"Grave of The Witch": Chapter 02 – Legacy and a legend.
A/N: AU. This is a fictional story, in a fictional Alternative Universe, about fictional characters who entertained us in a fictional TV series between 1995 and 2005. Mike. Characters borrowed with love and appreciation for the great team who brought us "JAG"; may your following careers blossom.
A/N: AU: "they aren't mine, I'm just playing with them - apart from any fictional character created by myself". See Phase One of this story for the whole disclaimer A/N. Feel free to PM me if you spot any typos - my goal is 100% error-free. Feedback and comments are also welcome; I see plenty of followers and visitors to this story. Your opinions, critiques (and requests as PMs) are always welcomed.
A/N: link to Canon Episodes: A brief nod to: "The Wilderness of Mirrors" S04Ep11: first broadcast 04May1999. Also Episode "Rogue" S5Ep07 First aired Tuesday 09NOV1999
A/N: Publication date: 02-OCT-2021: This is chapter two of my experiment which began in late 2020, so please bear with me. Yes, it has taken a while but I hope you can work through the bread-crumbs!
A/N: REVISED 03-OCT2021: This may become another saga in the longer term, but definitely a "little bit of scene-setting" is needed in this second chapter to establish the back-story which I need for audience feedback before we can return to the timeline (2015) from Chapter One. Please be patient but do - PLEASE – let me have your feedback?
Characters from FFNET – Mattie, Jennifer, AJ, Galindez and (obviously!) others…
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Flashbacks and memories
Thursday July 24, 1969; 12:50 p.m. EDT
Cincinnati Maternity hospital, Cincinnati OH
Apollo 11 Splashdown
As the Apollo 11 Command Module settled gently into the Pacific swells (following a late-implemented 250-mile repositioning to find a better weather window for the splashdown ready for the Pacific Ocean Recovery Ship, USS Hornet), Deborah Sorling completed her labour in the Maternity wing of the Cincinnati General Hospital.
She gave birth to her first-born, a daughter whom she named Rene Maria. She chose the shorter "Rene" rather than the Americanised "Renee" for her daughter.
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The Sorlings had settled into Cincinatti in the early 1960s when Deborah's father Gideon Sorling had retired from the CIA.
Deborah had met Phineas Simonson at a dance in 1957 when Phineas' family – the Simonson tobacco manufacturing dynasty – had announced a company merger with the Virginia-based tobacco growers established by old Yitzhak Skelhorne when he had landed in the USA in May of 1897.
Old Man Skelhorne – as Yitzhak Sklovsky – had completed his immigrant processing before the fire on Ellis Island on June 15, 1897.
This was just before the wooden structures on Ellis Island were razed in a fire of unknown origin. While there were no casualties, the wooden buildings had completely burned down after two hours, and all immigration records from 1855 had been destroyed.
Historical note: This was by no means unique amongst the ex-Russian Jewish émigré diaspora - the Landau dynasty became the Lander family, whilst the Lehrer family anglicised to "Le Riche"...
Deborah and Phineas had married in 1961 but she had retained her maiden name for work purposes in the organisation which employed her.
The Sorling "dynasty" had evolved in England from the late 1890s, when other Jewish émigré families (fleeing the first pogrom initiated after the assassination of Tsar Alexander II in 1881) had found their way to the United Kingdom and established themselves in the great population centres of Manchester, London and Liverpool.
The Sorlingbergs had settled into the cotton trade around Manchester – supplying the Jewish tailoring industry in Leeds – and by 1936 Gideon Sorlingberg (b1914) had been recruited from Oxford into the British Intelligence Services. With a flair for languages (specifically German and Russian) he was an ideal candidate to transfer on loan to the USA in 1942.
Following the shattering surprise of the Pearl Harbour attack on Sunday December 7th 1941, the USA began to plan its retaliation. It established plans to strike back at all levels and in all theatres of operation. However it was short of skilled people, so the call went out across the Atlantic to the "partner of choice" in the Special Relationship (as Churchill and Roosevelt called it).
