The sergeant's booming voice startled Ilse, but she stepped up to his
high desk and spoke in her clearest voice.
'I'm looking for my husband, Sergeant Hans Apfel. Earlier tonight
someone told me that he had come here and gone, but I think he may have
returned. Could you check for me, please?'
The sergeant's demeanor changed instantly. He jumped from his chair and
escorted Ilse to an unoccupied desk.
'Frau Apfel, I'm terribly sorry I kept you waiting! Please sit down. I
know your husband personally, Let me call upstairs.
I'm sure someone will know where he is.'
For the first time since seeing the Spandau papers@ver six hours
ago-Ilse began to relax. She watched the desk sergeant at the
telephone, drumming his fingers as he waited to speak to someone. He
smiled back. Hans has probably straightened everything out already, she
told herself.
'But he can't be gone,' the sergeant insisted quietly.
'He-' The sergeant fell silent as Wilhelm Funk emerged from a first
floor office. He dropped the phone so loudly that Funk looked his way.
'What is it, Ross?' Funk barked. 'I'm in a hurry.'
The desk sergeant cut his eyes toward Ilse, then crossed the room and
interposed Funk's corpulent body between Ilse and himself.
'Prefect,' he whispered, 'the woman sitting behind you is Sergeant
Apfel's wife. She's come here to find him.'
Funk's mouth fell open. It took all his willpower not to whirl and
snatch the woman up by her hair. 'Go back to your desk,' he whispered.
The sergeant obeyed without a word.
Funk glanced at his watch, gauging Luhr's probable time of return.
Then he summoned his warmest smile, turned, and extended his plump hand.
'Frau Apfel? I am Wilhelm Funk, prefect of police. I believe your
husband was on the Spandau Prison security detail?'
Thrown off-balance by Funk's lofty rank and his apparent knowledge of
her plight, Ilse stood and put her small hand into his pink paw.
'Yes,' she said. 'Yes, Hans was at Spandau. Have you seen him
tonight?'
Funk's smile broadened. 'I have indeed. I questioned him earlier this
evening. In fact, I've been trying to locate him ever since.
Just after Hans left the station, I remembered something I neglected to
ask him. Simply a formality, of course, but I try to keep everything
proper. You understand.
Every thing in its place, every paper signed and all that.'
'You're looking for Hans now?'
'Yes, my dear. When Sergeant Ross told me who you were, I hoped you
might be able to help us find him. But I see that you're as perplexed
as we are. Please, let me escort you upstairs. I have a temporary
office there. I'll have coffee sent up and perhaps together we can
deduce where your husband has gone.'
This is too much to ask! Funk thought gleefully as he whisked Ilse up
the stairs. The instrument of my deliverance walks straight through my
front door! With a lecherous look at Ilse's backside, he closed his
office door and seated her before his desk. 'Frau Apfel, I wanted to
get you in private before I spoke frankly about this. May I speak
frankly to you?'
In spite of her fatigue, Ilse's adrenaline began to course again.
Facing the supreme police officer of West Berlin was a little unnerving.
'About Hans?' she asked warily.
Funk paused, appraising the woman before him. What did she know?
And more importantly, what did she suspect? Remembering his unpleasant
call to Pretoria, Funk decided to gamble. 'My dear, I'm afraid our Hans
may be in some trouble.'
'What do you mean?' she asked quickly. 'What kind of trouble?'
'When we questioned the officers from the Spandau patrol this evening,
we conducted the proceedings with the aid of a polygraph. You know, a
lie detector?'
'I know what they are. You have to pass a polygraph test to work at my
company.'
'Ah. You're a career woman, then?'
'Yes-please, just tell me what's going on. Why did you use a
polygraph?'
Funk smiled condescendingly. 'This is a complex matter, my dear.
There are ... other parties involved.' Funk lowered his voice.
'The Russians, for instance. They were present at this polygraph
session.
I'm afraid all of our men passed this examination except your husband
and a young officer named Erhard Weiss.'
'I know Erhard.'
Funk thrust out his lower lip. 'I see.' He glanced at his watch; Luhr
might return any minute. 'Naturally,' he said in a confiding tone, 'I
instructed our @lygraph operator to make no sign if any of our men
failed. We even took the precaution of preparing clean reports from
several men before the interrogation began. Glasnost may be the flavor
of the month, but we can't have a pack of Russians barging in here and
demanding access to German officers. I'm sure you understand.'
Ilse nodded uncertainly.
Funk took a deep breath. Now for the gamble. 'As soon as we'd cleared
the Russians out, I questioned Weiss ai your husband alone. Weiss had
nothing to tell. I believe simple nervousness caused him to fail the
test. But Hans'Funk paused-'Hans told me that he had discovered
something at Spandau, just as the Russians claimed. He said that he had
removed it to a safe place.'
Ilse buried her face in her hands. The insane events of this night had
become too much to bear. If she had been less tired, perhaps, she might
have been more suspicious. But the prefect seemed to know everything
already, and he wanted to help her find Hans.
Raising her head, she looked Funk in the eye and posed a single test
question.
'What did Hans tell you he found?' she asked, her redrimmed eyes lock@d
on his bluff face.
Funk didn't hesitate. He assumed the Soviet forensic people knew their
business. 'Why, papers, my dear,' he said nonchalantly. 'When Hans
