even imitate his voice to perfection. That's the easiest part of this
story to accept.'
Ilse looked skeptical. 'Maybe during* the war,' she conceded.
'From a distance. But what about the years in Spandau? What about
Hess's family?'
Natterman smiled impishly. 'What about them? Prisoner Number Seven
refused to see Hess's wife and son for the first twenty-eight years of
his captivity.' He savored Ilse's perplexed expression. 'The factual
discrepancies o on and 9
on. Hess was a fastidious vegetarian, Prisoner Number Seven devoured
meat like a tiger. Number Seven failed to recognize Hess's secretaries
at Nuremberg. He twice gave the British wrong birth dates for Hess, and
he missed by two years. And on and on ad nauseam.'
Ilse sat quietly, trying to take it all in. Beneath her thoughts, her
anxiety for Hans buzzed like a low-grade fever.
'Why don't I let Number Seven speak for himself?'
Natterman suggested. 'Would you like to hear my translation?'
Ilse forced herself not to look at the kitchen clock. He's I 'Yes, all
right, she told herself. Just wait a ittle longer please,' she said.
Putting his reading glasses back on, the professor opened his briefcase,
cleared his throat, and began to read in the resonant tones of the born
teacher: I, Prisoner Number Seven, write this testament in the language
of the Caesars for one reason: I know with certainty that Rudolf Hess
could not do so. I learned Latin and Greek at university in Munich from
1920 to 1923, but I learned that Hess did not know Latin at the most
exclusive 'school' in the world-Reinhard Heydrich's Institute for
Practical Deception-in 1936. At this 'institute'@n isolated barracks
compound outside Dessau-I also learned every other known fact about
Hess: his childhood; military service; Party record; relationship with
the Fuhrer; and, most importantly, his personal idiosyncrasies.
Ironically, one of the first facts I learned was that Hess had attended
university in Munich at the same time I had, though I do not remember
meeting him.
I did not serve as a pilot in the First world War, but I joined one of
Hermann Gdring's 'flying clubs' between the wars. It was during an
aerial demonstration in 1935 that the Reichsmarschall _first noticed my
remarkable resemblance to Deputy-Fuhrer Hess. At the time I did not
make much of the encounter-comrades had often remarked on this
resemblance-but seven months later I was visited at the factory where I
worked by two officers of Heydrich's SD. They requested me to accompany
them on a mission of special importance to the Reich- From Munich I was
flown to the 'Practical School' building outside Dessau.
I never saw my wife and daughter again.
During the first week at the school I was completely isOlated from my
fellow students. I received my 'orientation' from Standartenfiihrer
Ritter Graf headmaster of the Institute.
He informed me that I had been selected to fulfill a mission of the
highest importance to the Fuhrer My period of training-which would be
lengthy and arduous, he saidwas to be carried out in total secrecy.
I soon learned that this meant total separation from my family. To
alleviate the stress of this separation, Graf showed me proof that my
salary from the factory had been doubled, and that the money was being
forwarded to my wife.
After one week I met the other students. I cannot express the shock I
felt. In one room in one night I saw the faces of not only famous Party
Gauleiters and Wehrmacht generals, but also the most celebrated
personalities of the Reich. At last I knew what my mission was. Hermann
Gdring had not forgotten my resemblance to Rudolf Hess; it was Goring
who had given my name to Reinhard Heydrich, the SD commender responsible
for the program.
There were many students at the Institute. Some completed the program,
others did not. The unlucky ones paid for their failure in blood. We
were constantly reminded of this 'incentive. ' One of the most common
causes for 'dismissal' from the school was the use of one's real name.
Two slip-ups were forgiven. The third guaranteed erschlessen
(execution). We were known by our 'role ' names, or, in situations
where these were not practical, by our farmer ranks-in my case
Hauptmann.
I trained in an elite group. There were eight of us: 'Hitler' (3
'students' studied him); 'Gdring'; 'Himmler'; ' Goebbels '; 'Stretcher
'; and myself- 'Hess. ' The training for our group lasted one year
During that year I had four personal interviews with Deputy-Fuhrer Hess.
The rest of my training was accomplished through study of newsreels and
written records. During our training, several of the 'doubles 'for the
Party Gauleiters left the school to begin their duties. Apparently
their roles did not riquire so much preparation as ours.
At the end of the training period my group was broken up and sent to
various locations to await duty. I was sent first to Grvnau, where I
was kept in isolation, then later to a remote airfield at Aalborg,
Denmark. I repeatedly requested to be allowed to see my wife and
daughter, but by this time Germany was at war and my requests were
summarily rejected I spent my time in solitude, reviewing my Hess mate
rials and occasionally being visited by an SD officer I did have access
to newspapers, and from them I deduced that Hess's position in the Nazi
hierarchy seemed to have declined somewhat in favor of the generals
since the outbreak of war I took this to be the reason I had not yet
been assigned a mission.
I must admit that, in spite of the hardship of the duty, I was very
proud of the degree to which I could impersonate the Deputy Fuhrer
During my final interview with H at the school, he was so shocked by my
proficiency that his reaction verged on disorientation.
Actually, a few of the other 'students' had honed their skills to a
finer edge than my own, but what happened to them I have no idea ...
Natterman removed his spectacles, put the papers back into his
briefcase, then closed and locked it. 'A rather detailed story to be
made up out of thin air, wouldn't you say?
And that's only the first two pages.'
Ilse was smiling with satisfaction. 'Very detailed,' she agreed.
'So detailed that it destroys your earlier argument. If this 'double'
