The Christmas Patrol
By: AliasCWN
"What are they doing?"
"It looks like they have mechanical problems." Moffitt answered as he watched the three German soldiers through field glasses. The three men were gathered around a patrol car with the hood up looking at the motor.
"I don't see anyone else around." Troy replied as he searched the desert around them with his glasses. Their jeeps were hidden in a gully behind them, guarded by the privates. The desert for several miles around them looked empty.
"I wonder what they were doing out here in the first place."
Troy glanced over at the British sergeant and smiled, showing even white teeth that contrasted sharply with his sun darkened face. His dark Greek good looks were never more pronounced than when he smiled. The desert tan enhanced his features, especially his eyes; when they weren't hidden behind dusty goggles. "Why don't we go down there and ask them?"
"You don't think it's a trap?"
"Three men aren't much of a threat and there is nowhere out there to hide any other vehicles. Even Hitch and Tully would have trouble hiding a jeep out there where it wouldn't be spotted. No," Troy shook his head, "I don't think it's a trap." He sighed. "I just can't figure out what they are doing out here. We're quite a distance from Dietrich's base and there is nothing else in this sector. There is nothing here." Troy repeated.
"We're here." Moffitt pointed out.
"Yeah." Troy grinned. "But we're just passing through. We wouldn't be here either if Dietrich hadn't forced us to take this big detour after we hit that convoy."
"He is rather persistent in his pursuit." Moffitt smiled. "You don't suppose we made him angry, do you?"
Troy shrugged. "I wouldn't know. All we did was destroy a convoy; it's not like we haven't done it plenty of times before."
"Perhaps he was expecting his Christmas presents to be on that convoy." The British sergeant suggested with a twinkle in his eyes.
"Shame on us then." The American sergeant laughed. "I'd be mad too if someone ruined my Christmas."
Moffitt turned his glasses back to the three men stranded in the desert. The sun was beating down relentlessly, showing mercy to no living soul. As the sergeant watched the three men emptied a canteen and threw it to the ground. "If we wait just a bit longer the desert will cook all of the fight out of them. From the looks of it, they are out of water."
"No," Troy shook his head, "I don't want to wait. I think we lost Dietrich but I don't want to wait around to find out. Let's go down there now and see what's going on."
The two sergeants returned to their jeeps and explained the situation to their drivers. Dust covers were removed and the chambers were cleared on the 50 caliber machine guns.
As soon as the jeeps broke cover they were spotted by the stranded Germans. Both sergeants kept their 50's pointed at the three men. Two of the man grabbed rifles and prepared to fight. Troy fired a short burst to convince them to reconsider. Both jeeps stopped out of rifle range to wait for them to make up their minds.
The third German, a grizzled older sergeant, stood his ground and watched the Americans. As the two sides faced off the only sound was the soft rumble of the jeep engines.
Troy pulled the brim of his hat lower over his eyes so he didn't have to squint in the bright sunlight. It was early afternoon and the glare was still a dangerous factor in any battle. When the German sergeant didn't move Troy reached up and lifted his goggles from his neck and settled them onto his face.
Hitch revved the engine while sitting completely calm behind the wheel. Troy didn't have to look to know that his driver was just waiting for the order to charge. Still, he waited, giving the Germans plenty of time to consider their options. The sergeant flashed a smile as he heard his driver pop a bubblegum bubble. The two sides stared at each other as time seemed to stand still.
The two jeeps had separated so they presented a smaller target. Troy could hear Tully rev his engine just a bit. Without glancing that way he knew that Tully's ever present matchstick would be switching sides in his mouth. Like Hitch's gum, Tully's matchstick was a pretty clear indication of how he felt, at least to someone who knew him well. Troy knew he would be calmly waiting for orders while he worked the sliver of wood between his teeth. The sergeant had seen more than one enemy unnerved by those simple little vices. They expected to see fear and what they got was serene patience.
Either the German sergeant lost his nerve or he considered his options and didn't like the odds; half turning, he called to his companions. The other two soldiers looked surprised at first. The sergeant called again and they reluctantly dropped their weapons and walked back to the disabled car.
