WEBVTT - 6. Spy Versus Spy (Season 2)

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<v Speaker 1>Diversion audio. A note this episode contains descriptions of violence

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<v Speaker 1>that may be disturbing for some audiences. Please take care

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<v Speaker 1>in listening. This series is based on historical characters and

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<v Speaker 1>real events. Some dialogue has been imagined for dramatic purposes

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<v Speaker 1>when no primary source material is available. Virginia Hall had

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<v Speaker 1>been expecting company. A few weeks earlier. Doctor Jean Hussay,

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<v Speaker 1>one of the resistance leaders in France, had informed her

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<v Speaker 1>of a new courier that could be of use to Heckler,

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<v Speaker 1>Virginia's faction of the Resistance. This particular courier allegedly had

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<v Speaker 1>microfilm of New German military strategies that would be valuable

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<v Speaker 1>to the British m Yes, Marie, it's Father Gun. But

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<v Speaker 1>what Virginia didn't know was that the man on the

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<v Speaker 1>other side of the door wasn't actually Father Acomb. He

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<v Speaker 1>was Robert Alesh, a Nazi operative who had managed to

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<v Speaker 1>infiltrate the Resistance while posing as a priest. Virginia, currently

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<v Speaker 1>going by the name Marie, had been told to accept

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<v Speaker 1>the microfilm and Father Acom's possession and send it back

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<v Speaker 1>to London. By this point, August, Virginia was an experienced

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<v Speaker 1>spy and superbly cautious. She had had dangerous run ins

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<v Speaker 1>with a Gestapo before, and it had spooked her enough

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<v Speaker 1>to jump start a new identity That meant a new

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<v Speaker 1>name and a new home. She had to establish herself

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<v Speaker 1>all over again, but it was better than being caught.

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<v Speaker 1>Before opening the door, she first had to test the

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<v Speaker 1>visitor with a predetermined code. Have you treated the cats

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<v Speaker 1>on the roof? Yes? But they won't take a brandy

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<v Speaker 1>with that, Virginia unknowingly allowed Robert Alesh entered her home,

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<v Speaker 1>a man whose mission was to identify her and then

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<v Speaker 1>hunt her down. Come in, father, I'm Steven Talty and

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<v Speaker 1>from diversion. This is good Assassin's Season two. Being killed

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<v Speaker 1>would be the easy part. Being tortured would be the

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<v Speaker 1>hard part. All intel suggests she is behind many of

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<v Speaker 1>the prison bricks over the country. She's dangerous, so sabotage

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<v Speaker 1>plus a little espionage paramilitary operations make things blow up.

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<v Speaker 1>The message for Captain Bobby and I'd be leaf. I

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<v Speaker 1>have found the nest of the Limping Lady. Episode six,

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<v Speaker 1>Spy versus Spy. Thank you my a lovely own. Have

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<v Speaker 1>you lived here alone a few years? A wonderful place

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<v Speaker 1>to raise children. I think I suppose do you have

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<v Speaker 1>any right away, Virginia suspected something was off about the priest.

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<v Speaker 1>He made himself comfortable way too quickly. He was supposed

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<v Speaker 1>to be a spy carrying a valuable asset, an asset that,

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<v Speaker 1>if discovered by the Nazis, would mean his immediate deportation

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<v Speaker 1>to one of the kill caps. Virginia was used to

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<v Speaker 1>less candor from the people she worked with. They were

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<v Speaker 1>usually more nervous and would get right to the point.

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<v Speaker 1>Some of them experienced bouts of full on paranoia, like

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<v Speaker 1>the pilot she saved in her first mission. This Father

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<v Speaker 1>Account wasn't fitting the bill, but Virginia knew she couldn't

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<v Speaker 1>just act off her gut. She'd have to keep entertaining,

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<v Speaker 1>catch him slipping up. No, no, children, would you like

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<v Speaker 1>to take a seat, Yes, thank you, and yes please.

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<v Speaker 1>It was then that Virginia noticed Father Account's hands. They

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<v Speaker 1>were delicate, smooth and fine, as though he had never

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<v Speaker 1>done a day of hard labor in his life. This

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<v Speaker 1>relaxed her. Most of the Gestapo had some sort of

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<v Speaker 1>previous low level military background. Their hands would have been coarser.

