Faked Passports (23 page)

The plane was still climbing and Gregory paused for a moment to glance at Freddie's set face, then he went on evenly: “That is my first reason—a sentimental one, perhaps. Now listen to my second. It is the thing that you yourself spoke of just now—our duty. It's our duty to help win this war. If we can help more by temporarily abandoning routine and acting on our own, common sense tells us we should do so. Remember Nelson putting his blind eye to the telescope? Well, we're not even ignoring the orders of our superiors; just remaining a few days longer than is strictly necessary on the list of ‘missing', that's all. Germany is getting supplies from Russia; not in great quantity, perhaps, but you can bet that she's getting the things she needs most urgently—even if they come through on a hay-cart. If Russia has to fight Finland she'll have to give first place to her own war and the supply of vital war materials which she sends to Germany will dry up. If we can get the Finns to fight we shall indirectly have extended the blockade along another fifth of Germany's frontiers, and that's as good as a major victory. Therefore you can serve your country infinitely better by taking me to Finland than you can by going home to report for routine duty.”

Freddie had straightened out and the compass showed that he was heading not north-east but west—for England; so Gregory threw his last reserves into the battle by continuing: “Then I want you to think of the future for a moment. What is Russia's real game? I talked to Goering for hours last night and I meant a lot of the things I said but others were so much hot air. The original programme of the Bolsheviks was world revolution, and they established the Comintern which financed subversive activities in every country with a view to carrying it out. But Lenin found the job too much for him. Russia was in such a ghastly state that he couldn't pull it together without securing help from the outside world; so he announced the
N.E.P.—New Economic Plan—by which the Bolsheviks proclaimed that they had altered their policy. Private internal trading was to be allowed again and the Soviet was prepared to recognise capitalistic governments in other countries and to live in peace with them. From that time onward the Comintern faded into the background. Nevertheless, Lenin made it abundantly clear that the N.E.P. was only a means to an end. He said in public speeches before his death that once Russia was on her feet again they must revert to their original policy and endeavour to bring about world revolution by any means in their power, including conquest by the Red armies.

“Twenty years have elapsed since then. Russia is much stronger now. If we can occupy Russia with Finland and divert vital supplies from Germany we shall weaken Germany so that we are more quickly able to win our own war and yet leave her sufficiently strong to act as a bulwark against Russia. By inducing Finland to fight we shall also weaken Russia and—with luck—her slow, lumbering growth into a world-menace will be set back for years to come. Finland will be fighting Britain's fight and the frontier of Christian civilisation—the right of every man, woman and child to justice, toleration and freedom—today lies not in the west, Freddie, but
north-east,
on the Mannerheim Line.”

Freddie Charlton pressed his right foot down on his rudder-bar, bringing the plane round in a beautiful curve. “You're right,” he said. “I'm afraid I don't know much about such
things and I've never quite looked at it that way before. You must be very tired, old boy; get some sleep. I'll take you to Helsinki.”

“Thanks, old chap. I knew you'd understand directly I explained things; and even if we fail in our attempt I'm sure you'll never regret your decision.” At last Gregory was able to relax and a few minutes later he was sound asleep.

As there was no longer any necessity for flying at a high altitude Freddie brought the plane down to 3,000 feet and headed for Danzig. The day was fine, and now that his wretched night was temporarily forgotten he was thoroughly enjoying being in the air again after his enforced three weeks on the ground.

On picking up Danzig he descended to 1,000 feet so that the German controls there could check him out of the country and report to Goering. Below him as he passed over the harbour he could see the tangled wreckage on the Westernplat Peninsula where the Polish garrison had held out so gallantly under a devastating bombardment from the German ships and shore batteries. Altering his course twenty degrees nearer to north he crossed the great, followed the coast-line for a while and thence flew over the Estonian islands.

