Chapter 13: Homecoming

Maria walked in front of Hogan when they entered the holding cells where Klink was kept. The first thing Klink noticed was Maria's eagles. "I am sorry Gen…I mean Colonel."

A guard opened the cell door and motioned for Klink to exit. The guard started to handcuff Klink when Hogan spoke up. "That's not necessary." Klink's face took on a look of confusion. A big smile appeared on Hogan and Maria's faces. "Your going on a short vacation Colonel."

"I don't understand?"

"We'll explain later." Maria answered. "Sowe have two weeks before we have to report to Stalag 13, anything you want to do Colonel?"

"I still don't understand?"

"It's like this Colonel, you are placed into mine and Maria's custody. We have been assigned to run Stalag 13 for those who are going to be standing trial." Hogan answered as they started walking down the hall.

Klink hung his head. Without looking at either one of them he asks "I take it they are going to make me stand trial for war crimes?"

"Yes they are. We will do what ever we can to support you. You did nothing wrong and so there is nothing to worry about." Maria answered as she put her hand on his shoulder.

"I wish I had your confidence."

Hogan, Maria, Misty, Robert and Klink were dropped off at a hotel. Klink, Maria and Robert stayed in the room while Hogan and Misty went shopping for civilian clothes. They came back about an hour later. "Here ya go Kommandant."

"General Hogan we are not at Stalag 13 anymore. There is no need to call me Kommandant. And no Colonel…What ever name you are using now… you can't call me Uncle Wilhelm."

They laughed. "Sorry Komm… I mean Colonel. Habits are hard to break." Hogan answered handing Klink a bag of clothes. "It will be safer for you to be in civilian clothes."

"For now you can still call me Maria. It is going to take some getting use to when I hear Colonel Hogan, that they are referring to me."

"Dad tell them the good news." Misty said as she started jumping up and down.

"We are going to go to my mom's home in Connecticut. Maria, Misty was wanting permission to go to Bullfrog, ND." Hogan answered.

"Let me guess. There is a certain sergeant there you want to see." Misty nodded her head so wildly that they thought it was going to fall off. Maria looked at Hogan "Well dear, since you are now head of the household it is your decision."

Hogan laughed. "Only for a few days. Now everyone get ready. I am taking all of us out for dinner."

It took a while for everyone to get ready. Since it was a nice night, they decided to walk to the restaurant. The restaurant wasnice and cozywith the tables lit by candles and a band played soft music. "Maria would you care to dance?" Hogan held out his hand.

"I would love to."

"Wow, I didn't know mom and dad knew how to dance." Misty exclaimed

"That is nothing. You should have seen them at their first dance. It was then that I knew they should be together." Klink answered thinking back to that night.

They returned to the table just as their meal arrived. "Mmmm. Real food." Hogan commented as he took the first bite of his stake.

After everyone finished eating, Maria leans over to Klink. "William, would you care to dance?"

Klink just looked at her. "William?"

"I think it would sound better right now. Right now we are not on duty so no ranks. So do you?"

"Is it all right with you…Robert?" Klink asked awkwardly.

"Yea, it will be okay." That sounded weird. There is so much to get use to. After being a prisoner for so long, I don't know how to act not looking over my shoulder and havening to watch what I say. I can finally relax. If I can remember how. Hogan chuckled at that thought. Hmmm. Odd I am not jealous watching them dance this time. Probably because I already have the girl, and don't have to hide my feelings for her anymore.

After the song, they all left to walk back to the hotel. "Get some sleep. We have an early flight in the morning."

The flight to Connecticut was a long one. The closer they got the more nervous Hogan got. "Relax dear." Maria said as she rubbed his arm.

"It is just that it has been so long. I called her to let her know that I was coming home. She was so excited. I wonder how much has changed? It is going to be weird though not having my brothers there also. I hope I haven't disappointed mom."

"You are not a disappointment."

"I also hate having to lie to her."

"I know, but we do what we have to."

When they got off the plane, Mrs. Hogan was there waiting for them. Hogan could not control himself and went running up to her and gave her a big hug. "Is this real Rob? Are you really standing here?"

"Yes mom, I am really here." Tears poured down both of their cheeks. "Mom I love you so much and missed you even more. I have some people I want you to meet. This is Maria my wife and her daughter Misty"

"Nice to meet you and welcome to the family."

