The Romanov Ransom (Fargo Adventures 9)

“Not too valuable. The whole trip to Anholt castle was a wild-goose chase. The key didn’t lead to the third tin.”

“Doesn’t matter, since Fargo guessed what was on it. If not for Nika, we wouldn’t have known about the smashed machine found in the tunnel—never mind gotten a photo of the wiring.”

Rolfe walked over to the computer, trying to determine if Leopold had made any progress. “How are you doing this without the actual machine?”

“The computer program is the Enigma machine. It was designed to duplicate an actual machine by taking the information entered and scrambling or unscrambling, as the case may be. All I need is to input which rotors were used and the order of the plugs. And, of course, the coded message. In this case, it’s from the two letters found in the courier pouch. Or, rather, the first character of each sentence in those letters.”

“How is it you know this?”

“It’s been passed down to the head of the Guard since it was first known.”

It occurred to Rolfe just then that had he not joined forces with the Guard, he’d be at a loss when it came to interpreting the exact method of using the information from the tins. At least he was getting something for the exorbitant split he was handing over.

Rolfe studied the screen while Leopold typed. All he saw was a bunch of garbled words. Nothing made sense. “How long do you think it’ll take?”

“It will be considerably faster if you leave me alone.”

He started his pacing again, occasionally looking over at Leopold to see how he was faring. Watching him work, Rolfe wondered again at his luck in meeting the man.

Or was it luck?

Rolfe had always assumed he’d been the one to find Leopold. Suddenly, he wondered if it hadn’t been the other way around. While he wasn’t the gambling sort, if he had to lay odds on the chances of running across the one man who knew everything there was to know on how to find the Romanov Ransom . . .

He stopped in his tracks at the dawning realization that his luck on finding Leopold was anything but.

So where did that leave him? Now that Leopold had the tins and the photo from the Enigma machine, there was only one thing standing in the way of him taking the information that he needed, then leaving: Rolfe was bankrolling this venture.

So, for the moment, there was a mutual need.

A sobering thought. Once the treasure was found, that need ended. And though he’d avoided thinking about that until this very moment, he realized it was time to start planning the endgame. He wasn’t about to lose any part of the treasure to the Wolf Guard.

Or lose the whole thing. Shifts in loyalty could occur for any number of reasons.

“It’s done,” Leopold said.

“And?”

“The treasure was taken to South America. Argentina, to be exact.”

“Do we know where?”

“Not yet. But based on what I know about the travels of most of the high-ranking Nazis, they landed in Buenos Aires. What I don’t understand is why the Wolf Guard wasn’t aware that the treasure had been taken there.”

His comment surprised Rolfe. “Why would they know?” Rolfe asked. “Clearly, it was a secret, or why bother with the tins and protecting where they’d been hidden?”

“Except,” Leopold said, leaning back in his chair as he stared at the computer screen, “the Guard also operates in South America.”

“Since when?”

“Since the end of the war. A number of Guardsmen escaped using the ratlines.”

“That explains it, then,” Rolfe said. “They weren’t interested in guarding anything beyond their own lives.”

“No . . .” He pushed away from the desk, then stood. “The Guard branched out to every continent for the specific purpose of furthering the Führer’s plans. No one knew which country to expect the uprising, in case of spies. If the treasure had safely arrived in Argentina and made it into the hands of those in charge of Operation Werewolf, the Guard would’ve been called into service.” He looked at the computer, then back at Rolfe. “Something had to have happened to the treasure, and the men carrying it, before it reached its final destination. It’s the only explanation why it became lost. If nothing else, we may be able to find information that will help us locate where the treasure was last seen.”

“So all you need to do is check with the Guard in Argentina?”

“Something like that. In this case, I think it best that you stay behind. They’re dangerous. Not as organized. There may be issues.”