Page 128 of The German Mother

Your loving mother

Leila lay back on the lawn and gazed up into the sky. The sun had disappeared behind the line of trees, and the moon was just rising. Doves cooed gently in the eaves of the cottage and the leaves of the apple trees rustled in the breeze. For the first time in years, she felt calm and peaceful, at one with the world.

Sofia emerged from the house and lay down next to her. ‘Are you happy?’

‘Oh yes, darling, very happy.’ Her eyes welled up with tears.

‘Oh, don’t cry, Mutti. It’s going to be all right.’

‘I know…I’m not sad – just relieved.’ She gave Sofia a big hug. ‘Come on, let’s get inside.’

Axel was sitting at the kitchen table, doing his homework. He leapt up excitedly when his mother and sister came into the room. ‘Do we have to go to school tomorrow, Mutti?’

‘Of course you do,’ said Leila, hugging him. ‘But nice try. I have to go to work tomorrow too, so it’s life as normal for us, I’m afraid. Now let’s see what your sister has prepared for supper, and maybe tomorrow I’ll try to get an extra meat ration and we can have a very special celebration dinner.’

That evening, when the children were in bed, Leila wrote two letters – one to her mother and the other to Minki. As usual when writing to Minki, she had to guard against being too explicit.

My darling friend,

I have had wonderful news from Geneva. What you have done for us is beyond brave.

I will write again soon, but I wanted you to know that I will never forget your kindness to me and my parents.

Your loving friend,

Leila

Over the summer, Leila corresponded regularly with Julius, trying to make arrangements to get Hannah and Levi out of Switzerland and into England. But frustratingly nothing could be finalised without an entry visa.

She rang Michael Sullivan’s office on several occasions, but was fobbed off. Then, one morning in early October, Sullivan’s secretary rang Leila at the BBC and invited her to a meeting the following morning.

Praying her request for visas would finally be resolved, she rushed to the meeting and was shown into Sullivan’s office.

‘Ah, dear lady,’ he said, ‘so good of you to come. I have someone I’d like you to meet.’

Sitting on a sofa near the fireplace was a sandy-haired man dressed in the khaki uniform of the American army. He stood up and held out his hand. ‘Hi, my name is Brewster Morgan. It’s great to meet you.’

Over the following hour Major Morgan outlined a plan that was being hatched as a joint initiative between the British Foreign Office and the United States Office of War Information, the OWI. The Americans intended to establish a European broadcasting station based in London, to be known as ABSIE.

‘It will be part of a tactical approach,’ said Brewster, ‘in preparation for our joint invasion of Europe – preparing the people over there for life after the war.’

‘I was under the impression that the OWI was more focussed on propaganda than news,’ said Leila.

‘No no…real propaganda, by which I mean black ops, is the job of the OSS. We’re more about gentle persuasion. But ultimately the Department’s primary objective is to achieve the defeat and unconditional surrender of the enemy, and to win understanding and approval of the American story among the peoples of Europe.’

‘That sounds like a speech you’ve given before,’ said Leila, smiling.

‘You’re right. Itissomething I’ve said before, but that doesn’t make it any less true. We’re not interested in teaching people about America, or even boasting about America. We don’t care if peoplelikethe United States; what we want is that theyunderstandthe United States, on the assumption that the more the truth about America is known, the more the nature of American democracy, as opposed to Nazi totalitarianism, will be understood. It’s soft power, soft propaganda.’

‘We see it,’ interjected Sullivan, ‘as an opportunity to attack enemy morale on the home front, but also to spread accurate and dispassionate information about America and her allies and thus to build confidence among occupied and liberated countries.’

‘Isn’t that what the BBC is doing already?’ asked Leila.

‘Of course,’ said Brewster, ‘the BBC is doing a great job – and we intend to work closely with our BBC colleagues. Indeed we’ll depend on them for many things – not least, their transmitters, their personnel and even their programmes sometimes. But the emphasis of this radio station will be to put over a greater understanding of America.’

‘I see. Well, it all sounds very interesting, Major Brewster, but how can I help?’

‘Ah…well,’ began Sullivan, ‘this is the exciting part…’