The Ghost

by Henry Kellerman

  With that, Imi unfolded a sheet of paper that he had written by hand that listed fifty names along with new secondary locations. They all stared at the paper with no one uttering a word. They looked at one another and Imi broke the silence.

  “Gentlemen, see you in the morning.”

  * * *

  In the morning after breakfast the gang of Al, Jimmy, Max, Imi, Hugh, and Shmueli again convened at the lab. Janet, Applebaum, and Yagoda were there as well. Not at all responding to Max, Janet said they had been working since 5 am and they thought the code had finally been broken.

  “We were right,” Janet said. “Fundamentally the code is an alphabetical one but different than that used in the Enigma. This one used only one wheel. The Enigma used what was termed a ‘polyalphabetic substitution cipher’ which I won’t explain except to say that repetitive sequences enabled the code to become almost decipherable. It had several wheels. It was originally designed in the early 1920’s—I’ve forgotten the exact date—by both by a German engineer, Dr. Arthur Scherbius, as well as even earlier by a Dutch scientist, Hugh Koch.

  “As I’ve suggested, in the code here, methodology was not as complex although an attempt at an alphabetical type was instituted, designed to imitate the polyalphabetical one used in the Enigma. And by the way, the British were not the first to break the Enigma, nor were the Americans. It was the Polish scientist, Henryk Zygalski who did it first before any of us even got to it. However, the one Zygalski unraveled was not as sophisticated a machine as Scharbius’s, the one used in the 1940’s during the War.

  “In any event, this one that we’ve just decrypted is based on the use of all five vowels in addition to how consonants sound. Yes, for the first time that I know, this one also uses the variable of sound. For example, Syria could sound more or less the same if it were spelled Cireeah. It’s similar to transliteration. It was Dr. Applebaum here who first hit upon the idea that this code has a single rotor cipher and then Dr. Yagoda picked up that it also could have a sound variable of consonants. At that point in seeing what Dr.’s Applebaum and Yagoda had discovered it was an easy step for me to synthesize both discoveries.

  “You will be pleased to know that you were all absolutely correct. The deciphered code lists the names of exactly, the phenomenal number of four-thousand one-hundred eighty-six names along with primary and secondary drop-off spots, all outside of Europe—with the exception of one. The one exception goes by the name of Gustav Schell.

  “We’ve looked up that name in the classified list of Nazis wanted criminals and there is no such name listed on any ‘wanted’ sheets. This Gustav Schell is the only one of the more than four-thousand whose directive was to remain in Europe. Schell has no listed secondary location. His only drop-off country is Monaco—actually near Monaco—but still in France adjacent to the microstate, Monaco. You know everything there is located on the French Riviera in Western Europe. Schell could likely be living on the lower edge of a mountain in that region. It’s Mont Tete de Chien. It’s the Alps-Maritimes, and it is overlooking Monaco. There are other micro towns in the area as well. I imagine you’ll be sending some of your agents there in order to get a good diagnostic picture of the situation.

  Of course, Dr.’s Applebaum, Yagoda and I recognize many of the names on the list. We can identify a dozen or so and it is frightening to think that these individuals are loose and are being protected. Who in the world is arranging all this protection for them? And again I must point out: smack dab in the middle of the list is this Gustav Schell who no one has ever heard of and who is the only one with no secondary drop-off destination.

  “So that’s it. Our secretarial staff is now transferring all the names and data to a folder that will be handed you. I’ve assumed that you might not want to possess too many copies, so I’ve directed the typing pool to provide you with only two. I’m sure you will need to send one of them to let’s say ‘someone,’ and the other either to M-16, or perhaps instead to the CIA. In that case you might need a third copy. However, neither I, nor Dr.’s Yagoda or Applebaum need to know your plans.”

