10:00 (GMT)
Thursday, September 5, 1940
Cabinet room, 10 Downing Street
London
Reginald Jones entered the conference room at a hurried pace, having arrived a bit late at the Prime Minister’s residence in downtown London. He was putting his briefcase on the table in front of the seat reserved for him and was about to take out his documents when he froze, fixing a man sitting behind the chair occupied by Lord Hankey. The man was John Cairncross, the private secretary of the minister in charge of the British Secret Services, Lord Hankey. Cairncross was also, according to the informations Jones had gotten from Nancy Laplante, a spy in the pay of the Soviets. Jones looked with incomprehension at Brigadier Stewart Menzies, the head of Military Intelligence, better known as ‘M.I.6’, sitting to the right of him. Menzies seemed furious, with his face hard. Despite his surprise, Reginald managed to keep his voice low, so that Cairncross or Lord Hankey could not hear him.
‘’Sir, what is Cairncross doing at this cabinet meeting? I thought that you had him arrested yesterday.’’
‘’That was my intention, Doctor Jones, but Lord Hankey refused to believe the information given by Laplante and forbid me from arresting anyone on the list suspected spies.’’‘’But…Air Chief Marshal Dowding is due to announce the existence of Nancy Laplante during this meeting. If Cairncross is allowed to stay, then the Soviets will learn about Laplante.’’
‘’I realize that too well, Doctor Jones, but Lord Hankey is my superior, as well as yours in fact. My hands are tied.’’
Reginald clenched his teeth but did not sit. Taking a quick decision, he went around the table to go whisper in the ear of Marshal Dowding, while Menzies watched him with incredulity.
‘’Air Chief Marshal, please do not speak about Captain Laplante for the moment. A spy in the pay of the Soviets and denounced by Captain Laplante’s historical data is here, in this room.’’
‘’Good God! Who is he and why hasn’t he been arrested yet?’’ Exclaimed Dowding, making heads turn around the table. That also attracted the attention of Lord Hankey, who stared angrily at Reginald.
‘’What do you think that you are doing, Doctor Jones? Go take your place and stop circulating those absurd rumors.’’
Fully realizing that he was risking his post, Reginald faced firmly his minister.
‘’Lord Hankey, I am only acting to protect the security of our country. I will not present my information here, not as long as your secretary is present in this room.’’
Hankey then became truly angry, raising his voice to a shout.
‘’DOCTOR, I DON’T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT YOUR SUPPOSED SOURCE FROM THE FUTURE. SIT DOWN OR GET OUT!’’
Prime Minister Churchill, who had just entered the conference room, looked coldly at Reginald and Lord Hankey as the rest of the conference’s participants watched in silence the confrontation.
‘’What is happening here, gentlemen?’’
‘’We have here in this room a spy in the service of Stalin, Mister Prime Minister.’’ Answered firmly Reginald, making Hankey turn red with anger.
‘’NONSENSE! Mister Prime Minister, I fear that young Doctor Jones bought the lies of a demented woman who has thrown wild accusations of espionage against members of the government and also against distinguished citizens.’’
Marshal Dowding then jumped on his feet, to then speak in a strong voice.
‘’Mister Prime Minister, the woman Lord Hankey claims to be crazy has given the R.A.F. priceless information in the last three days. That information in fact made possible an important air victory yesterday. I have met this woman and I am ready to vouch for her as a source of intelligence.’’
‘’How could you believe such inanities, Marshal Dowding?’’ Replied Lord Hankey. ‘’If you would believe that woman, men as distinguished as Lord Rothschild would be Soviet spies. She is probably nothing more than a disinformation agent sent by the Germans.’’
Reginald Jones felt uneasy when he saw the expression of incredulity and irritation that appeared then on Churchill’s face: Lord Rotschild was a good personal friend of the Prime Minister and spoke with him regularly about highly classified matters. Churchill then threw a cold look at Reginald.
‘’And what kind of proofs do you have against Lord Rotschild, Doctor Jones?’’
As Lord Hankey smiled, expecting Jones to be admonished by Churchill, the young physicist didn’t flinch under the Prime Minister’s stare.
‘’Documents provided by a person that came from the future, Mister Prime Minister.’’