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<v Speaker 1>Some hint that they'd worked with their hands. Father Account

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<v Speaker 1>had the hands of a priest, so maybe that part

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<v Speaker 1>of his story checked out. She noticed that Account was

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<v Speaker 1>staring at her intently. A she had been given a

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<v Speaker 1>description of the limping lady that he repeated in his head,

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<v Speaker 1>trying to line up the details with the woman he

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<v Speaker 1>saw in front of him. Mid thirties, dark hair, long

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<v Speaker 1>slender nose, arched eyebrows, and thin lips. The woman calling

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<v Speaker 1>herself Marie was fitting most of the description, which she

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<v Speaker 1>didn't seem to have the most obvious tell. As far

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<v Speaker 1>as he could see, she wasn't limping. You have the microphone,

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<v Speaker 1>so it's right to business. Then I was under the

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<v Speaker 1>impression we were fighting a war, and maybe time was

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<v Speaker 1>of the essence. Well then, yeah, new German strategies for

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<v Speaker 1>our men in London. Thank you. It might be best

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<v Speaker 1>to keep you moving. Do you need any supplies for

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<v Speaker 1>the trip back? You're having me off just like that.

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<v Speaker 1>I keep first encounters brief. When you've run my trust,

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<v Speaker 1>then we'll throw a party when I've and your trust.

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<v Speaker 1>My dear woman, I've just risked my life to bring

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<v Speaker 1>you bloods from behind enemy lines. I fought London would

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<v Speaker 1>have thought you some semblance of bedside manner. Those lessons

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<v Speaker 1>must not have stuck. Virginia's attitude was giving a lesh pause.

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<v Speaker 1>He had always assumed that the limping lady would have

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<v Speaker 1>some manner of calm professionalism. She'd been so successful leading

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<v Speaker 1>jail breaks and rallying men to ambush German troops that

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<v Speaker 1>he expected a level of control over every situation. After all,

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<v Speaker 1>this assignment was a simple handoff. Marie was shifty, he

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<v Speaker 1>couldn't help but feel as though she was fresh. But

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<v Speaker 1>he had gotten her to admit that she was indeed

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<v Speaker 1>an agent with London, and frustratingly, Virginia took a seat

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<v Speaker 1>at the table early in their conversation San which meant

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<v Speaker 1>that Alesh couldn't check on her limb. He decided to

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<v Speaker 1>try and verify the other bit of information given to

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<v Speaker 1>him by the Nazis. You are also doubling as a reporter, Yes,

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<v Speaker 1>for an American paper. This was a major red flag

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<v Speaker 1>for Virginia. While she had been writing for the New

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<v Speaker 1>York Post early in her spying days, she had since

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<v Speaker 1>stopped once America entered the war at the end of

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<v Speaker 1>forty one. She couldn't write those unflattering profiles of Nazi

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<v Speaker 1>occupied France without attracting major attention, and since she had stopped,

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<v Speaker 1>she hadn't told anyone in the resistance about her early

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<v Speaker 1>reporting a reporter. What do you mean? I had heard

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<v Speaker 1>you were a news reporter at one point for some people,

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<v Speaker 1>something about New York. I know that must have been

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<v Speaker 1>someone else. Ah, I see. Virginia's caution led to her

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<v Speaker 1>X move. Maybe her smartest. We have rotate here at

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<v Speaker 1>the house. Perhaps it was someone else who was staying here.

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<v Speaker 1>Do you need money for the trip back? Lesh was frustrated.

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<v Speaker 1>He wasn't getting anywhere, and it was clear that if

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<v Speaker 1>he kept pushing back, he gave up his position too early.

