Chapter 4

Carter emerged from the side tunnel carrying eight small strips of film, suspended from a wooden clip about two feet long. "All finished!" He announced, smiling at Kinch.

Kinch removed his headphones and smiled back. "That's great, Andrew," he said, "The Colonel will be impressed."

Just then the trapdoor leading to the barracks banged up, and LeBeau poked his head through the opening. "Lunch is ready," LeBeau called down, "Are the Colonel and Newkirk back yet?"

"Not yet," Kinch called back.

LeBeau climbed down to join Kinch and Carter in the main tunnel. "Not back?" he asked, concern evident in his voice. "They should have been back an hour ago!"

Now Carter was getting worried as well. "You don't think anything happened to them, do you?" He said; adding, "Maybe we should go out and look for them."

Suddenly a noise reached their ears, and it seemed to be coming from the direction of the emergency tunnel. The three men turned their heads just in time to see Colonel Hogan arrive, followed by Newkirk. They breathed a collective sigh of relief; glad to have both men back safe.

Kinch was the first to greet them. "Welcome back, Colonel! We were beginning to wonder about you two."

"Thanks Kinch," Hogan responded, "We would have been back sooner, but we ran into a slight problem."

Newkirk was standing behind Hogan, looking around the tunnel in amazement. "Bloody marvelous!" He suddenly exclaimed, "Did you do all this, Hogan?"

Hogan turned around and smiled at him. "Well, I had a lot of help," he said.

Newkirk smiled back. "You certainly weren't lyin', were you?" He replied excitedly, "Blimey, I'll never doubt you again, mate!" His eyes lighted on Kinch, and he said, "Oh, 'ello! You must be…ah…"

Hogan leaned close to Newkirk's ear and whispered, "Kinch."

"Kinch, right!" Newkirk said, and then continued, "You're the one what monitors the radio, aren't you?"

Kinch couldn't have looked more confused. "Yeah, that's me, I guess," He answered, deciding to play along.

"Well, from what Hogan 'ere tells me, he couldn't get along without you." Newkirk told him, extending his hand toward Kinch.

Kinch shot a bewildered look at Hogan, and then took Newkirk's hand and shook it firmly.

Newkirk seemed genuinely pleased. "Nice to meet you!" He said.

Kinch looked at him like he was about to spring some kind of joke on him. "Nice to meet you, too," he said finally.

Newkirk let go of Kinch's hand, then looked over at LeBeau and Carter, who were staring at him with their mouths hanging open. Approaching LeBeau he said, "And you must be…"

"LeBeau," Hogan informed him, still smiling. He was finding the whole thing rather amusing.

"LeBeau," Newkirk repeated, "The Frenchman, right? Hogan tells me you're a chef. Well, I can't wait to try some of your cookin'!" He stuck out his hand and, when LeBeau raised his, he shook it vigorously.

Last, but not least, Newkirk turned his attention to Carter. "And you're…no, don't tell me! Um…Carter! That's it, isn't it?"

Carter, too shocked to say anything, just nodded.

"Well, mate," Newkirk continued, "I 'ere you're an expert at blowin' things up, am I right?" Newkirk held his hand out, smiling at the young Sergeant.

Carter finally found his voice. "Uh, yeah buddy, that's me," he said, reaching out and shaking Newkirk's hand. "But I wouldn't say I'm an expert…"

"Well, that's what Hogan told me." Newkirk said, and then his eyes started to wander around the tunnel once again. He walked back to where Hogan was standing and asked, "Mind if I 'ave a look around, mate?"

"Go ahead," Hogan replied, "But only for a few minutes. We need to get up to the barracks soon."

Newkirk started wandering around the tunnel, taking it all in, periodically exclaiming his amazement at what he saw. While he was exploring, LeBeau and Carter went over to join Kinch and Hogan.

LeBeau finally asked the question that was on all of their minds. "What's the matter with him, Colonel?" He said, glancing briefly at Newkirk.

"Yeah, Colonel," Carter piped up, "Why is Newkirk acting so funny?"

"Well," Hogan began to explain, "On the way back from meeting our contact, he had a little accident."

"What happened, Colonel?" Kinch asked.

"We were trying to dodge a German patrol, when Newkirk fell and hit his head," Hogan continued, neglecting to mention that he himself had knocked Newkirk down. "He lost consciousness for a minute or two, and when he woke up, he had amnesia."

"Amnesia!" exclaimed LeBeau, his eyes widening.

"You mean he doesn't remember who we are?" Carter asked, not quite believing it.

"That's what amnesia usually means," Kinch answered, frowning at Carter.

"But he does seem to know something about us," said LeBeau, a puzzled look on his face.

Hogan nodded. "Only what I've told him," He replied, "I filled him in as much as I could on the way back to camp."

"So," asked Kinch, "What are we gonna do about him, Colonel?"

"First things first," Hogan answered. "Carter, LeBeau, did you get the pictures?"

"Yes sir," Carter told him, "And I already got the film ready to go."

Hogan smiled at him. "Good job, Carter." He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a small envelope. "This is the information from our contact. Kinch, who do we have going out tonight to meet with the sub?"

