Page 73 of A Resistance of Witches

Roger was the first to break eye contact. He leaned back in his chair, and the room seemed to give a collective sigh of relief.

“Fuck the Huns,” said the man to Rebecca’s right, smiling.

“To the Maquis!” cried another, and the rest of the table raised their mugs.

“The Maquis!” they shouted happily. “Vive la France!”

The bird-faced girl refilled Rebecca’s mug. Rebecca looked at Claire and saw that she was still watching her.

“I could use some fresh air,” Rebecca said.

•••

Rebecca slipped outthe back door and into the damp November air. Her breath plumed around her, but the bracing cold felt good after the heavy, wet laundry stink of the house. After a moment, Claire appeared beside her.

She noticed how careful Claire was to keep her distance. There had been a time when they were never more than a few inches apart, always drifting toward one another like magnets. Now it seemed like Claire was doing her best not to fall back into Rebecca’s gravity.

“Not exactly a diplomat, are you?” Claire said.

“Was I ever?”

Claire sipped her beer. “Roger won’t forget what you said about André. He’ll make trouble for you.”

“André was a coward and a traitor. I wasn’t going to sit there and listen to them toast him like some fallen hero.”

“He got caught and he cracked,” Claire said reasonably. “Everyone cracks. You know that.”

“I didn’t.”

Claire pursed her lips. “Right. Of course.”

Rebecca didn’t care for Claire’s tone. “What?”

Claire looked at her with those blue-green eyes that seemed to see through every kind of lie. “You forget. Lucas cut that blouse off you last night so he could take the bullet out. There was blood everywhere, but I saw clearly enough. Other than that hole in your shoulder, there’s not a scratch on you.”

“As scratches go, it’s a good one.”

Claire frowned. “You lied. I don’t know why, but you did.”

Rebecca could feel the tension between them begin to simmer. “Is there something you want to ask me?”

Claire stared her down, her eyes steady and unblinking. “I’m saying you may have been captured two days ago, but you didn’t take any beating.”

“You’re saying I collaborated with the Nazis in exchange for my freedom.” Even hearing herself say the words made Rebecca feel sick.

“What would you say, if you were in my position?” Claire stepped closer, anger making her forget to keep her distance. “You would say that anyone who leaves a Nazi interrogation room with air in their lungs probably talked, and that anyone who talks should be shot and left on the side of the road as a warning to others.”

Claire was right, of course. It didn’t even matter that she hadn’t turned on her coconspirators. Rebecca knew what it looked like. Shestared into Claire’s eyes and saw how hard they were, how cold. And for the very first time, she understood the gravity of her situation.

“I’m not a traitor.”

Claire looked out over the rolling patchwork of gray and gold and said nothing.

“Fine, then. If you want, I’ll go.”

Claire looked at her and sighed. “You can’t go.”

Rebecca felt something cold drop into the pit of her stomach like a coin in a well.

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