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<v Speaker 1>He must have been pretty sure that the Marie in

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<v Speaker 1>front of him was actually the limping lady, but he

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<v Speaker 1>couldn't confirm it, not until he saw her leg. Just

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<v Speaker 1>a few francs would get me to Paris, not much

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<v Speaker 1>Frank's Again, sirens sounded in Virginia's head. Father account had

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<v Speaker 1>asked for Frank's instead of the German currency of Reich's mark,

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<v Speaker 1>the primary currency and Nazi occupied countries, spies had to

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<v Speaker 1>be careful being captured with Frank's could be perceived as

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<v Speaker 1>French loyalty. In Virginia's experience, everyone legitimate asked for bikes mark,

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<v Speaker 1>but she didn't press the error. She instead leaned over

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<v Speaker 1>and grab bikes mark from her dresser drawer. Care you go.

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<v Speaker 1>She gave them to father account without correcting him. A

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<v Speaker 1>Lessons seemed to notice his slip. He'd hoped he could

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<v Speaker 1>trick Virginia into getting up and walking, but she kept

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<v Speaker 1>the money close by and remained seated at the table.

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<v Speaker 1>We'll let be all Yes, I look forward to working

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<v Speaker 1>with you in the future. You as well. Father. I

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<v Speaker 1>don't forget to Marris. I am a priest. If ever

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<v Speaker 1>you find his job has led you to do things

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<v Speaker 1>you are not proud of and you need confession, I

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<v Speaker 1>am available. Virginia considers this offer after the break. Hi,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm Natalie Emmanuel from Ramsey in Fast and Furious to

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<v Speaker 1>Sunday and Game of Thrones. I've loved playing roles of

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<v Speaker 1>women whose resourcefulness, intelligence, and inner strengths are pushed to

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<v Speaker 1>the limit. We will continue to do everything possible to

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<v Speaker 1>avoid an armed conflict. The situation is a grave run.

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<v Speaker 1>In history class, were all taught the stories of great

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<v Speaker 1>wartime leaders. But the stories have always been about men. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>for the first time, we listened to a new podcast

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<v Speaker 1>that brings you the stories of the fearless, powerful women

0:10:32.800 --> 0:10:37.439
<v Speaker 1>leaders war queens. We are driven by necessity to prepare

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<v Speaker 1>to defend what was just gain our freedom and our

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<v Speaker 1>very being joined the Daughter Father History team of Emily

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<v Speaker 1>and John Jordan every week as we bring you the

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<v Speaker 1>stories of extraordinary leaders war queens, all of them legends.

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<v Speaker 1>Listen to War Queens on the Iron Radio app, Apple

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<v Speaker 1>Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast. M H. There's

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<v Speaker 1>no one stop shopping for parsing out the enemy. I

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<v Speaker 1>think what they teach you is that your assets only

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<v Speaker 1>as good as your last meeting. That's Karen Shaeffer. She

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<v Speaker 1>worked for the CIA for twenty six years. Over the

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<v Speaker 1>course of her tenure, she held many positions that took

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<v Speaker 1>her all over the world, including Iraq and Afghanistan, where

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<v Speaker 1>she served as an operations officer. Your number one thing

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<v Speaker 1>is that tingly spider sense. Right when you're going to

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<v Speaker 1>be meeting or dealing with these folks regularly, if you're

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<v Speaker 1>doing what you're supposed to be doing and paying attention

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<v Speaker 1>and asking them questions and making sure you're aware of

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<v Speaker 1>their personal as well as professional situation. You're in a

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<v Speaker 1>typically sense of something's off. However, when dealing with people

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<v Speaker 1>like Robert Alesh or Father Alcong Shaeffer warrant that you

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<v Speaker 1>have to be careful of your own preconceived biases. We

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<v Speaker 1>don't want to believe that a Catholic priest could possibly

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<v Speaker 1>be working with the guests that you know, it's inconceivable, right,

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<v Speaker 1>and yet it's not so. It's what is referred to

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<v Speaker 1>as falling in love with your asset. Making sure that

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<v Speaker 1>you to the greatest extent you can maintain that professional

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<v Speaker 1>distance with the folks that you're working with, because you

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<v Speaker 1>have to constantly be able to question, Okay, has something changed?

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<v Speaker 1>What are their motives? Does it still make sense that

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<v Speaker 1>they're working with us? Does it not? You know what?

