Toehold in Europe (Combined Operations Book 5)

by Griff Hosker

  I saw Hugo arrive with his arms full. I waved the waiter over and paid the bill. I left him the tip he had hinted at. It never hurt to have the locals on your side. I followed Hugo into the yard. He turned, "Ah there you are. I have your camera and Major Fleming thinks it is a good idea. However he still wants the whole of the coastline examining."

  I took the camera from him and held it up. "And we will do!" I held out my hand, "Film?"

  He handed me a bag. "There are ten rolls. A couple are fast films. You can take photographs in poor light."

  I went to the waterside and found a seat. It was a Leica IIIa. I had heard of this one. It was a good camera and had a fast shutter speed of one thousandth of a second as well as a one second speed. It had interchangeable lens although the one with which it was fitted, the 50mm, was more than adequate. The letters D.R.P, Deutsches Reichspatent, showed that it was a genuine Leica and not a copy. I looked through the shutter. The camera felt solid in my hands and it was compact. It would be perfect. After clicking and winding on a couple of times I went indoors to load the film in a shaded area. It would be trial and error but I enjoyed photography and this time it might save the lives of some of my men. If I could take a photograph from ground level it would give a better view of what the soldiers might expect.

  We left the following afternoon. There had been a breakthrough on the northern side of the island and we thought we might be able to sneak through the straits while the Germans rushed reinforcements to fight the Americans. Monty and the 8th Army were still stuck around Etna. The British had the harder terrain. Despite all of Major Fleming's efforts things had evened themselves out. Once again we sailed without a flag. We had explosives but I was not certain that we would need them. We were going to photograph Agropoli when we passed it and then land at Paestum. The aerial photographs of Paestum showed no military targets although there was a military presence and so I hoped it might be a cakewalk. The machine guns and the explosives were in case it was not.

  We managed to get through the straits unseen. It was daylight but we flew no flags and we did not hurry. This time we were not going as far north and had more time. We kept to the centre of the straits and saw no other vessels. We had heard that, thanks to allied bombers, the Italians and Germans were using the cover of darkness to resupply Sicily. We ran up the Swastika once we passed the straits. The sun was dipping in the west as we passed Agropoli. It was perfect for taking photographs. The light was from behind me. Alan took us in as close as he dared and I clicked away. Agropoli was defended. I saw 88mm and machine guns. There was an old citadel and a harbour, Both would be fiercely defended. Wacker had to fend off questions from the shore as we passed but he and Alan had concocted a story of engine failure near to Sicily and the need to get to Naples. We were believed, apparently. The slow speed of the E-Boat seemed to confirm some damage.

  My men and I went below decks, as darkness fell, to prepare. As it became night we gained speed and headed to Paestum. The aerial photographs had suggested empty beaches with scrubland close behind. They were accurate. We slowed so that the engines were barely turning over and listened. There was no sign of life close to us. We stopped and lowered the dinghies. This time the seamen who rowed us in would stay with the dinghies; we wanted a swift departure. They were armed with our spare Tommy guns. I was using my Colt as was Polly and Gordy.

  The first thing we did was to examine the beach. It was not mined. We headed across the narrow belt of sand towards the scrubland and found wire but it was not barbed. I think it was there to deter people from using the beach. We moved in a long line across the scrubland. We examined the ground but it was solid. It had not been mined either. As we neared its edge we heard vehicles using the coast road. I waved my hand and we dropped to the ground. Crawling forward we saw houses and shops ahead. We had arrived at a busy part of the town. This was no military target. There were people enjoying the warm summer evening. I saw a busy cafe bar with both German and Italian soldiers fraternising with pretty young girls.

  I waved my men to the left and we moved parallel to the road. After a while the shops and bars ceased and it became more residential. These were substantial houses. I guessed that, before the war, they had been summer homes for the rich of Rome. Now they were shuttered or boarded. Then I saw an Italian flag and some armed sentries. It was a hotel, I could see the name had been painted out, and now it was a military building of some description. We had seen hotels from the air but the flag and the sentries had been hidden from view. I began to wonder if we might glean more valuable information here than by marching up and down the beach.

