Page 2 of Shadows In Paris
‘I got through it alright. I think. It was hard, though. I’m no maths boffin and the coding is complex.’
Jack nodded. ‘You’ll get the hang of it. It’s only normal, you’ll find it difficult at first. Remember, the finest minds in Britain devise these codes and work at Bletchley Park.’
Lizzie poked him lightly in the ribs.
‘Ouch, what was that for?’ he said, his deep voice playful.
‘Is that supposed to make me feel less out of my depth?’ Lizzie asked, a half-smile on her face.
‘Oh, I see. Well, no, I suppose not, but being out of your depth is what this job is all about. If it’s not complex, we will lose the war.’
‘True, I’ve been over my head from the very beginning when you said I wasn’t equipped for this kind of work.’
‘Let’s not get into all that again,’ Jack smiled, and raised one dark eyebrow. ‘I’ve apologised a thousand times about being such a clod back then, haven’t I?’
Lizzie placed her hand on his. ‘You have, darling. I just find it such fun to tease you about it.’
There was a sharp rap at the door, and Lizzie withdrew her hand. They pulled apart, ever alert at the prospect of being caught out.
Lizzie lived on a knife’s edge with her espionage work and secret relationship. But the thought of a life without Jack was unbearable.
Occasionally she tried to remember what it was like to be a normal young woman in her old Jersey life. She had no secrets then, and life had been simple and sweet. Until the War Office summoned her father to London on the outbreakof war. Lizzie, her mother and siblings had only just been evacuated from Jersey in time before the Germans bombed and invaded the defenceless Channel Islands. Her grandparents were still there, living under Nazi occupation. The thought made her shudder, and she pushed it fiercely from her mind as Val approached, her expression sombre.
‘I’ve just had a message from Hannah.’
Lizzie and Jack both stared at Val, waiting to hear the latest news of the daring Jewish Resistance leader of the Liberty Network in Paris.
‘Tell us,’ Jack said.
Lizzie’s pulse raced as she waited, the tension thick in the air.
‘Hannah reports success with blowing up the latest railway targets.’
Lizzie sensed as much as she heard the ragged sigh Jack released. Hannah was his agent, and he felt responsible for her. He was always unsettled until they had an update, and updates were few and far between.
Sending messages to England via radio from Paris was a dangerous business. Hannah risked being intercepted by the Germans, and that would spell disaster for the budding network.
Val said, ‘I spoke to the boss, and we’ve agreed it’s time for Hannah to have more support from us. At the very least, she needs a backup operator. The network has been causing significant destruction to the German transport system and it would be a shame to have to lessen operations now.’
Jack lit a cigarette and pushed his floppy black hair off his forehead with an impatient movement. ‘I don’t follow. Why would they need to lessen operations?’
‘Good question. What we didn’t know until just now is that Hannah has managed to infiltrate the German High Command. She says she can’t run the Liberty Network at thesame level she’s been doing, as well as be present in her new role.’
‘What’s her new role, exactly?’ Jack asked, his voice dangerously low after a long pause.
‘She’s been assigned the position of personal secretary to a high-ranking Nazi officer at their headquarters in the heart of Paris.’
Jack crushed his cigarette in the ashtray and cursed, shaking his head. ‘That woman must have a bloody death wish.’
Val studied Jack in silence as they ran the implications of the daring scenario through their minds. Eventually, she said, ‘Hannah may well have a death wish, but you can’t deny it’s a tremendous opportunity.’
‘What does it mean for us?’ Lizzie asked, swallowing hard.
Jack cleared his throat. ‘It means she has somehow insinuated herself into a role so she can presumably gain access to intelligence about their latest German operations.’
‘She’s fearless,’ Lizzie whispered in awe.
‘Fearless or stupid,’ Jack snapped. ‘I can never quite decide which.’
