Chapter 3

Abandoned Barn, 1 mile from Stalag 13
September 4, 1943, 0330 hours

Kinch and Vladimir, clad in black clothes, crouched in the woods at the edge of the clearing. They had already searched the barn and the surrounding woods to make sure the coast was clear. Each man carried a pistol, though they hoped they didn't have to use it. Pistols were no match for German machine guns. So now they waited.

Since they had nothing better to do while they waited, Kinch decided it was time he had a talk with his friend. "Sam, why did you volunteer to come out here with me?" he whispered.

Vladimir looked at his friend. "Like I told Colonel Hogan, Zagoskin has been through a lot and it would help ease any worries to have another Russian around," he replied.

"Sam, this is me you are talking to, not Colonel Hogan," Kinch said quietly. "I know you are here to show Marya that you are not just sitting in camp cowering from the fear of being hurt."

Vladimir sighed. "You are right, Ivan," he said. "I should know not to try to keep things from you. You know me too well." Vladimir paused, and sighed again. "It's just not fair for her to threaten me when she doesn't know the whole story of what I do."

"No, it's not," Kinch replied. "What do you plan to do?"

Vladimir paused before answering. "I don't want to give up on the work we are doing here," he said. "But I cannot allow any harm to come to my family."

The men were quiet for a few moments, their ears intent on any sudden sounds of movement in the woods. "You should tell Colonel Hogan the whole story," Kinch told his friend. "He will understand your dilemma, and may even be able to help."

"How can he help?" Vladimir asked. "Marya will not listen to him. She will not listen to anyone."

"I don't know, my friend," Kinch replied. "But the Colonel has always found a way to make things turn out right."

Before Vladimir could respond, they heard some rustling in the woods and some muffled voices. "That's Russian," Vladimir said. "They are here."

"Let's see what they do," Kinch said. "We'll let them go into the barn and then wait out here a minute to see if anyone else shows up."

They watched Marya and Zagoskin emerge into the clearing near the barn. They stopped and looked around. After a short conversation, the two Russians headed for the barn and went inside slowly. Kinch and Vladimir waited, listening for the sounds of any pursuers. After a minute's wait, they eased out into the clearing and headed towards the barn themselves, their guns drawn.

Kinch quietly opened the door. The two Russians in the barn were waiting in the shadows. Marya stepped forward when she recognized Kinch.

"Kinch, we're here. Now what?" she asked, walking towards Kinch.

Vladimir stepped into the barn and shut the door. "The coast is clear, but we shouldn't stick around here for long," he said to Kinch.

Marya stopped and looked at Vladimir. "You?" she asked. "What are you doing here?"

Vladimir stared at Marya, trying to control the anger rising within him. "I am here to escort you and Tovarish Zagoskin back to camp," he said.

Marya's glare was cold. "So the little timid mouse comes out of his little safe hole in the ground into the dangerous world after all," she said sarcastically.

Vladimir tensed, his anger almost reaching the boiling point. Kinch put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "No Sam," he said quietly. "Let it go."

At that moment, Zagoskin walked over to the group. "We go where?" he asked.

"We're going to take you back to Stalag 13 with us to stay for today," Kinch replied. "Then you and Marya will leave again after dark and begin your journey back to Russia."

Marya looked at Vladimir. "And you?" she asked in Russian. "What will you do when the night comes?"

Vladimir's grip tightened on his gun. I'll be killing you if you do not keep quiet. "Tovarish Marya," he said. "I will be doing what I feel is the best way to defeat the Germans." He stared at her with all the hatred he felt at the moment.

Marya stared back, a little surprised. "That's mighty brave talk for someone with a family back in Moscow."

Vladimir's mind flashed with rage. He started to raise the gun towards Marya. "Suka!!" he said through clenched teeth. Kinch reached out to grab his arm.

"Hvatit!", he yelled. "Enough!" Zagoskin jumped back, startled by the sudden outburst. Marya looked at Kinch sharply. He smiled at her. "Yes Marya, he has been teaching me Russian. I'm not fluent, but I know exactly what you have been saying to him. And if it wouldn't jeopardize this mission, I would let him do what he was intending to do."

Marya looked at Vladimir's gun, now pointing to the ground. Then she looked at Vladimir, who was glaring at her with more hatred than she had seen from anybody in all her years as an agent. Then she looked back at Kinch, studying the tall black man closely. She sensed a quiet confidence in him and knew that this was a man that did not give his friendship freely. She suppressed a shiver, knowing that Kinch meant what he had said – he would have let Vladimir kill her right then and there if they didn't have a job to do. She looked back at Vladimir, who was still glaring at her. That was not the look of a timid little mouse.