"That would be Lt. Hanley. He's supposed to leave at 2200 hours."

"Good. Make sure that Lt. Hanley has this envelope and the film. He can take it all the way back to London for us."

"Right, Colonel," Kinch said, taking the envelope from Hogan.

Hogan looked at Carter next. "I want you to go find Sergeant Wilson and have him meet me in my quarters," he told him, "I'd like to have him check out the bump on Newkirk's head."

"What about me, Mon Colonel?" LeBeau asked.

Hogan grinned and put his hand on LeBeau's shoulder. "Didn't I hear you say something about lunch? I'm starving!"

LeBeau gave Hogan his most disappointed look. "Yes sir," he replied, turning toward the ladder that led to the barracks. When his back was to Hogan, he rolled his eyes and muttered, "All I ever do around here is cook!"

As Carter and LeBeau made their exit, Hogan decided he better round up Newkirk and get him upstairs. "Newkirk?" He called out, not seeing the Corporal right away.

"I'm right 'ere, Hogan," Newkirk responded from directly behind him, making him jump.

"Newkirk!" Hogan gasped, "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"Sorry, Hogan; didn't mean to scare you, mate."

"It's okay," Hogan said, catching his breath, "Just don't do that again!" He looked at Newkirk, and couldn't help grinning. "C'mon, let's go up to the barracks. I want the camp medic to check you out."

They climbed up the ladder and made their way through the opening above. As Hogan lowered the false bottom of the bunk that hid the entrance to the tunnel, Newkirk watched in awe. "Fascinatin'!" He exclaimed, and then turned around to survey his new surroundings.

There were rows of bunks to either side of the room, and a long table in the middle with benches on either side. A large black stove stood just beyond the table, and beyond that to the right stood a row of wall lockers, followed by more bunks. To the left of the stove there was a door that appeared to lead into a smaller room. And to the right, a larger door that; presumably, led outside.

LeBeau was hovering over the stove, fussing over a pot containing a delicious-smelling concoction that was bubbling away merrily. Newkirk inhaled deeply. "Now that smells good enough to eat!" He said, suddenly realizing that he was famished. But just then Hogan grabbed his arm and directed him toward the room on the left.

"We'll eat in a minute," Hogan told him, "Right now I want my medic to take a look at you."

Hogan opened the door to his quarters and, motioning to the chair by his desk, said, "Have a seat, Newkirk, he should be here any minute."

As if on cue, Wilson arrived, with Carter following close behind.

"You sent for me, Colonel?" Wilson asked, glancing over at Newkirk.

"Yeah," Hogan replied, "I want you to check out Newkirk here. He's got a pretty nasty bump on his head."

"So Carter was telling me," Wilson said. "He also told me that Newkirk has amnesia."

"That's what it looks like," Hogan informed him.

"Well, I'll look him over," Wilson stated, and then added, "It might be better if I examine him in private, Colonel."

All right," Hogan answered. He shooed Carter out of his quarters, following after, and closed the door behind him.

As soon as the door shut, Carter turned to look at Hogan. It was obvious how concerned he was for his friend. "Colonel," he said worriedly, "Do you think Newkirk will be okay?"

"I'm sure he'll be just fine, Carter," Hogan told him, putting his arm around him reassuringly and guiding him over to the table. He noticed that Kinch had already grabbed a plate of food and sat down. "Why don't you have some lunch?" He urged Carter, "You'll feel better after you eat something."

"Yeah, okay, Colonel," Carter responded.

After a couple of minutes the door to Hogan's quarters opened, and Wilson emerged, followed by Newkirk. The medic caught Hogan's eye, and gestured with a turn of his head that he wanted to talk to him.

Hogan gave Wilson a slight nod and turned to Newkirk. "Hey, Newkirk," Hogan greeted him, "How are you feeling?"

"Just fine, mate," Newkirk answered. Wilson 'ere says I'm as healthy as a horse!"

"That's great news!" Hogan said, and then put his hand on the Corporal's shoulder and led him over to the table, just like he had done with Carter a few minutes ago. "Now, why don't you get something to eat? I'll join you in a minute." He signaled to LeBeau, and when he saw him going over to help Newkirk, he turned back to Wilson. "So, how is he really?" He asked him.

Wilson cleared his throat. "Well, Colonel," he began, "That's some knot he's got on the back of his head! He's definitely got amnesia, and it looks like he also has a mild concussion. You'll need to keep an eye on him for the rest of the day. If he starts acting strange or disoriented, let me know right away."

"Is he ever going to get his memory back?" Hogan asked, afraid of what the answer might be.

Wilson looked at Hogan seriously. "I wish I could tell you, but I honestly don't know. Amnesia is a tricky thing. Sometimes a person will regain their memory within days, or even hours after developing it. Sometimes…well, sometimes it never returns. Only time will tell."

Hogan sighed. "Thanks, Wilson," he said. Somehow, he'd already known what the medic was going to say. He started wondering what he was going to do if Newkirk didn't recover his memory. He couldn't let him stay here; it would be too dangerous…not only for Newkirk, but for the whole operation. Of course, that left him with only one other option.

If Newkirk's memory doesn't come back soon, He thought sadly, I may have to send him back to England!

7