Berlin, Luftwaffe Headquarters, Office of General Albert Burkhalter
September 26, 1943, 1100 hours
General Burkhalter had been wrestling with his conscience for the last two days, ever since he had come to the conclusion that Colonel Hogan was operating a large resistance operation out of Stalag 13. It had consumed his thoughts during every waking moment, and disturbed his sleep at night.
But he had finally come to a decision. Once he made that decision, he felt at peace with himself. He knew that the decision he had made could have dangerous consequences, but he felt that it was the only decision that he could have made.
General Albert Burkhalter, the head of all Luft Stalags in the German Reich and member of the Luftwaffe High Command office, had decided not only to allow Colonel Hogan to continue to operate out of Stalag 13, but to actually help him.
I cannot actively help him, as it would be too dangerous for me. But I can make sure that I take full use of the reputation of Stalag 13 as a place where none of the prisoners escape, and as a place that the Allies will not bomb. I can send important research experiments and personnel to the camp, which will allow Hogan to obtain the information. I have confidence that Hogan will be able to do it, since he's been doing it for so long.
But I cannot let Hogan know that I am doing this. I will not take the chance of having him try to use me in a way that I don't want to be used.
It is a good thing that I bought that little hideaway chalet near Hammelburg recently. Whenever I need to spend time in the area, I can go there. Nobody knows about the hideaway, most importantly, my wife. Burkhalter laughed. Why would she know about it? I bought it so that I could spend time away from her!
Now that Albert Burkhalter had made his decision, he felt much better. For the first time in a long time, he did not have the urge to get drunk.