For the first time in a long time, Marya felt like she did not have control of her situation.

"Now Marya," Kinch said. "We are going to take you both back to camp. We'll let Colonel Hogan deal with this. If you have any issues with Vladimir, you take them up with him then and there. We do not have time to do it here and now." He turned to Zagoskin. "Are you ready?" he asked the Russian. Zagoskin nodded, still looking a bit startled. "Then let's go," he said, and started for the door.

Kinch was leading the group through the woods, taking the shortcut back to camp. Marya and Zagoskin followed, with Vladimir bringing up the rear. Kinch stopped abruptly, holding his hands up for the others to be still. Vladimir scanned the woods to try to locate what Kinch was listening for. They both saw the movement at the same time. "Get down!" Kinch whispered. "There's a patrol coming."

Instantly Kinch moved to protect Zagoskin. Vladimir grabbed Marya's arm and tugged her to the ground.

"Do not touch me!" she protested.

"Zatknis!" Vladimir growled. "And be still."

Marya lay still on the ground, looking in Vladimir's direction. She did not like being spoken to so rudely. She watched him scan the woods, gun drawn ready to fire if necessary. No, this was not the look of a timid little mouse. Marya started to think that maybe she had misjudged Vladimir.

The sharp cracking of the underbrush brought Marya's attention back to the situation at hand. She saw the patrol heading in their direction – four men in Gestapo uniforms. Even though she had been in dangerous situations before, a tinge of fear surged through her.

Vladimir watched the patrol advance through the woods. He also kept an eye on Marya; unsure whether she would be stupid enough to jeopardize their position. As the Gestapo men moved closer to him, it seemed for one scary moment that they were looking and walking right towards them. Suddenly there was a rustling in the underbrush next to Vladimir. The patrol stopped and searched for the source of the sound. Vladimir held his breath and his heart pounded in his chest. He aimed his pistol at the closest Gestapo man, waiting for the action to start.

Suddenly the source of the disturbance appeared. A raccoon ambled out of the brush into a small clear area between the Gestapo and the four allies. The Gestapo guards relaxed when they saw the raccoon. They laughed and talked as they headed out through the woods towards the Hammelburg road.

After the patrol was out of sight, the four of them waited on the ground until they were sure that the Gestapo men wouldn't come back. Kinch got up and helped Zagoskin to his feet. Marya watched Vladimir stand. Then he surprised her by extending his hand to help her to her feet.

"Spasibo," she said, looking at him.

Seeing her surprise, Vladimir laughed. "Do not be surprised, Tovarish Marya," he said. "I am a lot different from what you think."

Marya nodded. "I see that," she said. "I'm beginning to think that I may have misjudged you."

Vladimir laughed. "I never thought I would live to see the day when I would hear a Smersh agent admit making a mistake."

A small smile appeared on Marya's face. "Enjoy it, Vladimir Ivanovich. It will probably be the only time you hear it." She laughed sarcastically to herself. Normally, if she would make a mistake, the person was not around to hear her admit it, she thought.

Kinch turned to the group. "Okay, let's go," he said. "We've got to be back in camp before roll call."

The small group resumed their course through the woods, heading back to Stalag 13.

Stalag 13, Tunnels under the camp,
September 4, 1943, 0545 hours

Colonel Hogan met the group when they returned. The moment Marya saw him she was back in character. "Hogan, darling," she cooed. "Did you miss me?"

Hogan grimaced. "Like I miss a toothache," he replied.

Marya laughed. "You do not need to play hard to get with me Hogan," she said. "Is my little French one here?"

Hogan sighed. "Not now Marya," he answered. "We have roll call in fifteen minutes." He turned to Kinch and Vladimir. "How did it go?" he asked. "Did you have any problems?"

"Only one Colonel," Vladimir responded.

"There were two actually," Kinch corrected. Vladimir glanced at Kinch. "We ran into a Gestapo patrol in the woods on the way back. They seemed to be looking for something, or someone," said Kinch.

"Oh boy," Hogan replied. "That's all we need. What was the other problem?"

Kinch nodded towards Vladimir and Marya. "The one that I was telling you about before leaving," he said. "We almost had some real trouble."

Hogan looked from Vladimir to Marya. "We need to have a little talk Marya," he said.

"But of course, Hogan darling," she cooed. "Anything for you."

Vladimir cleared his throat. "Excuse me Colonel," he said. "But please, this is between Marya and me. I'd like to take care of it."

"Sam, are you sure?" Kinch asked.

"Ivan ... Vanya, please," Vladimir said. "I'd like to handle this myself."

