The Interrogation Experiments

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 4

They slipped past the guard outside the building, not wanting him to be missed before they were ready to leave. Leap frogging along the corridor, they encountered two guards before they reached the main cellblock. Hiding the dead guards in a small room off of the main hall, they prepared to dispose of the last two.

Moffitt crowded against the wall and tried to decide how to reach the guards without being seen. The long hall had no place to conceal them as they approached. Tully was willing to throw a knife but that would still leave one guard to sound the alarm. As they pondered the problem, discarding one idea after another, the guard solved the problem for them.

Moffitt leaned out to check on the guards just as they unlocked the cell door and disappeared inside. The British sergeant could hear them yelling at someone to 'wake up'. Seeing their chance, he rushed forward with Tully on his heels.

They reached the door while the guards were still inside; any noise they made was covered by the shouting of the Germans. Moffitt could hear them shouting 'wake up' and 'stay awake'. Nodding to Tully, he rushed through the door, taking the Germans by surprise.

One guard had leaned his rifle against the wall and was slapping an exhausted looking Troy repeatedly. The other guard had his back to the door, laughing at the scene before him.

Troy lay across his cot, dazed and weak. He didn't react at the sight of the two men behind the guards. Moffitt took out the first guard with the butt of his rifle, dropping him before he realized that anyone was behind him. Tully hit the second one as he started to turn.

Moffitt reached for Troy, helping him to sit up with his back to the wall. Troy stared at them, trying to focus his eyes and clear his head.

"Moffitt?"

"Afraid so old man, were you hoping for someone else?" The Brit replied, smiling despite his concern.

Turning his head and staring at Tully, Troy shook his head. "Tully?"

"Yep. Right here." Tully grinned.

"Where's Hitch?" Troy asked in confusion.

"We haven't found him yet." Moffitt admitted. "We came here first."

"They told me that he died." Troy told them, his head dropping as his energy faded. "I don't know if I believe them."

"According to my sources he's alive and being held in another building."

Troy looked up with hope in his eyes. "Do you know which one?"

"Yes, but you are in no condition to go looking for him." Moffitt held up a hand to halt Troy's argument. "Look at yourself Troy; you'd only slow us down. We're going to have to move fast if we don't want to be discovered."

"Okay," Troy nodded, "you two go after him; I'll make my way off of the base."

"Really Troy," Moffitt admonished him, "you don't even know where we left the jeep."

"Just tell me." The other sergeant answered tiredly.

"No. Tully will take you back to the jeep while I go after Hitch. If we aren't back in an hour assume we were either captured or are in hiding. I know a few of the locals who may be willing to help us if we run into trouble."

"All right." Troy agreed reluctantly, realizing that in his present condition he really was a liability.

"Take him back to the jeep and let him rest." Moffitt ordered Tully. "If we aren't back by tonight we'll try to escape tomorrow night and meet you at the wadi near the Al Asal Oasis."

"That's if you aren't caught." Tully clarified.

"That's if we don't get caught." Moffitt agreed. "In that case we won't make it to the oasis. Now off you go before someone misses the guards. If you can, I'd like you to sneak past the outside guard again; he'd be missed pretty quickly out there. Tully, if you are spotted, I'll try to get Hitch out on the other side of the base. We'll meet at the first observation post we used."

Tully nodded and helped Troy to his feet. Following Moffitt to the door of the building, he waited for Moffitt to make sure that the way was clear. Moffitt warned him that the guard was approaching so they slipped back into the hall. After the guard passed, Moffitt hurried to an alley away from Tully and Troy. As the guard returned Moffitt began to whisper loudly in Arabic, faking an argument between two Arabs. He crawled away as the guard approached to investigate. While the guard searched for the Arabs, Tully and Troy slipped away to return to the jeep.

When they neared the point where Tully and Moffitt had scaled the wall, Troy held back. As Troy stumbled Tully began to wonder if the sergeant would be able to manage the climb. They had had no trouble but Troy was weak from his captivity.

"Sarge, wait here. I'm going to set some charges just in case we need a diversion. I'll set the timers for an hour and a half, that should give Moffitt plenty of time to get out. If they are trapped in there it may give them a chance to escape."

Troy nodded, grateful for the chance to rest. He crowded into a small, dark space under a wagon and waited for Tully to return.

Tully crept along the wall, planting charges where they wouldn't be easily spotted. Twice he was forced to duck and wait for a guard to pass. Glancing at his watch, he frowned as he realized that a half hour had passed. Needing to get back to Troy and reach the jeep, he kept the rest of the explosives for later.

Troy was sleeping when Tully returned. He resisted when Tully tried to wake him, pushing Tully's hand away.

"Sarge. Sarge. We gotta go Sarge. Wake up." Tully tugged on the sergeant's arm, glancing around to check for anyone who may have heard them. "Sarge!" He whispered more urgently. "Wake up Sarge, you can sleep in the jeep."

"Tully?"

"Yeah Sarge, it's me. Come on Sarge, we gotta go."

"Moffitt and Hitch?" Troy whispered, confused again.

"They're not here yet, we'll wait for them at the jeep." Tugging on the sergeant's arm, Tully pulled him to his feet and draped his arm over his own shoulder. "This way Sarge. Do you think you can make it over the wall?"

