Beyond the Shield

by Nachman Kataczinsky

  “The more important point is that soon, maybe even before the war is over, we will start exporting our cars. Do you think we could compete with Detroit selling gasoline powered vehicles? Never. This car though, and trucks built on the same power train, will kill them. I’m sure they will want to license the technology, which I’m prepared to do.”

  Ze’ev turned to Wolf. “How are you feeling?”

  Wolf smiled. “Quite well, thank you. I appreciate you not calling me a hero. My sister and parents can’t stop. It’s embarrassing, especially as so many of my comrades died and the battle is not done yet.”

  Noam Shaviv nodded. “You are not alone, my friend. Welcome to the brotherhood and please suffer heroically. Do you know whether you’re going back to Europe?”

  Wolf shrugged and winced; the shrug was painful. “I hope so. The unit liaison officer told me that when my medical profile is at least 75%, they’ll take me back. Otherwise I’ll probably become an instructor. It’s still a ways off. The doctors at Rambam told me that it will be at least a month before I can take off the sling.”

  “Did they have a prediction for what you can expect?” Ze’ev asked.

  “Yes, I asked that question as well. The doctor said that I might regain close to 100% of my arm function after exercises and therapy. I’m optimistic, but it will take months,” Wolf responded.

  Linda entered the conversation. “I trust our doctors but you need to follow directions and use your own brain. Don’t try being a hero; you will be of no use if you return to your unit prematurely. If you served in the American military you would have gotten a medal just for having been wounded. You’re a hero already and have nothing more to prove.”

  “You sound like my mother.”

  Tzila Frumin, Wolf’s mother smiled. “Just because I’m your mother doesn’t mean I’m wrong.”

  Shoshanna, Noam’s wife, turned to Esther. “How you are doing? Did you decide what to do about your studies?”

  “I decided to enroll in Ben Gurion University and study biology. That way after one year I might be able to transfer to the Tel Aviv University and become an M.D. after four more years.”

  ***

  Amos Nir, the Prime Minister of Israel, was tired and looking forward to going home. Just one more meeting.

  The Foreign Minister, the Defense Minister, and the head of the Mossad came in together. After the greetings were done and everyone had their cup of coffee, Amos began. “We need to discuss our relationship with the U.S. In this timeline, they are not a superpower but still a major player. I think that we need to forge a friendship with the U.S. based on mutual respect and a commonality of interests.”

  Amos nodded at the Defense Minister, who was shaking his head. “I know that this sounds trite, especially in view of the way things developed in our past. Just hear me out and decide.

  “The situation now is that they know very little about us, so we can’t really expect respect. We have some limited common interests but we also may develop serious conflicts, like we had in our old timeline. The U.S. is friendly with the Arabs. They have a partnership with the Saudis in ARAMCO, a fact that predates the Roosevelt administration. If the oil companies maintain their influence, we will have tensions, possibly insurmountable, with the Americans. Any ideas on how to solve these problems?”

  The Foreign Minister nodded. “I have been thinking about this for a while. We need to show the Americans that we are militarily strong and a valuable ally in their Pacific war. I would prefer to keep the time travel issue in the background. They may already be aware of it but if questions are not asked we shouldn’t volunteer this information.”

  The Defense Minister agreed. “That’s what I was thinking as well. Maybe the simplest way to become a useful ally would be to offer them intelligence. They may not be in as bad a situation as the Russians but they are having a tough time with the Japanese navy. But we need to remember that the Americans have a history of rejecting, or just being skeptical, of intelligence.

  “In our timeline the Japanese occupied the Philippines shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. This time we disrupted that attack and gave General McArthur a chance to hold the Philippines. His air force, which survived due to our intervention, destroyed most of the Japanese air assets on Formosa and sunk most of the Japanese invasion fleet. The problem is that McArthur is arrogant. He managed to ignore a second invasion fleet that invaded the island of Mindoro. Now he’s trying to dislodge the Japanese, but with little success.

