When Schellenberg reached his own office he called in Frau Huber, Heydrichs confidential secretary. She was thirty-eight, a sensual, rather fleshy-looking woman with no make-up, her hair pulled back from her face in a tight bun. She was a war widow already; her husband, a Sturmscharführer in the Leibstandarte SS Division, had been killed during the French campaign. In her simple white blouse and skirt, she was surprisingly attractive.
Schellenberg quickly dictated an account of his meeting with von Ribbentrop. As soon as possible, please.
She went out and he opened the Windsor file and started to work his way through it. It didnt take long, just under half an hour. As he finished, Frau Huber returned with the completed report. He checked it over and signed it.
The usual copies? she asked.
Yes, one for the Reichsführer, one for me and one for the file.
She went out. He sat there frowning for a moment, then picked up the phone and asked for Admiral Canaris at Abwehr Headquarters on the Tirpitz Ufer.
The admiral, it seemed, was not available. Schellenberg smiled. That probably meant that as it was Thursday afternoon, Canaris would be riding in the Tiergarten. He picked up the telephone, ordered a car and left quickly.
When Frau Huber went into the copying room, there was only a middle-aged woman on duty who was unfamiliar to her.
Who are you? she demanded.
Irene Neumann, I usually work in Central Office.
I see. Run this through the machine now. Three copies. One for the boss, one for General Schellenberg and one for me. Ill wait.
The other woman set the machine up quickly. For your eyes only most secret. She took in that much and then the phrase Duke of Windsor seemed to jump right out at her.
Frau Huber lit a cigarette and paced about the room restlessly. Hurry up, for Gods sake.
As the machine started, the phone rang in her office and she hurried to answer it. It was a routine matter taking only three or four minutes to handle. As she finished writing a memo, there was a nervous cough and she turned and found Irene Neumann standing there.
Three copies, you said, Frau Huber?
All right. Put them on the desk.
The other woman did as she was told and went out. Back in the copying room she closed the door carefully, then opened a drawer and took out the extra copy of the Windsor report that she had made. She folded it carefully, raised her skirt and slipped it inside the top of her stocking.
A moment later, the door opened and a young woman in SS auxiliary uniform entered. Have you been busy?
Not particularly.
Good. You can go now.
She started to unbutton her uniform jacket and Irene Neumann took down her coat from behind the door and left.
Admiral Wilhelm Canaris was fifty-two. A U-boat commander of distinction during the First World War, he was now head of the Abwehr, the Intelligence Department of the German Armed Forces High Command. Although a loyal German he, like many of the officer class, loathed most aspects of the Nazi regime, an attitude that was to lead to his downfall and execution towards the end of the war.
Schellenberg was on close personal terms with him and they frequently rode together in the Tiergarten. As he waited beside his car, he could see the admiral now, cantering along the ride between the trees followed by his two favourite Dachshunds who were obviously experiencing some difficulty in keeping up with him. He saw Schellenberg when still some little distance away, waved and turned towards him.
He reined in and dismounted. Business, Walter, or conversation?
Interchangeable, I usually find. Schellenberg called to his driver, Come and hold the Herr Admirals horse.
They walked amongst the trees, the Dachshunds waddling at their heels.
How goes the war then, Walter? From your point of view, of course.
Well, Herr Admiral, I think we could agree on that.
And Sea Lion?
Only the Führer has the facts there.
And expects the British to sue for peace any day. Do you think they will?
Not really.
Neither do I. Not with the Channel to cross. And they always do so damned well with their backs to the wall. You heard the gist of Churchills speech? Fight on the beaches, in the streets. Blood, sweat, tears.
Theres still the Luftwaffe to come.
I know, Canaris said scornfully. Fat Hermann boasting again. Reduce London to ashes, bomb them into submission. Wasnt that what he was supposed to do to the British army at Dunkirk? Instead, the Luftwaffe got all hell knocked out of it by a handful of Spitfires.
His face was stiff with anger and Schellenberg watched him closely. He genuinely liked Canaris; admired him as a man. On the other hand, the admiral was undoubtedly indiscreet. He was already suspected by Heydrich and Himmler, as Schellenberg well knew, of having leaked the date of the attack in the west to the Allies, which, if it was true, had certainly done them little good.