"Yeah." Troy muttered, sounding more alert. "Just get me there and watch me."

Tully smiled in the dark and guided the sergeant to the spot where they had entered the base. Troy swayed unsteadily as he looked up at the wall before him. Tully thought that he detected just the slightest bit of doubt on his sergeant's face.

"You came over here?"

Tully nodded.

"Why didn't you pick a lower spot?"

"Moffitt said if the Germans were watching for us they would most likely be watching the low spots." The lanky private explained. "Made sense to me." He added.

Troy nodded, closing his eyes and nearly losing his balance. "Give me a boost; I'm not sure that I can scale it at the moment."

"Right Sarge." Cupping his hands, Tully braced his back against the wall and lifted as Troy stepped into his hands. The sergeant grunted as he threw himself over the top, catching his balance before he fell off the other side.

"Go on Sarge. I'll make it over on my own." Tully called urgently.

Gripping the wall tightly, Troy slid off the other side, dropping into a crouch as he landed. A moment later Tully dropped next to him, motioning for him to be silent. They leaned against the outside of the wall, making themselves as small as possible as the guard passed on the other side.

Tully listened to the sentry's footsteps as they grew fainted. There was no break in his stride, convincing Tully that they hadn't been spotted.

Touching Troy on the arm, he led the way back toward the jeep. They had to stop several times to allow the sergeant to rest, even with Tully supporting him most of the way.

Once at the jeep Tully helped Troy into the rear where he fashioned a makeshift bed. "You sleep Sarge. I'll keep watch and wait for Moffitt and Hitch." He tucked the extra blanket around Troy, making him as comfortable as possible. The sergeant was asleep before Tully picked up his rifle to stand guard.

The watch on his arm said that it was almost time for the timed charges to detonate. Tully frowned as he stared at the base. Moffitt had said to wait an hour yet an hour and a half had already passed with no sign of the two missing men. Knowing that the explosions would bring the Germans running, Tully prepared to abandon the wadi.

Troy didn't wake up as Tully folded the netting and tucked it around the sleeping man. With one final glance toward the base, Tully hit the starter and drove slowly away from the wadi. Not daring to use lights, he had to carefully navigate over the rough desert floor.

When he finally stopped, he checked on Troy, but the sergeant was still sound asleep. Tully took his rifle and went to stand guard. From his position he could still see the German base, only now he was viewing it from the opposite direction. He watched anxiously for any sign of Moffitt and Hitchcock headed for the wadi where he was now hidden. As the night dragged on he was beginning to get discouraged. He hadn't heard any shooting from the base but then he had been pretty far away as he circled to reach his present position. "Don't you guys be dead." He prayed aloud as he kept his lonely vigil.

As the sky began to lighten Tully slid back from his vantage point and returned to the jeep. Sliding his rifle into its holder, he slipped into the driver seat. Troy was still sleeping and Tully decided not to wake him until it proved necessary. Using a compass, Tully drove to the wadi near the Al Asad Oasis. He silently serviced the jeep and prepared his camp to hide it from unfriendly eyes.

"Tully?"

Tully spun at the sound of his name. "Yeah Sarge?"

"Where are we?"

Tully told him, happy to see that Troy seemed better after his rest.

"Where's Moffitt?"

"He didn't come back Sarge. I waited an hour and a half at the first spot and 'till sunup at the second wadi. I never saw or heard any sign of them."

"No gunshots on the base?" Troy asked after a minute.

"No." Tully fiddled with the sling of his rifle. "They could have run into trouble while I was moving the jeep. I didn't hear anything but we circled out pretty wide. Those charges I set may have alerted the Germans to their presence." He added guiltily.

"What charges?" Troy asked, confused again, but for a very good reason this time. "I was kind of out of it last night. Tell me everything that happened." The sergeant urged. When Tully finished, Troy shook his head. "Moffitt said to wait an hour. They were in trouble before those charges went off Tully. If anything, the confusion may have helped them get to those Arabs Moffitt thought might help. We'll have to wait until tonight to go look for them."

"If they got caught, the krauts will be sure to be watching for us tonight."

Troy glanced up, his face troubled. "I'm not leaving them Tully."

"Good, because I was going to argue if you said that we were leaving without them." Tully declared.

"I'll pretend that I didn't hear that Private." Troy responded in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"So what are we going to do Sarge? Moffitt said that if they got away tonight they would meet us here. Considering that the Germans are going to be on high alert, that's a big if."

"I don't know yet, but we'll think of something. Maybe we could create a distraction so they can slip away." Troy shook his head and then reached for the jeep to catch his balance.

"Maybe you should drink some more water Sarge. And eat something too. And get some more rest….I can stand guard."

"You were on guard all night Tully; I slept all night, it's my turn." Troy argued.

"Three hours Sarge. Give me three hours and then I'll spell you. You need the rest more than I do."

The sergeant nodded, not arguing with Tully's logic. "Get some sleep Tully; maybe by the time you wake up we'll have a plan."

"Okay Sarge, but eat something and make sure you drink plenty of water."

"Yes mother." Troy responded.

Tully smiled, not the least bit offended. "Take care of yourself Sarge; you don't want me to turn into my mother." Leaving Troy with the warning, Tully headed for the jeep and his bedroll.