.
"What's in a Name"
Chapter 9
Monkey Business and a Revelation
The prisoners' spokesman, Sergeant John Maddock, was on his way to corral his staff to discuss his conversation with Helga, when he was stopped by a group of prisoners hoping to speak with him about the dog handler's note.
"Chernetsky." He greeted the Polish prisoner. "Need to talk to you and the rest of the staff." He nodded at Newkirk, LeBeau and the other men accompanying them.
"We need to talk to you," Chernetsky replied.
"All right. You go first."
"Someplace safe," Newkirk requested.
"Let's head over to my barracks."
They walked silently over to Barracks two, one of two huts that included a separate room, which Maddock shared with Sergeant Tim Graves. Graves assisted Maddock with paperwork and work schedules. Chernetsky, whose language skills rivaled Langenscheidt's, represented the large contingent of Polish prisoners. He had been the MOC before the arrival of the other Europeans, but, as he preferred to stay under the radar, he handed the reins over to Maddock upon the Brit's arrival.
The hut was empty, and the group gathered around the small table in the middle of the common room.
"What's up?" Maddock asked.
"This was deliberately dropped by the dog handler, where we would find it." Newkirk handed the MOC the note. "Louis volunteered to go. Oh, it says when he's coming in again to change the dogs."
Maddock looked at LeBeau.
"You sure this was deliberate?"
"Oui. I believe the dogs have been trained to be friendly to the prisoners. Besides, we watched the tunnel detecting display. Something was definitely off about the whole thing."
Maddock stroked his chin. "Yeah, I've had that conversation before. But it's taking a chance." He looked at Chernetsky and Hemsworth.
"I think it's worth a shot, John," Hemsworth stated. "I saw him drop the note. And why would he need a reminder for himself? That's his usual schedule."
Maddock nodded. "Let's do it."
"I'll need a diversion," LeBeau pointed out.
"Leave that to us," Maddock answered. "Just be ready." He sighed. "I might as well tell you something odd happened in the office. I'm not happy about it, but I need your take. I...I...gave out information. Something I shouldn't have."
"To Klink?" Chernetsky asked in a shocked voice.
"No. His secretary." Maddock described the conversation. "Honestly, I'll resign if necessary. I really blew it."
"Let's not be hasty, John. First, it may have been a perfectly innocent conversation. And besides, you have a good rapport with Klink. Amazing, considering you haven't been here that long. Besides, resigning might open up a can of slugs."
The Brits smiled at the Polish sergeant's misnomer.
"I think you mean can of worms." Newkirk gave Chernetsky a friendly poke.
"Well, I think we should give Bellows a fair warning," Chernetsky said.
"I'll talk with him." Maddock began rapping his knuckles on the table. "LeBeau, after you get a feeling for what Schnitzer wants, and if you think you can trust him, mention the secretary. Get his reaction. If it looks like he's with us, let him know she may have acquired some information from me."
"Of course."
Most of the men left the hut and dispersed, leaving Maddock and Chernetsky to discuss how to create a suitable diversion.
Two days later, Oskar pulled into the camp as usual, but instead of driving up to the dog pen, he parked right outside the Kommandanteur, and popped inside.
"Dr. Schnitzer, do you need to see the Kommandant?" Helga asked. "He's in his quarters, but I can call for him."
"No. I dropped a favorite pen on Monday. Did anyone turn it in?"
"No." Helga looked at the vet quizzically. "Something up?" she whispered.
"We'll see," he replied. "I'm hoping to make contact."
Helga nodded, then held up a finger. She removed a piece of paper from her pad, and scratched out a name and a few words. Folding it, she handed it to Schnitzer, who put it in his pocket.