Accompanied by his wife Esther and their four-year-old daughter Deborah (b1938), Gideon crossed the Atlantic in early 1942 to begin his detachment to America.
Gideon Sorlingberg then shortened the family surname to "Sorling" and joined the nascent "Office of Strategic Studies" (OSS) – the precursor to the post-war Central Intelligence Agency.
Early in 1943 – with five-year-old Deborah in school – Esther also joined the OSS and her language skills became an asset in the interrogation of German prisoners.
In June of 1943, Gideon Sorling made the round-trip transatlantic "dash" on the grey-hulled RMS "Queen Mary" between New York and the port of Gourock on the Scottish coast as part of the team which would brief the UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill on the state of German preparedness (two years on from Hitler's strategic error in invading the Soviet Union).
Gideon's insight would assist in the preparations for Operation "Overlord" - which was executed at "H-Hour" on "D-Day" on June 6th 1944 on the beaches of Normandy in northern France after the massive convoys had sailed south across the English Channel to begin the liberation of Europe.
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The 1950s saw continued career development for the Sorlings.
Deborah was joined by a younger sibling - Miriam Rebecca - in 1947 (when the CIA was being established) and Esther left the service (as was the custom at the time - depriving many organisations of massively-experienced women). She would re-join three years later, when the Korean War kicked off.
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The Sorlings and the Simonsons (originally SIMONOVICH) and the Skelhornes (originally SKLOVSKY) would all establish family homes in the Ohio Valley over time, so the families mixed and integrated and a large brood of children resulted from happy marriages.
Their links – trade, commerce, marketing and (especially) international travel – meant that the links to the various "Intelligence" communities were woven into the family relationships alongside a historical hatred of Russia and the Russians. Indeed, Deborah's younger sister Miriam decided to join the CIA in 1968 (after Soviet tanks had crushed the "Dubcek Spring") instead of going off to University.
Between 1970 and 1973, Miriam spent time in the CIA station in Saigon where she worked with Neville Webb and built a friendship with Porter Webb, Neville's wife. Deborah worked in Langley for some years, leaving when she fell pregnant with Rene in late 1968.
The Webbs were part of OSS/CIA "royalty". Their son Clayton had been born in La Jolla on December 3rd 1955 and he was to "follow into the family business" as a 20-year-old probationary case officer in 1975 when Miriam was running a team preparing the US responses for the next round of Strategic Arms Limitations Talks (aka "The SALT treaties").
The first of the SALT treaties had originally been proposed by Lyndon B Johnson when he was the US president. Of the resulting complex of agreements (SALT I), the most important were the Treaty on Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Systems and the Interim Agreement and Protocol on Limitation of Strategic Offensive Weapons. Both were signed by Pres. Richard M. Nixon for the United States and Leonid Brezhnev, general secretary of the Soviet Communist Party, for the U.S.S.R. on May 26, 1972, at a summit meeting in Moscow.
Miriam Sorling took the younger Clayton under her wing and was one of the first to spot his flair and skills for covert and devious activities (which the UK Intelligence services refer to as "tradecraft"). She also flagged up his propensity for occasional "independent thinking" which might become problematic. "Going off-script" would get people killed.
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Thursday 24th July 1987: 14:30hrs EST
Sorling family home, Cincinnatti OH
The garden was looking at its best, as the wider Sorling family gathered to celebrate young Rene's 18th birthday.
Rene's Aunt Miriam was there of course, along with Porter Webb and Porter's son Clayton.
Now settled into his CIA career after 13 years of exploiting his "family connections", Clayton was building his own teams and his area of expertise continued to be the countries just east of "the Iron Curtain".
No-one knew, at that time in the summer of 1987, that the Soviet Union was less than three years away from collapse, but the "Neville Webb school of destabilisation" had been active in Poland since the late 1970s (with the establishment of the "Solidarity/Solidarnosc" union movement in the shipyards of Gdansk) - and Hungary was beginning to pay dividends.