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<v Speaker 1>What's weird about this? You have to be asking yourself

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<v Speaker 1>all those questions pretty regularly. A few days after Father

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<v Speaker 1>a CON's visit, Virginia was contacted by s O E

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<v Speaker 1>headquarters in London. She had asked them to run a

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<v Speaker 1>background check on on Kom to make sure he was

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<v Speaker 1>who he said he was. The s O said they

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<v Speaker 1>found everything in order. A Coln had a history as

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<v Speaker 1>a priest in a number of congregations around France. What

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<v Speaker 1>they didn't know was that the Gestapo had gone to

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<v Speaker 1>great lengths to protect Aleshia's cover as a column, including

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<v Speaker 1>falsifying records of his employment, it should be noted with

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<v Speaker 1>the help of the Catholic Church. Hearing that Father a

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<v Speaker 1>Khan was the real deal relaxed Virginia a little, but

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<v Speaker 1>it didn't assuage for suspicions entirely. She had already planned

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<v Speaker 1>to abandon the town house she was staying in, but

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<v Speaker 1>she decided she wasn't in danger just yet. Doctor Roussey,

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<v Speaker 1>himself a prominent resistance operative, seemed to approve of Father Akhm.

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<v Speaker 1>That counted for something. Meanwhile, Robert Alesh went to a

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<v Speaker 1>Nazi barracks and contacted his superior Klaus Barbie, and informed

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<v Speaker 1>him that he was unsure if the woman he met

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<v Speaker 1>was indeed the Limping Lady. Y. Yes, Captain Bobby, this

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<v Speaker 1>is Alesh. Per few made contact, Yes, but I wasn't

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<v Speaker 1>able to land a confirmation. Then what good are you

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<v Speaker 1>if we have begun a working relationship, whether she's the

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<v Speaker 1>Limping Lady or not I've infiltrated Heckla will find her

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<v Speaker 1>and maybe snatch up some other agents. In the meantime,

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<v Speaker 1>your time is limited, alesh. If you don't bring us

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<v Speaker 1>results in the next few weeks, they'll put you on

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<v Speaker 1>a train over the next few days. Unless set up

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<v Speaker 1>new meetings with Virginia so they're in person interaction with sparse.

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<v Speaker 1>Virginia still had her suspicions and would leave drop points

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<v Speaker 1>for a lash where he could leave or pick up

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<v Speaker 1>items deemed necessary for the resistance. Lesh was growing worried

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<v Speaker 1>he need did a new strategy. He decided to set

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<v Speaker 1>up a meeting with Virginia under the pretext that an

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<v Speaker 1>associate of his had been arrested by the Nazis. It

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<v Speaker 1>was a likely story. The Gestapo was escalating seemingly random interrogations,

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<v Speaker 1>and their methods had become even more deranged. Because the

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<v Speaker 1>Gestapo have no legal limits, they focus on getting information

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<v Speaker 1>as quickly as possible from the people they've arrested, and

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<v Speaker 1>the way they do that is physical torture. That's Andrew

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<v Speaker 1>or the professor we've heard from who runs the Institute

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<v Speaker 1>for Military History at Kansas State University. I mean usually

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<v Speaker 1>they just started by beating people with clubs to see

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<v Speaker 1>if a little blunt force trauma would get people talking.

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<v Speaker 1>If it didn't, they got more creative electrical shock, breaking fingers,

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<v Speaker 1>pulling out finger and toe nails. Uh. You mix this

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<v Speaker 1>up with denying them access to the outside world, denying

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<v Speaker 1>them food, or conversely drugging them to try and weaken

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<v Speaker 1>their resistance. You feed them false information. As the pain

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<v Speaker 1>gets worse, you promise them that will all stop if

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<v Speaker 1>they just tell you the thing You want, the names

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<v Speaker 1>of the people they work with, the authentication codes for

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<v Speaker 1>their radio so the Germans can send false messages back

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<v Speaker 1>to Britain. Whatever it is the Gestapo wants, they'll demand

0:16:36.640 --> 0:16:41.080
<v Speaker 1>it in exchange from making the pain end. And then

0:16:41.120 --> 0:16:45.120
<v Speaker 1>at the end they'll mainly execute the people. With these

0:16:45.200 --> 0:16:48.600
<v Speaker 1>horrible methods and more, the Nazis had managed to capture

