Sorry it took so long for me to update; I had to leave town unexpectedly for a week. Hope you like the next chapter, even if it's a bit shorter. Just wanted to let you know I'm still working on this story, and will finish it soon! :D
Chapter 6
"…And here we have the chow hall, but we don't eat in there very often because Louie cooks for us most of the time; which is a good thing, because everything they make in there tastes like potatoes. Now, don't get me wrong; I like potatoes, but not for every meal! Oh, and don't let Louie fool you; we really do complement him all the time, but you know how chefs are; they get kind of touchy about their food…"
"Andrew?" Newkirk interrupted, grabbing Carter's arm. "I'm feelin' a bit tired…do you think it'd be all right for me to 'ave a rest?" They'd been touring the camp for over an hour now, and he was starting to get dizzy again, and a little sick to his stomach. Not to mention he'd completely lost track of what Carter was saying about ten minutes ago.
"Oh, sure buddy," Carter responded, growing concerned when he looked at Newkirk and saw how pale he was. "Why don't I take you back to the barracks, and you can lie down for a while?"
"That sounds like a great idea, mate," Newkirk replied.
Hogan had just finished going over some final details with Lt. Hanley, and was heading to his office, when Carter and Newkirk entered the barracks. Hogan glanced in their direction, and immediately noticed Newkirk: he looked like he was about to drop from exhaustion. "Newkirk, are you okay?" He asked, becoming alarmed.
"I'm a bit tuckered out, if you don't mind my sayin' so," Newkirk answered tiredly.
Hogan walked over and put his arm around the Corporal. "Looks like you could use a nap," he said, guiding Newkirk in the direction of his office, "Here, you can rest in my quarters; it'll be quieter."
"Thanks, Hoga…Colonel Hogan," Newkirk replied, correcting himself. "At least until me head stops spinnin'!"
Hogan suspected that Newkirk was still suffering from his concussion. He brought Newkirk into his quarters and, gesturing toward his bunk, smiled and said, "Get some sleep."
Newkirk looked at him gratefully. He stretched out on the bottom bunk, and by the time his head hit the pillow, he was out.
Hogan covered him with a blanket, and then crept out of his quarters, closing the door behind him. He noticed Carter hovering around the stove, a worried look on his face. "Carter," he said to him, "When did Newkirk start feeling ill?"
"Just a few minutes ago, Colonel," Carter answered, "When I was showing him the chow hall."
Well, that explains it! Hogan inwardly smiled. But then his concern for Newkirk pushed that thought away.
Carter was shifting nervously. "Sir, do you think he's gonna be okay?"
"I'm sure he'll be fine," Hogan replied, trying to reassure them both. "He's probably just worn out. Still, why don't you go find Wilson? I want him to know what's going on."
"Sure thing, Colonel," Carter responded. He turned and headed out of the barracks; in search of the camp medic. A few minutes later he returned with Wilson, and they both went to join Hogan, who was still standing in front of his quarters.
Wilson spoke first. "So, how's Newkirk doing, Colonel?"
"He wasn't feeling too well," Hogan told him, "He's in my quarters sleeping."
"Was he acting confused or disoriented?" Wilson asked.
"No," Hogan answered, "Just dizzy."
Wilson appeared to consider it. "Well then," he said finally, "Let him sleep…it's probably the best thing for him right now. But someone will need to wake him up every couple of hours, just to make sure he's okay. It's standard procedure for concussions. I can do it if you want me to, Colonel."
"No, that's all right," Hogan replied, "I'll take care of it."
The day wore on, and Newkirk slept; Hogan checking on him periodically. When dinner time came, Hogan tried to get him up, but he didn't seem too interested. So he decided to let Newkirk sleep; hoping that maybe it would help to restore his memory.
That night, just before Lt. Hanley made his exit, Hogan came down into the tunnel to see if Kinch had received any news over the radio regarding the five escaped prisoners from Stalag 4. They'd been informed earlier that an underground agent would meet up with the escapees and point them in the direction of Stalag 13, and Kinch had been monitoring the radio for word on when and where to pick them up. He suddenly took off his headphones and looked at Hogan.
"Bad luck, Colonel," Kinch said.
"What's up, Kinch?" Hogan asked, suspecting he already knew the answer.
"The guys that escaped Stalag 4 have been re-captured." Kinch informed him.
Hogan looked troubled. "What happened?"
"Looks like they took a wrong turn, and ran right into a German patrol." Kinch stated unhappily.
"I wonder what went wrong," Hogan contemplated out loud, "The agent that met them should have had no trouble directing them here."
"Maybe they'll have better luck next time, Colonel." Kinch offered.
"I hope so, Kinch." Hogan sighed. "Well," he continued, "I'm going to try to get some sleep…and I suggest you do the same."
"Is Newkirk still in your quarters?" Kinch asked him, curious.
