Chapter 22-A Secret Exposed

Klink massaged his forehead with his fingers after General Burkhalter had left his office. He had secretly hoped the General would have ordered the Gestapo Major to leave Stalag 13 completely; but he supposed having himself and or a guard present when Hogan or any of the prisoners were 'questioned' was a plus in a way. At least this way he could protect the prisoners to some degree. He felt a massive headache forming. Just then his telephone rang. He was about to yell for Hilda to answer it as the incessant ringing only intensified the pounding in his head, but then remembered he had sent Hilda home the day Guthrie arrived. He picked up the receiver.

"Stalag 13, Colonel Klink speaking," he groaned. Suddenly his face brightened a bit. "Fraulein Hilda, how nice to hear from you. I am fine, danke. How are you feeling?" He listened to his secretary for a few minutes and then spoke to her in the prearranged code they had come up with that day to alert her whether or not it was safe for her to come back to the office. "I'm so sorry to hear you're still not feeling well, Fraulein. Please take all the time you need and call me again in a week to let me know how you're doing. You must take care of yourself as I know how nasty these colds can be sometimes. Take care. Auf wiedersehen." He hung up the phone just as the door opened and Sergeant Schultz ambled inside. He saluted.

Klink didn't return it. "Yes, Schultz, what is it now?" he complained more harshly than he planned.

"Herr Kommandant, what did General Burkhalter do about Major Guthrie? I hope he ordered him out of camp. He is not a very nice man at all."

Klink raised his eyes and momentarily glanced at the rotund guard. "Unfortunately, he's allowing him to remain in camp since this von Herwarth disappeared in the area. He also ordered that whenever Hogan or any of the prisoners are questioned I and or a guard must be present to make sure he doesn't get carried away with his questioning. What do you think of that?"

Schultz shrugged his shoulders. "Herr Kommandant, from where I stand, while it does not seem like much, at least you can protect Colonel Hogan and any prisoners from harm. That is at least something to be grateful for."

Klink sighed wearily. "I guess you're right. Are the guards still posted outside the infirmary as I asked?"

"Jawohl, Herr Kommandant. The only people allowed to visit Colonel Hogan are Corporals LeBeau and Newkirk and Sergeants Kinchloe and Carter, and you."

"Excellent. Make sure it stays that way until further notice. Understood?"

"Jawohl."

Klink leaned back in his chair with his hands clasped in his lap. He looked weary and older than his forty-nine years at the exact moment. He looked up into Schultz's plump face. "Was there something you wanted, Schultz?"

"Herr Kommandant, I spoke with Sergeant Kinchloe before I came here. He said Sergeant Wilson is very pleased with Colonel Hogan's progress and might release him in a day or two if there are no problems which he does not foresee. Of course he will have to take it easy for awhile after he returns to the barracks."

"That is wonderful news. I've very glad to hear it. Schultz, I need you to select your best man to accompany Major Guthrie whenever he wants to question Colonel Hogan or any of the prisoners. Make sure he understands he will either accompany me to these interrogations, or he will represent me himself and then report to me. Do you have anybody in mind?"

"Herr Kommandant, I would be happy to do it myself."

"Danke, Schultz, But Major Guthrie does not trust or like you and I wouldn't want to subject you to having to confront him being the overstuffed teddy bear you are. No, I need someone he doesn't know."

"Herr Kommandant, what about Corporal Werner? He is a good man, has been here a little over one year and would be eager to prove himself."

Klink nodded. "Very well, Schultz. Have Corporal Werner report to me right away and I will inform him of his new duties. Disss-missssed!" he said saluting.

Jawohl, Herr Kommandant," Schultz replied snapping off a salute as he opened the door and exited to find his young charge.

Kinch was seated at the radio adjusting the headset when a message in Morse Code came through. He could tell it was urgent as he snatched up his pencil and began to copy it down on his pad. He didn't hear Newkirk come up behind him. "Holy cats!" Kinch exclaimed.

"What is it, mate? What's wrong?"

"Holy cats!" Kinch repeated. "I don't believe what I'm hearing." After he finished writing it down, he ordered the sender to wait five minutes and then resend the message. The sender acknowledged the request. Kinch then turned towards Newkirk. "Go find LeBeau and Carter and then all of you come here immediately. Go, Peter!"

"On me way!" the Englander replied sensing the urgency in his friend's tone. Whatever the message was, he suspected it could only mean one thing: trouble. By the time he found the others and returned to the radio room, Kinch had finished rechecking the message which had been resent and tapped out his acknowledgment. He removed his headset and laid it on the table.

