Battle Flag: Heroes of the 82nd Airborne Book 9

By Todd McLeod and Eric Meyer

The 82nd has pushed the enemy back through the Ardennes forest, yet they continue to fight hard, contesting every foot of ground with increasing savagery. Approaching the town of Thier-du-Mont, 1st Platoon is about to face its toughest test.

Survivors of the 2nd SS Panzer Division ‘Das Reich’ are holed up inside the town, their escape cut off by the American encirclement. Yet they refuse to surrender, and the bloody battle goes on. Until the SS commander approaches the platoon lieutenant with an offer that could only come from a dedicated Nazi. A threat to commit a heinous war crime if the Americans continue their attack.

Ray Cassidy and his buddy Harry Byrd have other ideas, and they hatch a plan to turn things around. To put their plan into effect, they have to carry out a hair-raising dash across the rooftops of Thier-du-Mont. Success will mean the saving of many innocent lives. Failure will mean their deaths. Despite the odds against them, the men of 1st Platoon race across the treacherous rooftops, knowing every footstep could tumble them into the street. And into the muzzles of the SS guns.

Heroes of the 82nd Airborne Book 9 – Battle Flag is the ninth work of shortread fiction set during the Second World War. The book is a collaboration between Todd McLeod and Eric Meyer, the bestselling author of more than fifty war novels.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Swordworks Books
• Release date: Jun 22, 2021
• ISBN: 9781005695699

Book preview

Battle Flag

By Todd McLeod & Eric Meyer

BOOK 9 OF THE HEROES OF THE 82ND AIRBORNE SERIES

SHORT FICTION

Copyright 2021 by Todd McLeod & Eric Meyer

Published by Swordworks Books

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

MY NEWSLETTER

If you’d like to receive my latest news, special offers, and free books then please sign up for my newsletter. It’s a great way of keeping up to date with my latest projects, as well as getting samples and free books throughout the year. Click on the link and join up today. You can also visit my official website and Facebook page, links below:

My official newsletter: subscribepage.com/EricMeyer

My official website: ericmeyer.co.uk

My Facebook Page: facebook.com/ericmeyerfiction/

Chapter One

They’d finally left the dark, claustrophobic gloom of the Ardennes after long and bitter fighting. There’d been no Christmas vacation for the 82nd. The Germans had defended every square foot of the dense forest, carpeted with a thick fall of snow that made for hard going. 1st Platoon had taken so many casualties their fighting strength was down to nine men until Lieutenant Bond announced replacements were due in that morning. Men cheered, but one grunted, More meat for the grinder.

It was still cold. Bitter cold, but PFC Ray Cassidy was at home in the outdoors. Back home he spent every spare moment in the mountains. Short and wiry, he was a skilled hunter, a natural. Frequently he’d track an animal for hours before he lined up the perfect shot. But here, he tracked and pursued different game. Ignoring the bitter wind that howled down from the forest they’d left behind, and here, the weather was colder than he could remember from back home. Harry told him it was cold enough to make a polar bear feel at home, and he didn’t argue. He lay on the frozen ground, staring through binoculars at the small town one mile away.

He looked aside and the man lying next to him, his buddy PFC Harry Byrd. Harry wasn’t at home in the bitter cold. He was pale and inclined to a little flab, unusual for an Airborne trooper. Yet underneath the flab lay solid muscle. At nearly six feet, he was tall, with blonde hair and piercing blue eyes, a throwback to his Viking ancestors. He