Codename Angel (The Angel Chronicles Book 1) (38 page)

Chapter
103

The File

Whitehall – London –
12:39pm

Friday 23
^rd
April 1954

Malcolm Chambers
stared at the report contemplating the information Frederick had detailed in
the dossier. ‘I have to admit Ralph what you and Archie were shown during your
time in America has shocked me somewhat. A base out in Antarctica, rockets
capable of reaching the moon. Hundreds if not thousands of former Nazi
scientists and engineers working for the Americans. I thought the Americans had
shared everything regarding Project Paperclip.’ He shook his head. ‘This just
goes to prove they didn’t.’

Frederick nodded. ‘So
many escaped during the closing stages of the war, it was a total mess trying
to capture the ones responsible for so much atrocity.’

‘The ratlines out of
Europe helped a lot of those bastards get away, which leads me to one of the
reasons I called you here today.’ Chambers looked back at the report. ‘You
mention here a man called Jacob Barnes.’

Frederick nodded.
‘Yes he’s a prominent figure over there, tried to convince me the positive
aspect of employing all those Nazis.’

‘He’s a man of many
traits.’ Chambers continued. ‘In 1929 he was a prominent New York Banker,
despite the Wall Street crash Barnes seemed invulnerable and survived. At the
time he was pulled up by the FBI in connection with missing bearer bonds
allegedly worth in excess one hundred million dollars.’

‘Bloody hell, no
wonder he’s of interest.’

Chambers nodded.
‘Unfortunately the FBI was unable to make anything stick. They couldn’t find
the missing bearer bonds so they let him go.’ Chambers reached into a drawer in
his desk and pulled out a file which he handed to Frederick. ‘I compiled this
file on him, dug it out yesterday when his name cropped up in your report.
After the crash of twenty nine he went to ground for a few years until 1935
when he turned up in Hollywood spreading a lot of money around and investing
heavily in the film industry, he had a lot of return from his investments.’

‘I take it no one
questioned where the money was coming from.’ Frederick said.

‘No.’ Chambers
replied. ‘After that he started to branch out, oil, gas and now it seems he has
his fingers in Americas most top secret research facilities.’

Frederick noted the
look on Chambers’ face. ‘Something tells me this Barnes character is going to
be a problem. How is it you are familiar with him?’

‘Six years ago
British intelligence intercepted a German businessman in London making his way
to the USA. A man by the name of Joseph Frank. Myself and Morris Stanford
interviewed the man. He confessed to being a former prominent Nazi who was
being smuggled out of Europe to the USA. When searched he was found to be
carrying half a million dollars worth of American bearer bonds, which he
claimed had come from the pocket of Jacob Barnes. While in our custody Jacob
Barnes turned up and carted Frank away without as much of an explanation. I did
contact Clement Atlee about the matter but he basically ignored my concerns. A
few days later his body was found drifting face down in the Thames estuary. I
believe that former President Truman twisted Atlee’s arm.’

Frederick listened
with interest.

Chambers indicated to
the file he handed Frederick. ‘As you can see his file is quite extensive, I
suggest you read it thoroughly, you are going to have familiarise yourself with
Jacob Barnes.’

Frederick looked up
at Chambers.

‘I received a
telephone call this morning concerning a conference being held in just over a
week.’

‘What kind of
conference?’

‘Apparently to
discuss the matter of the existence of beings from other worlds, among other
things. This Senator Barnes is heading the meeting, and it’s him who phoned me
this morning.’

Frederick took a deep
breath.

‘I want you to listen
to me very carefully Ralph, this meeting, that file, is to be kept between the
two of us. No one else must know of its existence, not even fellow committee
members.’

Frederick nodded. ‘Of
course.’

‘Jacob Barnes is
dangerous, he has the ability to find a person’s weakness an exploit it. If I
would have known he was involved with the Majestic 12 group last year I would
have never have agreed to set up a partnership. He is a very clever man hiding
in the shadows, then revealing himself when the time is right. I believe the
device shown to us from the Roswell crash last year, your invite out to the USA
are all part of a plan. It’s obvious that Barnes has had access to all the
files we have shared with the Americans. He’s a thorough man, it’s highly
likely he’ll know everything that has happened over the last two years,
operation Mainbrace, the Edith Jones case file, Janus, everything. He was
explicitly adamant that you should attend this conference which is being held
in the Netherlands.’ Chambers looked down at a piece of paper he had scribbled
on. ‘At a place called the Hotel de Bilderberg, near Arnhem in the
Netherlands.’

‘Another trip
abroad.’ Frederick commented his thoughts turned to Elizabeth and the child she
was expecting.

