Shadows In Paris (Seagrove & Raven #2)

Chapter 24

CHAPTER 24

L izzie had fallen into something of a rhythm during the past few weeks. Hannah left for work early each morning, and her days passed quickly, carrying out the various duties to support the network. She was in and out of the house a lot and cycled into the city most days under the guise of shopping, but she also met with members of Hannah’s team.

As she washed the breakfast dishes, her mind wandered back to the snowy evening when the Nazi officer had driven her home. Hannah told her that when she saw the German army truck pull into the front yard, she had rushed downstairs and called out to warn the Stern family not to make so much as a sound because the house was about to be searched. Then she flew back upstairs and shoved on her thick-rimmed glasses and frumpy cardigan, ready to play the role of the major general’s personal secretary. She wouldn’t go down without a fight, and if her disguise failed, she had her gun loaded and ready.

When Lizzie opened the front door with her key, entered and closed the door behind her, shutting out the whirling snowstorm, Hannah stared at her, speechless.

The sound of the truck pulling away made her weak with relief and she leant against the wall for support. ‘What the blazes? I thought you were in the hands of the Gestapo, and we were all headed for the torture chamber at Avenue Foch.’

‘Sorry about that. I got myself into a bit of a bind. I didn’t want to scare you and hoped you wouldn’t see the truck.’

‘Scare me? You put the fear of the devil into me! I thought it was all over. What on earth happened for them to escort you home like your own Nazi concierge service?’

Lizzie removed her snow flecked damp beret and coat and hung them on the hooks in the hallway to dry. Then she took Hannah’s arm and steered her into the warm kitchen. It wasn’t often she got to be the one who offered Hannah solace, but Lizzie saw her sister in arms was badly shaken.

Lizzie explained how she couldn’t find a way out of the situation without seeming like she had something to hide.

‘Makes sense. I probably would have done the same in the circumstances,’ Hannah said, the colour slowly returning to her cheeks. ‘Now we must let the Sterns know it’s safe to breathe again! Poor things.’

‘Wait, I’ve got something lovely for them.’ Lizzie produced her bag and extracted the groceries one by one and laid them on the table. ‘I’m back late to cook dinner, but I’ve got a surprise for you all to take the edge off your hunger.’

‘What surprise?’ Hannah said. ‘I think I’ve had enough surprises for one day.’

Lizzie laughed. ‘You’ll like this one. The officer had the proprietor of the café wrap up a delicious selection of cakes and pastries for me to bring home. Look.’

Hannah stuck her nose in the packet of baked goods and inhaled. ‘Ahh, they smell divine. I don’t remember when I last ate a dessert. ’

‘Take one and let’s give the rest to the family.’

‘Is there enough? I won’t have one if not,’ Hannah said.

‘Yes, there’s plenty.’

Hannah helped herself to a buttery pastry. ‘I should say I’m not eating Nazi cake, but that would be stupid, wouldn’t it? I ate lunch in the Reich canteen today. Starving for my morals will help no one.’

Lizzie agreed and took the goodies down to the basement.

The Stern family looked scared, and she soothed them quickly, saying it had been a false alarm. The thought of what could have happened was too frightening to talk about in front of the children, and there was no reason to worry them further.

The children jumped up and down with glee, and soon, they were all sitting on a blanket, munching cake.

‘But how did you get hold of such wonderful delicacies?’ asked Sarah, their mother.

Lizzie said, ‘Let’s just say I had a good day at the shops.’

She lingered in the basement, talking to them for a while, her own spirits lifted at the sight of the children who were so thrilled because of a sweet treat. ‘I’ll go upstairs now and start cooking. There will be a stew for dinner. It shouldn’t be long.’

Sarah’s eyes shone in the lamplight and Lizzie saw she was fighting to hold back the tears. ‘Thank you so much for all you are doing. I can’t express how much this means to us.’ She nodded to the children who were buzzing about with the sugar rush, and Lizzie thought what a sad world it was where bringing a child a cake was considered a massive act of kindness.

She finished washing the dishes, and placed the clean cups to drain by the sink. She hadn’t seen or heard anymore of Karl since that eventful evening and had changed the rendezvous point to a different café. She couldn’t risk going back to Claude’s and bumping into the officer again, no matter how charming and generous he was with his cake.