Well, what is it, Walter? What do you wish to discuss? I know that devious mind of yours by now. Spit it out.
I was wondering, Schellenberg said, whether you had an opinion on the Duke of Windsor.
Canaris roared with laughter. Has von Ribbentrop gone crazy at last? Dont tell me hes dropped that one in your lap? My God, he really does have it in for you, doesnt he?
You know all about it then?
Of course I do. He approached me personally yesterday. He knows we have an organization in Lisbon. He seemed to think we could handle the whole affair.
And why dont you?
Our man there is a German industrialist who operates under the cover of a flourishing import-export business. In Abwehr files he is called A 1416.
Yes, I met him when I was last in Lisbon.
The British Secret Service know him, I believe, as Hamlet.
A double agent? Then why dont you have him eliminated?
Because he serves my purposes. Feeds them the kind of information I want them to have on occasion. Its a we know that you know, that we know that you know situation. Needless to say I couldnt possibly give him the Windsor affair. Hed put the British straight on to it.
And is that your only reason?
No I think the whole thing a nonsense. A number of incidents concerning the Duke have been hopelessly misconstrued. To give you an example; a speech he made some years ago at a British Legion rally suggesting that the time had come for British veterans of the First World War to hold out the hand of comradeship to German veterans, is taken by some of the more fatuous amongst our leaders to be an indication of his approval of National Socialism. Wishful thinking. I also believe the Führer mistaken in seeing in the Dukes tour of our country in nineteen-thirty-seven any evidence of similar approval. May I remind you that a distinguished list of world leaders has visited the Reich. Does that make them all incipient Nazis?
So your opinion of the Duke is that he wouldnt have the slightest interest in our overtures?
He has a considerable amount of German blood in him, he speaks our language fluently and I believe he likes us. But it is my opinion, for what its worth, that this liking does not extend to the Nazi Party. There, have I shocked you?
Not at all, Herr Admiral. I asked for your opinion and you have been good enough to give it to me. I shall respect the confidence.
Not at all, Herr Admiral. I asked for your opinion and you have been good enough to give it to me. I shall respect the confidence.
They started back towards the car. Canaris said, My final word. Examine the Dukes record in the First World War. Gallant in the extreme. In spite of his fathers orders that he was to be kept out of action when on the Western Front, he loved nothing better than being with the Tommies, which was why they knew him and came to love him. A basic reason for his extraordinary popularity. He always made straight for the trenches. Did you know that his aides once made an official complaint? They said it was all right for him, but the trouble was they had to follow him into the shellfire too.
Now that, I like, Schellenberg said. That tells me more about the man than anything.
Walter, in this matter the Führer is hopelessly wasting his time. Here is a man who renounced a throne rather than betray the woman he loved. Do you really imagine that such a man could betray his country?
At Estoril, in the pink stucco villa above the sea, the Duchess of Windsor sat beside the swimming pool. She was reading Wuthering Heights, one of her favourite novels, and was so absorbed in the action that she was not immediately aware that the Duke had emerged from the house on to the terrace and was standing beside her.
She glanced up and removed her sunglasses. Why, David, you startled me.
What are you reading?
Wuthering Heights.
Good God, that Bronte woman again. How many times is that?
Its like an old friend. Extremely comforting in times of travail. He sat down in the deckchair opposite and she reached for the glass jug on the tray. Lemonade?
I could do with something a little stiffer, but why not?
Nonsense, David, you know you never drink before seven oclock. Whats happened?
She reached across the table and took his hand. He forced a smile. You always know, dont you, Wallis? Ive had a telegram from Winston. Hes finally found me a job. Governor of the Bahamas. Nicely tucked away three thousand miles from the action.
Will you take it?
Ill have to. I wont have them push us into a bottom drawer. It must be the two of us together. Man and wife with the same position. They dont seem to be willing to offer us that in England. So, the Bahamas it is.
My dear David, she said. Theres a war on and Im sure the question of my position doesnt loom very large on the agenda.