Churchill, like the ministers and senior military officers sitting around the table and the secretary that was ready to take the minutes of the meeting, stared at Reginald as if he had become crazy. The latter quickly returned to his place and took a magazine out of his briefcase, then brought it to Churchill.
‘’This is one of the documents provided by that woman we are talking about, Mister Prime Minister. I personally inspected the equipment brought by her and I can assure you without a single doubt that nobody now could produce or even comprehend fully the technology contained in that equipment.’’
Churchill involuntarily let his cigar fall from his mouth as he stared at the color picture of an impossible aircraft shown on the cover of the magazine. He then saw the date of publication: October 2012. Dowding came to the rescue of Reginald at that moment.
‘’Mister Prime Minister, the information provided by that woman allowed us yesterday to stop cold a German air raid against the Vickers aircraft factories and to shoot down a total of 31 enemy aircraft. That same information also proved exact concerning three other separate German raids during the last two days. This new source also knows the existence of ULTRA, despite the fact that she is not on the list of those that have authorized access to the project.’’
Now seriously shaken, Churchill looked at Reginald with a much less severe expression.
‘’Who is the supposed Soviet spy present here, Doctor Jones?’’
‘’John Cairncross, the private secretary of Lord Hankey, Mister Prime Minister.’’
Churchill threw a sharp look at Cairncross, who now appeared to verge on panic and who had visibly paled, then eyed Lord Hankey.
‘’When did you receive the information claiming that your secretary was a Soviet spy, Lord Hankey?’’
‘’Uh, early yesterday morning, Mister Prime Minister, but I could not give any credit to that information without some solid proofs, and…’’
‘’Did you discuss these accusations with Mister Cairncross?’’ Interrupted Churchill, his tone dry and sharp. Hankey wiggled in his chair before answering, now very much less assured of himself.
‘’Yes, Mister Prime Minister.’’
Brigadier Menzies became red with anger at this answer, but he managed not to explode. Churchill’s next question cracked like a whip.
‘’When?’’
‘’Yesterday morning, Mister Prime Minister.’’
Reginald saw a flash in the eyes of Churchill at those words.
‘’So, you receive information on the possible presence of Soviet spies in our midst and you go discuss that information with one of the suspects? What were you thinking, Lord Hankey?’’
‘’But…but my secretary has been working for me for years and I have total confidence in him, Mister Prime Minister.’’
Brigadier Menzies, whose face had just reflected a horrifying thought, then jumped in the exchange.
‘’Excuse me, Mister Prime Minister. Lord Hankey, I hope that you did not discuss with Mister Cairncross the names of the other suspected spies?’’
Cold sweat appeared on the forehead of the minister, who answered hesitantly.
‘’I…I showed him the list of suspects, in order to point to him his name in it.’’
Menzies swore aloud while passing his hands on his face, while Churchill tightened his fists as he stared angrily at Hankey. He then shouted towards the door of the conference room.
‘’GUARDS!’’
Two of the Prime Minister’s bodyguards entered immediately, fully alert and with their right hands going for their revolvers hidden under their vests. Churchill pointed John Cairncross, who was shaking in his chair, to them.
‘’Put Mister Cairncross under arrest for high treason and espionage. I want him to be discreetly brought to the Tower of London, where he will be locked up. Nobody will be allowed to visit him or contact him until further notice, not even family members or lawyers.’’
As the two bodyguards grabbed forcefully Cairncross and dragged him out of the room, Churchill returned his eyes on Lord Hankey, who was now in his small shoes.
‘’Lord Hankey, you are going to vacate your office and will refrain from discussing this matter further with anyone. In particular, you will avoid contact with any of the persons named in this list of suspected spies. Brigadier Menzies will take over your position immediately.’’
‘’Yes, Mister Prime Minister.’’ Said weakly the old aristocrat before getting up and putting back his files in his briefcase. Churchill however extended a hand as he was about to leave.
‘’Leave your papers with Brigadier Menzies, Lord Hankey. Consider your security clearance revoked as of now.’’
Lowering his head, the old bureaucrat gave his briefcase to Churchill, who then put it on the table, and left the room, followed by the eyes of the shocked witnesses around the table. Churchill was not finished however and looked at Menzies.
‘’Brigadier, how substantial are the accusations against those suspects, especially Lord Rotschild?’’
