‘All of the dead have one thing in common,’ Lotte Muller continued gently. ‘They were part of a transport of three hundred prisoners from Mauthausen which arrived in Auschwitz-Birkenau on the twenty-fourth of February nineteen forty-three. On arrival they were taken directly from the train to the gas chambers. Odd, don’t you think, that for two years this facility appears to have been staffed by ghosts?’
LIX
THE VAN WITH the Europcar logo drew into the police station car park and pulled up beside the Volkswagen. While the mechanic retrieved his toolbox, an officer emerged from the station to sign him in.
‘Is this the one I’m supposed to take a look at?’
‘That’s it. They didn’t leave the keys, though.’
The mechanic laughed. ‘Tourists. Not a problem. I have a spare set.’
‘Well, if you need to get in touch with them, just let me know. They’re with the boss.’
‘Thanks.’ Not a bad guy for a cop, he thought. He waited until the man was back in the building before he opened the bonnet.
They reached a rutted track where the roadside vegetation appeared to have been recently cut, and a few minutes later the car approached an iron gate. The gate was badly rusting, but the razor wire that topped it and which stretched into the trees on either side of the road couldn’t have been more than a few years old. Two bored-looking policemen hurriedly stubbed out their cigarettes at the sight of the approaching car. The men saluted Lotte Muller, but she still had to produce her identity card before the gate was opened. They drove into a wide, dusty bowl below a great scar in the hillside. At the base of the scar, a dark shadow showed where a tunnel had been cut into the rock.
‘I doubt this place would ever have been found,’ the police chief said as she led the way towards the passage. ‘Of course, some people believe it would have been better if it had not been. They wish to forget that things like this ever happened.’
Sarah gripped the flowers in both hands. She looked towards the impenetrable forest beyond the barbed wire and tried to imagine what it had been like for the three hundred men and women who had seen their last glimpse of sunlight here. She shivered and hesitated before the entrance, but a generator kicked into life somewhere behind them and a line of bulbs strung along the roof illuminated the tunnel with dim, unnatural light. They followed Lotte inside.
Fifty metres into the passage they reached a massive reinforced steel door with a smaller entrance set into it. Lotte reached inside her shoulder bag and brought out a set of keys.
‘The locksmith took two days to break in. My minister did not have his patience, he wanted to blow the doors with explosive. Fortunately, he was persuaded to wait.’
The key turned easily in the lock and the door swung open to reveal what looked like a small aircraft hangar. At the far end were sited a pair of a concrete bunkers with narrow horizontal slits that would each allow a belt-fed machine gun to cover the entire area. Between them a set of metal stairs led to the next level.
‘They didn’t encourage visitors.’
‘No, they did not, Mr Saintclair. This way please.’ She ushered them below the stairs to where a corridor led to a tunnel similar to those they had run through when they were being hunted.
‘Would it be possible for us to spend some time alone where we found the bodies?’ Jamie asked.
Their host frowned. ‘I do not know if that would be permitted. This is a place of many dangers, Mr Saintclair. We have not yet begun work on clearing the main production hall.’
‘I realize that, Kommissar, but it is very important to us. We – Miss Grant and I – discovered this bunker and what we saw inside that room will remain with us for ever. At the very least, we deserve the opportunity to come to terms with it.’ Sarah moved to his side and together they looked into Lotte Muller’s eyes. Her expression softened and she sighed.
‘Of course, you must. I understand. I saw what you saw and it haunts me also. I . . . This tunnel eventually leads to what we call the production hall, it is lit the entire way. You will recognize it by the door, which is badly damaged – I am sure you remember it – the room where you discovered the bodies is the third on the left. Please be careful. It would be very regrettable if anything were to happen to you.’ She nodded and turned away. ‘I will wait for you here. Shall we say ten minutes?’
Jamie thanked her and led the way inside.
‘That was smooth, lover boy,’ Sarah whispered. ‘You had the dragon eating out of your hand. I can see I’m going to have to watch you.’
‘It’s your corrupting influence,’ Jamie said airily. ‘Can you remember the way to the office where we found the Raphael?’