The romanov sanction, p.22
The Romanov Sanction, page 22
part #1 of Briefings from the Deep Scarlet Compartment Series
Leaning in the open window, an excited Dmitri whispered, “There is a dilapidated shack facing the bay. There are only two windows on the back side. There are lights on inside. Most of the open area is dark. We can walk right up to it without being seen. Hurry Andrei. I want to get this done and get out of here. These woods make me jumpy. There could be bears and cougars prowling about looking for their dinner!”
“More likely rabbits and deer,” Andrei retorted with a little false bravado. “You take the camera. I will back you up.”
Walking crouched over; the two agents approached Doctor Faller’s fishing shack through the dark shadows between the lighted windows. Flattening their backs against the rear wall, Andrei whispered his final instructions. “Ease up to that window over there. See if you can peek in. You know how it is done from training. Just pretend you are peeking in a girl’s bedroom window.”
“If you can get a good view, take a head and shoulders shot of each of them. Try to get several from different angles. This film is not as fast as I would like, so you must wait until they are not moving. Now go. Be quick about it. I want to get out of here and back to the city for something warm to eat.”
Dmitri was much better peeking into windows than orienteering through the woods. Bending low, he eased under the window and rose on the far side, face flat against the outer wall. Inching very slowly to the left, one eye cleared the frame. Inside he could see the two spies entwined on the sofa, oblivious to the world outside. Hmmm, this would not be tolerated in Cheka schools. This is more like American movies, he thought.
The firelight illuminated the girl’s face. Fascinated, Dmitri forgot his training and moved closer to the window for a better look. Coming up for breath, the girl’s face turned, and he could finally see her clearly. An image clicked in his brain. He had indeed seen this face. This was a Romanov daughter. She was supposed to be dead. But, there was no doubt. This was Maria Romanova!
A firm hand drew the girl’s head back down. He had to take the shot now. Pulling the camera up too quickly, the lens hit the glass pane with an audible click. Marie’s head jerked up at the sound and looked directly at the ghostly apparition outside the window. Her involuntary scream pierced the night. Pointing to Dmitri’s face, frozen in fear outside the glass, Marie stammered, “Sam, there is someone out there looking in!”
Time compressed and expanded at once. Sam rolled from the couch and ran across the room, something long and silver colored appearing from nowhere. Heedless of what lay beyond, he bounded out of the kitchen door and rolled onto the snow outside. Now in the shadow, Sam raised the Colt as a natural extension of his left arm.
Dmitri snapped from his temporary frozen stance outside the window. Dropping the camera, he dug for the pistol inside his belt. The sight snagged on the cloth of his pants for a second before coming clear. Mindful of his partner on the other side of the door, Dmitri shouted the three words that sealed their fate. “Andrei, запустить его![6]”
Recognizing the Russian phrase from the previous year’s mission, Sam did not hesitate. The Colt belched flame, lighting up the night and ending Dmitri’s. Framed by the flash, Sam was an easy target for Andrei crouching behind him. At the click of Andrei’s hammer cocking, Sam instinctively tucked into a roll. But it was in the wrong direction. The roll placed him in the illumination from the window. Even as he raised the pistol and pointed it the direction of the second threat, Sam realized that he would not be fast enough.
Andrei grinned. He could not miss at this range. There would be a star in his record for this. Killing a spy and revenging Dmitri. This was worth all the boring spying in this decadent accursed country.
Movement at the door intruded on his moment. Twin fireballs erupted from a shadowy figure standing in the doorway. Then the hammer of the party slammed him backward, splattering the white snow with scarlet. This will not look good in my record, Andrei thought. Who is that lady in the shadows? Then the stars above him winked out.
Only Marie heard Sam’s swearing at the night, pistol dangling from his hand as he went from one body to the next. After checking pockets and retrieving guns, Sam looked in the car. There was a pad on the front seat. Seeing no other tracks beyond the car, Sam returned carrying his confiscated items.
“Who are they Sam? Are they ...?”
“Deader than hell, that’s for sure,” Sam swore as he returned to the cabin. He had shot without thinking, reacting to the one yelling at the other in Russian to ‘run for it.’ The shock hit him that they may have killed two innocent men. Except for the brace of unfired pistols, that is. Innocent people did not peep into windows and carry loaded pistols in their belts.
He hoped.
Wearily, Sam dumped everything on the bar in the kitchen along with the still warm Colt. Marie picked up the note pad and began to glance through its pages. “It is in Cyrillic, Sam. These men were Russian.”
“Yea, journalists from POCTA according to these press passes. That is like our Associated Press. We just killed a couple reporters in George’s back yard. Damn!”
Marie looked up from reading the last entry in the journal, “Not reporters, Sam, these two were Chekist spies, and since they had guns, probably assassins. We need to get the word to the family. We must go Sam. We must go, tonight!”