  I crept forward to examine it from the safety of the shoreline. There were four Italian sentries: two at the main entrance and one at each end. They had rifles and were wearing soft hats. We waited a while and watched as a car pulled up and some senior officers arrived. This was a military target. I waved Scouse over, "Get back to the boat. Have the Lieutenant bring it down here. We may need a quick pick up."

  He nodded and slipped away in the dark. The sound of the sea behind us would hide any noise we might make. I waved over my sergeants. "I want to take out these sentries. Let's see if we can capture some information; perhaps even a couple of senior officers."

  They nodded. They were never surprised.

  "Just incapacitate the sentries. Gordy take your section and come in from the rear. Polly you take the left. Bill, you come with me on the right."

  We crept forward. Gordy and his men moved down the beach towards the quieter section we had just passed. Polly waited until the sentries' backs were turned and led his men across the quiet road. I was about to move when a bus came down the road from the south.

  "When it passes rise and we will cross in its wake." I gambled that the sentries would either look, briefly, at the bus or be so disinterested that they ignored it completely. It was an old bus and seemed to take forever to reach us. As soon as the cab passed me I stood and walked towards the road. By the time it had passed I was striding across the centre of the road. I had my sap in my hand. Things happened really quickly. I pointed to the sentry at the end who was staring down the street. I hurried to the main entrance for I had seen that the sentry closest to Sergeant Poulson was down.

  As I neared the entrance one of the sentries saw Sergeant Poulson and his men creeping along the wall. He said something and his companion turned. As they unslung their rifles I ran behind the first sentry and hit the back of his head. The other made the mistake of turning and Sergeant Poulson smacked him one too. I made the sign for them to tie them up and I tapped Hewitt on the shoulder. I took out my Colt and stepped into the lobby of the former hotel.

  It was a grand entrance with a staircase ahead of me and a reception desk to my right. It looked like they were using the desk to give information to newly arrived officers. The recently arrived officers were waiting and talking. Corporal Hewitt cocked his Thomson. These were soldiers in front of us and they recognised the sound. The ones closest to us turned. I had my Colt levelled at them.

  "Hands up!" I spoke in German.

  There was a hubbub of noise as they all spoke. Next to the desk was a bust of Mussolini. I fired one shot. The bust cracked and shattered. The effect was instantaneous. Their hands went up. I heard the noise behind me of the four unconscious sentries being dropped to the ground and my men following me into the hall. I saw the resignation on the faces of some of the officers. One, a colonel by the insignia on his collar, said, in English, "You cannot get away with this!"

  I ignored him. "Lance Sergeant Hay, tie up the officers. I want to take the six most senior back with us. Sergeant Poulson, upstairs and clear the rooms there. Check the luggage and the bags for papers. Just bring back anything that you can find. Corporal Hewitt keep an eye on them. Crowe, follow me."

  Just then there was a noise from the service door under the stairs. Gordy and his men prodded forward the men who had been working in the kitchens. A couple had been knocked about and had bloody noses. Gord
y knew how to get a man's attention.

  We moved behind the desk. There was a private standing there and, hiding at his feet, a second man, a sergeant, with a pistol. I tut-tutted and gestured for him to rise. As he did so I took the Italian pistol and pocketed it. I gestured for them to join the others. There was a door behind the desk and I opened it. Obviously, during peacetime, it had been the manager's office. Now it looked to be the admin office of the headquarters. There were filing cabinets. "Hewitt grab all the papers that you can see. Don't try to read them; just grab them. I will find a bag for you."

  I went out of a second door. It led to a toilet and hanging from the back of the door were two army rucksacks. I found nothing else of interest and I emptied the two bags. I rejoined the Corporal who had a large pile of papers. "Put them in here. Join me out front when you are done."

