The Incidental Spy

by Libby Fischer Hellmann

  She picked up the phone.

  CHAPTER 31

  December, 1942

  The next day Lena spotted the signal from Hans on her way back from lunch with Sonia. A miniature American flag stood in a snow-covered urn in front of the 57th Street florist. He wanted to meet her after work. She considered not showing up. But if she didn’t, Hans would come after her, or worse, Max. So when she got home, she went to the closet, loaded the .22 and slipped it into her coat pocket. At least she would have the element of surprise.

  The Ford rolled up a few minutes later. A typical winter day in Chicago, the sun was setting, but it had snowed a few inches the night before, and the bite in the air required gloves, hats, and scarves. Lena waited until the car stopped and the window rolled down.

  Hans called out from the driver’s seat. “Come in and get warm.”

  Only after she slid into the passenger seat did she realize another man was in back. She turned around to take a look. He was a beefy, muscled bull of a man. That chilled her more than the frigid December weather.

  “Who is this?” She asked.

  Hans waved a hand. “This is Dieter.”

  The man looked up at the mention of his name.

  “He doesn’t speak English,” Hans said.

  “Why is he here?”

  “I’m training him,” Hans said, but the pause before he spoke told her that was a lie.

  Lena’s thoughts darkened. Dieter had to be an assassin, and she was his target. He was there to “deal” with her. She bit her lip. She briefly thought of escaping. Throwing herself out of the car. The Ford was heading south on Lake Shore Drive. But timing was everything. She’d have to scoot to the edge of the seat, fling open the car door, and propel herself onto the road. And she’d have to make sure other traffic was far enough behind that she wouldn’t be run over. She let out a frustrated breath. There were too many variables. She couldn’t do it.

  She hoped Hans would turn in at one of the beaches along the Drive. Maybe then she could make her move. Sure enough, at 77th Street, Hans turned into Rainbow Beach and Park, a peninsula that jutted out onto the lake. A wide expanse of lawn with picnic tables and a sandy beach beyond, it was always crowded in summer. She and Karl had come here to admire the view of the Loop to the north, which on sunny summer days was so spectacular it should have been on one of those picture postcards. Now, though, with its skeletal tree branches, grass that was brown and brittle and covered with snow, the park was as empty and desolate as an abandoned graveyard.

  “Why are we here?” Lena asked.

  “We wanted a place where we wouldn’t be interrupted. You have been asking questions. It’s time to give you some answers.”

  She stole a glance at Hans. What game was he playing? The only answer she expected was a loaded pistol aimed at her. Hans pulled around a graceful drive that led to a squat building bordering the lake and parked. He switched off the ignition and motioned for her to open the door.

  “Now we walk.”

  They got out of the car and started across the park away from the lake. Hans and Dieter flanked her. Dusk plunged the park into shadows, which softened the definition of objects, making them difficult to identify. She slipped her hands in her pockets, felt the comforting weight of her revolver. At least she wasn’t without some defense.

  Beyond a stand of trees was a picnic table covered with a layer of snow. As they approached, a figure emerged from the gloom. A man wrapped up in what looked like a black Chesterfield coat, a black fedora on his head, sturdy boots on his feet. Something was familiar about him. The shape of his head. The sharp edge of his chin. The lift of his shoulders. Lena’s heart banged in her chest. She knew this man. She quickened her pace.

  He studied her as she approached, his body angled toward hers in a way she remembered well. As she closed in, he gave her a smile.

  Lena sucked in a breath. “Josef!”

  CHAPTER 32

  Josef’s smile widened. “Hello, Lena.”

  Lena had forgotten her boots, and enough snow had seeped into her shoes to make her shiver. But the block of ice in her heart made her feet feel hot. “I—I do not understand. What are you doing here?”

  He extended his hands, which were encased in thick leather gloves. “I am here for you.”

  “For me?” Lena blinked in a daze of confusion. “What do you mean? How long have you been in America?”

