They moved into the room and found Colonel Benson sitting behind his desk. He had a pot of coffee, a bowl of soup, and a plate of sandwiches before him. His green eyes lifted and swept over the two officers. They saluted and Stan said:
"Lieutenants Wilson and Allison reporting for duty, sir."
The colonel dipped up a spoon of soup and ate it. He selected a sandwich, lifted the lid and looked at the filling, then took a bite.
"I believe you gentlemen are under orders to report to Alexandria. I take it you have made some changes on your own account." The colonel paused and waited for a reply. His face was expressionless, but his eyes bored into Stan and Allison.
"We hoped you would allow us to join Lieutenant O'Malley's command. We got the idea there might be action on this front soon." Stan stood very straight and looked the colonel in the eye.
"What gave you the idea there would be action?" the colonel asked.
"We got it quite by accident," Stan answered.
"I see. So you canceled the orders of the area commander and returned. Who brought you back?"
"The Navy, sir." Allison smiled as he said it.
The colonel grunted. He finished his sandwich and helped himself to more soup. Finally he spoke.