Troy smiled and reached forward to tap his driver on the shoulder. The jeep moved forward making sure that he didn't drive between the Germans and Tully's jeep.
Moffitt covered the three Germans while Troy and Hitch searched them for weapons.
"Tully, take a look at the car. See if you can figure out what's wrong with it."
Tully nodded and climbed out of his seat to check the German patrol car.
Hitch kept the Germans under guard while Troy and Moffitt searched their vehicle for anything useful. Moffitt found a packet of maps and began to leaf through them.
"What are they?"
"Maps." Moffitt answered absently. "Troy, these maps are mostly for the sector on the other side of Dietrich's base. Only one of them covers this sector."
"So?"
"So I'm wondering if it's possible that our new friends managed to get themselves lost."
Troy looked over Moffitt's shoulder to look at the maps. "They're pretty clear."
"For you." Moffitt agreed. "But you know how to read a map; maybe these guys never learned."
"It's kind of dumb to go driving around the desert alone if you can't read a map."
"They're soldiers." Moffitt answered. "They follow orders. Maybe no one asked them if they could navigate the desert."
Troy looked at the prisoners with a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Sarge."
Tully's call interrupted his thoughts.
"Yeah, did you find the problem?"
"Yeah Sarge." Tully nodded. "They hit a rock and put a hole in the oil pan. There's nothing we can do to fix it, the motor's seized up."
"Okay Tully, see if there is anything that we can salvage." Seeing the canteen on the ground where the soldiers had thrown it, Troy looked in the car for a spare can of water. "Did you see a water can anywhere around?"
"No Sarge." Tully answered. "There's an extra can of gas, but it's almost empty. I saw an empty canteen in the back seat. Are you short of water?"
"No, we have an extra can." Troy replied. "Grab a canteen and see if our friends are thirsty."
Tully tried to hand the prisoners a canteen but they all refused to take it. With a shrug he put it back in his jeep.
Troy watched the attempt with mild interest. "Okay, load them up; we have a long way to go before dark."
The prisoners were bound and loaded into the two jeeps.
"Move out Hitch, but take it easy, I don't want to overheat the engines."
"Sarge, with four guys in one jeep and three in the other, and this sun beating down on us, there's no way they won't overheat."
"I know." Troy sighed. "We'll ride until we get clear of here and then we'll take turns walking."
The blond nodded and started toward their home base. He glanced over at the German in the passenger seat. The prisoner was sitting stiffly, trying not to bump into Hitch as he was thrown around by the rocky road. Each time the jeep would rock violently the prisoner would brace in his seat. The German was close to Hitch's age, within a year either way. The one in the back of the jeep with Troy was older by at least five years. Maybe because he was the youngest on his team, Hitch felt a connection to the youngest prisoner. And, having been a prisoner himself on occasion, he could sympathize with how the young German felt.
The rest of the afternoon was a nightmare of travel. They took turns walking and guarding the prisoners. While Hitch walked, Troy drove. Tully and Moffitt repeated the routine with their jeep. The prisoners seemed surprised that the Americans took turns walking alongside them. They also seemed surprised when they were allowed to ride while some of the Allies walked. They refused water the first time Tully offered but by the second time they were thirsty enough to swallow their pride and accept. Troy had to pull the canteen away from them to keep them from drinking too much and making themselves sick.
Night found them still a long way from the Allied lines. Not willing to risk driving at night, Troy called a halt. They found a deep wadi where they felt fairly safe and Troy allowed a small fire to heat their meal.
Once they had eaten Hitch loaded three plates for the prisoners. With Moffitt keeping them covered, Hitch loosened their bonds and put the plates on the ground next to them. The prisoners eyed the food suspiciously. The youngest one asked his sergeant a question, keeping an eye on the Allies as he waited for an answer. His sergeant shrugged his shoulders and watched their captors.
"I believe they think that the food is either poisoned or drugged." The British sergeant translated.
"That's ridiculous!" Hitch yelped indignantly. "Why would we do that?"
Moffitt shrugged.
Stepping back to the plates, Hitch took a fork full of food off of the first plate and put it in his own mouth. He made a show of chewing and swallowing it. When the Germans still did not eat Hitch repeated the action with the other two plates. This seemed to convince the two older Germans and they reached for their meals. The younger one watched them eat half their meals before he took a chance on his own. Hitch and Moffitt waited until they were done and then tied them again.