  “Long enough.”

  “Why did you not contact me?”

  He paused. “I did. Through Hans. I have known every move you’ve made.”

  “But you were in Budapest. How did you—”

  A trace of irritation unfolded across his face. “You never used to be this slow, Lena. Hans mentioned how tentative you have become. Now I see he was right. ”

  Lena scowled.

  He paused and took a breath. When he spoke again his tone was conciliatory. “I’m sorry. I know how much you’ve been through. It would make anyone uncertain.”

  Lena took a good look at him. Josef seemed older; she thought she spotted a touch of gray at his temples. But he was still tall. And strong. With the Aryan look that had always made her feel part proud, part ashamed. He was watching her with an expectant expression, and she realized she was supposed to say something.

  “How—how did you find me? We haven’t been in touch.”

  “Oh, Lena,” he spread his hands. “Think. It is quite simple.”

  She squinted in concentration. When it came to her, she took a few steps back, and her mouth dropped open. “You! You’ve been directing the operation.”

  He dipped his head in acknowledgement.

  “But—but…” she sputtered. “… How? Why? You are a Jew.”

  He shrugged.

  A streak of fury shot up her spine. “You passed, didn’t you?” She hissed. She recalled how they had joked years ago that with his blond hair and green eyes, he could.

  He turned up his palms. “I didn’t need to.” He ran a gloved hand along the edge of the picnic table and scooped up a mound of snow. He shaped it into a ball. “Hans has been my eyes and ears.”

  She spun around. Hans stood behind her. His chin jutted out as if he was trying not to be embarrassed.

  “We had to wait for the right moment to tell you.” Josef smiled again.

  “Tell me what, Josef?”

  He turned away, tossed the snowball across the park, turned back. “Shortly after I arrived in Budapest, my parents and I were starving. We didn’t have work, we didn’t have money. One day I was approached by two men near the synagogue. They bought me a few meals. I was grateful. It was the first time my belly was full since… well. We started to talk. We all agreed that the Nazis had to be defeated. They remarked that I could pass. With my looks… well, you know.”

  She tightened her lips.

  “And well, eventually the enemy of my enemy became my friend. Not so very different than you and your Colonel Collins.”

  A fresh wave of anger took Lena’s breath away. “Communists!” She gasped. “You are working for the Communists! All this time I have been spying for them, not the Nazis.” She slipped her hands back in her pockets and felt for the gun.

  Josef didn’t deny it. “At first I did low level operations in and around Budapest. But when you wrote that you were working in the Physics Department at the University of Chicago… well, everyone became very excited.”

  Lena squeezed her eyes shut. She had mentioned her job in a letter. More than once. She remembered describing everyone in the department to him. In retrospect, how could she have been so naïve? She knew the answer. She had been in love. She had wanted to share everything with this man.

  “In fact, you were responsible for my rise in the ranks, Lena. Moscow is quite specific about the intelligence they want from their American cells. They want updates on the Met Lab project. The procedures being used for U-235 separation. The method of detonation that will be used. What industrial equipment is used to test these techniqu
es. You have access to all of it.”

  The anger roiling her gut curled it into a tight ball. Blood drained from her head.

  “So you see, it could not have been more perfect. You fell into my hands.” He looked pleased with himself. “The rest was easy.”

  “Easy? You lied to me. You told me I was spying for the Nazis. You forced me to go back to work after Karl—“ She cut herself off. “You! You were the one who killed my husband.”

  He looked down. It was the first time she thought he might have felt a shred of regret. “Let’s just say I let it happen. “

  “You excuse murder by claiming ‘you let it happen?’ What kind of man have you become, Josef? Why did you not ask me? Perhaps I would have…” Her voice trailed off when she noticed Josef rummage in his coat pocket. She gripped the revolver. But when his hand emerged, it was clutching a pack of cigarettes. He pulled one out, lit it with a match, and exhaled a cloud of smoke. When had he picked up that habit?