The CIA was quietly gnawing away at the underbelly of the USSR and its satellite countries. Solidarity, with its roots in trade unionism, shook and delegitimized the communist regime by exposing its ideological but false claims of being a free "workers' state".
Clayton's gaze fell upon the young woman at the centre of the celebrations. Tall, self-assured, beautiful and blonde, Rene definitely caught his eye. She was old enough to know her own mind and he recognised her pout as she listened to him, forming her own mind ("too old, hate the three-piece suit") as she assessed his suggestion of joining "The Company".
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Rene Sorling's heart was set on law – she could see that the tobacco industry in the USA (to which the families were tightly bound) was facing an uphill struggle in the decades to come. Therefore it seemed SO sensible for her to "join the family firm" and she used this in her response to Clayton. Of course, there was no way in which he could disagree with young Rene! He was, however, very impressed with her poise, intellect and maturity.
They conversed and chatted several times over the coming months, as Rene qualified for – then entered and attended – Yale Law School. She was definitely a potential "asset" on Clayton's "one to watch" list of potential CIA recruits. Rene had followed the family traditions, seeking the best educational establishments to further herself in American society.
Rene excelled at Yale; her work was always assessed in the highest category. Upon graduation from Yale in 1990, the 21-year-old intended to follow her agreed plan to seek employment as a junior attorney in the legal department of the Skelhorne tobacco company in Virginia.
That was Rene's plan. However, at Christmas of 1989, she had bumped into Clayton Webb again at her family Christmas gathering. Events across the Atlantic were gathering pace and holding everyone's attention.
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Thursday 24th December 1989: 17:30hrs EDT
Sorling family home, Cincinnatti OH,
Clayton Webb and Director Kershaw were joining in with the Sorling family's pre-Christmas celebrations. The TV in the corner of the den was playing a CNN retrospective summary of the events of the year which was just one week away from yielding to a new decade.
The television pictures from "East" Germany since early November had been attention-grabbing, as the people rose up and began dismantling the 1961-era "Berlin Wall" which the Communist East had built around the "capitalist" enclave of "West Berlin".
Historical note: If ever there was an object lesson in how NOT to re-build a country after a war, the 1945 Allied Powers Act was always a good place to start.
After World War Two, Europe was carved up by the Soviet Union and its former Western allies, and the Soviets gradually erected an "Iron Curtain" splitting the East from the West. The curtain bi-sected Germany on its route south.
Defeated Germany was divided up by the occupying powers - the US, UK, France and the USSR - with the eastern part occupied by the Soviets. East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic, became the Soviet Union's foothold in Western Europe.
Inside East Germany, Berlin was split four ways - with British, French and American zones in the west of the city and a Soviet zone in the east. West Berlin became an island of capitalist freedoms, surrounded by communist East Germany.
"The Berlin Wall" was eventually built in 1961 because East Berlin was haemorrhaging people to the West. The irony of its title (the "Anti-Fascist Wall") was not lost on anyone - on either side of the Wall.
With momentum gathering throughout 1989, across the oppressed continent of eastern Europe (behind Churchill's famously-described "Iron Curtain") the cry went up: "Ten Years, ten months, Ten Weeks, ten days." The litany listed the time taken to topple the ruling Communist hierarchies in Poland, then East Germany, then Hungary and finally Romania where the Ceausescu regime imploded in the face of graphic evidence of the murders committed by the "security forces" of the Communist regime (including an event which placed Timisoara on the map for ever, with the massacre of December 17th).
Historical note: It was on 9 November 1989, five days after half a million people gathered in East Berlin in a mass protest, that the Berlin Wall dividing communist East Germany from West Germany suddenly crumbled.
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Clayton Webb raised a glass and Kershaw joined him in celebration.