"Thank you Mrs. Hogan" Maria said politely

"Please call me momma" Mrs. Hogan smiled

Hogan took Robert into his arms. "Mom I would like you to meet your grandson Robert."

Mrs. Hogan took Robert in her arms. "Hi Robert."

Robert looked at Maria "This is your grandma. Umm this is your Oma."

Robert looked back at Mrs. Hogan "Oma!"

"What did he say?"

"He was raised by a German family so he only speaks German. He called you grandma" Hogan responded. Mom I would like you to meet a friend of mine William. We met at the POW camp." Hogan put his arm around Klink.

I can't believe Hogan called me friend. "Nice to meet you Mrs. Hogan."

"You may also call me momma. Any friend of Robs is a friend of mine."

They left and headed for the house. When they got there, there was a big sign hanging off the house that says "Welcome home Rob!" All of his hometown friends were there for the homecoming. They spent the rest of the day celebrating and getting caught up on everything he had missed over the years. That night after everyone left, they had a nice talk with Mrs. Hogan and told her what they could.

"How did you meet Maria when you were in a POW camp?"

"Believe it or not, but she was a prisoner there also. The Gestapo figured that they could get me to do anything they wanted by threatening her."

"Those Germans are nasty people."

"Not all Germans are bad mom. Only the Nazi's are. There were many Germans that showed sympathy to the Allies."

"I hear what all those commandants did to the prisoners. I am so glad you are home and that you don't have to go through that any more."

"Mom, our camp was different. We had a very humane commandant. He abided by the Geneva Convention and the worst punishment he gave any the prisoners was thirty days in the cooler."

Mrs. Hogan went up to Hogan and grabbed his wrists. "How do you explain these scars?"

"Gestapo. They would come into camp and question me all the time. Kommanant Kl… the kommandant did his best to keep them away from us. But when they had papers authorizing the questioning, there was nothing he could do." Hogan looked over at Klink.

Mrs. Hogan looked at Maria and noticed the same scars on her wrists and then looked to Klink and didn't see any. "How did you get so lucky William as to not have scarred wrists?"

"He was taken prisoner just before the camp was liberated. He didn't have the misfortune of being questioned by the Gestapo." Maria quickly answered.

"How fortunate for you. I can just imagine what all you went through. I am so glad you are home and that you don't have to ever go back to that horrible place."

"Mom, there is something I need to tell you. The government has assigned us to work in Germany. We will be guarding the prisoners who are going to be standing trial."

"I hope you make them pay for how they treated our boys."

Hogan and Maria looked at each other and at Klink who was just looked at the ground trying to hide his fears. "Mom it is wrong making innocent people pay for the guilty. Yes those who abused prisoners should be punished. Those who were humane to them should not."

"Look, we are not getting anywhere by arguing. Can we please change the subject?" Misty said.

"Good idea." Hogan supported.

The next day, after they had taken Misty to the airport so she could spend a week with Carter, Maria went into the back yard and started exercising. Hogan and Klink were sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper and drinking cups of coffee. "Is all she does is exercise?" Mrs. Hogan asked

"At Stalag 13, Maria was always exercising. I don't think she would have survived if she wasn't in such good shape." Klink answered

"You sound like you admire her?"

"You could say that. I once saved my money and gave it to the Kommandant to help him buy her freedom. The most he was able to accomplish was to get custody transferred from Gestapo to Luftwaffe. It doesn't seem like much, but at least the Kommandant had more power to protect her. You should of seen her when she had Robert. It is amazing how her faith in God helped her overcome everything.

"I don't understand how a person could give birth in a POW camp and the commandant not know about it?"

"He knew. He was also sympathetic towards her because of the circumstance in which she got pregnant. He arranged for her to stay at his house, give birth and stay with the baby for a month. He also arranged for a nice German family they she was familiar with to raise him."

Mrs. Hogan turned to Klink. "For only being there a short time you know a lot about her."

"I knew her before I became a prisoner there."

"How is that?"

"Oh my look at the time. If we are going to the museum, we need to get going. William can you get Maria while I get Robert ready?" Hogan interrupted. "Mom can you please help me?"

Klink looked at Hogan questingly but caught on what he was doing. "Sure." Klink went out to get Maria. "UmRobert decided we are going to the museum. You need to act like we have had this planed."

"Let me guess, Mrs. Hogan was asking questions about you again. We are going to have to tell her the truth eventually. She is going to catch on."