"Hitch, relieve Tully on watch." Troy's call sent Hitch to the jeeps for a machine gun.
"Right Sarge."
Tully returned to the camp and began to clean up.
"Forget that Tully." Troy ordered. "Moffitt and I will take care of that. Get some sleep."
"We leaving early Sarge?"
"Yeah, I want to get back to the base early. We don't want to miss our Christmas dinner."
"Yeah, I've been looking forward to it for weeks now." Tully grinned, heading to the jeeps for his blankets.
"Throw a couple of those blankets on the prisoners." Troy ordered. "It's going to get cold tonight."
"Okay Sarge." Tully covered the prisoners to ward off the cold before taking his blankets to make a bed for himself. As he lay in his blankets looking up at the night sky, his eyes were drawn to one star in particular. It stood out from all of the others, shining bright and clear. 'If we were traveling tonight, that's the star we'd be following.' Tully thought to himself. He wondered if the others had noticed the same star. Tully watched the bright dot in the sky until he slipped into the warm embrace of sleep.
"He's asleep Moffitt." Troy looked over at Tully to check his breathing.
"I'll get everything ready; you watch the prisoners and make sure that Hitch doesn't walk in on me."
Troy nodded and took his machine gun to go check on the prisoners.
Moffitt dug a sack out of the back of his jeep and carried it into the darkness between the two vehicles. He emerged long enough to pull a scraggly bush from the ground before he returned to the jeeps. Troy could hear him humming to himself as he worked in the darkness. When he finally came out he covered the gap between the vehicles with a tarp.
"It's done." He announced. "I covered it so they won't see it; just keep them away from the jeeps."
Troy glanced at is watch as he nodded. "Hitch has a few more hours on watch. It should be getting light by the time he gets off of guard duty. We'll take time to eat and take care of the festivities before we move out."
"You make it sound so mandatory." Moffitt laughed.
"I love Christmas! It's just a little hard getting into the mood with no snow and being on patrol."
"Just pretend the sand is snow and we'll all pretend that this is just a family get together." The British sergeant suggested.
"It's going to be hard to have a snowball fight with sand. Rocks don't make good substitutes. But we don't have to pretend about the family." Troy answered suddenly serious. "We are family."
"True." Moffitt agreed. "I've never been closer to anyone than I am to you, Tully, and Hitch."
Troy smiled. "Get some sleep Moffitt. I want to get an early start tomorrow."
"Good night Troy."
Good night Doctor."
Troy woke Tully and Moffitt as the first streaks of light brightened the sky. "Hitch, do you see anything?" He called to their guard.
"No Sarge" The blond called back softly. "Everything's quiet."
"Come on down; we'll eat and then get going."
Moments later the blond walked into camp. "Merry Christmas Sarge."
"Merry Christmas Hitch."
Tully and Moffitt joined them at their small fire and exchanged Christmas greetings.
"What's with the tarp Sarge?" Tully asked, looking toward the jeeps.
Troy smiled and nodded toward Moffitt. "Ask Moffitt, it was his idea."
"Doc?"
Moffitt walked over to the jeeps and pulled the tarp free. He smiled in triumph at the surprised delight he saw on the faces of the younger 'rats'.
"Wow!" Hitch walked closer to the jeeps. "You did this Doc?"
"Yes." The Brit answered modestly.
"It's…" Tully joined Hitch and stood speechless in front of Moffitt's creation.
"I'm glad you like it." Moffitt smiled as he met Troy's eyes.
"The green paper came out of one of the packages that Moffitt got from his folks. We didn't have a pine tree so he used the green paper to cover the bush. I think it looks like a tree. We cut the ornaments from magazines we had lying around. It was the only colored paper we could find." Troy explained how the Christmas tree had come to be.
"We had a hard time cutting out he shapes and keeping them hidden from you. You almost caught us more than once." Moffitt continued the explanation.
"You even used spent shells for ornaments." Hitch smiled, reaching out to touch the casings with awe.
"Where'd you get the angel?" Tully asked, tearing his eyes away from the homemade tree.
