Griffin W.E.B. - Honor Bound 03 - Secret Honor

Martin chuckled and shook his head.

"It could be, if all these hypotheticals were true, that Don

Cletus doesn't trust Almond, or the people he works for, to keep a secret. And that divulgence of that secret to the wrong people-intentionally or inadvertently-would probably see not only Galahad, but many other people, innocent people, killed."

Martin looked at Leibermann for a long moment. "Have you heard anything else of interest lately?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Not a thing, I'm afraid. And you?"

Martin shook his head. Then he stood up.

"It's always a pleasure to see you, Milton," he said.

"Likewise, Bernardo. Tell me, have you been to the zoo lately?"

"No, but one of these days I'm going to have to go."

He put his hand out to Leibermann, shook it, and walked back through the Caf6 Tortoni to Avenida de Mayo.

[ FIVE ]

The Office of the Foreign Minister

Berlin

1410 25 May 1943

Parteileiter Martin Bormann was the first to arrive, in reply to a telephone call from Foreign Minister von Ribbentrop.

"What's this all about?" he demanded brusquely.

"Something has come up in connection with Operation

Phoenix that requires an immediate decision. From every one," von Ribbentrop said, and then, just a shade sarcasti cally, "Good afternoon, Martin. You're looking well."

"I left an important meeting to come here," Bormann said.

"If I was rude, I apologize. Others are coming?"

"The Reichsprotektor and Admiral Canaris," von Ribbentrop said. "Keitel and Donitz are at Wolfsshanze."

"What has come up? Or would you rather wait until the others get here?"

Von Ribbentrop handed him several sheets of paper.

"Would you like a coffee, Martin, while we're waiting for the others?"

"Coffee? No," Bormann replied, then, "This came in two days ago?"

"It came in ten minutes before I called you. There was some bomb damage to communications, the cryptographic facility. Everything was delayed. You don't want coffee?"

"No, thank you," Bormann said, and resumed reading the message.

Von Ribbentrop summoned his secretary and asked her to bring him a coffee and to make sure there would be coffee for the others when they arrived.

"Jawohl, Excellency," his secretary said, and added:

"Excellency, Admiral Canaris called, and said that he cannot make this meeting; he is sending Fregattenkapitan von und zu Waching and Korvettenkapitan Boltitz to represent him."

Bormann looked up from the message. "Canaris is obvi ously smarter than I am. What is this thing, anyway?

"Once you finish it, Martin, I believe it will all be clear," von Ribbentrop said.

Bormann snorted and resumed reading.

CLASSIFICATION: MOST URGENT

CONFIDENTIALITY: MOST SECRET

DATE: 22 MAY 1943 1645 BUENOS AIRES

TIME

FROM: AMBASSADOR, BUENOS AIRES

TO: IMMEDIATE AND PERSONAL ATTENTION

OF THE FOREIGN MINISTER OF THE GERMAN

REICH

HEIL HITLER!

MY DEAR HERR VON RIBBENTROP.

FOLLOWING IS A REPORT OF AN AUDIENCE WITH

THE MINISTER OF LABOR OF THE REPUBLIC

OF ARGENTINA, OBERST JUAN DOMINGO PERON

(PERON), HELD AT PERON'S INVITATION 22

MAY 1943 IN A PRIVATE DINING ROOM OF THE

OFFICERS' CLUB ON PLAZA SAN MARTIN.

PRESENT WERE THE AMBASSADOR OF THE REICH

TO THE ARGENTINE REPUBLIC (LUTZEN) AND

GENERALMAJOR MANFRED RITTER VON

DEITZBERG (DEITZ).

PERON ON 20 MAY 1943 PERSONALLY

TELEPHONED LUTZEN AND DEITZ AND SAID

THERE WAS A MATTER OF GREAT PERSONAL

IMPORTANCE TO HIM HE WISHED TO DISCUSS

WITH US AT LUNCHEON AT OUR EARLIEST

CONVENIENCE, IN THE HOPE THAT THE GERMAN

EMBASSY AND OFFICER CORPS WOULD BE

WILLING TO HELP IN THE RESOLUTION OF THE

PROBLEM.

BOTH LUTZEN AND DEITZ, WITHOUT PRIOR

CONSULTATION WITH EACH OTHER, IMMEDIATELY

ACCEPTED PERON'S INVITATION, AND INFORMED

PERON THEY WOULD BE AVAILABLE AT HIS

CONVENIENCE. PERON SUGGESTED 1330 HOURS

22 MAY AT THE OFFICERS' CLUB.

PERON IMMEDIATELY BROUGHT THE PROBLEM TO

OUR ATTENTION, BY INFORMING US OF THE

PROBLEM, AND WHAT ASSIS TANCE HE SOUGHT FROM US IN ITS RESO LUTION.

SPECIFICALLY, MAJOR HANS-PETER VON

WACHTSTEIN (HANS) HAS IMPREGNATED

SENORITA ALICIA CARZINO-CORMANO (ALI CIA). HER CONDITION AT THIS TIME IS

KNOWN ONLY TO HER PRIEST, THE REV.

KURT WELNER, S.J. (JESUIT), AND

PERON. ALICIA IS ONE OF -TWO DAUGH TERS OF SENORA CLAUDIA CARZINO CORMANO (MOTHER) -.

HANS IS THE SON OF GENERALLEUTNANT

KARL FRIEDRICH VON WACHTSTEIN (OLD WACH) WHO SERVES ON THE STAFF OF THE

FUHRER.

PERON TOOK PAINS TO POINT OUT THE

CONNECTIONS OF THE PRINCIPALS. MOTHER

HAD A TWENTY-YEAR-LONG RELATIONSHIP

WITH THE LATE OBERST JORGE GUILLERMO

FRADE (OLDFRADE), WHOM PERON

CONSIDERS TO HAVE 'BEEN HIS BEST

FRIEND, AND WHO LOOKED ON THE GIRLS

AS HIS DAUGHTERS, AS, PERON SAID, HE

NOW DOES. MOTHER'S ELDEST DAUGHTER

ISABELA WAS AFFIANCED TO THE LATE

HAUPTMANN JORGE ALEJANDRO DUARTE,

ARGENTINE ARMY (JORGE), WHO FELL ON

THE FIELD OF BATTLE AT STALINGRAD

WHILE SERVING AS AN OBSERVER WITH

VON PAULUS' S ARMY AND WHOM THE

FUHRER IN THE NAME OF GERMAN REICH

POSTHUMOUSLY AWARDED THE KNIGHT'S

CROSS OF THE IRON CROSS.

JORGE WAS THE SON OF SENOR HUMBERTO

DUARTE (BANKER) AND HIS WIFE BEAT RICE (BANKER'S WIFE), WHO IS THE

SISTER OF THE LATE OLDFRADE.

HANS MET ALICIA IN CONNECTION WITH

HIS DUTIES IN RETURNING THE REMAINS

OF JORGE TO ARGENTINA. PERON WAS IN

BERLIN AT THE TIME HANS WAS BEING

PROPOSED FOR THE MISSION, AND

PERON'S APPROVAL OF HANS FOR THE DUTY

WAS SOUGHT, IF MEMORY SERVES, BY THE

HERR FOREIGN MINISTER HIMSELF.

WITH THE EXCEPTION OF OLDFRADE'S SON,

CLETUS HOWELL FRADE (YOUNG-FRADE),