David looked up at the knock on his open door. "Come in, Frank."

"Thank you, sir." He held out a thin dossier as he approached the desk. "The transcriptions from the hearing, sir. Except for slight differences in wording to describe the actions, they're identical."

David opened the dossier and examined the first one; then, he shook his head. "Only a page and a third. So short. Seemed much longer."

"You were very efficient, sir."

He nodded as he read both transcriptions; then, after signing beside his name on them and on their carbon copies, he looked up at the Administration Officer. "You sign next, Frank, and when you have the Librarian's signature and Colonel Picot's, bring this back, and I'll take it to the Ambassador."

"The Army needs more like you, sir."

"Or fewer like Wyndcom."

"Both, sir," Frank said over his shoulder as he left the office.

David resumed double-encrypting a message to R. A quarter-hour later, with it and the other wires sent and the dossier of signed hearing transcripts in hand, he knocked on the Ambassador's open door.

"Come in, David."

"The records from the hearing, sir. They need only your signatures now." Then, placing the dossier on the desk, he continued, "I've wired Mr Lloyd-George to inform him that Wyndcom has been cashiered."

"Excellent!" Evelyn picked up a sheet of paper and handed it to David. "This is from the German Ambassador; I assume it's his incident report. You'll have to translate it for me."

"And the one from the French?"

"They're not as efficient as the Germans. We may see it tomorrow, though experience tells me, not until next week." He pushed his elbows out in an imitation of a French shrug.

David chuckled as he skimmed through the letter. "We have no need of the French report now; this is clear and concise, and with your report, far more than sufficient to support the charge."

"What has he written?"

"On 26 May in the Swiss State Building, the adjutant of the British envoy attacked my adjutant with his cane, knocked off his helmet and jumped on it. The British minister apologised for his officer's actions and had him detained by guards."

Evelyn looked up from the hearing report. "With Wilfred's admission of guilt here, there's now no need for that. But to be safe, send all we have."

"Yes, even wait for the French. There's now no rush; my message will soon set this affair moving through the proper channels in the War Office, and their only required action, other than paperwork, is to arrange for a prison cell."

"And choose a replacement."

"True. In my message to R, I took the liberty to include a suggestion that he consider one of his agents to be your next aide."

"Excellent idea, David. With your team now much larger, you need help directing it."

"I've also asked for permission to initiate contact with Prinz Wilhelm to propose another meeting with him."

"Hmmm!" The Ambassador raised his eyebrows. "For what purpose?"

"I had thought to mark the completion of the watch order and to present him with the Château d'Yquem. But also to see what I can learn about their situation and movements. This would be our fifth meeting, and at each of our previous ones, I sensed that he was increasingly at ease with me. I see no risk."

"It's your manner, David, your natural charm that puts people at ease. When would you propose meeting?"

"After the final payment has been deposited. Hans told me the first five thousand were delivered on the twenty-second, and payment arrived in his bank yesterday. He'll have the next five thousand ready for delivery on the thirtieth. The final batch should be ready to ship by the eighth of June."

"That seems very fast – eight days." The Ambassador tilted his head. "How does he make them so quickly?"

"Hans doesn't make them, sir. He buys the movements from Aegler – still the only maker of certified chronometer wristwatches - and he has several companies producing cases and straps in a variety of styles. The greater part of his sales margin goes into increasing his already large stockpiles of the required parts." David shrugged. "Assembly, testing, inspection and packaging take ten to twelve minutes per watch."

Evelyn pursed his lips and nodded. "Around fifty per day."

"He sets a limit of forty per day for his assemblers, no more, no less, allowing them breaks from the tedium and avoiding errors that rushing would cause. His regular employees handle the normal demand, but he has a pool of trained women, mostly housewives, who come in to help with the large orders."

"I'm puzzled here, David. With it seeming so simple, why do the supplying companies not assemble and sell them themselves?"

"They do, to a small extent, but they don't have the market. That's the key to this business, and Hans discovered it long ago. He built a reputation for quality and accuracy, and it continues to grow at an extraordinary pace. For more than ten years, he's been Aegler's largest client." David paused and smiled. "He started the company when he was my age, and he's a great example of the original meaning of entrepreneur."

The Ambassador cocked his head. "Original meaning?"

"From the French – one who takes from in between."

"Between the maker and the end user." Evelyn nodded. "And the artillery fuses? Should I assume he doesn't make those, either?"

"Indeed. He finds the best fabricators and acquires the rights to their production, passing them on to us at his cost."

"At his cost? That's not very entrepreneurial. He could make a fortune supplying us. Even more by supplying the Germans."

David shrugged. "He doesn't want to be like the US companies – reaping fortunes by selling to both sides and prolonging the war."

"Awkward situation, that. Fearing the loss of votes, the politicians do little to stop them. But back to here, David. When would you propose meeting with the prince? Where?"

"I don't yet know where or when. I had met him the last time in Karlsruhe, and that's where the first batch was delivered. The second is to be delivered to Straßburg, but Hans has not yet been told where the final batch is to go." David shrugged. "But that's beside the point; Wilhelm's headquarters are in Metz, so that might be where we would meet – if he agrees, that is."

"Metz? That's up near the coal fields and iron mines, isn't it?"

"Yes, and across the battlefront from Verdun. I need to catch up on the propaganda in the German papers so I can discuss their progress there. I had Charles gather those I had not yet marked off as read, and I'll take them to the residence to begin reading tonight." David pointed toward the door. "Might I drive you when you're ready, sir? Save having Jacques come to pick you up."

The Ambassador looked at the clock on his desk. "Oh, my. Well past seven, already. Give me three minutes to put things in order."