"Well, we now need to re-write our position papers for eastern Europe in the New Year. I hear that Blaisdell is celebrating and claiming the credit for Honecker tripping up and naming Egon Krenz as his successor", Kershaw remarked to Clayton. "But he reckons his greatest success was transposing the briefing notes just before they were handed to Günter Schabowski, who then went public assuming the new travel rules were immediately in effect. The rest, as they say, was history – half the population of the 'German Democratic Republic' suddenly headed west!"
"Indeed Director – typical of a Blaisdell direct action success dressed up as 'the hand of history'; and now, I believe that this is an appropriate time for us to sound out a potential recruit who will be available next year."
"Oh? Where?" asked Kershaw.
Instinctively, Clayton leaned in to direct Kershaw's gaze surreptitiously.
"Your three o'clock, four yards, standing alongside the dresser. Tight deep-red dress with the mandarin collar and the black thigh-boots. She's Gideon's grand-daughter Rene (and therefore also Deborah's daughter). She will graduate Yale Law next summer. She is consistently near the top of her class and is currently planning on doing litigation work for the Skelhornes down in 'little ole Virginee' on the tobacco litigation treadmill."
He chuckled: "I reckon after six months there - and when she's getting bored spitless writing legal briefs - she may be amenable to a nudge about one year from now. With the family background, her dynasty AND her language skills, I reckon she would be an asset to the Company. Should I introduce you to her this Christmas, sir?"
Kershaw's eyes assessed Rene's trim figure once more, before nodding and agreeing with his subordinate's recommendation.
"Indeed, Clayton, please make it so."
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Rene Sorling was beginning to regret her choice of footwear. She should have broken in the new boots earlier but other events had intruded, impacting her costume preparations for the upcoming Valentine's Day fancy dress party.
The heels were higher than she was accustomed to, although she was able to stand tall and feel confident. She was now acutely aware of how much she would need to practice in these heels before the party in February – and get the rest of her costume completed!
Just then, she spied Clayton approaching, accompanied by an older man with the mandatory moustache that was prevalent in late-1980s American men.
"Rene, may I please introduce one of my colleagues, Director Kershaw? I believe that it might be beneficial for you two to talk about what comes next for you after summer graduation, Rene."
As she shook Kershaw's hand, Rene was impressed by his firm grasp and what looked like an honest smile. Even so, her internal alarms were beginning to start ringing: "Spy, spook, spymaster."
She managed a pleasant and open smile as she composed her response. At Kershaw's discrete suggestion, the three moved away from the main groups attending the party, into a small ante-room in the mansion.
"Well hello Director Kershaw and I am honoured to meet you. I presume that – through Clayton – you are associated with my family through our 'tradecraft' activities?"
"Indeed we are, Miss Sorling."
The conversation drifted on for a while before Rene looked Kershaw directly in the eyes.
"So, I can hazard a guess that the topic of our conversation, standing quietly in the corner of this room, relates to the question of 'what will Rene do when she graduates this summer' – am I right?"
Kershaw turned to Clayton, who merely shrugged. "I told you she was top of her class, Director."
"Indeed, Clayton." Kershaw turned back to address Rene. "Rene: you are familiar with 'The Company' so I'll cut to the chase. We are always on the lookout for good case officers to swell the ranks and to cover for retirements and the like. I just wanted – for now – to let you know that we would be interested in talking with you should the idea of a job based out of Langley be of interest."
"Thank you Director Kershaw; I'll reach out via Clayton in the summer, so that you will know either way. I have to say that – at present – the chance to litigate in Virginia has my attention but I *am* definitely honoured by your contact."
She paused, evidently thinking before continuing."May I just confirm that this isn't a 'one-time, no second offer' deal and that we might talk again in future, Director?"
Her use of his title caused Kershaw to respond formally.
"Indeed, Miss Sorling; we are recruiting constantly and across the ranges of age, skill, ethnicity – the whole nine yards."
Kershaw smiled – even if she did not join the CIA in the coming summer, young Rene Sorling could become an experienced asset in the future.
