Monkey on My Back Page #3

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Trying to shove me around!

l'll shove you around any time l feel like it.

lt's a fight. Gotta bust up a fight.

Excuse me, l'll be right back.

Come, fellows. Wait just a minute.

Left just in time.

He almost had one on his hands right here.

The stupid, stubborn meat-head.

He's not satisfied he burned up yesterday.

He has to burn up tomorrow.

Bourbon straight.

Bourbon, soda.

He's all yours, Sam.

You're not walking out on him?

Not walk. Run. l'm running away.

l'm not going into the new show at the club.

l've got a chance to go on the road

with a musical.

And l'm going.

l don't blame you, Cathy, but....

-This is gonna bust the kid wide open.

-lt's gonna bust me wide open, too.

But l've got no choice, Sam.

He's making up

for not being champion anymore...

by bigger bets, bigger grandstand plays.

Anything to keep the roar of the crowd.

That means more to him than l ever will.

l was such a fool, Sam.

l thought that when he was through

being a fighter...

things would be different.

Well, they are. They're worse.

lt's a disease...

and he's incurable.

lt's all right, folks.

These two guys just wanted to fight so bad

they couldn't wait.

Bye, Sam.

Down the hatch.

Make with the handshakes to each other.

That's it.

Why, Mr. Ross! She's moved.

Moved? Moved where?

She took the little girl to her grandmother's.

Then she's catching a train to Kansas City.

Going on the road with a show.

-Didn't she tell you?

-Maybe she did.

Maybe l ain't been listening lately.

Big Ralph's been calling all over town,

Iooking for you.

What's he want?

Who knows? He's inside, waiting.

Hi, Big. You wanted to see me?

Sit down, Barney.

lt's okay. l'm all right up here.

What's on your mind?

You're through, Barney.

l mean you're through around here.

Through?

What do you mean, l'm through?

l own 25O% of this joint.

You can't throw me out.

-You got $22,OOO?

-No, l ain't got $22,OOO, but that don't mean--

That's what these markers of yours come to.

All right, so what?

So l had a little tough luck.

-You can carry me, can't you?

-l'm tired, Barney.

Carrying you is heavy work.

l let you get in too deep

when you were champ.

There was some excuse for it then

but there ain't none now.

l'm tearing these up

and taking over your 25O% of the joint, too.

Drop in any time, kid.

There's always a drink on the house.

But no more cash from the till.

l invited a couple of Marines here

for dinner tonight.

That's to make sure they get it.

Thanks for the use of the hall.

l miss you, Cathy,

You were right to walk out, l know that now,

Being in the Marines

has taught me a lot of things,

Believe it or not

in this outfit l'm an old' man,

an old man at 33,

and l'd trade every one of those 33 years

iust to hold you in my arms once more,

l hope l can get leave to see you

before l get shipped out,

Hello.

Come in.

l wanted to meet you at the train,

but l couldn't get off in time.

Sure, l know. There's a war on.

How did you get away from the show?

They gave me a week off.

Guess l'm not irreplaceable.

Just let me look at you.

When l got your wire, l couldn't believe it.

-But you're here.

-Yes, Barney.

You're really here.

l only thought l could ever leave you.

Hold me close.

lt's better than the dream.

lt's no dream, Barney. Flesh and blood.

l wanna put this on now.

l thought maybe you threw it away.

That's why l went out, and l got this.

So it isn't for somebody else?

What do you mean? It's engraved, too.

''For Cathy, for keeps.''

For keeps.

l'm some lucky Marine.

A trip to heaven on a 72.

Then came hell,

Only, on the maps

they called it Guadalcanal,,,

that stinking, crawling jungle,

You could never see a Jap,

They were like ghosts, spitting death,

ln every tree, a hidden sniper,

Behind every bush, a machine gun,

That's a gook. We've found him.

Tell it to Snowball. Give our position.

lceberg calling Snowball, Over,

lceberg calling--

You guys stay put. l'll have a look-see.

Radio's busted.

Hold it, Spike. You heard what the man said.

Maybe the Lieutenant got it.

-l'll take a look.

-Okay, Pop.

Barney, he's dead!

-What are you doing here?

-l'm just waiting for you.

You picked a hell of a place to wait around.

Let's move out.

Spike.

-Spike.

-Get back, Barney...

l've bought it.

Not while you're still talking, you ain't.

Hang on, boy.

You're going for a ride.

-Thanks, Pop.

-For nothing.

Thanks for nothing.

l was just using you as a shield.

We're through, Barney.

Not as long as we got these, we ain't.

How many grenades you got?

l can't move, Barney.

l can't move!

Shut up.

Hold your fire! Don't shoot!

You won't trick me, you bastards!

l'm dying! We're gonna die!

Come on, you!

Get off my buddy.

Give it up, Barney.

Got any other good ideas?

Alone, maybe you can get back.

Stay here, the Japs--

Shut up. We're sticking this out together.

Don't you worry, Spike.

We'll get out of here.

We'll make it, you'll see.

-Thanks, Barney.

-Go to sleep.

Morning came, but l didn't know it,

By that time the malaria had gotten me,

and l was off my rocker with fever,

We were somewhere between the lines,

lt was just a question of

whether our guys would find us,,,

or the Japs,

Hold your fire! Hey, Mac, you idiot!

You won't trick me, you rats!

The screwy goon is trigger-happy.

He must have killed 30 or 40 Japs.

Brother, l'm sure glad he ain't all there.

His aim ain't too good.

Corpsman, over here.

Look out for the birds.

Look out, Spike! We stopped them all!

Give him something. Stop that screaming.

-Give him a shot.

-We stopped them all!

-We stopped them!

-What?

We stopped them!

Take them up.

The top of my skull's coming off.

When those guns start,

Iet's get out of here to the back of the lines.

No back of the lines in Guadalcanal...

and the top of your skull would come off

no matter where you are with that fever.

We'll do everything we can for you.

l'll look in again on you later, son.

Malignant malaria. Critical.

Fever.. 104.5.

Keep him under opiates

until we can evacuate him to New Guinea.

That was the start,

Morphine,

The only thing that could

drown out the guns,,,

and sing me to sleep,

They shipped me to New Guinea,,,

but the pain in my skull didn't make

no allowance for changes in climate,

There was only one thing that helped me,

Corpsman.

Corpsman! Where are you?

Right here. You don't have to holler.

l've been ringing this thing.

Where have you been?

Listen, buddy. l'm all alone on this watch.

l got a lot of ground to cover.

Yeah, l know.

My head, it's killing me.

They said it'd be better off

when l got to New Guinea.

But it ain't. It's worse.

You gotta give me something.

-You had your sedative two hours ago.

-No, they don't do no good.

-l need a shot.

-Nothing doing.

-No hypos, not without orders.

-The other night man don't wait for orders.

Give me something.

l need a shot.

Easy, Mac. Just take it easy, okay?

finally, the sun shone again,

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