The Unlikely Spy (46 page)
Authors: Daniel Silva
"That's not true."
"I'm just not sure whether you're a German agent or whether you've been seduced into spying."
"Go fuck yourself! I've had enough of this."
"I want to know if you've betrayed us for sex."
"No!"
"I want to know if you've betrayed us for money."
"I don't need money."
"Are you working in collusion with the woman known to you as Catherine Blake?"
"No."
"Have you knowingly or willingly supplied Allied secrets to the woman known to you as Catherine Blake?"
"No!"
"Are you working directly for German military intelligence?"
"That's a ridiculous question."
"Answer it!"
"No! Goddammit, no!"
"Are you involved in a sexual relationship with the woman known to you as Catherine Blake?"
"That's my business."
"Not anymore, Commander. I ask you again. Are you involved in a sexual relationship with Catherine Blake?"
"Yes."
"Are you in love with Catherine Blake? Commander, did you hear the question? Commander? Commander Jordan, are you in love with Catherine Blake?"
"Until a couple hours ago I was in love with the woman I
thought
was Catherine Blake. I didn't know she was a German agent and I didn't willingly give her Allied secrets. You must believe me."
thought
was Catherine Blake. I didn't know she was a German agent and I didn't willingly give her Allied secrets. You must believe me."
"I'm not sure I do, Commander Jordan. But let's move on."
"You enlisted in the navy last October."
"That's correct."
"Why not sooner?"
"My wife is dead. I didn't want to leave my son alone."
"Why did you change your mind?"
"Because I was
asked
to join the navy."
asked
to join the navy."
"Tell me how it was done."
"Two men came to my office in Manhattan. It was clear they had already checked out my background, both personal and professional. They said my services were required for a project connected with the invasion. They didn't tell me what that project was. They asked me to go to Washington, and I never saw them again."
"What were their names?"
"One was called Leamann. I don't recall the other man's name."
"Were they both American?"
"Leamann was an American. The other one was British."
"But you don't remember his name?"
"No."
"How did he look?"
"He was tall and thin."
"Well, that narrows it to about half the country. What happened when you went to Washington?"
"After my security clearance came through, I was briefed on Mulberry and shown the actual plans."
"Why did they need you?"
"They wanted someone who'd had experience on large construction projects. My company had built some of the biggest bridges in the East."
"And what were your initial impressions?"
"I thought Mulberry was feasible technically, but I thought the construction schedule was a farce--far too optimistic. I could see right away that there would be delays."
"And what were your conclusions after the inspection you carried out today?"
"That the project is dangerously behind schedule. That the chance of actually completing the Phoenixes on time is about one in three."
"Did you share these conclusions with Catherine Blake?"
"Please. Let's not go through this again."
"You're not answering my question."
"No, I did not share those conclusions with Catherine Blake."
"Did you see her before we picked you up at Grosvenor Square?"
"No. I went to SHAEF directly from the construction sites."
Vicary reached in his briefcase and laid two photographs on the table, one of Robert Pope and the other of Dicky Dobbs.
"Have you ever seen these men?"
"They look vaguely familiar, but I can't tell you where I've seen them."
Vicary opened Jordan's file and flipped a page. "Tell me about the house you're living in."
"My father-in-law purchased it before the war. He spent a fair amount of time in London on business and pleasure and wanted a comfortable place to stay when he was in town."
"Anyone else use the house?"
"Margaret and I used it when we came to Europe on vacation."
"Did your father-in-law's bank have German investments?"
"Yes, many. But he liquidated most of them before the war."
"Did he oversee that liquidation personally?"
"Most of the work was done by a man named Walker Hardegen. He's the number-two man at the bank. He also speaks fluent German and knows the country inside and out."
"Did he travel to Germany before the war?"
"Yes, several times."
"Did you ever accompany him?"
"No. I have nothing to do with my father-in-law's business."
"Did Walker Hardegen use the house in London?"
"He may have. I'm not certain."
"How well do you know Walker Hardegen?"
"I know him very well."
"Then I suppose you're good friends?"
"No, not really."
"You know him well but you're not friends?"
"That's right."
"Are you enemies?"
"Enemies is a strong word. We just don't get along well."
"Why not?"
"He dated my wife before I met her. I think he was always in love with her. He drank quite a bit at my going-away party. He accused me of killing her to make a business deal."
"I think someone who made a remark like that to me would be my enemy."
"I thought about knocking the hell out of him at the time."
"Do you blame yourself for your wife's death?"
"Yes, I always have. If I hadn't asked her to come into the city for that goddamned business dinner she'd still be alive."
"How much does Walker Hardegen know about your work?"
"Nothing."
"He knows you're a gifted engineer?"
"Yes."
"He knows you were sent to London to work on a secret project?"
"He could probably deduce that, yes."
"Have you ever mentioned Operation Mulberry in your letters home?"
"Never. They were all cleared by the censor."
"Did you ever tell any other member of your family about Operation Mulberry?"
"No."
"Ever tell any of your friends?"
"No."
"This fellow Shepherd Ramsey. Ever tell him?"
"No."
"Does he ever ask about it?"
"All the time--in a joking manner, of course."
"Did you have plans to see Catherine Blake again?"