0:16:48.680 --> 0:16:53.400
<v Speaker 1>more resistance operatives. Virginia had been informed by headquarters that

0:16:53.560 --> 0:16:57.000
<v Speaker 1>on August fifteenth and sixteen, a rate in Paris led

0:16:57.040 --> 0:17:00.800
<v Speaker 1>to the arrest of several resistance members. She had initially

0:17:00.840 --> 0:17:07.440
<v Speaker 1>been worried that Father A Khan was one of the captured. Yes,

0:17:08.080 --> 0:17:11.920
<v Speaker 1>who is it, Father, I can, But then a calm

0:17:12.080 --> 0:17:14.639
<v Speaker 1>showed up at her door for their meeting. Come in,

0:17:15.240 --> 0:17:19.639
<v Speaker 1>oh Ma. It's often they captured Pierre the dumb stap

0:17:19.680 --> 0:17:22.120
<v Speaker 1>or they got him. I think he had compromising material,

0:17:22.200 --> 0:17:25.159
<v Speaker 1>contact names, addresses, things he wouldn't even share with me.

0:17:25.240 --> 0:17:28.720
<v Speaker 1>Slow down, father, We've got to warn them. We've got

0:17:28.720 --> 0:17:31.040
<v Speaker 1>to warn the contacts on the list. When did this happen?

0:17:31.600 --> 0:17:36.840
<v Speaker 1>Just till they are just yesterday? Virginia hadn't received any

0:17:36.880 --> 0:17:41.639
<v Speaker 1>news of compromised material from headquarters, especially from an arrest

0:17:41.920 --> 0:17:44.760
<v Speaker 1>that would have taken place just the day before. I

0:17:44.840 --> 0:17:47.399
<v Speaker 1>need the contacts. We have to warn them, or you

0:17:47.440 --> 0:17:49.040
<v Speaker 1>have to get me out of the country, sent me

0:17:49.080 --> 0:17:52.200
<v Speaker 1>to a quartos. I would be I've been arrested yesterday.

0:17:52.359 --> 0:17:56.119
<v Speaker 1>Were you not all underground? Underground? Because of the raids?

0:17:56.119 --> 0:18:02.399
<v Speaker 1>Which raids? With those two words, Alessia had made a

0:18:02.440 --> 0:18:07.080
<v Speaker 1>clear mistake. Virginia had heard all she needed. She didn't

0:18:07.080 --> 0:18:09.280
<v Speaker 1>know if the man before her was a Nazi, but

0:18:09.400 --> 0:18:12.280
<v Speaker 1>she knew he couldn't be trusted with any new information.

0:18:13.080 --> 0:18:17.480
<v Speaker 1>The raids she mentioned were well communicated in the resistance network.

0:18:18.280 --> 0:18:21.920
<v Speaker 1>They've been told to go underground and cease all operations

0:18:22.000 --> 0:18:24.760
<v Speaker 1>until they could figure out what information the Nazis were

0:18:24.800 --> 0:18:28.600
<v Speaker 1>able to get out of the new captives until Heckler

0:18:28.640 --> 0:18:32.000
<v Speaker 1>in the larger resistance could assess their losses. They were

0:18:32.040 --> 0:18:36.680
<v Speaker 1>told not to make any moves. If Father accomp wasn't

0:18:36.720 --> 0:18:39.320
<v Speaker 1>aware of this, it meant that he hadn't been spending

0:18:39.320 --> 0:18:41.840
<v Speaker 1>the time within the resistance that he should have been

0:18:43.680 --> 0:18:47.000
<v Speaker 1>what you'd be doing. Virginia didn't know the extent of

0:18:47.000 --> 0:18:49.879
<v Speaker 1>the damage, but she knew she had to act quickly.

0:18:50.520 --> 0:18:53.119
<v Speaker 1>She had to get accompt out of her home and

0:18:53.240 --> 0:18:57.840
<v Speaker 1>contact headquarters immediately. Going back to Bertie and Wit from

0:18:57.840 --> 0:19:03.600
<v Speaker 1>the instructions, that's it. Wait for me to contact you.

