The Sixth Seal полностью

It took a little effort, but the pair got the dresser pushed away from the door, sliding it up against the righthand side of the quaint room. Hammet pushed open the door and paused when he took in the scene.

“American?” Both women nodded. “So,” he continued, “we have German, Soviet, and American forces in bed together during the war?” They nodded again. Hammet let out a long breath. “Fascinating…”

Zahra could see that Hammet’s mind was running a million miles a minute, like hers. Yana’s, too. They all wanted desperately to figure this out. Whatever secret cabal these people represented, Zahra doubted this crew had been the only ones part of it. There had been much more going on behind the scenes.

“This changes everything,” Zahra said, still trying to process it all. Her hands trembled, but not from the cold. She looked at her teammates. “This changes history.”

Tobias ended the call just as Zelda knocked. He reached inside his top-right drawer and placed his finger on a concealed scanner. Once his identity was confirmed, the office door’s deadbolt retracted. He only locked it when he felt the need for privacy.

Nowadays, he locked it often.

He put on the cheeriest face her could muster. “Ah, Zelda, my dear.”

She gave him a questioning stare before entering. “You called?”

“I did. Please, will you take down a message and send it throughout our network?”

“As you wish.” She crossed the spacious room.

Tobias knew Zelda would succeed when her time to lead came.

But not yet.

Zelda reached inside her immaculately pressed jacket and pulled out a small pad of paper and a pen. They never took sensitive messages digitally. Electronic devices could be hacked. Paper was much easier to destroy. Their phone conversations were impossible to listen in on, too, due to their security measures.

“Whenever you are ready, Grandfather.”

He leaned closer to her and stared into her eyes. “They have entered the submersible. Will have more information soon. Prepare.”

“Think his gun still fires?”

Zahra and Hammet stopped their search of the captain’s desk and looked back at her with a pair of ‘don’t even think about it’ looks.

The Russian shrank back. “It was just a thought. But come on, you two, you must agree that being out here unarmed doesn’t feel right, yes?”

Hammet’s eyes flicked to Zahra. He turned back to a mess of papers. “I don’t disagree.”

Zahra sighed. “Me either.”

“Does that mean—”

“Help us first,” Zahra interrupted, “then we’ll talk about your concern.”

“Fine,” Yana muttered, stepping over. “What do we have so far?”

Hammet held a paper up. “Mostly requisition forms. Nothing important.”

“And a two-page request list,” Zahra added, holding up her own paper.

“Requests for what?” Yana asked.

Zahra scanned the document. It was written in German, as expected. Not only was she fluent in several languages, but she could also read them, though not as quickly as she could speak them.

“Gear, food, entertainment…”

“For the sailors here?” Yana asked.

Zahra shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. I get the feeling this is for a group of soldiers that were not on board.” She eyed Hammet. “You did say these things were retrofitted for cargo, right?”

He nodded. “Ja,” he pointed at the list, “but where would those men be stationed?”

Yana looked back and forth between them. “Here, obviously, in Hitler’s secret Antarctic station.”

Hammet stood and faced her. “Nothing in history suggests that there ever was a station. There are plenty of stories about one, but no hard evidence.”

“Pft.” Yana wasn’t buying it. “Evidence, schmevidence. We have a U-boat-turned-long-distance cargo vessel stuck in the ice in Antarctica and a two-page shopping list, and you’re telling me that there’s no chance there’s a secret Nazi installation somewhere out there?” For good measure, Yana jabbed a finger to the south.

Zahra folded her arms across her chest. “She has a point…”

The only reply Hammet gave her was a low “Hmmm.”

Zahra turned back toward the desk and spotted something, a symbol that she had only just seen for the first time. “Look at this.” She slid a sealed envelope out of the pile. “It’s the same globe emblem from the sailor’s uniforms.”

“Let me see,” Hammet said, holding out his hand. Zahra handed it over. Hammet carefully opened it, slipping out a single piece of paper. He quickly let out another grunt, disappointed. “What language is this?”

“Give it here.”

Hammet handed it over to Zahra. She looked it over. It was unlike anything she had ever seen before. She recognized pieces of it but couldn’t read it.

Yet.

“Is it a code?” Yana asked, peeking between Zahra and Hammet.

Zahra stepped aside so the third member of their team could join them.

“Yes, but not the type you need a keyword or phrase to decipher.”