Page 50 of Whispers At Dawn
‘Better than being called a dumbass, like the Americans say.’
Lizzie perched on Jack’s knee. ‘Do you think we’ll look back on our wartime escapades and it’ll all be a blur in years to come, almost as though it never happened?’
Jack tilted his head to one side. ‘As long as we defeat the Nazis and we have each other, I don’t think I’ll care.’
‘Ah, you are such a romantic,’ Lizzie said, pressing a kiss to his lips and leaning against him, relaxing at last. ‘I’m right up there with the Nazis!’
Jack tickled her side, and she gasped, wriggling away from his touch.
‘I’d love to take you to bed right now.’
‘Oh, and what’s stopping you?’ she said, a flirtatious sparkle in her eyes.
‘One minor detail.’
‘Go on.’
‘Val is waiting to hear from us.’
Lizzie hit her thigh. ‘Ah, of course. I didn’t think of that. You see, I relax my guard when we’re together.’
Jack eased Lizzie off his knee. ‘Come on, let’s get it done and then we’ll have an early night.’
‘I can think of nothing better,’ she said, leaning in to kiss him as he drew closer and took her in his arms.
‘What’s the message?’ she whispered.
‘All will be revealed. Watch and learn, Seagrove.’
He grabbed a lantern from the dresser,and they slipped quietly out the door, checking both sides of the corridor to make sure no one was watching.
Jack took off his shoes and signalled for Lizzie to do the same. They crept along the dark corridor, shadows casting eerie patterns on the walls as they followed the light of the lantern, their feet padding softly on the cool parquet flooring.
The kitchen area was in darkness, the staff long retired after a busy evening and the prospect of a dawn awakening that would stir them from their beds all too soon.
They put their shoes back on and let themselves out the back door. The sultry night air caressed Lizzie’s face, and she breathed it in. A chorus of chirping cicadas echoed on the soft wind, and Jack captured her hand as they crossed to the turret room where they had hidden their radio.
Luc said they had his blessing to operate how they saw fit, but it would be safer for them all if they only told him specifics he had to know. That way, if he was questioned, he wouldn’t be able to reveal much, even under interrogation.
Lizzie had shivered when he spoke the words so matter-of-factly, and later she and Jack discussed the conversation. It sounded as though Luc was no stranger to torture after being imprisoned during World War I.
The silver moon was high in the violet sky like a precious jewel set in a glittering crown. It was so beautiful here. Lizzie was reminded how lucky they were to be together instead of separated by miles, not knowing when or even if they would be reunited.
In the turret, Jack rested the lantern on a chair. He retrieved a large ornate key from his pocket and placed it on a shelf hewn into the wall before bending down to brush the heavy rug aside.
‘What’s the key for?’ Lizzie asked.
‘It’s an old spy trick used to throw intruders off the scent.’ Jack tapped on a section of the timber floor and removed a plank with relative ease.
‘Do you mean the key is just a decoy?’
‘Exactly. I asked Luc for an old key we could borrow.’
‘You are shrewd, Monsieur Dubois!’
‘Still got a few tricks up my sleeve, Madame Dubois,’ Jack said, winking. He extracted the radio set from the compartment in the floor that was one of the secret hiding places passed through the generations by his ancestors. He and Henry had hidden things in it when they were boys.
Then Jack set up the radio, pulled out the slim codebook, and put on the headphones. Lizzie leaned against the desk. There was something seductive about watching a spy at work, and she experienced a surreal moment where she felt she should pinch herself to check this wasn’t all a dream. As much as she was terrified through most of dinner, she wouldn’t change being here with Jack for anything.
