Norma Rogers Ch. 05

Just before Christmas of 1943, I was called into the Ministry and told to meet with a Mr. Gray. When I arrived, I was directed into a room, and who should be behind the desk but my old friend Mr. Henry. I was immediately concerned as to what was going on; who was this man? And more important, whom did he represent?

He looked up at me, then pointed to a chair in front of the desk and said, "Please sit down; I have matters of some importance to discuss with you."

I remained standing, "First, who are you really? Mr. Gray, Mr. Henry or are you somebody else? Whom do you represent?"

He smiled, "I told my superior that you would not respond to anything less than the truth, and here you are proving me right. Please sit down and I will let you know what is going on, but I must warn you that everything we discuss is subject to the Official Secrets Act and cannot be discussed outside this room; doing so would mean a prison sentence. You signed the acceptance of the Act when you were recruited into the ATS."

This was all new to me, and I thought this must be something to do with the new policies, so I sat down. Little did I know what would be coming up in this interview.

He began to talk, "First let me be the first to congratulate you on a promotion, you have been promoted to the rank of Junior Commander, the equivalent of a Captain in the Army. This, by the way, isn't intended as an inducement to do anything. No matter what decisions you and I may come to, you will still walk out of this room with your new rank. Your promotion just recognizes the value of the work you have done with the Ambulance Service and the training you have supplied to the US forces. In fact, it was at their instigation that you were promoted."

I was astounded, "I'm honoured at the recognition, but right now I'm waiting for the 'but'. What else is coming up? You didn't drag me over here to just tell me that."

He burst into laughter. "You are right, I am not Henry or Grey; who I am I can't say, so I respond to either name. I work for Military Intelligence, and we want to co-opt your services. We would like you to go visit your in laws in Ireland for a short time."

"What have my in laws got to do with this?"

"Nothing at all. What we want you to do is meet with a member of the German Legation who met one of our diplomats at a function and slipped him a message indicating that he was against the war and wanted to help end it."

I couldn't help myself - I jumped up and exclaimed, "What! You want me, a mother of two small children, to go over to Ireland and meet a German? I'm not a spy, I'm a mother of two little babies who need me, and there is no chance that I will do that! Who will look after my children if something happens, some children's home?"

"Norma," he hurriedly continued, "Please listen, and this must go no further than this room. The Allies are planning to invade Europe next year; where and when have yet to be decided. It is crucial that we know the details of German troop movements, and the more information we have, the less casualties will result. While we have other sources, this person may be in a position to give us vital information. He approached one of our diplomats while at a reception. It appeared to just be a polite exchange of words to anyone looking, but he passed on a note. What he did say in the note was that he would only talk to your husband Jim or yourself. He evidently feels safe with one of you."

I immediately thought of Rudi, but was inclined to dismiss that possibility, especially after the way we last parted. However, he was the only German I knew.

I replied, "Might this person be Rudi Von Ansel? If it is, and this is vital to the war effort, then I would consider meeting with him. As you are likely aware, our last meeting wasn't exactly friendly, so I have no idea why he would want to meet me. I don't think I would be in any danger from him though. So, if it is that vital, I would be willing to meet him, but I would want some security."

"Yes as far as we know, it is. After that dressing down you gave him, his boss the Riechsmarshall was most upset and transferred him to an active unit on the Russian Front. Apparently he was wounded there, as our man in Dublin tells us that he has lost his left arm. He wants to meet in the bar at the Galway Inn in Galway on the evening of December 15^th. Apparently he has reason to be there, which makes it more reasonable to meet him there rather than chance a meet somewhere else in Dublin, so we would like you and your family to travel as soon as possible. The Embassy has set up a drop box for him to use in a tobacconist's shop in Dublin. All we want you to do is meet him and give him our contact instructions. Our man in Dublin will take it from there."

"From what I remember of Rudi, this will be unusual for him. The last time we met, he was anticipating the Victory March down Whitehall and, being an airman, he couldn't understand why the mighty Luftwaffe hadn't forced us to surrender."

"You might try to find that out from him; his motives are extremely important in judging the truth of what he can tell us. We will have to set up some security for you."

"Why don't you leave that angle to me? The Rogers family are well connected in the Galway area, so I'm sure I can arrange for some very unobtrusive security that would make things safer for me."

"All right, I will do that; just remember that you have to really be careful what you tell them, we have to keep it absolutely secret."

I thought, Well, whoever you are, you obviously don't know everything. You would be pretty surprised if you knew the real situation of the Rogers family.

I interrupted, "His wound might explain his change in attitude to war. He was quite the strutting officer the last time we met. I had better call my in-laws to make sure that they expect me and can handle the additional security people. Can I take my mother with me to help with the children? That would make a family visit more plausible if anybody is watching the boats."

"If she will go with you, that would be good; you just can't tell her why you are going. You can make your phone calls from here to Ireland. I'll give you fifteen minutes on your own. If they can meet you in Dun Loaghaire, it would be much better for cover purposes."

He left, I sat back, lit a cigarette (Yes I smoked in those days) and thought to myself, Well Norma, you talked yourself into that one really well. He didn't have to do any convincing at all. I have to admit, the thought of Rudi supplying us with information really intrigues me. What had happened to bring that man of solid Nazi values so low? I really was interested in finding out.

I picked up the telephone handset and was answered by the switchboard operator. She must have been forewarned, because she put the call through to Ireland without any comment at all. Mhairi was home and answered the phone.

"Mhairi, do you have room for a few refugees for a few days?"

"Is that you Norma? I knew I was going to hear from you today! Of course we have room for you. Can you stay a while, maybe over Christmas?"

"Now that would be an idea! If I can get a couple of weeks leave, would you mind if my parents and I came over and spent Christmas with you?"

"Not at all, that would be a real treat for us all to get together for the holiday, so it would."

"I'll talk to Mum tonight and see if they have any plans, then I will call you again and let you know for sure."

Somebody must have been listening in as 'Gray-Henry' came back into the room. "Norma, that was a great idea, and I'm sure that we can arrange relief for you for that period."

"I'll go down to Mum's tonight to make sure that she and Dad can make it, and I'll let you know."

He gave me his phone number, and then he sat and briefed me on what I was to say to Rudi. He also gave me the address of the tobacco and newsagent's shop where the drop was arranged.

Obviously it was felt to be important, as the wheels of Government moved quickly, smoothing out any problems, and we boarded the ship at Holyhead on the night of the 11^th of December. As we sailed into the darkness, Mum and Dad took care of the babies in the cabin while I took a turn around the deck with a cigarette. Even though this assignment might be somewhat dangerous, in a way I was excited and looking forward to the meeting. What more could I, as ordinary Norma Rogers, contribute to the war effort?

End of Part 5