Page 36 of A Call to Home (Women of the Resistance #3)

Bosnia

May and June 1944

Over the days that followed Steve struggled to find time to write in his diary but he was determined to keep a record of the dramatic events in which he was participating. He was afraid that otherwise they would just be a confused blur when he looked back.

May 27th

Tito never ceases to amaze us. Like a conjuror, he always has

another trick up his sleeve. We woke yesterday morning to the sound of

gunfire in the hills above us. Then two scouts ran in from different

directions, shouting that German foot soldiers were fanning out through

the forest, obviously intending to surround us. Tito was very calm.

Sitting on a log in the middle of the clearing he was discussing the

situation with his senior advisers. He called Alix and me to him and

started dictating messages, written ones to be sent by courier to units

we don’t have radio contact with, and others to be encrypted and sent

over the air to those we do. He was already trying to get to grips with

what is happening in other areas and sending out instructions for the

redeployment of the troops he has left. All the time the sound of firing

was getting closer. Then a Verey light went up from somewhere nearby and

Tito got up and said, ‘time to move’. He led us along a forest track and

there we came upon an amazing sight. The train I remembered from Jajce,

the one Walter had nicknamed the Partisan Express, was standing in a

siding with steam up and ready to go. By now, bullets were beginning to

thud into the trees and ricochet off the rocks. We all climbed into the

carriages, Tigger included, the little engine whistled and off we went!

Bullets were pinging off the funnel and spraying the sides of the

carriages but the engine driver opened up the throttle and we were soon

out of range. The tracks only went on for another five miles or so, but

it was enough to break us out of the encirclement. We piled out and

started to march, heading for the high ground and keeping to the forest

paths only the Partisans and the locals know. It was a ten-hour slog but

we now seem to have left the Boches behind and have made camp for the

night.

May 30th

What a fool I was to think we had outsmarted the enemy! They were

on us again by dawn the next day and since then we have been constantly

on the march. We have had several close encounters, with fighting almost

hand to hand. I’ve never seen Alix in a tight corner before but now I

understand why Tito values his partisanska so highly. All the women

fight alongside the men with great courage. Alix is as brave as any of

them and she is an excellent shot with a rifle. I am constantly amazed

by her coolness and bravery. Thank god for the RAF. There were three

occasions when we were pinned down and in grave danger of being overrun

but we were able to call in air support and a flight of Spitfires

machine-gunned the Boches and forced them to retreat, which gave us a

chance to break out. Tito has earned our admiration. Even in these

circumstances he has remained calm and in control, sending out messages

whenever we had the chance to stop for a few minutes and assessing the

responses coming in from the other units. They are not under particular

pressure at the moment. It seems this German operation is concentrated

entirely on capturing Tito. Food and ammunition are running low and we

are all very tired. Not sure how much longer this can go on.

June 2nd

We were able to stop long enough to receive an air drop of very

welcome supplies today but within hours we were on the move

again.

June 3rd

We have arrived at Kupresco Polje, another of those basins of

level pasture set in a cradle of mountains that seem to be a feature of

the local topography. The pressure of pursuit has lessened. I think the

Boches may have lost our trail, temporarily, but Tito has made a very

surprising decision. He asked Major Street to join him for a conference

and said that he realises it is impossible for him to keep control of

the strategic situation while he is constantly being hounded from place

to place. He needs to have a stable base from which to operate. He has

therefore asked Street to arrange for him to be picked up and flown to

Italy. I was really stunned by the request to begin with. I associate

him so strongly with the Partisan life in the mountains, and I would

never have imagined him leaving the country, but I can see the sense of

what he is asking. Now we have good radio contact with his other main

detachments he can organise the struggle just as well from Italy, in

fact better. Anyway, it’s decided. The request went out and we have been

told to stand by for a pickup tonight. So it was all hands to clearing

scrub and rocks on the polje to make a landing strip. The weather is

unsettled. We can only pray for a clear night.

June 4th, Bari

We made it! It looked as if we wouldn’t last night. The sky was

overcast with a hint of thunder but someone ‘up there’ must be on Tito’s

side, even if he refuses to believe in Him, because a few minutes before

the plane was due the clouds parted and the moon came out. As soon as we

heard the engine we rushed to light the signal fires. He flew in low,

made one circuit and came into land and we all rushed to get on board.

By all, I mean Tito and his closest associates, including Alix and, of

course, Tigger, the Russian delegation and us Brits. The plane wasn’t on

the ground more than five minutes and we took off very smoothly. It was

dawn by the time we crossed the Italian coast and I have never been

gladder to see the coastline of any country!

There is one interesting point. The crew of the Dakota were all Russians! It turns out the plane is part of the American lend lease programme, given to the Ruskies but flown under the control of the RAF. I wonder whose bright idea it was to let them be the ones to pick us up. It means that now the Russians can claim to be the people who rescued Tito. He was met by a Russian staff car and whisked away to a villa somewhere on the outskirts.

We, of course, as service personnel, are in the RAF barracks. I must say they gave us a slap-up meal in the mess when we arrived, a sort of combination of breakfast and lunch – the best meal I’ve eaten in a very long time. Of course, the downside is that I can’t be with Alix but at least I know she’s safe and I’m sure we’ll find a way to get together.

