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Der Meißel der Seele	By : Wertiyurae Category: G through L > Hogan's Heroes Views: 1599 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own the television series that this fanfiction is written for, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 14
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- 16
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It hit Hogan right as he was walking down the steps of the office building just what the Kommandant’s problem had been. He had been trying to find the reason behind Klink’s agitation, his questions and his insistence that Hogan be quiet once they were alone and now, feeling incredibly stupid, he’d finally figured it out.
Why hadn’t he seen it sooner? It was so obvious now. If the fact that Klink’s clothes had been undone hadn’t clued him in, then the expression of stark, incredulous hope and the relief only partially covered by the man’s embarrassment should have told Hogan all he’d needed to know.
But it hadn’t. Even knowing what he’d known about Klink’s situation and what the ‘meeting’ with Adler would no doubt entail, he’d still thought that the man had just been getting ready for bed when Schultz had opened the bedroom door. And, while he’d thought it was strange that Adler had been nowhere in sight, he’d figured that the man had just changed his mind.
Of course, he realized now that Adler had been very close at hand indeed and listening to every word. No wonder Klink hadn’t wanted Hogan to say anything after Schultz left! It would have been suicide. Although, Hogan wondered what Klink was thinking, staying behind instead of coming out with them. Even though Adler had no reason to believe that Klink had any part in this escape, Hogan couldn’t imagine that he’d be very pleased that Klink had managed to weasel out of it.
Hogan stopped mid-step and earned a puzzled look from Schultz which he ignored. How ever the General decided to show his displeasure, Hogan was willing to bet that it would be nothing that was good for Klink’s health. If he’d realized that Adler was there before, he’d never have left the Kommandant there to fend for himself. At the very least, with Hogan there, Adler wouldn’t be able to vent his anger.
Of course, was that really his concern? Schultz gave Hogan a light push and he started walking again, feeling annoyed with himself. Sure, he’d decided to go along with this little escape plan even though he wasn’t getting anything useful out of it anymore but that didn’t mean that he should particularly care about whatever trouble Klink was getting himself into. Klink’s safety was not his responsibility. As long as that trouble wasn’t life or command threatening, it wasn’t any of Hogan’s business. The only reason he’d decided to help out this time was that his pity had, briefly, overcome his common sense.
Hogan quickly glanced at the truck and smiled. Carter was in place. Good. If he was going to be wasting his time with this foolishness, he was at least going to have it go to plan! He climbed into the rear of the truck and sat down on one of the benches. Watching the guard that Schultz had roped into joining them on this little expedition, Corporal Kruger, climb up, Hogan’s thoughts returned to their previous track: Klink and why Hogan shouldn’t be worried about him.
He didn’t even like the man! He wasn’t even convinced that what was happening to the Kommandant wasn’t his own fault in the first place. Just because he hadn’t personally been able to think of an alternative route Klink could have taken didn’t mean that there hadn’t been one. Hell, if Klink really hadn’t wanted anything to do with Adler, he could have run away, fled the country, anything but just stay and take it!
Hogan sighed, taking off his hat and running his hand through his hair. All right, so that wasn’t fair. Even if Klink had wanted to leave, where would he have gone? It wasn’t as though he had the resources or the connections to help him with such a plan. And Hogan doubted that the German military looked kindly on deserters.
Still, there should have been something -
“I don’t need your help, Sergeant,” Klink said, sounding as though he was gritting his teeth. “Now let go of me.”
Hogan put his hat back on and watched Klink climb into the back of the truck too. Well, he was attempting to. Judging by the look of pain on his face, it seemed as though he could use some help after all. He’d been about to stand up and offer a hand to pull the man up when Schultz gave the Kommandant a little boost. Either due to surprise at the unexpected help or just his usual lack of grace, Klink fell to his knees with a very audible curse.
He stood slowly, using the bench to pull himself up, before turning to glare down at Schultz. “Never touch me again,” he shrilled, his voice shaking as much as his hands. “Do you understand me!”
“Sir?” Schultz asked, bewildered and, perhaps, a bit stung. “Are you all right?”
The rage on Klink’s face softened and his lips quirked up a little at the corners. “Never mind. Don’t worry about it, Schultz.” Then he turned to face Corporal Kruger. “Corporal, I want you to ride in the front with the Sergeant.”
“Sir!” Kruger saluted sharply before his expression became troubled. “But sir, what about the pris-”
Klink cut him off with an impatient wave of his hand. “I think I can manage to keep an eye on Colonel Hogan.” When the younger man still hesitated, he narrowed his eyes. “I gave you an order, Corporal. Schnell!”
“Yessir!” Kruger hurriedly scrambled passed Klink and Hogan couldn’t help but notice the momentary panic in Klink’s eyes as he did so. Once the Corporal had climbed down, Klink’s shoulders relaxed and he slumped slightly. Then, noticing Hogan was watching him, he tensed up again. Striding towards the front, he sat down close to the partition between the front and the back and gave the wall a couple of thumps. “Get going, Sergeant!”
The truck started to move and Klink eased down onto the bench. Like he had in the afternoon, he watched Hogan carefully, warily, as if waiting for Hogan to pounce. It became harder to see his expression as the truck left Stalag 13 and its lights behind but Hogan doubted that it changed. Every so often, Klink’s breath would hitch and he’d mutter something to himself that sounded suspiciously like: “There’s nothing to worry about.”
It was irritating. It would be one thing if Hogan had done something to warrant this much scrutiny and fear but this was ridiculous. When was the last time he had done something to Klink? Well, something that Klink could blame him for? And why was Klink even sitting here with him? Never mind the fact that an unarmed Kommandant guarding an unrestrained prisoner was hardly regulation, if Klink was so distrusting of him, why had the man put himself in this position in the first place?
Of course, recalling the way he’d reacted to Schultz’s help and the way he’d looked with Kruger had slid passed him, maybe Hogan wasn’t the only one that Klink was afraid of. What Hogan couldn’t figure out was why. Why was Klink suddenly so afraid? He’d been a coward as long as Hogan had known him, but he’d never been this bad. It usually took more than a look or a touch or just having Hogan within ten feet of him to make Klink act this way. Why should it be different now?
‘It’s a bit like rape, isn’t it?’
Hogan shook his head, annoyed all over again. So what if what Adler had done to Klink was like rape? What did that mean for a man? Hogan understood the basic mechanics of what a man could do with another man but he didn’t see where having a sore bottom would make a man terrified of other people. He could understand if Klink was afraid of Adler, being in the Gestapo, Klink had probably been afraid of Adler before all this, but why Schultz? Why Kruger? Why him?
What was he afraid of?
“Colonel?”
Startled, Hogan turned his head in the direction of Klink’s voice. “What?”
“About this escape pl-”
“Kommandant!” Hogan interrupted quickly, “I suggest coming back here if you want to talk about that.”
Klink hesitated but stood and made his way towards the back of the truck. He’d made it about three quarters of the way before the truck hit a large pot hole and he was knocked off balance. Luckily for him, Hogan had jumped up and caught his arm before he could fall. Klink’s arm went ridged in his grip but Hogan didn’t pay it any mind as he dragged the unresisting man to the bench and sat down, bringing Klink down as well.