"My mother was kind enough to send it." Moffitt answered. "She also said that I should wish you all a very Merry Christmas."
Hitch stared at the tree and shook his head in wonder. "I can't believe it! This is really great. Thanks Doc. Thanks to both of you."
"The presents are for you." Troy explained, pointing to the packages under the tree.
"Really?" Hitch smiled a dazzling smile that reminded Troy of his brother's expression on Christmas morning.
"Here." Moffitt bent down and picked up the presents. "Hitch. Tully." He handed them each a present.
The first things he handed them were envelopes. Inside they found a three day pass starting the next day.
"Captain Boggs gave them to me before we left so I thought I would put them under the tree." Troy grinned at the obvious delight of the younger men.
Hitch opened a packet of gum from Troy; a new flavor he had been wanting to try. Tully got a new pair of goggles because his were so scratched that he was having trouble seeing through them. Both privates were delighted with their presents.
"There's more." Moffitt smiled. He handed Hitch a pile of comic books while Tully got a book written and signed by Jack Moffitt senior. To his surprise, Troy received a can of real coffee.
"Thanks Moffitt." Troy handled the coffee as if it were pure gold. "I've got something for you too." He pulled a packet out of his duffle and handed it to the other sergeant. It contained a soft new ascot.
"I have something too." Hitch added with excitement in his voice. He went to the jeep and pulled out a brand new folding knife for each of them. "I ordered them months ago but they just came last week. I was afraid that they weren't going to get here in time."
"That explains your willingness to volunteer to pick up the mail these last few weeks." Troy laughed. "Thanks Hitch, they're really nice."
"I have something too." Tully drawled as he pocketed the knife. He gave Moffitt a handmade pouch to store his precious tea from home. He had braided a strap for Troy's bush hat because he had noticed that the original strap was getting frayed. For Hitch he made a new leather knife sheath to strap to his leg. "My folks sent me cookies too. We can share them after e eat."
"Chocolate chip or peanut butter?" Moffitt asked.
"Both." Tully grinned. "It's Christmas."
"Hitch?"
Troy's call made the younger 'rat' jump. "Sorry Sarge."
"Is something wrong?"
"No." The blond turned with a brilliant smile. "I just can't believe that you and Doc cut out all of those snowflakes to hang on the tree. It kind of reminds me of home."
"That was the idea." Troy smiled. "We're glad you like it. That makes it all worthwhile. Why don't we eat now so we can get back to the base?"
"Okay Sarge. Hey Sarge…"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks, both of you; you've made this a really special Christmas." Tully nodded his agreement.
Troy and Moffitt smiled at the privates.
The four of them at and then fed the prisoners.
All of the Germans had watched the Christmas exchange in amazement, and if they were to admit it, with envy. They knew they were headed for a POW camp where their Christmas would be rather bleak. None of them spoke as they were fed. This time they ate without hesitation, not waiting for any of the Allies to taste the food first. To their surprise, they were even given the choice of a peanut butter or chocolate chip cookie. With breakfast over, the Rat Patrol packed up and loaded their prisoners.
"Do we take the tree?" Moffitt asked as they readied to pullout.
"Take it Doc." Tully urged. "It's too special to leave behind." So Moffitt wrapped a sack around the tree and put it in his jeep.
It was midmorning when Moffitt first spotted the dust.
"Let's check it out." Troy ordered.
Twenty minutes later they were watching a German scout column make its way across the desert floor.
"They seem to be looking for something." Moffitt observed.
"They can't know we're here." Troy growled. "We circled way out around after we hit that convoy."
"I haven't seen any spotter planes either." Moffitt agreed.
"What else could they be hunting?" Troy asked. "There is nothing out here."
Moffitt glanced back at the jeeps and offered a suggestion. "Perhaps they're looking for their lost patrol car. Our prisoners didn't seem to be on any specific mission. They weren't carrying anything of value. We didn't find any dispatches."
"Maybe they already delivered them."
"To whom? You said it yourself; there is no one else out here."
"So you think Dietrich is looking for his lost car?" Troy glanced at the prisoners and then at Moffitt.
"It's possible."
"Let's get back to the jeeps."
