Vivi hurried down the corridor, and once behind the closed door, she had to catch her breath. He stood up from his desk with concern.
She rushed to his side and whispered in his ear. ‘They found out about “maximum effort” and that you added the word “Calais”. He is down there now talking to a member of the pool.’
Marcus nodded. ‘That gives me a little time to be ready.’
He didn’t get long though, because within a few minutes, Major Weissman was knocking at his door.
‘Major Vonstein, do you have a moment?’
Vivi exited to her room and left her door ajar again, but this time Weissman must have noticed it and came over and closed it loudly behind him, which meant Vivi had to walk to the door and listen with her ear pressed against it.
‘I have something extremely urgent to report to you. I think we have a problem here in your office.’
‘Then tell me, Major Weissman, so we can put this right.’
‘Do you remember getting this code?’ Vivi assumed he handed him the piece of paper.
Marcus responded, ‘I have to be honest with you, sir, we get many through the office, hundreds. Is there a problem with this?’
‘Yes, there is a problem. Your coder did not put in the word “Calais”, but somebody else did.’
‘That’s a very serious accusation. What are you implying?’
‘I’m implying someone in this office is trying to sabotage our efforts, to create a distraction. I’m implying, sir, that you have members of the Resistance working here in your building.’
‘That is a very harsh claim and a very serious one. I am shocked to hear such a thing, but I am grateful that you brought this to my attention. I shall look into it immediately.’
‘I think you should do more than that. I want to continue to offer my services. I will review everything from the decoders. Everything that is decoded, I would like to see. Then we have two of us watching out for the mole.’ He sounded suspicious, as though he didn’t trust Marcus, either. His tone grew quieter. ‘Your secretary, sir, what do you know of her? I had a conversation with Commander Von Klaus yesterday, and he voiced some concerns about her.’
‘Vivi? She has an impeccable war record. She convinced the British she was working for them even though she is German, and executed an incredible campaign, and she has been nothing but stellar.’
‘I notice the two of you are… close,’ Weissman continued warily. ‘It’s dangerous to be close in these days. I suggest you find a different woman to meet your needs. People that we work with could be compromised. We don’t always see what is right in front of us.’
‘I can assure you, Major Weissman, you can trust my assistant. I myself would trust her with my life. But I will listen to your caution and be aware myself. Thank you for your advice.’
‘I’ll be downstairs. Everything that comes in I will look at and, hopefully, we will root out the person who is doing this. This is a very serious situation, you understand.’
‘I do, and I thank you for your help, sir.’
Vivi heard Weissman walk out of the room. She cracked her own door to make sure he’d gone all the way down the hallway before she slipped back into the side room and into Marcus’s office.
‘Major Weissman, I fear, will make things exceedingly difficult for us,’ he whispered into her ear.
Vivi nodded. ‘With the push right now, with so many issues with the Resistance, they are working so hard. What do you plan to do?’
‘I plan to step back a little, let a lot of the correct information through, though we have to protect the advancement no matter what. That cannot be compromised. If people have to be sacrificed to that end, then that is how it will be.’ He looked despondent.
Three days later, they found themselves in an impossible situation.
It was 5 June 1944, and early in the morning. Marcus and Vivi had both arrived at work when a pilot came to their office. This meant it was something important. German pilots went out routinely to collect intelligence and take photographs of the Allies’ movements. He informed them in hushed tones that he had spotted and taken pictures of ships setting sail from the south of England, many ships, and it had concerned him. He had taken the films straight down to the lab, and they had developed them, quickly.
‘I thought I should bring this photograph up myself, sir. It seemed particularly important.’
‘You were right to do so,’ responded Marcus. ‘Please leave this with me.’
The pilot hesitated before continuing, ‘Major Weissman asked me to report to him as well.’
‘Leave the major to me. I will report promptly to him. This needs to be kept under the utmost secrecy, do you understand?’ The pilot nodded. ‘No one outside this room should know what you have in here. Please instruct the people in developing to keep this to themselves. There is a chance that we have somebody from the Resistance working here.’
‘Not me, sir. I am loyal to Hitler. Heil Hitler!’ he saluted, and Marcus nodded.
The pilot left the room.
Vivi came in. She could see that his face was pale. ‘What is it?’
‘It may have started, but these photographs could demonstrate they may be heading to Normandy, and we have to keep this secret for the next twenty-four hours. It will take a while for them to amass, get all the troops across, and it is up to us to ensure no one alerts the Germans to what is going on. They have a huge army waiting to be deployed, to whatever coast they feel will be the one where the British are to land. I have to find a way to hide this for twenty-four hours, Vivi.’ He paced the room anxiously. ‘If we destroy it, then there is a trail right back to this office and that could end our work prematurely. But if it is misplaced, we may look more incompetent than traitorous.’
‘Give it to me,’ she suggested. ‘I will slip it in with some files in my office, then if Major Weissman hears anything and searches your office, he won’t find them.’ Vivi took the photograph from him and placed them within a file marked with a different title. She recognised it would only be a matter of time before things would be known, but maybe that was all the Allies would need, a short amount of time.
Vivi hoped with all of her heart that this offensive would be the beginning of the end of the war. That she and Marcus would soon be able to escape, that they could finally be free. But in the meantime she needed a little insurance. Vivi had been thinking about this for a while. She knew it was dangerous but now things were so desperate, she had to have a backup plan to get her and Marcus out of the country fast. But in order to do it Vivi would have to risk her cover. If anyone found out what she was doing and reported back to the Germans what was going on it would be certain death for her and maybe even for Marcus. But there was one place she felt she may have a chance, a place where discretion was of the upmost importance.
Leaving the office, Vivi rushed through the streets of Paris, sweat trickling down behind her ears and gathering under the collar of her German uniform. At every turn, she was aware of heightened energy. On what seemed like every corner, the people of Paris were whispering in huddled groups. She hoped it was the news she and Marcus had been waiting to hear, but feared the enemy might still gain the upper hand.