Jackdaws by Ken Follett Read Free Book Online

They could soon produce
counterfeits of Antoinette's pass.
    Flick suffered a guilty pang at
having stolen it. At this moment, Antoinette might be looking for it
frantically, searching under the couch and in all her pockets, going out into
the courtyard with a flashlight. When she told the Gestapo she had lost it, she
would be in trouble. But in the end they would just give her a replacement. And
this way she was not guilty of helping the Resistance. If interrogated, she
could steadfastly maintain that she had mislaid it, for she believed that to be
the truth. Besides, Flick thought grimly, if she had asked permission to borrow
the thing, Antoinette might have said no.
    Of course, there was one major snag
with this plan. All the cleaners were women. The Resistance team that went in
disguised as cleaners would have to be all-female.
    But then, Flick thought, why not?
    They were entering the suburbs of
Reims. It was dark when Gilberte pulled up near a low industrial building
surrounded by a high wire fence. She killed the engine. Flick spoke sharply to
Michel. "Wake up! We have to get you indoors." He groaned. "We
must be quick," she added. "We're breaking the curfew."
    The two women got him out of the
car. Gilberte pointed to the narrow alley that led along the back of the
factory. Michel put his arms over their shoulders, and they helped him along
the alley. Gilberte opened a door in a wall that led to the backyard of a small
apartment building. They crossed the yard and went in through a back door.
    It was a block of cheap flats with
five floors and no lift. Unfortunately, Gilberte's rooms were on the attic
floor. Flick showed her how to make a carrying chair. Crossing their arms, they
linked hands under Michel's thighs and took his weight. He put an arm around
the shoulders of each woman to steady himself. That way they carried him up four
flights. Luckily, they met no one on the stairs.
    They were blowing hard by the time
they reached Gilberte's door. They stood Michel on his feet and he managed to
limp inside, where he collapsed into an armchair.
    Flick looked around. It was a girl's
place, pretty and neat "and clean. More importantly, it was not
overlooked. That was the advantage of the top floor: no one could see in.
Michel should be safe.
    Gilberte fussed about Michel, trying
to make him comfortable with cushions, wiping his face gently with a towel,
offering him aspirins. She was tender but impractical, as Antoinette had been.
Michel had that effect on women, though not on Flick—which was partly why he
had fallen for her: he could not resist a challenge. "You need a
doctor," Flick said brusquely. "What about Claude Bouler? He used to
help us, but last time I spoke to him, he didn't want to know me. I thought he
was going to run away, he was so nervous."
    "He's become scared since he
got married," Michel replied. "But he'll come for me."
    Flick nodded. Lots of people would
make exceptions for Michel. "Gilberte, go and fetch Dr. Bouler."
    "I'd rather stay with
Michel."
    Flick groaned inwardly. Someone like
Gilberte was no good for anything but carrying messages, yet she could make
difficulties about that. "Please do as I ask," Flick said firmly.
"I need time alone with Michel before I return to London."
    "What about the curfew?"
    "If you're stopped, say you're
fetching a doctor. It's an accepted excuse. They may accompany you to Claude's
house to make sure you're telling the truth. But they won't come here."
    Gilberte looked troubled, but she
pulled on a cardigan and went out.
    Flick sat on the arm of Michel's
chair and kissed him. "That was a catastrophe," she said.
    "I know." He grunted with
disgust. "So much for MI6. There must have been double the number of men
they told us."
    "I'll never trust those clowns
again."
    "We lost Albert. I'll have to
tell his wife."
    "I'm going back tonight. I'll
get London to send you another radio operator."
    "Thanks."
    "You'll have to find out who
else is dead, and who's alive."
    "If