The Hornet's Sting_ The Amazing Untold Story of World War II Spy Thomas Sneum - Mark Ryan [115]
After being demobilized on 30 April 1940, three weeks after the German invasion, Helvard was unemployed for a time before finding temporary work at Aalborg Airport. In October 1940, however, he landed a dream job with the Danish Airport Authority, the DPPA, at Kastrup Airport. He soon found he could monitor all the comings and goings of German aircraft and dignitaries, and pass the intelligence on to Sneum’s spy ring without arousing suspicion.
Tommy trusted Helvard enough to want to include him in his plans once he accepted that the treacherous ice on the Oeresund would have to be tested again. If Sigfred Christophersen could survive a crossing, then so could he, Tommy reasoned. He asked Arne to join him on the escape attempt, which he believed would be made at some point in the following fortnight. They would walk across the sea to Sweden and then try to reach Britain from there, giving Helvard the chance to fly against the Germans with the RAF. Arne took it as a compliment to be invited, and said he would think about it.
But if he went, Helvard would be leaving plenty behind. Above all, there was his fiancée, Vita Nielsen, to consider. He loved her very much and they had big plans for the future. For the moment, she still lived with her parents in a fifth-floor flat on Leifsgade. But she hoped to start a new life with Arne in a house of their own, which could happen as soon as they tied the knot. Somehow, where others had failed, this romance between Arne and Vita had remained strong enough to withstand the pressures of the occupation—until now. What troubled Helvard most was the idea that, if he went, he wouldn’t even be able to tell Vita why he was leaving her. Furthermore, Arne’s mother, Angla Eugenia, who lived alone in Hobro, would also have to be kept in the dark.
Tulle Oxlund was trying to piece together the events leading up to her husband’s death. Stories from her former neighbors in Noekkerosevej all pointed to Tommy Sneum’s presence in her marital home during the preceding months. What had they been up to? The identity of Kaj’s other flatmate—the strange, tall man with sharp features and a penchant for disguises—was also a mystery. Whatever they had all been doing, it had obviously gone horribly wrong. Now Kaj was dead, and Tommy seemed to be on the run.
Tulle moved back to her parents’ home in the town of Ringsted, to the south-east of Copenhagen, so that she could grieve quietly. When an old friend rang her soon after her arrival, Tulle naturally expressed surprise, since few could have learned so quickly of her return. It had barely been a fortnight since her estranged husband had died. The friend was called Peter and he had also known Kaj in the past. He explained that he too had suffered a bereavement recently, and suggested they meet at a restaurant called Wiwex for dinner the following night. Tulle heard herself accepting without really knowing why she had.
The evening went pleasantly enough as they picked at their food and drowned their sorrows, until the conversation began to take a strange turn. Tulle was just starting to open up about Kaj when her escort asked about his friends in his final months, and in particular Thomas Sneum. Tulle was startled and asked why he wanted to know.
Peter came to the point. ‘Your husband was involved in certain activities. He may have done things that weren’t good for the fragile peace that exists in our country. We believe Thomas Sneum was also involved in those activities. Do you know anything about it?’
Tulle had a question of her own. ‘Who are you talking about when you say “we”?’
‘I’m a member of the Danish Nazi Party,’ replied Peter quite openly.
Tulle felt the anger welling up inside her. She stood up and sent