“I tried, and apparently succeeded, von Wachtstein, to give you the erroneous impression that I wanted you to fly me to Uruguay.”
Von Wachtstein stood silently and thought, What the hell is this bastard up to?
“Doesn’t that make you curious?” Cranz went on.
“Yes, sir, it does.”
“But not enough to ask me why I would do that?”
“No, sir. I assume you had your reasons.”
“Are you a naturally curious man, von Wachtstein?”
“I think I am, sir.”
“But you never asked me about something I feel sure arouses your curiosity, ” Cranz said. “Do you take my meaning?”
“No, sir. I’m lost.”
“You were curious about the special shipment, weren’t you?” Cranz asked, smiling.
Peter felt the base of his neck tighten.
“Yes, sir, I admit that I was. Am.”
“Two weeks ago, I told you the special cargo had been loaded aboard U-BOAT 405. Weren’t you curious, von Wachtstein, about what was going to happen next?”
“Yes, sir, I was.”
“But you never asked me about that, did you?”
“No, sir. I thought you would tell me when you thought I should know.”
“Did you perhaps ask the fregattenkapitän?”
Von Wachtstein looked at Boltitz, then back to Cranz. “Yes, sir, I did.”
“And what did he tell you?”
“Essentially that I would learn about it when you decided I should know, sir.”
“Is that all you asked the fregattenkapitän?”
That’s a loaded question.
And I don’t like the smile on his face.
But this is not the time to hesitate in replying.
“The truth, sir, is that I asked Karl—”
“ ‘Karl’? Not the ‘fregattenkapitän’?”
Von Wachtstein exchanged a glance with Boltitz and decided Boltitz also had no idea where Cranz was going with his line of questioning.
“No disrespect was intended, sir,” von Wachtstein said to Cranz. “I had the privilege of the fregattenkapitän’s friendship before he became a fregattenkapitän. ”
“So you did. So what did you ask your friend the fregattenkapitän?”