There was only a powdering of snow in the moat, no water. As the Mercedes crossed the bridge to the gate, he leaned back and said softly, ‘Too late to get off the roundabout now, Walter, far too late.’
Himmler received him in his private sitting room in the south wing. Schellenberg was escorted there by an SS sergeant in dress uniform and found Himmler’s personal aide, a Sturmbannfuhrer named Rossman, sitting at a table outside the door, also in dress uniform.
‘Major.’ Schellenberg nodded.
Rossman dismissed the sergeant. ‘A pleasure to see you, General. He’s waiting. The mood isn’t good, by the way.’
‘I’ll remember that.’
Rossman opened the door and Schellenberg entered a large room with a vaulted ceiling and flagged floor. There were tapestries on the walls and lots of dark oak furniture. A log fire burned on a great stone hearth. The ReichsFuhrer sat at an oak table working his way through a mound of papers. He was not in uniform, unusual for him, wore a tweed suit, white shirt and black tie. The silver pince-nez gave him the air of a rather unpleasant schoolmaster.
Unlike Heydrich who had always addressed Schellenberg by his Christian name, Himmler was invariably formal. ‘General Schellenberg.’ He looked up. ‘You got here.’
There was an implied rebuke and Schellenberg said, ‘I left Berlin the moment I received your message, Reichsfuhrer. In what way can I serve you?’
‘Operation Eagle, the Churchill affair. I didn’t employ you on that business because you had other duties. However, by now you will be familiar with most of the details.’
‘Of course, Reichsfuhrer.’
Himmler abruptly changed the subject. ‘Schellenberg, I am increasingly concerned at the treasonable activities of many members of the High Command. As you know, some wretched young major was blown up in his car outside the entrance to the Fiihrer’s headquarters at Rastenburg last week. Obviously another attempt on our Fiihrer’s life.’
‘I’m afraid so, Reichsfuhrer.’
Himmler stood up and put a hand on his shoulder. ‘You and I, General, are bound by a common brotherhood, the SS. We are sworn to protect the Fiihrer and yet are constantly threatened by this conspiracy of generals.’
‘There is no direct proof, Reichsfiihrer,’ Schellenberg said, which was not strictly true.
Himmler said, ‘General von Stulpnagel, von Falk-enhausen, Stief, Wagner and others, even your good friend Admiral Wilhelm Canaris, Schellenberg. Would that surprise you?’
Schellenberg tried to stay calm, envisaging the distinct possibility that he might be named next. ‘What can I say, Reichsfiihrer?’
‘And Rommel, General, the Desert Fox himself. The people’s hero.’
‘My God!’ Schellenberg gasped, mainly because it seemed the right thing to do.
‘Proof.’ Himmler snorted. Til have my proof before I’m done. They have a date with the hangman, all of them. But to other things.’ He returned to the table and sat. ‘Have you ever had any dealings with an agent named Vargas?’ He examined a paper in front of him. ‘Jose Vargas.’
‘I know of him. An Abwehr contact. A commercial attache at the Spanish Embassy in London. As far as I know, he has only been used occasionally.’
‘He has a cousin who is also a commercial attache at the Spanish Embassy here in Berlin. One Juan Rivera.’ Himmler glanced up. ‘Am I right?’
‘So I understand, Reichsfiihrer. Vargas would use the Spanish diplomatic bag from London. Most messages would reach his cousin here in Berlin within thirty-six hours. Highly illegal, of course.’
‘And thank God for it,’ Himmler said. ‘This Operation Eagle affair. You say you are familiar with the details?’
‘I am, Reichsfuhrer,’ Schellenberg said smoothly.
‘There is a problem here, General. Although the idea was suggested by the Fuhrer, it was, how shall I put it, more a flight of fancy than anything else? One couldn’t rely on Canaris to do anything about it. I’m afraid that total victory for the Third Reich is low on his list of priorities. That is why I personally put the plan into operation, aided by Colonel Radl of the Abwehr, who’s had a heart attack, I understand, and is not expected to live.’
Schellenberg said cautiously, ‘So the Fuhrer knows nothing of the affair?’
‘My dear Schellenberg, he carries the responsibility for the war, its every aspect, on his own shoulders. It is our duty to lighten that load as much as possible.’