The Truce

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 11

Tully spotted the column approaching before Moffitt saw it. He called a warning even as he started the jeep moving.

"They're heading toward where Troy was going to meet the ambulance."

Tully nodded at Moffitt's warning shout.

"We're going to have to lead them away. Troy needs time to get Hitch and get away."

Tully nodded again, squinting through his goggles at the line of German vehicles. Rolling his matchstick to the other side of his mouth, he glanced back to see if Moffitt was ready. The Brit met his eyes and nodded, lowering the muzzle of the 50 so Tully could remove the dust cover. Tully pulled the small cylindrical cover loose and dropped it between the seats.

"This is for Hitch and Troy." Moffitt yelled as a rallying cry.

Tully swung the jeep behind the hills and drove toward the column. Keeping out of sight, he prepared to pop up in a surprise attack. As the first halftrack came into sight, they launched their plan.

Tully drove across in front of the first halftrack with Moffitt handling the 50. The driver screamed and grabbed his face, letting the wheel pull to the side. The gunners tried to target the fast moving jeep as the vehicle swerved to the left. The gunners were a bit late; their bullets hit the sand behind the jeep as it continued out of the line of sight.

Tully swung around and hit the column from behind, catching them by surprise again. As they swung their guns to the rear the jeep ducked behind another dune.

"Let's lead them away before we hit them again." Moffitt shouted over the sound of the engine. "I think we need to catch them out in the open."

Tully nodded and bit down on his matchstick. Gripping the steering wheel tightly, he cleared the dunes and allowed the Germans to see them. Turning toward the open desert, he attempted to lead them in a new direction.

The lead halftrack, with a new driver, took the bait. They lumbered after the jeep, trying to hit them with their heavy guns.

Moffitt noticed the rank of the officer standing in the front of the vehicle. "That's Major Wertz." He called to Tully, pointing out the officer. "Troy says he won't give up, we're going to have to stop him."

Tully glanced back at the announcement. "What do you have in mind Doc?"

"When we swing back I want to go after the first halftrack. Don't take too many extra chances but I want that halftrack."

"Okay Sarge." Tully agreed without hesitation. Stopping pursuit was their main goal and he had no problem doing just that.

A patrol car surged ahead and closed the distance. The bullets whizzed past Moffitt's head, warning him that the patrol car's occupants were getting too close.

Swinging the 50 away from the halftrack, the sergeant took aim at the patrol car. As the bullets zipped past them, the patrol car's driver swerved to the side, exposing the entire length of the car. Moffitt lowered his aim and went for the gas tank. The tank exploded in a ball of fire that consumed the entire vehicle. The surviving soldiers jumped from the vehicle and rolled in the sand to extinguish the flames consuming their clothing.

Moffitt turned his attention back to the lead halftrack, looking for a weakness.

Tully dodged as a second armored vehicle tried to cut them off. He artfully slipped between the clumsy vehicles, giving Moffitt a good shot at one of them. The crew jumped to the ground as the gas tank burst into flames and black smoke poured upward, choking them. Gasping for breath, they rose to their knees and took aim at the jeep.

The smoke rolled between them, giving Tully and Moffitt a bit of cover.

The British sergeant swung his gun around, trying to target the second halftrack. Bullets hit the side of the jeep, narrowly missing his legs. Moffitt looked at the halftrack and was surprised to realize that the bullets blowing past him were from the machine gun held by Major Wertz. The officer was braced against the windshield and was doing a good job of aiming. The sergeant ducked as another volley of bullets zipped past his head.

Tully took the jeep past the third armored vehicle, leaving the Major and his halftrack behind. He could hear the Major shouting at his driver even over the sound of the engines.

The 50 caliber bullets knocked the German soldiers backwards, silencing their guns. The driver ducked and twisted the wheel, nearly crashing into the smaller jeep. Tully dodged the heavy vehicle and swung around behind it as the first halftrack got turned around.

Moffitt ducked again as the Major's bullets clipped the air close to his head. The Major's driver pushed the disable halftrack toward the jeep as they used it for cover. The jeep swerved violently as Tully tried to avoid being hit by the heavier vehicle. Moffitt, still off balance from ducking, fell off of the jeep, disappearing over the side. The jeep came to an abrupt stop as more bullets hit the hood. Tully tumbled out of the jeep and fell to the ground.

Moffitt climbed to his feet, rushing to the jeep to grab a machine gun from the front fender. As he reached for it, the halftrack pulled up behind his jeep and stopped.

"Halt Sergeant!"

Moffitt paused in mid-stride and looked back to see the Major standing in the front of the halftrack pointing a weapon at him. Raising his hands, the sergeant slowly turned to face the Germans.

"You fight well Sergeant, but not well enough."

