Max shook his head. “Nah. This isn’t right. I can feel it.” He turned and darted back to the car. As he opened the door, he was tackled from the side by an MP. Donnelly and his men quickly surrounded him. One of the MPs searched the car and came out holding two visas. “Aaron Davison and Yetta Davison, just like the man ordered.”
Eli came out of the woods and walked slowly toward the group.
With his hands cuffed behind his back, Max said, “Eli Rosen. Son of a bitch. I should have known. You’re always around when bad luck happens.”
* * *
Back at the administration office, Donnelly said, “All right, Eli, you have ten minutes.” He left and shut the door behind him.
Maximilian looked around the small office, uttered a snort and said, “You are one ungrateful bastard. After all I did for your family.”
“Which members of my family, Maximilian? My father, who was bludgeoned and shot to death by the Jew Hunters that you sent? My brother and his family, who were taken to Belzec with the entire Judenrat to be murdered? My sister-in-law, for whom we paid you ten thousand zloty to have released? Or would it be Esther, whom you swore to protect, swore to me even after you knew she had been shipped away? Which ones should I be grateful for, Maximilian?”
“I protected them all for as long as I could. I’m not the one to blame, you know. The SS command made the decision to close the Lipowa camp. What could I do about it?”
“That night when you gave me the keys to the truck, when I went home for my two-day visit, you and Globočnik ordered the ORPO to take Esther and lock her up in Lipowa. You also sent the Jew Hunters to grab my son.”
Maximilian shrugged. “My priorities changed. I needed leverage. I knew you were never going to come back to Lodz voluntarily. Talk about breaking promises—you were going to take your wife and son and leave me holding the bag in a brickyard that I couldn’t possibly run. Admit it, you were tossing me to the wolves. I had to protect myself. I didn’t know your father would be there.”
“Where is Esther?”
Maximilian sneered. “Well, maybe she’s still sitting at a sewing machine at Lipowa.”
Eli’s fist shot out and caught him flush on the mouth, knocking him off the chair and onto the floor. Eli reached down, grabbed a fistful of Maximilian’s shirt, lifted him to his feet and threw him into a chair.
“Wrong answer, asshole. Where is Esther?”
Maximilian sat back and wiped the blood off his lip. “Where is Esther? Where is Esther? And if I tell you?”
“Then you’ll live.”
Maximilian smiled and shook his head. “Empty threat, Eli. You’re not going to kill me. The MPs are standing outside the door waiting for you to finish.” He lowered his voice and said, “Maybe you and I can make a deal? Like old times? I can get you a couple of visas, free passes into the U.S. I can do it, you know; I have influential friends in the States. High up in government. Way high up. So how about it? Can we work something out?”
“Where’s Esther?”
Maximilian rubbed his jaw. “Where’s Esther today? I couldn’t possibly know. When they closed Lipowa, they split up the women. Some were sent to work camps, but most were … well, some unfortunately were sent to Majdanek.”
Eli’s face turned red. “Majdanek! Majdanek was a death camp. Those who were still alive in November 1943 were murdered in Aktion Erntefest. Forty thousand Jews in a single day! That’s how you protected my wife?”
Maximilian shrugged. “I didn’t say Esther was sent to Majdanek. I said most of them were. Some were sent elsewhere. There was a deportation list with names and destinations.”
“You bastard. You had to see the list. Where was Esther sent?”
He smiled. “You know, I just can’t remember right now. My memory is foggy.”
In a flash, Eli hit him again, knocking him back onto the floor. “You dare to smile?”
“Hey,” Maximilian shouted. “Hey, help me in here. Help! This man’s gone crazy.”
Eli shook his head. “My ten minutes isn’t up yet.”
“This is a waste of your time. Don’t you understand? I have connections. I’ve always had connections. This farce is going nowhere.”
“How are you still alive? I saw you being led out of Globočnik’s office. You were as good as dead.”
“True, but Globočnik sent me back to Zörner for further prosecution in the counterfeit Ausweis scheme. There were three others involved. He told Zörner to dispose of me.”
