V for Vengeance (45 page)

Kuporovitch's eyes glinted dangerously. ‘I'm not too old to throw you out of the window, and half a dozen more like you.'

‘Please!' Madeleine interposed. ‘My mind's made up, Pierre. I love Stefan, and that's all there is to it. I'm terribly sorry about you—I'd give anything for this not to have happened, but I can't help my own feelings.'

‘You may feel like that now,' Pierre persisted, ‘but that's only because you've been caught in this pretty little trap he's laid for you. Naturally, you've grown fond of him, through having been with him so much all through this past year. Then he suddenly tells you that he's going away, although I bet he had no intention of letting you go off into Unoccupied France with me really. He just said that to stampede you, and you fell for it. You admit yourself that it was only a few minutes ago that you found out you loved him. That isn't love—it's just a sudden surge of emotion which overcame you when you were taken off your guard. In a day or two you'll feel quite differently again and realise that it's nothing more than strong affection you feel for him. For God's sake, Madeleine, don't let yourself be rushed into anything like this! It isn't fair to any of us, not even to him.'

Again Kuporovitch gambled with tremendous courage, as he said quietly: ‘All right, young man. If you honestly believe that, I release Madeleine from the promise to marry me which she made just now. We'll wait until all three of us are out of the wood, then I'll ask her again.'

Madeleine smiled at him. ‘You won't have to, Stefan. I know my own mind, and it's already made up.'

But Pierre clutched swiftly at the straw which had been offered him. ‘In fairness to me, Madeleine, I beg you to take him at his word. But what about tomorrow? Somehow it must be arranged for all three of us to leave together.'

‘All right,' Kuporovitch nodded. ‘One extra won't make any difference to such a large party. You'd better ignore the
orders which you will receive in the morning to proceed into Unoccupied France. Our party is to rendezvous at the Professor's house; but I shall be busy until the last moment, so you shall take Madeleine there. You should arrive punctually at eight o'clock, and I'll join you as soon after that as I can.'

There was a little silence. There seemed no more to be said, but Pierre was obviously reluctant to leave them, so Madeleine murmured: ‘We may be up all tomorrow night, so we'd better get what sleep we can. I think I'll go up to bed.'

With a swift gesture she took Stefan's hand and pressed it. Then the men followed her upstairs.

On the following day none of them left the house. The morning and the afternoon seemed endless, as Madeleine, Kuporovitch and Pierre sat about, waiting for the evening with almost, unendurable suspense. Gregory, who had been out most of the previous night, slept through the day.

When he came downstairs Kuporovitch got him alone and told him of the scene that had occurred the night before. Taking both the Russian's arms, Gregory gave him a friendly shake, as he said:

‘Well done, Stefan! Madeleine's a grand girl; and I felt certain all along that sooner or later she'd realise her luck in having captivated such a splendid fellow as you. As for young Pierre, it's hard luck on him, but he'll get over it in time. I've got to go out and put the spark to the mine now, so I'll leave the two of them to you. I can manage quite well on my own.'

‘No,' said the Russian. ‘We'll stick to our original arrangement. As you've got to put your head into the lion's mouth I can at least wait for you; and if you don't come out you'll know anyway that I shall be around somewhere.'

‘Good old Stefan!' Gregory smiled. ‘If I do slip up, and they detain me, it'll be a big comfort to know that you're still about, ready to seize any chance for a rescue.'

Having said
au revoir
to the others, the two of them set out on what they hoped would be their last walk for a long time to come through the dark depressing streets of Paris. For a little they went forward side by side in silence; then Kuporovitch said: ‘I take it you've heard from Ribaud that von Geisenheim had your letter?'

‘Yes, I saw Ribaud last night. He told me that the General
was extremely interested and guaranteed me a safe conduct to come and see him at the Crillon at seven-thirty.'

‘Do you really think you can trust him?'