  “Speaking for all of us,” Al answered, “I would like to extend our sincere appreciation for what you’ve done. Moreover, we’ve had a correspondence from someone to whom we’re sending the decrypted micro. This person indicates that he and those he represents wants the information on secondary locations altered. He would like a new counterfeit film to be expertly fashioned so that no one will be able to detect that the information of the film was tampered with. To that extent, he has provided us with a list of fifty individuals whose secondary locations should be changed Could you create this new micro as what we might identify as our disinformation one?

  “So,” Al continued, “we would also like two copies of the altered film and two copies, as you’ve said of the original one. In fact, if you’d be able to provide three of each, that might even be more convenient for us.”

  “The answer,” Janet said, “is—of course. That would not be difficult to do and if you give me the list we will do it. It should be done before the end of the day.”

  With that, Imi handed Janet the list, and led by Al, the gang of five burst into applause.

  Later that evening, as promised, Janet, handed Al the package containing both the original and disinformation micros. They all said their goodbye’s and Max saw them off as they were getting into the limo. But then Max had a last hurrah.

  “I’ve decided,” he said, “that I’m leaving the job here. Of course, that means no more Janet. I’m pretty sure that’s finished. I think I’ll return to Texas or maybe one of you might find me on your doorstep.”

  At that, the new gang-member, Shmuel Kishnov who hadn’t intervened in any significant way since they all arrived, now volunteered his approval.

  “Max,” he said, “ist goot you making better problem mit eye. Ist goot. Congratulations. Yah, I can seeing ist very goot.”

  In the limo, Hugh also ended his own pent-up silence of several days by asking how Simon would get the new micro and who will deliver it? He turned to Al.

  “Al, I think even Jimmy would agree that you’re the one to do it. Imi, it’s you of course who will need to contact Simon and set it up. I think you should ask Simon whether he wants us all to attend or is it sufficient for only Al to be the messenger?”

  “Hugh,” Al continued, “It’s not a good idea for only one of us to deliver it. I agree I should be the point man on this but I’d be much more comfortable with Jimmy here backing me up. In fact, I think Jimmy should only shadow me. We shouldn’t look like we’re travelling together although Jimmy, you’ll always need to have me in your sights. And Imi, at night when Jimmy and I are asleep, you have to be in an opposite room for night duty making sure no one’s gotten wind of anything and is trying to break in.

  “You know, the plan to get the material to Simon has got to be fool-proof. What we’ve been through to get it to this point is not enough. We need to redouble our scrutiny about who is around us at all times, night and day.”

  “Okay,” Imi responded. “I’m on it the moment we get back to London. I’ll be in touch with him through our channels. He’ll tell me where he wants to meet and that’ll be that. In the meantime, I think you and Jimmy need to do what you planned the minute we touch down in London. Let’s not forget we’re carrying a folder with papers in it and two microfilms—one original, one a copy—and they can be snatched at a moment’s notice. I’m always paranoid about that kind of stuff.

  “Should someone try to snatch it,” Imi continued, “keep in mind that it’s not enough just to disarm that person and to reduce the threat to a minimum. With that kind of situation, you need to take the guy’s wind-pipe out! Kill him! There’s no other way. This is strictly a situation for maximum offense. Maximum—the Krav way!”

  “Jesus would not like me saying this, Imi, but I agree,” Hugh added: “I agree completely.”

  “Me too, of course,” said Jimmy, with Al immediately nodding in agr
eement—‘Yes.’

  Now they were going to get the material to Simon Wiesenthal and it was strictly business—serious business. When they arrived in London, Imi went right to it. He made his contacts immediately, and sent out word that he wanted to speak to Wiesenthal. That message was relayed to his trusted people in various capitals of the world including of course, Tel Aviv, Vienna, Washington, D.C., and one or two other cities. The message was that Wiesenthal was to contact a Post-Office Box. Jimmy made sure to specifically alert his M-16, and of course, Shmuel Kishnov volunteered to alert Mossad, in Israel. It was the first time Kishnov had even hinted that he was in some way connected to Mossad, or at least knew how to enter their communication system.

