Big thanks to Marilyn for looking this over so many times she must be reading it in her sleep. And thank you, everyone, for your reviews.
Chapter 35
Hogan carefully took the branches from under his arm, lowered them to the ground and slowly slid his gun from its holster. He held the weapon low, keeping the barrel pointed toward the ground. His heart was hammering against his ribs, his breath coming short and fast. Eyes locked on the Germans slipping in and out of view amid the trees, he worked to slow his breathing, drawing in deep breaths through his nose and blowing them out again through his mouth.
His men's black clothes were muddy, spotted with leaves and small twigs. Benson was literally coated with mud from his fall. All four were either sitting or crouching, well below the Germans' sightlines and concealed by a dense, four-foot wall of brush. The six-man patrol was slowly moving parallel to their position from left to right and had nearly passed by them. If his men did not move . . . if they made no noise loud enough to be heard over the rain . . . they might not be noticed.
Hogan's Adam's apple jerked in a convulsive swallow, his nostrils flaring on another deep breath, a shudder racking his body.
Don't move, don't move, don't move, don't, don't, don't!
Thunder rumbled in the distance; trailing off until it was lost in the rain's steady drumming. The patrol stopped. So did Hogan's breathing.
Another bolt danced across the sky, casting a flickering blanket of light over everything. For several seconds, Hogan's men were clearly visible against the brush. He caught a glimpse of his rifle lying across Benson's legs and his jaw clenched, his teeth creaking from the pressure. If it all went to pieces, Kinch would need time to either draw his pistol or grab up the rifle.
Hogan licked his lips, blinking hard see to through the spots fading from his vision.
If it all went to pieces, his men were literally sitting ducks.
The patrol started forward again. They were past Hogan's men now, but still far too close. His gaze darted back and forth between the two groups.
Don't move, fellas. Don't make a sound. Just a little longer and we may all get out of this alive.
Kinch's head turned in Hogan's direction. His face was not visible, but Hogan could guess his thoughts, knew he was wondering what was taking his CO so long to return. Kinch's head bowed toward Benson, then turned back in Hogan's direction. Hogan twitched, his heart racing, nerves afire with adrenaline and dread.
Don't stand up, Kinch! Stay down! Stay down!
The patrol was still visible to Hogan's right and for some reason, had stopped again. He did a fast count, wanting to be sure he had not lost track of any of the Germans. His stomach lurched when he saw only five. And then the sixth moved out from behind the tree that had blocked him from Hogan's view.
Hogan released another deep breath and without conscious thought, brought his gun up and shifted his stance, bracing his feet securely.
The steady rain abruptly slackened to a drizzle. The wind had laid and the interval between bursts of lightning had lengthened. The storm was finally moving on.
Hogan's eyes tracked the patrol as it started moving again. Just a little farther and it would be out of sight.
Maddux's explosively loud sneeze shattered the quiet. The patrol immediately swung about and Hogan's instinct to protect his men instantly overrode his fears. Lightning flashed in the distance, the glow weaker, but still bright enough to throw his men into stark relief. He lined up his first shot, shouting a warning to them.
"DOWN!"
Braveheart wrapped his arms around Benson and dragged him sideways to the ground, tumbling Hogan's rifle off Benson's legs. Kinch and Maddux dropped, scrambling to arm themselves. The Germans ducked for cover, their shouts mingling with a rumble of thunder.
Hogan's trigger finger squeezed, his gun jumping in his hand as the bullet sped from the chamber. One of the Germans jerked and fell with a choked cry of pain.
Sidestepping, Hogan brought another German into his sights, his focus unwavering. He could not take out the entire patrol. But he could buy his men time.
His second bullet found its mark. The German collapsed behind a clump of brush, dead before he hit the ground.
Kinch pulled his gun, rolled and twisted along the ground, trying to line up a shot. Maddux writhed and cursed, furiously scrubbing muddy water from his eyes. A helmeted figure leaned out from behind a tree, rifle at his shoulder, ready to shoot.
