‘I think if Willi Kühn was told he was meeting someone from British intelligence, or Soviet officials, he’d run a mile. May I suggest I set up a meeting and…’ He paused, looking directly at Hanne and smiling charmingly. ‘Let me put it like this: ever since I’ve known him, Willi has been something of a ladies’ man. He cannot resist a pretty face, and if I may say so, I’m sure you will win him over.’

‘Well I’m not sure that’s—’

Hanne put her hand on Prince’s arm. ‘How will you introduce me?’

Hoffmann thought for a moment. ‘Your German is very good.’

‘I spent two years in one of your camps.’

‘I’m sorry – but you’re not English, are you? The accent sounds…’

‘I’m from Denmark.’

‘I will introduce you as a colleague, and if he asks, we can say you’re from Schleswig-Holstein; the accent is very similar.’

‘Which is hardly surprising given that it used to be part of Denmark.’

‘Maybe that is for another day,’ said Gurevich. ‘Hoffman, make arrangements for you and Hanne to meet with Kühn.’

Bemrose had sorted out a room above what had been a café on the Kurfürstendamm in the west of the city. Willi Kühn was ten minutes late, and when he came in, he looked uncertainly at Hoffman.

‘What is she doing here?’

‘She’s a colleague of mine, and you can trust her, Willi, I promise you.’

Hanne walked over and shook Kühn’s hand, then took his coat. She led him to an armchair and asked him what he’d like to drink.

‘She’s a waitress?’

‘I said she’s a colleague. She has been working on this case.’

‘Which case?’

‘Come on, Willi, don’t be so difficult: she’s working on Nazis who escaped from Berlin – she knows about the Kestrel Line.’

Kühn nodded his head and said very well then, but what was said in this room should stay in this room, and both Hoffman and Hanne said of course.

He began without preamble. ‘The other week – out of the blue – Wolfgang Steiner turned up asking if I know where Martin is.’

‘I didn’t know you knew Steiner?’

‘I don’t, but Martin had told me about him, and from the way he asked me questions, I assumed it was him. I just asked him straight out and he admitted it; I think he was a bit taken aback. I also told him I knew about the Kestrel Line – I thought that would somehow reassure him, but I fear it had the opposite effect.’

‘In what way?’ Hanne asked.

‘He seemed uncomfortable. I asked him where he was based, because Paul told me that if anyone came asking about Martin, I ought to find out what I could, but his reply was just “Martin will know”. That’s what he said – “Martin will know”.’

‘So that was the extent of your conversation with him?’

‘No – you see, I had heard rumours about Martin and I told Steiner what I knew. I’d heard he’d escaped from the bunker on or around the first of May in a small group that included Artur Axmann. The source of my story was someone who’d heard it from another person who’d got it from Axmann himself. I reckon if it was second or third hand and I’d heard it, then Steiner would have heard it too, but apparently not – he seemed surprised.’