Page 10 of Whispers At Dawn
‘Top secret,’ said Jack. ‘Can’t risk flappy ears overhearing our plans at The Ritz.’
‘Go on,’ Drake said. ‘What may I do to help?’
‘I remembered you mentioning you spent considerable time in the South of France and are familiar with Toulouse.’
Drake drew on his pipe again and narrowed his eyes as he exhaled. ‘Yes, that’s correct. Oh, those were the days. They seem like a lifetime ago. A different world.’
‘It’s a different world alright,’ Jack said.
‘What’s happening in Toulouse?’ Drake asked.
‘Lizzie and I are going in next week. We need eyes and ears on the ground if we’re to have a foothold in the South to preparethe way for an invasion. We’ve heard repeated whispers for some time now that De Gaulle is establishing Resistance networks in Vichy France.’
‘And F Section doesn’t want to be left out in the cold,’ Drake said, filling in the blanks.
‘Correct. It’s bad enough we have a rival SOE French group in RF-Section, but we can’t have them owning Vichy and us not knowing what the hell’s going on. De Gaulle has his own agenda, and it’s not the same as ours.’
‘Understood,’ Drake said, contemplating the smoke lingering in the air.
Jack rose and went to open the window, lighting a cigarette as he surveyed the activity on Baker Street below.
Drake’s pipe was a hazard that even Jack, a heavy smoker, didn’t bear well.
‘I get the hint,’ Drake said, resting his pipe on the table with a wry smile.
Jack returned to his seat and Jack asked Drake to tell him all he could about the layout of Toulouse and anything else he could think of that may be useful.
‘Of course, this was years ago. I don’t know what it’s like under the Vichy mob. In my day, it was a genteel place, and I was sorry to have to leave.’
‘What took you there?’ Jack asked.
Drake touched his nose. ‘You know how these things are. Best keep that to myself, old man.’
Jack nodded. ‘Say no more. I thought it might have been for personal reasons.’
Lizzie didn’t know what Drake’s role had been before the war. She knew him only as her former boss at the War Office, and a mentor of Jack’s, but his links to Military Intelligence clearly went way back and were more complex than she had realised. Perhaps one day Jack would divulge more about themystery man, Drake, and how he came to be scouting for suitable recruits for the SOE.
Drake stood to take his leave some time later, but insisted Jack bring Lizzie with him to The Ritz next time. He turned at the door, before Jack escorted him downstairs. ‘God bless you both and bring you back safely. Your next cocktail is on me, Lizzie Beaumont.’
‘Thank you, sir.’
Drake laughed. It was a joke between them he’d not succeeded in dissuading her from calling him,sir.
Lizzie sat there, her heart pounding as she realised the day was fast approaching when they would drop into the South of France by night and once again, she would teeter on the sharp edge between life and death.
She reminded herself she wouldn’t be going in alone this time. Jack would be at her side, and the thought calmed her.
‘What did you make of that?’ Lizzie asked when Jack returned.
‘Sounds like it was a lovely city before the war. Hard to know what it will be like now, but we will soon see!’ Jack said, pulling Lizzie to her feet. ‘You and I are going out.’
‘Are we now? Where to, may I ask?’
‘It’s turned into a beautiful afternoon. I thought we should make the most of it and take a walk in the sun.’
‘Sounds good, Captain King,’ Lizzie said. She gazed out of the window and saw people below, wearing short sleeves.
They were both in uniform and in the lobby, Jack made a show of them leaving the building on official business.
