‘Phone for you, Professor Wilde.’

‘Who is it?’

‘Mr Dulles, calling from Berlin.’

‘Thank you.’

Wilde and Heck were in the US Army canteen in the Darmstadt base, a huge functional building that had been thrown up in great haste. They had been discussing their next move. Both agreed that there was little more to be gained from Erich Kempka, a man of huge self-regard but very little intelligence. If others around Hitler wanted to pull the wool over his eyes, it would have been a simple matter.

Now the call from Allen Dulles had come through and Wilde went into the office to take the phone. ‘Hello, Mr Dulles.’

‘Professor Wilde, I heard you were near Darmstadt and that you’ve been given the chance to talk with Hitler’s driver. Piece of work, huh?’

‘Indeed. A convenient idiot.’

‘Quite.’

‘Is there any chance of talking to Linge and Günsche? If there’s a conspiracy, then they’re in on it. Won’t the Russians cooperate with us?’

‘Could be tricky but I’ll see what I can do. In the meantime, how’s it going? Lieutenant Heck killed anyone yet?’ He chuckled.

‘He’s come close.’

‘Well, that’s why you’re there – to keep him in line. He’s a good man, but understandably vengeful. Oh, by the way, Colonel Appache told me about your little excursion into the French zone. Sounded interesting.’

‘It was frustrating, not to mention hairy.’

‘Well you’re alive, and that’s the important thing. Anyway, the reason I called is that you’re not far from Camp Sibert at Oberursel, a little way north of Frankfurt. Why not drive down and talk to Hanna Reitsch? You’ve heard of her, I take it?’

‘Of course.’ Hanna Reitsch was Germany’s most famous aviatrix. She had set many flight records and had worked as a test pilot. It was said that Hitler was mesmerised by her.

‘We have her interned for interrogation and de-Nazification. It’s possible she effected Hitler’s escape from the bunker. She flew from central Berlin not long before his supposed suicide, the last flight out. If anyone got him out by plane, it had to be her. And we know she was in the bunker in the last days of April.’

‘What does she say?’

‘She denies it, of course, and she has undergone many hours of interrogation. But you, Professor, will discover the flaw in her testimony. You and Lieutenant Heck.’

‘OK, we’ll try.’

‘Organise a car, drive up to the interrogation centre and weave your magic. In the meantime, I’ll fix transport and visas to get you to Berlin. The Russians may or may not grant access to their prisoners, but if they do, it would be better to have you in situ so you can act fast before they change their mind. They’re a fickle bunch, the Reds.’

*