Major Mix-up
By: AliasCWN
Chapter 11
Hitch and Tully both looked up as Troy and Moffitt returned to the jeeps.
"Did they find our tracks?" Hitch asked as Troy slid into the seat next to him.
"No." Troy answered in an odd voice. "Move out, but do it slow. I don't want any dust to give away our presence."
Hitch nodded and eased the jeep away from the base of the hill. He glanced over at Troy for an explanation but none was forthcoming. Troy just directed him to stay out of sight and circle around to follow the patrol again.
"What's out there Sarge? What are we hiding from anyway?"
"Germans, I think."
"You think?"
"Yeah, that's why we need to get a closer look."
"Can't you tell?"
"Not this time." Troy answered. "They may be taking a page out of Captain Kaufman's book."
"What do you mean?" Hitch was clearly confused. "What are they doing?"
"There's a German patrol out there acting as scouts for an American column."
"If there's an American column out here then why do we have to recon the area? Can't they just ask them what's going on out here?" Hitch popped a bubble as he waited for an answer. To Troy that was as good as saying that he was relaxed and ready for anything. Troy's next words nearly made him swallow his gum.
"I think they may be Germans dressed as Americans to either get close to the base or maybe even get onto the base."
"Hey! That's playing dirty!"
"We did it to them just the other day." Troy reminded him.
"Yeah, but that was just four guys, not a whole unit." Hitch argued.
"That was out whole unit."
"You know what I mean Sarge."
"Yeah, I do, but the point is, it might work. Everybody is moving troops in anticipation of the offensive and I can see Captain Kaufman allowing visiting troops access to his base. This is something the Germans have been planning for some time, you can bet they did their homework and will know just what to say to convince him that they're authentic."
"But we can radio ahead and warn the captain, can't we?"
"Yeah we can, but what if an American unit gets there first? The captain might stop the wrong group. We need to get more information so we can identify the right one before it gets there."
Hitch nodded his understanding. "What if it's not the only group they have out here dressed as us?"
"That's a possibility. Once we get the information to the captain we will have to check out any other groups we run across. We'll have to warn him about that possibility too."
Moffitt signaled that he wanted to talk so Troy had Hitch find more cover.
"Tully and I were talking." Moffitt began. "We were wondering if there might be more of these fake American units out here."
Troy smiled. "Hitch and I discussed that too. We think it's a possibility. We'll get the numbers for this unit and call it in, then we'll go check out the others."
"It might be faster if we split up Troy."
"No, we stay together; there are too many other players out here to take any unnecessary chances." Troy paused as the sounds of a German motor drew his attention.
"A patrol car." Tully whispered.
"He can't hear us talking," Troy responded, "he's not that close."
"He's going to find our tracks." The private warned.
"Then we run." Troy ordered. "We don't want a fight."
"It's only one car Troy."
"One car here." Troy answered. "An entire column behind him."
"That's true." Moffitt admitted. "And I don't think they want this secret to get out."
"If it comes to that we split up." Troy ordered. "One of us has to make it back to the base to warn the captain."
Moffitt nodded just as the patrol car spotted their tracks.
"Let's go!" Troy ordered. The two jeeps started their run, hoping to outrun any help that could come to the patrol car's aid.
Bullets began to hit the rear of Troy's jeep as the patrol car caught sight of them. Troy twisted in his seat to return fire. Using a machine gun rather than a 50 made defense more difficult, Troy went through a full clip before he made his first hit. The German soldier toppled from the car as Troy paused to reload.
Moffitt hit another one, leaving him lying in the sand behind the car. Another one fell before the driver abandoned the chase.
Tully and Hitch ducked behind a low dune as Troy and Moffitt watched behind them in case the patrol car decided to resume the chase. They were just turning back to call an all clear when the jeeps slowed.
Troy saw the American jeep trying to cut them off. "Go Moffitt!" He waved at Tully to separate and get away.
The American jeep continued toward Troy's jeep. The three men in the other jeep had their weapons pointed at Troy and Hitch. The driver stopped in front of Hitch, not giving him room to get around.
"Stop Hitch." Troy ordered. "Keep your hands in plain sight and follow my lead." He added softly.
