Chapter 37
Lizzie entered the gloomy interior of the church and saw several bowed heads deep in prayer in the wooden pews. All the way she had checked she wasn’t being followed and was confident she had made it without a shadow.
Ideally, she would have returned to the watchmaker’s underground hiding place to collect the family’s documents, but after talking it through with Hannah, they agreed it was too dangerous considering the increased security throughout the city.
By meeting Eli at the church, she wouldn’t risk leading someone to his door, which would mean the end of the supply of expertly forged documents.
It would also certainly mean the end of the brave forger’s life.
Catching a U-boat Jew was a valuable prize, and there were many who would sell him out without a second thought.
The budding Resistance network would collapse like a row of dominoes—the family would be taken, as would Liesel because her name was on their papers, and the convent would be investigated and closed.
Courageous Mother Clara had risked so much to help the children, and Lizzie couldn’t endanger her further.
The familiar aroma of incense tickled her nostrils as she closed her eyes.
There was no need to pretend to pray because there was so much to pray for.
Her lips moved slightly as she beseeched God to deliver the family and Liesel to safety in Switzerland and from there to sanctuary far from the Nazi’s clutches.
All those who were involved in their Berlin mission were in her prayers, as well as the members of her family who were scattered due to the war.
Jack was in her heart as she prayed that he would have the strength to bear the news about his brother Henry. The thought of telling him what Hannah had found in the file at the Air Ministry filled her with sadness.
The heavy door creaked open, and a chill wind rattled inside before the door banged shut.
Lizzie’s eyes fluttered open, and she glanced over her shoulder.
Eli looked quite different to when she had met him in his underground room, but she recognised his sombre eyes beneath the cap pulled low over his brow to partially conceal his face.
He slipped into the pew behind her, and they both remained silent as a congregant passed down the aisle and left the church.
The nave was now empty but for them and a woman still deep in prayer near the front.
Lizzie heard the rustle of paper and felt a nudge against her stockinged ankle.
She didn’t react immediately but waited before gradually lowering one hand to the floor, where her icy fingers grasped some paper.
After retrieving it, she put it on the pew next to her.
It was a folded newspaper which she shoved into her handbag.
This was no way to check the documents safely, but she trusted Eli to have brought them, or it wouldn’t have been worth the risk of emerging from his hiding place.
The woman who sheltered him was a volunteer cook at the orphanage, and when Lizzie explained it wasn’t safe to visit her home again, she passed a message to him.
Lizzie turned slightly and saw Eli’s hands in the prayer position. The fact that he was Jewish and didn’t pray in a church hadn’t entered her mind until then. It had seemed the safest place to meet, and only now she realised it must be strange for him, and she regretted her lack of consideration.
His eyes flickered open and rested on hers briefly, before he left the pew and walked down the aisle without looking back as though he didn’t know her.
The door banged shut, announcing their clandestine rendezvous was over and Lizzie waited a full five minutes before placing her handbag strap on her shoulder and glancing around for anyone suspicious before leaving the church.
Lizzie walked at a regular pace back to the boarding house, even though she felt the urge to run and hide the papers at the convent.
That would attract attention and was out of the question, but each time someone appeared on her route, she stiffened, and her heart raced.
Frau Fischer’s warning about the authorities searching for foreign female spies had set her nerves on edge to an even greater degree than before.
After the Gestapo search of the female staff at the Air Ministry, Lizzie’s awe of Hannah’s ability to infiltrate German ministries at the highest level deepened, but she still worried her dear friend and sister-in-arms was flying too close to the flame.
And the thought of what the Gestapo would do to Ingrid Becker and her family if she were exposed as a traitor was a horrible one.
She had to remind herself that they could only take one day at a time and do their best in the circumstances.
Soon it would all be over, and they would leave Berlin as quickly as they had arrived, two grieving widows caught in the storm of war.
Lizzie had considered taking the documents straight to the convent, but she ruled it out immediately.
She must stick to her routine, and that meant she couldn’t smuggle them in until the following morning when she went to the orphanage as usual.
Keeping them at the boarding house overnight was a risk she must take.
After what felt like an age, she arrived at the boarding house and let herself in.
She was about to run straight up to the attic to hide the documents in the secret compartment in her suitcase before going into the dining room for the evening meal, when Frau Fischer appeared.
‘Before you go up, your presence is required in the sitting room,’ she said, her tone formal and her expression troubled.
The illegal papers nestled in Lizzie’s bag, so close to Frau Fischer she could touch them if she dipped her hand inside and opened the newspaper. Lizzie fought her mounting dread and acted as naturally as she could as she ran through the reasons for such an unusual summons.
Lizzie removed her hat and stifled a fake yawn. ‘What for, may I ask? It’s been such a tiring day, and I was just about to go upstairs and take off these uncomfortable shoes.’