  “The Japanese are building up support for their forces on Mindoro. Also, since there was no battle of Midway, the Japanese aircraft carriers and most of their fleet are still intact. The U.S. had some success in dislodging them from other islands, Papua New Guinea being a good example, but the main problem for the Americans is locating the Japanese fleet. As you know, in the battle of Midway they got lucky and found the Japanese carriers first, but luck is not a reliable thing. We could hugely help them by providing the same kind of timely satellite photos we provide the Russians.”

  The head of the Mossad shrugged. “We may also be able to help them by breaking Japanese coded messages in real time. The Americans are doing a good job but every time the Japanese change their cipher it takes several days and sometimes weeks to find the new key. It seems that in this timeline the Japanese are changing the ciphers much more often than they did originally. We could provide the Americans, and the Brits, with the ciphers minutes after they are changed. This might help them a lot.”

  Amos Nir nodded. “Yes, I think we have a base for an approach to the Americans. Since the matters are mostly military, the Ministry of Defense should take the lead. Do we have a military attaché in our Washington embassy?”

  “We do, Colonel Oren Shaviv. He is with the air force and participated in the attack in North Africa. He was the only one of our pilots shot down there. A good and smart man,” the Defense Minister said.

  “Good, then he needs to get all the pertinent information and do his job,” Amos Nir concluded.

  ***

  When Ben Mosowitz and his wife Evelyn arrived at the Jewish Agency office on Arch and 18th Street in Philadelphia they were greeted by a polite receptionist. She took their names, checked their appointment, and promised they were next on the list. The wait was short and the representative came out to greet them and escort them into his office.

  Ben started as soon as they were seated. “We were at your presentation a couple of weeks ago in Wilmington and would like to ask some of questions.”

  “Go ahead,” the representative said. “I’ll do my best to answer.”

  “First, we would like to know how much it would cost us to visit Israel? We would like to see what we’re getting into before deciding to make aliyah.”

  “It’s not cheap,” the shaliach responded. “You have to make your way to New York where we would pick you up and transfer you to New Brunswick, Canada. From there you fly on one of our passenger planes directly to Israel. The total cost for a round trip is about five hundred dollars per person.”

  “So going on a research trip is expensive.” Ben looked at Evelyn, who nodded. “Let’s go to our next question: what kind of luggage and household items can we take with us if we decide to move there?”

  The shaliach tapped several key on the laptop in front of him. “You have three kids, so you’re entitled to two trunks and a large suitcase which the airline will ship with you. You can carry onto the plane a small suitcase per person. In addition you can send about half a boxcar full of possessions. They will have to be packed in what we call a ‘container’. It will be delivered to you, you fill it with stuff and we pick it up a day or two before you leave. We can send experienced movers to help you pack it, if you want. The container will arrive in Israel separately, possibly several months after you do, so it shouldn’t have anything you expect to need soon after you arrive. American electrical appliances won’t work in Israel so don’t bring those. You’ll get a discount on new ones t
o replace them.”

  Ben had his final and most important question. “I’m a business owner with a furniture store and small manufacture in Wilmington. What can I expect to do in Israel?”

  “You can open a furniture business. If you manufacture furniture you could be very successful. We’re absorbing enormous numbers of immigrants. People have jobs and places to live but furniture is a bit scarce. You will have competition, but you should be used to that. We will help you with information to adjust to local conditions, as well as with any licensing you might need.

  “There are many other avenues open to you, everything from working for the government to sales or manufacturing as a salaried employee.

  “Your daughter will go to school as soon as you arrive. All four year olds attend a half day kindergarten. If both parents work the kids usually go to a full day establishment for a small payment. Many women do work but it will be up to you.”

  Ben shifted in his seat. “I almost forgot to ask, the only Hebrew either of us know is a smattering from the prayer books. Is this going to be a problem?”

