Cheka Headquarters
Lubyanka Square, Moscow
June 1918
Felix Dzerzhinsky continued with the paperwork on his desk. He had not left his office for four straight days. The Cheka, housed in the nine-story office building that served as the All-Russia Insurance Company building before the war, was located on Lubyanka Square. The place had already had become a dreaded nightmare to Moscow’s residents. One of the biggest fears of any Muscovite was to disappear into the notorious Lubyanka Prison located in the basement where torture and death were the only sure things that one would encounter. Already rumors circulated throughout Moscow that no one had ever left Lubyanka Prison, except in a coffin.
Dzerzhinsky’s workaholic tendencies were only worsened by his enthusiasm for his job. Sending people to their deaths did not bother him in the least. If these victims of the Cheka were enemies of the state, then dismemberment and death were the only logical actions to take. Life was that simple to this dwarfish man, a child born to Polish nobility who had studied in his youth for the priesthood. His absolute ruthlessness endeared him to Lenin. Already throughout Russia, his name was feared. This notoriety pleased him very much.
This morning he waited for several of his agents to arrive shortly to debrief him on their latest mission. He had received their signal the night before and ordered them to appear before him that morning. Although he almost never smiled, he had a slight grin on his face when the three agents arrived. After his secretary opened his office door, Colonel Eduard Berzin entered first, followed by Shmidken and Bredis. The real names of the last two were actually Yan Buikis and Yan Sprogis. All three of them were, in reality, Cheka agents, sent to penetrate the counterrevolutionary forces that opposed the Bolsheviks.
Within a half-hour, Dzerzinsky knew all of the details of the proposed Allied landings and most importantly, the details of the coup being engineered by Lockhart and his cronies. He thanked his agents for their work and ordered them to continue in their roles posing as counterrevolutionaries. “Your assignment is to string along Lockhart and his agents and to report back to me all of the developments. Comrades, you are to be commended for your excellent work thus far,” stated Iron Felix.
Later that day, Dzerzhinsky met with Lenin at the Kremlin. He relayed the details of the Allied plots to him, and when he was finished, Lenin asked him for his advice on the situation. “My advice, Comrade Lenin, is to do nothing. Let us continue to utilize the Latvians as our spies and learn more about the Allied counterrevolutionary operations. Let us milk them as dry as possible. When the time is right, we can smash them mercilessly. Let us bide our time. We know approximately when all of these activities are scheduled to occur and can act at the appropriate time.”
Lenin had total confidence in Dzerzhinsky’s judgment. He is right, Lenin thought. We hold the advantage now, and we should play our cards accordingly. “Of course, Iron Felix, we will proceed as you have recommended. You have a free hand.”
As Dzerzhinsky turned to leave the room, he looked at Lenin and said, “You know what I am really looking forward to? Catching that smug bastard Reilly! He has been a thorn in our side for years. He is very clever and knows how to disappear in plain sight. This time, we have him.” Once again, a rare smile appeared on Iron Felix’s face. “And you know what? I’m going to have a special place arranged for him in the basement of Lubyanka! I assure you, comrade, it is not going to be pretty!”