Greg Iles - The Spandau Phoenix

Hitler smiled wanly. "Remember the old proverb, Rudi?

Better the devil you know than the one you don't?"

"But Himmler could betray you at any moment!"

Hitler sighed. "Sooner or later, Rudi, he will probably try.

it is a delicate balancing act I perform. It has @en from the

beginning. It's the same for ill men of power. Churchill, Stalin,

Mussolini, Roosevelt-no one is immune. Himmler's SS is powerful, old

friend, too powerful to alienate or ignore. But it is also corrupt.

Himmler fears Heydrich-his subordinate-yet he thinks because Heydrich

has a little Jewish blood, he can be controlled by blackmail."

Hitler's eyes flickered like black stars. "Don't worry, Rudi, I have my

own controls over Reichsfiihrer Himmler. His personal adjutant happens

to be Heydrich's man, and Heydrich is my man. One word from me, night

or day, and Himmler dies.

But for the present-while he is useful-he lives."

Hess looked unconvinced.

"I expected it to be Goring," Hitler confided. "I always thought him

weaker than Himmler."

Hess nodded. "I must confess that I thought-I hoped@ the same thing. I

never liked Goring. He's a braggart . and a libertine. But he is also

loyal. For the time being, at least."

You're so straightforward, old friend, Hitler thought. Perhaps that is

why I trust you. Heydrich explained it all so well, made it seem so

easy and mechanical But in truth it isn't. The English fanatics who

will die afterfiring bullets into the brains of their leaders mean

nothing. They are ma chines, like tanks or rockets. But you, Hess, are

the closest thing to a friend I have left. How can I explain to you

that the same rules which apply to five communist fanatics also apply to

you? Yet somehow I must. For England must be neutralized.

Churchill must die.

And contrary to what Heydrich boasts, failure is always a possibility.

in the event-God forbid-that something does go wrong, my personal envoy

and confidant cannot be captured on British soil. For in your head you

carry the secrets of BarbarossaIf the "impossible" happens-if the

fanatics miss their targets, if they lose their nerve, if they're

caught, if the mission is blown and the great gamble is all for

nothing-my messenger will I have to die. You, Hess, will have to die.

And, quite simply, there will be no one there to kill you. No Reinhard

Heydrich-no steely-eyed SS officer sworn to shoot without question at my

order You will have to do it yourself. Can you do that, I wonder?

You once proclaimed to @a multitude that I, Adolf Hitler, was

GermanyWill You die for Germany, old friend? Will you die for me?

With his right hand on Hess's powerful shoulder, Hitler looked deeply

into the bright, worshipful eyes. "Rudi," he said softly, "there are

two possibilities One hour later Rudolf Hess rose and marched to the

door of the study. He turned and placed his right fist against his

heart. "My Fuhrer," he said, "to die for Germany is no more than we ask

of any soldier. In the most extreme circumstance I shall sacrifice

myself with an unfaltering heart. My only regret is for my wife and

son." Hess paused for a moment, too full of emotion to speak. "Yes,"

he said at leng , "even they would understandDeutschland fiber Alles:

these words are our creed."

Hess took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. "Do not let this

trouble you, my Fuhrer- We were never meant to fight the English, and

this is the solution Fate has provided us. You, Adolf Hitler, were sent

by God to free the world from the scourge of the Bolshevik and the Jew!

I believe that with all my heart. if my death were to bring our goal

one day closer, my life would not have been wasted. But I shall not

fail." Hess nodded solemnly. "I await your final orders.

Hell Hitler!" aliment. The Hitler felt a numbing jolt of profound lull

sight of Rudolf Hess, tall and resolute, his hard-muscled

right arm extended in the Nazi salute, moved him almost to tears.

This man, born to wear the German uniform, possessed a devotion far

deeper than loyalty, deeper than patriotism. As Hess turned and marched

through the study door, Adolf Hitler, his hands resting on the plans for

the world's youngest imperial city, realized that he had not asked the

ultimate sacrifice of his deputy or his friend-but his disciple.

B 0 0 K TWO TH AF d If ... the Jew conquers the nations of this world,

his crown will become the funeral wreath of humanity, and once again

this Janet, empty of mankind, will move p rough the ether as it did

thousands of years ago.

Eternal Nature inexorably revenges the transgressions of her laws,

Therefore, I believe today that I am acting in the sense of the Almighty

Creator-' BY warding off the Jews I am fighting for the Lord's work.

ADOLF HITLER, Mein KaMPf

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

2.04 A.m. Lufthansa Flight 417. South African Airspace

The German airliner shuddered against the increased drag of descent'

Hans Apfel took a deep breath and gripped the armrests tighter. The

announcement bell rang.

"Attention ladies and gentlemen," said a male voice.

"This is your captain speaking. We are now beginning our descent into

Jan Smuts International Airport. We expect to arrive on schedule.

The temperature is seventy-eight degrees Fahrenheit in Johannesburg.

There's been no rain for two weeks, and none expected soon. We hope,

you enjoy your stay in South Africa, and we appreciate your flying

Lufthansa. Danke Schdn."

"Nice change," Hauer remarked.

"What?" said Hans.

"The weather."

"What?"

"It's summer here, Hans. No snow. We've hardly had a break for three

weeks in Berlin."

"Oh. Sorry. I was thinking about the exchange. Have you settled on

the plan yet?"

Hauer nodded. "With our limited resources, there's really only one

option. We've got to find some place that's really open, but with

plenty of concealment for me. An empty football stadium would be ideal.

I can hide in the standsthe high ground-while you make the exchange on

the field.

You'll have two jobs. The first is acting."

"Acting?"

Hauer nodded. "You're going to be holding a grenade, and you've got to

act like you'll blow everyone to hell if they don't hand Ilse over as

soon as they touch the papers."

"I won't have to act," Hans said.

"I'm afraid you will. it won't be a live grenade. We won't have access

to one. We'll buy an empty one at an army surplus shop. The grenade is

just a prop to speed things along.

We want Ilse in your hands ten seconds after you hand the papers over."

"And my second job?"

"Running. As soon as you get Ilse, you'll start walking toward

preplanned cover. The kidnappers will have no intention of letting you

escape alive, of course. When you hear the first shots, you run like

hell."

"What's your job?"

Hauer made a pistol with his thumb and forefinger. "Suppressing fire.

The second you get Ilse clear of my line of fire, I start knocking

people down. The first shot you hear will be mine. I'll take out the

men on the field, plus anyone they may have covering the exchange

location."

Hans studied Hauer's face. "Can you do that?"

"I won't lie to you. Two snipers would be better. But I'm still one of

the best rifle shots-in Germany. I can do it."

Hans stared out of the small window at the stars hanging-2

in the African darkness. "Have you used this plan before?"

Hauer smiled faintly. "I've seen it used. Ten years ago I saw