The land below him had been snow-covered for the last three hundred miles of his journey and he had to go up to 6,000 feet to get out of a snow-storm over the Gulf of Finland but at a little after eleven o'clock he made a perfect landing on the hard-rolled snow of the Helsinki air-port.

In spite of the bumping the plane had got over the islands Gregory had slept for the whole of the four hours of the journey. Even the landing did not wake him, and Freddie had to shake him by the shoulder as the officials at the air-port came across to the plane. Once awake he declared himself much refreshed and, having first established his British nationality by the production of the faked British passport, he began to talk to the Finnish officials in voluble German, as they were more fluent in that language. His story was that they had flown direct from England with papers of the utmost urgency for the British Legation and that it was for that reason he had been given an R.A.F. pilot to bring him over.

The Sabina not being a war-plane, the question of interning it did not arise; but normally there might have been difficulties about Freddie. As it was, the Finns were all so concerned by
the abnormal conditions created by the crisis, and the additional air-traffic which was constantly coming and going as a result of it, that Gregory had no difficulty in persuading them that Freddie's case was quite exceptional and that he should be allowed to retain his liberty—for the time being, at all events. A friendly official secured a taxi for them and, Gregory having directed the driver to take them to the best hotel, they drove through the suburbs to the centre of the town.

The driver set them down at the Hotel Kamp. Immediately Gregory entered it he pushed his way through the crowded hall to the porter's desk and got the man there to turn up two telephone numbers for him: that of the Finnish Foreign Office and that of the von Kobenthals. There were queues of waiting people before each telephone booth but Gregory got hold of the head porter and simply asked how much he wanted for ten minutes' use of the line in his office. The matter was soon concluded and the moment Gregory was alone he rang up the von Kobenthals' number.

To his immense satisfaction he learned that although Erika was not in she was still staying with the von Kobenthals, so he left no message but in the highest spirits hung up again and turned his attention to Monsieur Wuolijoki. The Foreign Office proved more difficult and it was a little time before he could get a connection; but after a short wait he got through to Monsieur Wuolijoki, and, announcing himself as Colonel-Baron von Lutz who had just arrived in Helsinki from Germany on urgent business, secured an appointment for three o'clock that afternoon. Both love and war seemed to be going splendidly and he left the office beaming.

Recrossing the hall, with Freddie beside him, he tackled a fair man at the reception-desk about rooms. It transpired that the hotel was very full owing to the crisis, but on Gregory's producing a fat wad of German bank-notes the clerk said that he could let them have a reservation which had only just been cancelled, if they did not mind sharing a double-room on the sixth floor. Gregory booked it at once and, since he had been checked in on the British passport by the air-port police, signed the register in his own name. He then changed some of his German
Reichmarks
into Finnish currency and told the clerk that they were going out to do some shopping as owing to a mishap they had lost their luggage. Goering's report and the mass of original papers that were with it formed much too large a packet to carry about conveniently so he handed it across the
desk and added: “While I am out I shall be glad if you will take charge of this and put it in the hotel safe.”

“Certainly, sir,” the fair man smiled. “I'll give you a receipt for it.”

“Thanks,” said Gregory as he took the slip. “I shall be wanting it again after lunch but it's very important that the greatest care should be taken of it. You're not to give it to anyone on
any
pretext, even if they produce this receipt, but keep it until I ask you personally for it.”

As they stood there the sole possessions of the two Englishmen consisted of the few things that they carried in their pockets, so they went out to buy a couple of suitcases and various articles which would enable them to live for the next few days like civilised beings; including civilian clothes for Freddie, to make him less conspicuous and, above all, furs; as although they moved briskly they were already feeling the intense cold of the Finnish capital.

