Page 63 of Shadows In Paris
Hans had disappeared through an interior door, andHannah wriggled her wrists to loosen the cord, but he had tied it hard and tight. Her feet were also bound, and her mouth was covered in tape, which hampered her breathing.
The thought entered her mind like an ominous shadow. Did he intend to kill her?
CHAPTER 31
The spike of adrenaline flooding Lizzie’s senses as she combed the large old farmhouse by candlelight, searching for signs of Hannah, exhausted her and she sank heavily onto the kitchen sofa.
What now? The house was deserted. Lizzie calculated if they were onto them, they would have been there already. Plenty of time had passed for poor Francois to spill everything he knew. Before they left that morning, they had placed a piece of black cotton on the top of the door that led to the basement. It hadn’t broken, so Lizzie was safe for now, but if they had arrested Hannah today, it was only a matter of time before they searched her home looking for evidence. Wasn’t it?
Lizzie dragged her bruised body off the sofa and went upstairs to set up the wireless. It was time to message Jack. He wouldn’t like what she was going to tell him, but she must tell him all the same.
Sitting at the old table in the attic, Lizzie worked out what she would say, and then usedThe Count of Monte Cristoto code her message.
Whilst she worked, she waited for the signal from Jack to go ahead. Minutes passed with no response. She worried she would have to wait for the next scheduled time. It would be too late by then.
Her message read:
Raven. Detained today. I am safe. Angel is missing. Can’t leave tonight. Must find Angel to get there. Seagrove.
Lizzie sat in the gloom, feeling more alone than she had ever felt. She waited for his signal, and on impulse she added, ‘Missing London.’
It was the closest she could get to telling him she loved and missed him, but she knew he would understand.
Finally, the signal came, and her message transmitted over the airwaves. Lizzie waited for a response. Hopefully Jack would decode the message quickly. She wanted his reply now. Partly because she needed his blessing for the change of plan, and partly because it made her feel close to him. It wasn’t much, but it was something.
His response came back quicker than she anticipated, and she rushed to decode his reply:
Seagrove. You must go to pickup. Coordinates on way. Do not stay. Too dangerous. Repeat, do not stay. London misses Seagrove. Raven.
Lizzie knew he wanted to write Raven misses Seagrove, but this was the sensible option and his sign off touched her sore heart. Now she must await his next message with the coordinates of the pickup and abandon Hannah against her better judgement. She moved to the attic window in the eaves.There was no blackout covering because they never lit more than a small candle or torch when they radioed. A torrent of melancholy filled Lizzie’s soul as she gazed out the window over the dark countryside. She longed to feel Jack’s arms around her and for the comfort of his presence. It wasn’t something particular he did. It was just the way it was between them. When they were together, everything felt joyful, and even during the gloomiest days of the Blitz, she believed things would turn out alright.
Lizzie had stopped trying to understand why he had such a soothing effect on her. In the early days when they grew close, she had searched for answers about why she felt so at home when she was with him. It wasn’t a feeling she was used to, and no man had ever affected her in that way.
Now she accepted their connection as an unwavering reality. It was a gift, and she was grateful for it every single day. They were meant to be together, and there was no point trying to understand why.
The moon was almost full and cast a silvery light on the tall, barren trees in front of the house. How could such divine perfection exist in the midst of darkness? The moonlightilluminated the ink-black sky with its glittery silver dance. It was magical, and she stared at it, mesmerised by its mystical beauty.
Suddenly, she heard a loud noise that set her nerves alight. The eerie sound rose in pitch, and it was deep and musical and haunting. Her heart raced as her eyes followed the noise to the cluster of trees swaying in the fierce night wind. A lone black bird balanced on a branch of a tree; his thick chest feathersglinting in the metallic light.
Raven was watching over her, just as he had promised.
The fear instantly drained from her body, and she was elevated and emboldened. Lizzie knew she could do this. Sheknew she could stay, and she would stay. With Raven watching over her, she could do anything.
The message with the coordinates for the pickup came in, and she set it aside and scratched out her reply to Jack. She sent it in a flurry of activity:
Raven. When did Angel become expendable? Seagrove.
Silence followed. No message arrived and another ten minutes passed as Lizzie checked her watch by candlelight and searched for another glimpse of the raven. The black bird wasn’t there any longer, and she wondered if she’d imagined the whole thing. Was she missing Jack so much, her mind was playing fanciful tricks on her?
No.She had seen the raven, and she clutched onto the confidence of the bird’s call. Lizzie sat there waiting, growing colder in the attic as the night frosts descended and the temperature dropped even lower.
After what seemed like an age, another message arrived:
Seagrove. You are right. Find her. Be careful. Raven.
Hans appeared in front of Hannah again, staring down at her with angry eyes.
‘You think I’m such a fool, you could double cross me like that? You come into my office and steal the Reich’s secrets from under my nose?’ Hans waved his hand in the air and Hannah closed her eyes as she guessed what was coming.