"What is it Sarge?" Hitch asked as the sergeants returned to the jeeps.
"Dietrich." Troy answered. "His scout column seems to be looking for something."
"How could they know we're here?" Hitch asked in surprise.
"Moffitt thinks that they might be looking for these guys." Troy pointed at the prisoners. "They told him that they were lost; Dietrich could be looking for them."
Hitch glanced over at the youngest German.
"What are we going to do Sarge?" Tully asked.
"We're going home Tully, its Christmas."
"It is Christmas Sarge." Hitch repeated softly.
"Hitch is right." Tully added.
"What do you mean Tully?" Moffitt asked his driver.
"We wouldn't want to get sent to a POW camp on Christmas. Christmas is supposed to be a time of good will." Tully explained, giving Moffitt a beseeching look.
Troy eyed his two privates. "Let me see if I understand you. You want to turn the prisoners loose?"
"Headquarters wouldn't have to know Sarge." Hitch argued.
"We didn't tell them that we had any prisoners." Tully reminded the sergeant.
"It doesn't feel right to keep them on Christmas." Hitch stated.
"They do have a point." Moffitt agreed.
"Not you too!"
Moffitt smiled at Troy's outburst. "I saw the look on your face while you were watching Dietrich. You were looking for a way to get down there."
"Not me." Troy argued.
"Troy."
"I'm not getting close to Dietrich." Troy repeated as he looked at the crestfallen faces of the younger 'rats'. "We'll fly a white flag and take them out on the flats. They can walk back to Dietrich."
Hitch and Tully raised their eyes in surprise.
"We're going to let them go?"
"Yeah." Troy growled. "They're too much trouble. I just want to get home a soon as possible. With them along we're overloaded. That means we have to walk and that's going to slow us down."
Moffitt hid his smile at Troy's excuse.
"Find us a white cloth for a flag."
"Right Sarge." Hitch rummaged around in the jeep for a white cloth and soon they were driving toward Dietrich's column.
The first German to spot them shouted the alarm. Dietrich ordered his column to stop even before he saw the white flag. At the sight of the white flag flying, he made sure that his men understood that they needed to hold their fire.
Climbing out of his halftrack, he waited for the jeeps to stop. As they got closer he recognized his three missing men. The sight of his men only added to the puzzle. Why was the Rat Patrol showing themselves instead of staying hidden? What was the meaning of the meeting? He clasped his hands behind his back and waited for the answers to reveal themselves.
The jeeps stopped out of reach of the long range guns mounted on the halftracks. The Captain started to walk out to meet them. The white flag flapping in the breeze gave him confidence. The Rat Patrol had never ignored a white flag and he was sure that they would not fly one unless they meant it.
Moffitt jumped from his jeep and urged the three prisoners to get out to the vehicles. Dietrich could hear the mutterings of his troops behind him as the British sergeant pulled a knife and stepped in front of the prisoners. The muttering stopped as the three prisoners stepped around the sergeant with their hands now free. The sergeant stepped away from them, saying something that had their complete attention.
Dietrich again stepped forward, determined to see what was going on.
Moffitt went to the rear of the jeep and pulled out a wrapped bundle. He handed it to one of the prisoners and said something to him. Before Dietrich could reach them, the two jeeps drove away, leaving the confused Germans behind.
The prisoners, suddenly finding themselves free, stared after the jeeps long after they disappeared into the hills.
Dietrich finally reached his missing men. "Are you all right?"
"Yes Captain." The sergeant answered in a confused tone. "That was the Rat Patrol, was it not?"
"Yes, it was." Dietrich confirmed.
"Why did they release us?" The youngest of the trio asked.
"They gave us this for you." The second soldier announced, handing Dietrich the wrapped bundle.
Dietrich took the bundle and carefully unwrapped it. He stared in surprise at the homemade Christmas tree.
"They said to tell you Merry Christmas Captain."
Dietrich looked up from the tree to the hill where the jeeps had disappeared. "That's all they said?"
"No Sir." The youngest soldier answered. "They also said to give you this." The young soldier held a peanut butter cookie in his hand.
Dietrich took the crumbling cookie and took a small nibble. "Merry Christmas." He murmured as he savored the cookie.