No ownership of the Hogan's Heroes characters is implied or inferred. Copyright belongs to others and no infringement is intended.

----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -----

Hogan emerged slowly, like an old man, from his quarters several hours later. Newkirk was shuffling cards at the main table of the common room and noticed but didn't get up. "'Ave a good sleep, gov'nor?" he asked nonchalantly.

Hogan rubbed his face to try to wipe off the just-woken-up look that adorned it and staggered, still uncoordinated, over to the Englishman. "What time is it?" he asked.

"About 'alf two. You've been in there about four hours. Trying to make up for lost time?" He motioned for Hogan to join him at the table.

"Something like that," Hogan answered, still standing. "Any coffee going around here?"

"Sure, gov'nor. Red Cross packages were delivered last week; there's still some left." He got up and moved past Hogan to the small stove in the middle of the room. He picked up a cup, blew into it to remove anything that might have fallen or crawled in since it was last used, and then poured some brew from the nearby pot. "Can't say you're going to find it the best you've ever 'ad," Newkirk warned, handing the cup to Hogan. "But it gets us through."

"Thanks," Hogan said, sitting.

Newkirk came back to the table and picked up his cards. Absentmindedly, he started dealing a hand for himself and Hogan. "Not very talkative, are you, mate?" he ventured.

Hogan shrugged as he took a sip of coffee. "Not much to say." Swallowing, he said, "First coffee I've had in a long time. It's not so bad. Or maybe I'm just desperate." He offered Newkirk a grin to show he was trying to be sociable, but it didn't last long.

Maybe you are, Newkirk thought. "Five card stud. Aces high, deuces wild," he said. "You 'aven't got a Red Cross package yet so you won't have much to bet with…how about we just make this a friendly game? An exchange of information, maybe, eh?"

Hogan slowly picked up the cards before him, suspicious. "What kind of exchange?"

"Well, you know what's going on outside the fence; I know what's going on inside. That'll be the ante. We'll just chat. All right, mate? No pressure."

"All right," Hogan said, not quite at ease. He looked at his hand. "I'll take two," he said, tossing down his discards.

"Dealer takes three. How do you see it?"

Hogan shuffled a couple of his cards around, then said, "Yeah, okay. I'd be betting if I could."

"We'll start easy, eh?" Newkirk said. "Who's winning the war?"

"The Allies," Hogan said.

"That was too automatic. I mean, who's really winning?"

"The Allies," Hogan insisted. "We had Midway, we'll get Europe. You can count on it," he snapped.

"Okay, all right, don't get touchy, gov'nor; we don't hear much here."

"Sorry."

"It's all right. I'll see your Allied victory…ask away."

"What's life like here?"

"Bloody boring. In the twelve months I've been here, there's been not much to do but read, play cards, sleep, and then try to forget the book you read so you can read it again. I just got me first letter from home a few months ago. Takes awhile for the mail to find you when you're first a POW. Be prepared for that yourself, gov'nor; it's nothing personal; they just can't find you for awhile."

"Mail." Hogan gave a short, humorless laugh. "Haven't seen that in months anyway."

"And I'll raise you—ask something else."

"How does your family find out where you are?"

"War Department will tell 'em, when they know. Krauts are supposed to list everyone, rules of war and all that I guess." He looked at Hogan, who seemed to still be drinking all this in, frowning. "Thinking about your wife, Colonel?"

"There's no wife. I'm worried about my parents."

Newkirk nodded. "They'll find out you're safe. Now that you're assigned they'll know. Now ask something else; that was still part of the first bet."

"What's Klink like?"

Newkirk chuckled. "Ah, now that's a question and a half; you'd better have a good hand, mate. The man's fairly simple to understand. He works on two emotions: greed and fear. On the one hand, he likes to call himself the Iron Eagle, talks up big about the glorious Fatherland and the uselessness of the war for the Allies, like a bloody propaganda sheet."

"Yeah, I gathered that this morning."

"You handled that nicely, sir, if I do say so myself." A brief smile flitted across Hogan's lips. "On the other hand, one word from the bleedin' Gestapo or any brass and the man's a quivering mass of jelly."

Hogan's smile disappeared. "Understandable," he said shortly.

Newkirk noticed the change in Hogan's demeanor and decided to probe a bit. "Know a bit about them yourself, do you?" he asked carefully.

Hogan averted his gaze. "A little," he said.

"Look, Colonel, I'm gonna lay it out on the line here. You don't have to tell us anything, but we've all had some pretty horrible experiences, and it's good to have the support of people who have gone through the same thing." As he spoke he noticed Hogan's face transforming from a mask of emotionlessness, to a disturbed, haunted visage that was reliving a past both frightening and unforgettable. "Schultz told us you were shot down a long time ago," Newkirk said. "Where have you been all this time?"

Hogan laughed shakily, still not looking at Newkirk. "I haven't said I'm meeting your bet yet."

