The Haigerloch Project

“Okay. Oskar and I should be on our way to Haigerloch by then. And now comes the crucial point. It must be exactly on time…. At precisely ten twenty Gisela will make her broadcast over the public-address system all through the area and the caves! Got it?”

Gisela nodded soberly.

“Okay. At ten thirty we all meet at the cave-entrance bunker. Gisela, you stay outside. We go in. You know the drill from there on.” Again he looked at Himmelmann. “Don't forget, Professor. It is important that you make certain the steel door to the reactor cave area is sealed and locked! This is a change. It is vital. We do not want to be able to get to the pile itself — or the instrumentation where we could do real damage: But — they must think we tried! They must think we hadn't counted on the locked steel hatch. How could we know about it? You then get out and leave the area, establishing your — eh, innocence. Okay?”

Himmelmann nodded. “I understand.”

“At ten thirty-four I will set the explosives at the steel door and in the laboratory Oskar and Sig will make their way to the heavy-water storage room They will dismantle the valve and dump the borax powder into the pipe. They will reassemble the valve and get out.”

He looked at the two men.

“And remember. Leave absolutely no trace that you have been there. That is vital!”

They nodded.

“At ten thirty-nine I light the fuses.” He grinned at Sig. “Don't worry, Siggy baby, if you are not through by then — I'll wait a few seconds! Sig and Oskar will then join me and we get the hell out of there! We'll have had twenty-one minutes. We can't stretch it any further. We can expect counter-action at any time after that.

“At ten forty-one the explosions inside the cave go off. Ought to be a real ball-slammer! We need those pyrotechnics. They must think that the explosion is the real sabotage attempt. They must not even suspect anything else. The steel door probably won't sustain much damage. We may blow a couple of hinges off…. But we'll wreck the lab. Making it that much more difficult for them to conduct tests that may reveal the contamination later on…. Main thing is — they'll be able to carry out the final test on schedule.”

He looked around at them. “If they do go ahead with the test — and I'm betting they will.” He grinned broadly.

“Good luck!”

8

The Luger stuck in his belt felt heavy and awkward under his coat as Dirk walked down the dark street. He felt on edge. Seeing demons in every shadow. Hearing the pounce of an ambush with every sudden sound. Ahead of him he could make out the sturdy figure of Oskar hurrying along. Behind him he was aware of Sig.

They were all intently conscious of the risk they were taking. The Gestapo scatter raids at all hours of day or night were still taking place. When the call had come they had quickly decided that the safest way to travel the night streets of Hechingen would be separately. Dirk, who had no chance of bluffing his way through an arrest, would carry the gun. If the worst happened, he would have to try to shoot his way out. With Oskar in front and Sig in the rear, they were hoping to get enough warning in case of a sudden raid for Dirk to find a hiding place. If not — he would have to use the Luger….

It was past ten thirty. Himmelmann's urgent call had come just minutes before. It was imperative that he see them at once, he had whispered on the phone, his voice harsh with anxiety. At the Zum Güterzug Bierstube. At once! And he had hung up.

They had debated what to do. They were shaken. Was it a trap? Had Himmelmann caved in? Was he betraying them? Dirk thought not. The man knew where Oskar lived. The Gestapo would have been all over the damned place if Himmelmann had talked. What, then? They had to find out. Himmelmann was crucial to the success of the raid. They had no choice but to heed his summons.

There were few people on the streets. The foreign workers, wary of the scatter raids, stuck close to their barracks. Even the native citizens were unwilling to be on the streets more than necessary.

The Bierstube was only half full. Mostly Germans. The dirty-blond waitress seemed considerably less harassed. The atmosphere of the place was markedly more subdued than when they had been there before.

They spotted Himmelmann sitting alone at a table in a corner. He looked nervous and edgy Casually they walked to the table and sat down.

Himmelmann did not look at the two Americans. His face had an unhealthy pallor. He talked directly to Oskar, his voice low and tense.

“Listen to me, Herr Weber,” he said “I shall talk to you only I do not wish to be seen talking to them. They must not address me Understand? Or I shall leave at once!” He glanced around the room. “I — may be watched!”