Curtain of Death (Clandestine Operations 3)

“Now.”

“I hear and obey,” Ziegler said, and quickly left.

“Claudette’s gentleman friend?” Ginger asked.

“I don’t know,” Cronley said.

“He acted like it.”

“I don’t know about that, either. But come to think of it, you’re kindred souls.”

“How so?”

“He’s a CID agent. Always asking questions.”

“It sounded as if he was working for you,” Ginger said.

“Ginger said,” Bonehead said, “proving Jim’s point.”

“Score one for Bonehead,” Cronley said.

—

Claudette, Ziegler, and Hessinger walked up to the table. Hessinger handed Cronley the briefcase.

“Colonel Bristol called when we were in the office,” Claudette said. “He’s at the Compound and would like a word with you. Something about having to lay more 110-volt lines to the houses. The refrigerators came, but they won’t run on 220.”

“Would that be Lieutenant Colonel Jack Bristol? Engineer type?” Winters asked.

“You know him?” Cronley asked.

“He’s Barbara’s cousin,” Winters said.

“That should prove very useful,” Cronley said.

“We really should have a copy of what’s in that briefcase in our files,” Claudette interrupted. “Augie says if you can give him two hours, he can Leica them.”

“I don’t have two hours,” Cronley said, and stood up. “But you’re right. We need that stuff copied. I’ll have to think of something. Let’s go, people.”

[ TWO ]

The South German Industrial Development Organization Compound

Pullach, Bavaria

American Zone of Occupation, Germany

0905 25 January 1946

While they were in the car—Cronley driving, Winters and Moriarty in the front seat beside him, and the women in the back—en route to the Compound, Winters had asked, in almost a whisper, “What the hell does ‘Leica them’ mean?”

“What?”

“Miss Colbert said something about Ziegler being able to ‘Leica.’”

“You can say ‘Leica’ out loud,” Cronley explained, chuckling. “It’s no big secret. If yo

u have a Leica Model Ic or better camera, and a holder for it, and the right film, you can take pictures of documents. And then if you have a Leica whatchamacallit—Leica Projector—to project the negative, you can make prints that are a hell of a lot easier to read than blueprints—they’re in black and white and color—and you can do that a hell of a lot faster than you can make blueprint copies.”