Page 22 of The Last Safe Place

“No, it’s enough to put it on file. But we do need a code name for Frau Kronberg.” Bernd took out paper and pencil.

“What? Right now?” Knut stared at him in horror.

“Of course, what did you think? We need it for the document that asserts Frau Kronberg is an informal Abwehr employee.” Bernd let the pen hover above the paper and looked at Knut expectantly.

“I’m a soldier, not a novelist. I can’t invent a code name on command,” Knut protested.

“Oh, come on. You’ll think of something, it’s not that hard.”

“Oh yes? Then why don’tyoudo it?”

Bernd smirked. “Because I’m the one doing the writing.”

After racking his brain for a few minutes for a suitable code name, Knut said, “Heloise.”

“He… what?”

“Don’t tell me you don’t know who Heloise was? Tsk. Education is not what it used to be.” Knut’s father, a former elementary school principal, had always strongly encouraged his children to read books – mainly biographies or historical novels.

“So tell me.”

“Heloise was a healer who lived around the same time as Hildegard of Bingen. It’s the most appropriate name I can think of.”

Bernd wrote down the name. “Yes, it rolls well off the tongue. I’m sure Frau Kronberg will like it.”

“It doesn’t matter, since she will probably never use her code name – after all she’s not really working for the Abwehr.”

Knut took his hat and coat from the rack. “Off to battle I go! I shall defeat Becker with ease.”

Bernd burst out laughing. “Good luck.”

Opening the door, he added, “If the boss asks, I have something else to do afterward and won’t be back in the office until tomorrow.”

“I’ll let him know. Have a nice evening. Hopefully tomorrow you’ll bring him good news from the Gestapo,” Bernd answered for the benefit of two colleagues marching down the hallway, while he winked at him. Nobody must know they had a date that evening.

When Bernd arrived at Knut’s apartment that evening, he greeted him with a kiss, before he asked, “So?”

“Piece of cake.” Knut gave a satisfied grin.

“Does that mean you managed to prevent Frau Kronberg’s deportation?”

“Yes. I’ll tell you over dinner.” Knut wanted to draw out the news a little longer. “Could you please set the table? I just need to warm up the casserole quickly.”

Knut usually ate lunch in the officer’s mess at the Bendlerblock and was happy with bread and cheese in the evening. If he needed something warm, he would let the housekeeper know, who would cook in advance for him. It was an arrangement that served him very well, although the woman was probably wondering why he had wanted a hot dinner so often lately.

If Bernd and Knut went out together, they always had to be on their guard, so they preferred to spend their precious free time together undisturbed in Knut’s apartment. Usually they didn’t talk about work, as that took up enough of their lives already.

While eating the leek, potato and ground meat casserole, Bernd broached the subject again. “Tell me already. How was your visit to the Gestapo?”

“Grueling.” Knut put the fork aside, leaned his head back and stared at the ceiling. “Becker had serious doubts about the story. I spent a long time persuading him before he was convinced that Frau Kronberg of all people was irreplaceable to the Wehrmacht.”

“I feared as much. It’s become more difficult for me with every visit.” This wasn’t the first time someone had been protected from the tentacles of the Gestapo at the personal request of Hans von Dohnanyi or Admiral Canaris. And it wasn’t just Becker who seemed suspicious over the authenticity of the requests.

Knut picked up his fork again, and chewed thoughtfully before continuing. “I can’t tell if Becker likes me or not. But itdoesn’t change the fact that he’s intent on not letting any Jews slip through his fingers, just because the Abwehr sticks their oar in, as he put it. We’ll have to tell Dohnanyi that the Gestapo are digging their heels in, and Frau Kronberg’s suspension was probably the last we’ll get.”

“He won’t want to hear that.” Bernd’s smile warmed Knut’s heart. “You know him. Always trying to help others.”

“Did you know he has Jewish heritage himself?”