Dennis Wheatley - Traitors' Gate

He had no need to peer between the bars to see the end of the tunnel, as it was not flush with the farther wall of St. Thomas's Tower. The tunnel ran on for some twenty feet, forming another great pit similar to the one behind him; so daylight lit it from both ends. Its sides were formed by stone blocks each about two feet in height, and there were nine rows of them. The arch above the gate was filled by more beams with stout trellis work between them, and under the beam that' ran parallel with the top beams of the gate there was a row of wicked iron spikes, so there could be no question of climbing over it.

Hiding his disappointment, Gregory rejoined the Governor, who then took him farther than he had yet been along Water Lane and through a gate in the Outer Wall that led on to the tree lined embankment which stretched unbroken from the western to the eastern end of the fortress. Along its whole length, pointing out over the river, were a long line of artillery pieces of all ages, and they went over for a closer look at some of the more interesting ones.

Gregory noted that there had been a sentry on the gate through which they had come. The gate was only about fifty yards east of St. Thomas's Tower, and he soon saw that two other sentries were stationed one at each end of the embankment. When he and the Colonel came opposite to the Tower, while they were examining the cannons he stole several quick looks up at it.

The central windows, which he judged to be those of the hall and the rooms on either side of it in one of which he had seen Sabine were immediately above the pit in which lay the dead end of the tunnel. It was a drop of fifty feet, and even if he could lower her and himself they would then be in the eighteen feet deep pit instead of on the embankment. As her bedroom was on the other side of the tower and looked out on Water Lane, it would be pointless to come down from the window there. By swinging like a pendulum on a rope from the window of the room in which he had seen her, it might be possible to land on the embankment instead of in the pit, or the attempt might be made from a window of one of the flanking tower rooms if he could get her to it. But even then it would mean a drop of thirty feet and take at least ten minutes for the two of them to accomplish. It was the thought of the time factor which made him rule it out. With one sentry within fifty yards, and two others walking their beats with an uninterrupted view of the tower, it was almost a certainty that they would be spotted. More out of curiosity than anything else he asked the Governor:

'Are the sentries here issued with ball cartridge?'

Colonel Faviell laughed. 'Good gracious, no! We've had plenty of air raids, but at least we have no cause to fear a seaborne assault by the enemy. There is little point in their being here really, now the Jewels have gone; but it is tradition that we should have them, and tradition dies hard.'

In spite of this reassuring reply, Gregory still felt that the odds on being caught, if they came down from a window, were so big that as an escape route it was not worth further consideration. They returned to the King's House, where the Governor gave him tea; then, having thanked him for a most interesting afternoon, Gregory made his way back to the West End.

Next morning he rang up the Tower to confirm that Sabine was still too ill for her interrogation to be continued, and asked that when she was better he should be notified by a message to the War Room; then he telephoned M.I.5 to inform Colonel 'Himmler' of the situation. After that as it was a Sunday, he rang up Sir Pellinore to suggest that since Sabine was no longer his guest they should resume their Sunday night suppers, and the Baronet said he would be pleased to see him.

At Carlton House Terrace that evening, as soon as Gregory had been provided with a glass of sherry, he told his host of his visit to Sabine, and that she had sent a message conveying her most abject apologies for her shocking abuse of Sir Pellinore's hospitality and her hope that, as she had been inspired by patriotic motives, he would not think too badly of her.

'Queerest apology I've ever had,' grunted Sir Pellinore. 'And I don't want any more like it. Still, shows the wench has good manners. That's more than many young people have these days. Can't help bein' sorry for her, in a way. Confounded nuisance though. You and I are bound to be dragged in at her court martial, and made to look a pair of fools. Fine kettle of fish your idiocy has landed us in.'

Gregory gave the 'soft answer that turneth away wrath' and changed the subject.

During the meal their talk, as usual, ranged over the battlefronts. The previous Sunday night Lancaster’s had carried out a terrific raid on Le Creusot, practically eliminating the great munition works there that French collaborators had been running at full blast for the benefit of the Germans. The Admiralty had announced a great increase in the strength of our Fleet, the two great new battleships Anson and Howe now being in commission, and that since the beginning of the war we had accounted for no less than 530 enemy submarines. The Germans were still hurling their troops against Stalingrad but the attacks showed signs of weakening. Moscow claimed that some of the German divisions had lost up to seventy per cent of their effectives; and it did really begin to look as if the all-important city on the Volga would succeed in holding out through the winter. On the past two nights the R.A.F. had bombed Genoa, causing great havoc among wharfs and shipping. As the port was Rommel's principal supply base, these actions were clearly designed to assist operations in North Africa; and General Montgomery's offensive had started well, some points in the enemy's main defences having been penetrated.

They took their port up to the library, and when they had settled down there Gregory told Sir Pellinore the story, as disclosed by Sabine, of her plot with Ribbentrop. The older man listened with the greatest interest, then exclaimed:

'Strap me! What a lot these Nazis are! Just think of Anthony Eden, sayin' he had a mistress, lettin' her shield a German spy, then go as a spy with him to the Fatherland in the hope of making John Anderson look a fool in front of Churchill. Berchtesgaden must be a regular thieves' kitchen. It's the gel who's got the raw end of the deal, though. And it's worse for her than it would be for a man. Prison plays the very devil with women's looks. She'll be prematurely old and no good for anything by the time she comes out.'

'That won't be the case if I can help it.'

'Eh? What d'you mean by that?'

'I'm planning her escape.'

The Baronet's blue eyes bulged. 'You're joking!'

'I'm not. I was never more serious in my life.'

'Then you're crazy. You don't know what you're talkin' about.'

'I tell you I am planning her escape. And what is more I need your help.'

Sir Pellinore sprang to his feet. 'God in Heaven, man! Is it likely! You're drunk! Barmy! Off your rocker!'

'I'm as sane as you are.'

'Then you're pulling me leg, and I don't like it. I can take a joke, but this has gone far enough.'

'It has hardly started yet,' Gregory replied calmly. 'I assure you that I am in deadly earnest. I mean to do my damnedest to get Sabine out.'

'But damn it all! You can't have realized the implications. To make such an attempt would be treason.'

T know that; but I hope to escape being tried for it.'

'You would be, if you were caught. And you will be. You can't get prisoners out of a place like the Tower. It's not some tin pot little concentration camp.'

'I know.' Suddenly Gregory smiled. 'Yesterday afternoon the Resident Governor kindly took me all over it.'

'My God, you must be made of solid gall! All the same, if you had reconnoitred the place for a month you wouldn't be any better off. To make such an attempt would be madness. It couldn't possibly succeed.'