New Clients

     Diedrich Hoftzeller and Sergei Nabokov were going through a hard time in 1947. The war had just ended and had left the two men out of a job. This is because the two men specialized in black marketeering of weapons and had garnered a huge profit during the last war. The two men were partners in their business and had supplied weapons to both the Russians and the Germans during the war in the Eastern front. Their business was based in Warsaw and their orders were huge. 

    Both of them remembered their early days in 1938 when they had started up as a small team of smugglers specializing in the transport of German cigarettes to the USSR and Russian vodka to Nazi Germany. Their business was booming due to the demand and lack of supply of the said goods in the two countries namely, German cigarettes in the USSR and Russian vodka in Nazi Germany. However, the war quickly changed their business strategies. Both of them realized that nothing is more profitable for smugglers and black marketeers than war. They also realized that business is blind to political ideology and therefore it will be more profitable for Diedrich, a die-hard Nazi and Sergei, an ardent communist to continue working together. They knew what their new business would be, it would be the smuggling of new weapons and weapon designs to both parties because both of them were sure that after the annexation of Poland, Hitler would try to annex the USSR. Thus began a very profitable business which only increased with the severity of the war. However, their enterprise was not without its fair share of hiccups though. Diedrich had been called in for questioning many times by the Gestapo and each time he had to pay a hefty bribe as well as a few crates of the finest beer available. Same was the case with Sergei, he was always harassed by the NKVD and had to pay hefty bribes and present large crates of vodka to them. 

    Now that the war was over, it was bad news for both of them as they would find no new clients and may have to get back to their original business which was far less profitable. Diedrich was thinking, "Why the fucking war has to end? It was fucking profitable. Now, where will I find new clients?" He was angry that the war ended soo soon but it had not occurred to him that the war had lasted a full 6 years. Sergei was having the same problems, after the end of the war, his financial problems had started and he had taken to heavy drinking. He also did not know what he would do.

Then suddenly one day, an American came to meet Diedrich, he introduced himself as A.L. Smith and said to Diedrich, " Herr Diedrich I am from the CIA, an American intelligence agency which is the successor to the OSS and I have a proposition for you." Diedrich was elated, the fact that a member of an intelligence agency had visited him was good news. He said, "Let's hear it!" The man began, " You see elections are coming up in Italy, and I want you to make the right side i.e. the American side wins. Therefore I want you to arm a few guerrilla groups, whose names I will provide to you."

    Hearing this Diedrich was elated as this proposition would mean better business and after the man left, he immidiately telephoned Sergei to tell him about the same. After listening to Diedrich, Sergei replied, "Ah! You know a similar thing happened to me today, a man named Alexander Slomonovich from the KGB came to see me. He said he wants me to arm rebels in Greece. Its funny actually as I think the so-called Allies might be breaking up." Diedrich laughed and said, " You know what Sergei, the fucking war is beginning again and this time we have new clients!!!"