A Temporary Situation

By: AliasCWN

Chapter 4

The staff car bounced along the pot hole filled road toward the German base.

"Where are you taking us?" Lieutenant Pope twisted in his seat to find a more comfortable position. With his hands tied behind him he was have a difficult time sitting back in the seat.

The German lieutenant turned to look at him but he didn't answer the question.

"We have a right to know." Pope raised his voice.

The German officer spoke to one of the guards and Moffitt winced as one of the soldiers raised his rifle and clubbed Pope over the head. The American lieutenant slumped to the floor of the car, stunned by the blow.

"Perhaps it would be best to just wait and see Lieutenant." Moffitt suggested. He noted the gleam of amusement in the German officer's eyes at the comment.

Pope nodded carefully, closing his eyes against the dizziness.

"I don't think the lieutenant understands English Lieutenant." Moffitt continued while keeping a wary eye on their guards. "And I don't think he really wants us to talk, at least not now."

The German lieutenant smiled at him with that same gleam in his eyes. Moffitt quit talking and concentrated on where they were going.

The car continued on in silence except for the sounds of the tires on the gravel road and the steady clatter of the engine. They had long ago outdistanced the slower halftracks and trucks and were moving at a steady clip across an empty desert.

Moffitt leaned back in his seat and watched the sand fly by. He regretted that there hadn't been time to notify Troy and the privates of his early return. They would have no way of knowing that he had been on this convoy until it was too late. He knew it was silly to think that they might still find a way to come to his rescue. He had gotten used to relying on them whenever he got into trouble. Call it habit, or wishful thinking, but he was still watching for them as the car sped closer and closer to the German base.

Moffitt chuckled silently to himself at the thought of such a thing really happening. He knew they had been sent out on an assignment, Troy had sent him a message just before they left. According to the message, Troy didn't expect to be back until tomorrow or the day after. By then it would be too late. He had overheard the lieutenant on the radio making arrangements for the Gestapo to pick him up as soon as they reached the German base. The Gestapo would take him straight to their stronghold in Bizerte where even Troy would have a hard time reaching him. Moffitt didn't doubt that they would try, even if headquarters forbid it. Troy would find some excuse to talk them into it. He knew that they would be willing to risk it but he didn't want to be the cause of their deaths, or worse, their capture by the SS. Moffitt began to wonder if he should try to escape on his own. Even death would be better than being sent to the Gestapo.

The car rounded a bend in the road and the driver cried out as the echo of a shot reached their ears. Another shot rang out and the car swerved as the front tire blew out. The driver couldn't control the out of control car since he was already dead. The flat desert on the side of the road kept the car on its wheels as the driver slumped against the door. Another shot rang out and the guard next to Moffitt grabbed his chest and fell forward, knocking the German lieutenant to the floor. Moffitt hit the remaining guard with his shoulder, pushing him from the car. As the German soldier tumbled to the ground the sergeant reached over and pushed Lieutenant Pope to the floor.

The German lieutenant crawled back onto the seat, shoving the dead guard out of the way. Moffitt raised his feet and kicked the officer as hard as he could in the chest. The officer threw his arms out to catch his balance, losing his weapon in the process. Moffitt kicked him again and he fell over the side of the car and tumbled to the ground.

The staff car slowed on the soft shoulder of the road and rolled to a stop. A jeep roared up and slid to a halt next to it, covering everything with a cloud of dust. Moffitt coughed and nodded to Hitch who manned the 50.

"You okay Doc?"

"I'm fine Hitch, thank you. You might check on those two Germans, I only knocked them out of the car."

"Sarge has it." Hitch answered as he jumped from the jeep and pulled a knife from his boot. "Let me help you with those Lieutenant." Hitch reached over and cut the ropes binding Pope's hands. "I'll find you a key for those handcuffs Doc." He took off before Moffitt could ask how he came to be there at that exact moment. Tanner sat in the jeep watching as Moffitt and Pope climbed out of the car.

"You're Sergeant Moffitt."

"Yes, I know. And you are?"

"Private Tanner, Clyde Tanner."

"Pleased to meet you, especially under the circumstances. You wouldn't happen to have some water in that jeep would you?"

