from the Duke of Hamilton! Professor Haushofer's letter has done it!'
Hitler waved his hand irritably. 'No,'no, Rudi, don't be silly.
Haushofer and his son are merely decoys-diversions meant to confuse
British Intelligence.'
Hess opened his mouth to protest, but no words came out.
'I know Haushofer is an old friend of yours, but his dilettante son is a
member of the German resistance, for God's sake. But for you, I'd have
had him shot months ago.'
Hess was dumbfounded. To hear that all his peace efforts to date had
been in vain was bad enough, but the revelation that his old friend's
son was a traitor ... it was beyond belief!
hrer? There is no 'And the Duke of Hamilton, my Ffi chance that he
might still help us?' n is as loyal an EnHitler snorted. 'The Duke of
Hamilton englishman as you could find, Rudi. of course, that doesn't
mean the duke can't prove useful.' there
'England,' Hess murmured, trying to will away another stomach cramp.
'Would my visit be in an official capacity?'
'of course-not,' Hitler scoffed. 'That kind of play-acting I leave to
blusterers like Ribbentrop- Your mission will be all substance, Rudi. A
master stroke of statesmanship!'
Hess stood silently for some moments. 'Do you ... do you mean that you
have a plan to secure peace from the British?' be th isfaction. 'That
is exactly what Hitler amed wi self-sat I mean. Fate has answered us in
our hour of need. Peace and, Rudi, and Russia is within our with
Britain is at h grasp.'
Apropos of nothing, Hitler launched into a critical assessthe Russian
stePPes, haries XII's campaigns on ment of C ru ut Mussolini's arrothen
segued ah ptly into a harangue abo gant nephew Ciano. From years of
practice Hess managed to look attentive while ignoring the entire
monologue- His mind was filled by an image of himself flying
hell-forleather over the English Channel on an errand to see GOd only
knew what Englishmen. Finally his anxiety got the better of him, and,
quite out of character, he interrupted Hitler.
,You wish me to fly to London, my Fuhrer?'
on yet,' Hitler rep 'I'm not sure of the exact destinati lied, ignoring
the interruption. 'But certainly not London. MY God, they'd throw you
in the Tower before you got a chance to speak to anyone!'
'Undoubtedly,' Hess agreed. asy, R@0i. What is it)'
Hitler frowned. 'You seem une ,Well ... England. I mean, it's not
neutral We're still at war. If I were to be captured there, the results
could be catastrophic.' Hess saw Hitler's face darken, as it always did
at the slightest hint of opposition. 'I'm not worried for myself, of
course' ' he said quickly, 'but with all that I know ...
the Russian invasion ... Barbarossa.'
ks Hitler snapped. 'But there 'I'm well aware of the ris ' is no
alternative, Rudi- We must have peace with England now, no matter what
the cost. I have considered every option. I even thought of sending
your double in your place.
He hasn't done anything but sit on his backside in Denmark since we
trained him.'
Hess felt a jolt of surprise. He had almost forgotten he had a double.
The Fuhrer obviously had not.
'But it would never work,' Hitler declared. 'The English will be
looking for a trick, and they know you too well. A simple check for
your war wounds would unmask any impostor.' Hitler chuckled. 'I'm
afraid you're almost as famous now as I am, old friend. And that's what
makes you perfect for this mission.'
Hess cleared his throat. 'What exactly is the mission, my Fuhrer?'
Hitler began pacing out the room. 'The operation will be called
Mordred. But for the time being, the less you know the better. I only
tell you your destination now because I must know you can reach England
on the given night. Whatever @ning or navigational practice you need to
ensure success on such a flight, you must do it.' Hitler stopped pacing
and looked into Hess's deep-set eyes. 'Can you fly alone to England,
Rudi? Alone in the darkness?'
Hess nodded crisply. 'Absolutely, my Fuhrer.'
Hitler nodded. 'Do you have any parachute training?'
Hess's eyes widened. 'No.'
Hitler clucked his tongue. 'I thought not. You probably won't need it,
anyway. I'm told the Duke of Hamilton has a landing strip right beside
his castle.'
Hess felt more confused than ever. 'But you said that the Duke of
Hamilton was a loyal En lishman!'
Hitler smiled enigmatically. 'That is quite irrelevant.' His eyes
twinkled. 'Do you remember The Scarlet Pimpernel, Rudi?'
Hess's heavy black eyebrows bunched in puzzlement. 'I ...
I believe you showed the film here at'the Berghof, didn't you?'
'That's right, just last year. The Pimpernel was the daring English
nobleman who made fools of the French during the Reign of Terror.'
'What has that to do with me?'
Hitler's eyes flashed with wicked glee. 'Everything, Rudi! You know I
have always admired the English. They are fellow Aryans. They are
great empire-builders, as we Germans are. But'-Hitler stabbed a stiff
finger into the air-'they have allowed themselves to be deluded by
Churchill.
Dangerously deluded. Look what happened when I spared their pathetic
Expeditionary Force at Dunkirk! I halted Guderian's tanks, blamed the
British escape on Goring and the Luftwaffe'-Hitler's face reddened in
anger-'and then Churchill had the nerve to call Dunkirk a British
victory! The English people must be freed from the influence of that
warmonger!' cross his broad chest.
Utterly adrift, Hess folded his arms a 'But this Pimpernel business, my
Fuhrer. How does it relate to me?' 'Don't you see , Rudi? You're my
Scarlet Pimernel!'
Hess stepped back in disbelief.
Hitler nodded excitedly. ,yes! You are the exact opposite of what you
appear to be! Since the war heated up, everyone has written you off as
merely a loyal bureaucrat who wastes his time on Party administration.
All my officers think I've forgotten you.' Hitler shook his head
