Chapter 9: Another Clue:

Morning arrived sooner than any prisoner in barracks two wished. They tumbled out for formation and waited, as Schultz took count of each prisoner, and for Klink and Burkhalter to appear from the Kommandantur.

The Luftwaffe general had refused to leave camp, until Hogan and his captors were found, and the American was returned to Stalag 13 without harm. He would then charge his captors with the highest crime possible for kidnapping a prisoner of war and breaking and entering into a Luft Stalag undetected or uninvited into private property.

Hochstetter had left late last night to return to headquarters and receive reports from his patrol group leaders on any updates regarding the search for Hogan and/or his kidnappers.

Schultz counted each prisoner four times, as ordered by both Klink and Burkhalter. The two Luftwaffe officers had grown very strict and serious regarding each prisoner's presence during morning and evening roll call.

"Yah think Hochstetter's found anything on the Gov'nor?" Newkirk asked softly to LeBeau.

"It would be helpful if that Kraut found anything at this point." LeBeau remarked, just as softly.

"Guys, I'm really starting to worry. Colonel Hogan would've figured out a way to escape and come home by now," Carter said.

"We're all worried, Andrew," Newkirk said, slightly irritated. He was still upset about his whole ordeal from last night.

"What if he's hurt or really sick?"

"We're gonna find him, Carter. Don't worry. We've got Klink's patrols, Hochstetter's patrols, us, and several underground workers looking for him all over Germany. Someone has to find something sooner or later." Kinch replied, hushed.

Carter sighed sadly and hung his head.

"Yes, Kinch," the young sergeant said.

"Schultz! Report!" Burkhalter ordered from behind the big sergeant. Klink was walking side by side with his commanding officer.

After saluting both Luftwaffe officers, Schultz answered the general's request.

"All prisoners present and accounted for, Herr Kommandant. Herr General. I counted four times as requested," he reported.

"Excellent, Schultz." Klink groaned. He sounded as if he didn't sleep worth a dime last night.

"Anything new on the Gov'nor, Kommandant?" Newkirk asked, concerned.

Burkhalter sighed.

"As of now, nothing, Corporal Newkirk. Major Hochstetter left late last night to return to headquarters and receive reports from his patrol groups on anything they could have possibly found on Colonel Hogan."

"Oh," the Englishman sadly said.

A Gestapo staff car pulled into Stalag 13 and up to the Kommandantur. Hochstetter stepped out of the seat with two Gestapo officers following.

"Schultz, dismiss the men," Klink ordered, seeing Hochstetter and his men. He shook at the presence of the Gestapo and for what he might have to say regarding Hogan and his assumed kidnappers.

"Jawohl, Herr Kommandant," Schultz replied.

The prisoners were dismissed, and Klink, Schultz, and Burkhalter headed over to Hochstetter and his men, both captains in ranking. Klink saluted the Gestapo major, which he returned, then saluted Burkhalter, who did nothing but stare at him in response.

"Major Hochstetter, welcome back to Stalag 13," Klink spoke, shaky.

"Shut up, Klink," Hochstetter snarled.

"Yes, Major Hochstetter," the kommandant's voice quivered.

"Shall we take this conversation somewhere more private, Klink?" Burkhalter suggested.

"Of course, Herr General," Klink replied, knowing it wasn't a suggestion.

The six Germans walked into the Kommandantur and into Klink's office.

Carter, Newkirk, and LeBeau gathered around Kinch, as they all watched the exchange between Klink, Burkhalter, and Hochstetter.

"Anyone up for some coffee?" Kinch asked.

"A big cup of it, at that," Newkirk answered.

The four prisoners headed inside barracks two and into Hogan's bedroom. Newkirk got out the coffee pot and turned it on. The four of them were lucky to find out that all the Germans had just entered into Klink's office.


"Major Hochstetter, I suspect you have heard from your patrols on how the search is coming," Klink said, sitting down in his desk chair.

Burkhalter sat in the chair underneath a portrait of Hitler, Schultz had left to patrol around camp, and Hochstetter's two men stood guard beside the door, as their commanding officer walked around the kommandant's office.

"Yes, and you and General Burkhalter will be interested in knowing that one of my men found something that might be a clue to where Hogan is," the Gestapo major reported.

"A clue, Major? What is it?" Klink gasped. He held in his excitement as much as he could. Was it possible that the Gestapo had found something that got them one step closer to finding Hogan? His Senior POW officer...his friend, despite being enemies in the war.

Hochstetter looked over to his men, then quickly back at Klink.

"Heinrich," he ordered.

Heinrich, a tall man, slim, with brown hair, and deep blue eyes, walked over to Hochstetter and saluted his commanding officer.

"Jawohl, Herr Major," Heinrich said, in a strong tone.

"Place the object on Colonel Klink's desk."