0:19:03.600 --> 0:19:06.400
<v Speaker 1>You can return in September and we figure things out

0:19:06.400 --> 0:19:13.320
<v Speaker 1>from there. September go now, you can't be here. Alesh

0:19:13.400 --> 0:19:16.960
<v Speaker 1>left Virginia's home satisfied he had finally gotten what he

0:19:17.040 --> 0:19:20.320
<v Speaker 1>needed as she had shuttled him out the door. He

0:19:20.359 --> 0:19:23.520
<v Speaker 1>had gotten a clear view the agent he knew, as

0:19:23.560 --> 0:19:28.840
<v Speaker 1>Marie had a limp how this endangered Virginia After the break.

0:19:37.400 --> 0:19:41.520
<v Speaker 1>Following that consequential meeting at Virginia's home, Robert Alesh did

0:19:41.560 --> 0:19:46.360
<v Speaker 1>not in fact return to Paris as Virginia had instructed. Instead,

0:19:46.880 --> 0:19:49.879
<v Speaker 1>he chose to visit the Puis de Dome area. We

0:19:50.040 --> 0:19:53.680
<v Speaker 1>snaked his way into another s OE funded resistance faction,

0:19:54.200 --> 0:19:58.560
<v Speaker 1>this one code named green Heart. Virginia sounded the alarm

0:19:58.640 --> 0:20:02.320
<v Speaker 1>on her suspicions of other account immediately, but by the

0:20:02.359 --> 0:20:05.800
<v Speaker 1>time the alarm was heard throughout the other resistance networks,

0:20:05.840 --> 0:20:09.240
<v Speaker 1>the damage was done. Alesh was given access to more

0:20:09.320 --> 0:20:13.119
<v Speaker 1>code names and assets, and while he didn't learn the

0:20:13.160 --> 0:20:16.479
<v Speaker 1>limping lady's real name, he was able to decipher her

0:20:16.640 --> 0:20:20.440
<v Speaker 1>radio code name. He learned that the woman he met, Leone,

0:20:20.720 --> 0:20:24.400
<v Speaker 1>was in fact a top s O agent. He notified

0:20:24.440 --> 0:20:29.360
<v Speaker 1>the Gestapo in a very pleased Klaus Barbie being burned

0:20:29.600 --> 0:20:33.680
<v Speaker 1>is devastating. That means your whole network could be compromised.

0:20:34.640 --> 0:20:40.520
<v Speaker 1>That's Chris Costa, the executive director of the International Spy Museum.

0:20:40.720 --> 0:20:45.600
<v Speaker 1>So there are many elaborate ways that an officer who

0:20:45.960 --> 0:20:51.000
<v Speaker 1>is running agents is compromised. They can be exfiltrated tactically

0:20:51.359 --> 0:20:54.399
<v Speaker 1>in a place like France, that would be an elaborate operation,

0:20:55.280 --> 0:20:59.120
<v Speaker 1>but sometimes agents just couldn't get out in time if

0:20:59.160 --> 0:21:03.960
<v Speaker 1>you were held by the Germans. I think the goal

0:21:04.200 --> 0:21:08.439
<v Speaker 1>was to just survive without giving up the network. Forty

0:21:08.560 --> 0:21:13.880
<v Speaker 1>eight hours after that, everybody knew you would be compromised

0:21:13.880 --> 0:21:18.600
<v Speaker 1>because you would not be able to sustain the bad treatment,

0:21:18.760 --> 0:21:22.320
<v Speaker 1>the torture, the deprivation. But if you could hold on

0:21:22.400 --> 0:21:26.600
<v Speaker 1>for forty eight hours, once you're in custody, your network

0:21:26.640 --> 0:21:37.280
<v Speaker 1>could also disappear because they would be next. Virginia had

0:21:37.320 --> 0:21:41.119
<v Speaker 1>mounting pressure on all sides. She was scheduled to return

0:21:41.160 --> 0:21:44.399
<v Speaker 1>to London as part of a regular rotation of s

0:21:44.440 --> 0:21:48.120
<v Speaker 1>o E agents, but she felt that leaving meant abandoning

0:21:48.200 --> 0:21:52.480
<v Speaker 1>vulnerable people. She changed safe houses again to escape the

