Page 40 of Summer of Fire
They finished the modest meal as a loud noise shattered the peace of the warm barn.
‘Thunder,’ said Jack. ‘We must have missed the lightning flash. It’s been so baking hot today; I can’t say I’m surprised.’
Another violent clap followed soon after, and Lizzie jumped. She thought she was over the dreadful events of the day, but she found herself shaking at the loud noise.
Jack reached out and touched her shoulder. His touch was like a power line igniting every cell in her body. She swallowed hard.
‘You’re safe now, Seagrove. I promise I won’t let anything bad happen to you ever again,’ he said. His eyes seared hers and the heat enveloped them as he moved his hand to her cheek. ‘You missed this,’ he whispered, rubbing a dirty mark off her face. He dropped his hand and distance flooded the space between them.
Lizzie felt desolate at the loss of his touch, and he resumed his usual manner as if nothing had happened.
‘Let’s hope there aren’t any holes in this tin roof because it’ll chuck it down soon. There’s a storm coming,’ he said.
Oh, there is a wild storm coming alright, thought Lizzie. She was being swept away and couldn’t find her footing when she was around him. It was intensely pleasurable and deeply disorientating at the same time.
The heat mellowed slightly, and heavy rain followed asthey sat next to each other in the barn. Lizzie’s eyelids drooped and exhaustion washed over her as the hypnotic sound of the rain hit the barn roof and splashed onto the big open doors.
‘Let me sort you out somewhere to sleep,’ Jack said, standing.
He deftly arranged a comfortable spot for her on some bales of hay and conjured a thin blanket from a cupboard in the barn. ‘Sorry it’s not St. Ermin’s style accommodation, but you should be able to catch a few hours’ sleep here. Don’t worry about a thing. I’ll keep watch.’
‘But what about you? You haven’t slept in days.’
‘I’m fine. I’m in operation mode. Too psyched to sleep now, anyway.’
Lizzie climbed into the spot and smiled at him sleepily. ‘Wake me up if you want to swap and I’ll keep watch.’
‘I will. Sleep tight, Seagrove,’ he said, and when he covered her tenderly with the blanket and smiled into her tired eyes, her heart strummed like the strings of a guitar.
Lizzie drifted off to sleep to the sound of the rain on the roof, feeling safe in occupied France with Jack watching over her.
CHAPTER 19
Lizzie stirred when another distant clap of thunder woke her from a violent nightmare. It took her a minute to remember where she was and for her frantic heartbeat to slow. The rough surface of the hay tickled her legs and her dress stuck to her warm body. Ugh—her hand tugged at the material, wishing she could be free of it.
The events of the previous day came crashing into her mind. Relief flooded through her as she realised it was just a nightmare, and she was safe.
The fact that Jack had killed the soldier because of her was something she would have to live with forever. It was the loss of a life, but he explained that if the soldier had survived, they would be in far greater danger now. Her attacker knew what they both looked like, and the Gestapo would hunt them down.
Someone would no doubt identify Lizzie from her repeated trips into the city in recent days, and they would put two and two together, and it would lead them straight to Jeanne.
Operating in occupied territory was a savage business, and you had to separate your emotions from what needed to be done if you were to survive.
‘In war, it is them or us,’ Jack said.
Lizzie understood it was the only wise course of action, but she’d never thought about killing someone before. She was partly responsible for the death and it hung over her.
‘Seagrove, are you awake?’ Jack’s voice was low, but she heard him clearly as he approached.
His use of the codename he gave her felt like a term of endearment, and she loved it.
‘Just about. I had the most awful nightmare about what happened yesterday and then thankfully the thunder woke me.’
Lizzie pushed herself up to sitting and leant against the barn wall, still reeling from the vivid dream.
Jack sat on the edge of the bale next to her and passed her some water. ‘Here, drink this. It’s a hot night. I wish I could offer you something else, but we have little at our disposal,’ he said, looking around the tatty barn. ‘We’re fortunate to have a roof over our heads in this storm. It seems to be whipping into a frenzy. I wouldn’t fancy sleeping under the stars tonight, that’s for sure.’
‘Have you slept under the stars much?’ Lizzie asked, fascinated.