‘Yes. As you'll remember, it was von Geisenheim who saved my bacon for me in Finland. He's a Prussian aristocrat of the old type and hates the Nazis like hell. That doesn't mean he's anti-German; but he's one of the men who will lead the Army if they ever stage a
coup d'etat
against Hitler. Our bull point in this case is that he's a diehard anti-Communist, and he's of the school which always believed that years ago Britain and Germany should have entered into an alliance against Russia. It was extraordinarily good luck his being appointed Inspector-General in Occupied France. Of course, we could have put the balloon up from various other quarters, but von Geisenheim is about the best man for our money that we could possibly get.'

In the Rue Royale they parted. Kuporovitch went into Maxim's, where he intended to have a meal while waiting, and it was agreed that Gregory should join him there after having seen the General. Gregory did not think that his interview would last for more than an hour, but if he had not reappeared by half-past nine Kuporovitch was to telephone Ribaud and find out what had happened.

Walking boldly into the main entrance of the Crillon, Gregory asked for the General, stating that he had an appointment. He gave his name as Lucien Rouxel, and produced the faked passport with which Lacroix had furnished him many months before, to prove his identity. After waiting for about five minutes he was taken up to a big room on the first floor.

Von Geisenheim was seated there smoking a long cigar. He was the thin, hatchet-faced type of Prussian who wore his greying hair long and was dressed with meticulous care. His blue eyes, which were wrinkled at the corners, did not change their expression as Gregory advanced towards him, and it was only when the orderly closed the door that his face broke into a wintry smile.

‘Well, well!' he said. ‘I had no idea that Monsieur Lucien Rouxel would prove an old acquaintance. Last time we met you were the Colonel Baron von Lutz, and I suppose you have
half a dozen other aliases in other countries. I must congratulate you upon having kept alive all this time.'

As he waved towards a chair Gregory sat down and smiled back at him. ‘
Danke schõn, Herr General.
It certainly is a far cry from Voroshilov's Headquarters during the Russo-Finnish War to German-occupied Paris. Quite a lot has happened in the last fifteen months, and, knowing your political opinions, perhaps I should congratulate you, too, upon having kept your head on your shoulders.'

Von Geisenheim pushed forward a big silver box full of the long cigars. ‘As I have the walls of this room sounded daily, and everything in it is examined by my military secretary, I don't think the Gestapo has yet succeeded in establishing a dictaphone in it. Nevertheless, one cannot be too careful, so I think we'll keep off the subject of my political opinions.'

‘By all means,' Gregory agreed. ‘But if my visit is to serve any useful purpose I must ask if they have remained unchanged.'

The General's eyes narrowed, and he lowered his voice a little. ‘I have never had any interest but the wellbeing and greatness of Germany. There was a time when certain of us feared that the Nazis might jeopardise that through biting off more than they could chew; but the Fuehrer has proved us wrong, as a glance at the map of Europe as it is today is quite enough to show.'

‘At the map of Europe, yes,' Gregory admitted. ‘But I have always believed in the Duke of Wellington's dictum that one should always use large maps. Are you quite satisfied when you look at the map of the world,
Herr General
?'

Von Geisenheim nodded. ‘The war is very far from being over yet, but our grip on Europe is now unshakable, and with that I don't think we have much to fear.'

‘You are prepared to face a war of exhaustion then?'

‘That should not be necessary. It is hardly likely that with the immense armaments we now possess the Fuehrer will stand still.'

‘An invasion of Britain?' Gregory hazarded.

Von Geisenheim waved his thin hands airily. ‘Because I have given you a safe conduct to this interview that does
not mean that I am prepared to discuss our future strategy with you.'

‘Of course not. I only raised the matter in order to express an opinion that I can hardly expect you to accept, knowing me to be a patriotic Englishman, but which, nevertheless, is absolutely honest. Had you invaded Britain in August 1940 God knows what would have happened. I believe that even then somehow or other we would have managed to drive you out, because you wouldn't have found things the same there as in the other countries which you've overrun. The entire civil population would have risen against you, and we have something in the neighbourhood of forty people for every German soldier you could possibly put over. The slaughter would have been positively appalling, but I don't think you would ever have succeeded in conquering the whole country. As it is, very nearly a year has passed since the collapse of France, and during that time Hitler has missed the boat. If you invaded Britain today you wouldn't stand a dog's chance.'

‘That we may perhaps see in due course; but go on, and tell me what bearing this has on what you were going to say.'

