“Ah, Dot. Thank you for joining me. Please, come in.” She took her seat, and he did the same. “All right. Let’s get right to it. No time for small talk, as I’m sure you agree.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Firstly, I want to commend you officially for the work you have been doing. Bill Hardcastle and I were discussing your contributions, bothyour superior listening skills and your uncanny ability to spot ciphers. Your reports are faultless and thorough. Exactly what we need.”
“I appreciate that, sir, but there’s no reason to thank me. I’m just doing my job.” Except his words meant the world to her. She was painfully aware that her cheeks had gone bright red, and she was so grateful that he knew better than to comment on that.
“You arrived at Camp X about a year ago—”
“Eleven months, sir.”
Gerald smiled. “I stand corrected. Eleven months.”
After she’d successfully signaled to that ship about the U-boat threat during Operation Husky eight months ago, Dot had a whole new understanding of her purpose. No one knew how long this war would go on, but she was in it every step of the way. She was here to save lives. To defeat the enemy. To win the war. Nothing else mattered.
And she was not the only one. Somewhere out there, Dash risked her life by flying through the war, and Gus, well, that was simple. He put his life on the line every time he went to Europe.
She hadn’t seen him much lately. Ever since their disastrous night at her father’s bedside, he’d spent as little time as possible near her, either training or doing his job in Europe. To distract herself, Dot had focused fully on her job. She had made herself into the most valuable tool she could be. That’s what mattered.
“Anyhow,” Gerald was saying, “I knew when we met that you would be up for the challenge, but recently you have gone beyond. You have stepped into a leadership role, filling in when people need help, volunteering to work with the decrypting girls more often, all with exemplary confidence.”
“Thank you.” She cleared her throat. “Thank you, sir.”
“Operation Husky was your first major operation. You conducted yourself professionally and exceeded expectations. I especially appreciated your initiative. Notifying an Allied convoy about the presence of a German U-boat without clearance from me was not protocol, but it was exactly what needed doing. Sometimes in war we cannot afford to delay.”
“No, sir,” she replied flatly, but inside she was elated. How gratifying that he remembered what she’d done.
“Right. On to the matter at hand. Overall, I believe we can agree that, while we wish it was done with entirely, the war is going relatively well for our side. Well enough that I feel safe in suggesting there might be an end in sight. With help from Allied bombers, the Red Army is forcing the Germans to retreat from Ukraine, and they continue to march toward Romania. Our Soviet allies have liberated Crimea. We have basically won the Battle of the Atlantic. Of course, the Japanese continue to be a source of annoyance, but let’s manage one enemy at a time.” He exhaled. “Still, despite the gains, the world is in disarray.”
That’s an understatement, Dot thought.
“However, in the midst of that—possiblybecauseof that—I am very pleased to tell you that we have found opportunity. For the past year, a new plan has been in the making, and this one, to be frank, will make Operation Husky look like a walk in the park.”
She settled back, intrigued.
“The plan is, in simple terms, all about intimidation. The goal is to divide enemy forces and weaken them. They will see our troops massing everywhere, and as a result they will feel pressured and alarmed by the sheer magnitude of our presence.” He reached behind him for a thick, weathered binder. “The trouble is, Dot, we have neither the manpower nor the weaponry required to worry them in the slightest. Right now, we can barely muster six divisions, and we are critically low on landing craft.”
She waited expectantly for him to share the strategy, but he appeared to have lost himself flipping through the binder.
“Sir,” she said after a moment, “I don’t understand. Without the necessary manpower or weaponry, what is the solution?”
He smiled, holding her gaze. “We fake it.”
“Sir?”
He set the binder on his desk, and she noted the label on the front.OPERATION FORTITUDE. Fortitude.Standhaftigkeitin German.Coraggioin Italian.Couragein French.
“Operation Fortitude is a campaign entirely based on deception,” Gerald said. “Its existence relies upon total secrecy. You, Dot, will play a vital role.”
Adrenaline shot through Dot’s fingers. Her role would bevital. “Yes, sir. Whatever you need.”
“Operation Fortitude’s mission is to flood Europe with leaked information; however, everything the enemy hears will be riddled withmisinformation.” He turned to a map of Europe in the binder and rotated it toward her. “Through your efforts on the wireless, the work of double agents on the ground, and the rest of our forces, the enemy will be fed specific, false information over the next few months. It will confuse them and force their command to make a decision that will ultimately split them.” He tapped Scotland, then Calais. “The enemy will think we are planning to invade using one of these two entry points, and we will encourage them to believe that Scotland will be the starting point for an invasion of Norway. We will also convince them that we plan to land at Calais and take back France.”
She hesitated. “But we’re not doing either of those things?”
“No. As I said, we are not equipped for anything of the sort, but the enemy doesn’t know that.” He flipped a page. “They will believe what they hear, and they will send forces to block us.”
“I see. The goal is to confuse the enemy and break them down to more manageable sizes.” Dot read the notes, interpreting some of the plans. She set her finger on one. “Sir, the British Fourth Army? I may be mistaken, but I do not believe that unit exists.”
