by Soren Petrek
Madeleine shuddered again at the memory of how her rape at the hands of a drunken SS officer had led her down this road. Each kill seemed to cleanse her of his crime momentarily until her hate returned. It was her love for Jack that proved to her that she could enjoy physical love to the extent that she had even after her rapist’s brutality. During her time in England she had a few wartime trysts. She was convinced that she would die once she was back in France and engaging the enemy. The men she chose had each been interesting in their own way. She would be damned if she let the cruel, deliberate violence of her attack be her only sexual experience before she died.
As Madeleine expected, her invasion mission was exceedingly dangerous. She was ordered to travel to the Limoges region and target a general commanding an entire SS Division. General Lammerding was her target. Although, in past wars high-ranking officers had been exempt from assassination, the atmosphere of this war trumped playing by the rules. Hitler had directed more than one assassination attempt on Winston Churchill and other leaders with no success. Some of Hitler’s own generals had made more than one attempt on his life.
Political assassination was quite different from Madeleine’s mission, which was purely military. Lammerding commanded a vital reinforcement division. Anything that could be done to harass, delay, or disrupt reserves and keep them out of the fight for as long as possible saved countless lives. Madeleine’s information was that the invasion had been anything but easy. The casualty rate on both sides was huge and the terrain an advantage to the defending army. Each piece of land was taken at great cost. Madeleine knew that getting to the general would be almost impossible. She would have to be invisible to get near him. Her usual method was to take out her targets when they were at their most vulnerable. That meant when they least suspected attack. It was something altogether different to go into the lion’s den and pull out one of his teeth while he was wide-awake and hungry. A division of the most ruthless and experienced soldiers in the German army was guarding Lammerding. If she was caught there would be no trip to Berlin for interrogation. Her abuse and torture was assured. She knew she would be raped until there was nothing left of her and then hung for public display. No, they would have to kill her and when they tried, many Germans would die with her.
As Madeleine saw it she had two choices. One was to kill the general when he was exposed outdoors or near a window or entryway. For that she needed a sniper rifle with a decent scope and lots of luck. The other way was to sneak into his headquarters, wait for an opportunity and kill him quietly. The first method would cause much more commotion if the division was underway. She was good with a rifle, but hitting a moving target at distance and getting a kill shot sounded like something for an exceptional marksman. The military had many proficient in that specialty. She had confidence in her abilities but if she missed she would not get another chance. There was no intelligence on when or how the division would move. The scenario carried with it too many variables. Lammerding might travel by train or in an armored vehicle. Once he was in the combat zone, she would stick out like a sore thumb trying to move through enemy lines. Under those conditions he would be heavily guarded. Her decision was to stick to what she did best: get in, lay in wait, and strike. She decided to take him in his headquarters and disappear. She could gain access disguised as a cleaner or a cook or some other domestic servant. She needed to control the situation as much as possible to ensure success and her own safety to a degree. She couldn’t chase the man all over France and hope for an opportunity to present itself. She made her decision.
Stenger and Willi drove at a leisurely pace in a small Kuebehvagen, the German version of the American jeep. The top was down and there were no windows. The sun was shining and the day was pleasant. Like its American counterpart, the Kuebehvagen could go anywhere, just not too quickly. Given their meandering pace and frequent stops to eat and refresh themselves with a beer or two, they were clearly in no great hurry as they slowly passed through the countryside.
“Horst, the invasion is on. Why are we still headed towards Limoges? The Division undoubtedly will be deployed to the front. Nobody is going to care about missing gold anymore,” Willi said.
“We have a new investigation, it seems. Some plucky Resistance group up there switched the oil out of Lammerding’s flat cars and replaced it with paste,” Stenger said smiling.
“Now that is gutsy. I like it. Anyone killed in the process?”
“No violence, no deaths.”
“Now that is something. It’s beautiful and creative. It’ll be interesting to look into.”
“Even if we catch someone, I guarantee I’m not turning them over to the SS or Gestapo. This investigation should see us through to the end, Willi.”
“Now I’m happy. I wasn’t looking forward to asking any Das Reich lunatics about missing gold. Everyone knows they were plundering the countryside. Funny how no gold ever seemed to make its way to Berlin. I suppose sending a couple of old cops was supposed to scare them into compliance.”
“Some bureaucrat’s notion of a good idea,” Stenger yawned.
“Yeah, and as usual, someone hundreds of miles away tucked into a safe comfy bunker with a one-way ticket to Zurich in his pocket,” Willi answered. “So, where do we start the investigation?”
“At the top: with General Lammerding.”
“He’ll be fun. I bet he’s a regular kitten, Horsty.” Both men laughed at the absurd comment.