  It didn’t take long. Wiesenthal got the message and sent word that he would like to meet with the entire core group: Al, Jimmy, Hugh, and Imi, including also Kishnov. Without having been told that Kishnov had entered the inner-circle, Wiesenthal already knew that Shmueli was with the gang.

  Wiesenthal suggested they remain in London and he would come to them. He wanted to meet them at M-16 Headquarters at the St. Ermins Hotel, two days hence.

  . 13 .

  BURN IT DOWN

  Hudal called Montini the very next day and told him that if they couldn’t retrieve it, he was sure the information on the film would eventually wind up with Simon Wiesenthal. Should that happen, he said, Wiesenthal would transmit the information to Mossad and then they could expect kidnappings at the minimum and assassinations at the other extreme. Or, he felt perhaps the least and most should be reversed; that is, that at most they should expect kidnappings and at least, assassinations.

  His thinking about this possible reversal was that with kidnappings they were most vulnerable. It’s the ‘deal’ business—meaning when you’re captured the deal is usually made. If you give names you get a reduced sentence or get off entirely. With assassinations, there are no deals and no names are named so that Hudal and his entire organization would be safe from incrimination with assassinations and less so with kidnappings.

  Monsignor Montini told Hudal he was worrying too much.

  “The only thing to worry about is public opinion in the United States. The officials there are more interested in maintaining good relations with the Vatican so that incriminating news would probably be on a back burner. And furthermore, Hudal, no one except those Wiesenthal types are still interested in capturing Nazis. All they’re doing now is concentrating on communists. This is especially true in the United States.

  “In any event,” Montini continued, “let’s hope for a few assassinations. As you know some of our comrades are out of control, like Barbie doing police consulting regarding torture all over South America, or Stangl and Brunner, both in Syria doing the same kind of consulting. They’re adding fuel to the fire and won’t cease. There’s nothing we can do about it. We’ve done what we can do.”

  With that, Hudal was left with an uncomfortable feeling. Hudal needed perfect closure. It wasn’t enough that six million Jews were killed. The deed wasn’t perfect. They all had to be killed. Then he would have closure. Also, they needed to protect all those Nazis on the run, not merely the ten-thousand. All of them, multiples of thousands and thousands. After all, Germany and their co-dependent axes were genocidal allies and multiples of millions upon millions were involved in the killings.

  And Hudal needed his particular definition of closure, that is, perfect-closure—in order to sleep well. Otherwise he slept fitfully. A Freudian psychoanalyst would probably consider this kind of behavior as an excessive obsessive-compulsive need; that is planning and thinking the plan over and over as the obsession. Doing it perfectly would be the compulsion; the operative term being ‘perfectly.’

  So, if the person is not an extreme obsessive, imperfections work better because one in such a position can more easily rationalize that it didn’t work out perfectly, but perhaps, just perhaps, good enough—so that good enough works. For the classic obsessive person, not good enough is almost equivalent to failure or at least the embarrassment of incompetence. Therefore, despite his intelligence and operational expertise, Hudal was a twisted person with virtuosity in ‘twistedness.’

  Hudal then, qualified as the classic obsessive: vigilant on top with the obsessive/repetitive thought, and rife with a compulsive energy to try to accomplish it all—perfectly! In psychoanalytic language, he was psychopathic as well as narcissistic—not really different from Hitler himself, as well as all of the others who were acting-out the Nazi criminal agenda. It was the Nazi ideology that gave them all the sense of superiority in the face of the inadequate underneath feeling. Because of the compensatory stance of superiority, it also gave them the feeling of always being in the ascendancy which for them was essential in sustaining their sense of adequacy or even superiority. And that’s more or less the psychoanalytic take on it.

  Now what does “psychopathic as well as narcissistic” mean? It’s simple. What it means is that the psychopathic behavior involves crazy sadistic stuff such as for example killing someone because you don’t like them or for whatever other number of reasons you give yourself, and along with it, you feel no guilt or remorse or any other responsible sense about it.