“And Zörner was your buddy.”
Maximilian nodded. “I had put a lot of money in his pocket, not to mention the few young ladies in his bed.”
“You filthy pig. Where’s Esther?”
“No matter how many times you hit me, I’m going to tell you the same thing: I don’t know.”
Major Donnelly opened the door. Eli knew he had gone as far as he could. Maximilian might know about Esther—he probably did—but he wasn’t about to give it up. Eli stood over him. “Who is your contact in the U.S.? Who’s supplying you with visas?”
“Go fuck yourself. That’s the last card I have left in my hand. I’m certainly not giving it to you.”
Eli shook his head. “He’s all yours, Major.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
FÖHRENWALD DP CAMP
AMERICAN ZONE
FEBRUARY 1947
Eli took a seat at the breakfast table. Adinah was at the stove making pancakes for Izaak. Eli laid his winter coat over the empty chair.
“Where are you going today, Papa?”
“I’m headed back to the U.S. Army garrison at Garmisch. Just for the day. Do you remember Maximilian Poleski from Lublin?”
“I think so. He was a tall, skinny guy with a pointy nose. He was always dressed real fancy when he came to the brickyard. Grandpa didn’t like him. Neither did Mama. She called him a snake.”
Eli nodded. “I’m afraid they were both right. He was a very dishonest man. Do you remember when I went to Landsberg two months ago with Major Donnelly?” Izaak nodded. “We were there to arrest Maximilian.”
“What did he do?”
Eli paused for a moment to consider how to answer the question, put his arm around Izaak and said, “A very, very long list of dishonest acts. But today he goes before a judge. He will receive formal charges, and they will set him for a trial before a military tribunal to answer for his crimes.”
* * *
The sun was shining and the road to Garmisch was clear. As he drove south, thoughts played out in Eli’s mind like the pages of a photo album: Lublin, Esther, his father, Louis, Zörner, Globočnik and the endless string of Maximilian betrayals. Now he would finally be brought to justice. Still, Eli felt a deep sense of disappointment. He had longed for the opportunity to confront Maximilian, to learn what had happened to Esther, but when the opportunity arrived, it was wholly unsatisfying. Maximilian showed no remorse and provided no information about Esther. She was right all along. Maximilian had no backbone, no integrity, no morals. Now he would serve his time.
* * *
Donnelly met Eli in the reception area. “The hearing shouldn’t take too long,” he said. “Shael Bruchstein and Olga Helstein are both here, and they’re prepared to testify. We have more than enough proof to charge Poleski and set him over for trial.”
The two of them walked into the ceremonial courtroom, where Shael and Olga sat waiting. The hearing was scheduled for ten o’clock. At ten thirty, an adjutant came in and asked Major Donnelly to step out. A few minutes later, the major returned and said, “Apparently, there is something going on. The hearing has been postponed until two o’clock. I can show you all to the canteen, but I’m afraid there is nothing much for us to do but wait until this afternoon.”
Bottles of Coca-Cola, hot dogs and small talk occupied the recess while the four speculated about the delay. Eli was uncomfortable. “I know this guy,” he said. “He’s working his witchcraft, looking for an escape door. He said he had connections. If
anyone can weasel his way out of a predicament, it’s Maximilian. I’ve seen him do it over and over.”
Donnelly shook his head. “Nah, we’ve got him dead to rights.”
Finally, at 1:45 p.m., they were told to return to the courtroom. Precisely at 2:00 p.m., Colonel Bivens entered the room. Alone. “I’m sorry to have inconvenienced you all,” he said. “But there will be no hearing today.”
Eli sighed. “What is the continued hearing date?”
The colonel solemnly shook his head. “We don’t have a continued hearing date. The charges against Mr. Poleski have been dropped.”
“What?”
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I’m not happy about it myself.”
The news took Eli’s breath away. “This is unbelievable! How is this happening? You’re telling me that the U.S. government is going to willingly permit this man to continue his criminal enterprise?”
He shook his head. “There’ll be no further visas, Mr. Rosen. That was a condition of his release.”
