He slipped back into the shadows as more young men passed the garage. Their reaction to the sight of the gallows was the opposite of his: an expectant thrill. ‘Goose-stepping little shits,’ he muttered — but then he took a closer look. They were all in uniform, but none appeared armed. A hundred Nazis, but no guns…
A glance back at the tool shelves, and he had his plan. He returned to the hole to see Roland still outside. ‘Herr Chase,’ whispered the youth. ‘Have you finished?’
‘Change of plan,’ Eddie replied. ‘Look, you know this place well, right? Ways to move around without being seen, hiding places, that kind of thing?’
‘Yes. Ever since we were children, Volker and I explored the Enklave whenever we could.’
‘Good, ’cause we’re gonna need ’em. Is there somewhere you can wait for me behind that stage?’
Roland looked uncomfortable. ‘Everyone is expected to attend the rally. I should already be in my quarters to put on my uniform — if I am late, they will search for me. And if they are searching for me, they may find you.’
‘They’ll wish they hadn’t.’
‘But if anyone is missed, the whole Enklave will be placed on alert, and you will never save your wife and your friends. I must go, I am sorry. But there is a red hut on the far side of the parade ground; under it, there is room to hide if you can get in without being seen. I will meet you there.’ Seeing the Englishman’s doubting expression, he added: ‘I promised Julieta I would help you. I would never lie to her — so I will not lie to you.’
Eddie was still dubious, but was also running out of time. ‘Okay then,’ he finally said. ‘You go and get ready.’
‘What are you going to do?’
‘Fix those trucks. And get some weapons.’
Roland frowned, puzzled. ‘But there are no weapons in there.’
Eddie gave him a sardonic smile. ‘People always said the Nazis were unimaginative…’
28
Nina looked up as the cell door swung open, revealing four men waiting outside.
Four men dressed in full Waffen-SS uniforms.
Zane drew in a sharp breath at the sight, and she felt a chill of disbelieving fear. These were not costumes; they were real. The Nazis were supposed to be dead and gone, as much a part of history as Alexander the Great. Yet they had survived, trapdoor spiders patiently waiting in their remote hiding hole, ready to re-emerge as cruel and evil as ever…
All carried sub-machine guns. The leader jabbed his weapon at the prisoners. ‘Stand up. Now.’
‘Fick dich ins Knie,’ Zane told them with a defiant snarl. The lead Nazi’s lip curled in anger — then he clubbed the Israeli with his gun. Two of his companions joined in, the fourth man pointing his weapon at Nina to deter her from interfering.
‘Leave him alone, you bastards!’ she yelled. They ignored her, each man getting in one final blow on the Mossad agent before he was hauled up and his hands cuffed behind his back.
‘It is time,’ intoned the leader. ‘Move.’ He and another man dragged Zane out as the remaining pair secured Nina’s hands, then took her by both arms and followed.
The concrete jail’s outer door was opened — and she heard men chanting in unison as an amplified voice echoed above the noise, ranting in German.
Kroll. The Nazi leader had started his rally, working his troops into a frenzy of hatred. She felt sick. This was not a decades-old recording. This was happening now.
To her.
The soldiers took their prisoners through the heart of the Enklave to an open area under piercing floodlights. Ranks of uniformed men stood on each side as Nina and Zane were brought towards a stage at the opposite end.
On it sat the Nazi leaders, looking down upon their followers as if on thrones. Schneider. Gausmann. Walther. Rasche. And standing upon a rostrum at the centre of the stage, his bloated body squeezed into a black SS uniform, was Kroll, one hand repeatedly stabbing the air to emphasise his words. The crowd roared a horrifying response to each proclamation: ‘Sieg heil! Sieg heil! Heil Hitler!’
Nina glanced fearfully at the audience. Faces twisted in loathing turned towards the two captives. The Nazi rank-and-file ranged in age from their teens to their fifties; the water in the pithos had not been shared. She saw only one hard-faced woman amongst the men, as caught up in the mania as her male companions. Arms stretched aloft in rigid salutes. ‘Heil Hitler! Heil Hitler!’
But the crowd was not the most terrifying aspect of the rally. Nina stiffened in fear as she was forced ever closer to the two gallows. A tall wooden stool stood before each, nooses dangling above them.
Kroll’s gaze turned to the new arrivals. ‘And now here are the spies,’ he barked, switching seamlessly to English. None of the audience had any difficulty understanding him; the change was to terrorise the prisoners. ‘This agent of the Jewish Mossad is the reason we must act now to protect our future. Where there is one rat, more will soon follow, so we must leave before they find us — but this rat will not live to see that happen!’
‘Sieg heil! Sieg heil!’ Men on each side screamed and jeered at Zane.
‘And with the Mossad agent is an American puppet of the Zionists,’ Kroll continued, ‘an official of the United Nations!’ Boos and abuse came from the crowd. ‘She was given the chance to renounce her allegiance and serve the New Reich, but she refused — so now she will pay the price!’
Nina and Zane were taken past the front row of baying Nazis to the gallows. There they were separated and hauled to the stools. The Israeli tried to break loose, but was beaten to his knees. Kroll glowered down at them. ‘This is the fate of all enemies of the Reich,’ he intoned, his voice echoing from loudspeakers around the square. ‘All those who oppose us will die! Der Henker wird nun seinen Platz einnehmen.’
His reversion to German startled Nina, but his instruction soon became clear. Gausmann stood and descended to the twin gallows. White gloves covered his hands. He was not just the Enklave’s chief torturer; he was also its executioner.
‘No,’ gasped Nina, shrinking back. Her guards gripped harder, holding her in place. Gausmann went to Zane first, pushing the noose over his head and pulling it chokingly tight around his neck before turning to Nina. ‘Get back! Get the fuck back!’ she yelled, kicking at him. She caught him on the shin; he flinched, then punched her in the stomach. She doubled over before being yanked upright by the soldiers. ‘Schlampe,’ the German hissed as he forced the noose into place and tugged it hard.
Kroll’s voice boomed from the speakers with triumphant fury, whipping the crowd into a frenzy. Gausmann checked the ropes, then signalled to the Nazi leader. ‘Pull them up!’ Kroll ordered.
The lines were raised via pulleys, snapping taut. The noose dug deeply into Nina’s throat. She tried to scream, but it was compressing her windpipe. Pain crackled through her neck as she was hauled upwards. For a terrifying moment she thought her spine would snap under the unsupported weight of her own body… but then the two guards took her by the legs, relieving the torment.
But only slightly. She still couldn’t breathe, desperately trying to draw in air as she was lifted to stand upon the high stool. The rope’s pull ceased when her boots touched down on its flat top, leaving her wobbling over five feet off the ground.
Zane was raised into position beside her. The ropes were secured around hooks on the vertical poles. Nina squinted at the crowd through pain-squeezed eyes, a sea of screaming faces and armbands red as blood. ‘Sieg heil! Sieg heil! Sieg heil!’ Their animalistic roar was almost physical, threatening to push her from her treacherous footing by sheer volume. She clenched her toes, trying to hold herself steady—