Chapter 8 The Unexpected Development

900 Zulu, Friday, July 17, 1981, Bonn

By the end of the second week with Klaus Maria is certain Klaus is falling in love with her. More important she has to admit she is in love with Klaus. She knows she’s at a crossroad. She desperately wants to tell Klaus she loves him. For the first time in her life, she wants to be with someone forever. She finally understands why her parents are so happy with each other. She thinks how foolish I have been just seeking sex from men and not a relationship like I am developing with Klaus.

She knows her family won’t accept her living with Klaus without being married. She just can't see how she can continue her current work for the Agency and marry him. Her successes at the Agency have all come from intimate relationships with the men she selected as possible targets. It is fun for her and the easiest way to learn the secret passions of targets that can be exploited. Until Klaus her relationships were temporary. She quickly became bored with the sex and then turned over promising targets to another agent. If the target turned out not to be promising she dumped him and moved on.

Maria also senses Klaus is ready to profess his love for her. She is afraid he’ll act before she knows how she’ll respond. To avoid this she cancels their planned time together until dinner that night. She needs a plan to deal with the situation and she knows she needs it quickly. All morning her mind has been creating and assessing plans and strategies that might make it possible to marry Klaus, even if it requires giving up her work with the Agency. The major stumbling block is Klaus will likely want her to move to Dresden with him and she isn't willing to move. She knows she can get a visa for Klaus to go to America with her if she marries him but that will lead to many uncertainties and she worries about not being in control of her life, which she hates.

A second stumbling block to a workable plan is she still didn't know if Klaus is truthful about his life or if he is an agent with a well-rehearsed cover story. Finally, the obvious approach dawns on her. She realizes there’s one question that will open the door to the right path, or at least to more options. It means dropping the plan Leon suggested and she agreed to follow but she feels it’s her best choice. She can hardly wait until they return to her hotel room after dinner.

2000 Zulu, Friday, July 17, 1981, Maria’s room, Hotel Kamela Grand, Bonn

"Let's order some wine from room service. I feel like celebrating our second wonderful week together," says Klaus as soon as they are in Maria's room.

"Yes, let's do. I'd like to celebrate our two week anniversary too. It's been a wonderful two weeks for me, Klaus."

"You realize there is a subject we have been avoiding Maria. We must talk about the future. I want to be with you more; I know you have to go back to Munich in a day or two and I can't stay here much longer either without putting my job in jeopardy."

Maria avoids a direct answer and makes small talk until the wine arrives. Klaus pours the wine and hands her a glass saying, "Here's to our future."

Maria knows she can't put it off any longer so as they clink glasses she says seriously: "To our future Klaus. I want to continue our relationship but our jobs and where we each live is a complication. So I have a question for you."

"What is it, Maria?"

Maria knows she is violating every rule Leon taught her but she doesn't see any better approach. She asks the question she hopes will solve her dilemma, "Klaus are you willing to defect to the west so we can be together?"

Klaus is silent for some moments before answering in a soft voice: "Maria, I know we have been together for only two weeks but I have fallen in love with you. I have known I love you for several days and I haven't been able to find a way or the right time to tell you. I love you with all my heart but there are reasons I cannot defect to be with you."

"Klaus I love you too. I know it sounds corny but I really feel we are meant for each other. But our jobs and where we each live complicates any future relationship. Plus there is one more thing I must confess to you, Klaus. I am not sure I believe everything you told me about your life is the truth.  I don’t know why but I have this feeling you are hiding something from me."

"Everything I told you about my life is the truth, Maria. But I confess I haven’t told you everything. I have obligations other than my work for Myre I cannot reveal to you. What I do is very important to me but I must keep it a secret. But I can tell you it is honest work, very important work and I am proud of what I do."

“Klaus, just tell me this. Do you work for any intelligence or military agency of any Warsaw Pact nation?”

Klaus is genuinely surprise by her question and pauses a moment before answering, again in his soft sincere voice: “Before I can answer that question I have a question for you Maria. I suspect you haven’t told me the whole truth either. I’m not sure I believe you work for Ruhr selling automation equipment and robots. I have been truthful to you Maria and I desperately want to be able to trust you as well as love you.”

“Klaus you are right. I don’t work for Ruhr. I’ll tell you what I do but you must know it frightens me my answer may turn you away from me.”

“I promise you the truth will not turn me away.”

Maria thinks do I tell him my Agency cover story? No, that won’t explain why I am in a hotel. She decides to tell part of the truth. “Ok, I work for an American government agency here in Bonn and I live here not in Munich. I’d rather not say which agency Klaus, or why I am staying in this hotel rather than my apartment but I can also say my work is honest and important to me.”

“I don’t need to know what agency Maria or why you told me you live in Munich rather than Bonn, but if you can tell me one thing it will help me figure out what we can do with our future.”

“I will answer if I can and if it is something I am allowed to tell you.”

Klaus looks directly into Maria’s eyes and asks softly, “In your work do you or could you have access to America’s policies and plans concerning Europe; policies and plans that may not be public knowledge?”

“No, my job isn’t concerned with such information. Why is that of interest to you, Klaus? Are you asking if I can spy for you or the East Germans?”

“No, I would never ask you to spy for the East Germans or any Warsaw Pact nation Maria. But suppose you were to transfer to an office of your agency in America. Might you then have access to such information?”

