Secret Honor (Honor Bound 3)

“Refresh my memory about that.”

“There are Sicherheitspolizei files—”

“Homosexuals cannot be trusted,” Himmler protested, suddenly remembering. “When Goltz came to me with that argument—that von Tresmarck could be trusted because that was hanging over him—I was struck by how charmingly Machiavellian it was, and I indulged him. His error in judgment may have cost him his life. That might be poetic justice, except that I don’t want to face the Führer after knowingly giving someone like that so much responsibility.”

“Herr Reichsprotektor, may I respectfully suggest that if the traitor does turn out to be von Tresmarck, the situation can be dealt with without von Tresmarck’s sexual predilections coming to the Führer’s attention?”

Himmler looked at him thoughtfully for a long moment. “And apparently neither you nor Boltitz thinks von Wachtstein is the traitor?”

“Herr Reichsprotektor, a shot—or shots—were fired at von Wachtstein, yet I think it odd that he wasn’t killed when Grüner and Goltz were shot in the head.”

“So do I,” Himmler agreed.

“And I hope to get the true story of that when I speak to the master of the Océano Pacífico, Kapitän de Banderano.”

“When will the ship be in Spain?”

“On the sixteenth or seventeenth, Herr Reichsprotektor.”

“And what do we do with our three friends until then? Or until we hear something from von Deitzberg in Buenos Aires that will clear this up?”

“I was going to suggest, Herr Reichsprotektor, that after they give us their statements—”

“You haven’t taken their statements yet?”

“Herr Reichsprotektor, so far the interrogation has been informal. In my experience, when suspects are required to give a formal statement after they’ve been interrogated informally, the guilty tend to act nervous. My suggestion is for someone they haven’t met before to take their official statements—say, as a surprise, tomorrow morning. And then give them a few days’ leave. Meanwhile, we’ll let them stew while we wait for all the rest of the information to come in—the result of my interrogation of de Banderano, and what we get from von Deitzberg in Buenos Aires. And then you and the other senior officers must examine everything. We’ll explain this to the three, and then that you will almost certainly want to talk to them personally after all that has taken place.”

“Give them something to think about while they’re on leave?”

“That is my suggestion, Herr Reichsprotektor. If you approve, I will see that the commanding officer of the Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler—I sent von Tresmarck to their barracks—authorizes him leave within Berlin. If the Herr Reichsprotektor could suggest to the Foreign Minister that Gradny-Sawz be given a few days to visit his beloved Vienna…”

“Keep them separated, right? And under surveillance?”

“That is my suggestion, Herr Reichsprotektor.”

“And the pilot?”

“I’m sure von Wachtstein would like to visit his father.”

“At Wolfsschanze?”

“Unless Generalleutnant von Wachtstein could be spared for a few days from his duties.”

“I’ll have a word with Keitel,” Himmler said. “I’m sure he’ll understand the situation.”

He looked at Cranz for a moment, as if making up his mind, then went on: “Putting down the insurrection in the Warsaw ghetto has proved to be a greater problem than anyone imagined.”

“Oh, really?” Cranz asked, genuinely surprised.

“When the SS troops in Warsaw saw they would be unable to put it down immediately, they sought assistance from the Wehrmacht. The Wehrmacht also underestimated the situation, and have found it necessary to bring in tanks and artillery—”

“Excuse me, Herr Reichsprotektor. Do I understand you to say the Jews are still giving us trouble?”

“As incredible as it sounds, Cranz, yes. It’s only a matter of time, of course, until the situation is under control, but at the moment Generalfeldmarschall Keitel finds himself in the unenviable position of having to report to the Führer twice a day on the situation in Warsaw.”

“I see.”

“And as you yourself know, Cranz, our Führer—”