The Boulevard, which constitutes the principal shopping centre of Helsinki, was unusually crowded. The newspaper vendors were doing terrific business and on every corner there were knots of fur-clad people discussing the all-important question, “Shall we or shall we not be at war with Russia this time tomorrow?” Everywhere, too, there were squads of voluntary workers sandbagging the principal buildings or frantically working upon air-raid shelters; but the normal life of the city was still going on. Every shop was open and doing a brisk business. With his excellent mastery of German, English and French Gregory found no difficulty whatever in getting the articles he required. The assistants in the shops were equally friendly whether they believed him to be German or British. Their enemy was Russia and their one question to every customer—whatever his nationality—was: “Do you think we are going to fight?”

In view of Russia's huge air force and the fact that the Finns could hardly expect any protection at all from their own tiny air-fleet, they were remarkably cheerful and the two Englishmen very soon saw that, whatever the view of the Finnish Government might be, the Finnish people—almost to a man—were prepared to take anything that was coming to them rather than surrender to the Bolsheviks.

With what was left of his own money and the 3,000 marks for which he had stung Goering Gregory had brought nearly £600 out of Germany, and furs are amazingly cheap in Finland
so they had ample funds to buy the best of everything they wanted.

Helsinki has three harbours, the southernmost of which, overlooked by the unpretentious ex-Imperial Palace of the Tsars and the gilded, onion-shaped domes of the big Russian Church, is a great market. To it boats come from all parts, laden mainly with fish and farm-produce, but along the quays there are many stalls for every kind of merchandise. On this Tuesday morning an unusual number of people had flocked into the town to get the latest news so the harbour market was doing a roaring business and it was there that Gregory and Freddie completed their purchases, returning to the hotel just after one o'clock with two large suitcases stuffed full of parcels.

Just as they were moving towards the lift Gregory noticed a pretty dark-haired girl standing at the entrance to the lounge. A moment later Freddie also saw her and, dropping his suitcase, positively leapt forward.

“Angela!” he cried. “Darling! What in the world are you doing here?”

For a second the girl's face remained strained and uncertain, but ignoring the people who were talking excitedly all around them Freddie seized her in his arms, and Gregory saw by the sudden change in her expression to overwhelming happiness that for her the huge crowd no longer existed. Quietly picking up Freddie's suitcase he stepped, smiling, into the lift and left them to it.

When he got up to his room he unpacked his parcels and had a wash at the fixed basin. It then occurred to him to have a look at the typescript which he had stolen from under the bundle of notes out of Goering's safe, and removing his shoe he drew the pages out from the false sole. The script consisted of six folded sheets of transparent paper, all of which were almost entirely covered with close type. It was a carbon copy and evidently the original had been done by an amateur as there were many typing errors and crossings-out. Gregory deduced that whoever had typed it had been unused to such work and did not wish to have to do it a second time but wanted as many copies as possible. It was in German and headed: “
ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE NEXT FAMILY-DAY
”.

Gregory read the first page and it appeared to consist of somebody's scheme to hold a big family meeting which was to include the discussion of certain business plans.

Many relatives were mentioned, mostly by their Christian
names, and none of these conveyed anything to Gregory. There was no date on it and no signature at its end. The script was thumbed and dirty so he was inclined to think that it had been got out by some old gentleman who was a remote relative of Goering's and who at some time or other had wished to rope in the now famous ‘Hermann' for some big social gathering that he was planning.

It seemed that he had risked his neck for a document which had no political significance whatever, so with considerable disappointment he folded it and put it back into his shoe for further examination when he had more leisure. He had only just re-laced his shoe when Freddie came bursting into the room. His face was flushed, his eyes shining.

“Isn't it marvellous?” he cried. “Angela's here! That was her I ran into downstairs a few minutes ago.”

“I had a sort of suspicion that it might be,” Gregory smiled, “and I gather it didn't take you long to make up your quarrel either.”

“Quarrel?” Freddie repeated with surprise. “Oh, we never quarrelled really—we've always loved each other.”

“Splendid. Anyhow, I thought she looked a most lovely person and I'm more happy for you than I can possibly say, Freddie. But what's she doing in Helsinki?”