‘’The information against most of the suspects is solid and detailed and consist of newspaper articles and book extracts from the future, Mister Prime Minister. In fact, many of the suspects later fled to the Soviet Union. To be honest, the source of our information agreed that the case of Lord Rotschild was mostly circumstantial and was never conclusive, but there are many troubling links between Lord Rotschild and a number of the suspects that later fled to the Soviet Union. In view of what Lord Hankey just said, I am afraid that many of the suspects will now have had time to disappear since yesterday.’’
‘’You are unfortunately right, Brigadier Menzies. I want you to have all those suspects arrested immediately. Lord Rotschild is however a more delicate case. Just put him under discreet surveillance and make sure that he doesn’t leave the country until further notice. Put also the Soviet embassy under tight watch.’’
‘’Understood, Mister Prime Minister.’’ Said Menzies, who then grabbed his briefcase and the one that had belonged to Lord Hankey before leaving the room in a hurry.
As a flurry of whispered comments went around the table, Churchill sat in his assigned chair and looked around at the ministers and officers present at the meeting.
‘’I know that Lord Rotschild is a friend of many of you, as well as being a friend of mine. However, until the accusations of espionage against him are formally dismissed, I will ask you all to politely refuse to meet with him or even speak to him except to exchange pleasantries in passing.’’
Churchill then stared hard at Reginald Jones.
‘’Doctor Jones, in view of the seriousness of what just happened, I hope that you can convince me that this mysterious woman of yours is really from the future.’’
‘’Certainly, Mister Prime Minister. It all began on Monday morning, near Northolt.’’
Reginald spoke for a good ten minutes, listened religiously by Churchill and the other persons around the table. He emphasized in particular the impossibly advanced level of the technology in the equipment brought by Nancy Laplante. At the end, Churchill stayed silent a long moment, then looked resolutely around the table.
‘’Gentlemen, as fantastic as this may appear to be, the important point is that we just were given a providential help in our fight against the Nazis. The knowledge from this Nancy Laplante could prove crucial for our cause and I have the firm intention of using that knowledge to the maximum. Marshall Dowding, I would certainly like to meet that young woman soon, in order to discuss with her her future with us.’’
‘’Well, Mister Prime Minister, she is presently very busy helping us plan a reply to a major incoming change of tactics by the German Luftwaffe. According to the information from that woman, who is now designated under the codename ‘Athena’, the Luftwaffe will change its target priorities after tomorrow and will launch a massive bombing raid against the London docks in the afternoon of Saturday. That raid will arrive around 16:30 and will involve 300 German bombers escorted by 600 fighters. A night raid is supposed to follow the first raid, with at least one raid per day against London following for the next few months.’’
‘’My God!’’ Said weakly Churchill, shaken, before looking at Commander Winterbotham.
‘’Commander, have you received confirmation of this raid via ULTRA?’’
‘’Uh, not yet, Mister Prime Minister. However, Athena predicted that an ENIGMA message will be finally decoded by ULTRA at around eleven o’clock this morning and will be sent here within minutes.’’
‘’This woman can predict ULTRA traffic?’’ Nearly shouted Churchill, who knew how deeply secret and tightly protected was the whole ULTRA program. Dowding nodded his head.
‘’To a point, Mister Prime Minister. Captain Laplante explained to me that her historical data, while quite detailed, does not contain everything available in 2012. She also told me to expect her historical information to become less accurate as we use it, since the Germans will eventually react to our moves. Her technical information should however stay accurate for the months and years to come. If you will allow me, Mister Prime Minister, I would now like to present you the preliminary sketch of a plan to defend London against the bombing raid announced for Saturday.’’
‘’Go right ahead, Air Chief Marshall Dowding.’’
Dowding, then walked to a mapboard and uncovered it, revealing a map of airfields throughout Western France, Belgium and the Netherlands.
“Without Athena’s information, the plan I am going to propose would have been both impossible and unthinkable. While my command is too weak to simply stop the Germans from bombing London, I think that we can hurt them badly and, with some luck, cut their balls off.”
Dowding talked for a good half hour to present his plan, with supporting briefings from Sir Charles Portal of Bomber Command and from the chief of the air staff, Sir Cyril Newall. At the end of it, Churchill was obviously sold on the plan. He scanned the faces around the table.