Hogan let go of Klink’s arm as soon as the other man was settled. Even though he was no longer touching him, he was sitting close enough to tell that Klink was still shaking. He was also close enough to just about see his expression. Panic and terror were predominate but there was some nausea mixed in for good measure.

After a long moment, Klink swallowed hard and pointed across the way with a trembling hand. “Colonel, would you mind . . . would you mind sitting over there,” he asked, his tone cautious as though he was afraid of Hogan’s reaction to the request.

Hogan didn’t consider himself to be a cruel man. And, as perplexed as he was by Klink’s behavior, he could see that Klink was genuinely afraid of him. It wouldn’t do any harm to move - from where they were, even if Hogan sat on the other side of the truck, their voices wouldn’t carry to the front - and it might put Klink at ease.

However, Hogan was becoming increasingly irritated by Klink’s fear and his own failure to understand it. He wanted to get to the bottom of this and, since he couldn’t ask Klink straight out what the heck his problem was, he’d have to rely on good old fashion body language and facial expression. Which meant, as dark as it was, the only way to collect these clues would be to sit as close as possible. And, if Klink was uncomfortable, it was his own fault for being such a scaredy cat all of the sudden.

“If what you want to talk about is what I think you want to talk about, Kommandant,” Hogan lied with a reassuring smile, “then I think it’s better if we don’t have to raise our voices.”

Klink worried his lip for a couple seconds before hanging his head in defeat. “I understand.” His hands clenched into tight fists and he shook his head sharply before looking at Hogan again. His expression tried to be wholly businesslike but some of the fear remained. “About this escape plan of yours . . . When do you plan on ending it?”

Hogan felt himself frown. What a strange way to ask. And Klink had sounded so . . . subdued. So tired. As though ‘this escape plan of yours’ couldn’t end fast enough. A bit strange considering how much he’d wanted this. “What’s your hurry, sir? Gotta a hot date?” Hogan kept himself from wincing by the smallest of margins when he realized what he’d said.

It was a stock phrase, something irrelevant to lighten the mood or to illicit irritation depending on the circumstances. Usually, it was just a harmless quip. Tonight, knowing what it was that Klink was getting out of with this escape plan even if Hogan hadn’t decided what was really happening between him and Adler, it was something a bit less harmless.

Even if Klink had put himself squarely into this mess with Adler, well, Hogan wasn’t usually one to rub salt in other people’s wounds unless they really deserved it. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do about it now without letting on that he knew more than he had a right to know. All he could do was keep that ribbing grin on his face and wait for the Kommandant to say something.

“N-no,” Klink stuttered finally, looking as though he might be sick any second, “nothing like that. It’s just that . . . it doesn’t . . .” He sighed and put a hand over his eyes. “I’d like to get tonight over with.”