0:21:52.520 --> 0:21:56.400
<v Speaker 1>immediate clutches of Klaus Barbie and the Gestapo, and took

0:21:56.440 --> 0:22:00.480
<v Speaker 1>up residence on the opposite side of town. Then a

0:22:00.560 --> 0:22:05.359
<v Speaker 1>November seven, Virginia received word that the Allies would be

0:22:05.400 --> 0:22:08.520
<v Speaker 1>invading North Africa and an attempt to fight off the

0:22:08.560 --> 0:22:13.080
<v Speaker 1>German presence there. American generals believed they couldn't take back

0:22:13.119 --> 0:22:17.680
<v Speaker 1>France unless they first established a presence in North Africa.

0:22:18.160 --> 0:22:21.240
<v Speaker 1>The Germans, realizing this, chose to send a new wave

0:22:21.280 --> 0:22:25.119
<v Speaker 1>of Nazi support to France. France would become the secondary

0:22:25.160 --> 0:22:28.679
<v Speaker 1>home for German forces, and the country would soon become

0:22:28.920 --> 0:22:33.320
<v Speaker 1>an even more active war zone. If Virginia chose to stay,

0:22:33.480 --> 0:22:38.560
<v Speaker 1>she'd be considered in force residents. The American in banking

0:22:38.680 --> 0:22:41.080
<v Speaker 1>forth as made landings at all Ran and Algiers on

0:22:41.119 --> 0:22:43.720
<v Speaker 1>the north coast of France, North Africa, and somewhere on

0:22:43.720 --> 0:22:47.240
<v Speaker 1>the west coast. The actors on these crumbled as they fled,

0:22:47.520 --> 0:22:50.760
<v Speaker 1>dropping huge features all the way to the border, jathan

0:22:50.960 --> 0:22:54.920
<v Speaker 1>lands and men abandoning whole unit, especially a Pagan unit,

0:22:55.480 --> 0:22:58.640
<v Speaker 1>leaving hundreds of guns and tanks behind them, and thousands

0:22:58.680 --> 0:23:02.400
<v Speaker 1>of troups and how a dozen valuable headquarters and many

0:23:02.520 --> 0:23:08.800
<v Speaker 1>many thousand dead. Virginia made the difficult decision to leave Leon.

0:23:09.640 --> 0:23:12.480
<v Speaker 1>She took a train south to the town of Perpignon,

0:23:13.080 --> 0:23:16.080
<v Speaker 1>which was one of the final stops for individuals hoping

0:23:16.119 --> 0:23:19.480
<v Speaker 1>to cross into Spain. But while she had understood her

0:23:19.560 --> 0:23:24.120
<v Speaker 1>journey would be treacherous, she still underestimated just how difficult

0:23:24.200 --> 0:23:33.800
<v Speaker 1>it would really be. After arriving in Perpignon, Virginia had

0:23:33.840 --> 0:23:36.560
<v Speaker 1>to find a guide who could manage her escape across

0:23:36.600 --> 0:23:40.800
<v Speaker 1>the border. For months, she had helped coordinate getaways for others,

0:23:41.160 --> 0:23:44.760
<v Speaker 1>mostly exposed agents and Jews. Now she was going to

0:23:44.800 --> 0:23:49.200
<v Speaker 1>attempt the escape herself. They need to cross the Pyrenees

0:23:49.600 --> 0:23:54.000
<v Speaker 1>a dangerous, mountainous trek of thirty snow covered miles. To

0:23:54.080 --> 0:23:56.919
<v Speaker 1>make things worse, the Gestapo had grown wise to this

0:23:57.080 --> 0:24:00.960
<v Speaker 1>escape route, meaning that Perpignon was pepper with eagle eyed

0:24:01.040 --> 0:24:10.480
<v Speaker 1>Nazis looking for spies. Virginia stood in the small town,

0:24:11.240 --> 0:24:14.520
<v Speaker 1>gazing in wonder and terror at the enormous mountain range

0:24:14.560 --> 0:24:17.800
<v Speaker 1>before her. Somehow she was going to have to make

0:24:17.920 --> 0:24:23.280
<v Speaker 1>thirty mile trek with only her one good leg. In

0:24:23.359 --> 0:24:26.959
<v Speaker 1>that moment, it seemed like a choice between two deaths.