‘The conference
itself only lasts one day, so you won’t be gone too long, but you will be going
alone, Barnes was insistent on this. This is how he operates, he will try and
isolate you from the committee and put you in a position where you won’t be
able to say no.’

‘From my experience
Malcolm I think saying no is quite easy for me but I will heed your warning.’

‘Good, we’ll meet up
after the conference and try and guess what Barnes’ strategy is.’

Chapter 104

The road to
Disclosure

Hotel De Bilderberg –
Arnhem – Netherlands – 11-01am

Monday 3
^rd
May 1954

Frederick quickly
swept the room glancing at the nine other men who were in attendance. Professor
Albert Einstein was sat opposite and greeted Frederick as soon as he walked
through the door of the conference room. Vannevar Bush and Jacob Barnes sat at
each end of the large oval table. The scale of security surrounding the small
meeting room was immense. Over a hundred secret service agents stood guard at
every entrance to the hotel, as well as patrolling the grounds. Even the local
police had been assigned to patrol a radius of three miles from the hotel.

On arrival Frederick
was unaware that anyone else had arrived. He was escorted straight to his room
and given a memo with instructions to read through it. Even his evening meal
was brought to his room, which had an adjoining bathroom.

Even though just ten
men resided in the conference room, every room in the hotel had been booked and
paid for, no outsiders were allowed within three miles of the hotel.

‘Good morning
gentlemen.’ Barnes greeted. ‘Thank you for attending this meeting today. Our
hosts have been gracious enough to hand over this splendid hotel for a few days
so that means room service is all yours.’

Chuckles resonated
around the room, while Einstein and Frederick remained straight faced.

‘You all know me of
course.’ Barnes smiled. ‘And the man at the other end of the table, Vannevar
Bush. To my right Mr Walt Disney well known movie producer, along with Louis B
Mayer another prominent movie producer. Astrophysicist and Cambridge Professor
Ralph Frederick. next to Professor Frederick well known astronomer Doctor
Martin Steinberg.’ Barnes paused to catch his breath. ‘Sat to my left is
General Frank Stacy United States. A man who needs no introduction Physicist
Albert Einstein. Next we have Cardinal James Macintyre, our representative on
religious matters. And Last but no means least William Randolph Hearst Junior,
son of the late newspaper baron William Hearst.’ Barnes looked directly at
Vannevar Bush. ‘Doctor if you please.’

Bush Stood. ‘I take
it you have all read the report we gave you last night, entitled The Road to
Disclosure.’ Bush picked up a glass of water and took a sip. ‘We are here today
because we all have one thing in common, and that is we are fully aware that
our planet is being visited by beings from another world. Besides the ten of us
in the room, there are probably another hundred people or so who have access to
this knowledge, including President Dwight D Eisenhower.’ Bush looked across at
Frederick. ‘And British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. However as time
progresses it is fairly obvious that we cannot keep this knowledge to
ourselves. Our operations out in Groom Lake, White Sands and Antarctica have
thousands of personnel who have access to materials that have come from the remains
of the craft that crashed at Roswell and also technology that was captured
during the war. Whether we like it or not information is bound to come out
sooner or later. We’ve all read the newspaper reports and seen TV interviews
regarding flying saucers. There is no denying it, as time progresses more and
more people will start to ask questions. This is why I have come up with this
agenda to educate the public not just in matters concerning flying saucers but
also in the progress of science. As we start to explore outer space people will
be curious to know more and more. So therefore it is our goal to educate the
public. First in the matters of space travel, then eventually the possibility
of life existing elsewhere. Our colleague Mr Disney has details of how we can
educate the public on matters of space travel and technology.’

Walt Disney stood. ‘A
series of documentaries are being produced at the moment to promote space
travel and the science involved in making this possible. We hope to keep this
series an ongoing feature which will be broadcast into the homes of every
American who has a TV set.’

‘Excuse me.’
Frederick interrupted. ‘But we are dealing with a worldwide phenomenon here not
just something which is happening in America.’

‘True.’ Disney replied.
‘We will be making these documentaries for a global release to television
networks in developing countries. In fact we have a documentary coming out
later this year entitled Man in Space. It focuses on the development of the
rocket, from man’s earliest attempt to the rockets being tested today. And also
what the future will hold for mankind. I will be presenting this documentary.
We are also producing another documentary about the possibility of life on
Mars.’

‘We feel that Mr
Disney’s involvement in these documentaries will make it more appealing to the
public. A friendly face so to speak that everyone is familiar with.’ Barnes
said.

