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would be his life on the line, not Tommy’s, and that Danish Intelligence were the experts in this sort of thing. He and Thorbjoern had vowed to abide by the recommendations of the professionals, and try to trek from Stevns to Falsterbo. Sneum shook his head in dismay. The route lay further south than anything he had been prepared to contemplate. Both points were sparsely populated, which was an advantage, but Falsterbo lay some twenty-three kilometers across the ice from Stevns. They might avoid being spotted; but they might also never see anyone again. The journey would be long and they would be exposed to the worst of the elements. To succeed, the brothers would require extreme powers of physical endurance and mental strength in bitter temperatures.

Sneum doubted the Christophersens had what it took, because they had seemed quite happy to turn back before. And even if they did have the necessary qualities and appetite for what they were about to attempt, they would require luck to find a way through. Tommy didn’t want the Christophersens crawling back yet again, so the following day he took Oxlund quietly aside and said: ‘Kaj, I want you to go with them. Tell Sigfred you want to join the British forces too.’

Oxlund looked surprised, then expressed scepticism that any of them would make it.

‘Maybe you’re right,’ acknowledged Sneum. ‘But I need you to make sure they go through with it this time. If the ice starts to break up and you have to turn back, just make sure you shoot the bastards before you come home. Then put them under the water if you can. It’ll buy us some time. If you all get across alive, you can always come back to Copenhagen later, once you’ve delivered them to the British Legation in Stockholm. Remember, Kaj, you can come home. They must not.’

Oxlund accepted his mission, despite the risk. ‘He was very courageous about it,’ Tommy recalled. But the time was also right for Kaj to move on. His marriage to Tulle and his business affairs were in tatters. Life in Denmark could never be the same again for him. A fresh start and a direct shot at the Germans from a new base in Britain probably sounded attractive; although the prospect of killing fellow Danes in cold blood must have been far less appealing. Tommy, though, felt such ruthlessness was now essential to eliminate the security threat that the brothers had become. Whether Oxlund was prepared to carry out the gruesome task, if it came to the crunch, was another matter. As he prepared to leave Denmark, doubtless he hoped that he would never have to find out. ‘He was soft at heart,’ admitted Sneum.

Duus Hansen’s recollection of Kaj’s mission was chillingly matter-of-fact: ‘Sneum’s opinion was that the two brothers didn’t wish to leave the country. Therefore it was decided that Sneum’s landlord, Mr Oxlund, should accompany them over the ice to Sweden and make sure that they would get over, or in any case that they would not come back.’

Chapter 31

TREK TO THE UNKNOWN

ON THE EVENING OF TUESDAY, 3 March 1942, Kaj Oxlund called his younger sister, Gerda Tapdrup Nielsen, at the home she shared with her husband Svend just outside Copenhagen.

‘I’m going to Jutland for a few weeks,’ he said. ‘Huge amounts of firewood are going cheap. I think I can make some money.’

‘A few weeks?’ Gerda was already suspicious. ‘Why so long?’

‘It’ll probably take me that long to get into the business,’ he explained after an awkward pause.

Oxlund’s sister wasn’t satisfied. ‘By then people won’t need firewood,’ she pointed out. ‘It’ll be spring.’

‘Then I’ll have to work more quickly,’ replied Kaj.

‘Where can we write to you?’ Gerda was worried now.

‘You can’t,’ her brother said. ‘I’ll be moving around. Look, I’m sorry if it all sounds a bit impulsive. I just wanted to let you know I love you.’

When Gerda told Svend about the conversation, he agreed it had been a strange one. It was almost as if Kaj were saying goodbye for ever. Things hadn’t felt right for a while, and this latest exchange added to their concerns. They thought Kaj had made some money in the spring