Hitch nodded as he eased the jeep to a stop. It looked casual but he deliberately kept some distance between the two vehicles.
"Put your hands up Sergeant." A sergeant in the other jeep called.
Troy raised his hands as he looked behind him for the patrol car.
"Where did the other jeep go?"
Troy glanced toward where Tully and Moffitt were disappearing over a dune. "They had the same orders we did." Troy explained. "They're on their way to deliver the message from the base commander to the approaching units." Troy eyed the weapons still pointed at them by the fake Americans. "Can I put my hands down now? We're all on the same side here."
The German sergeant posing as an American hesitated at Troy's voiced assumption. He eyed the two Americans and then looked toward where Moffitt had gone.
"What message are you delivering?"
"Headquarters says the German attack is broken so all units are supposed to return to their own bases." Troy reported.
"What makes then think that?" The fake sergeant asked.
"Their armor was destroyed." Troy answered. "Headquarters doesn't think their attack has a chance without it so they think the Germans will turn around and go home."
"And you have orders to deliver that message to every American unit you meet?"
"Yeah." Troy nodded. "Can I put my hands down? My arms are getting tired."
"Go ahead Sergeant." The fake American nodded. "Tell your driver to follow us; we'll take you to our commander."
Hitch looked over at Troy and Troy nodded. The blond put the jeep in gear and followed the other jeep toward the fake American unit.
A major walked over to meet the two jeeps as they drove up to his column. "I was told that there were two jeeps Sergeant." He directed his attention to the fake sergeant. "Where is the other one?"
"It continued on its mission Sir." The sergeant explained. He hurried on as the major's face reddened. "They have orders from their base commander Sir. I think you should listen to what they have to say. I brought the sergeant here so that he could deliver the message himself. I thought he could answer any questions that you might have about the orders."
The major frowned but didn't question the sergeant's decision. Instead he turned to Troy. "Well Sergeant?"
Troy climbed out of his jeep and saluted the officer.
"The base commander sent us to tell any American units we can find that they can return to their own bases sir. The German armor has been destroyed and the commander doesn't think the Germans will continue their attack without it. He thinks his base can handle any Germans who don't know the armor was lost. Of course, if you want to rest your men, he will accommodate any unit that comes to his gate. He also said to thank any commanders who came to his aid." Troy stepped back, his message delivered.
"I see." The major nodded thoughtfully. "So he thinks the Germans have fallen back?"
"Yes sir." Troy answered.
"Then there aren't any Germans around?"
"I wouldn't go that far Major." Troy smiled. "We just ran into a patrol car that was snooping around. There are still a few stragglers out there. I wouldn't drop my guard completely just yet."
"Good advice Sergeant." The major replied. "The other jeep, will it be all right out there alone?"
Troy nodded. "They have orders to find the other American units and give them the same message. They'll avoid contact with any Germans they see. We're not out here to win the war, just deliver a message."
"All right Sergeant, I believe we'll accept the commander's offer of accommodations. My men can rest up before we turn around."
"We'll let him know to expect you Major." Troy promised. "Major, would you happen to know of any other units out here? I know we haven't found them all yet. Things are pretty confusing out here and we're not sure exactly where they all are right now. The sooner we can find them the sooner they can get started back to their own bases."
"I saw dust to the east but I can't say for sure who is over there." The major offered.
"Thank you sir. If that's all the questions you have, we need to get going. We have a lot of ground to cover today. The commander wants all of the units to have the opportunity to turn back before they reach the base."
"Are you sure he won't mind if we continue?"
"He expects a few to continue." Troy answered. "They came quite a way to get here and their men are going to be tired and low on supplies. So far you're the first unit that has taken him up on the offer." Troy climbed back into his jeep. "We'll head east Major, maybe we can find another unit over there."
"Good luck Sergeant."
"Thanks Major. Maybe we'll meet again at the base." He nodded at Hitch. "Head east."
Troy didn't look back although he dearly wanted to. The muscles in his back tensed as he waited for the bullets that he expected. He didn't take an easy breath until they were out of range of the fake American's guns.
"Do you think they believed you?" Hitch asked as he flexed his own tense muscles.
"They let us go." Troy responded.
"They might think we'll lead them to Moffitt and Tully."
"We'll keep our eyes open, but in the meantime, head east."
"Why east? Moffitt and Tully went west."
"I'm sure Moffitt and Tully were watching us. If we aren't being followed they'll meet up with us soon. We're heading east because the major told us about this unit. I want to see who they are."
"You think they're Germans?"
"Maybe. It's more likely that they're American though. He probably wants us to turn them back so he won't have to worry about them."
"How will we know?"
"I guess we'll call the base and ask Captain Kaufman if he can find out who they are. I'll call the base myself as soon as I talk to Moffitt."
"That was fast thinking Sarge. I thought we were done for sure." Hitch shook his head in admiration.
"It was the only thing that I could think of that sounded plausible." Troy admitted.
Hitch laughed. "They're going to be in for a surprise if they try to enter the base."
Tully and Moffitt were waiting for them around the next hill. Troy explained the situation as quickly as possible.
"Could you tell if we are being followed?" Troy asked.
"Not as far as we could tell." The other sergeant answered. "They held a short conference after you left. The major looked quite pleased when he returned to his car."
Troy smiled. "That won't last."
"Shall we check out that unit to the east then?" Moffitt asked.
"Yeah I want to know who they are before we call the base."
"They might be German too Sarge." Tully warned.
"We're not going in." Troy answered.
"If they're German the major may have told them to expect you." Moffitt warned. "It's possible he told them about your message and they'll expect you to deliver it since he told you about them. To fail to do so may alert the major to your suspicions."
"That could be." Troy agreed. "He would want them to know what we were doing so they wouldn't stop us from turning the American units back."
"So how are we going to know who they are?" Hitch repeated.
"I guess we'll have to go in and have a look." Troy answered.
"We could do it Sarge." Tully offered.
"No." Troy shook his head. "We told them that you and Moffitt were headed west to look for American units over that way. If they are German they'd know something was wrong if you showed up instead of us."
"They didn't see you." Moffitt argued. "They may only know that a sergeant and a driver are on their way."
"An American sergeant." Troy answered. "A British sergeant might send up a red flag. No, it has to be me and Hitch. You and Tully stay out of sight. You're not supposed to be with us."
"We'll be watching."
"Don't do anything." Troy warned. "If we don't come back out you'll have to let the captain know what happened. You know what the imposters look like. We can't let them get onto the base."
It was decided that they would split up right away so that no one would see them together. Tully and Moffitt swung wide and kept an eye on Troy and Hitch as they searched for the unit the major had told them about.
Troy and Hitch found the unit to the east and drove right up to them. The lead car stopped at the sight of the lone jeep approaching. Hitch approached as if he thought they were an American unit. Both men kept their hands in plain sight. Hitch rested his hands on his steering wheel and blew bubbles while Troy explained their mission.
The officer in charge watched Troy's face as he told them the same thing he had told the major.
"How do we know this message is authentic?" The officer demanded. "We came a long way to fight this battle."
"You can call the base for confirmation." Troy suggested. "Captain Kaufman is the base commander. Captain Kaufman did say that anyone who continued to the base would be given accommodations. You're welcome to rest your men and replenish your supplies. The captain had plenty of supplies on hand for the expected attack."
"I would hope so Sergeant." The officer replied. "My men are exhausted from the forced march and our supplies are running low."
"I know how they feel sir." Troy nodded. "My men and I haven't had much rest the last few days either. The choice is yours sir, we need to be on our way. We still have more units to locate." Troy repeated his earlier question. "Would you know where we can find any other units sir? With everyone on the move we aren't sure where anybody is at any given time."
"No sergeant, I haven't seen anyone else. I suppose you'll just have to look for them yourself."
"Yes sir." Troy answered formally. "We'll be on our way then. Luck sir."
"Dismissed sergeant." The officer growled.
Hitch popped a bubble as Troy slid into the seat next to him. He reached down and hit the starter on the jeep, reversing before turning to leave.
"Where to now Sarge?"
"Just drive." Troy answered.