Frau Fischer cleared her throat. ‘It shouldn’t take long. There is an important official you must meet. He’s here to inspect our female lodgers, and he wishes to see you next.’
Of all the days to have entered the house with these precious documents lurking in her handbag, this was the absolute worst. Lizzie’s head pounded, and she tried to catch her breath. ‘Of course,’ she said, following the landlady into the communal sitting room.
A middle-aged man sat on the sofa beside Herr Vogel and both turned to stare at her as she entered.
‘Ah, Frau Weber,’ Vogel said, rising from his seat. ‘This is my superior Zellenleiter Brandt. We are honoured to have him with us today ensuring our neighbourhood isn’t under threat by the infiltration of enemies.’
Lizzie greeted them both, her heart hammering, regretting that she hadn’t followed her urge to deliver the papers straight to the convent instead of bringing them back with her. One simple decision and she would have avoided this dangerous encounter.
She straightened her shoulders and addressed the official, her tone polite and respectful. ‘Good evening, Zellenleiter Brandt. I was just about to retire to my room to freshen up before dinner after a long day.’
Lizzie heard a sound, and Frau Fischer went to investigate. The room felt like it was closing in on her as she frantically grasped for a plausible way to keep the papers out of the cell leader’s hands. If he checked them, it would all be over, and she calculated what was likely to happen.
If she were identified as a British agent, the infamous Night and Fog decree she had read about at Baker Street, would apply.
She wouldn’t see London, Jack or her family ever again because she wouldn’t qualify for prisoner of war status and there would be no notification to her family.
The Nazi protocol was that she would simply vanish.
They would accuse her of espionage, forgery and Judenbegünstigung—aiding Jews—which in itself was a criminal offence and after brutal interrogation when they would torture her until she revealed all the names of her contacts, she would either be shot in public to teach other traitors a lesson, or be sent to Ravensbrück, the women’s concentration camp.
Reports had been filtering into Britain of the horrific conditions for Jews and political prisoners in the camps, and Lizzie knew of a British agent who had disappeared without a trace.
Her fingers itched to touch the pendant around her neck, which concealed the cyanide pill the team in London had given her.
It was normal procedure, and she’d carried one with her as a precaution on every mission, but the thought that one day she might actually need to use it haunted her during the long dark nights in the attic when she struggled to sleep.
Was this the day she must swallow the pill?
If they were about to arrest her, this could be her last chance to protect the others involved, but it was not a simple decision to make.
The desire to survive coursed through Lizzie’s veins, and she knew she would choose to fight, using all her wits and force if needed.
Hannah entered the room, followed by Frau Fischer, and Lizzie’s resolve fragmented, and a tight knot formed in the pit of her stomach.
Herr Vogel introduced Hannah to the cell leader, and she appeared as poised as ever.
Her presence alarmed Lizzie further because it meant they were both under suspicion.
The official wore a dark winter coat, and the swastika armband on his left sleeve served as an ominous reminder of the threat he posed, although in other ways he looked like someone’s ordinary uncle.
‘I understand Frau Fischer has told you I am here to inspect the female lodgers,’ he said, his beady eyes flickering from Hannah to Lizzie and back again.
A clammy film coated Lizzie’s flesh beneath her coat, but she didn’t remove the garment because a knitting needle was accessible in her pocket.
It was her only weapon, and she would use it if she had to.
It would be better to go down fighting than to walk quietly to the torture chamber with the Gestapo.
She had the frightening advantage of knowing what her fate would be if they arrested her.
Hannah spoke and her voice was remarkably calm. ‘My sister-in-law and I are eager to help in any way we can, aren’t we Anna?’ She glanced at Lizzie and then continued, ‘What is it we can do for you?’
The interlude gave Lizzie a moment to compose herself and she was reminded why Hannah had survived so long undercover in occupied France since she was forced to flee Nazi Germany.
Hannah had cleverly turned the situation around to make it as though they could be part of the solution.
Lizzie released a slow breath and seconded Hannah’s offer.
‘Of course, whatever we can do to help defend our glorious Reich. Would it be of service if we went door to door and checked women’s identification papers? ’
The thought occurred to her out of nowhere, and this time she followed her instincts.
A fleeting look of admiration crossed the cell leader’s face, but he wasn’t about to be distracted from his task. ‘That is very kind, and I may accept your offer in the future, but for now, please be so kind as to present your papers, ladies. That is the purpose of my visit today.’
Lizzie’s heart drummed as she smiled at him, and then she placed her handbag on the table. ‘Of course, I’ll need a moment to locate my papers.’
Frau Fischer offered him refreshments, but he declined. ‘That would be delightful, but I’m afraid I have many more calls to make this evening. My job is not a simple one, and we are on high alert.’