But it does with me, Wallis, dont you see? I can never alter on that score. He shrugged. It hurts a little, thats all, that they cant find anything of more importance for me to do.
He got up and walked to the terrace and stood there gazing out to sea. As she watched him, the sense of waste was so overwhelming that she had to fight to hold back the tears.
4
Schellenberg was back in his office within half an hour. As he was taking off his coat Frau Huber entered. She was considerably agitated.
Weve been looking for you everywhere. You didnt give any indication of where youd gone. General Heydrich is very angry.
Schellenberg said calmly, I thought he knew every move I made before I did. Where is he now?
With Reichsführer Himmler. I phoned through the moment you came in. Theyre waiting for you.
She was trembling a little for she liked Schellenberg more than she dared to admit; for some strange reason admired the fact that nothing seemed to matter to him.
Calm yourself, Ilse. He kissed her gently on the mouth. Ill manage. Not just because Im cleverer than they are, which I am, but because I dont take it seriously. Ill be back for coffee within the hour, youll see.
When he was ushered into the ornate office on the first floor at Prinz Albrechtstrasse, he found Himmler seated behind a large desk, a stack of files in front of him, a surprisingly nondescript figure in a grey tweed suit. The face behind the silver pince-nez was cold and impersonal, and it was difficult to imagine what went on behind those expressionless eyes. In many ways he was a strangely timid man who could be kind to his subordinates, loved animals and was devoted to his children and yet a monster, responsible for almost all of the terror and repression which the Reich visited on its victims.
Heydrich was standing by the window and he turned, his face angry. Where on earth have you been, Walter?
Before Schellenberg could reply, one of the several telephones rang. Himmler answered it, then said, Im not to be disturbed now, and replaced the receiver.
He removed his pince-nez and rubbed a finger between his eyes, an habitual gesture. So, General, your conversation in the Tiergarten with the Herr Admiral Canaris was interesting?
So thats where youve been? Heydrich said. Playing cat and mouse with that old fool again? I gave you a certain task, Walter, as you well know.
Which I was following through.
Himmler said, The Windsor affair, I presume? You may talk freely. General Heydrich and I are as one in this matter.
Very well, Schellenberg said. I made out a report of my meeting with Foreign Minister von Ribbentrop as you suggested.
Yes, Ive already received it, Heydrich said impatiently.
Then I worked my way through the Windsor file to form an opinion in the matter.
And?
It was not enough, Schellenberg said. It occurred to me that it would be a good idea to sound Admiral Canaris on his view. I happen to know that most Thursday afternoons he goes riding, so I went to the Tiergarten and found him there.
You had no authority to do such a thing, Heydrich exploded.
Himmler stilled him with a wave of the hand. What was your primary reason for doing this?
Schellenberg took his time in replying, playing it very carefully indeed. A difficult question, Reichsführer. A matter of some delicacy.
My dear Schellenberg, I respect your tact in this matter, but within the walls of this office there is nothing you cannot say. Not only because I am your Reichsführer, but also because we are all three men of the SS. Members of a common brotherhood.
Come on, Walter, Heydrich said. Speak out.
Very well. I suspected that Reichsminister von Ribbentrop had not been entirely honest with me. It seemed logical that he would have approached the Abwehr first and yet he made no mention of the fact.
I see. Himmlers voice was very soft now and he smiled in a strangely satisfied way. And had he?
Im afraid so, Reichsführer.
The rotten little bastard, Heydrich said.
Leave it, Reinhard. Another nail in his coffin. But continue, Schellenberg. What did the admiral have to say?
Schellenberg told them, holding nothing back for there was no need to do so. Himmler made occasional notes on a memo pad. Finally, he put down his pen.
So the Herr Admiral sees no good in this affair?
So it would seem.
And you?
There was a silence as they both waited for his reply and Schellenberg knew that he was on dangerous ground now. Choosing his words with care, he said calmly, Herr von Ribbentrop made it clear that the whole business was to be carried through at the Führers express command. He has even provided me with the necessary written authority. The Reichsführer must see that I cannot possibly question an order from the Führer himself. My personal opinion doesnt enter into the matter.