"I don't have plans to see her. I never want to see her again."
"Well, that may not be possible, Commander Jordan."
"What are you talking about?"
"In due time. It's late. I think we all could use some sleep. We'll continue in the morning."
Vicary rose and walked in where Boothby was sitting. He leaned down and said, "I think we should talk."
"Yes," Boothby said. "Let's go in the next room, shall we?" He uncoiled himself from his chair and took Vicary by the elbow. "You did a marvelous job with him," he said. "My God, Alfred, when did you become such a bastard?"
Boothby pulled open a door and held out his hand for Vicary to enter first. Vicary brushed past Boothby and stepped inside the room.
He couldn't believe his eyes.
Winston Churchill said, "Hello, Alfred. So good to see you again. I wish it could be under different circumstances. I'd like to introduce you to a friend of mine. Professor Alfred Vicary, meet General Eisenhower."
Dwight Eisenhower rose from his seat and stuck out his hand.
The room had been a study once. There were bookshelves built into the walls, a writing desk, and a pair of wing chairs where Churchill and Eisenhower sat now. A wood fire burned brightly in the hearth, but it had failed to take the chill off the room. A woolen blanket lay across Churchill's knees. He was gnawing on the damp end of a dead cigar and drinking brandy. Eisenhower lit a cigarette and sipped black coffee. On the table between them was a small speaker, which they had used to monitor the interrogation of Jordan. Vicary knew this because the microphones were still turned on and he could hear a scrape of chairs and a murmur of voices coming from the next room. Boothby glided forward and turned down the volume. The door opened and a fifth man entered the room. Vicary recognized the tall, bearlike build: Brigadier General Thomas Betts, the deputy chief of intelligence at SHAEF and the man charged with safeguarding the secret of the invasion.
"Is he telling the truth, Alfred?" Churchill asked.
"I'm not sure," Vicary said, pouring himself a cup of coffee at the sideboard. "I want to believe him but something is bothering me, and I'm damned if I know what it is."
Boothby said, "Nothing in his background would suggest he's a German agent or that he's willingly betrayed us. After all, we came to him. He was
recruited
to work on Mulberry--he didn't volunteer. If he was an agent the entire time, he would have been banging on the door early in the war, trying to work himself into a position of importance."
recruited
to work on Mulberry--he didn't volunteer. If he was an agent the entire time, he would have been banging on the door early in the war, trying to work himself into a position of importance."
"I agree," Eisenhower said.
"His background is sterling," Boothby continued. "You saw his file. His FBI background check didn't turn up a thing. He has all the money in the world. He's not a Communist. He doesn't bugger little boys. We have no reason to think he's sympathetic to the German cause. In short, we have no reason to suspect this man is a spy or has been coerced into spying."
"All true," Vicary said, thinking, When the hell did Boothby become chairman of the Peter Jordan fan club? "But what about this man Walker Hardegen? Was he checked out before Jordan came to the Mulberry team?"
"Thoroughly," General Betts said. "The FBI was concerned about his German contacts long before the War Department ever approached Jordan about working on Mulberry. They looked into Hardegen's background with a microscope. They didn't turn up a blessed thing. Hardegen is clean as a whistle."
"Well, I'd feel better if they took another look," Vicary said. "How in the bloody hell did she know to go after him? And how's she getting the material? I've been inside his house. It's possible she's getting into his papers without his knowledge, but it would be very dangerous. And what about his friend Shepherd Ramsey? I'd like to put him under surveillance and have the FBI look deeper into his background."
Churchill said, "I'm sure General Eisenhower won't have a problem with that, would you, General?"
"No," Eisenhower said. "I want you gentlemen to take whatever steps you feel are necessary."
Churchill cleared his throat. "This debate is very interesting, but it doesn't address our most pressing problem," he said. "It appears this fellow--intentionally or not--has delivered a very significant portion of the plans for Operation Mulberry directly into the hands of a German spy. Now, what are we going to do about it? Basil?"
Boothby turned to General Betts. "How much can the Germans discern about Operation Mulberry from that one document?"
"It's difficult to say," Betts said. "The document Jordan had in his briefcase doesn't give them a complete picture, just a damned important slice of it. There are many more components of Mulberry, as I'm sure you're well aware. This just tells them about the Phoenixes. If that document is really on its way to Berlin, their analysts and engineers are going to be poring all over it. If they're able to determine the purpose of the Phoenixes, it won't be difficult for them to unlock the secret of the artificial harbor project." Betts hesitated, his face grave. "And, gentlemen, if they're convinced we're building an artificial harbor, it's very possible they could make the leap and conclude we're coming at Normandy, not Calais."
Vicary said, "I think we should
assume
that is the case and proceed accordingly."
assume
that is the case and proceed accordingly."
"My suggestion is that we use Jordan to lure Catherine Blake into the open," Boothby said. "We arrest her, put her under the bright lights, and turn her. We use her to funnel smoke back to the Germans--confuse them, try to convince them that Mulberry is anything but an artificial harbor meant for Normandy."
Vicary cleared his throat gently and said, "I fully agree with the second half of that proposal, Sir Basil. But I suspect the first half wouldn't be quite as easy as it sounds."
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