  “Yes and no,” the representative responded. “You can get by with just English, but I doubt you’ll be satisfied. Most new immigrants spend a couple of months in an immersive Hebrew school when they first arrive. It’s free and highly recommended.”

  ***

  Hitler finished reviewing the documents Gestapo Muller had given him. The Fuehrer was thoughtful. He turned to Himmler, who also attended the meeting. “Do you agree with Mueller’s recommendations?”

  Himmler nodded emphatically. “Yes, my Fuehrer. I have confirmation from several sources and they all agree. We’re facing a serious conspiracy. It involves civilians, civil servants, and the military. Our military difficulties stem from treason.”

  Hitler was slightly annoyed. “You didn’t answer my question. Do you agree with Mueller’s recommendations? Arresting most of our top generals and some second level military officers is not a simple affair.”

  “Yes, I agree with Mueller. We must act decisively or they will attack us.”

  “Who is this ‘us’ they will attack?” Hitler asked quietly.

  Himmler looked at the Gestapo chief who answered, “As far as we can ascertain, the attack will be against you personally and, after that, against the Party and its organizations, including the SS, SA and any party official they can get hold of.”

  Hitler sat for a short while, his fingers drumming on the desk. Finally he stirred. “Himmler, you think that some of the military problems are due to treason? What about the Luftwaffe?”

  Himmler straightened in his seat. “I spoke to the Luftwaffe commander and he seems to agree. By the way, I noticed General von Greim is in the waiting room. Maybe we should invite him in and ask him directly what he thinks.”

  Von Greim entered the office, saluted the Fuehrer and took a seat in the chair Hitler indicated.

  The Fuehrer looked at the general for a while then said, “General, please give us an update on what’s happening on the different fronts.”

  “I can only report with any certainty on issues concerning the Luftwaffe.

  “The Eastern Front and the French sector have been quiet for the past week. The only activity of any importance was in Austria.” von Greim stopped.

  Hitler was impatient. “Go on, man. You’re supposed to report not just sit here like a lump.”

  “Yes, my Fuehrer. Field Marshall von Kluge planned his attack on the Jewish force in Innsbruck for three days from today. We started moving aircraft into the Munich and Vienna airports five days ago. These are relatively large facilities with underground aviation fuel storage tanks. Three days ago, when most of the aircraft were in position, both bases were attacked by the enemy. We lost all but five bombers in Vienna and everything in Munich. Worse than this, the underground tanks, including those in Munich with reinforced concrete protection, were blown up. The attack was carried out in the morning and lasted only fifteen minutes. We think we damaged one enemy plane but we found no debris.”

  The room was quiet for long minutes. Hitler got up from his seat and started pacing. He stopped in front of von Greim. “How do you think the enemy knew that your force was in position?”

  General von Greim hesitated. “I really don’t know. We didn’t see any planes in the vicinity so it had to be an informant or spy.”

  Mueller stirred. “Who, besides Luftwaffe personnel, would know the exact location of the fuel tanks?”

  Von Greim shrugged. “Many people would have that information. The tanks were built a while ago, before 1939, as part of civilian improvements of the airports.”

  Mueller nodded. “They were built by the Todd Organization under Wehrmacht supervision. Todd used concentration camp inmates who were later executed. This leaves us with only one set of suspects: Wehrmacht personnel, although some Luftwaffe experts were also involved, especially in designing the bomb protection of the tanks.”

  Hitler addressed von Greim. “General, please wait outside. I will need to speak with you in private later.”

  After the Commander of the Luftwaffe was gone, Himmler shook his head. “My Fuehrer, there is another development you need to know about. Yesterday a division of Hungarian troops was destroyed. They were on their way to join our forces east of Innsbruck. One of their trains was attacked from the air. Very few survivors. The following train was also attacked but some of those troops escaped. They observed the attack on the first train and started running away before the second attack began.

  “I’m asking myself how did the enemy know when and which trains to attack?”

