Chapter 4---Hogan's Secret
Metzger stopped his car in the bushes only a short distance from Stalag 13 and Hogan's emergency tunnel entrance.
The general grabbed his weapon off the top of the dashboard and aiming it at Hogan with one hand, took a small key from his pocket. "Turn around, Hogan," he ordered. The Colonel complied. Metzger unlocked one of the cuffs from Hogan's wrist freeing one arm, allowing Hogan to undo the cuff on his other wrist. Tossing the handcuffs onto the top of the dashboard, he rubbed his wrists, his eyes never wavering from the pistol pointed at his head.
"Where are we?" Hogan asked already knowing the answer.
"I already told you, Hogan. You don't lie very well. You know exactly where we are. We are just outside Stalag 13 and only a few feet from your emergency tunnel." Metzger checked his watch. "I suggest you get back to your camp, Hogan. Your two weeks started twenty minutes ago. Now get out!"
Glaring at the Luftwaffe General, Hogan slowly opened the door and got out, slamming the door behind him. He started to leave.
"Two more things, Hogan," Metzger remarked with a cunning grin.
The Colonel turned. "What?!" he snapped.
"The first thing is, I will be keeping tabs on you and your progress. So if you try to pull a fast one, I will give you to either London or Major Hochstetter in pieces."
"And the other?"
"I suggest you wipe the blood from your jaw before your men see it. Goodbye Hogan." With that, Metzger drove off leaving Hogan staring after him. He wiped his jaw with the back of his hand. But, at this moment, Hogan didn't really care if his men saw the blood on his jaw or not. What was he going to tell them? What could he tell them? Hogan sighed wearily. Whatever he told them, he didn't want them involved in any way in case something went wrong. He didn't want them to suffer his fate. He turned and disappeared into the brush heading for the tree stump.
Kinch, Carter, Newkirk and LeBeau were all still seated at the table. Kinch was playing solitaire while LeBeau, Newkirk and Carter were playing gin rummy. Newkirk glanced at his watch for what have been the umpteenth time.
"The Colonel's only been gone for a little over an hour, Newkirk," Kinch said without looking at him. "It's too early to start worrying."
Just then, the men all turned when the lower bunk rose and the ladder dropped. The minute Hogan's head came into view the men all got to their feet and approached their commanding officer. The bleeding cut on his jaw didn't escape their eyes.
"Colonel, what happened? You've been injured," exclaimed LeBeau.
"It's nothing," Hogan replied, wiping his jaw again with the back of his hand. He noticed the blood. "I tripped on the way back here. Nothing serious. Just a little cut is all." He slapped the hidden mechanism and waited for the ladder to rise and the bunk to drop over the entrance. He started to walk away when Kinch grabbed his arm. Hogan looked at the hand holding his arm and then at Kinch's face. Kinch put his other hand on Hogan's chin and the Colonel immediately pulled away from the touch. Their eyes met and locked.
"That doesn't look like a cut from simply tripping and falling, Colonel," he said with narrowed eyes. "That looks more like somebody struck you."
LeBeau, Carter and Newkirk all exchanged concerned looks before trying to get a better look at the injury to their commanding officer.
"Did you run into trouble out there, mon Colonel?" asked LeBeau, worried.
Hogan tried pulling his arm away from Kinch but the radioman gripped it all the tighter. Kinch looked at Newkirk. "Newkirk, get me some alcohol and a clean cloth and some bandages."
"Right away, mate," the Englander replied hurrying to one of the lockers where they kept their medical supplies.
Kinch led Hogan to the table and had him sit down on the bench with Carter and LeBeau sitting on either side of him. Newkirk returned momentarily with the supplies Kinch wanted. The radioman released the Colonel's arm, and proceeded to pour a small amount of alcohol on the clean cloth.
"This is gonna sting a bit, Colonel," he said as he pressed the cloth against Hogan's jaw. The Colonel winced.
"That was an understatement, Kinch," he replied as Kinch proceeded to clean the wound. After a few minutes, the bleeding had been stopped and the men all got a better look at the injury to Hogan's jaw. Kinch then applied a small bandage over the cut.
"Colonel, what happened out there?" asked Kinch. "That cut looks like what I thought it did. Who attacked you, Colonel?"
"And I told you. I tripped on the way back here. Nobody attacked me. Now it's been a long night and I'd like to get some sleep. So I'll say goodnight." Hogan got up and started to walk away when LeBeau grabbed his arm. He gasped when he noticed the bruises on Hogan's wrist from where the handcuffs had been too tightly bound around his wrist. Hogan snatched his arm away quickly, but not before the others had seen them as well.
"Gov'nor?" asked Newkirk.
"It's nothing," Hogan replied walking away. "Nothing at all. I told you. I tripped and fell. Must've injured my wrist as well. Goodnight." He walked into his quarters and closed the door leaving his men staring after him.
"Whatever happened out there," Kinch remarked. "The Colonel didn't fall. That cut on his chin was from somebody striking him. I'm willing to bet my life on it. And those bruises on his wrist looked like he had been bound too tightly. He probably has them on both wrists."
"What do you think happened?" asked Carter who had been strangely quiet up to now.
"I have no idea, Andrew," Kinch replied. "But one thing I'm positive of is the Colonel is not telling us the truth about what happened at that meeting with Skyhawk tonight. And until he does, we're just gonna have to wait."