Chapter 19
Köln
KARL ORDERED a large bowl of Gulaschsuppe followed by Wurst mit Senf und Brot. Either meal should have been enough on its own, but Karl ate both greedily and noisily.
The smell of sausage was overpowering. Kessel watched the youth with a certain amount of disgust, relieved that he had ordered just a coffee and pastry for himself. The meeting with the Bayers had been unsettling, and was probably the reason why his breakfast gherkins had been repeating for the last two hours.
Immediately after lunch Kessel phoned the number on Otto's business card. The man answered after one ring and sounded so eager he must have been waiting for the call. Otto offered to collect them from the restaurant in his Audi.
In spite of Otto's shortage of faith, the new partnership could be promising. The photographer's Audi station wagon was equipped as a mobile office. From the ADR's point of view Helmut Bayer's son would be seen as a failure. He was morally weak and short of funds. The idea of a Shrine of Unity for the ADR would doubtless leave Otto Bayer unmoved, but he was all too ready to close his studio for a few days at the prospect of getting his hands on some ready money.
Kessel was convinced that if the bronze head showed the features he expected, it would prove that Jesus Christ had not been a Jew at all, an idea that was popular with true believers in pre-war Germany. With hard evidence, the ADR and Church could at last accept it as fact, and unite. This truth would be the foundation stone of the Shrine. In the 1930s Professor Ernst Bergmann re-examined the origins of the Christian faith and hailed Adolf Hitler as the new Messiah. The members of the New Faith in pre-war Germany immediately accepted the Swastika as the Cross, the symbol of German Christianity, helping many in the Church to join in with enthusiasm. The Swastika could not be used today as the New Cross, but the early examples of the Kriegsflagge, the German Imperial War flag, had not been banned in all German states, as far as he knew. Even if it had, by cleverly adapting parts of it with the colors of Germany and the Christian cross, it would make a very acceptable and legal symbol of Christian unity in the ADR.
Yes, one day the bronze head of Jesus Christ would be the magnet, drawing independent neo-Nazi groups into one glorious, united whirlwind of change. Phönix would be supportive when the time came, but unbelievers like Otto could never be part of it. They were totally lacking in vision.
Kessel was beginning to appreciate that his Italian birth was not a misfortune, but an essential component of his destiny. In no way should he should think of himself as a Mischling. The neo-Nazi groups were all narrow minded, too prejudiced to understand the whole European picture. Thanks to his mixed parentage he was one of few who were able to see the need for an Aryan brotherhood with no geographical boundaries. The birth of Jesus two thousand years ago had been in similar circumstances -- born in a derelict building, with a humble family upbringing. Then, after years of preparation, the times of teaching and recognition. Disciples. Miracles. Converts and new followers: local at first, then world-wide. Finally books about his life.
He felt a surging excitement in his chest. Was this his destiny too? It had seemed possible when Rüdi talked about it as he was dying in hospital. Whatever lay ahead, there was no need to accept orders from men like Phönix.
Otto Bayer's memory of some essential information in the photographs was almost certainly deliberately vague, and no doubt it would improve if he was offered sufficient financial incentive. Kessel recognized that having Otto Bayer's help in the search for the monastery in Italy could eliminate a lot of problems over the next few days. And he already had a plan to deal with agnostics like Otto -- when the time was right.
Kessel made a rapid assessment of Otto's Audi station wagon. It was nearly new, deep metallic red in color, and equipped with a telephone, a fax machine and personal radios. This car would become their communications Wagen, and he would be in command of all activities.
The journey back to Rome soon became tedious, with the first leg down the autobahn towards the Swiss border. Kessel insisted on an overnight stop just short of Basel where he offered to be generous with the expenses. He lay in bed that night wondering if Phönix would ever learn of his involvement with the appalling incident at TV Roma.
As they continued on to Rome the next morning, Karl Bretz put himself in the front passenger seat. The car phone obviously intrigued him. He kept lifting it from its cradle, pretending to make calls while checking that the occupants of other cars were watching. Kessel shut his eyes and tried to ignore the boy.
By the afternoon they reached the Autostrada del Sole, with Kessel in the back of the car feeling more at ease, learning to live with the discovery of Bruno's involvement. His Jewish half-brother would be dealt with. He glanced at Karl who was still playing with the phone. That would be a task for the Jungling.
Otto turned in the driver's seat to announce he was already remembering a lot about the monastery, from what he had seen on the photographs. And even if he failed to find it, he said there would be plenty of scenery to boost his library of stock photographs. From the way he spoke he'd brought enough film for a month.
A few more hours and they would be in Rome. Kessel tried to relax, his legs sideways across the back seat. The stupid photographer seemed to think he was coming out of this a winner.
Shout in the Dark Page 27