"Oh yeah, sure." Tanner twisted around and pulled a canteen from behind the seat. He tossed it to Moffitt with a casual flip. His eyes widened as he realized that Moffitt's hands were still cuffed together. "Gee, I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking."

"That's quite all right." Moffitt responded as he caught the canteen awkwardly with his bound hands. "You must be my replacement."

"Yeah, but I think it's only temporary." Tanner stammered.

"That's good to know." Moffitt smiled as he finished his drink and handed the canteen to Lieutenant Pope. "It would be nice to still have a job to come back to."

"Oh, you got a job!" Tanner assured him. "You know, these guys do some pretty crazy things."

"Really?"

Tanner chuckled. "But then you already knew that. I'd better go help the sergeant or you'll get your job back sooner than any of us expect."

"May I keep the canteen?"

"Oh sure, go right ahead." Tanner gunned the engine and drove off to join the other jeep. Troy was standing over the unconscious German lieutenant while Tully stood guard over the German guard.

"Here we are Doc, just put your hands out and I will get these bracelets off." Hitch returned with the keys to the handcuffs and unlocked them. "Here, I got the med kit out of Tully's jeep for you too."

"Thanks Hitch, I can use that."

"Need any help Doc?"

"Help Troy, I think I can manage on my own.

Hitch nodded and ran back to help with the prisoners.

Moffitt sat down to apply a bandage to his wounded leg.

"Need help Doc?"

"I'm fine Tully. I thought you were helping Troy with the prisoners."

"No, I came to see if you needed anything. Tanner and Hitch can help Sarge. Are you okay Doc?"

"Well, if you aren't busy, I suppose I could let you help with this. My hands seem to be a bit shaky after all of this."

Tully smiled and reached for the med kit. "I doubt that the doctors back at the base were expecting you to jump right back into action. I bet they would have advised against it if they had known."

"It's not as if I had much choice Tully." The sergeant huffed.

"Well we've got you now Doc so just sit back and relax while I take care of this." Tully cleaned the wound with water as he talked and gently patted it dry.

"Tully, you needn't be so gentle, I won't break."

Tully smiled at his friend and looked up through his lashes at the other man. "No sense making this hurt any more than it has to Doc. I'm going to have to disinfect the wound with something stronger than water. It's going to hurt bad enough when I pour the alcohol on it."

Moffitt made a face. "I suppose you must."

"I must." Tully agreed.

Tully was applying the last of the tape when Troy walked up and squatted next to Moffitt. "How is it going?"

"Tully is getting even for all of the times I treated his wounds." Moffitt answered with a tight smile.

"Getting even or returning the favor?" Troy asked with a questioning look at Tully.

"I had to disinfect it with alcohol." Tully explained with a shrug.

"Oh."

"He's right Troy, it had to be done."

"Let's hope he remembers that the next time he gets hurt."

"I know Sarge." Tully grinned. "I just like to give Doc a hard time; it takes my mind off of the sting."

"Then by all means give me a hard time." The Brit replied quickly. He tested his leg to see how it felt. "That's much better Tully, thank you."

"The bullet's still in there Doc, we need to get you to a hospital." Tully warned.

"In a bit Tully, I need to talk to Troy."

"It's not a problem yet but I don't want it to get infected."

"I know Tully, but this is important."

"Okay Doc, I'm going to go check the jeep for damage."

"All right Moffitt, what's so important?" Troy demanded.

"What about the convoy Troy? Is help on the way? How did you even know we were in trouble?"

"The convoy is behind you; the column is just following at a slower pace. They'll be here soon and we need to be ready for them. We're going to try to free the prisoners."

"How are you going to do that with only four men, six if you count me, and I won't be much help?"

"I have an idea I think will work." Troy eyed Moffitt's leg. "I was thinking of tossing a grenade under the staff car so it looks like it hit a mine. We could position the bodies around it to make it more believable. When the column stops we'll go after the truck with the prisoners."

"What about your prisoners?"

"I was thinking you could keep an eye on them."

"The column might get suspicious when their officer and Lieutenant Pope and I aren't among the bodies."

"I figured I could put Hitch and Tully there to take your places and they could join the fight once I get the attention of the Germans." Troy explained his plan. "I know it's not perfect but we don't have a lot of time here and there is no help on the way."

"Maybe I can suggest a few changes that will improve our chances."