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"Ten days ago…"

"Yes Ten days ago, agents of the Czechoslovak secret police kidnapped Kotacek from his home in Lisbon and spirited hiue and tucked him into a prison cell In approxied with collaboration with the enemy, complicity in the murder of several hundred thousand Slovakian Jews and Gypsies, and a variety of uilty on all counts and will be hanged"

"Good for hiood at all, for him or for us" He leaned forward "We’ve known of Kotacek’s whereabouts almost from the day he turned up in Lisbon And we’ve been very careful to leave hial, Kotacek has been one of the key figures in the global neo-Nazi ed slightly since Hitler’s death Germans remain at the helm, but the idée fixe has shifted froeneral white suprero and anti-Oriental policies have coration and the Yellow Peril are evidentlylittle Nazi parties throughout the world andpower plays in various countries whenever circuht

"Kotacek, as I said, is at the hub of all this activity It’s probably no exaggeration to say that he is the most influential non-German in the contemporary Nazi es in constant correspondence with open and clandestine Nazi leaders He’s one of the fewthe leaders of the Fourth Reich – which is what they’re apt to call themselves, incidentally – not just in one country, but everywhere" He paused, raised his glass, set it down "He has been extremely useful to us"

"How?"

"He writes to ain the Bronx Over the past few years he has passed on a great deal of ient?"

"No Pedersen is a loyal Nazi, a member of Madole’s National Renaissance Party The ent"

"I see"

He got to his feet "Kotacek knows a great deal more than he has ever told or will ever tell to Pedersen At one ti a raid on Kotacek’s ho off what records we could This was always rejected The infore of it is not known Sooner or later ould have found a way to gain full access to Kotacek’s files without his knowing it But it was not urgent, it could wait"

"And now?"

"His capture changes things considerably We’d planned on going through his files when he died He’s an old man and a sick man He has diabetes and a heart condition and is a cataleptic He would probably have died within a year or two and that would have given us our opportunity Noe can’t wait – his death won’t do us any good if he dies on the end of a rope in Prague More iet to his files I don’t think he’s given theh to ask for it But during or after his trial, he may try to barter his inforain for hireat deal more than his life

"There’s more to it than that This doesn’t entirely concern you, but I’ve never felt that it hurts an agent to knohat the hell is going on and why The Czechs are likely toshow out of his trial They’ll stir up a lot of anti-Ger at a time e don’t want too much attention focused upon the policies of our friends in Bonn Armament policies and such There’s more, but that’s the essence of it We want Kotacek out of Czechoslovakia We want his files"

There was a long space of silence, with both of us trying not to carry the conversation any further He finished his drink and I finishedanother, and I shook ot to my feet, walked to the , looked out He took the bottle and filled his own glass I turned, walked back to the couch, sat down

Finally I said, "You want et him out of jail, and sneak him out of the country"

"Yes"

"All by myself"

"That would probably be best"