Kruger looked to the west. “How close would the ship have to be for the small rockets to reach it?”
“As close as possible,” Von Braun told him. “I think he wants you to take it all the way into New York harbor so that some bombs would fall on the city and others would go farther out to destroy large population areas.”
“It sounds like a suicide mission to me,” Kruger said.
Von Braun nodded. “it did to me, too. But he told me there are plans to have you and your crew abandon ship and the rockets would be launched automatically by electronics. The equipment is already on board. Oh, and there are other plans, too. The Fuehrer is very thorough.”
Kruger was puzzled. “Other plans?”
“I’m not sure exactly how this is being planned, but after all the rockets have been fired, the ship is to be brought close to shore and oil is to be sprayed as far out as possible.”
“Oil?”
“And then the ship would be exploded, doing severe damage to the harbor and igniting the oil. It could set all of Manhattan Island ablaze.”
“But my crew and I would be long gone by that time.”
Von Braun nodded. “That’s what he said.”
The captain had one last question.
“Do you know whether the Fuehrer is coming here tonight so that I can discuss this with him?”
Von Braun nodded. “Yes, i think so. Oh, and what I have just told you is, of course, top secret. If I were you, I would discuss with him only the rocket launch, which he told me to explain to you”
Kruger leaned on the old ship’s railing, ” The city of New York,” he repeated to himself.
***
Meanwhile, Lili was informing Hans of a discovery she had made.
“In the compartment next to the captain’s quarters, lots of big boxes. Not yet opened. And a lot of cord, which I guess goes with what’s in the boxes.”
Hans licked a paw. “Sounds logical. I’ll bet Captain Kruger doesn’t know about this. We need to keep an eye on it for him. Maybe we can figure out a way to stop the nasty little man who hates cats from doing what he’s planning.”
Lili agreed, “Maybe.”
to be continued next month….
Cats Confidential 