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Ambassador himself. He suggested that von Ribbentrop arrange for at least one of them to come to Berlin on the next

Lufthansa Condor flight." "Did he provide their names?"

"Yes. Gradny-Sawz, von Wachtstein, and Sturmbann fiihrer von Tresmarck. I think your first order of business would be to have their dossiers sent up, so that you and I can have a fresh look at them." "Jawohl, Herr Reichsfiihrer."

"There will be a meeting of the others, and I would like to have that information before I go to that." "I understand, Herr

Reichsfuhrer." "And then I'd like your recommendations for someone to send to Warsaw to deal with that incredible problem."

"Before I knew of this, Herr Reichsfiihrer, I made arrangements to take you there. There is a Heinkel at your disposal at Templehof."

"I thought perhaps you might suggest yourself. " "If the

Reichsfiihrer-SS had decided going to Warsaw was not worth his time, yes, sir."

Himmler was aware that von Deitzberg was ambitious and that he stood a far better chance of promotion to

Brigadefuhrer (brigadier general) if he had some operational experience in the field.

"The problem, Manfred, is priority," Himmler said kindly.

"The Argentine operation is of far greater importance to the

Reich than the unfortunate business in Warsaw. I need you here, at least until some decisions are made about Argentina."

"I understand, Herr Reichsfuhrer."

"Can you think of someone off the top of your head?"

"Three or four people, Herr Reichsfuhrer. But I thought you might wish to go over their dossiers with me before you made your decision."

"Good idea. Get the dossiers as soon as you can."

"Jawohl, Herr Reichsfuhrer."

[TWO]

The Chancellery of the German Reich

Wilhelmstrasse

Berlin

2230 27 April 1943

Though it was officially the Reich Chancellery Air Raid

Shelter, everyone thought of it-and called it-"the

Fiihrerbunker."

Under the supervision of Hitler's personal architect,

Albert Speer, a new Chancellery had been built in 1938-39 on the grounds of what was now known as "the old Reich

Chancellery." The new structure was far more imposing than the old, in both size and style.

The Fiihrer had studied the proposed plans for the new

Reich Chancellery and the bunker carefully, made a few

"suggestions" for improvement, and then had watched the actual construction with great interest.

After the bunker was finished, the courtyard of the old

Chancellery looked very much like it had before the shelter was built. There were two exceptions.

The first was a round-roofed one-story building in a cor ner of the courtyard, which served as an above-ground observation post for the guards of the SS-Leibstandarte (Life

Guards) Adolf Hitler Regiment, who had been assigned the duty of protecting the bunker. A three-story flight of stairs under this building led down into the bunker and provided an emergency exit from it.

The second was the main entrance to the bunker. Con structed of thick concrete, and equipped with theoretically bombproof doors, it clashed architecturally with the Chan cellery Building, but aesthetics had to give way to practical military engineering when the lives of the Fiihrer and his closest advisers were at stake.

Only two senior Nazi officials had their own quarters in the

Fiihrer bunker: the Fiihrer's closest advisers, Martin Bormann and the clubfooted Dr. Josef Goebbels, Minister of Propa ganda.

Not even Reichsmarschall Hermann Goring or Field Mar shal Wilhelm Keitel had space in the Fiihrer bunker. Nor did

Admiral Karl Donitz, head of the German Navy, nor

Joachim von Ribbentrop, nor Rear Admiral Wilhelm

Canaris, nor Reichsfiihrer-SS Heinrich Himmler.

Space had been found, however, for Adolf Hitler's good friend, Fraiilein Eva Braun, who had her own bedroom mod estly apart from the Fiihrer's.

Since it was useful to have an intelligent and trustworthy second pair of eyes and ears at important meetings, when

Reichsfiihrer-SS Heinrich Himmler went to the Reich Chan cellery this afternoon, he took Oberfiihrer Manfred von

Deitzberg with him, but managed to get von Deitzberg only as far as the foot of the stairway leading downward from the courtyard of the Chancellery.

When Himmler and von Deitzberg passed through the two steel doors leading to the main bunker stairs, they were snappily saluted by the Schutzstaffel noncommissioned offi cers on duty and passed through without question. Himmler was, after all, the Reichsfiihrer-SS, and the guards knew von

Deitzberg was his adjutant. But as Himmler reached the bottom of the last of the long flights of stairs, he realized he wouldn't be able to take von Deitzberg any farther. Sitting in a row on steel chairs in the small area outside the bunker waiting room were Deputy

Minister Georg Friedrich von Lowzer of the Foreign Min istry and the aides-de-camp to Admirals Donitz and Canaris.

Someone has decided, Himmler thought, that a deputy foreign minister, a Navy captain, and a Navy commander- not to mention an SS-Oberfiihrer-are not important enough to wait in the actual waiting room.

And there is no question in my mind that that someone is

Martin Bormann.

"May I get the Herr Oberfuhrer a coffee?" a Leibstandarte

Hauptsturmfuhrer politely inquired of von Deitzberg.

I wonder, Himmler thought as a Leibstandarte Obersturm fiihrer opened the door to the waiting room for him, if that bastard Bormann will have the effrontery to keep me waiting in here.

There was no one in the long, narrow waiting room but another Leibstandarte Hauptsturmfiihrer, who gave Himmler the Nazi salute.

'This way, if you please, Herr Reichsfuhrer-SS," he said, and led him through a cloakroom lined with metal wall lockers into Martin Bormann's office. It was furnished simply with a metal desk and chair, a low filing cabinet, and a small table.

The two admirals and the Foreign Minister were seated at the table.

Bormann, leaning against his desk, wore the brown uni form of the National Socialist Workers party. He was forty three, a stocky man of a little less than medium height, and wore his hair close-cropped.

"Ah, there you are, Heinrich!" Bormann greeted Himmler with a smile, and offered his hand. "We've been waiting for you."

Himmler consulted his wristwatch. He forced himself to smile.

"You said half past seven," he said. "It is seven twenty nine.

"No one comes in here," Bormann announced to the Leib standarte Hauptsturmftihrer. "And no calls, except from the

Fiihrer. Or someone calling for the Fiihrer."

"Jawohl, Herr Reichsleiter," the Hauptsturmfuhrer said, and closed the door.

Himmler nodded in turn to Donitz, von Ribbentrop, and

Canaris. Each returned the nod.

"The Reichsmarschall, Generalfeldmarschall Keitel, and

Dr. Goebbels are with the Fiihrer at Wolfsschanze," Bor mann announced. "Keitel is aware of the cable from Buenos

Aires. I thought I would wait until we see what this meeting decides before seeking instructions from the Fiihrer."

Himmler thought: There is an implication in that which I don't like, that he alone decides what the Fiihrer will or will not be told.

In this case, since the Fiihrer is likely to be furious when he hears about the mess in Argentina, I will allow him to indulge his vanity.

"Has there been anything more than the first cable?"

Himmler asked.

Von Ribbentrop shook his head. He was wearing a busi ness suit, the only one there not in uniform. He was fifty, a small, once-handsome man whose blond hair was turning gray.

"The cable said very little," Bormann said, addressing von

Ribbentrop and making the observation an accusation.

Ambassador von Lutzenberger was a diplomat, and diplo mats were the responsibility of the Foreign Minister.

"It gave us the facts, Martin," Himmler argued reason ably. "And I rather admire von Lutzenberger's concern that our cables might not be as secure as we would like to believe."