‘I don’t see how a
documentary is going to prepare the general public for what lies beyond our
atmosphere.’ Einstein commented.

‘This is just one of
the strategies we are planning.’ Bush replied. ‘Another strategy is to promote
the science fiction genre, to make it part of everyday life. Reruns of Flash
Gordon and Buck Rogers are already being shown on TV. We especially want to
promote the subject of life elsewhere.’

‘The science fiction
genre has been around for years.’ Frederick said. ‘People still take it with a
pinch of salt. And very few people read science fiction books.’

‘I believe that will
change.’ Bush stated. ‘Mass markets will be encouraged so that more people are
exposed to the science fiction genre. As well as books and TV shows, toys,
comic books and games will also be developed to educate people. We want to
inspire the current generation of youngsters who will grow up and encourage
their children and so forth.’

‘The movie industry
is also doing its bit.’ Louis B Mayer added. ‘There are over a dozen films
Hollywood studios are churning out this year alone containing the science
fiction theme. They may not all be about space, but the idea is to promote the
fantastic. This will get people used to the idea that anything is possible.’

‘And how long do you
suppose this road to disclosure will take effect?.’ Asked Frederick.

‘Generations
Professor.’ Bush answered. ‘Nothing happens overnight. As science progresses so
will public understanding of the world around them. I predict by the end of the
twentieth century the human population on this planet will be educated to such
a level, that when we do announce the possibility of life on other planets no
one will be surprised.’

‘That’s if there are
other planets out there.’  Cardinal James Macintyre added.

‘I think we can be
certain of that, given what happened at Roswell in 1947.’ Doctor Steinberg
said. ‘The fact that we cannot see them doesn’t mean they are not there. Based
on what we know about our own solar system I think we can assume there are
other planetary systems similar to the solar system we inhabit. Development of
radio telescopes and more powerful optical telescopes is the key to proving the
existence of other earth like planets. But as Doctor Bush pointed out it will
take time, decades perhaps to develop instruments which could theoretically
discover distant planets. Of course the key is to gradually disclose information
concerning the possibility of life elsewhere in our universe. As our technology
progresses we will be able to send probes to planets such as Mars and Venus to
look for life. Once we establish that life flourishes on these planets we will
inform the public. But again this will be done in stages, micro organisms will
be the first to be announced, before we reveal more complex life forms.’

Frederick looked
across at James Macintyre. ‘What is the church’s view on what’s happening?’

‘The different religions
of the world have always told stories of heavenly beings descending and
interacting with various people.’

‘True.’ Frederick
said. ‘But we are talking about something quite different here, from what I
have experienced over the last two years, these beings are anything but
friendly. We’re talking about technically advanced civilizations interacting
and abducting human beings for experimentation.’

‘The church has
believed for some time now that some of these stories may well be first hand
accounts with creatures from another world. It has even been speculated that
the Virgin Mary herself may have experienced an encounter with such a
creature.’

‘The virgin birth.’
Barnes stated, before looking across at Frederick. ‘The woman you encountered
Professor Frederick, Edith Jones. Her story is not unlike something from the
bible. A woman who has an encounter with a strange being and becomes pregnant
as a result.’

Macintyre paused for
thought. 'Of course I only represent one religion, Christianity, Buddhism,
Jewish and Islamic faiths have to come to terms that we are not alone.'

Frederick nodded.

‘How many species do
we suppose are visiting this planet?’ Steinberg asked.

‘With what crashed at
Roswell and Professor Frederick’s experience with this entity Janus we have had
direct contact with two separate species.’ General Stacy replied. ‘But we
believe the figure could be higher. There are witness reports of all kinds of
creatures, which people claimed to have encountered. Our two main operatives
Agent Cones and Baker have also had their fair share of close encounters over
the years. The United States government is looking into a way to try and
monitor UFO activity. We have space radar stations based throughout the
continental United States and working with our allies in setting up
installations throughout Europe.’

‘We are also
monitoring information being fed to the press.’ William Hearst said. ‘Any
stories that come in involving UFO encounters will be scrutinised before any
article is written. Our approach to the way we publish articles involving UFOs
will be in a manner that no one will take them seriously. Television news
programs will also follow suit.’

‘That’s just the
American Press.’ Frederick pointed out. ‘The Press back in Britain seem to love
a good flying saucer story.’

‘As do the American
Press Professor.’ Hearst said. ‘I have a meeting with several British Newspaper
editors later this week to discuss the way information is handled regarding
reports of UFOs.’

Senator Barnes took a
deep breath. ‘I think after that we should break for a spot of lunch gentlemen,
after which we will go in to detail about what we’ve already discussed.’