Hogan shifted his stance and aim, ignoring the two Germans swinging their rifles in his direction. He fired again, and the man about to shoot Kinch crashed to the ground.
Kinch jerked to a sitting position, snapped his gun up and pulled the trigger, killing one of the two Germans who had Hogan in their sights. Blinking furiously, Maddux rolled to a knee and fired at the blurred shape of the other, shouted an oath when his shot went wide. Braveheart, one hand braced upon Benson's shoulder to keep him down, fired at the same moment as Kinch. The remaining two Germans tumbled to the ground and did not move.
Breathing hard, Hogan glimpsed a dark figure coming at him from his left. He pivoted toward it without hesitation, vision tunneling on his target, gun extended, finger tight on the trigger . . .
"WHOA!" Tivoli threw his hands into the air and slid to a stop, face stark with fear at being confronted by the business end of Hogan's gun.
Hogan cursed, jerking his aim toward the sky without firing. Tivoli sagged in relief and dropped his hands. Taking a shaky breath, he holstered his gun and met Hogan's hard stare, a sheepish smile crossing his grease-darkened face.
"What a surprise, running into you guys out here."
HH HH HH HH HH HH HH HH HH
"You all right, Benson?"
"Hey, you still with us?"
Braveheart and Maddux took Benson by the arms and carefully lifted him into a sitting position. Benson grinned up at them; leaves stuck in his hair and mud and rain dribbling down his face.
"Still breathing and that's what matters."
Maddux thumped a fist on Benson's shoulder. "Attaboy."
Shaking his head in mock disapproval, Braveheart plucked a crushed leaf from Benson's hair. "You are truly a mess, my friend."
Benson huffed a weak chuckle, reached up and wiped a glob of mud off the end of his nose.
Seeing the three of them were doing okay, Kinch pushed to his feet and walked over to Hogan and Tivoli, who were locked in a silent standoff. Tivoli, knowing he was in trouble for sneaking out of camp against orders, wisely kept his mouth buttoned. Stone-faced and gun still in hand, Hogan stared daggers at the Italian, more than likely not trusting himself to speak. Kinch gave a tight nod to Tivoli, then focused his attention upon Hogan. His CO showed no sign of injury, but Kinch detected a slight trembling.
"You all right, sir?"
The question broke the standoff. Hogan's gaze cut toward Kinch and he nodded once, a hard jerk of his head.
"The others?"
Kinch checked over his shoulder to see if all was still well, and then looked back at Hogan. "They're fine."
"Then let's get the hell out of here," Hogan said, leveling another hard glare at Tivoli. "The shooting might ha --"
Without warning, Hogan side-armed Kinch out of the way, whipped his gun up and fired twice. The German's knees buckled and he slid down the tree to the ground, a stunned look on his face. He pitched forward, dead for certain this time.
Braveheart, Benson and Maddux stared at the dead man in shock.
"Tivoli," Hogan rasped, offering Kinch a hand up. "Check the other bodies."
"Sir," Tivoli acknowledged. Drawing his weapon, he jogged past the man Hogan had just shot. Coming to the first of the remaining five, he leveled his gun on the man's head, grabbed him by the shoulder and roughly turned him over. Hogan and the others watched him check for life and then move on to the next, his face set in a hard expression.
Hogan quickly reloaded his gun, glanced at Kinch. "Get the men ready. We're leaving."
"Still need braces for Benson's leg," Kinch said, tone matter-of-fact. Like Hogan, he kept an eye on Tivoli, ready to back him up.
"I dropped them when our company showed up." Hogan holstered his gun, and then started toward the spot where he had left the branches. Just before he disappeared into the shadows, he said over his shoulder, "I'll be back in a minute."
Passing up the branches, Hogan angled away from the path they would take back to Stalag 13, doubled over and was quietly sick.
TBC. Thank you for reading. Please take a moment and leave a review. Thank you.