  When I rejoined my men in the former lobby I saw that there were about fifteen enlisted men and twelve officers. Six stood apart, watched by the eagle eyed Lance Sergeant Hay. I saw that the colonel who had spoken English was with them. I also spied a General. He had tried to hide himself when I had addressed them all. I made sure I was close to the Colonel when I said, "Lance Sergeant, have your section take these to the beach. If they give you any trouble then wound them, quietly!"

  "Yes sir." Bill was a clever chap and he put his Colt in the back of the General while saying to the Colonel. "Right gentlemen, move!"

  I heard a murmur of disapproval from the other officers who were seated on the ground. I fired a shot close to the legs of a truculent looking Major. Splinters of wood spattered into his legs. "Silence or we will shoot. If you behave then you will all live and be able to tell your children and grandchildren this tale."

  Some must have understood English for I saw a couple whisper to their fellows.

  Sergeant Poulson came down the stairs behind four men whose hands were in the air. There were also a couple of women. I guessed, from their clothes, that they were local prostitutes. They did not look put out or worried by the guns.

  "Tie them up."

  One of the women said, "Us too, Tommy?"

  I smiled, "I fear I must. We don't want you going for help do we but my men will be gentle."

  She nodded, "Have you any nylons for us?"

  "Had we known we would have seen two such beauties then we would but I fear we have not. Next time, perhaps."

  She nodded, "Of course." They sat, not on the floor with the soldiers, but on the comfortable sofa. I admired her style.

  Hewitt came out. I saw that he was struggling with the two heavy rucksacks. "Emerson, grab one of those bags and help Doc. You two, head back to the beach. We will be along soon."

  I waited until the women had been tied up. "Sergeant Barker, move the sofa and the ladies away from the door, if you please." Gordy had no idea why but he and Smith moved it. They rejoined me. "Outside, I will join you in a moment." When I was alone I said slowly and carefully. "I know that you will get out of the bonds in a short time. I should warn you that I intend to booby trap the front doors from the outside. It is why I have moved the ladies away from the blast area. Do not try to leave by the front door. The back doors will be safer." Only a couple of those before me seemed to understand the words. I said to the woman, "Could you translate please."

  She nodded and did so then she said, "You are a gentleman, Englishman."

  "I try!"

  Once outside I slammed the doors shut and rammed a rifle between the ornate handles to hold it shut. "Back to the boat." I had no intention of using a booby trap. It was simply not worth it. We did not have far to go to get to the boat.

  "Won't they try to escape, sir?"

  "Yes but by then we should gone."

  We hurried across the road, back over the scrub to the beach. I saw the reassuring shape of the E-Boat. Corporal Hewitt, Emerson and Scouse stood on guard. "They took the Eyeties and the rucksacks on board sir. We are waiting for the dinghies to come back for us."

  We were still in enemy territory and we made a half circle facing the land. It all seemed quiet. I had delayed the escape of those in the former hotel so that they would not know which direction we had taken. I had thought of booby traps but this was a residential area. I did not want innocent civilians dying. I heard the splash of paddles behind me. It was the dinghies.

  As we boarded the E-Boat I looked at my watch. It was just after midnight. We had finished earlier than we had expected. I went to the bridge, "Home James and don't spare the horses!"

  "Course for home, Midshipman Higgins. Petty Officer Leslie, take it easy until we are away from the shore. Let's not advertise our presence eh."

  They both said, "Sir!"

  He turned to me, "You have been busy, Tom."

  "It was too good an opportunity to miss. The papers might be useless but I think they will be gold. Intelligence will love the opportunity to grill senior officers and it saves us hanging around."

  "If we go at full speed then we can be home by six. We might get through this without anyone noticing us."

  "Where did you put our prisoners?"

  "I am afraid you and your lads have lost your mess."

  "It is a nice night. We will sleep on the deck. I will go and arrange the sentry rota." I descended to the mess. It was crowded. There was a lot of noise, Shut up!"

  Gordy banged on the table to silence the Italians. "You heard the Captain!"

  "Sergeant Poulson, I want two men on this door and one on the galley door. Use Thompsons. I want one sergeant on duty too. Two hours on. We will sleep on the deck. It is quite pleasant up there."