  “Come, Lena. Do not be naïve. You would never have worked for us willingly.”

  “But why did you lie about the Nazis? Do you know what guilt—what self-loathing it caused me?”

  “We had to protect ourselves. We had no idea you would turn out to be such a valuable asset. If you had been caught, we wanted your superiors to think the Germans were behind it, not us.”

  “So you tore apart my soul and ruined my life… for your protection.”

  He stiffened. “As you did mine. You left me for another man.” For a moment his composure slipped and his features hardened. This was no longer the Josef she knew.

  “For which you took revenge by killing him.” She paused. The pieces were coming together now. “And then you kidnapped Max.”

  Josef’s demeanor changed again, and he resumed his civilized manner. “He is quite the young boy. I entertained him myself. Such a bright, curious child. I wish he was my son.”

  Lena ignored that. “And then there was Irving.”

  Josef blew out smoke. She inhaled the odor of stale tobacco. “He was in your way. He would have been trouble. He became what they call collateral damage.”

  “Collateral damage,” she whispered.

  He flicked the cigarette into the snow. She watched the orange tip flicker out.

  “I am sorry for your pain. I was just following orders.”

  She tried to keep the shrillness out of her voice. “And are you following them now?”

  He glanced at Hans and Dieter. “Now I make them. That is why I am here. I want to make amends. I know you are boxed in with Collins. It has become dangerous. You cannot go back to work. I want to offer you a way out. Come with me.” He hesitated. “We will go to New York and disappear. I will be a father to Max.”

  She flinched. “But you are married. To the girl you told me about.”

  He smiled. “A white lie. There is no other. There has never been anyone but you, Lena. I did this for us.” He waved a hand.” Come home to me. Hashem has a way of balancing the scales. We can wipe away the past. Give ourselves a clean slate.”

  Lena recoiled at his chutzpah. No, not just chutzpah. Arrogance. Unmitigated arrogance. Was it really this easy for him to come full circle?

  Josef smiled, almost as if he knew what she was thinking.

  She covered her mouth with her hand. Maybe she had no other choice. He was right. She couldn’t go back to Met Lab. Which meant she would have no way to support herself and Max. But if she went back to Josef, how could she survive? This man might have been her first love, but what she saw in him now frightened and disgusted her. How could he expect the past seven years to evaporate, to disappear into the fog of the past as easily as shadows grow into night? She would live in a constant state of fear, perhaps even terror. No. It was wrong. Everything was wrong.

  “You used me. Manipulated me. Killed my husband. Kidnapped my son. Drove me to the edge of insanity.”

  “I will make it up to you. I promise.” He ran his hand along the table and scooped up more snow.

  She tried to suppress her revulsion. All the misery, the sorrow, and guilt was carved into the marrow of her bones. He couldn’t wipe it away with a scoop of clean snow and sweet words. She wrapped her fingers around the Smith and Wesson in her pocket. “Because you want to balance the scales.”

  He nodded. “We are meant to be together. Ever since we promised each other in the Tiergarten. Until death do us part. Do you remember?”

  She drew two steps closer. “I do. And I believe you are right. It is time to balance the scales.”

  He opened his arms.

  “Until death do us part,” she said.

  Before she could change her mind, she pulled out the gun and fired. As Josef crumpled to the ground, she spun around and shot Hans. He fell backwards. She whirled around. She knew shooting two and not the third was as bad as shooting none. And Dieter was coming at her, his gun aimed at her chest. She dropped to the ground, hoping to make herself a smaller target. But it was too late. Two more shots rang out.

  CHAPTER 33

  Lena watched as Dieter slowly collapsed a few yards away, his blood staining the snow red. She rolled on the snow and pulled herself to a sitting position. Dazed, she touched her chest, her arms, her face. Her ears rang with the reverberation of the shots, but she was alive. And she wasn’t wounded. Dieter was dead.

