Major General Bruce T. Seidel was USFET’s G-2, in charge of Intelligence.
“It’s under a rear admiral, Sidney Souers, and he reports to President Truman.”
“What does it do?”
“You’ve heard the rumors that we struck a deal with General Gehlen?”
“He gave us everything he had, including agents in place, and we kept him and his people out of the hands of the Russians?”
“His people and their families. We sent the Nazis among them to Argentina.”
“I didn’t believe that rumor.”
“It’s called Operation Ost, Jack. And it includes setting up Gehlen—what was Abwehr Ost—in a compound outside Munich, where he now works for us.”
“And Wallace runs this whole thing? He’s only a major.”
“The chief of DCI-Europe is Captain James D. Cronley, Junior.”
“You just said Wallace runs it.”
“Wallace looks over Cronley’s shoulder while Cronley runs it.”
“What’s that all about? My take on the Gehlen deal is that it’s important.”
“Very important.”
“And if it gets out that we’re slipping Nazis out of Germany . . .”
Greene nodded. “The political implications are frightening.”
“So why isn’t somebody senior running it? Mattingly comes to mind. At the end of the war Wallace was his Number Two at OSS Forward.”
“At the end of the war it was decided that OSS Forward could function more effectively if people thought that Colonel Bob Mattingly was running it, leaving Major Harold Wallace—actually Colonel Wallace—free of Army interference to do what he thought had to be done.”
“Everybody was smoking funny cigarettes?”
“It worked, Jack, and it works now.”
“Something wrong with Mattingly?”
“G-2 wants to take over DCI. Admiral Souers decided that Mattingly, who has applied for integration into the regular Army, wouldn’t want to get in a scrap with G-2.”
“How do you know all this?”
“Admiral Souers told me.”
“You’re part of this ‘Alice in Wonderland Through the Looking Glass’ business?”
“I am. Iron Lung McClung is. I.D. White is. And so is Harry Bull.”
Hammersmith ran that all through his mind: Major James B. “Iron Lung” McClung was chief, Army Security Agency, Europe. Major General I. D. White was scheduled to assume command of the U.S. Constabulary, charged with patrolling the American Zone of Germany, on the first of February. Major General Harold R. Bull was chief of staff to General Joseph McNarney, commander of U.S. Forces European Theater (USFET).
“And General McNarney?” Hammersmith asked.
Greene didn’t reply.
“Sorry. Stupid of me to ask.”