"Newkirk said a message came in addressed to the Colonel," LeBeau said.

"It was from Garth. A body was found buried near an abandoned shed about 3 miles outside of town. There was decomposition but he could tell the face had been badly beaten, and the right forearm had what appeared to be a healing scar on the inside of the right forearm."

"Sacre chat!" LeBeau explained. "Is it Captain Rochet's body?"

"Garth says he's positive. He worked with the Captain not too long ago and recognized the scar. He said he was with Rochet when he was attacked with the knife that caused the injury."

"Well that cinches it then," Newkirk added. "That bastard Guthrie is nothing more than a bloody Gestapo liar."

"Filthy lying Bosche!" spat LeBeau.

"Boy, you can say that again," Carter added.

Kinch rubbed his chin. "My guess is the Gestapo somehow found out who Rochet really was, had him killed, then had Guthrie take his place because of the resemblance between them. According to Garth he had been shot in the back of the head."

The Frenchman shook his head. "That cinches it for me as well. Guthrie is Gestapo and we have a pretty good idea who sent him here after the Colonel."

"Hochstetter," Newkirk hissed distastefully.

"Y'know," Kinch said thoughtfully as he scratched his chin again. "This entire thing is beginning to suddenly make sense; providing Hochstetter is behind it that is."

"How do you mean, mon ami?"

"Think about it. Hochstetter's been after the Colonel since he's been here. Now just suppose the Gestapo found out about Rochet, killed him, and had Guthrie take his place pretending to be him and contacting the Colonel to enlist his help in finding von Herwarth and the journal when in reality, Guthrie wanted to find von Herwarth because he stole his wife. The journal was just an added bonus. This way Hochstetter would have the journal, von Herwarth, the Colonel, and us all in one nice little package."

"So if I understand you, mate, what you're saying is this entire thing is nothing but an elaborate Gestapo plan to catch the Gov'nor and expose our entire operation using von Herwarth and the journal as bait."

"Exactly," Kinch added. "Hochstetter knew if the lure was big enough, Colonel Hogan wouldn't be able to resist getting involved. But there's two things Hochstetter didn't count on."

"What's that, mon ami?"

"One being that Guthrie is more interested in finding his wife and von Herwarth than the journal, and two, Guthrie is obsessed where his wife is concerned. I suspect nothing else matters."

"And three," Newkirk quickly added. "He's got a couple of screws loose."

"I know I would feel much better if we had that journal in our possession instead of it being out there somewhere," Kinch said.

"Any chance we could convince von Herwarth to lead us to it?" asked LeBeau.

"We could ask him, LeBeau," Kinch replied. "All he can do is refuse. But first we'd have to get Guthrie out of camp and far enough away. Remember, the Colonel wanted a bug planted in his quarters? I say let's first get the bug planted and see if we can find out if he really is Gestapo. Also, don't forget someone tipped him off that Colonel Hogan was coming to lure him out of his quarters that night. By planting a bug we might be able to find out who that someone is, before we go accusing someone in our own barracks." He saw the others agree.

"One other thing, mate. If we can't go into the tunnels and talk and have to use the barracks, I say until we know who it is we talk in the Colonel's quarters, and we check it for bugs every time we go in there."

"Why should we do that?" asked Carter. "We already searched Colonel Hogan's quarters."

"Because Andrew, that would be the perfect time to plant a listening device after a place has already been searched," the Englander pointed out.

"I agree," said Kinch. "But first, I say we speak with von Herwarth and see if we can have him lead us to the journal."

Hogan lay awake in bed staring at the ceiling at all the marks, discolored boards and nails again. He had one arm behind his head as the other still had an IV needle stuck in it. He was bored silly. By his count he already knew how many marks were on the ceiling above his bed, how many nails were used to hold the planks in place and how many discolored spots there were. He supposed as a change of pace, he could estimate the distance between his bed to the door of the infirmary, and how many steps it took someone once they entered to reach his bed next. G-d was he bored! Just then the door of the infirmary opened causing Hogan to turn his head. He saw the Kommandant heading in his direction when he stopped to speak with Wilson for a brief moment. Nodding, Klink approached Hogan's bed and sat down in the chair.

"How are you feeling?" he asked genuinely concerned.

"Well enough to get out of here," Hogan said loud enough for Wilson to hear him. "But a certain medic won't budge!"