"Your choice," Newkirk shrugged.

"I was shot down over Hamburg. Lost at least one of my men. Don't know what happened to the others." Hogan sounded like he was reciting a grocery list, Newkirk thought. He's trying to dissociate from it all. That's okay, as long as it comes out. "I was hit pretty bad on the plane, I think. Can't remember much except screaming… fire… jumping—felt more like falling. It wasn't the way they trained us to expect, did you notice?"

Hogan paused, staring past a bunk at something only he could see. "And afterwards?" Newkirk prompted softly.

"I think I got hit by flak on the way down. Can't remember. It's all a bit fuzzy. I think I was in a hospital for awhile…but I couldn't move, I didn't have any control…. And then I was taken to the Dulag…." Hogan stopped. "They wanted me to talk about Allied tactics, numbers, formations. I didn't. Then they called in the Gestapo to help convince me."

Newkirk swallowed hard, feeling shaky himself at the thought. "Sorry, gov'nor," he said.

"I don't know how long… I was taken back to the hospital, I think. But this time, they tried other things. I remember them saying they were doing experiments. Experiments on me." Newkirk nearly choked on his coffee. "But I was tied down, I couldn't do anything to stop it. I don't even know if I said anything. I keep trying to remember. But I can't." Suddenly, Hogan looked directly at Newkirk and abruptly replaced his mask. "Then they sent me to Wetzlar, and then I came here."

"I can't meet that, Colonel. I have nothing to say," Newkirk barely whispered. He stared at his ace-high straight, then put the cards face down on the table. "I fold."

----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -----

"I suppose you are wondering why I asked you here today, Colonel Hogan."

Klink was circling Hogan in his office. Like a vulture, the American thought. Hogan stood at almost erect attention, looking straight ahead like a soldier at inspection. "Not really," he said. "You said you're going to interrogate me."

"Are you not frightened, Hogan?" asked Klink. "After all, I am the camp's highest ranking officer, the Kommandant."

"Should I be?" Hogan asked.

Klink's firm demeanor suddenly disappeared. "Quite frankly, Hogan, no." Klink went to the back of his desk. He put his hand on the thick folder that he had been reading again today. "I have your file here from your capture and your stay at the Durchgangslager der Luftwaffe." Hogan remained still, refusing to drop his eyes to the dossier. "It made for some fascinating reading, Colonel. You are quite a stubborn man."

"If you mean I wasn't going to commit treason, then I guess your description is accurate."

"Colonel Hogan, I have the greatest respect for our interrogators at the Durchgangslager. But when they and even the Gestapo couldn't get more than spite from you I was most impressed with you as well, I admit." Hogan blinked but said nothing. "Colonel Hogan, it is my job to continue to try to get information from you. You would be well served to give it to me, who can make your life easier, than to have to face the possibility of more time with the Gestapo, or at the Hohemark."

That last word had an impact on Hogan the American didn't expect. He felt the blood drain from his face and tried to stop the trembling he was sure was visible. Believing his prisoner was about to collapse, Klink came around the desk and guided Hogan to a chair. Unthinking, Hogan accepted his help. His mouth dry, Hogan managed to croak, "Not there."

Klink felt a momentary twinge of compassion for his prisoner. If the mere mention of a place could have this effect on the man, then every horror Klink had imagined while reading could certainly have been accurate. "Colonel Hogan, it doesn't have to be like that," Klink said. Trying a different tack, he said, "We know about Goldilocks, Colonel."

"What do you know about her?" Hogan snapped. "What does that file say I told them?" He stood up suddenly, forcing Klink to either move or be run down. "What did I say?"

"That report is classified, Colonel Hogan," Klink said. His eyes hold so much pain, Klink thought. Not remembering must be torture. "You said nothing, Colonel. Even when drugged they could only surmise that Goldilocks was the name of your plane." Hogan visibly relaxed. "Don't you see, Colonel Hogan? That is what I am saying: If you don't talk, they may take you back and try stronger methods to loosen your tongue. If I can tell them you confessed to me, you won't have to fear that any longer. You will be left alone."

Hogan reflected on Klink's offer in silence. "I appreciate what you're trying to do, Kommandant," he said finally. "If you're really trying to help me and this isn't just some Nazi trick to get me to talk." Klink was taken aback but on second thought realized how Hogan could believe that. "But I think I'll just have to take my chances. They've gotten all they're going to from me. But if it makes you feel better, you can keep asking."

Klink shook his head and returned to the safe haven behind his desk. "I will have to continue, Hogan. Personally, I don't think I will get anywhere. I can only hope to nag you into submission." Hogan smiled weakly. "I can see why the Third Reich was so interested in you, Colonel Hogan. You are a fine military man and I respect that. I only hope you can live with your decision."

"I can only hope the Third Reich will allow me to," Hogan replied.

Klink dismissed him immediately thereafter.