Hogan

I've got confidence in spades. Always have.

I was the kid riding down the middle of the street, pedaling my bike with my hands up in the air.

While standing.

Nothing scared me, not even when I crashed into a curb and needed six stitches.

Learning to fly never worried me. Dropping bombs over Germany? Still no fear.

But sending my men into darkness without me? Sick stomach, sweaty palms. I hate not being there, in charge.

Tonight I have to stay back, handle Klink. I can't risk the whole operation. So I risk my men. And my heart thumps.

XXX

They're back and I can breathe. I don't let it show, how worried I was.

I watch them waltz in. They're revved. The mission was tough but exhilarating.

Stories spill out. When the Kraut patrol closed in, Newkirk zigged left, diverted them. He trailed behind, last one back. That was damn gutsy.

He's smiling and laughing, pure relief. No trace of that stammer. Not around Kinch, Carter, LeBeau and me.

He has no fear either. Not of anyone or anything, except maybe one person.

When he looks at his friends, you can see it. He trusts us, just not himself.


Kinch

I have faith they're coming back. I have to. The alternative is unacceptable.

And there's not much I can do. If they're very late and the night is dark and I have good intelligence that patrols have left our perimeter, sometimes I can take the risk. I can go out and scout for them.

As long as I stay in the shadows, I can pull it off.

At home, I learned to stay in the light. Don't hide. And above all, keep your hands where the cops can see them. Don't give them any reason to suspect you of anything.

XXX

Sneaking around isn't the most natural pastime for me. Because if there's a chance—any chance at all—that someone unfriendly will see me, it's too big a gamble. The whole operation could crash down if a Negro was discovered crawling the woods of Hammelburg.

Like Newkirk says, life is generally stacked against us, six to five. The odds may look close, but they're not in our favor. So be careful.

I am. My old man always said we make our own luck. The way I do it is by choosing to hope and believe that we're going to win.