Page 29 of Shadows In Paris
They watched from the safety of a thicket on the hilly bank of the railway.
‘Here it comes,’ whispered Francois.
Lizzie held her breath, and her heart felt like a gong banging in her chest.
The noise of the train pierced the quiet night, and she glimpsed it rattling along the track in their direction.
‘One minute left,’ said Hannah, who had been counting down in her head. ‘If it doesn’t explode soon, we won’t hit the target.’
Lizzie stared, mesmerised. It wasn’t long since she had been watchingGone with the Windin Leicester Square. Now she was blowing up railway lines. It was surreal. She exhaled and her breath steamed in the cold air.
‘Come on,’ Hannah snapped, staring at the track, willing it to explode.
The train rushed towards them.
Lizzie spotted sparks of dancing lights on the railway lines and then heard a loud hissing sound. It was like watching a Hollywood film as she saw the track explode in front of her eyes just as the train hurtled towards it, seeming to pick up speed as it grew nearer.
The brakes of the train screeched to a halt, but it was too late to stop, and it barrelled into the epicentre of the explosion.
‘Time to get out of here,’ Hannah instructed, her voice strangely calm.
As they ran through the trees, holding their torches low to light the way, they heard loud booming sounds.
‘We must have hit the weapons cargo,’ Hannah said.
‘It’s such a shame to waste them,’ Francois said as he ran, keeping pace beside Lizzie.
‘Stealing them would be too dangerous though, wouldn’t it?’ Lizzie said.
‘Yes, it would be good, though. Use their own weapons against them, the Boche bastards.’
‘Well done, boys,’ Hannah said to Francois and Phillipe, slapping them both on one shoulder. ‘Now get out of here and lie low for a few days. And if anyone sees you, stick to your cover stories.’
They rushed to find their bicycles in the various spots they had hidden them and scattered in different directions. Only Lizzie and Hannah stayed together and followed Hannah’s route through the dark forest towards the farmhouse.
The girls cycled as fast as they could over the hard, frosty ground and weaved around trees until the forest gradually thinned.
In the distance, they heard voices and screeching wheels.
‘This way,’ Hannah whispered.
They pedalled along a narrow path that bordered a field eerily lit by the moon until Hannah made a sharp turn and jumped off her bicycle. Lizzie followed. Hannah threaded her way through a dark lane, then stopped abruptly and pushed on a wooden gate. Lizzie joined her on the other side and looked around, surprised.
‘Voila,’ said Hannah, winking.
‘My goodness, how did we get here so suddenly?’
They stood in the large back garden of the farmhouse.
‘My magic trick,’ Hannah said. ‘I’ve been working on finding shortcuts from various directions. There are several ways to access the grounds, so it’s easy, really.’
‘Easy!’ Lizzie laughed. ‘I’m not sure I’d call it that, but all the same, it’s brilliant. You’re brilliant.’
‘Come on, enough for one night. I’m shattered. Let’s make a cup of tea.’
It wasn’t long before they sat drinking tea by candlelight in the kitchen. ‘I’ll show you how the furnace works tomorrow. Fuel is scarce, so we have to eek it out.’
‘The walls are remarkably bare for such a lovely house,’ Lizzie remarked, gazing around in the dim light.
