Opening Moves

There was a distinctive whistle to Krantzschen’s voice caused by the absence of his two front upper teeth, victims of a vehicle accident in the Ukraine.

He looked to see if anyone was watching and slipped a piece of cloth into Rolf’s hand.

“I found this jammed in the door runner. I think it was what was preventing it from moving.”

Even before Rolf’s eyes took in exactly what it was, he had a fair idea of what Krantzschen had pressed into his hand. He swiftly summoned Braun for his lighter and a quick flick of the wheel was sufficient for them to see a Major’s epaulette with its pink Panzer waffenfarbe trim quite clearly.

The three of them exchanged looks.

With that one object, all became clear to them.

They had not been digging tank ditches.

The gunfire at night was not part of Russian military manoeuvres.

The increased numbers of trains were not bringing cargoes but German bodies from far afield.

Rolf quietly and solemnly slipped the epaulette back into Krantzschen’s hand and squeezed it around the material firmly, both Braun and Krantzschen immediately understanding that the matter would not be discussed further. Krantzschen slid it back into his pocket for later disposal.

The train progressed slowly through the silent and dark countryside, passing occasionally through sleepy villages, the names of which were softly called out by the watchers.

Breiteneich.

Horn.

Rosenberg.

The names kept coming.

Another scare occurred as they ground to a halt in a larger siding area in order to permit another four trains to pass by, these being mainly blacked out passenger coaches. However, there were enough glowing cigarette ends clustered on the ends of each coach to safely assume that each carriage was crammed with combat troops. The Russians followed the previous routine and extinguished all lights in the area but this time had them all back on by the time the fugitive’s train pulled through. The station was Krems-Donau and according to the platform clock, it was 0223.

The little train rattled slowly on and those looking out of the left-hand doorway absorbed the comforting vision of the dark waters of the Danube slowly flowing eastwards.

At Groisbach their train slewed into a siding and the whole secretive process was repeated, this time with five trains passing slowly by, their military cargo all too apparent.

The final time they were forced to concede the track to military trains they were just west of Marbach, and this time only three trains moved past them.

Sunrise was seemingly delayed by the rain but the gradual arrival of the morning sun seemed to turn off the tap and both wind and rain disappeared in an instant.

After a longer than normal delay, their little train slowly started chugging its way onwards and, now that there was sufficient natural light, Moeller tried to draw a map in the dirt on the wall of the truck to help them all work out where they were and where they were going. Four men were detailed to keep an eye open, especially as the train had slowed down and was making extremely slow progress now.

Kloss, the Kradschutzen Leutnant positioned at a hole on the offside front corner swore audibly and called Rolf to him with some urgency. The hole was large enough for two to look out of and so they both had a grandstand view of a heavily camouflaged railway siding within a wood adjacent to the mainline. Both noted that the trains that they had seen slide past them that very morning were concealed under the vast green awnings.

Of as much interest was the fact that there were at least forty such trains in total, parked in what was rapidly appreciated as a huge area of clear land which was intended to represent woodland. Certainly, any aerial view of the site would see nothing but a vast wooded nature reserve for birds and deer, and no aerial observer would have any idea of the huge amount of tanks, guns, and men underneath the canopy of natural leaves and camouflage netting. Large numbers of Russians were moving about the area, obviously stretching their legs and enjoying an early breakfast. Kloss pointed out a cooking facility that produced no smoke, supplying a line of eager riflemen and tank crew.

It was also apparent that the Russians even removed the spur of rail track that led into the sidings, as Rolf glimpsed a pile of track under a roof on what was supposed to look like a cottage from above. At the other end of the site, a similar building had been erected, obviously where the track was stored prior to being put in place so the trains could continue their onward journey. The switchgear for the dismantled points clearly lay under some false bushes constructed adjacent to the track.