  Hitler returned to his seat. “You convinced me. We will go with your plan, after we deal with the invaders in Innsbruck.”

  ***

  “Come in,” Lior Lapid, the Israeli Ambassador to Washington, yelled. The door opened and Colonel Oren Shaviv, the military attaché, entered the room. “Lior, it’s almost time to go. I just wanted to make sure we’re on the same page. You do all the talking; I just answer questions if they ask me directly. Correct?”

  “You got it,” Lior said rising from his desk. “The President is likely to ask questions of you as are the military guys. Just remember one thing: any questions about where we came from are for me to answer. If, in the future, I’m not present you can always hide behind your Israeli accent and answer a different question or misinterpret completely what you’re asked. They don’t know that you have an MBA from UCLA.”

  They arrived at the White House in their new Sabra-A limousine. It was the first time the limo had been used officially. It provoked some obvious interest at both the White House gate and the North Portico.

  An aide took them to the same anteroom where Lior had waited during his first meeting with Roosevelt. Ten minutes later they were invited into the President’s office.

  “It’s a pleasure to see you again, Ambassador Lapid,” the President said.

  “Thank you, Mr. President,” Lior Lapid responded. “Please allow me to introduce our military attaché, Air Force Colonel Oren Shaviv.”

  The President smiled. “Welcome to the U.S.A., Colonel. Allow me to introduce my Secretary of War, Mr. Stimson, Secretary of the Navy, Mr. Knox, Army Chief of Staff, General Marshall, and Navy Chief of Operations, Admiral King.”

  “Ambassador Lapid,” the Roosevelt continued, “you requested a meeting to present to the military assistance your country can give us in our war with the Japanese Empire. Prime Minister Churchill assured me that you have been instrumental in winning their war against Germany.”

  “Mr. President, we can indeed render significant assistance.

  “You have two main difficulties: the first is that in the vast Pacific Ocean it’s not easy to spot an aircraft carrier. It’s even harder to spot a submarine.

  “The second difficulty lies in how long it takes you to decode Japanese communications when they change their cipher. If they changed every two weeks you would not be able to decode their messages.”

/>   Secretary Stimson stirred in his seat. “Pardon my blunt question, but how do you know about our decoding operations? These are top secret. Do you have spies in our military?”

  “We have no spies in the U.S. We don’t need them. We have the ability to know things other people think are secret. Here’s an example of what we can give you.”

  He opened his briefcase and pulled out several satellite images of the Solomon Islands. “These photos of Guadalcanal and vicinity were taken today. As you can see,” the Ambassador gave the images to Roosevelt, “there is a train of Japanese vessels running supplies to support their forces on Guadalcanal.”

  The Americans studied the images for a while before Admiral King said, “You’re saying the pictures were taken today?”

  “Three hours ago.”

  “How did you manage to take such high quality pictures and get them here in such a short time?” the President asked.

  “Mr. President, we won’t share our methods but you can benefit from our information,” Lapid responded.

  “Can you find the Japanese carriers now and tell us where they are?” the Secretary of the Navy asked.

  The Ambassador pulled out another sheet of paper. “As of 12:00 Washington time, today, the carrier Hiryu was 200 miles north of New Guinea. It’s on its way to attack Port Moresby. If you examine the image carefully you will note that two of its escorts are submarines, which were submerged when the image was taken.”

  General Marshall asked, “How do we know that the information in these images is correct?”

  Surprisingly, Admiral King answered. “I know the positions of our vessels and the image of the Guadalcanal area is accurate. I don’t understand how they determined the names and serial numbers of the vessels, both ours and the Japanese, but the information is accurate.

  “Mr. Ambassador, how certain are you that the Hiryu is on its way to Port Moresby, New Guinea?” He looked at the photograph again, “Yes, that’s what it says here.”

  Lapid looked at Colonel Shaviv. “The Colonel can answer that better than I can.”