Jack was walking in the deer park with Greg when they were approached by a Lieutenant.
‘Which one of you soldiers is Captain Doherty?’
‘I am.’
‘You have immediate orders to leave Hatfield at once.’ He handed Jack an envelope.
‘So, I’m back in the fray?’
‘I’m afraid not Captain. You are being sent home to the good old USA.’
‘No, surely not! I’m probably fitter than most of the doughboys over there fighting at the moment.’
‘That may well be the case but orders are orders. I am instructed to escort you to London to board a ship to take you home. Now please excuse us, Captain Mathers. We need to pack the Captain’s bags and get to London.’
‘When am I departing, sir?’
‘Tomorrow morning.’
Jack was unaware that his stepfather Rear Admiral Eugene Leutze had, at the behest of Jack’s mother Lucy, pulled a few strings with his contacts in the Marines. She wanted her son out of harm’s way – she had lost a husband; she wasn’t going to lose a son.
Jack packed his suitcase and said farewell to the nursing staff who had looked after him so well. The Lieutenant had arrived in a black Cadillac with a driver at the wheel. It only took them ninety minutes to make the trip to Southampton. Jack was booked into the historic Dolphin Hotel.
After a restless night he went down to the hotel restaurant and enjoyed a hearty breakfast of eggs and bacon. He had just completed his meal when the officer who had escorted him entered the room.
‘How was breakfast, Captain?’
‘Very good! The best I’ve had for a while as you can imagine.’
‘Good-oh. Well, it’s time to go. Fetch your bag and I’ll fix up the bill.’
They both got onto the Army vehicle and drove to the dock just two miles away.
‘Well, there she is. The ship that’s taking you home.’
Jack stared. He couldn’t believe it: The ship that was taking him home was the Carpathia.
The same ship that had saved his mother, sister and himself when the Titanic sank; the same ship that had transported him to France to join the great fray. Now the same ship would take him home.
He boarded his old friend and was shown to his cabin by an orderly. There was no need for any instructions – he knew where everything was. He heard the ship’s horn signalling their imminent departure and decided to go up to the main deck and wave goodbye to England. The ship pulled away from the dock with the aid of three tugs – they were on their way.
The Carpathia was about eight hours into the journey sailing through the Celtic Sea Jack was sitting at a table in the dining room talking to some American passengers about what life had been like back home during these tumultuous times.
Suddenly, they heard a huge boom and the ship rocked violently.
‘We’ve been hit! Quick! Everybody to the lifeboats!’ Jack yelled. He knew the drill; he’d been there before.
The Imperial German Navy submarine U-55 had torpedoed her. Of three torpedoes fired at the ship, one impacted the port side while the other penetrated the engine room, killing two firemen and three trimmers. As Carpathia began to settle by the head and list to port, Captain William Prothero gave the order to abandon ship. All fifty-seven passengers and two hundred and eighteen surviving crewmembers boarded the lifeboats as the vessel sank.
A British ship, the HMS Snowdrop, a small Azalea-class sloop, rescued all the passengers and surviving crew. Jack had been in this situation before. He’d prayed never again.
The Snowdrop transported the survivors to the port of Liverpool. The RMS Cedric then took the passengers to Boston. They only lost a week from their original schedule.
Jack’s mother Lucy and her husband Gene were at the wharf to greet him.
‘Jack you look wonderful! I was expecting you in a wheelchair or something. Here you are in your Marine’s uniform looking every bit the returning hero.’
‘Thanks Mom, I’m OK. Certainly not an invalid. Though the doctors tell me I have to take it easy for a while.’
‘It looks like they’ve given you a promotion Jack. Captain – that’s pretty impressive.’ Gene smiled proudly at him.
‘Thanks, sir. Yes, I was promoted in the field to First Lieutenant then I got promoted again after I was wounded.’
‘Well, we better get on our way if we are going to make it back to Washington by nightfall.’
The three of them were driven in the Admiral’s car back to Washington DC, a seven-hour drive.
Lucy tried to get Jack to talk about his experiences in the war but Jack proved very reluctant to divulge any real detail. He did tell them about his close friend John being killed.
On arrival they had a light meal prepared by the housemaid and then all three retired for the evening. It had been a big day.
Over the next few weeks Jack spent his time walking around the capital visiting various monuments and contemplating his future.
He spent a week with an old school friend in his family’s Chesapeake Bay holiday cabin, which reminded him of his childhood living on the shore with his mother, father and sister.
The time arrived when he was due to present himself to Marine Corps Base Quantico for duty. The base was only forty miles from Washington DC so visiting his mother would be relatively easy.
Jack had made the decision to remain in the Marines and that is where he would carve out a career. His commander, Colonel James Pickering earmarked Jack for bigger and greater things. Jack was enrolled and completed a number of courses, which would further his career.