  Gradually her ears cleared, and she heard the wail of sirens. About a dozen men swarmed across the field, most of them shouting. She watched in a detached confused state, unsure what was happening. Then, through the blur of motion, she heard a familiar voice. “Lena, are you all right? Answer me.”

  She tried to focus.

  Agent Lanier appeared in her sightline. He ran over, crouched down, and draped his arm around her shoulder. “You’re okay. Do you understand? Its over.”

  “I—I shot them,” she whispered.

  “Yes. You did.”

  Lanier glanced over at Josef and Hans. Lena followed his gaze. Hans lay unmoving, but Josef was writhing on the ground, moaning. Lanier’s men surrounded him, blocking her view.

  “Dieter was going to shoot me. How…?” She looked up at him.

  “We got him first.”

  She blinked several times, trying to process the information. “But how did you know we were here?”

  “We’ve been tailing you all day. Ever since you called last night. I haven’t been more than a few feet away.”

  She licked her lips. The frigid air made them sting. “I had to do it, Terry. After what he did… to me.. and Karl… and…”

  Lanier cut her off. “Lena… do you realize what you’ve done?”

  “I committed murder. Twice.”

  Lanier shook his head. “You have broken up one of the most important Communist espionage rings in the United States.”

  Her brow furrowed. “No. You don’t understand. I—I…”

  “Shhh.” He raised a finger to his lips. “I know you’re upset. You’re probably in shock. But you are a hero, Lena. No one has ever done what you have. For as long as you.” He took a breath. “You have been privy to the inner workings of a major spy ring. And Josef, the leader of the cell, is still alive.”

  Four men bent down, lifted Josef off the ground, and carried him to a waiting ambulance.

  They both watched in silence. For Lena it was surreal. Then she asked, “What happens now?”

  Lanier smiled. “We’ll make sure his wounds heal. Then turn him, of course.”

  “Turn him?”

  “Don’t worry. You won’t be involved. You’ve already told me everything you passed him.”

  “But wait.” She raised her palms in a warding-off gesture. “What about Colonel Collins? What is he going to do?”

  “He’s been informed. He’s elated. He’s calling you a true patriot.”

  “But I committed treason.”

  Lanier leaned over and offered his hand to help her up. “You were forced to. Fortunately, you came to me in time. You’ve been a double�
�� no… a triple agent during a time of war for your country.”

  She frowned. “Are you saying you knew Hans and Josef weren’t Nazis? Did you know they were Communists?”

  He didn’t answer for a moment. Then he hung his head. “I told you before. I’ve been working on this case for over a year, Lena.”

  “So that means yes?”

  He nodded.

  She dropped her hand from his. Her expression turned steely. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  A pleading look came over him. “I wanted to. My superiors forbid it. They were afraid you wouldn’t work as hard against the Communists as you would against the Nazis. After all, Nazis are your mortal enemies.”

  She gazed at him. In a way, he was no different than Hans or Collins. He’d been manipulating her too. Using her. She should hate him. Except that he had just saved her life.

  “Not telling you was wrong,” Lanier went on. “We know that now. You’ve proven that you are willing to sacrifice your life for America. You are a star, Lena. In fact, there are a lot of people who want to shake your hand.”

  She stood up unsteadily. Her world had suddenly turned upside down.

  “But I’ll bet you just want to go home to your son.”

  She nodded.

  “Look. I have work to do, but I’ll come by as soon as I can. We have a lot to talk about.” He called out to one of the men. “Archer, take the lady home, will you?” He turned back to her. “People will be talking about you for years to come, Lena.”

  She shook her head in confusion. “You’re talking as if I am someone special. But I’m not.”

  He laughed. “Oh, but you’re wrong. I’m nothing special. A normal red-blooded American. Born and bred in Iowa. You are remarkable.”

  “Normal,” she repeated. Perhaps he was right. She’d been a refugee, a widow, a spy, and now, apparently, a patriot. Since she’d come to America, she’d never been normal. Even though that was the only thing she’d ever wanted.