“What is your opinion, gentlement? Do we go with Operation Counterpunch? If you say no, however, you better be prepared to present an alternative to it: I won’t sit still while London is reduced to rubble!”
A knock on the door interrupted the polling. The Prime Minister’s aide then entered and walked to Winterbotham’s place, handing him a sealed envelope. The room fell silent as Winterbotham read the classified dispatch.
“Gentlemen, I… well, this is an ULTRA message decoded at 11:03 hour today. In it, Goering is ordering his Luftwaffe to attack the London Docks on the afternoon of Saturday the seventh, to be followed by a night raid.”
He then stood up and brought the dispatch to Churchill, who read it carefully before looking again at the participants.
“Gentlemen, the threat to London is for real. I need your opinion on Operation Counterpunch, now!”
The vote that followed was unanimously in favor of the plan. Dowding was ecstatic, while Sir Charles Portal, whose Bomber Command would play an important role in the operation, was smiling with anticipation. Churchill then took back control of the meeting.
“Gentlemen, Operation Counterpunch is on. Furthermore, I direct that, in view of the sensibility of this Athena as a source, she is to stay a most secret source and the knowledge of her is to be limited to persons authorized by me, and me alone. Thank you and good luck!”
As the participants filed out of the room, Churchill intercepted Air Chief Marshal Dowding before he could leave and led him to a quiet corner.
“Air Chief Marshal, I would like to congratulate you on the idea for Counterpunch. You created quite a bold and ingenious plan there.”
Dowding suddenly looked embarrassed by Churchill’s compliment.
“Prime Minister, I have to say in all honesty that I didn’t come up with the idea. Someone else did.”
Churchill seemed amused by that.
“So, who is the brilliant strategist behind the plan, so that I can promote him to air marshal?”
“Actually, sir, Athena suggested the plan to me.”
Churchill was speechless for a moment, then started laughing.
‘’Decidedly, I will have heard everything today! Maybe we should accept women in the armed forces after all.’’
Brigadier Menzies returned to the conference room at that moment, looking agitated. Churchill rose an eyebrow on seeing his expression, expecting bad news. He was not disappointed in that.
‘’Mister Prime Minister, I am pained to inform you that three of the suspected spies on Athena’s list seemingly fled in a hurry and cannot be found. One of them unfortunately worked at our cipher school in Bletchley Park, where copies of our latest diplomatic and naval codes are now missing, taken by that individual.’’
‘’BLOODY HELL!’’ Swore Churchill. ‘’Anything else, Brigadier Menzies?’’
Menzies hesitated, knowing how hard what he was going to say would hurt the Prime Minister.
‘’Yes, Mister Prime Minister. Lord Rotschild and his wife have left their London residence yesterday at noon with a large quantity of luggage. Lord Rotschild drove by himself, refusing the services of his driver. None of his servants could tell my men where Lord Rotschild planned to go. I believe that this is enough to confirm the suspicions raised about him by Captain Laplante, Mister Prime Minister.’’
Churchill had to sit, profoundly shaken by the treason of such a long friend. He however regained most of his composure after a moment and pointed an index at Menzies.
‘’I want all ports and airfields alerted and all non-military flights cancelled for the moment. Have posters with the faces and names of the fugitives made and distributed in the whole of Great-Britain and warnings passed to all police stations and military camps, with orders to apprehend them on sight or, if they are about to escape, to shoot to kill.’’
‘’Even in the case of Lord Rotschild, Mister Prime Minister?’’
‘’Yes! He betrayed his country and he will pay the price for it. If anyone disputes these directives or refuse to cooperate with your men, then arrest them for aiding spies. I will take care personally of the mediatic and political consequences of this affair. Finally, I want the access to the Soviet embassy tightly controlled and the movements of the Soviet diplomats watched: one of the escaped spies may try to find refuge in the Soviet embassy or at the residence of a Soviet diplomat.’’
‘’I will take care of this immediately, Mister Prime Minister.’’ Said Menzies, saluting Churchill before leaving again. Churchill, now alone with Dowding, gave him a discouraged look.
‘’After this, I swear that Lord Hankey will never serve as minister again. What an imbecile!’’