"Hogan, you just do what Sergeant Wilson tells you to do. He told me after you're released you'll have to take it easy for a few days so I will excuse you from roll call and have Schultz check to make sure you're in your quarters."

"I'll appear at roll call, Kommandant," Hogan said.

"Hogan, I'm warning you now. Once you're released from here if you even look like you're going to show up at roll call I'll have Sergeant Wilson sedate you for a week."

"You wouldn't dare, Kommandant," Hogan replied shifting his eyes at Klink.

"And if that doesn't work, I can always have Schultz sit on you."

Hogan wasn't positive, but he thought he saw the corners of Klink's mouth turn upward. He allowed an amused grin to appear on his own face. "Kommandant, you're just crazy enough to order it." He suddenly winced.

"Hogan, what's wrong? Should I get Sergeant Wilson?"

"No. I was wincing at the thought of Schultz sitting on me. Ouch." Hogan then studied the Kommandant's face. He guessed Klink looked at least ten years older since Guthrie's arrival. "Kommandant, what's wrong?"

Klink threw up his hands. "Everything's wrong. I called General Burkhalter and he arrived this morning. I was hoping he'd order Major Guthrie to leave Stalag 13."

"He didn't?"

"On the contrary. He's permitting him to remain here since this von Herwarth was last seen in this area before he disappeared. However, he did authorize myself and or a guard to be present whenever you or another prisoner are interrogated."

"It's better than nothing I suppose," Hogan said. "But you and I both know Kommandant that the Gestapo can't be trusted."

"Don't you think I know that? I just don't know what else to do."

Hogan chuckled. "I know what I'd like to do. But I'd need a gun."

Klink shuddered. "Hogaaaaaaaaan!"

Wilson suddenly appeared. "Sorry, Kommandant, but that's enough for now. Colonel Hogan needs his rest."

Klink got to his feet. "I understand completely, Sergeant. If I can, I'll visit later. Get some rest Hogan." Klink and Wilson both saw Hogan roll his eyes and let out a deep breath. Wilson was amused while Klink didn't get it and figured it was a private joke between the two Americans.

Hogan had drifted off to sleep almost immediately after Klink had left. But it was a restless sleep, filled with struggles and obstacles and problems involving the situation with von Herwarth and what to do about Guthrie. Suddenly, the sleep became more disturbing as those same struggles, obstacles and problems shifted from now back to his time at West Point.

Even though Robert Hogan had been well prepared for what to expect attending West Point by his father, he found things a lot tougher than he had expected. He was assigned to a cadet barracks with his entire freshman class and the sophomore class as well. He shared a room with two other freshman cadets with whom he got along very well. Hogan quickly found that the life at the Point could be described in one word: BUSY. In fact, Hogan figured cadets must be busier than other college students. The first day he walked through the doors of the Point, he learned how to live by military standards, render proper military courtesies, and complete a rigorous military training program. That was followed by six-weeks of Cadet Basic Training which he found not only challenging, stressful, and physically demanding, but rewarding.

Academically, his freshman or plebe year as a cadet wasn't so difficult and he had done extremely well in all his classes. But now he was in his sophomore or yearling year and things were much tougher. And like his freshman year, classes, physical education, extracurricular activities, athletics and study time were all part of his daily schedule. Up for breakfast for 6:55 - 7:30 am and then class or study from 7:35 - 11:45 am. (1) Hogan had always enjoyed sports and participated in as many of them as he was able; and although he wasn't Captain of the football or baseball teams because he was a sophomore, nor was he eligible to be class president until his senior year, his leadership capabilities were exemplary in every area and did not go unnoticed by his teachers. Other students often came to him for help and he was only too willing to accommodate them.

In fact, some went as far as to say Hogan was a fine example of the Cadet Honor Code which read: "A Cadet will not lie, cheat, steal or tolerate those who do," and that he was a cadet to be watched because he would go far. But despite the praise, Hogan knew he was far from perfect. After all, he was a teenage boy, and being such, he knew he could screw up, think outside the box and make mistakes like any other teenage boy. But he told himself he would try his hardest under the most trying of circumstances to make what he hoped would be the right decisions. And he faced such a set of circumstances during his sophomore year.

It was about 4:00 pm in the afternoon and Hogan had football practice from 4:10 - 5:45 pm and he didn't want to be late. His two roommates, Ike Morris and Randy Pelfrey both had free time and wanted to use it for study time so they remained in their room. After about thirty minutes, Ike got up and said he needed to stretch his muscles so he was going to take a walk. He returned about fifteen minutes later somewhat excited about something.