  "Right sir. Hay, Emerson, Smith. You have the first watch. Wake me in two hours."

  "Right Sarge."

  By the time I reached the deck we were heading south and going at almost full speed. It was not economical but it was necessary. I rejoined Alan. "I think we may be pursued." He cocked his head to the side, "We have a General and two bags full of papers. They won't sit and twiddle their thumbs."

  "Right, Middy, have the guns crews closed up and get the cook to whistle up some cocoa and sandwiches. We may not have time later on."

  "Sir!"

  "Let's hope they are slow to start the chase. At least we are safe from aerial attack."

  "What time is dawn?"

  "At this time of year about five, maybe a little later, but we will be visible from four or so. Still we are faster than anything that they have in the water." He smiled at me, "You have done well. Are you going to get your head down too?"

  "No. I thought I would keep my men company. Besides, until we get home this is not a successful operation."

  "Cheerful blighter!"

  As I left Bill Leslie said, "Just like my mum; she always said, 'don't count your chickens'!" He paused, "Or in this case Eyetie generals!"

  I went down to the mess. The Italians looked despondent. The one who could speak English looked up at me. "This is an E-Boat."

  "Is it?" I said innocently. "I hadn't noticed."

  "We thought there was something wrong when the airfield was raided the other day and we could not find you." He gave a sly smile, "The Germans suspect, you know! They will catch you."

  "Well you had better hope it is on our next trip otherwise you will meet the same fate as us!"

  The realisation of his position hit him. The general asked him something and he gave a long answer. The general waved a fist at me. Fred Emerson went towards the General and said, "Now then, we'll have none of that. You touch the Captain and I will give you a good hiding!"

  "It's all right Emerson. I can take a few empty threats. I'll go and make a brew."

  Jimmy Smith said, "But sir, you are an officer!"

  "And I can make a pot of tea. I joined up as a private, Smith. I have just been lucky."

  The Colonel said, as I passed, "It is true you have been promoted from the ranks?"

  "I'm afraid so, Colonel. Awful isn't it?" I think he was offended that he been captured by a common soldier. I made
a pot of tea and brought out enough cups for the Italians too.

  Emerson and Smith came over and took the teapot, milk and cups from me. "Lieutenant Jorgenson asked if you could go on deck sir. We'll dole out the tea."

  "What's up, Alan?"

  "Wacker has picked up a lot of radio traffic and Paestum was mentioned. And about ten minutes since Symons spotted a line of boats moving quickly north west of Messina."

  "E-Boats?"

  "That is my guess."

  I told him what the Colonel had told me. "If the Germans are suspicious they may remember that we went along the north coast of Sicily to get home."

  "That makes sense but I had not planned on going that way home this time. I was going to risk the straits again anyway. We should just make it before dawn. We have plenty of go-go juice. Let's ride our luck."

  "When do we hit the straits?"

  "In an hour or so. I'll give you a shout if we hear anything else."

  As I entered the mess I was handed a cup of tea.

  "If it is a bit stewed, sir, I'll make a fresh pot."

  "No thanks Emerson. This tastes like Sergeant Major Dean tea. It reminds me of home!"

  The Italians were asleep by the time we changed the watch. I filled Sergeant Poulson in on what had transpired. He nodded. "You should get some sleep, sir."

  "No, I am fine."

  "Scouse go and make a brew. See if there is any corned dog left."

  Private Crowe said, "I have something even better! I forgot about these. Hang on a mo' Scouse."

  He disappeared and then returned with his Bergen. He drew a long salami from it. "The Sarge and me found these in the kitchen. He has a bagful too. Do you fry them?"

  I held one next to the light. "No you eat them raw. Stick some marge on the bread and cut a slice of it. You'll enjoy it."

  He grinned, "Too right I will. My dad always said, 'stolen sweets taste best'.

  "True. You father was quoting Colley Cibber an eighteenth century writer and philosopher."

  "I don't thinks so sir, my dad worked down a mine in Nottinghamshire!"