Hannah stood in front of the filing cabinet with her back to the door as she snapped photographs of documents with the tiny camera nestled in the palm of her hand. She still couldn’t believe how amazing the camera was. This was the first day she had smuggled it into the building, hidden in the lining of her handbag. Any chance she got to extract intelligence to pass to SOE, she took. The camera made it much simpler, as she didn’t have to jot down key facts or figures or try to memorise important data.

There was a price to pay, but she calculated it was worth it. If anyone so much as suspected her of spying, and discovered the camera, it would be incontrovertible evidence against her, so she was vigilant whenever anyone approached her.

Not that the Nazis needed evidence to condemn anyone. During her time working at German High Command, she had seen reports of people being arrested for much less than espionage. Hannah slipped the camera into her pocket and replaced the documents neatly in the folder, and closed the cabinet. The gadget gave her such an immense feeling of power, and she wondered how she’d managed without it. It was the perfect espionage camera.

Jack had arranged for the camera upon her request, and she frequently blessed her good luck that she had noticed it in the film, or she wouldn’t have imagined such an incredible tool existed.

Hannah returned to her desk, feeling the camera burning a hole in her pocket. She must get it back into the secret compartment of her handbag. Just as she was contemplating how best to do it without being seen, the major general walked out of his office and over to her desk.

‘Yes, Major General,’ Hannah said, looking up at him through her thick glasses, her heart strumming wildly. ‘What may I do for you?’

The major general was immaculately dressed in his green-grey uniform, and his greedy eyes flickered over Hannah like they always did. He assessed her like a wildcat, wondering what to hunt for dinner. She did her best not to show how he revolted her.

‘Has anything new come in from the Staff?’

Hannah replied, ‘Nothing that I’ve seen, Major General. There is some new correspondence still to be sorted—it is next on my list to do.’

The major general continued to assess her, and all Hannah could think of was the incriminating camera film containing German Military Intelligence secrets in her pocket.

Did he suspect her of something? She feared he viewed her with suspicion despite the lust in his eyes.

She rose from her chair and smoothed down her skirt. ‘I will check the new correspondence immediately and bring you anything about the confiscation of Jewish art.’

‘Collette?’

‘Yes, Major General?’ In the beginning, she had addressed him respectfully as Herr Major General, but he had told her there was no need for that. ‘Major General will do. No need to waste words.’

That was the type of man he was, and she soon noticed he relished his rank and was desperate for promotion. Everything he did was carefully thought through and designed to show him in his best light. The major general was a calculating individual who had set his sights on the general’s job, and it was part of Hannah’s role to help facilitate his advancement.

The thought of it made her sick to the stomach, and she had to remind herself why she was here and how important it was that she stick to her plan. She was in the best position to gain advance information about operations in Paris, and her data leaking had already paid off. Only last week, she had told Lizzie to meet with Francois in the park and tip him off about a last-minute change in troop and weapon movements. The result was he and Phillipe were in the right place at the right time to derail another train and stop it from reaching its planned destination.

The following morning, the major general had been in a foul mood and had smashed an expensive vase to smithereens in his office. He may be immaculately dressed, but Hannah already knew his weak point. The major general lost control of his anger when he was thwarted, and things didn’t go his way.

‘Come and clean this up immediately.’ He shouted at Hannah and when she went in, she saw his hands were shaking and his face was bright red.

Yes, her new boss wasn’t as cool and composed as he liked people to think. She was in his inner sanctum, and very few people saw him with his defences down.

That was the benefit of risking her life every day by working for one of the most high-ranking officers in Paris.

‘Bring me a coffee before you go through the correspondence,’ he snapped.

‘Of course,’ Hannah said in the deferential tone she was careful to use when she was around him. He must not suspect she burned with hatred for him and everything he stood for, or her long-term plan to use his efforts to thwart him at every turn, would go down in flames along with her and the rest of the Liberty Network .

Hannah was patient. As she made his coffee in the way he liked it, spooning in the sugar and stirring it just as his former secretary had shown her, she imagined him stood against a wall in front of a firing squad. Like how the Nazis exterminated anyone who got in their way. The image was compelling, and it gave her the resolve to do what she had to do.

The major general’s day of reckoning would come. She would make sure of that.