live without him." I tried to explain to her she's going to live without him one way or the other --putting him out or seeing him go to jail. Then I got even bolder and said, "Wanda, I can't leave here knowing that baby is up there. I just can't. I don't want to get you guys in trouble but I can't walk away from this. You either go get that baby now and leave her someplace safe or I'm calling the MP's."

I was so scared. I wasn't sure what she would say or do (and I really did need that ride back to school). What if she went and told her husband what I said? What would he do? Thankfully, she agreed to get her baby and take her to a friend's house then she said, "But I don't want to go back up there alone, will you go with me?" Crrrrr-ap! Here we go.

We went back up and no sooner than she walked in the door did he start yelling and screaming at her. Its funny because he never did say a word to me. Wanda got her daughter and some of her things and we were out the door. The guy didn't even care she was taking his daughter -- he was too anxious to get back to his drug dealer stuff.

We took the baby to a friend's house but this time I didn't go in with her. Quite frankly, I had seen enough. When Wanda got back to the car she was even more upset than before. She said she was to upset to drive and asked me if I would drive us back to school.

Houston, we've got a problem --I don't have a license to drive.