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Monday 21st January 1991: 08:54hrs EDT
CIA recruitment centre Langley VA
The neatly-dressed young woman checked the lapels of her suit for lint as she sat in the waiting chairs in the Reception area of her new employer with her raincoat folded across her lap. Deciding to give up working for "Big Tobacco" had been a hard decision, but her family history – along with the opportunities to help America as the Russian federation was imploding – had made the decision easier.
As a young-looking 22-year-old, she knew that her life and career lay before her – to grasp as she saw fit.
She recognised Clayton Webb as he arrived in reception – in person – to escort her to her new job.
As it turned out, Rene Sorling's first seven-years of her career in the CIA would be challenging, interesting and rewarding. She would cover operational planning, intelligence gathering and assessment, geopolitical awareness and psychology. Her deep undercover tradecraft was developed further when she was seconded to the US Navy as a cryptographer (which would qualify her for a future role) and also working in the CIA's legal department on occasions.
Then came the day in summer of 1998, when rumours of a mole inside the US Navy's JAG Corps – an organisation crucial to the effective regulation of the Navy and Marines – began to surface.
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Monday 17th May 1999: 11:26hrs EDT
CIA operations centre West (undisclosed location, West Coast)
Ten months of research were complete. It was time for Rene Sorling to implement her preparations to go undercover.
It would take a while before she would reach the JAG HQ at Falls Church, but the path via San Diego was laid out. She would be arriving into Falls Church at the start of November.
In the interim, a covert Webb family property in La Jolla was made available for her to use as her Ops centre for the first step – establishing her Navy cover in San Diego. A subsequent Agency property in Georgetown would be made available for her when she reported into Falls Church. The title deeds to both properties were flawless and impenetrable.
She was looking forward to the role – but she knew that solid preparation would be absolutely crucial to her eventual success.
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"So, Clay; what's the story here?"
He turned to face the young woman who had agreed to place her life on hold, for an indefinite period, to go undercover and to assume the "legend" of a serving US Navy officer.
"Well, you will report..."
His words fell silent as he looked at her.
Rene's hair had always fallen loosely in soft waves over her shoulders or had been pulled up into a long pony-tail which bounced upon the crown of her head. Now, she sported the neat conformant uniform "bun" of a military female. She was carrying a clear garment bag which contained the uniform jacket of a USN officer.
"Clay, do I really HAVE to be a Lieutenant?" The famous Rene Sorling pout was back, in full force.
Clayton approached her, arms outstretched to gently clasp her shoulders. "Yes, I'm sorry Rene, but the lowly lieutenant position keeps you below radar; also the possible mole won't think twice about talking around junior officers – and that is how we intend that he (or she) will give themselves away."
She looked up into his eyes and smiled. "OK Clay, I've read up on the main parties in Falls Church. How should I play this?"
"Well, we don't want anyone getting too close. If you stay aloof, the story may get around that you are unapproachable – even anti-social."
Rene's pout grew, then she smiled. She was just beginning to recover from the tragic death of her boyfriend some six months earlier. He had been killed during a SNAFU on one of Clayton's operations. However she had noticed (on reading the AAR file) that the man whom she had begun to describe as "the Teflon spook" had evaded any blame.
"So, I guess that I could easily state a career goal of becoming the first female JAG?"
He nodded and smiled: "Yes, ambitious and purposeful – I like it."
"So, we've got the apartment and I'm using the Agency's little blue Miata as cover when I drive. But Clay – what do I do for *FUN* when I'm assigned in Falls Church?"
The Rene pout was back, in full force.
"I mean, how do I get a social life?"
Once more, she was in his arms looking up at him. "Wide-eyed and innocent" - not!
Clayton Webb found himself responding to Rene's physical presence – and he suspected that she knew exactly the effect she was having on him!
"Steady Clay, she's 14 years younger than you!"
"How about I invite you to Manderley every month? We can go riding; I'll cook, you can shed the skin of your legend for 48 hours."
"Sounds good: but I haven't ridden for a while, Clay."
