Chapter 37
CHAPTER 37
H annah’s boss wore only a blood-stained shirt. His bottom half was naked, his thighs pale and his trousers ruffled around his boots on the floor.
Lizzie trained her gun on him as a precaution, but she knew before she checked his pulse, the major general wouldn’t be bothering Hannah anymore. He was stone cold dead. Lizzie shone the torch around to check if there was any sign of a struggle. The cupboard was tidy, and the assassination, if that’s what it was, had all the hallmarks of a professional, right down to the assault on his manhood.
Angel had struck again.
Lizzie closed the door firmly and raced to untie Celine and break the news to her. They collected their cleaning materials and locked the doors behind them. Now to get out of there before someone at German High Command realised the major general was missing. Lizzie followed Celine down the wide staircase, clutching a bucket and mop and trying to act calm as they stored the equipment in the maintenance room.
‘Take it nice and steady,’ Lizzie whispered to Celine, as they moved towards the back exit where the same soldier stood on duty.
They were nearly at the door when a German voice called to the soldier from the main desk in the lobby. ‘The major general has a visitor. Did you see him leave earlier?’
The soldier replied, ‘No, I haven’t seen the major general today.’
Lizzie waited for the soldier to unlock the back door, acting as though their lives didn’t depend on escaping before someone discovered the body of the major general stuffed in a cupboard upstairs in his private suite.
She turned towards the lobby to see who the visitor was. A tall blond officer stared back at her, and her heart dipped as they shared a second of instant mutual recognition. Her senses were on fire. It was the officer from the train who had defended her and then insisted on driving her home with cakes when they saw each other again. It seemed so long ago because every day undercover was like a lifetime. She’d purposely avoided the café where they’d bumped into each so she wouldn’t need to fend off more awkward questions.
There was confusion on his face, but as their eyes met, she saw his expression morph into one of admiration. Lizzie didn’t touch her gun, but she was ready to shoot if it came to that. If she had to go down in a shower of bullets trying to escape, then that was preferable to being taken by the Gestapo. Lizzie didn’t know how high her pain threshold was, and she had no desire to test it. Her cyanide pill nestled in the pendant around her neck.
She braced herself. Her heart thundered as she looked at the officer for a second. Lizzie knew she was taking a risk, and it may have been better to acknowledge him publicly, but she followed her instincts and prayed he would be as keen as her to keep their connection a secret. She turned back to the soldier who bent to unbolt the back door, which swung open. They were only a few steps away from freedom.
‘Thank you. Have a good evening,’ Celine said.
The soldier wished them the same. Lizzie moved towards the door, fearing a hand on her shoulder at any moment.
Celine was just about to step through the door when a voice from the lobby called, ‘Stop the cleaners.’
Lizzie slid her hand into the pocket of her overalls and touched the grip of her gun that lay cushioned in the folds of the thick material.
‘Ask them if they saw the major general,’ the soldier barked.
The guard turned to Celine and Lizzie, an enquiring expression on his face. ‘You heard. Well?’ he asked.
Celine said, ‘The offices were empty, as they often are.’
The soldier’s eyes assessed Lizzie. ‘And you? Did you see the major general when you were upstairs?’
Lizzie could feel Karl’s eyes boring into her back. She turned slightly so he would see her face when she replied. ‘No, I didn’t see anyone up there, but Celine is in charge.’ She hoped he had heard her reply. There was no reason she shouldn’t have taken a job as a cleaner. She hadn’t told him anything about her life or work, except that she was visiting her sister and staying for a while. Lizzie held her breath, every muscle taut and ready for action.
He stared at her for a few seconds, then nodded his head imperceptibly, and his lips moved as he said something to the soldier in command who gave the order they could go.
The panic drained from Lizzie’s body as her boots touched the icy pavement, and her spirits soared as they walked down the dimly lit street. They had escaped. All she could think about was telling Jack when she returned to London. It was strange not being able to talk to him. She hoped he understood why she must search for Hannah .
‘Thank you,’ Lizzie whispered to Celine, who walked alongside her. ‘I am sorry to have put you in such danger.’
‘Don’t be,’ Celine replied. ‘I’m happy to do it. We can’t let them ride roughshod over us and destroy everything we believe in.’
‘Thank you all the same. What will you do tomorrow?’ asked Lizzie, worrying she would be a suspect when they discovered the major general’s body.
‘Don’t worry about me. I’ll go to work as usual. They see me as a dumb female cleaner. I bet they’d never credit a woman with masterminding the murder of a Nazi officer right under their noses.’
‘I hope you’re right. By the way, did you recognise the officer who was in the lobby just now?’
‘Yes, I believe he’s the major general’s brother,’ Celine replied.
Lizzie stared at Celine as the enormity of their good luck hit her. ‘That was a close shave. Don’t tell anyone anything. Act like it’s just a normal day when you go in next.’
‘I will,’ Celine said.