“Does General Clay know? Has this capitulation been approved by OMGUS in Berlin?”
“General Clay knows,” he answered with a sense of resignation. “The orders were approved by his office. That’s all I can tell you. The war makes strange bedfellows; I’ve seen it time and again.”
“Why? Why would they do this?”
“I’m sorry, Mr. Rosen, but it’s classified. It’s one of the many odd arrangements that must be made in the postwar world.”
Eli was thunderstruck. He pounded his fist on the table. “This can’t be happening. It’s wrong and I don’t accept it! Who pulled those strings? How does Poleski slither away when we caught him red-handed?”
“I’m not authorized to say anything further, Mr. Rosen. I do offer my apologies for your inconvenience today.” The colonel held out a sealed envelope, and he handed it to Eli. “Before he left, Mr. Poleski asked me to give this to you.”
“I don’t want anything from Poleski.”
“I understand. Do with it what you will.”
* * *
For Eli, the ride back to Föhrenwald was a mixture of sadness, rage and frustration. He had been so sure that if he had the opportunity to talk to Maximilian, he would have learned something helpful in his search for Esther. Maybe just a clue, a course direction. Yet it was all for naught. For all intents and purposes, that door was now closed.
When he entered the house, Adinah was sitting with a giggling Izaak, helping him with his homework. She immediately noticed Eli’s deflated expression. “I take it the trip was a disappointment.”
“They let him go.”
“Oh, no. Why would they do that?”
“Classified, I’m told. Friends in high places, he said.” Eli took off his jacket, and Max’s envelope fell onto the floor. He picked it up and flung it across the room.
Adinah retrieved the envelope and brought it back. “What is this?”
“The colonel gave it to me. He said it came from Maximilian. I don’t want it, and I don’t care what it says. If he wrote it, it’s a lie.”
Adinah tore it open to reveal a small piece of paper with a single printed word: Ravensbrück.
Eli read the note and tears filled his eyes.
Izaak picked it up and asked, “What does this mean?”
Adinah looked at Eli, who nodded his approval. “Tell him the truth,” Eli said.
Adinah put her arm around Izaak and said quietly, “Ravensbrück is the name of a Nazi concentration camp north of Berlin.”
Eli added, “The note implies that when Lipowa was closed, Mama was sent to Ravensbrück. It was a women’s camp.”
“Was that bad? Was it a sewing camp?”
Adinah shook her head. “The women there did hard work like building rockets, paving roads and working in a textile plant.”
“So my mama could have survived. She was a seamstress and a good worker. She could have worked in the textile plant. She could be alive somewhere.”
Adinah nodded. “That’s right.” But Eli said, “Tell him the truth, Adinah.”
“It was a very bad camp, Izzie. Many, many women died there. Of the thousands and thousands of women who were sent there, not so many survived.”
“But some did, didn’t they?”
Adinah nodded. “Some did. We won’t give up hope.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE
ALBANY PARK
CHICAGO
ALBANY PARK NEIGHBORHOOD
FEBRUARY 1966
The morning Trib lay on her desk, and Mimi sipped her coffee. It was a shake-your-head kind of news day. Northwestern University’s Committee on Undergraduate Life unanimously rejected a proposal to allow men and women to visit each other in their school living quarters; the wife of the Chicago Bears’ coach, George Halas, was found mysteriously dead in the couple’s Edgewater Beach apartment; there were anti-American riots in the streets of the Dominican Republic; and state senator McGloon demanded that the March 29 fight between Cassius Clay and Ernie Terrell be canceled, insisting that “the Athletic Commission should call this Muhammed—whatever his name is—in and ask him about his views on being a conscientious objector.”
But for Mimi, the story that hit home was on page nine, under the headline SENATE, HOUSE GROUPS O.K. NEW VIET FUNDS REQUEST. President Johnson, flying back to Washington after an extensive meeting with South Vietnamese leaders in Honolulu, expressed his extreme pleasure with the news that billions of dollars in new war funding had been approved by his legislators. In the House, Congressman Witold Zielinski was proud to lead the Armed Services Committee in unanimous approval of the president’s emergency request for immediate disbursement of an additional 275 million dollars. Meanwhile, in the Senate the Armed Services Committee unanimously approved 4.8 billion dollars, almost all of it earmarked for “aircraft, helicopters, missiles and other military hardware.”