"That's your opinion." Moffitt replied with a smile. "We got the Colonel, didn't we?"

The Major snarled his rage, tightening his finger on the trigger.

"It already cost you one man, maybe two." The Major indicated Tully's empty seat. "And now you will die."

Moffitt faced the German with a smile on his face. His confidence shook the Major. "What is so amusing Sergeant?"

"Who was it that said that dead men can't talk?"

The Major opened his mouth to ask another question as Tully rose up from behind the jeep. His machine gun rattled as he shot the Major in the chest before turning his gun on the driver. Both Germans collapsed in a heap, their faces frozen in surprise.

"You okay Doc?'

"Fine now Tully, thank you."

"Then I guess we should go find Sarge. After all of that noise he's going to be worried." Tully suggested with a shrug and a grin.

"I'll call him and let him know we are on our way." Moffitt smiled in return.

Troy was waiting impatiently for them when they arrived. Even though Moffitt had told him that they were both fine, Troy still looked them over for injuries.

"How's Hitch?" Tully asked as soon as he shut off the engine.

Troy smiled at the show of concern. "He's unconscious but I think that the doctor gave him morphine to keep him comfortable. Moffitt can take a look at him before we move out."

"Any trouble Troy?" The Brit asked as he went to check on the private.

"No, the doctor was very cooperative. He gave us his records and some extra medicine in case we were delayed in getting back to the base. He said to take it slow and try to avoid bumps."

Moffitt smiled as he looked up at Troy. "That's probably good advice for anyone who is wounded. Hitch looks peaceful; the morphine hasn't worn off yet. Is there a reason he's all covered in bandages?"

"It's a long story but I guess you could take most of them off now. Dr. Friedrich said that they had to disguise him as a burn victim so no one would recognize him."

"I wondered about that." Moffitt admitted as he finished his examination. "The pain will come back; I suggest we travel as far as we can before that happens."

They headed for their base, following the doctor's directions to the best of their ability. Hitch slept most of the way peacefully, only getting restless as they neared the base. Not sure what the doctors would want him to do about the pain meds, Moffitt crawled into the back of the jeep with him, trying to keep him quiet without the medicine. His constant stream of nonsense seemed to calm the wounded man, allowing them to reach the base.

Hitch was taken into the hospital as soon as they arrived. The American doctors gave him a complete exam, comparing the records the German doctor had sent to their own observations. The head doctor found the other 'rats' waiting outside after they had settled Hitch into the critical care ward.

"Sergeant Troy?"

"That's me." Troy responded, hurrying to meet him. "How is he?"

"Pfc. Hitchcock is sleeping peacefully. Whoever that German surgeon was, he was good. The private will need at least another week in the hospital but he should make a complete recovery. That's a very lucky young man; the Germans aren't usually so considerate of their prisoners."

"They had their reasons doctor. Thank you. Can we see him?" Troy responded.

"Only for a minute, he needs his rest. He's not likely to be awake before morning anyway." The doctor gave his permission with the warning tacked on.

"We won't wake him Doc. Thanks."

Troy, Moffitt, Tully, and Andy stood next to the bed and looked down at the sleeping blond.

"He looks peaceful." Tully smiled at the sight.

"Yeah." Troy grunted in reply.

"He had me worried this time." Moffitt admitted. "I still haven't figured out why Dietrich and that doctor took the chance that they did."

"Dietrich said it was a matter of honor. I guess I can understand that. He had a pretty strict upbringing and his honor is important to him."

"What about the doctor?" Moffitt asked softly so as not to wake the blond.

"He said he's a doctor first, a German second….and he really hates to see a good piece of surgery wasted." Troy answered with a smile. "We'd better go so that Hitch can sleep."

'"I wonder how Dietrich is going to explain a dead man driving a jeep." Moffitt asked as they left the hospital.

He won't have to." Troy explained.

"Why not?"

"The doctor said that Dietrich hadn't sent out any reports. The only ones who knew and would take note of it would be the Major or the Colonel's daughter; I don't think the Colonel's daughter will hang around here too long."

"And the Major is dead." Tully finished for him.

"Thanks to you." Moffitt added.

"I didn't do it on purpose, but I'm glad it worked out the way that it did. I figure Dietrich took enough chances for Hitch, maybe we owed him one."

Troy studied Tully's calm face, noting his serious expression.

"Maybe we did." Troy agreed. "Maybe he really didn't have anything to do with what happened. I guess we'll never really know for sure."

"Do we trust him the next time we need a truce. There's a high probability that there will be a next time." The British sergeant pointed out the obvious.

"Yeah," Troy responded, "we'll give him another chance; I think he's earned it." Glancing over his shoulder toward the hospital, Troy thought that maybe since he'd gotten another chance too, maybe he would actually be able to sleep.