The compound was full of prisoners as Schnitzer drove the van over to the dog pen. This morning, he parked it parallel to the pen, a bit closer to the fence than normal. He put the vehicle in park and shut off the engine; then removed the paper, unfolded it, and glanced at the name. After hiding it again, he left the van and opened the gate. Going to the back of the van, he opened the doors, brought out each dog one at a time, and placed the animals into the pen. Once three were inside, he chose three to remove, and one-by-one, he placed them in the back of the van. After closing the doors, he stopped to light a cigarette, and began to scan the compound. He noticed that groups of prisoners had been evenly dispersed around the grounds, but they were now edging closer together.
As this was taking place, LeBeau, his heart beating so rapidly he thought it would jump out of his chest, slowly moved alongside the buildings, getting closer and closer to the dog pen.
Suddenly, as a football went flying, a fight broke out near the front gates. This was an unusual circumstance at Luft Stalag 13, and it attracted the attention of most of the guards, who hurried over to break up the mêlée.
Hearing the commotion through her open office window, Helga opened the door, and hurried outside to the porch. Thankfully, the guard had not left his post, but to her relief, his gaze was fixed on the large group of prisoners writhing around in the dirt. She turned her body slightly and fixed her attention towards the dog pen.
Klink, hearing the commotion from his quarters, threw on his cap and hurried outside. "What is the meaning of this?" he could be heard screaming as he approached.
With the guards' attention elsewhere, LeBeau made his move. He sprinted across the few remaining meters, and quickly found himself between the van and the fence.
Without saying a word, Schnitzer opened up the back and motioned for LeBeau to hop in, quickly closing the doors as soon as the Frenchman was safely inside.
LeBeau was a courageous individual, but he had to admit he was terrified. Was this a trap? Would the dogs have him for brunch? This was despite his gut feeling that the dogs were friendly and the vet was on their side.
His fear disappeared, as instead of taking bites out of his face and limbs, LeBeau received a good face wash. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry, as the three shepherds' tails wagged furiously as they fought to lick off his remaining facial hair. The van lurched forward and LeBeau realized he was going for a ride.
As Oskar's van left the compound, the fight wound down. Maddock had to leave his concern for LeBeau aside, as he and the other conspirators hurried over to the area of the compound where the staged fight took place. Looks like when we need a diversion, the rest of the camp is willing to play their part, he thought as he presented himself to the Kommandant, who was, as expected, seething.
"Whoever started this is going into the cooler. Now who was it?" Klink straightened and stared expectantly at the motley group of men, most of whom were dirty from rolling around in the dirt. No one stepped forward.
"I run a disciplined camp. If no one admits their part, you will all be punished. No, the entire camp will be punished."
Grumbles and protests greeted this proclamation, and other prisoners not involved in the fight stepped forward.
"Kommandant, perhaps I can find out what happened," Maddock offered.
Klink nodded.
"All right, what happened?" Maddock asked.
A British sergeant stepped forward. "We lost a football. They took it and wouldn't give it back, and then the Norwegians on our team had words with the Dutch on the other team , and it took off from there."
"The Norwegians and the Dutch?" Even Klink had trouble believing that. There weren't enough of those nationalities in camp to fill two huts.
"Yes, sir."
"You've been very fair, so far, sir." Maddock whispered. "Morale hasn't been too good, you know. No mail. German victories everywhere. Let me handle this," he pleaded.
"No cooler this time, but the extra electricity I agreed to let you have is now rescinded," Klink stated. "But the next fight, I promise you, I will be harsher."
"Thank you, sir." Maddock nodded. "All of you, dismissed."
As the Germans and the prisoners walked away, Maddock turned to his co-conspirators. Newkirk was clearly worried.
"What if he doesn't bring Louis back?"
"Nothing we can do about that now. Just be glad Klink didn't order a roll call. I was afraid he would think the fight was staged to cover an escape."
The group walked back towards Barracks two and went inside. Maddock acknowledged the men in the common room, some of whom were involved in the fight.
"Great job."
"Not a problem," replied Anderson, who jumped off his bunk. "But what about LeBeau? The dog handler drove away."