And what did that mean? Before Hogan could try and figure that out, he noticed something on Klink’s face. Something that shined in the dim light. It wasn’t until Klink cursed and pulled a handkerchief out of his jacket pocket that Hogan realized what it was. He felt his mouth drop open as he tried to reconcile what he was witnessing to the Klink he knew. He’d seen the Kommandant many times when he wasn’t at his best, sometimes, Hogan was the one responsible for it, but he’d never seen Klink do this. “Kommandant?”

Klink wiped his eyes with the cloth and offered Hogan a weak and entirely false grin. “It’s just eye strain . . . it’s so dark in here, you see?” As if sensing that this was insufficient, he added: “I haven’t been sleeping well either. I’m tired.”

That last wasn’t anything Hogan could argue with. As for the rest . . . Feeling a bit stunned by what he was seeing, he only managed an unconvincing ‘Sure.’

If Klink noticed the lack of sincerity in the reply, he didn’t mention it. Giving his face a final wipe, he put the handkerchief back into his pocket. When he spoke, he seemed recovered although his eyes still looked suspiciously wet. “So, Colonel, when can you . . . wrap this up.”

Hogan shook his head and forced himself back to the mission. He could worry about Klink’s mood swings later. “Anytime, Kommandant. It’d probably be better if we made it to the first bridge on the itinerary but -”

“But how?” Klink questioned with a puzzled frown that made him look much more like his old self. After that crying jag, it was a nice change of pace to see Klink acting like he should act. He didn’t even look quite as afraid as he had a moment ago.

But how long will that last? Hogan thought moodily before he answered. “Well, Sergeant Carter’s on top of the truck -” at Klink’s incredulous look, Hogan grinned. “That was the main reason I didn’t want the other guards alerted about the escape. They would have spotted him right away if they’d been looking.” A small lie: Carter was very well concealed in his hiding spot and having the guards on alert wouldn’t have made much of a difference. Still, it would be better if the Iron Eagle had no inkling of how easy escape from his camp really was.

Klink was frowning in thought. “So, when the truck stops at the right bridge, you give him a signal to jump off the truck and be caught?”

“That’s right, sir.” When Klink replied with a noncommital ‘I see’, Hogan shrugged with mock defensiveness. “It was the best I could do with such short notice - if you’d wanted tunnels, you should have given me at least a week!”

A small but genuine smile of amusement flickered onto Klink’s face. “I’ll keep that in mind.” The smile disappeared quickly and Klink looked subdued once more. “Give him that signal when we get to the first bridge.”

“Are you sure?” Hogan asked, a vague suspicion forming in his mind about the reason why Klink was in such a hurry to ‘get tonight over with’. “It’s a good night for a wild goose chase.”

Klink nodded. “Yes, I’m sure.” Then he leaned back against the wall of the truck and closed his eyes. “You can have your wallpaper in the morning. Just discuss it with Fraulein Hilda. I’ll tell her you have permission to requisition a roll.”

“Thank you, sir,” Hogan said, surprised that Klink was actually going to keep his end of a bargain without coercion for once. Especially seeing as his plan, as far as Hogan could tell, would be a failure. The only reason that Hogan could think of for Klink to be so eager for tonight to end was if Adler had decided to wait them out. Otherwise, he’d want to be out of camp as long as possible to make sure Adler couldn’t change his mind.

So, in the end, Klink’s plan, like most of Klink’s plans, would fail. It really shouldn’t have been as surprising as it was. “I’m just sorry that it didn’t work out for you.”

Klink jerked up, his eyes wide and his mouth open. “Wh-what are you talking about!”

While Hogan had meant what he’d said (seeing as he’d gone to this trouble for Klink’s sake, it would have been nice if it hadn’t been a wasted effort!), he wanted to kick himself for actually saying it out loud. Now what was he supposed to say, huh? How was he supposed to write that little comment off? Even if he could explain how he’d managed to find out the truth behind the whole Adler mess without giving up his operation, that was one conversation he did not want to have with Klink. For one thing, Hogan hadn’t even decided where he stood on the whole thing.

Hogan shrugged, going for nonchalance and crossing his figurative fingers that Klink would buy this. “You just don’t look happy for someone who got what he wanted, that’s all.”

For a long moment, Klink only stared, his expression indicating that he didn’t quite believe Hogan’s explanation. Then, perhaps not wanting to have that conversation either, he half shook his head and a painfully forced chuckle came out of his mouth. “I’m perfectly happy, Colonel. I’m just a bit too tired to show it.”

Hogan wasn’t interested in calling Klink on his lie on the off chance that Klink might call him on his own. Instead, he smiled and nodded. “All right, sir.”

As the silence stretched between them, Hogan’s observations and guesses tumbled around in his mind as he tried to get a handle on the whole situation. By the time they’d reached the first bridge, he still hadn’t come up with an answer. He was beginning to think, as he watched Carter drop down from the truck and prepare to be chased, that there wasn’t a simple answer after all.
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Der Meißel der Seele