  Along with this, the psychopathic person can’t really stop seeking what we can call external stimulation; that is, they need things from the outside to occupy them and to animate their lives. However, practically speaking that sort of condition presumably results from not possessing any real tangible internal or interior thinking or introspective life. Thus, in the life of the psychopath exists a sense of an impoverished inner life.

  The reason for not being able to feel responsible or to not even feel guilt or the like, also concerns the narcissistic part; that is, this kind of person’s only concern is about the self. It can be considered a solipsistic-obsession meaning that anything is justified provided that it’s based upon what you want to do simply because of the literal fact that you want to do it. In other words, nothing else counts except your personal agenda, your personal wish; what you want and when you want it—and here’s the kicker—what you want to the fullest measure and not only to the measure of ‘just good enough’.

  Thus, to a person who we may identify as let’s say someone equivalent to a theological Nazi, someone like Alois Hudal along with certain of his ideological Christian brothers at the Vatican, wanting something “to the fullest measure,” becomes highly meaningful. To such psychologically deteriorated individuals, killing some Jews would not be sufficient. It had to be “to the fullest measure”! All the Jews! And then, even that might not suffice because others too, constitute unfinished business. Therefore, let’s also kill Gypsies and then if still insufficient, get the disabled—even if we need to drag them out of hospitals and then kill them.

  This sort of genocide also had its early evidence in the slaughter of the American Indian as well as the genocidal behavior over centuries with respect to slavery toward American Negroes. And this all started pre-20th century. Then in the early 20th century it started again with what could be considered another prodromal example. It was what the Germans did in Africa—the first genocide of the 20th century against the Africans in Namibia—to the Herero and Nama tribes. The Germans slaughtered a couple of hundred thousand of these people and took their land. They killed in order to steal. Plain and simple. Or how about what Turkey did to the Armenians starting at about 1915 when the Turks slaughtered a million or more Armenians.

  Of course, “prodromal” is a perfect way to describe it all. It means something happening in the past that presages something similar that would be expected to happen in the future—only its eruption in the future would be with significantly greater severity. With respect to genocide, the genocide of the Herero and Nama tribes and then to the Armenians was a precedent to what the Nazis did some decades later mostly to Jews but also to others considered by these Nazis to be undesirable people.

  But is a sweet innocent child undesirable? Or, how about
a couple of million children? Are they undesirable? According to the Turks of 1915, and then to the official Wannsee Nazi Conference of 1942—regarding the so-called ‘Final Solution’ with respect to Jews—the answer is a resounding ‘Yes,’ they are assessed as undesirable.

  Therefore, the answer is given as: ‘So let’s kill the children, too’!

  * * *

  Now, we belatedly come to Willy. In a way Willy was also twisted but his twistedness was strictly physical as a result of being pushed off a third story ledge of an apartment building and landing full force on the pavement below. At this point however, several weeks had elapsed and Willy was already walking with an aide’s assistance through the corridor near his hospital room. He was walking ever so slowly and a bit bent, but he was walking. No longer was he hooked up to that contraption with his leg and arm hanging in slings from the top of the hospital bed—the kind of canopy bed with his limbs dangling by pulleys that were holding them elevated

  As he was slowly walking, out of the elevator and just about meeting Willy and his aide at the far end of the hall, were Gloria, Frankie and Al—Willy’s favorite people in the whole world. Following the greetings going both ways, Willy’s first predictable question was about Stevie. Was she okay? He wanted to hear the entire story straight from Al.

  He had already been told that Stevie who had been abducted along with her parents and brother, was soon thereafter, released. It was all about the package. Willy said he felt really bad about getting Stevie involved with it all. But Frankie piped in and said it was his—Frankie’s own fault because Willy couldn’t trust him with anything, so then Willy went to Stevie. Thus, it was Frankie’s alcoholism that forced Willy to find a place to hide the package—but not at homeThen, rather reluctantly, Willy admitted to Frank directly, as hard as it was to say it out loud, for the first time in public: