It only took Hogan a few minutes to find Kinch. He was in one of the tents set up as the first station for the medical care. With him were Newkirk, LeBeau, and Carter. They all looked up as he entered.

"Okay," started Hogan, "What do we know?"

Carter went first, "We have almost half of the men processed through First Aid. Wilson was in charge, but he has a lot of staff working on it. It looks like most of the men are suffering from malnutrition and fatigue. A few more serious, which they will keep in the infirmary."

"We're getting them food," LeBeau added, "Just like Wilson told us. They are getting some mixed fruit, water and a small portion of carrots, beets and meat. Then we are giving them more water afterwards to drink over thirty minutes."

Newkirk followed," We have most of them in the tents, luckily it's a balmy October, some of the worst ones are spread around the barracks where it's warmer. We still could use more of everything. We've got small stoves in each tent. And the guards have allowed us more access to the wood supplies. We should be okay unless it really gets cold."

Kinch waited for a second, just to make sure Newkirk was all done. "Colonel, Baker, Lewis, and Crisher have been taking turns on the radio. Boyer has been in charge of security, both protecting ours with our guys and keeping an eye on everyone new. So far, no red flags. According to Captain Williams and others, everyone in the group has been with them over a year. Nothing happened to the group that would seem to have been from 'inside' informants."

Hogan nodded, "Good work, everyone." Then he turned to face Sgt. Kinchloe, "Kinch, how many are going out tonight to make the drop rendezvous?"

Newkirk piped in, "I'm going, me and my mate Andrew. We also taking two from Barracks 7, Hayward and Fuller, plus Shupp to provide security."

Hogan looked to the two volunteers, "Be careful, we don't know what all is coming, and I need you all back here safe. Use the entrance in Barracks 2 only. Let's not give everything away yet. I would hate to have to organize search parties to track down our own men."

Hogan straightened up, then slowly looked around him to make sure everyone else was out of earshot. "Guys, I know we have a fairly busy schedule right now. But I believe we might advance our timetable up a bit. I really want to have a discussion with the troops that brought these men here. I don't want them scattered all over Germany! And I don't want them to do this again!"

"But Colonel, we're not scheduled to start for two weeks," Newkirk said.

"And we don't have everyone ready," Lebeau added.

Carter was almost bubbly in enthusiasm "When do we start boy, uh, Sir? Carter asked.

"What? No questions from you Carter?" Hogan replied

"No sir, I've had my stuff ready for weeks. I've got explosives, timers, delayed fuses, contact detonators, the works!"

"I get the idea, Carter. Now, obviously we'll have to make a few changes, but I think the overall plan is still good. It will be even more important since we have so many more mouths to feed."

Kinch looked over the Colonel's shoulder, "Schultz is coming."

"It's probably time for another round with our Iron Eagle. Although, I have to tell you, he really hasn't been himself. He has actually volunteered a lot of the supplies we need. I haven't really had to talk him into anything yet."

Hogan turned around in time to see Schultz entering the tent.

"There you are Colonel Hogan, I have been looking for you. Colonel Klink wants to see you."

"Why not, it's not like we have anything else to do today Schultz," Hogan said.

"Please Colonel Hogan, just come see the Kommandant. I having been looking for you for twenty minutes already. Any more and he will be very angry at both of us."

Hogan turned toward the flap of the tent and said, "Lead on Macduff." (1)

"Macduff, he is not here. He should be over in Barracks 17," Schultz replied more as a question than an answer.

"Who knows, we might get lucky. Shall we go?"

The infirmary to the Kommandant's office was a longer walk than from Barracks 2. They had not traveled far when Schultz said to Hogan, "Colonel Hogan, I am worried about the Kommandant. Please, no monkey business."

"What is wrong with the Kommandant, Schultz?" Hogan asked, very carefully keeping his voice neutral.

"I do not know, but he is tired and very unhappy. This thing with the new prisoners has made him very upset."

"Schultz, this thing with the new prisoners has made us all upset. This wasn't right. What those army guards did with those men wasn't right," Hogan has lost some of the calm in his voice.

"I know that. Please don't blame Colonel Klink for what others have done, alright Colonel Hogan?"

"Schultz, I see the Kommandant has actually tried to help us, that goes a long way with me. But I also have to look after my men, all my men, to the best of my ability. Both of you have tried to be as good as possible I think, today was an example of when that doesn't happen. I will remember both sides of that."

They went up the steps and Sgt. Schultz knocked on the Kommandant's door.

"Come in," was heard from the other side.

Schultz entered first, "Colonel Hogan as ordered my Kommandant."

"Finally, finally. Hogan, what is the condition of the new arrivals?"

Hogan adopted, for maybe the first time, a more formal attitude with the Kommandant. "Colonel Klink, those men have been beaten, starved and forced marched. We are very lucky any of them made it here. We will be weeks getting them marginally well." Then his demeanor changed slightly. "I do thank you for allowing us access to more supplies."

Klink looked worse than Hogan had ever seen him. Worse than getting orders to the Russian Front, worse than an impending marriage to Frau Linkmeyer. He had bags under his eyes, and his eyes were bloodshot themselves.

"Hogan, the reason I called you here is about supplies. The lumberman will be here tomorrow morning. Do you have men ready to work?"

I will have 400 men ready to go in the morning," Hogan replied.

"400! That is preposterous. I can't have 400 men outside the wire!"

"Kommandant, it's going to get cold soon. We will have to cut down trees, saw them into logs, move them to the mill, cut them up, bring the lumber inside and start building with green wood as fast as we can. We will need as large of a barracks as we can get, to house as many as we can. We will also need to cut up the limbs to replace the wood we're burning and get more available for use for the winter."

"But 400 men? If General Burkhalter would see that I would be gone in minutes."

Hogan leaned over his desk. "And if the protecting powers with the Red Cross see the men sleeping on the ground this winter, you'll be sleeping on the ground in Russia."

"But we don't have the room to build large barracks."

Hogan turned and went over to the map of Stalag 13 on the wall. "Kommandant, in order to build anything big enough to have space for these men and anyone else that might come, we will have to move the fence back to the south. That's where the biggest trees are. We will work our way back, which will provide the lumber and the space."

"Move the fence? Please Colonel Hogan, do you think I would fall for your attempt at a mass escape?"

"Kommandant, first of all, I don't relish the thought of two guys sharing my bunk with me. Second, I give you my word as an officer and a gentleman, that we will not try to escape. Besides, the new men are too sick to travel!"

"Hogan!" Klink wiggled a finger threateningly. "I will hold you personally responsible for anything that goes wrong."

"What could go wrong?" Hogan asked with the first bit of good humor he'd felt in days.

"See that it doesn't! Dismissed!" Klink barked.

###

When Hogan got back to Barracks 2, everyone was back inside. "Where's Captain Williams?" He asked.

LeBeau answered. "He could barely finish his food, we laid him down in your quarters."

"Good," Hogan said. He turned to Private Anderson, "Joe, would you go get Larkin and Reichel?"

"Yes, Colonel," the young man answered. He darted out the door.

He turned back to his staff. "As long as we're only using this entrance to the tunnel, we need to post someone with Williams so he doesn't see our operation, and someone by the door to prevent someone else from finding everything out. These guys have been through a rough time. If someone were to see a way out, we could have a pretty problem on our hands."

Hogan walked over and poured himself a cup of coffee, "Kinch, any replies from London on our guests?"

"So far, so good. Everyone has multiple confirmations of identity, many of the Brits have been recognized by our own. The newest one in the group we've seen is well over year. But we will be days before London can sift through that many records."

"Well, I don't want to sound paranoid, but post someone to listen to outgoing calls and be prepared to dump the phone system, just in case."

"Colonel," Newkirk added, "We've had someone on the phone since before the news guys got here. I haven't had a chance to tell you because of all the ruckus. Klink has had a proper row with General Burkhalter about the prisoners. He was really upset after they got here. Wolford reported to me that he thought Klink was about to get himself shot. He only saved himself because Burkhalter was upset too. It seems he has to explain the death of so many up the chain, and it makes him look bad."

The lookout at the door opened it so Private Anderson could come in, followed by Sergeants Larkin and Reichel.

Sergeant Larkin spoke first, "You wanted to see us Colonel?"

"Yes, I have tentative approval to start work as we discussed it. Remember ten percent of the wood we will shift to our tunnels. Have you got everything set?"

Sergeant Reichel answered, "Yes, sir, we have actually had to turn away volunteers. A lot of the guys never get to do much time outside the wire, even if it is hard work. Corporal Langenscheidt has arranged for wood cutting tools, saws, and the other equipment we need. We won't have enough, but it will get us started. They won't notice if we add some of our own."

Larkin added, "We've staked out the first building, it will be about four times the size of any other barracks. The cost saving against building four smaller barracks of them will be 25% less wood and 50% less time. It will house significantly more men with only half the amount of heating needed overall, two stoves versus four."

"Good, I am depending on the two of you to take charge of that. See Kinch or Newkirk if you have any problem. Good luck with the project."

Dismissed, the two non-coms quickly exited Hogan's 'command center'. As they returned to their own barracks, Reichel turned to Larkin and commented, "Anybody, anywhere, that told me a Colonel would turn over a project with 400 men, running a lumbermill and building housing for several hundred, and leaving it all to be run by a pair of sergeants, with little or no oversight, I'd have called him a liar."

"That's why," Larkin replied, "I will die before I fail that man."

(1) In case you've never heard this before, or wondered where it was from, it is a paraphrase of "Lay on Macduff" from Shakespeare's Macbeth. It means to attack with a vengeance. It was later changed to more common usage in the late 1800's. Probably not something Schultz would be aware of.