Keep Your Powder Dry

Val is informed that she cannot claim her trust fund until she demonstrates responsibility. She chooses to enlist in the Women's Army Corps to prove maturity and discipline. This decision sets the course for her military journey.

On the way to the training camp in Des Moines, Iowa, Val meets Ann Darrison and Leigh Rand. Val and Leigh are assigned to the same barracks, setting up their initial clash and dynamic. The introductions foreshadow the bonds and tensions to come.

In the early days of training, Val and Leigh butt heads as Leigh asserts authority while Val tests her boundaries. Ann tries to smooth tensions and keep the trio focused on their training goals. The friction establishes the competitive atmosphere Val will confront throughout training.

Val refuses to be sidelined and deepens her commitment by working hard in courses, proving herself capable. Her performance forces Leigh to reassess her judgment about Val's seriousness and potential. The rivalry evolves into cautious respect as Val gains confidence.

Upon completing basic training, Val, Ann, and Leigh are assigned to a Motor Transport School within the WAC. The new setting provides fresh challenges and a tighter focus on skills. The three women navigate the curriculum and their evolving relationships in this specialized program.

As they train together, Val and Leigh shed some of their initial hostility and begin to form a budding camaraderie. The two women rally to support Ann, who is self-conscious and seeking confidence. This fragile alliance strengthens their resolve to stay in the WAC and pursue Officer Candidate School.

Val, Ann, and Leigh are selected to enter Officer's Candidate School, marking a turning point in their careers. The advancement unites them under a common goal and intensifies the stakes of their previous tensions. Each woman begins to envision a future beyond their current roles.

Bill Barclay, a peer of Ann's husband, visits the base and becomes enamored of Val, triggering jealousy from Leigh. The dynamics become more complicated as personal and professional boundaries blur. Leigh's insecurity pushes her to act to keep Val at bay.

Leigh schemes to block Val from pursuing Bill by arranging Val's duty assignments. The tactic exposes the growing strain between them and tests Val's resolve to navigate personal distractions while remaining focused on training. The power struggle underscores the cost of ambition within the squad.

Val is summoned by a telegram to meet her attorney, only to find Harriet and Junior Vanderhausen at a hotel. Harriet pressures Val to manage her inheritance and social expectations. The encounter deepens Val's tension with her circle of socialites and foreshadows further upheaval.

Harriet convinces Val to sign a lease for a home in Palm Beach, Florida, using Val's inheritance to fund a new lifestyle. Val's decision signals a shift away from the barracks and toward a life of leisure. This move exacerbates tensions with Leigh and reinforces Val's distance from her WAC commitments.

Val, upset by the hotel encounter and the lingering stigma of social life, asks Leigh to return to the barracks and occupy her bed to avoid being missing during nightly inspections. Leigh agrees and later brings Val a clean uniform the next morning. In the hotel elevator, Junior hints that Val is only in the WAC to claim her inheritance, fueling jealousy and distrust.

Following Val's appointment as platoon commander, Leigh uses every opportunity to undermine her, spreading doubts about Val's sincerity and fitness as a leader. The campaign wounds Val's standing and tests the team's cohesion. The women must decide how to respond under pressure.

Val finally stands up to Leigh by slapping her, challenging Leigh's authority in front of the platoon. Lt. Colonel Spottiswoode notes that Leigh's leadership is compromised by a lack of empathy. The moment crystallizes the tension before graduation.

Lt. Colonel Spottiswoode informs Ann that her husband has been killed in combat, deepening the emotional stakes. Ann and Leigh console each other, and Leigh confesses her jealousy of Val's beauty and commitment. In a final turn, Val, Leigh, and Ann reconcile, and Spottiswoode relents to allow them to graduate from Officer's Candidate School alongside Ann.