Maddock was worried, but didn't want to show his concern. "We'll have to trust that he'll bring him back."
LeBeau was at the mercy of the dog handler. The van was on the road for a short time, but after about 15 minutes of bumpy driving, it stopped. LeBeau held his breath as the back of the van opened.
Oskar motioned for LeBeau to get out. After jumping down, LeBeau straightened up his posture. "Monsieur."
Oskar shut the doors. "Je ne parle pas français bien," he replied. "Parlez-vous anglais ou allemande?"
"English," LeBeau replied. "My English is better."
"Good. Oskar Schnitzer." The vet held out his hand.
"Louis LeBeau." He grasped the vet's hand and gave it a hearty shake. Looking around, he asked. "Where are we?"
"Not far from camp. Come this way." Oskar began walking through the brush and trees, stopping when they arrived at the entrance to the abandoned mine. "Not all of us Germans support the war, or the policies of the government," Oskar said. "You probably realize by now that the dogs are not what they seem."
"Of course. But what about looking for the tunnels?" LeBeau asked.
"They'll find what we want them to find," Oskar explained. "We'll work something out. I assume there is one started?" Seeing LeBeau's reticence, Oskar said, "Never mind. Well, perhaps this will gain your trust. This is an entrance to an abandoned mine that runs right under the prison camp."
LeBeau's eyes widened. "Why would they build a camp on top of a mine?"
"Not sure. But the camp was here long before the war. It was a recreational site. Somehow the information about the mine got lost, or deliberately overlooked. But my friends and I received the blueprints for the mine from another source. You can thank the misnaming of the camp for that." Oskar chuckled. "We believe part of it goes right under the dog compound."
"Incroyable!" Louis exclaimed. "And if we can reach the mine, we can tunnel out."
"Or we can hide items in the mine. Radios, weapons, men. Who knows what," Oskar stated. "But we need help. We're not engineers. This is where you come in." Oskar pulled out a piece of paper. "We know you have a sergeant in camp who worked in the coal mines. A fellow by the name of Bellows."
"How did you find that out?" LeBeau asked cautiously.
"I can't say," Oskar replied.
LeBeau trusted the veterinarian; after all, it was obvious the dogs were friendly to the prisoners, and that the tunnel finding operation was a scam. However, he had to be sure. "The Kommandant's secretary told you. She's on our side, isn't she?" Louis did not have to mention the conversation Helga had with Maddock. It was now clear why the secretary pumped the MOC for information.
Oskar paused and turned away for a moment. LeBeau waited as the veterinarian clearly thought over the implications of what LeBeau had revealed. He turned back. "I've known Helga since she was a little girl. I helped get her this job. You must leave Helga out of this. I warn you, I will turn on the prisoners, if necessary."
This statement was enough to gain LeBeau's trust. After all, although he assumed Helga knew the risks, he would do the same as Schnitzer if he was in the same position.
"Of course."
"I need to get you back to camp. But first, I will need to meet with Bellows or any other men in camp who can look at these tunnels."
"It was not easy getting to the van," LeBeau said. "I don't think we can continue to have fights. In fact, I have no idea what Klink did to punish those involved."
"I can't help you there. I will be back the same time next week to change the dogs. Hopefully, your comrades will think of something. And if you succeed, Bellows will be with us for a while. So you have to make sure he won't be missed."
"That shouldn't be a problem. Roll call is at 5."
Oskar returned to the camp, telling the guards he had left something in the dog pen. This time, LeBeau, due to his small stature, was able to hide on the floor in front of the van. Oskar parked the van close to the pen, with the passenger side next to the fence. With Oskar in the pen, the dogs became restless and noisy, and the area was avoided by the guards, enabling LeBeau to crawl out of the van and sneak back to a safer area. He noted the behavior for future reference and he also noticed that the gate was merely latched, not locked. Perhaps, he thought, a useful entrance to the tunnel would be through the dog pen.