"Yeah," Hogan responded, "I'll let him stay in there tonight. I have to keep an eye on him, anyway." And then, almost as an afterthought, Hogan quipped, "He just better not snore!"
Hogan felt like his head had barely hit the pillow when he heard a knock on the door to his quarters.
"Roll call in fifteen minutes, Colonel," Hogan heard LeBeau call through the door.
"Thanks, LeBeau," Hogan answered, loud enough for him to hear. He sat up and stretched his arms, and then jumped down off the top bunk and began to get dressed. When he had his uniform on, he sat down on the side of the bottom bunk and put his hand on Newkirk's shoulder.
"Newkirk," he said, shaking him gently, "Time to wake up."
Newkirk's eyes fluttered open. "Again?" He replied sleepily.
"I'm afraid so," Hogan informed him, "Only this time you need to get up. We have roll call in ten minutes." He was hoping against hope that Newkirk would be back to his old self after all the sleep he'd had.
But it wasn't meant to be. Hogan knew the minute he saw Newkirk's eyes widen, and heard him respond, "Roll call? But we just did that yesterday! How many bleedin' roll calls do you people 'ave, anyway?"
"Every morning," Hogan answered, somewhat sadly, "But don't worry; you'll get used to it." He saw the fear start to return to Newkirk's face, and quickly added, "Relax; you know what to do this time. Just keep quiet, and if Klink asks you any questions, try to answer with 'yes' or 'no'."
Newkirk took a deep breath. "All right, Colonel Hogan." He replied.
They were almost to the door of his quarters, when Hogan remembered to add, "Oh, and don't forget to say, 'Sir'."
Newkirk smirked. "Yes, sir!" He said, and with that, they went out to join the others in the main barracks.
Schultz arrived, on time as usual, and ushered everyone out of the barracks. The prisoners were stomping their feet as Schultz counted them, trying to keep warm in the chilliness of the morning air. Like clockwork, as soon as Schultz was finished, Klink exited his office, and made his way to the line of prisoners. After Schultz gave his report, Klink started pacing in front of the POWs.
"I would just like to inform you." Klink began, "That the prisoners who escaped from Stalag 4 have been recaptured."
There was a chorus of "Boos" from the line of men. After a moment Klink continued, "This should be a warning to all of you that you cannot escape from a German POW camp, so there is no use in even trying." As he finished, he found himself in front of Newkirk. Turning to the Corporal, he said, "I trust you slept well, Newkirk?"
Newkirk swallowed hard and replied, "Yes, sir."
"Very well," Klink responded, and then, with a wave of his hand, yelled, "Dismissed!" But before Hogan could go back to the barracks, he stopped him.
"Colonel Hogan," Klink addressed him, "I would like to have a word with you."
"Sure, Colonel," Hogan answered, "What's up?"
Klink dropped his voice a little so no one else could hear their conversation. "Any more sleepwalking by your Englishman?" He asked, inquisitively.
"No, sir," Hogan answered, "We made sure of that."
"And how did you do that, Colonel Hogan?"
"We tied him to the bed!"
Klink looked at Hogan, his irritation escalating. "Colonel Hogan," he stated through clenched teeth, "Don't push me too far, or you'll end up with 30 days in the cooler; do you understand?"
"Yes, sir!" Hogan responded. He gave Klink a quick, sloppy salute and headed back to the barracks, not waiting to see if Klink had anything more to say.
As Hogan entered the barracks, he immediately noticed LeBeau starting on breakfast. He felt his stomach rumble, and was once again grateful for the Frenchman's talents at cooking. I'm getting too spoiled! He thought to himself. He also noticed that Newkirk was engaged in a conversation with Carter, and he couldn't help grinning.
"I didn't mean to leave you like that, Andrew," Hogan overheard Newkirk trying to explain to the Sergeant, "I just wasn't feelin' me self…"
"No, that's okay, Newkirk, you couldn't help it; I understand," Carter was saying, hoping to make him feel better.
Newkirk seemed relieved. "Maybe you could finish showin' me around, then? I'd still like to know where it is I've been stayin' all this time." He found himself liking Carter, even though he talked a lot. Maybe it was because Carter appeared to be so interested in helping him.
"Sure, buddy!" Carter exclaimed happily. "After we finish up outside, I can show you the tunnels, and how we help escaped prisoners to get back to England. And then I can show you where we keep all of our uniforms that you made, by the way, to fool the Germans, and then I can show you where I make my explosives to bomb the trains, and…"
Hogan heard the entire exchange, and shook his head. Never did he think he'd see Newkirk want to spend time with Carter! But it just drove home the fact that Newkirk still didn't have his memory back. Well, he had until tomorrow night…if it wasn't back by then, he would have to send Newkirk to England. Hogan couldn't help wondering how the rest of his men would take the news, but they would have to accept it.
His mind was made up.
6