“Wear your earplugs, Willi. I guarantee he’s going to be a screamer:”
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Madeleine waited in a basement utility closet while the General’s headquarters bustled overhead. At home with the dust and the spiders, she thought. She had come in hours ago under cover of darkness and managed to slip in through a tiny basement window. Living on the run kept you thin. It had been a tight squeeze but it gave her the added satisfaction of knowing that the Germans would not consider the narrow slit of a window a means of entry. Her plan was simple. Wait and listen, and then act. She had been able to determine which office was the General’s by listening to the traffic and conversation overhead. It was on the first floor and near the back of the building. She would wait until the General was alone. Make her way upstairs carrying a bucket like a domestic servant. She would then slip inside his door under the guise of cleaning the attached bathroom and shoot him, escaping through the back door and into the maze of streets. It was what she knew best: get in and get out. She was worried that she might run out of time and the General would be on his way. She had discovered that the division train had been compromised and that travel would be by road. Now that was sabotage of the highest order! Madeleine knew that 300 tanks and thousands of men would take a long time to get to Normandy by the narrow congested roads of the region. They were full of soldiers and supplies sprinting for the front. The ensuing bottlenecks would slow every unit down, not just Das Reich. The General Staff must just be wild over it, she thought and smiled picturing the chaos in her mind. Her concern was that she didn’t know when the General would leave the chateau and join his troops in the field.
“Likes his mansions doesn’t he, Horsty?” Willi said, looking up at the imposing chateau while the two stood at the entryway to Lammerding’s command center.
“Might as well be comfortable after months at the Russian front,” Stenger commented.
The two men walked up the stairs and towards a young officer manning the phones in the spacious foyer.
“Major Stenger to see General Lammerding,” Stenger said showing his credentials.
“Oh yes, Major. The terrorist investigation. The General’s been expecting you. I’ll take you to him.”
As predicted, the general was a sight to behold. His face was florid and looked like it would burst under his tirade. Stenger and Willi watched as he pounded his fist on the giant oak desk commandeered from the rightful inhabitants of the chateau. Stenger knew without asking that this blowhard was a lunatic. His connections had gotten
him his command. He was one of Hitler’s favorites and that meant the chances were that he was unstable at best. Stenger thought how different this man was from his friend, Field Marshal Rommel. No telling what Erwin was up to. They certainly didn’t move in the same circles. All Stenger knew was that first and foremost, Rommel was a fighter. He didn’t think there would be any easy surrender for him. Stenger lamented the fact that Germany wasn’t led by a man like Rommel. Had that been the case from the beginning of the war things would be quite different now. Hitler fancied himself a master tactician, but he was not; Rommel was.
“Catch them, Stenger. I’ll hang them from every lamppost in town. We’ll teach the scum to target Das Reich. We’ll leave them to rot as a warning,” Lammerding said; spit flying from his mouth as he bellowed, leaning over the desk.
“Of course, general,” Stenger said making a mental note never to turn a suspect over to a ranting lunatic like Lammerding.
“We’ll start at the crime scene and move out from there. Someone must have seen something,” Stenger promised.
“Then get to it, soldier! I want blood.”
Stenger and Willi threw the General a military salute as they walked quickly from the room closing the door behind them.
Both men made eye contact as they paused briefly outside of the door to the General’s office. Stenger rolled his eyes as Willi turned to whisper a comment into his ear. As he turned, Willi caught sight of a young woman carrying a bucket towards the back of the building. Her back was turned and she moved steadily away, neither fast nor slow. Willi moved towards the woman, his comment dying on his lips. Stenger put his hand to his pistol as Willi exploded down the hall. Everything seemed to slow down as the woman spun around and reached into the bucket she was carrying. An electric wave of recognition hit Stenger. The Angel of Death! The General was her target. Killing him would hamper a counterattack.
Stenger was about to yell when he saw Willi grab the woman’s gun hand before she could disengage it from the bucket. He saw the woman register recognition just as Willi’s other hand snapped a quick jab into her chin. Willi was a light heavy weight; she went down like a limp noodle.
“Horst,” Willi said looking up. There was a pleading look on his face. He was frozen with indecision. Stenger holstered his pistol and scooped Madeleine up in his arms, taking charge.
“Willi, I’m going out the back door. Go get the car and meet me around back,” Stenger said in a commanding tone, having made the decision for both of them.
Stenger moved decisively and carried Madeleine out the back door of the chateau into a small, unused courtyard. The main drive circled around the back and there was additional parking for deliveries and guests. Thankfully there was no one in the immediate area.
Stenger glanced around nervously, searching his mind for a logical excuse that would explain why he was holding a young woman in his arms behind the bustling division headquarters. Before he could conjure one up, Willi pulled up in the Kuebehvagen. He jumped out and opened the back door, closing it behind Stenger as he piled into the back seat with Madeleine. Stenger sat close, holding her upright by placing her head on his shoulder. Willi slid into the driver’s seat and immediately drove away from the building in the direction they had come and away from the town center. Madeleine’s breathing was even and regular. Stenger searched her as he would any other suspect. He found a second weapon strapped to the inside of her thigh, along with two flexible blades. His fingers felt the hem of her garments and he found several capsules. Two were smaller than the rest and were marked with an L. He knew they were lethal cyanide tablets. Once bitten through death arrived in less than 15 seconds. Stenger shook his head as he flung them out the window. He took the handcuffs he’d carried in civilian life and placed them securely on her wrists and behind her back. Willi glanced over the front seat. He nodded in confirmation.