Not sure what is going to happen next. Maclean is here, so I assume he and Tito will come up with a plan of some sort. Meanwhile, the sun is hot, the food and wine are great, and nobody is trying to gun us down. Life is good!

June 6th, Bari

Great excitement! D-Day has arrived. The Allies have landed on

the beaches of Normandy.

Nobody thinks it’s going to be a walkover. The troops here in Italy are still engaged in bloody battles for every mile of ground and it will be the same in France, I’m sure. But surely, with our men advancing from here and the others pushing in from Normandy the Germans must cave in before too long. It makes our little war in Yugoslavia look like a bit of a side show, but if Tito’s Partisans can keep a couple of divisions of Boches occupied there it means they won’t be available to bolster the German defences around Berlin, so it must be worth keeping going. Anyway, it will be drinks all round in the mess tonight in celebration.

Alix rolled over in bed and stretched luxuriously. This bed was very different from the narrow cot she had sometimes shared with Steve in the lean-to in Drvar, or the bed with the broken springs she had slept on in Jajce. For the last nine days she had not been to bed at all. Any sleep, which had to be snatched in the brief pauses when the Germans seemed to have temporarily lost their trail, had been on the hard ground and her muscles still ached. Now she lay on a feather mattress, between clean linen sheets and, best of all, there was no noise of rifle fire. She was safe.

The villa that had been allotted to Tito must have belonged to a wealthy Italian family and was luxuriously appointed. There was even a bathroom, but to her great disappointment when she went to wash she found there was no hot water. Bari, like the rest of Italy, had been on a war footing for years and supplies of fuel and electricity were erratic, if available at all.

Alix found Tito at breakfast on the terrace overlooking the sea. The coffee was ersatz but there was fresh bread and boiled eggs and slices of air-dried ham. Tito was looking tired. He had lost the weight he had put on in Jajce and his cheeks were hollow. But his eyes when he greeted her were bright.

‘So,’ he said, ‘we live to fight another day, and my little flame of the forest has not been extinguished. The question is, what next? Where do we go from here?’

‘Do you have any ideas about that?’ she asked.

They were interrupted by the arrival of the rest of the Supreme Council and Alix withdrew tactfully to the end of the table while various plans were discussed. Very soon, these discussions were themselves interrupted by a maid announcing the arrival of Brigadier Maclean. He strode across the terrace to clasp Tito by the hand.

‘I am thankful to see you alive and well, Marshall. We have been very worried about you. I was on the point of arranging a flight to join you when we heard that the Germans had overrun Drvar.’

‘Well, we have survived, as you see,’ Tito said, ‘and that is partly due to the help we received from your RAF, for which I am duly grateful.’

‘So, what next?’ Maclean asked. ‘Do you have plans?’

‘We have just been discussing that,’ Tito said. ‘We wish to go to the island of Vis. It is still Yugoslav territory and still under Partisan control.’

Maclean nodded. ‘That strikes me as an excellent idea. There is an RAF base on the island already and we have a force of naval MTBs operating from there. You would be safe there and well positioned to keep in touch with your other detachments on the mainland. If that is what you wish to do, I will arrange for a navy ship to take you and your men there.’

‘Flight Lieutenant Popovic.’

‘Sir.’ Steve came to attention.

The group captain regarded him with a look of puzzlement. ‘You came over with Tito and his lot, I understand?’

‘That is correct, sir.’

‘You are Yugoslavian, I presume.’

‘No, sir. I’m an American. But I volunteered for the RAF when the war started, before America came into the war.’

‘Hmph,’ the group captain grunted. ‘Very creditable. But I don’t understand what your position is here. What were you doing with the Jugs?’

‘I was seconded to the Royal Yugoslav Army as a liaison officer, before the German attack. When the army collapsed, I joined the resistance.’

‘Seconded by whom?’

‘Not sure I’m supposed to say, sir.’

‘Oh. I get it. You’re one of these SOE types. Yes?’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘So who’s your commanding officer?’

‘Brigadier Maclean will vouch for me, I think, sir.’

‘Maclean?’ The group captain looked glad to be relieved of the problem. ‘Okay. You’d better report to him, then. But for god’s sake get yourself properly dressed. You look a disgrace.’

Maclean looked up from his desk. ‘Ah, Steve. You wanted to see me?’

‘Yes, sir. I’m in a bit of a difficult position. I’m not sure what I’m supposed to be doing.’

‘Doing?’

‘Well, am I supposed to remain with the British mission to Tito, or should I go back to my squadron, wherever they may be.’

Maclean rubbed his chin. ‘I see your point. Who do you report to? General Gubbins?’

Steve noted that the man who had recruited him was now a general. ‘It was him who sent me out to Yugoslavia, but I’ve been out of touch for some time.’

‘What do you want to do? I should tell you that Walter Wroughton is being returned to Cairo. He’s served his stint behind the lines. You could go with him. Or do you want to stay on with Tito?’

Steve had no hesitation about that. He was sure Alix would not leave Tito. ‘Yes, sir. If I’m allowed to.’

‘Tell you what. I’ll contact Gubbins and ask what he wants you to do. I’ll let you know as soon as I hear from him.’

Steve stepped back. ‘Thank you, sir.’

The next morning he received a message. ‘ General Gubbins’ orders are for you to remain with Tito and to continue your original task. ’ By which he understood that he was to provide a direct channel of intelligence to the head of SOE, as he had done when he was with Mihailovic.