0:24:27.520 --> 0:24:31.119
<v Speaker 1>The mountains could kill her or Klaus Barbie could and

0:24:31.200 --> 0:24:40.639
<v Speaker 1>she'd never let Barbie take her alive. Coming up on

0:24:40.720 --> 0:24:47.240
<v Speaker 1>the next episode of Good Assassins, the people of Marseille

0:24:47.600 --> 0:24:51.119
<v Speaker 1>are astonished, according to LICI Radio, at the large number

0:24:51.160 --> 0:24:54.040
<v Speaker 1>of troops the Germans are pouring into the city. Again,

0:24:54.240 --> 0:24:57.639
<v Speaker 1>alarm bells sounded in Virginia's head. Well, it's it's a

0:24:57.680 --> 0:25:00.960
<v Speaker 1>trade of mantains. It stretches from the Atlanta to the Mediterranean,

0:25:01.040 --> 0:25:03.520
<v Speaker 1>like you kind of belt, and it's a very natural

0:25:03.600 --> 0:25:08.240
<v Speaker 1>border between France of Spain. She radioed to London, saying

0:25:08.320 --> 0:25:12.320
<v Speaker 1>that she was out of France and in Spain and

0:25:12.720 --> 0:25:15.760
<v Speaker 1>halfway to where they would catch the train to Madrid.

0:25:27.040 --> 0:25:29.640
<v Speaker 1>If you have any questions for us about Good Assassins,

0:25:29.880 --> 0:25:32.760
<v Speaker 1>if you're curious about some aspect of Virginia Hall story,

0:25:33.200 --> 0:25:35.679
<v Speaker 1>or have any comments on the podcast, we'd love to

0:25:35.720 --> 0:25:38.960
<v Speaker 1>hear from you. Please email us at Good Assassins at

0:25:39.000 --> 0:25:44.040
<v Speaker 1>diversion audio dot com. Make sure you spell assassins correctly. Again,

0:25:44.119 --> 0:25:47.560
<v Speaker 1>that's Good Assassins at diversion Audio dot com. We'll try

0:25:47.600 --> 0:25:51.239
<v Speaker 1>to answer your questions on a future episode. Find us

0:25:51.280 --> 0:25:56.320
<v Speaker 1>on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Diversion Pods. Good Assassins

0:25:56.400 --> 0:25:59.359
<v Speaker 1>is a production of Diversion Audio in association with I

0:25:59.520 --> 0:26:03.760
<v Speaker 1>heartpot Casts. This season is hosted by Steven Talti and

0:26:03.840 --> 0:26:07.800
<v Speaker 1>written by C. D. Carpenter, Produced and directed by Kevin

0:26:07.840 --> 0:26:12.879
<v Speaker 1>Thompson for Real Jet Packs Productions. Story editing by Jacob Bronstein,

0:26:13.240 --> 0:26:18.200
<v Speaker 1>with editorial direction from Scott Waxman, Additional research and reporting

0:26:18.200 --> 0:26:23.280
<v Speaker 1>by Sophie McNulty. Theme music by Tyler Cash featuring the

0:26:23.359 --> 0:26:27.640
<v Speaker 1>voices of Mikayla Is Caerdo, Raphael cork Kill, Lenna Klingeman,

0:26:27.880 --> 0:26:32.800
<v Speaker 1>John Pierkes, Andrew polk or Lock, Cassidy Manouel Falciano, Sean

0:26:32.880 --> 0:26:38.000
<v Speaker 1>Gormley Matthew Ament and Steve Rautman. Sound design, mixing and

0:26:38.080 --> 0:26:43.800
<v Speaker 1>mastering by Paul Goodrich. Sound editing by Justin Kilpatrick. Executive

0:26:43.840 --> 0:26:48.400
<v Speaker 1>producers Jacob Bronstein, Mark Francis, and Scott Waxman. For diversion

0:26:48.440 --> 0:27:08.840
<v Speaker 1>audio see simply for diversion audio,