“That’s her, Horst. Can our luck be any worse? We’ve captured the most dangerous Resistance fighter in all of Europe and we can’t get rid of her.”
“You read my mind, Willi. I am not going to turn her over to that jowly bastard Lammerding. I’d never sleep again. She’s an enemy of the Nazis. She’s not my enemy.”
“We can’t turn her loose,” Willi said.
“No you’re right. Her days of Nazi hunting are over.”
“She hurt, Horsty? I just popped her a little,” Willi said glancing nervously over his shoulder.
“She’ll be fine, except I’m sure she’ll be madder than hell when she wakes up.”
“Where to?”
“Check the map. Pick me a small town with a police station. We’re commandeering it until we can figure out what to do next.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Madeleine rubbed her chin and paced in her small holding cell. She was more angry with herself than frightened. She wondered why she hadn’t already been turned over to the Gestapo or the SS. Perhaps that was yet to come. She had come to in the back of the Kubelwagen, groggy and disoriented. Her jaw hurt but wasn’t broken. Little by little she recognized Willi. The other man must have been his partner. She was confused. Regardless, her first priority was escape. She remembered the incident back at the chateau. She was glad that she didn’t have to shoot Willi, although she had intended to. The reflex would have been automatic, however unfortunate the consequences.
“I think we need to talk, mademoiselle,” Stenger said as he carried a cup of coffee and a packet of cigarettes into the room, speaking in French.
“How about you talk, I’ll listen,” Madeline said sarcastically, her eyes never leaving his.
“If you think I want to question you about your former activities, you’re wrong.” Stenger said, tossing the cigarettes through the bars to Madeleine. He placed a small stool near the cell and set the coffee on it.
Madeleine slowly opened the cigarettes and smelled them. She also stuck her finger into the coffee and carefully tasted it. Stenger tossed her a box of matches and Madeleine lit a cigarette.
“What, no knockout drugs or poison, Major?” She smiled. It was an honest smile and the radiance of her beauty intensified.
“I am not an assassin,” Stenger said with a hint of condemnation.
Madeleine nodded, sparing them both any feeble attempt at denial.
“So, will it be the Gestapo or the SS for me, Major?”
“Neither. That is what I want to talk to you about.”
Madeleine was clearly surprised. She reached through the bars and took the cup of coffee and took a large swallow.
“God, I hate wartime coffee. Granted its real, but of poor quality. I thank you all the same.”
“My plan is simple, mademoiselle. The invasion is rapidly advancing. I think France will be free very soon.”
“So, I stay here until the allies waltz into town?” She was surprised at the frank assessment Stenger had so easily admitted. “No. When the time is right the three of us surrender to the first allied forces that arrive in the area. You will remain here with us on the condition that you do not try to leave.”
“That’s it?”
“No, not entirely. I need your word that your killing days are over.”
“How do you know that you can trust me?” She asked, considering the enormous implications of what Stenger was suggesting.
“Because you won’t be giving your word to me, it will be to Willi. You each have each spared the other’s life and that means everything to a soldier.”
Madeleine knew that Stenger was right. She felt a sense of relief as she realized that there was an excellent chance that she’d survive the war. She had missed her chance with Lammerding. Well, too bad. One miss out of countless kills. Perhaps it was fate. That possibility had to be seriously considered, given the present circumstances. What were the odds that she would cross paths with these particular policemen ever again, much less during the chaos of war? If she agreed maybe she would live to find Jack Teach and see the war end.
“So, where’s Willi?” s
he asked casually, leaning back and exhaling.
“You have made a wise decision. You obviously have much to live for. Certainly you have a family and loved ones waiting for you at the end of this horrible mess. Willi’s in the kitchen,” Stenger said withdrawing a key from his pocket and opening the cell door. “Let’s go find him.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Major Kampfe watched from his staff car as his men exchanged fire with a pair of Resistance fighters they had stumbled across. His orders had been to seek out and kill all Resistance groups. He scoured the countryside in an effort to try to compromise Resistance sabotage missions before they could be brought to bear on his division. General Lammmerding had been furious when his train was rendered useless. It had been his express directive to kill anyone suspected of terrorist activity. To Kampfe these Maquis fighters were an insult to a soldier such as himself and the men under his command. War was fought between armies, not peasants suddenly emboldened by an invasion. He would gladly eradicate these scum. He had no compunction against it in the least. Dead saboteurs didn’t necessitate any additional consideration. He left them to rot as they fell.
Kampfe sighed as he watched the action. The terrorists had been cornered in a small outbuilding, having been surprised at a roadblock. There was a man and a woman, interestingly enough. His patience was waning and the cocktail hour approaching. He glanced angrily at his watch. He flung open the car door and got out, his patience exhausted.
“What is the hold up?” Kampfe shouted to no one in particular.