"Jawohl, Herr Major."

Heinrich placed the object on the kommandant's desk and returned to his post, after again saluting his commanding officer and receiving the same salute back from Hochstetter.

Klink and Burkhalter stared at the object in front of them for the longest amount of time. It had the form of a gun, but it was much slimmer than a pistol and looked easy to conceal on anyone. It had a red button as a trigger, and a green glowing bar on each side of it. (1)

Klink picked it up in his hands and looked at it more closely, before turning back to Hochstetter.

"What is it, Major?" He gasped, intrigued by the weapon.

"I don't know. It looks like some high tech gun. I assume whoever has Hogan is the owner of such a device," Hochstetter replied.

"But...what does it do?" Klink asked.

He pointed it towards the wall and pressed the red button. A turquoise blue ray of light beamed out from it and struck the wall. Hochstetter jumped out of the way, almost being the original target, leaving a huge burn in its place. All three Germans gaped at the site at first, then Hochstetter snapped around and grabbed the gun back from Klink before he killed someone with it.

"Give me that! Before you shoot someone's head off!" Hochstetter snapped.

Klink nodded, trembling at the same time. He wanted the object as far away from him as possible.

"Major," Burkhalter began. "Where would Hogan's kidnappers get such an object in their grasps? No one in the German government has such weaponry."

"That's what I would like to know as well, General," Hochstetter remarked, still irritated with Klink's neurotic behavior earlier.

"Did you find anything else, Major?"

Hochstetter sighed.

"No, Herr General. We were unsuccessful with last night's search other than finding that laser gun. I plan on sending another couple of patrol groups to search again tonight."

"As I will do the same," Klink remarked, wagging his finger.

"Did your men happen to find anything, Klink?" Burkhalter asked.

"No," Klink wallowed. "My men were as unlucky as Major Hochstetter's were."

"And if we keep this luck up, we'll never find him."


Kinch turned off the coffee pot, put it away, then turned to his friends who were looking at him.

"Kinch, they found one of Captain Kirk's laser guns." Carter gasped.

"Oh, this can't be good." LeBeau groaned.

"Great. That's just great! Now what?" Newkirk hissed.

"We gotta tell Captain Kirk," Kinch answered.

The four men left Hogan's quarters and made their way down into the tunnels. They found Kirk sitting on the cot in the radio room talking to McCoy. Scotty was sitting on the stool next to the radio table flipping through one of Kinch's magazines, and Spock was inspecting the radio itself. It amazed him how these men used to use such basic equipment to communicate with one another.

"Captain Kirk," Kinch said.

Kirk and McCoy turned to look at the sergeant.

"Good morning, Mr. Kinchloe. Carter, LeBeau, Newkirk. How can we help you?" Kirk asked cordially.

"We've gotta talk. It's important," Kinch answered.

"I don't like the sound of this," McCoy moaned.

Kirk looked quickly at his CMO, rose, then approached the leading sergeant.

"Is everything alright?" He asked, concerned.

"I'm not sure," Kinch said. "...how bad would it be, sir, if the Gestapo got a hold of one of those laser guns?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Captain, we overheard Major Hochstetter speaking through our coffee pot in Klink's office. One of his patrols found one in the forest late last night."

"A coffee pot!" Scotty cried, astounded.

"It's our listening device to listen in on Ol' Klink up there." Newkirk replied.

Kirk turned and slammed a fist into one of his palms.

"Romulans," He hissed softly.

"What, Captain?" Kinch asked.

Kirk turned to face the radio man with a serious look.

"We've gotta get that laser gun back," he ordered.

"How do we do that, Captain?! That gun could blow our entire cover, sir!" Scotty cried.

Spock stood silently, thinking before turning to Newkirk.

"Corporal Newkirk, we were told back at Naval Intelligence that you were an expert in pick pocketing and stealing things from others without knowledge of it being you," he began.

"Yeah, Mr. Spock. What about it?" Newkirk asked.

"How easy would it be to retrieve it from Kommandant Klink's desk and bring it back here?"

"You mean go in there while Burkhalter, Hochstetter and his goons are in there?! Mr. Spock, yah've gone bloody crackers!"

"Pierre could get killed!" LeBeau exclaimed.

"And if that gun doesn't get back into our possession, all of us could get killed!" Kirk retorted, in a harsh manner.

"What are we gonna do, guys?" Carter asked.

Newkirk sighed, as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Well...I've got an idea. It's not great like one of the Gov'nor's ideas, but it's something rather than nothing," he said.

"What is it, Newkirk?" Kirk asked.


"There has to be something here that we're just not looking at carefully," Klink said, pacing his office. While he went one way, Hochstetter was pacing in the opposite direction.

"Perhaps there's something else where my men found that gun that they didn't see before," Hochstetter suggested.

