Tom Zola - Panzers: Push for Victory: Battle of Kursk

Autumn ruled Europe with all its might, and cool breezes swept across Lower Austria when a sturdy man with a receding hairline stepped up to the front door of a noble estate. The night had the new section of Vienna in its grip. The man, wearing a dark coat, lifted his right hand to knock on the door but then he froze. Jumpy, he glanced around; nevertheless, the streets were empty.

The mans left hand tightened its grip around the handles of his tote bag, and finally he knocked on the door quietly, as if he was afraid that someone outside the house might hear him. He heard steps inside the house moving towards the door.

Seconds turned into eternities. Again the man glanced all around; far away, a dog was barking. Instinctively he pulled his coat shut as if it could protect him from assailants or even just unwanted confidants. No doubt about it, Erhard Milch had put himself in mortal danger.

Finally the door opened and a man in his early fifties with angular features stuck out his head. He scrutinized the visitor briefly, blinked, and let him inside.

Moin , Erwin, Milch whispered in his typical Northern German dialect, reaching out to shake his hosts hand. The latter clicked his heels, and only after having saluted raggedly did he shake Milchs hand. Then Field Marshal Erwin Rommels face, which usually was so serious, actually broke into a smile.

He quickly ushered his visitor into the living room where yet another man was already waiting for them. Rommel introduced him as Erwin von Witzleben, a fellow field marshal. They shook hands; then the three of them sat down at the dining table, a massive piece of wood with elaborately carved legs.

Von Witzleben, whose thinning hair was barely able to cover his scalp, went right to the heart of the matter. Show us what youve got.

With a nod Milch opened his tote bag and took out a large envelope that was stuffed so full it looked as if it was about to burst. He put it down on the table top and pushed it towards Rommel and von Witzleben. The latter opened the envelope and took out a thick stack of documents and photos. Rommel immediately picked up the document on top titled Lager Dachau. At the same time von Witzleben examined the photos and his eyes grew bigger.

The Luftwaffe uses the camp for test purposes but since the SS has also been there, horrible things have started to happen in the camp, Milch commented, though the photos more than spoke for themselves. The pictures bitterly confirmed the awful premonitions of several German officers: The Nazis had started to murder whole groups of the population.

The GrFaz and his gang have finally gone too far. This this has nothing to do with war anymore, von Witzleben whispered in a trembling voice. Rommel, who would never say anything negative about his superiors not even about him nodded, his lips pressed together, which for him was a telling gesture. The three men stared at each other. In that moment they were united by one and the same idea.