Chapter 29: Spy Games
Sagamore Hill
Oyster Bay, NY
40.88N 73.51W
1100 GMT, January 10, 1919
The house seemed unusually empty in Wednesday’s predawn hours. Edith Roosevelt sat at Theodore’s desk trying to answer some of the personal cards and letters that had come in over the past few days. Josephine was handling most of the mail, but some required her personal attention.
As she began her task, Edith noticed a plain unstamped envelope at the top of her stack. This letter had not been there last night when she finally retired. The envelope was addressed simply To Edith Roosevelt, Personal. In the upper corner was one word – COX.
Ripping open the envelope, she withdrew the short hand-written note.
Oyster Bay, NY
January 9, 1919
Dear Mrs. Roosevelt,
Marie and I enjoyed our recent visit with you. We had hoped for some more time together before we left for home. However, there were two unexpected visitors at the cabin last night. They came on an errand from their employer -- the one that Mr. Roosevelt’s artifacts were obtained from.
I believe that their ultimate intention was re-acquiring all of the artifacts. However, they were particularly interested in the reacquisition of the one that I showed you last evening. Price did not seem to be a consideration for these visitors. But, as this particular artifact is my personal favorite, I was unwilling to entertain any offers.
The two representatives of the original owners did not want to take no for an answer. I am afraid I had to insist in the bluntest terms that this artifact was not on the market. I am sure that they wished they could have consulted with their employer about using additional assets. However, we terminated the discussions.
Because of the potential interest in the other artifacts, Marie and I must leave and notify Mr. Roosevelt’s distributor of the potential for additional inquiries about the other items that he is holding. I am sure that he will contact you directly if there are any serious offers that you should entertain.
I expect my new job will require some travel and that I shall be in the New York area occasionally on the firm’s business. Marie and I hope to see you again in happier times.
Yours always,
Sam Cox
Reading between the lines, the cold hand of fear gripped her heart. Whatever happened at George’s cabin on the bay last night was serious. She had to know more and know it now! Rising, she rushed down the hall to the room beside the Gate House bedroom which Theodore had used until yesterday. Knocking on the door, she called out softly, “James Amos, are you awake?”
“I am now, Miss Edith, a sleepy voice replied. “What can I do for you?”
“I need you and Charles to check on something for me before daylight. Hurry!”
“Yes ma’am, I’m a coming. Where do you want us to go?”
“Doctor Faller’s fishing shack out on the bay. Meet me in the kitchen when you are dressed. I will fix you both something to take with you. James, hurry up and go get Charles!”
From their days with the Army and in the White House, James Amos and Charles Lee knew how to respond quickly to an order, even if it was couched in Edith’s soft voice. Within minutes, the two long-time servants of Colonel Roosevelt dressed and entered the kitchen. Before them on the table were thick sandwiches piled high with ham. Only Mrs. Roosevelt was present in the room. She poured two steaming cups of coffee and turned to the ice box for fresh cream.
“You boys know Sam Cox. He was here with his bride to be yesterday when you were at the funeral,” Edith began. “He left me a note in the night on Theodore’s desk.
Unintentionally breaking her train of thought, James answered, “Yes ma’am, Mr. Sam has been in the house a lot, the last three days.”
“What do you mean James? No one told me he was here.”
“I’m sorry ma’am. I was not sure what to say. Mr. Sam came the first time Sunday night late. I heard him in the Gate House room, talking to his father.”
Trying to maintain the secrets in the little red book Edith stammered, “His what?”
“Charles and I know that Mr. Sam is Quentin, Mrs. Edith. He is part of the colonel’s spy games.”
“What spy games? We haven’t much time, James. What spy games was Theodore mixed up in?” Edith asked with a mix of curiosity, pique, and a little envy. These two servants knew a side of her husband that she had not been privy to.
“Three games, ma’am. The first was trying to get those royal folks out of Russia. The colonel suffered over that one. He thought he had lost both boys and the folks he was trying to save. Now that Quentin, I means Mr. Sam, is back with his lady, I guess the colonel can rest in peace over that one.”
Intrigued, Edith urged him to continue, “How do you know about the trip into Russia?”
“Oh, that one is easy, Mrs. Edith. The colonel could not go anywhere without someone recognizing him. No one pays much attention to us black folks. Charles and I did his little secret errands. We went up to West Point and down to Annapolis to get him the maps and some books and papers that he needed. They’s folks at both places who were willing to help the old Rough Rider without asking questions. I guess it helps that he was President and sent their boats and soldiers around to interesting places from time to time.”
“You said games, James. What were the other games that I might need to know about?”
“Well ma’am, you know the colonel did not like the Bold She Vices that took over in Russia. He was always swearing, begging your pardon ma’am.”
“James, I am well aware of Theodore’s colorful speech when he is angry, go on.” Edith said with a slight smile.
