After a brief pause to examine his notes, David again addressed the audience. "The War Office has compiled a list of the major themes of German propaganda since the beginning of the war. Our approach will be to show how false they are – but do it in ways that do not feel challenging. Challenging often leads to dispute and argument, and we don't want that."

He shook his head, then continued. "No, we must be subtle. Allow the reality to be part of a relaxed, informal conversation. As many of you have seen, those in the German gasthauses and hotel drinking rooms are now mostly women. Lonely women. Confused women. Distraught women. Grieving women."

Watching the nods, he added. "They are often in pairs or small groups for mutual support, companionship and security." He paused and raised a finger. "Companionship, support and security are three of the things they crave most, and with all the men away at the Front – or killed or captured – many now have no choice but to find these with other women."

He chuckled at the buzz of quiet comments. "No, not in that manner. Most still crave sexual intimacy with men. And contrary to what many men believe, a woman's craving is as strong as a man's – or stronger."

After enjoying the range of facial expressions, he continued, "Using this awareness will be our easiest way to gain their confidence. Bethia, Rachel and Maria will show you how best to do this later." He pointed to the three women.

"But before they do that, we'll examine the list of propaganda themes. The first of these themes was to convince the people that the advance into neutral Belgium had been a defensive measure, and most German citizens still regard Britain, France and Russia as the aggressors. We need to find subtle ways to show how distorted that is"

Looking up from a glance at his notes, he continued, "Since shortly after the beginning of the war, the dominant theme has been that it is going well and will soon be won." He chuckled. "After twenty-one months, they continue with this. Our role is to lead the women to question it."

Then, pointing to the stacks of newspapers on the tables along the wall, he said, "The ongoing repetition of similar – sometimes identical – articles about this will make the task easy." He held up a finger. "But this must be done indirectly, slipping it in as part of a conversation. The three women will talk more about that later and give you a chance to practise it. But now, let's continue with the propaganda themes."

In the same way, David worked through the themes, expanding on each and talking about ways to show their falseness.

After a break for coffee and cookies, Maria, Rachel and Bethia stood in front of the group, and when Maria had everyone's attention, she began. "I'm studying medicine at the University of Bern, and among my interests are human sexuality and interpersonal attraction."

She giggled. "I knew I'd get that response. It's not an area often explored – particularly not by women. But think. We are all interested in it."

Most nodded, and many shifted in their seats. "We're interested because it is Nature's way of continuing the species. By analogy, think of women as flowers meant to attract pollination. Our innate behaviour is to make ourselves more attractive. When we're interested in someone, we primp and preen – most of it subconsciously, without even noticing."

She chuckled. "My grandfather called it fidgeting, and like most men, he didn't recognise it as a sign of attraction. To know if a woman is interested in you, watch for things like this." Maria tucked a stray tress behind her ear and adjusted the cuff of her blouse as she bit her bottom lip and gazed wistfully into the eyes of a few in the front row.

"From your nods, you've seen such behaviour. We'll show you more signs later. But be aware that the initial interest is usually only to talk with you. To sense your interest. To gain confidence and feel comfortable with you. If you show respect and interest in her as a person, not simply as a conquest, you'll gain her confidence."

Maria paused to scan the men. "It may not evolve beyond a relaxed and open conversation, and for this mission, anything more is unnecessary. But don't be surprised if she wishes to take it further."

She continued by outlining and explaining the behaviours women look for in a man. Then, she moved into recognising the signs that a woman is interested primarily in sex, finishing this with, "Behaviour such as this can be dangerous. One of our team recently learned how dangerous, and I'll have him come up here and explain."

Greg stepped forward and turned to face the gathered men. "Two weeks ago, returning from blowing the gasworks south of Mannheim, a gorgeous blonde approached me in the gasthaus in Offenburg, and as we sat talking, she showed all the signs Maria just listed, but, unfortunately, I wasn't aware of their meaning at the time."

He grimaced. "I took her up to my room. Hottest woman I've ever met – seemed insatiable. After being fucked into oblivious slumber, I woke in the morning to find her gone. And so had everything else. My satchel, my money, my Swiss papers, my pride. She even risked waking me by removing the watch from my wrist."

Maria nodded. "Thanks, Greg. Appears this is a regular routine for her – satisfying two cravings at once - sexual desire and the need to survive."

After a pause while Greg returned to his seat, she said, "I'll have David tell you about another encounter."

David rose from his chair and stood beside her. "Returning from Karlsruhe two weeks ago, I stopped for the night in the small town of Ettingen. In the evening, while I sat waiting for dinner, three women approached my table and sat - one beside me and two opposite. When my carafe of wine arrived, I asked if I could buy them some."

He shrugged. "As we sat sipping, they asked me where I was from, and learning I was Swiss prompted an outpouring of emotion from them. This was fine, and I gained some insight into the plight of the German women. Then, one across from me bared her bosom and shook it while the one beside me reached down to fondle my crotch. The third woman said they were all clean, tossed condoms on the table and added, 'Ten marks for all three, twenty for all three all night."

Amused by the response of the audience, David continued. "I told them I was married and had a pregnant wife at home. The hand was quickly withdrawn from its explorations, the bosom was covered, and the three sat blushing. They told me it was their first attempt at prostitution, trying to earn money to feed themselves and care for their wounded family members. I bought them dinner, and while we ate, I learned much more about the German conditions and attitudes – and their distorted perceptions of the war."

He shrugged again. "I don't know whether they intended to rob me, as had happened with Greg. These were our first encounters with women away from the industrial areas, and to this point, our team had encountered only sexual hunger. Those in the non-industrial areas are impoverished and desperate, so possibly."

As David took his seat, Maria said, "It was this encounter that inspired him to conceive the subversion approach."

David looked up from his chair. "It was your idea, Maria. And it now has the full support of the War Office."