They confirmed that a destroyer was on its way to pick up the Germans and then checked their fuel. They would make it back to base, but not by much. They would have to report a fuel emergency, but nobody back home would mind. They’d killed a Nazi sub. So why didn’t they feel happy?
Something big was happening and the only thing Alicia could think of was war. What had the Germans done? It was clear that a crises was brewing, but that had happened before. Oh God, she wondered, was this finally the real thing?
She’d been awakened in the middle of the night and told to take a package of messages to the Pentagon immediately. She dressed, gathered her guards and was on her way. Her guards logically assumed that she knew what was happening and were put out when she said she didn’t. Clearly they did not believe her.
She arrived at the Pentagon at daybreak. The level of security had been increased. Large numbers of MPs had the place cordoned off and it took several minutes for her to be passed through. One young MP Lieutenant wanted to examine the contents of her pouch and was furious when she refused. He didn’t believe that a woman would be carrying secret documents and told her so. Finally, a bird colonel straightened things out and Alicia made her way inside and delivered the package. She wondered if Tom was behind one of those doors and fought the urge to try and find out.
There was near chaos in the building as people moved quickly down the hallways. She saw Eisenhower almost running down the hallway. Something major was clearly happening. It was also quite obvious that she was not going to see Tom this morning. There had been no repetition of the wonderful evening at the Downing’s. There hadn’t been a moment’s privacy since then.
She left the Pentagon with a radiant smile for the lieutenant who’d tried to take the pouch. He glared at her and turned away. The hell with him, she thought and laughed. It was just something else about her life, values, and attitudes that had changed and she felt better for it.
She got her guards and they decided to drive around the Mall that led to the Capitol Building just to see what was happening. Along the Mall, trucks and busses were unloading more guards and more barbed wire was being laid to surround the building that housed the Congress. Additional anti-aircraft guns had been placed around the old building.
Alicia was just about to say that it was time to get back to Camp Washington when air raid sirens began to howl. Soldiers told them to get out of their car and lie down on the ground.
“Aren’t there any shelters around here?” she yelled.
“Probably,” answered a sergeant, “but I don’t know where they might be, and I can’t let you inside the Capitol itself.”
She heard the crump-crump of anti-aircraft guns and looked skyward to see a number of planes high up in the sky. Things were falling from the planes, and she realized that she was watching bombs falling from their bellies. Frantically, she tried to dig into the soft dirt. Seconds later, explosions rocked the area. One near miss sent dirt over her.
“Look at that,” hollered one of her guards. “We got ourselves one of the bastards.”
Alicia rolled onto her back and looked up. One of the bombers was burning and beginning to cartwheel. “How large a crew?” she asked.
“Four, I think.”
Two bodies fell out of the bomber. One parachute opened while the second man fell to his death. She closed her eyes but she still heard the thud as he impacted. The bomber continued its death spiral, crashing and exploding behind some buildings, while Americans on the ground cheered.
The raid was over. The only planes in the sky were American fighters, whirling and buzzing like angry bees.
What about the Capitol Building? She looked at the building that had served since about 1800, if she correctly recalled her history. One bomb had struck the senate side and a fire was trying to take hold. It wouldn’t get much of a chance. Fire engines were already on the scene and firemen were rolling out their hoses. She did wonder if there were any casualties inside.
“Hey, lieutenant, maybe we got ourselves a German.”
The German whose parachute had opened was landing on the Mall about a hundred yards in front of them. In an instant, he was surrounded by angry soldiers. He tried to hold his hands up and disengage from the parachute, but it was difficult. When he finally did free himself, soldiers jumped him and started stomping him.
“No,” Alicia said and ran to the melee. “Leave it, stop hitting him,” she yelled.
“Fuck you, lady,” one soldier said before he saw she was an officer.
“Get out of here before you get sent to the stockade,” Alicia snarled and the soldier ran off.
Alicia continued to grab and pull soldiers until the German was free. He knelt on the ground and stared vacantly at his tormenters. Blood poured from his mouth and she thought she saw a couple of teeth in the grass. His holster was empty and she assumed that one American soldier had a luger as a souvenir.
“Why are you protecting him, lieutenant?” asked an angry private.
She glared at him. “Try and recall that murdering prisoners is a crime that can send you to Leavenworth for a very long time. Also, try and think that our people might want to interrogate him in case he knows something.”
The man nodded and walked away. The German had made it to his feet. It looked like one arm was badly hurt and he had indeed lost a number of teeth. Still, he was grateful to be alive. He looked at her and managed a smile. In fluent German she told him to stop grinning and put his hands on his head. Stunned, he complied immediately. It struck her that he was a small man, nothing like the Nordic blond stereotype the Nazis liked to say was typical. Instead, she thought he was kind of scrawny.
An army captain came over. “You want me to take him off your hands?”
She had a wild idea. “No thanks, sir, I can handle it.”
“You sure?” he asked, glowering at her.
Alicia smiled brightly. “Sir, I just came from the Pentagon where I saw General Eisenhower. I think people there would like to see this little superman.”
Mentioning Eisenhower’s name worked wonders. The captain nodded and her guards got the German into the back seat. One guard sat in the front and the other in the back with a pistol to the German’s head. Alicia smiled as she settled into the front beside the driver. Well, she had come from the Pentagon and she had seen Eisenhower, hadn’t she?
There were sublevels to the Pentagon and everyone went to them when the sirens went off. Thousands of men and a surprising number of women jammed into the basement rooms that would have to serve as air raid shelters. There was concern but no panic as the building’s occupants poured down the stairs. There was even some denial that anything was happening. This was just another drill wasn’t it?
“Where the hell did all these people come from?” Truscott muttered once they were more or less settled along a wall.
Grant thought it was a good question, but a better one might be whether the building could stand up to German bombs. He thought it had been constructed of reinforced concrete but wasn’t totally sure. Besides, had anyone tested it against explosives?
They could hear the sound of guns firing and, seconds later, bombs began to explode, growing ever closer with each blast. The building shuddered after an explosion, and then others sent dust down on to the men and women in the basement. It was frightening, but the building seemed solid and safe.
Grant had a second horrible thought. What if a German plane was shot down and crashed onto the Pentagon? While the building would likely survive the impact of bombs, what about flaming gasoline pouring down stairwells and vents, either cremating or suffocating anyone in its path. Jesus, most of the army’s top brass was huddled below ground and presented one great big and juicy target.