Glenn Meade by The Sands of Sakkara (html) Page A

with
Cairo
.'
    'You're getting ahead of yourself.
I haven't decided on anything yet. And you've told me nothing about the rest of
the team.'
    'I anticipate three others - two
SS men and a woman.'
    'Tell me about them.’
    'The two SS are Major Dieter
Kleist and Feldwebel Hans Doring. Both serving with Otto Skorzeny's Commando
group.'
    'Dieter Kleist?' Haider looked
across with contempt. 'He's a ruthless animal, the worst kind of brute in
uniform. I came across his work in the Balkans. He had the nasty habit of
shooting suspected partisans out of hand, and raping his female prisoners
before he put them out of their misery.'
    'Perhaps, but even a brute has his
uses. He's a very efficient and deadly weapon, our Kleist, recently transferred
to Skorzeny's command, and an excellent man in the field. He also speaks
reasonable English and Arabic, and he's acquainted with
Egypt
.
    He once worked for a German
company, surveying for oilfields.'
    'What about Doring's background?'
    'He spent some time in the
Middle East
before the war, as a driver-mechanic for a
German archaeological crew. Now he's a specialist in covert operations behind
enemy lines, and comes highly recommended.'
    'By whom?'
    'Skorzeny himself. Himmler insists
on having Skorzeny's SS as part of the first team. I'm sure that between the
lot of you, you should be able to do the necessary business.'
    Haider shook his head. 'So far, I
still don't like it very much.
    What about the woman?'
    'Her name's Rachel Stern.'
    Haider was thunderstruck. After a
long silence Schellenberg lit a cigarette. 'Understandably, you're shocked. I
believe you once knew her.'
    Haider was still white-faced and
didn't reply. Schellenberg said, 'What's the matter?'
    'It's been a long time since I
heard that name.'
    Schellenberg smiled. 'I've been
looking through your file again, with Canaris's permission, of course. Among
the archaeological team you joined in '39 were several Germans working for the
SD. One of them was code-named Nightingale, the very best agent we had. I
checked back through Nightingale's reports out of curiosity. Your name and the
girl's were mentioned. It appears you were quite fond of her. It was rather
daring of you, Jack, considering the girl's half Jewish. Does my information
surprise you?'
    'Nothing surprises me any more.
Where has she been all this time? What's happened to her and her family?'
    'An interesting man, the
professor. A renowned archaeologist with several significant finds to his
credit. However, he was also virulently anti-Nazi. Despite the fact that he
spent much of his time abroad, the Gestapo were anxious to get their hands on
him. They eventually succeeded with a stroke of luck.'
    'What do you mean?'
    'Four years ago the girl and her
father were rescued in the
Mediterranean
by
the Kriegsmarine. They were passengers on a Turkish vessel bound for
Istanbul
. It was sunk by
an engine room explosion, and the professor's wife perished. Since then, the
girl's been in Ravensbruck women's camp, detained at the Fiihrer's pleasure,
and her father's serving thirty years in
Dachau
.'
    Haider flushed with rage. 'You
suddenly remind me why I started to dislike Hitler.'
    'Come now, Jack. Not my doing. If
the truth be known, I find this whole anti-Jewish thing quite repulsive. And
I'll forget what you just said - it really doesn't do to broadcast such
remarks.'
    'What I don't understand is what
part Rachel plays in your little scheme. Why do you need her?'
    'She'll be your insurance - think
of her as a temporary, but very necessary, policy.'
    'What do you mean?'
    'Like you, she speaks fluent
English and Arabic, and knows her way around
Egypt
. But best of all, she's an
expert archaeologist, like her father. No disrespect, but you on the other hand
have never been more than a keen amateur in such matters.'
    'Why's her profession so
important?'
    'Simple, really. For the sake of
appearances, as part of the mission, I intend