Marya watched the interplay between the two friends. She noticed that Vladimir referred to Kinch by the more familiar Vanya rather than Ivan, though it still amused her that the other men, Kinch included, still referred to him as Sam.

"Colonel Hogan," she said briskly, with none of the cooing of her normal personality. Hogan was a bit surprised at her sudden change of demeanor. "If this is about what I think it's about, then there is no longer anything to worry about. Tovarish Vladimir and I have worked things out. There is no longer an issue."

Vladimir stared in disbelief at Marya, unsure if he had heard her correctly. She looked back at him and smiled. "Your job is where you feel you are most useful. You are a part of this team here," she said to him in Russian.

Hogan looked at the pair with confusion. He didn't know what had happened to cause the problem, or what had happened to solve the problem, or even what the problem was. And what was worse, he didn't understand what Marya just said to Vladimir. Kinch smiled broadly, having understood what had just taken place.

Newkirk popped is head down the tunnel entrance. "Five minutes to roll call, Colonel," he said.

"Thanks Newkirk," Hogan replied. "Kinch, Vladimir – you two better get cleaned up and get upstairs." Turning to Marya he said, "We're going to try to get you out of here tonight. Make sure Zagoskin is comfortable. Someone will be back down here after roll call."

Slipping back into character, Marya responded, "Hogan darling, make sure you send down my little French friend."

Hogan rolled his eyes. "Oh brother!" he said.

Stalag 13, Barracks 2,
September 4, 1943, 1000 hours

The morning had gone smoothly. After roll call, Vladimir went back into the tunnels to tend to Zagoskin and talk to Marya. He had to make sure they had proper German civilian clothes for their journey home.

Colonel Hogan was in Klink's office, trying to see if he could find out if Klink knew the Gestapo was patrolling the woods in the area.

Kinch sat at the table in the barracks playing a game of solitaire. While he dealt the cards, he listened to Carter and Newkirk at the table beside him.

"Okay Newkirk," said Carter, "Let's try this again. Who's playing first base?"

Newkirk looked at Kinch for some help, but Kinch just shrugged. "What? I thought we were talking about second base now," said a confused Newkirk.

Carter shook his head impatiently. "No, no, no, we haven't got first base down yet. Now who's playing first?"

Newkirk sighed, "I don't know."

The barracks door opened and Colonel Hogan stepped in. "Hi guys! What's going on?"

Kinch could barely hide the smirk on his face. "Hi, Colonel. Carter is trying to teach Newkirk what a double play is."

"Ah, the old Tinkers-to-Evers-to-Chance," replied the Colonel, expecting everyone to understand the famous baseball reference.

Looking a bit confused, Carter replied, "Sir? What team do they play on in the camp baseball league?"

"Never mind, Carter, just forget I said anything," muttered the Colonel.

Shrugging off the interruption, Carter continued, "C'mon, Newkirk, you're not even trying."

"It's not my fault that baseball is so complicated!" exclaimed Newkirk. "Why can't it be easy to understand, like cricket?"

Hogan stifled a laugh. "Cricket? Easy to understand? That's like saying Klink is a violin virtuoso!" He saw a fleeting look of indignation on Newkirk's face, so he quickly changed the subject and turned his attention back to Carter. "So, Carter, the camp baseball league championship game is tomorrow and you're pitching, right?" Carter nodded. "Do you think the Red Sox will beat the Yankees?" he asked.

Kinch looked up from his cards. "Um, Colonel, it's the Indians playing the Yankees. The Red Sox are out of it." He felt a little uncomfortable correcting his commanding officer.

Kinch started to say more, but Carter interrupted, "That's right, Colonel, you know the Red Sox haven't won anything in months, ever since they traded their best player to the Yankees for some extra Red Cross packages."

"Oh yeah, that's right," Hogan remembered. "What's his name? Bill? Bruce?"

"No, his name is Bob," corrected Carter.

"Yeah, that's him, Corporal Bob Roth," the Colonel said. "He still plays for the Yankees, right? Isn't he the one that keeps hitting the home runs out of the camp into the woods? Klink is getting tired of Schultz having to gather all of our baseballs up for us."

"Old Klink's just mad because Hochstetter is poking his nose around here again," LeBeau said, bringing the coffeepot over from the stove.

"After what happened last night, I can't blame him a bit!" Newkirk said excitedly. He was happy that the conversation was no longer about baseball.