“I suppose I might be able to but I don’t see how that could help our future together with you being in East Germany.”

After a few moments of silent thought, Klaus refills their wine glasses and responds: “Maria, let’s suppose for the moment you can achieve a transfer that gives you access to American policies and plans concerning Europe. If revealing such information could help ensure the Holocaust never happens again would you be willing to share it?”

“Wow! That’s a big question, Klaus. I would, but only under some conditions I have to be convinced would be upheld.”

“What are the conditions?”

“I would have to be convinced no harm would come to any individual, American or European, based on the information I disclose. Although I would actually enjoy seeing America’s hubris brought down a peg I would have to be convinced no real harm would be done to America and I would have to believe my actions were truly helping prevent harm to Jews. And most importantly, I would do this only if it meant we could be together Klaus.”

“I assure you any information you disclose would not harm any individual or America and I truly believe it would help prevent future harm to European Jews. If my word is good enough for you Maria let’s explore ways to make this happen so we can be together forever.”

“Ok.”

“What would you have to do to get transferred to a position giving you access to information on American plans and policies affecting Europe?”

“Well, I have to come up with a plausible story on why I want a transfer. If my story is good enough I think I could get a transfer but it would most certainly mean returning to America; to Washington D.C. How would that make it possible for us to be together?”

“If you succeed in getting a position with access to the information I am interested in I am willing to defect. I am fairly certain I can find a job in Washington. I’ll know for sure if I return to Dresden for a few days or perhaps a couple of weeks.”

“We have a lot of questions to be answered Klaus, I’d like to think about them with a clear head. How about we go to bed now and discuss our options in the morning?”

 “That’s a plan I don’t have to think about,”

800 Zulu, Saturday, July 18, 1981, Maria’s room, Hotel Kamela Grand, Bonn

When they get up the next morning, after another wonderful night together, they order breakfast from room service and work on their plans.

Maria says she’ll explore the possibility of transferring to a position with her Agency in Washington, D.C. She tells Klaus: “I think I can convince my bosses my father’s health is failing and my mother wants me to come back to support her. I’ll say I haven’t made a decision but I want to know if I can transfer if I decide that’s best. I’ll say I don’t want to leave the Agency and I can support my mother by visiting her on weekends if I am in Washington D.C.”

“That sounds plausible Maria. Will they be suspicious about the timing of your transfer?”

“I don’t think so. The project I am working on for my agency is at a natural ending point so I can use that as the excuse for the timing as well as my mother’s worries about my father. It should be ok. What about you Klaus, have you any more thoughts about defecting?”

“Yes, I think I may have a way to get to America without defecting and the publicity that would bring us. I have a friend with contacts at the East German Government agency that is responsible for gathering secrets on American and European technology. As you might have guessed the only reason I am allowed to travel outside Warsaw Pact countries is I am sent to collect technical information on robotics and automation from Western European countries. It may be possible for me to be assigned to an embassy in Washington D.C. I would be expected to collect technical data on American technology. Would you have a problem if that was my work in America?”

“If it harmed America I would have a problem with it. But if it would get you to America then we can marry and you can find work that doesn’t involve spying.”

“I understand and I can live with that condition. The only difficulty is it may take some time to get a transfer to America even if I am able to find a way. Anyway, I won’t know until I go back to Dresden and explore the options. Perhaps I’ll think of even better ideas as I travel. I think I can learn enough in a week to make decisions. How about we meet next Saturday?”

“That sounds good to me; by then I’ll know if I can transfer back to Washington D.C. There is one issue. I don’t want to meet here in Bonn; being seen with you after today could derail my story.”

“Ok, let’s meet in Dortmund. I know a hotel there and it’s less than two hours by train from Bonn. The hotel is the Mercure Hotel Dortmund. It’s on Kampstrasse about a five-minute walk from the train station. If you come Friday evening we’ll have the night and can discuss our plans Saturday morning as we have today.”

“Sounds wonderful but I think I had better come up Saturday morning on an early train. I am sure I can be there before 8:00 am. Ok?”

“Disappointing but ok. I'll take care of the reservations. Now let’s work out some ways to communicate. Can I call you here at the hotel or at your apartment?”

“I am going to check out of this hotel. You can call me at my apartment but only if you use a code. I always assume my phone is monitored. If our Saturday meeting is on call in the evening and ask for Marlene. If the meeting is off ask for Fraulein Schmidt. Here is my apartment phone number. Is there a way I can reach you if I can’t make the meeting for some reason?”

“Yes, I'll give you a number to call. Memorize the number, please. You can call from a public phone. Tell the person who answers you have a message for Karl Schultz. Say the meeting is off.  Say the message is from Marlene and leave the phone number of the public phone you use. I’ll call you back at that phone the following evening at 7:00 pm. We’ll be able to set up another meeting using the names Marlene and Karl. Will that work for you?”

“Yes, that’ll work. Now I must check out as I am not supposed to be staying here any longer and I don’t want anything to mess up our plan.”

“Good, I must head for Dresden immediately so I’ll check out too. I love you, Maria; I have great hopes we can find a way to be together forever.”

“I love you, Klaus, I know we will make it work, now hurry off so I can pack and check out on time.”