"If she is as smart as he sone, of corse she will. I can't help but notice you are favoring you right leg again. Is it giving you trouble?"

"A little. I will be fine though."

They all went to the art museum and spent the day there. That night Hogan took them all out to eat. The restaurant was close and it was nice out so they decided to walk. After dinner on the way back home, a man jumped out of the ally and grabbed Maria and put a knife to her throat.

"Give me your money and jewelry now!" The man demanded

Mrs. Hogan started to hand him her purse and Hogan took his mom's arm and lowered it. "No. I don't think so."

"Are you crazy Rob. He will kill her if we don't do what he says" Mrs. Hogan said worriedly.

"No he won't." Klink said with a smile.

"Have the two of you lost your minds? Has spending time in a POW camp slowed your brain?" Mrs. Hogan asked

"I said give me your money and jewelry now or the woman dies." The man pushed the blade of the knife a little more into her throat to prove his point.

"Okay I have had enough. That hurts." Maria threw her head back breaking his nose and then elbowed him. When the man let go, she turned around and kicked him. The man recovered and charged at her with the knife. Maria grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back, removing the knife from his hand. Hogan and Klink just laughed and Mrs. Hogan stood dumbfounded.

"You need to find a better line of work to go into before you get yourself hurt." Maria threw him on the ground. "Now get before I really get upset." The man got up and ran off.

"Rob and William, you ought to be ashamed of yourselves. Why didn't you help her?"

"We knew she could handle herself." Klink responded

"I know first hand of that." Hogan answered as he rubbed his jaw.

"Besides, I prefer to handle my own problems. I learned at the POW camp that the men have a tendency to respect me more when they see that I am not an ordinary helpless female." Maria interjected.

"I have a lot to get use to. Lets get home. I am not use to all this excitement."

The next morning the phone rang. "Rob its for you." Mrs. Hogan called

Hogan picked the phone. "Hello!…Yes it is. What can I do for you?… But we are suppose to have two weeks to rest!… That's not our problem….Yes sir. We will be there by the end of the week. Bye." Hogan slams the phone down.

"What's wrong dear?"

"Maria can you come here please?" When Maria enters the room "We have been ordered to Stalag 13 early. We are to report there by the end of the week. It seems they are starting to catch the Germans that are to stand trial and need a place to put them." Hogan looks at Klink. "Sorry Komm…Sorry things are cut short."

"Its alright. I thank you for the time I did get."

"Alright! I am tired of everyone speaking in code. I want the truth and I want it now." Mrs. Hogan said loosing her patience.

"Okay. Mom I would like to introduce you to Colonel Wilhelm Klink, Kommandant of Stalag 13."

"How dare you bring that Nazi into my house!"

"Momma we tried to tell you he isn't a Nazi. He took good care of us and the rest of the prisoners"

"When he told you about saving his money and the transfer of custody was all his idea and his money. Everything we told you was the truth. We just didn't tell you the whole truth."

"You said he is your friend. How could you lie to me?"

Hogan looked at Klink than back at his mom "While I was a prisoner there, we became as close to friends as our uniforms would allow. We use to talk about if things were different that we would be friends. Mom nothing I told you was a lie."

"What about him becoming a prisoner just before the camp was liberated?"

"He surrendered the camp to me, which in turn then made him a prisoner."

Mrs. Hogan got up and paced. "I don't know what to think about this?"

"Momma, we just wanted you to get to know the real Klink and not to judge him by the wrong doings of the Nazi's and propaganda committee. We wanted you to see that not all Germans are bad." Maria walked over to Mrs. Hogan. "We didn't want to deceive you. If Klink was a Nazi, we would not put our own lives on the line for him."

Mrs. Hogan was shocked but that statement. "What do you mean put your life on the line for him?"

"I took a bullet that was meant for him once. And now, we made a deal to have him released into our custody. We agreed to take his place at the trials if he escaped."

"Why would you risk you life for your captor like that."

"He has risked his protecting us from the wrath of the Gestapo many times. We…I owe him a lot" Hogan defended.

"You agreed to do WHAT?" Klink exclaimed, "Why did you…why didn't you tell me?"

"I just figured it was between us and Allied Command."

"I am going to call Misty and gang and tell them plans have changed." Maria walked out of the room.

Without a word Mrs. Hogan went to here room and left Hogan and Klink sitting in silence.