‘I need to get out of here. All going well, we won’t see each other again,’ Lizzie said.
When they turned the corner, Celine walked in the opposite direction and Lizzie increased her speed. She changed back into her own clothes in the hallway of the cleaner’s house and put the overalls in a bag in a cupboard as instructed. Lizzie had offered to get rid of them, but Celine said if they were in the same condition, it would be safer to return them. The other cleaner would need them for her next shift.
Lizzie exited the house and turned onto the residential street, hurrying towards the bank of the Seine, where she had left her bicycle. There was always a chance that someone had ridden off on it, but so far, the beloved well- used bicycle she’d borrowed from the farmhouse had served her loyally. And there it was, leaning against a tree like an old friend. It was probably too battered to be in great demand.
As Lizzie mounted her bike, she thought of Hannah proposing a plan to assassinate a high-profile general on another occasion. A smile curved her lips as she thought fondly of Hannah and wondered where she could be.
Where would she hide after murdering a Nazi officer? Surely, even Hannah wouldn’t stay in the city. She guessed the courageous avenging angel would assassinate every one of the Nazis single-handedly if she got the opportunity. She really was fearless, and the image of the executed officer with his pants down, played in her mind like a movie.
‘Jacqueline,’ said a gruff voice, making Lizzie jump.
She swivelled her head and saw a man with dark hair, moustache and spectacles looking at her. Lizzie tried to figure out how this stranger knew her name. ‘May I help you?’
Then his face cracked into a smile, and she heard a familiar voice. ‘Don’t you recognise your sister?’
Lizzie stared at the smiling face. ‘My God! You had me completely fooled,’ she said, her voice low. ‘What on earth…? I mean, how did you know where to find me?’
‘I followed you,’ said Hannah.
‘Oh, that is bad news. I didn’t suspect anyone was on my tail.’ Lizzie berated herself for not spotting she was being followed, even though she had checked in the reflections in shop windows and paused in doorways several times.
‘I’ve been hiding in the shadows for a long time. It’s difficult to see someone following you in the depths of a winter’s night.’
‘We both need to get out of Paris now,’ Lizzie said.
‘Follow me from a distance,’ Hannah replied. ‘When I enter a door, double check you’ve not been followed and wait a bit before knocking.’
Lizzie watched Hannah mount a bicycle and set off. She waited a few minutes before riding after her and Lizzie could see Hannah’s head bobbing as she pedalled at just the right speed to keep a distance between them. Snow was falling again, and the street was deserted. Anyone with any sense would be at home now, trying to get warm. Lizzie wondered where Hannah was leading her, and was relieved she didn’t need to spend the night searching for her.
Lizzie followed Hannah’s instructions and tapped on a door on a small street. Hannah let her in and soon they were drinking tea in the tiny kitchenette of a studio flat over a small row of shops. One window was smashed, and Lizzie pulled her coat tighter around her.
‘Sorry it’s not quite the standard of the farmhouse,’ Hannah said. ‘It’s the best I could do at such short notice.’
‘What is this place?’
‘I’ve used it as a safe house a few times. The flat belongs to a shop owner who is a friend of the network.’
‘Is it safe for us to stay here tonight, do you think?’ Lizzie asked.
‘It’s about as safe as anywhere. We need to get off the streets, message Jack, and arrange a new pickup for you. Now tell me what you’ve been up to. When I saw you coming out of the German High Command. I could barely believe my eyes!’
Lizzie explained how she had got onto the cleaning team with Celine. ‘When you didn’t make the meeting yesterday, and didn’t return home either, I knew I had to get in there and see if you were alright.’
‘But I could have been anywhere,’ Hannah said.
‘That’s what Philippe said.’ Lizzie laughed. ‘But I had a feeling something had gone wrong at work. ’
‘You were right. He was onto me, and I made the almost fatal error of allowing him to lure me into his private rooms.’
Hannah told Lizzie what happened. ‘He knew I was working with someone, so I had no choice but to kill him.’
‘And in what dramatic style!’ Lizzie said, her eyes wide. ‘I was terrified I was going to find you locked in the cupboard, but I should have known better.’
‘That bastard nearly got me,’ Hannah said. ‘It was the closest I’ve come to being caught in a long time. He was smarter than I realised.’
Hannah pulled a rug to one side and poked about on the floor until her fingers found a crack which she pulled, and a tile moved, revealing a space beneath. She bent down and heaved a big dusty bag from the hole, placing it on the table. Lizzie watched as she opened the bag and pulled out a wireless.
‘You are like a genie with a lamp!’ Lizzie said. ‘I never know what you’ve got hidden where.’
‘We have a few backup radios. Can’t rely on one safe house or I’d be long since dead. It’s the only way to outfox the Boche.’
Lizzie fumbled in her handbag and extracted her copy of The Count of Monte Cristo . ‘I’d better let Jack know we’re alive.’