Hogan sensed that Newkirk was glad the subject of the conversation had changed. "I'll have to admit, I was a bit surprised when Hochstetter let Zagoskin escape back to Russia. Anyway, once we get him out of here tonight, there's nothing going on for a while except the baseball game tomorrow. This mission will be over, so let's forget about old Hochstetter." Then with a quick glance at Newkirk and a twinkle in his eye, he turned to Carter and asked "Carter, how's your arm feel? You're pitching for the Indians, right?"

"You got it boy! Um, sir", said Carter. "It's going to be a good game too!"

"Yea, good for the Yankees!" teased LeBeau. "I can see it now, Little Deer Who Throws Straight and True pitching for the Indians. We'd better tell Schultz to stand in the woods and be ready to chase all the home run balls that Corporal Roth will hit off Carter!"

"Hey, that's not fair, LeBeau! I don't see you out there playing!" cried Carter.

"Of course not! Baseball? Never! Now if it was a football game tomorrow, that would be different."

"Football?" asked Carter. "You don't look big enough to play football, LeBeau."

"Um, Carter, I think he's talking about what we call soccer," Kinch corrected.

"Oh," said Carter. "I see." But he didn't see what was so fun about kicking a ball around to try to get it into a big net. Baseball was a more exciting game. "Newkirk, are we ever going to finish this baseball lesson?"

Rolling his eyes, Newkirk moaned, "Aw Carter, do we 'ave to?"

"Yes. You're going to learn it if it kills me!" said Carter.

LeBeau leaned over and whispered into Newkirk's ear. "Now there's an idea."

"Okay tell me, who's playing first base?" continued Carter.

"What? We're back at first base? I thought we skipped to second base," said Newkirk looking tired. "We're never going to get to home base!"

"Home plate, Newkirk. It's home plate," corrected Hogan.

"No. We didn't skip anything. We'll get to what's at second base next. Now who's on first?" asked Carter again.

Newkirk sighed, "I don't know."

"Newkirk come on, at least try!" cried an exasperated Carter.

"I think this is where I came in," muttered Hogan as he got up and headed to his office.

"You know, you two would make a great comedy team," chided LeBeau. "Who's on first? What's on second? I don't know!" he mocked.

"Be quiet, Louis. The only position you could play would be shortstop!" exclaimed Newkirk.

At the doorway to his office, Hogan stopped and turned back to his men. "Newkirk, I think you finally got it!" Then he shut his office door, leaving his men laughing.

At that moment, Baker rushed into the barracks, out of breath. "Hochstetter just pulled into camp and is heading for Klink's office. He doesn't look happy," he told the men at the table.

"Hochstetter never looks happy," Newkirk replied. "I think he was born with that scowl on his face. The Colonel is in his office. Come on."

Newkirk led the way to Colonel Hogan's office and knocked on the door. When the Colonel said for them to come in, he opened it and everyone filed in. Colonel Hogan looked at the group of men filing into his office. The looks on their face told him that something was happening, and it probably wasn't good. "What is it?" he asked.

Baker had caught his breath by then, and started to tell the Colonel what he had told the others just seconds before. "Colonel, Hochstetter just arrived and is heading to Klink's office," Baker explained. "He doesn't look too happy."

"Hochstetter never looks happy," Hogan replied. "I think he was born with that scowl on his face." Carter snickered when he heard Hogan say the same thing that Newkirk had said just a moment before. "He's probably all worked up about that rocket exploding. He's probably going to threaten Klink a little to have some fun," Hogan said.

Baker shook his head. "No, Colonel," he said. "This time he really looks angry."

Colonel Hogan sighed. Here we go again. There's never a moment to relax. It's always one thing after another, and when Hochstetter is involved, it's usually a few things at once. "All right, I'd better get over there so that Klink doesn't get browbeaten too much," he said to his men. "You might as well listen in, the comedy team of Hochstetter and Klink is always good for a few laughs." He stood, grabbed his jacket and left the room while Kinch was busy getting out the coffeepot.

Stalag 13, Kommandant's Office,
September 4, 1943, 1015 hours

Major Hochstetter burst through the door to Klink's office. Klink looked up startled from the paperwork on his desk. Seeing Major Hochstetter, he stood up smiling. "Major Hochstetter, what a pleasant surprise," he said.

"A surprise, yes," said Hochstetter. "But my visits here are never pleasant Klink."

The smile immediately left Klink's face. "No, not pleasant at all," he said groveling to the Gestapo officer.

"Klink!" Hochstetter bellowed. "Sit down and shut up. We have a couple of little problems to discuss."

Immediately Klink sat back down in his chair, nodding his head. "Oh yes sir," Klink groveled again. "If I can be of any help to you, all you have to do is ask."

The major growled. "Shut up Klink! I do not ask, I order."