She nodded, then looked up at him as an impish thought caught her mind. "So, do I call you an older boyfriend or my sugar daddy?"
Clay coughed in his coffee. The "sugar daddy" jibe was too much of a low hit (and he was definitely too young!) but the other idea – as her boyfriend – had some traction.
"Would you be sure about that?"
"Well Clay; if I stay in role, I'm going to be the Ice Queen of Falls Church – little Miss Impregnable. But remember, I am young and I have needs!" Once again, the impish smile was back. He imagined her body responding, even though it was hidden beneath her neat, buttoned-down, "booted and suited" image as a CIA case officer.
Clay thought for a few moments – a younger, nubile woman was always a tempting bonus to his job. But could he? Should he?
"This is a family friend, not just another potential notch on the bed-post." Once more, the age gap surfaced in Clay's mind.
"Look Rene, let's hold this over until the next time we meet up at Manderley. It *is* tempting, be in no doubt."
She smiled and caressed his cheek. "Don't worry, I shall wait for you every night, dreaming in my single-occupancy boudoir!"
He groaned audibly.
"Red light, Lieutenant!"
Rene Sorling shook her head.
"Nah, you're a civilian. I've already read up on the UCMJ!"
He groaned – this woman was going to be hard work…
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"OK, so let's run through the legend."
They spread the papers out on the table in the conference centre. Her CIA photograph had been used to generate her USN credentials. The new date of birth on the back (showing her to be two years and a day younger than she truly was) bolstered her confidence.
"OK, we're starting you off with the birth name of Loren Vogelsang for the USN Security Clearance which is already on their systems and won't come back to bite you: and we have a new surname for your legend."
Rene nodded, leaning in to scrutinise the paper trail before her. She knew that her very life could depend on getting this right. She would need to live the life of the "legend" for a considerable time.
She perused the files once more as Clayton continued his briefing, then she stood up and walked across to the full-length antique mirror on the wall, admiring her reflection as Clayton continued with his briefing.
"OK. Her DoB was 25-JUL-1971 – but she died a year later of meningitis in 1972. Her birth is registered to Germantown OH; so she is two years and a day younger than your July 24th in 1969. Got that?"
She nodded. "Yep, close enough for me to remember. Clayton, do we know how long this mission will run?"
He shook his head. "You may need to maintain this persona for some time – remember that: we don't want you getting lost in the wilderness of mirrors".
She nodded. Then Clay continued.
"There is no listed boyfriend and you are single – and heterosexual."
"Gee, thanks for that; Yale didn't have an ROTC and maintains that stance because of 'Don't ask, don't tell' so I am really pleased about that."
Rene smiled – one of her rare, wide-open, whole-face involved warm smiles, stepping out of character for a moment. "So, I get to play a woman two years younger than me, single and fancy-free in the greatest navy in the world – bring it on, Clayton!"
"OK, so your legend's originating name gives us a golden opportunity to play about with the details. Our cryptographers have spotted that – if we finesse your legend's first and last names, we have an anagram of your true name when we launch you into the US Navy next month in San Diego."
Rene's brain was still working its way through "Vogelsang" and "Germantown" (a location that she had visited on occasions but which she would now have to know in enough detail to pass a cursory chat with a fellow "Buckeye").
"OK, so who is my new legend going to be when she 'joins' the US Navy?"
Clayton Webb's face smiled as he walked across to stand behind Rene in front of the mirror. With a flourish, he flipped over the folder in his hands and looked at her reflection in the mirror.
"Rene Maria Sorling – meet Loren Maria Singer!"
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End of Ch02 of "Grave of the Witch"; "Legacy and a legend".
Mike: England, 02-OCT-2020
A/N: I pay tribute to the researchers behind the very useful genealogy research project: The Belarus SIG, established in 1998, promotes Jewish genealogy research in Grodno, Minsk, Mogilev and Vitebsk Gubernias as well as the Lida and Vileika uyzeds (districts) of Vilna Gubernia.