Chapter 10

Hogan had insisted on the visitor returning to the future immediately after she had been politely but firmly escorted into his office that cold Sunday morning. Seeing that another watch was now circulating amongst these well-intentioned but naïve history buffs, or rabid fans, a moniker he kept to himself, the colonel had told London in no uncertain terms, that the watch was to remain at Stalag 13. London reluctantly agreed, and despite the author's protests and attempts to engage in an intelligent conversation, the colonel sent her home.

Unfortunately for him, there was little warning as Klink showed up unannounced to conduct a surprise barracks inspection.

"He thought he saw someone being sneaked into the barracks. Which was technically true. Your person popped into existence right outside barracks five. She was quickly surrounded by a group of guys coming back from religious services. To make matters even worse, now I have five more prisoners who think people can just pop in and out of here on a whim."

"In a sense, that's not far from the truth," I pointed out.

The sentry at the door relayed the warning that Klink and several guards were heading over. Hogan had no time to place the watch back in its secure hiding place. Fearing a barracks search and a pat-down, he plopped it underneath his crush cap, which he had been wearing.

"To what do I owe this pleasure, sir?" Hogan asked the Kommandant as he left the office. "You know, normally on Sunday mornings back home, we take a drive. Care to head towards France?"

Klink grunted and then glanced around the barracks. He headed towards Hogan's office and grunted again.

"Colonel Hogan. I distinctly saw five men in a circle come into this building."

"You must be mistaken, Kommandant. Everyone here belongs here."

Unfortunately for everyone concerned, Schultz was on leave, and his replacement and the two other guards accompanying him, while amenable, were willing to do their job.

"You two, search the barracks. Hogan. You and everyone else, outside for roll call!" Klink ordered.

Hogan nodded. "You heard the man. Outside."

The men nervously shuffled outside and waited for the German guard to look at his clipboard and slowly call out their names. For once there was no monkey business, a fact that made Klink even more suspicious.

"You all seem very agreeable this morning. No throwing off the count, Hogan?"

"It's no fun, sir, if Schultz isn't here. Okay, men fall…"

"Wait!" Klink walked up and down the line. "Is there a reason you want to go back inside so quickly?"

There was no guilty contraband in the barracks. Most clandestine material was down below, and the rest was hidden so well, some of Hogan's men couldn't find it. The only problem was the bunk entrance and a few modifications to the sink. And those had never been discovered. What would be found were illegal cooking utensils, written parodies and satirical drawings of Hitler and his inner circle, etc. Trojan horses, so to speak.

"No, sir." Hogan and his men stayed at attention as the wheels in Klink's head began to slowly turn.

"You don't want to go back inside so quickly?" Klink began to pace up and down the line. "I see what's happening here. You tried to get back inside, but then you denied you wanted to go back inside, which means you are trying to fool me. But I'm too smart for you. You want me to think you want to go back inside, so I'll keep you out here. But what you really want is to stay outside!"

Klink's illogical ramblings were interrupted by the guards searching the barracks. They came out empty-handed except for one thing.

"Nothing, sir," one reported. "Just the usual cooking utensils, and this very crude picture of the Fuehrer and Himmler and a…well you just have to see it for yourself."

The guard handed Klink a piece of paper. The Kommandant took a look and shuddered. He walked over to Hogan, tore the paper up in pieces and handed the mess to the colonel. "Dispose of this," he growled.

Hogan let out a slight chuckle and then shut up as Klink glared at him. "Anything else, sir?"he finally asked the angry Kommandant.

"No. Since you are so intent on staying outside, I want you to go inside. You're confined to the barracks for the rest of the day."

Hogan didn't argue. He started to dismiss the men, when Klink put a stop to what would only have been a close call.

"Hold it! Search everyone."

The men moved back into place and Schultz's replacement patted each one down. He stopped in front of Hogan.

"Sir, if you please," the guard asked.

Hogan sighed and raised his hands. The guard gave him a cursory pat-down.

"They're all clean, Kommandant."

"Very well. You're all dismissed." Klink turned and began to walk towards his office.

"And that's when it happened."

"What happened?" Ruth and Susan asked in unison.

"It blew off."

"Your cap blew off. I don't believe it. How could that happen?" Susan looked at Hogan, hoping for a reasonable explanation.

"When the guard was patting me down, I must have tipped it slightly. Just before I came into the hut, a gust of wind blew it off, and the watch went with it."