‘Simply that, whether you attempt to invade Britain, move south into Africa or strike East, any of these things would prove a major operation involving the flower of the German Army, and a very high percentage of its effectives. To be successful you would have to denude the occupied territories of Europe of most of their garrisons. Do you think that in such a case you could continue to hold them down?'

‘Why yes. These miserable people are unarmed, so even comparatively light German forces could keep them in order.'

‘Not if the whole lot rose at once under proper leadership into a full-scale revolution.'

‘Where is such leadership to come from? The natural leaders of these conquered peoples have either come over to us or fled abroad.'

‘That's true only of their rulers, politicians and Generals; it is not true of their leaders of tomorrow. They are still here, working underground.'

‘You have in mind the Communists?'

‘I have,
Herr General.
' Gregory sat forward a little, and spoke more earnestly. ‘This is the place where you and I,
who are enemies in all other things, meet on common ground. Whatever either of us may say about the prospects of our respective countries to emerge victorious, each of us knows deep down in his heart that both our people are now prepared to fight to the last ditch. There will be no surrender on either side. Frankly, at present I see no prospect at all of the British ever being able to defeat the main German Armies on the Continent of Europe, but, on the other hand, we still hold command of the seas, and we have an ever-growing Air Force, so I see no prospect either of Hitler's being able finally to defeat the British Empire. For both our sakes, sooner or later, we must make a peace of compromise.'

Von Geisenheim shrugged. ‘I know that you have connections in varying high places. Am I to take it that you are about to put before me unofficial peace proposals?'

‘Oh no!' Gregory smiled. ‘I'm hardly in a position to do that. But it's in my interests as much as yours to avert a common danger. If this war goes on until both our countries are in a state of exhaustion, one fine day the Communists will emerge, and the whole structure of organised Government will go down before them, plunging the whole of Europe into a state of anarchy.'

‘It will be a long time before that is likely to happen.'

‘Perhaps not so long as you think,
Herr General.
Should your main Army undertake any major operation and get itself bogged, as it well might if it attempted the invasion of Britain, or any other move which necessitates its maintaining great forces across water, a Communist rising on a Continent-wide scale will take place behind your backs. Even Germany might be affected, since you know as well as I do that the workers there, although patriotic Germans, are by no means one hundred per cent behind Hitler.'

‘There may be something in what you say, but at the moment it seems to me entirely speculation.'

‘On the contrary.' Gregory produced some sheets of paper from his pocket. ‘You know that I am a British Secret Service agent, and you can guess what I've been doing here—assessing the present state of feelings of the people in Occupied France at first hand. During my enquiries, by pure chance I got on to a certain underground organisation. I was
absolutely amazed to find how great its ramifications are, and I feel certain they can't be known to you. These last few weeks I've put in some extremely hard work following the thing up, and I have here the names and addresses of over a hundred people, mainly living in Paris, who are connected with this movement. They're not all Communists by a long way, but they've gone over to the Communists as the only hope for forming one coherent body which can throw you out of France when the time is ripe. I have reason to believe, too, that the movement does not concern France alone, but has its ramifications in all the other occupied territories.'

Von Geisenheim's eyes narrowed. ‘This is extremely interesting. In view of what you tell me I don't mind admitting that during the past week we've had some most extraordinary reports in from our people in Belgium, Holland, Denmark and Norway. In some raids they made they discovered documents which certainly suggest that such a Continent-wide conspiracy is actually in being.'

Gregory laid a sheaf of papers on the General's desk. ‘If you pull these people in and search their homes, I have no doubt at all that you'll find the same sort of thing. To tell the truth, I hesitated a great deal before I came to you, because, temporarily at least, it would be a fine thing for Britain if we read in our papers one morning that every German in Occupied France had had his throat cut; but I've always thought that one should take a long view. If the German Army is tied up in Turkey, or Morocco, and the whole of Europe suddenly goes Bolshevik in its absence, I don't believe we'd ever be able to prevent Communism spreading to Britain. If that happened the whole of the British ruling caste and all that it stands for would go down the drain. It's as certain as that God made little apples that within a year or two at most the British Empire would disintegrate and that's the thing that I am out to stop.'