The Interrogation Experiments

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 2

After leaving the private to rest Lt. Krantz made his way across the base to the cell blocks. Since they wanted to keep the prisoners separated, they had housed them far enough apart that there was absolutely no chance that they could hear one another. The cells were located in the basement, their only source of light, small barred windows. One of the windows had been boarded over so that the cell's occupant would have no access to the outside world. It was to this cell that Lt. Krantz was headed.

The American prisoner, a sergeant, lay on the cot in a state of confused agitation. The guards had orders to make sure that he didn't get any sleep. After three days and nights of being awake, he was suffering from dehydration, exhaustion, and hunger.

Lt. Krantz stood outside the cell and watched as the sergeant struggled with the beginnings of his hallucinations. The Lieutenant had orders to befriend the sergeant as he had the private, but the sergeant was proving to be much more resistant than his wounded driver. Perhaps because he wasn't wounded, he was holding out against the new techniques. With the Major impatiently awaiting results the sergeant's stubbornness was making him look bad. Determined to crack the prisoner's defiance, he ordered the guard to unlock the cell.

"Sergeant! Sergeant!"

The American turned his head to look toward the Lieutenant. His bloodshot eyes took a moment to focus on the German officer. "What do you want?" He asked, slurring his words.

"I'm afraid that I am the bearer of bad news Sergeant." The Lieutenant began without preamble. "I have just received a report concerning your other two men.

"What about them?" The Sergeant demanded, eyeing the officer in confusion.

"They're dead Sergeant." The officer stated flatly. "Killed by a bomb dropped by one of our planes. The jeep was totally destroyed, both men were confirmed causalities."

"No!" The sergeant yelled, jumping to his feet, swaying as he stood.

The guards rushed forward, placing themselves between the prisoner and the Lieutenant.

"Yes Sergeant Troy, it is true. They are dead." The Lieutenant hesitated, facing the other man. "I truly hate to be the bearer of bad news but I feel that you should know. Sergeant….your driver died this morning. Our doctors did their best but his injuries were just too severe."

"You're lying!" Troy responded, reeling with shock. He knew that Hitchcock had been hit but he hadn't been allowed near the private after their capture.

The Germans had surprised them during one of their stops to cool their engines. Troy was sure that Moffitt and Tully had managed to escape. The last he had seen of them was their jeep disappearing over a distant dune.

Hitch had been hit in the first volley; he'd seen him fall but hadn't been able to reach him. His captors had pulled a bag over his head and kept it there until he was delivered to the cell. He hadn't seen or heard his driver since. The news of the death was a severe blow, especially in his agitated state. Lack of sleep had him feeling disoriented and lost. The hallucinations were only adding to his confusion.

He clung to his belief that the Lieutenant was lying, not only about Hitch, but about Tully and Moffitt too. There was no way that Troy wanted to trust the German officer. He was especially suspicious of the offer of friendship.

Troy shook his head angrily; he needed to start thinking clearly. Things were blurring together, leaving him unsure of everything.

Sitting on his cot, Troy covered his face with his hands and tried to block out everything and everyone.

"Sergeant, let me help you." The Lieutenant pleaded. "I can make things much easier for you. Let me help."

"No!" Troy moaned, moving to the back of his cell. "Go away! Leave me alone!"

"Sergeant, I'm sorry about your men. Those are the fortunes of war are they not? If only you had told me where to find them I could have saved your friends. They would have gone to a POW camp but they would have been alive. I could have helped you if only you had trusted me."

"No!" The sergeant repeated loudly. "Go away!"

"Very well Sergeant, I will go. If you need anything, call the guards and they will call me. I only want to help. I can make things much easier for you."

The sergeant stayed near the back wall of the cell, ignoring the officer and the guards.

The Lieutenant watched his prisoner warily. These particular Americans had a reputation for being dangerous and he didn't want to take any unnecessary chances. Their new interrogation techniques were unfamiliar to him and he was having to reassess his every move. The prisoner was showing the effects of dehydration and sleep deprivation but they were still not getting any information from him.

The Lieutenant glanced at his watch, it would soon be dark. He needed to return to the private and convince him that his sergeant was dead. The officer sighed as he tried to keep all of his lies straight, trying to remember what he had told whom.

Heading back to the private, he hoped that the young soldier would be more open to his lies than his sergeant had been. Planning ahead what he would say, he called to the squad of soldiers that he had put on standby and told them to begin their subterfuge.

Shots rang out as he entered the supply building again. Pausing, he stared toward the sound of the gunfire. His plan was to tell the private that his sergeant had escaped from his cell and had been shot dead trying to escape over the outside wall. The hope was that the youth would feel so alone that he would turn to the Lieutenant for comfort. Once he accepted the offer of friendship, they could start talking about the things that the Major wanted to know. Lt. Krantz wasn't sure that the new technique would work but he didn't have the stomach for the methods used by the Gestapo. Despite his best intentions, he found himself feeling sympathy for the prisoners.

The guard was standing stiffly by the door when the Lieutenant walked down the corridor. Giving him a nod, he indicated that he wanted to visit the prisoner.

The blond again tensed as the door opened. The Lieutenant smiled as he saw the prisoner relax at the sight of him. Perhaps this one was close to falling for the new methods.

"Good evening Private."

The prisoner nodded slightly, most of his attention on the guard standing just inside the door.

"Step outside and wait in the hall." The officer told the guard. To his relief the prisoner relaxed even more with the guard in the hall. "I was on my way to visit you as promised," the Lieutenant stated softly, "but I was forced to deal with an incident before I could reach here." The Lieutenant let his comment hang in the air between them. If he was correct, the young soldier would consider what he was about to tell him as the ultimate act of betrayal on the part of his sergeant. If the Major was correct, this was the blow that would shatter the youth's belief in his friends and any chance of rescue. Not sure why, the Lieutenant found himself reluctant to deliver the news.

"What is it Lieutenant?" The private asked, his tone edged with worry.

"There was an escape attempt Private." The Lieutenant waited for the prisoner to ask the next question.

"Who tried to escape?"

"I'm afraid that it was Sergeant Troy. He managed to escape from his cell. He ran straight for the outer wall and tried to escape into the desert."

"What happened?"

"He was killed Private, I'm sorry. The sergeant was trying to save himself and he was shot as he tried to slip over the wall."

"No!"

"I'm really sorry Private. It's most unfortunate that he should try such a thing. He was asking about you only this morning; I would have thought that he would have tried to reach you before saving himself."

The prisoner dropped his head covering his face with his hands. "Why didn't he?" The voice was muffled as he spoke through his fingers but the despair sounded through.

"I guess he just wanted to save himself. I wouldn't blame him too much Private, some people are like that. Think of it this way, if you had been with him, you would be dead too."

"I trusted him." The prisoner mumbled.

The Lieutenant nodded sympathetically. "I understand how you feel."

"Do you? Do you know what it's like to trust someone completely and have them let you down?"

"I know how it feels to be abandoned." The officer nodded.

"I don't feel so good Lieutenant. I think that I need to lie down again."

"Of course Private." The officer responded agreeably. "I will visit tomorrow."

"If you're going to bring me more 'good' news, maybe you could just skip the visit altogether." The blond suggested sadly. He looked up at the Lieutenant with eyes that glittered with unshed tears. "I guess you told me the worst of it already; my three best friends are gone, what else could go wrong?"

"I want to be your friend Private," the Lieutenant assured him, "I won't desert you."

The prisoner hung his head, his entire demeanor one of defeat.

Lt. Krantz had to steel himself not to tell the young private the truth. It was not in his nature to cause such pain. Leaving the supply building, his steps were slow and thoughtful.