There was a sudden knock on the door.

"What?!" Klink bellowed.

The door opened, and LeBeau and Newkirk walked in holding buckets of water and mops.

"Cleaning service," Newkirk said, coming into the already crowded office.

"Your office is long overdue, Kommandant," LeBeau added.

"WHO ARE THESE MEN?!" Hochstetter hollered, pointing at both prisoners.

"Corporal Newkirk...cockroach...OUT!" Klink demanded. (2)

"Sir, yah can't be serious!" Newkirk remarked.

"We are in the middle of a serious meeting regarding the whereabouts of Colonel Hogan. Now, unless you want us to never find him, I suggest you leave...Immediately!"

LeBeau looked over at Klink's desk, then walked over to it and wiped his finger on one of the sides. He looked at his finger and shook his head, clicking his tongue softly.

"Oh, Kommandant," he said sadly. "This is not good. Ceci est très sale." (3)

"Speak English, cockroach!" Klink ordered.

"Kommandant, do you know you have termites de poussière?"

"I have what?"

"Dust termites," LeBeau simply shook his head. "Lots of them, Kommandant. Result of having a messy office."

"Dust termites! Impossible!"

"I wouldn't deny it, Kommandant. Soon your entire office is gonna be covered with 'em," Newkirk replied.

"Klink, I do not call having dust termites following Luft Stalag regulations!" Burkhalter spat.

"Yes, Herr General. I will have them clean up this office at once," Klink said, smiling. He turned to the prisoners and glowered at them. "Do it quietly," he begged.

Newkirk and LeBeau nodded and started cleaning the office of the 'dust termites'.

"Shall we take this outside, men?" Klink suggested.

"Yes, Klink. It would give us more privacy," Burkhalter said.

Burkhalter, Klink, Hochstetter, and the two captains walked out of the office, leaving the two prisoners by themselves. LeBeau, still standing by the desk, saw the laser gun and picked it up. He looked at it carefully, trying to figure out what it was.

"Hey, Pierre," LeBeau whispered. "I think I found it."

"Give it here, Louis," Newkirk softly spoke.

LeBeau tossed the Englishman the phaser. Newkirk caught it after letting out a gasp of air. He looked over and glared at the little Frenchman.

"Blimey, Louis! You don't know what this thing'll do if it lands hard on the ground!" He hissed.

"Sorry, mon ami."

Newkirk shook his head, then put the firearm in his sock.

"There," he said. "No one will dare look for it in me sock."

LeBeau nodded.

The two went back to looking like they were cleaning. Newkirk looked over at Klink's desk and pretended to be puzzled at the sudden 'disappearance' of the Romulan weapon.

"Louis, wasn't there something on that desk before?" Newkirk asked, perplexed in a normal tone.

LeBeau looked over from wiping the desk with a cleaning rag and nodded.

"Wasn't there some type of gun there?" He asked.

"Where did it go?"

"How do I know?! I was just cleaning the desk and minding my own business!"

The Germans came rolling back into the office.

"WHAT?!" Klink cried.

Burkhalter, Klink, and Hochstetter hurried to the kommandant's desk, as the two Gestapo captains once again stood guard of the door.

"One of them has it!" Hochstetter hollered.

"Check the prisoners!" Klink commanded.

Heinrich frisked Newkirk, while the other one frisked the little Frenchman. Finding nothing, they turned to face their commanding officer.

"Neither of them has it, Herr Major," Heinrich reported.

"What do you mean 'none of them has it'?!" Hochstetter ordered.

"We've checked every pocket and found nothing," the second captain answered.

Klink gulped and walked over to Newkirk.

"Corporal Newkirk, what happened?" He begged to know.

"I don't know, Kommandant. One minute it was there, the next minute it wasn't," the Englishman said.

"Klink, I want these men shot!" Hochstetter hollered.

"You heard your men, Major. Neither prisoner has the weapon on them," Burkhalter remarked, irritated.

"So, where is it if neither one of my prisoners have it?" Klink asked, concerned.

"Well, sir, the dust termites are taken care of. Now about this window," Newkirk said, abruptly changing the topic of discussion.

"OUT!" Klink wailed.

The two POWs complied and left the office, leaving a bunch of frustrated, confused, and anxious Germans to themselves.


(1) The weapon Hochstetter discovered and that LeBeau and Newkirk stole at the end of the chapter was a Romulan disruptor pistol. There are only two other races in the 'Star Trek' world that know how to use them: the Klingons and the Breens. More information about these humanoids can be found on 'Star Trek: Memory Alpha' online.

(2) Cockroach is the nickname both Schultz and Klink have for LeBeau in the show. It is used several times throughout the entire series of 'Hogan's Heroes'.

(3) 'Ceci est très sale' means 'This is very dirty' in French.