The Crowded Grave (Bruno, Chief of Police, #4)

by Martin Walker

‘He joined the French army when he recovered and fought his way into Germany in ’45. That’s how he escaped being rounded up and sent back to Spain like so many of the other war refugees. The British and Americans were worried about these Resistance-trained Spaniards going back to overthrow Franco and replace him with a communist regime. So they handed a lot of them back to Franco’s tender mercies.’ ‘I never knew that,’ said Bruno, his satisfaction at tracking down the information suddenly chilled. ‘Not many people do. The Cold War started a lot earlier than most people think.’

The Allies were allies no longer after VE Day and so many suffered for the sake of those politics that the “victory” was far from honourable.