Now it was time for Colonel Hogan and his men to get ready for tonight. The factory that they were going to be bombing was just twenty minutes from the tunnel that they had just outside of the fence. The entrance was hidden and looked as though it was just a tree stump.
They would keep Schultz busy by giving him chocolates and they would be back in an hour. Each of them dressed carefully and it was decided that Carter would do most of the talking. He was fluent in German and could easily pass as a German.
Everyone finished the outfits and outfitted the bomb. It was the perfect night for the bombing. The submarine would be within range at around six that evening also. It was necessary to get the prisoners out to the submarine that evening. Everyone would have to stay low for a few days after the bombing because of the extra patrols that would be sent to the area.
Kinch would take care of the radio contact from the tunnel while two of Hogan's men would make the way to the submarine with the three prisoners. As the evening came and they watched Colonel Klink left the compound the men started to head out.
Kinch had reached the submarine and they would be ready to take the prisoners back to England at seven and he informed them. The three men were thrilled to hear that they would soon be free once more. The men got their meager things together and prepared to step outside once again.
Klink found himself in the car on his way to Gertrude's house. He looked forward to the time with that awful woman like he looked forward to a dull tooth ache. The ride was not a long one and he stopped at a floral shop and picked up some flowers. He wanted to do anything to stall the time that he was going to have to spend with Gertrude.
As he went up the walkway to her house he checked himself once more. He was about as neatly dressed as he could be and he bumbled as he greeted the lady. As Gertrude offered him a seat he sat down and looked forward to nothing, when she nearly took a seat in his lap he thought that he was going to die.
In the meantime the men had managed to get out of the compound unnoticed and as they climbed out of the stump they headed their prospective ways. The three ex prisoners of war made their way to the water, where the submarine was waiting for them. As they took the raft over to the submarine they waved and thanked the men who had saved them from a prison if war camp. Being a prisoner of war could not be described in any manner but as a time in hell. They had been starved and abused to the point that they were willing to risk their lives to escape.
Colonel Hogan and his men headed to the ball bearing plant. Hogan could speak German well, but he did have a slight accent. That was why Carter did most of the talking. He spoke German fluently. As they approached the guard who was stationed at the guard house, they showed him the papers for the repair of the furnace.
The guard read the orders and agreed to let them in quite happily. The furnace had not been working well for months and he had thought that they would never be repaired. A non working furnace at a factory in Germany was on the low order of importance for Hitler and his men.
As the three men headed toward the building they were met by the night foreman. He led them to the furnaces and they each took out their tools and began to check things with their meters. When the men were finally left alone, Carter went to work placing the fuses for the bomb. He found an ideal spot and set them up.
The funny thing was that one of the men Newkirk had worked on furnaces before and to totally throw off the Germans at the plant he got the furnace working once again. Carter then set the timer on the bomb for thirty minutes. This would allow the men to get back to Stalag 13 and be outside of any suspicion. Of course there was always the danger that someone would find the bomb, but Carter had done her best to make sure that the bomb was well hidden.
As the men left they smiled and chatted for a moment with the guard. They made their way back to Stalag 13 and climbed back down into the stump. To their pleasure they found the men who had brought the prisoners to the submarine had already arrived back at the camp ahead of them. All had gone well.
As the men went back upstairs to the barracks they went to the door. They counted down to the time of the bomb and as they went down to 0 they heard the bomb go off. From their barracks they could see the lights of the fire and hear the noise of the explosions as the plant went up in a ball of flames. The fire and the dark red of the flames could easily be seen by them and they cheered knowing that they had done their job well.
Colonel Klink had been in the uncomfortable position of sitting with Gertrude when he had hear the explosion. The plant was just two miles from her house and as the two of them ran to the window they could see and actually feel the heat of the flames. The fire trucks went flying by the house and then the ambulances. The damage was major as Colonel Klink and Gertrude could see. There was a large loss of life also. 'Sabotage again, what was this war coming to?' he thought.
General Burkhalter had been at his desk writing when the explosion had happened. He got up and quickly looked out of his window. This was something that had to be stopped. There was some kind of espionage ring in the area and he was going to make sure that he broke it.
Back at Stalag 13 Colonel Hogan and his men celebrated the successful bombing of the ball bearing plant. They then knew that their jobs would continue and the dangers were always present. But for now, they had been successful in closing a plant in the area and in one short moment had stopped the German's or slowed them down at least once more.