Klink began nodding his head. "Yes sir, I understand," he said, still groveling.

Major Hochstetter leaned on Klink's desk, glaring at the Kommandant. "I'm looking for that Russian lady and the Russian scientist."

Klink's eyes grew big. "You mean the ones you let escape back to Russia?" he asked.

"Bah!" screamed the Major. "Klink, I order you to patrol the woods outside ..." At that moment, the door burst open and Colonel Hogan entered the room. "Klink, what is this man doing here," Major Hochstetter growled through clenched teeth.

Klink looked over at Hogan. "Yes, Colonel Hogan, what are you doing here?" he asked.

Colonel Hogan looked at the two men and tried to look as surprised as possible. "I'm sorry, Kommandant," he said. "I didn't know you had company." He looked at the Gestapo Major. "It's nice of you to stop by for a friendly visit, Major," he said to Hochstetter.

Hochstetter clenched his teeth tighter. "What is this man doing here?" he growled again.

"You are dismissed, Colonel Hogan," Klink said. "Major Hochstetter is here on official business. He's looking for the two Russians from the experimental rocket test."

Colonel Hogan looked at the Major. "Oh, the ones you let escape?" he asked.

Major Hochstetter exploded. "WHAT IS THIS MAN DOING HERE!" he screamed.

"I just came over to remind the Kommandant that the camp baseball championship game is tomorrow," Hogan said. "But don't let me interrupt."

Major Hochstetter let out a low rumble. "Klink, I order you to patrol the woods outside the camp and look for those Russians," he said.

"But Major Hochstetter, why would they be around Stalag 13?" Klink protested.

Hochstetter looked directly at Colonel Hogan. "Strange things happen around this camp, Klink," he said. "I have a feeling that they will turn up in this area." He watched Hogan for a response. Hogan stared back at the Major with a bland look of amusement.

Klink continued to protest. "I resent the implication that Stalag 13 is responsible for anything strange happening," he said.

Major Hochstetter smiled. "Resent it all you want," he said. "Just make sure the woods around the camp are patrolled, or you might become Colonel Hogan's bunkmate."

Klink started to respond, but thought better of it and kept his mouth shut. Major Hochstetter reached into his jacket pocket, removing a small notebook. He opened it, glanced at the page and then looked back at Klink. "Our second little problem is this, Klink," he said. "You have a Russian prisoner here, a Vladimir Ivanovich Minsky. You will turn him over to me."

Colonel Hogan's blood went cold. Damn! How did Hochstetter find out about Vladimir? This is not good at all. I can't let Hochstetter take Vladimir from this camp. But how am I going to prevent that at the moment? Colonel Hogan was startled out of his thoughts by Klink's voice.

"But Major Hochstetter," Klink began.

Hochstetter cut him off. "Klink, I will send two of my men with a truck at 2100 hours tonight," he said. "They will have orders to bring back a prisoner. It is up to you, Klink, to decide whether it will be a Russian prisoner or a German Kommandant."

Klink just looked at Major Hochstetter without saying anything. Moving away from the wall he was leaning against, Colonel Hogan moved towards the Gestapo Major. "Major Hochstetter, I must protest," Hogan said.

Major Hochstetter smiled again. It was a humorless smile that froze the Colonel in his tracks. "Go ahead and protest, Hogan," he said. "If you'd like, you can protest all the way to my headquarters with your Russian ally. Maybe I'll be able to discover the truth about all the strange things that happen in this area."

Colonel Hogan clenched his fists, but did not say anything in response.

Major Hochstetter laughed. "What's the matter, Colonel?" he asked. "I've never known you not to have an insolent comeback."

Colonel Hogan stayed silent. Major Hochstetter laughed again. "2100 hours, Klink," he said as he walked towards the office door. As he opened the door, he turned back towards Hogan. "Think about it Hogan. The more the merrier," he said laughing as he slammed the door.

Hogan looked at Klink sitting behind his desk. The Kommandant was frowning, staring at the papers on his desk. "Colonel Klink, you're not going to let him get away with this, are you?" he asked.

Klink looked up at Hogan, still wearing the frown. "Colonel Hogan," he said in a monotone. "There is no choice. Schultz will come to the barracks in two hours for the Russian prisoner. You will have until then to say your goodbyes. He will spend the rest of the day in the cooler until Hochstetter's men arrive to pick him up." Klink gave Hogan a sloppy salute. "Dismissed, Colonel," he said as he resumed staring at the papers on his desk.

"But Colonel," Hogan began. Klink showed no sign of hearing the words. Colonel Hogan turned and left the office.