“Well ma’am, he caught some of them Bold She Vices following us when he was in the city for a few days last year,” Charles interjected, picking up the story. “They followed us wherever he went and then followed us back to Sagamore Hill. This made the colonel mad. He used some of that colored speech. When we gets home, he had me change cars and tail them.”
“Yes, that is exactly what he said, ‘Charles tail those, and I can’t repeat the next word, back to their den. I want to know who has been following me around the past three days.’ He had James sneak down through the woods to get the number of the car. I drove out the back way. Then James and I followed that car back to New York. They parked and went in the building with the Russian flag over the door.”
“The colonel was not happy about that. This was even before he sent Mr. Sam and the others into Russia last spring. Well the next time he caught them following the car, he had me stop at the old bridge. You know the one the boys used to play pirates under. He gives James a paper in a little jar to put in the crack the boys used for their pirate treasure maps. Then we drove on home as if nothing happened.”
James continued up the tale, “I got out around the bend and went back to look. Sure enough, one of the guys came out with the jar and they jabbered away in their lingo awhile. One then wrote down what was on the paper. They put back the jar and off they go lickity split. This really made the colonel laugh. He had me watch the bridge all the next day.
Sure enough, the first ones brought back another and they took pictures of the paper in the jar and then left again. They came back every day or so for almost a week to check the jar. After one of their trips, I went back down and brought the paper home. The colonel told me to leave the jar. When the Russians checked the bridge the next day, they got all excited again, jabbered away and took off back toward the city.”
Laughing out loud, Charles added. “Since then, when I drove the colonel to the City and we saw the Russians following behind us, Mr. Roosevelt would have us stop by some pole or curb and make a chalk mark and then continue on. It was his private game.”
“The colonel surely loved his little spy game,” James concluded. “Anytime he saw something in his readings that was embarrassing to those Bold She Vices, he would write up a little note for me to put in the jar and then include a remark in one of his speeches or letters to some editor. He often wondered aloud how much fuss he was causing as they looked for his New York spy.”
Charles hesitated and then added something, “But the colonel was extra careful about his real spy.”
“Real spy? You mean there were both a fake spy and a real one?” Edith blurted out.
“Yes ma’am, he got a letter or package addressed to Charles Lee care of general delivery at a post office near Richmond. When Charles would go down to visit, he would bring one or more letters back. Mr. Roosevelt would read them, make his notes and burn both the letter and the envelope in the fire.”
“Who else got this intelligence? Did Theodore send it to someone in Washington?”
“No ma’am, not that I know of. Mr. Roosevelt did not think much of the folks in Washington these days. He often would write a letter to that young Churchill fellow in England. He would have me post the letter separate from the ones Miss Josephine handled for him. We mailed the colonel’s England letters and packages from Newport. They went to the Duchess’ place in London, not to Winston himself. I think she was a Vanderbilt before she married the English gentleman. I guess the Misses got the letters to the Winston fellow somehow. Anyway, the Colonel called it a double cutout.”
“This is really interesting boys and we must talk more. But I have a job for you and it will be light soon. From Sam’s letter, two of your Bolsheviks must have followed Dr. Faller out to the fishing shack last night. I think there was a fight that they did not survive. I want you two to go out to the cabin and clean up everything. There can be no trace that Sam and Marie were ever there, or that there was any violence during the night.”
“Leave nothing that can be traced or that can cause any embarrassment to the doctor. If you find any blood or signs of violence, get rid of it. Take any food you find in the house to a poor family somewhere out on the island but bring anything else you find back to me. Tell no one what you have been up to.”
Gulping their coffee down, the two left the kitchen carrying their sandwiches and a bottle of milk out to the car. It was well into the morning when they returned. The only thing they brought with them was a camera that they had found buried in the snow under the rear window and a copper clad bullet James had dug out of one of the white pines. Engraved at the base of the almost half inch-wide spent projectile was the symbol RR.
Later that day, Edith Roosevelt paid her first visit to her husband’s grave. Noticing a car following behind them on the way back to the house, she had Charles stop and place a folded note in the jar under the old bridge. The car did not continue following them as they proceeded back to Sagamore Hill.
Two days later James Amos, careful as always on such missions, snuck down under the bridge and retrieved the Edith’s note. As he was about to leave, two one-hundred-dollar bills fell out. Putting the money back in the note, James Amos read the short message.
I will be your control now. This will cover your expenses until we arrange regular payments. ER
Several days later Charles caught the southbound express out of the Central Station in route to Richmond Virginia to visit his family. With him he carried a short notice to place in one of the Washington papers.
The family thanks you for your services in the past. Payments will continue in the usual manner. RR
A week later, Charles returned to Sagamore Hill with pleasant stories to tell about his many nieces and nephews. For Mrs. Roosevelt, he brought a pecan pie and a small packet of letters addressed simply to Charles Lee, c/o General Delivery Midlothian, Virginia.
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