"What happened?" asked Pelfrey. "What's got you so excited all of a sudden?"

Morris stood close to his bed. "Guess what I just heard?"

"What?"

"Somebody stole Joshua's watch from his room."

"You're kidding?" Pelfrey said jumping up off the bed. He hurried out into the hall and saw a few other cadets gathered in the hall talking; one of them was Joshua Wright. "Somebody took your watch?" Pelfrey asked.

"I went to the library and after awhile realized I forgot my watch, so I came back to my room to get it and it wasn't on the night table where I had left it."

"Maybe you misplaced it?" asked Pelfrey, hating to think what he was thinking which was that somebody had violated the Cadet Honor Code.

"I searched everywhere for it. I even had my roommates help search. It's gone!" Joshua ran his hands down his face. "My parents gave me that watch after I graduated from high school." He was visibly upset. Another cadet suddenly appeared from down the hall.

"I reported it to the cadets' barracks chief and they're on their way to investigate," he said.

Hogan shifted his position in bed as he wrestled with his problems. But which problems? The problems now or from West Point? Again he tried to ease into a peaceful sleep.

When Hogan returned to his room after having showered following a grueling football practice, he learned about the missing watch from his roommates and that he had just missed the all out search by the barracks chiefs to find Joshua Wright's watch without success. Almost immediately Hogan's gut feeling told him the missing watch would turn up in a few days.

It was four days later when things had calmed down after the missing watch incident when Hogan hurriedly left after breakfast for his first class of the day which was one of his toughest but also his favorite. After lunch he had a class at 1:50pm and realized he was missing one of his books. He ran all the way back to his barracks knowing he'd have just enough time to retrieve the book and make it to class on time. But just as he reached the doorway he suddenly stopped. Both his roommates were gone, but on the night table belonging to Ike Morris sat a watch that looked strangely familiar. He entered the room and approaching the night table, picked up the watch to examine it and turned it over. On the back was the following engraved message: 'To Joshua on your graduation. All our love, Mom and Dad.' Hogan suddenly heard a noise behind him and turned to see Morris, wearing a bathrobe, hair wet from having just taken a shower, looking at him.

"You stole it, didn't you?" Hogan asked. "You stole Joshua's watch."

"I didn't steal anything. My parents sent that watch to me." He walked around the bed and snatched the watch out of Hogan's hand.

"Your name isn't Joshua. You know the Honor Code same as the rest of us. It might, and I mean might go easier on you if you return it to its rightful owner."

"What if I don't want to return it? I kind of like this watch. I think I'll keep it."

Hogan let out a deep breath. "I'll give you until 9am tomorrow morning to tell the barracks chief what you did or I will."

Morris reached out a large hand and gripping Hogan by the throat, shoved him up against the wall. Hogan knew Morris was bigger than he was and more muscular and could probably snap him in half like a twig easily; so, he thought it might be easier to pretend he was afraid of him. "You're not telling anybody anything, Hogan. You do and I'll implicate you in the theft. You read me?"

"Get your hands off of me!" Hogan demanded.

Smirking, Morris released Hogan but then backhanded him so hard he fell backward onto the floor, wiped his mouth and saw blood. He slowly got up. He feigned an intimidated expression. "I'm late for my next class," he quietly said as he grabbed the book he needed to begin with and his other books. As he headed towards the door, Morris grabbed his arm. "Just keep your mouth shut and you won't get hurt."

Hogan gave him a look and then left the room. Once he was out in the hallway he forgot about the class and sought out the barracks chief and explained everything to him and that he had been threatened and assaulted as well by Morris. The barracks chief instructed Hogan to write out a report concerning everything he had just told him from the time he first saw the watch while he and security would pay a surprise visit to Hogan's room. Hogan explained he was missing class, but the barracks chief assured him he would speak to his teacher and he wouldn't have any problems. The end result was that Joshua got his watch back and Ike Morris was expelled from West Point for violating the Cadet Code of Honor. Although it bothered Hogan to have to turn in Morris because he liked him a lot, he knew he had done the right thing and would do it again. He had even heard others tell him he showed good judgment and kept his head under pressure.

Hogan's eyes opened. Ike Morris, unlike Guthrie, had been a friend. And while it had hurt Hogan to turn on a friend, it wouldn't bother him in the least to turn on Guthrie. He let out a deep breath as he realized getting rid of a Gestapo agent would involve a lot more than simply informing someone.

(1) The information about West Point is from the West Point website.