The guard heard the telltale clink of something dropping, turned and picked up the watch. "Kommandant Klink! He is hiding something!"

Newkirk, watching this take place in what seemed like slow-motion, spied the pin on the ground behind the colonel. As Hogan moved forward, he deftly bent down, grabbed the pin and hid it.

"Hogan, what's this?"

"That, Kommandant is a watch."

"I can see that. Why was it underneath your cap?"

Hogan licked his lips. "Well, it's obvious I was hiding it, sir."

"Yes, I know you were hiding it. Why?" Klink began turning the watch over and over in his hand. He seemed fascinated by it.

"It means a lot to me," Hogan answered. "It's my grandmother's." He lowered his voice. "I didn't want your goons finding it and you know…stealing it." Hogan took his cap, brushed it off, and held it next to his heart. "It's the only thing I have left of her…" He sniffed. "Wonderful woman."

"This wasn't itemized in your inventory of personal belongings when you came into camp,"
Klink insisted.

"You have a great memory for detail, sir. That's been what, almost 3 years?"

"Don't try and distract me, Hogan. How did you get this?"

"Sent to me in a care package. As a memory and a good luck charm." Hogan held out his hand. "I'd like it back."

"No."

"No? That's personal property. The Geneva Convention…"

"No. There's something you're not telling me about this watch, Colonel Hogan. You'll get it back after I examine it further."

"Oh, you're kidding, me." I silently let out a curse. "Don't tell me the watch played havoc with Klink's memory."

"It must have hit a nerve. Besides, I don't think he fell for my explanation." Hogan began to draw imaginary circles on the table. I could tell he was angry at himself.

"From what Susan told me," Ruth said sympathetically. "Klink isn't as gullible in real life as he was portrayed in the show."

"No. He's not. Which is why we always have to be on our toes. And I blew it."

"It could have happened to anyone, sir." Carter gave me a little smile. He was definitely an engaging young man.

"So then what?" I prodded Hogan to continue.

"Well, for several weeks, we went bonkers looking for the watch and at the same time we were swamped with work. We checked the office, the outer office, the safe. Klink's quarters, the property room. Every building in camp. Eventually we drugged Klink and checked him. Couldn't find it. I confronted him after that. And do you know, he refused to tell me where it was. I threatened to write a complaint to the Red Cross. But that didn't work. A snow job about him being sent to the frontlines didn't work. It's not here. It's one of the few times his lips have been sealed."

"Oh, God. He probably gave it to the Gestapo." Ruth was beginning to get freaked out. I could tell. And I wasn't too far behind.

"Hochstetter?"

"Fortunately for us, Mrs. Rubinstein…Hochstetter disappeared. We think he was probably killed in an air raid somewhere and never identified. He's been gone for a while now." LeBeau gave me a pat on the hand. (1)

"Klink most likely gave it to Burkhalter. I hinted at that several times, but he showed no reaction. Didn't even bat an eye."

Newkirk snickered. "Bat an eye. Good one, sir."

"I swear, it's if the man finally got some balls." Hogan shook his head. "Scary."

In response, I murmured, "Seeing the watch did hit a nerve. It's tickling his memory."

"Doesn't matter what caused it, now I really have to get it back."

Hogan sounded annoyed, which irked me, considering we didn't plan on coming here in the first place…and I didn't stupidly put the watch under my hat. Not wanting to annoy my protector any further, I wisely kept my mouth shut.

"What if you can't get it back right away?" Ruth asked in a trembling voice.

"After a while, we'll have to get you out of here. Probably have you go in hiding somewhere until we find it, or until we're liberated."

"I'd rather go to England and wait until you find out," Ruth said emphatically.

"Well that, Mrs. Balkin, isn't as easy as it sounds," Hogan replied. "Little things, like the front, and bombings, kind of get in the way. I won't send civilians, particularly female civilians from another time, that way. No, you may have to go into hiding. Not that hiding is much safer." The colonel sighed. "I'll go see Klink tomorrow morning. Maybe sleeping on it will give me some ideas." He got up and began to head for his office. That was our sign to head down below. The last thing we heard as Kinch escorted us over to the ladder, was Hogan saying…"It's always something."

(1) At the end of the original "Mary Sue Experiments," Hogan, Klink and Hochstetter ended up in our time. As I recall, Hochstetter was taken into captivity. For the purposes of this story, he never made it back to the 1940's.