“What a banner day for Vittie, Nicky and all the greedy corporate executives,” Mimi said aloud. “Maybe they’ll throw a big party and decide how to carve up the kickback pie.”
As if on cue, Mimi’s phone rang. It was Eli Rosen.
“Mimi, do you have a minute?”
“They’re all coming into town for a meeting, aren’t they?”
“Why, yes, they are. How did you know?”
“I had 4.8 billion clues.”
“A few weeks ago, you offered to help. Is that offer still on the table?”
“You bet it is.”
“Well, if you’re free this evening, say around five thirty, there are some people I’d like you to meet.”
“Absolutely.”
“Why don’t you stop by my apartment?”
* * *
On her way home, Mimi was so busy thinking about the meeting and trying to organize her thoughts that she almost missed her bus stop. She had so much information and so many bottled-up theories that she was anxious to share. How much did Eli know about Nicky and his closetful of cash? Did he know the cash was funneled through Bryant Shipping? How much detail did he know about the tie-ins among Vittie, Nicky, the Defense Department and the military contractors? Mimi assumed he knew quite a bit, but maybe not everything.
She was as enthusiastic as she had been for some time. It wasn’t just the intrigue or the opportunity to work with what she suspected was a clandestine government unit; it was the chance to play some part in bringing Chrissie’s killers to justice. Payback for her best friend.
When Eli opened his door, Mimi saw four chairs placed around the coffee table. Two men were standing by the sofa with soft drinks in their hands. They smiled and nodded to her. Eli made the introductions.
“Gentlemen, this is my upstairs neighbor, Mimi Gold, the woman I’ve been telling you about. Mimi, this is Special Agent Cliff Ryan,” he said, gesturing to a middle-aged man in a blue suit and open-collar shirt. The man took a step forward and extended his hand. “Cliff is with the Chicago field office of the FBI, focusing on public corruption. Cliff and I
have been working this case for a while.”
Mimi’s attention moved to an older man in a khaki military-style shirt. His trousers were creased, and his shoes were polished to a glossy shine. His gray hair was cut in a crew cut, and he had a lateral scar on his right cheek, but his smile was warm and friendly. He extended his hand. “Frank Mooney.”
Eli added, “Lieutenant Colonel Mooney is the U.S. Army liaison to our group. He’s with the army’s criminal investigation division.”
Mimi smiled and wagged a finger at Eli. “My mom had you pegged for CIA from the day she met you. I always thought you were with the FBI. Who’s right?”
“It’s a domestic matter, Mimi. So if I were one or the other, it wouldn’t be the CIA, but neither of you is exactly correct. Technically, I’m with the State Department on loan to the FBI because of my special knowledge of the individuals involved. But, Mimi, everything that we are doing is highly confidential. Can we agree on that? Do we have your solemn word that you will hold everything in the strictest confidence?”
Mimi was struck by the gravity of the question but, at the same time, honored to be brought into the circle. “I understand, and you can count on me to be silent.”
Ryan stepped forward. “That means you can’t divulge anything that we might discuss to your mother, or your grandmother, or Nathan or…”
“I know what confidential means, Special Agent Ryan.”
Eli smiled and invited everyone to be seated. Each of the men had a yellow pad and was prepared to take notes.
Eli began. “After Christine and Preston were murdered, Mimi came to me and offered to help. Apparently, she’d come to the conclusion that I was investigating Congressman Zielinski. How she deduced that, I don’t know, but Mimi is a very perspicacious young woman. I’ve been hesitant to accept her offer because she’s a civilian, because she has a promising career in journalism and because all this could easily go south if we fail. Long ago I surmised that due to her close friendship with Christine Zielinski and Preston Roberts, she would be privy to information that none of us would have, but I had decided not to involve her. She didn’t sign up to put her life or her career in jeopardy.”
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