Even in uniform, Theo had the look of an aristocrat: immaculately shaved and groomed, with Macassar oil making his dark hair gleam. As for Finn, he no longer looked like the dashing pilot whose photograph had appeared in newspapers across the UnitedStates. He was now dressed like an ordinary civilian, wearing a secondhand winter coat and sporting a short beard for warmth.
“I’ll eat escargot for a solid week if you would leverage your family’s reputation to help me spring Mathilde Verhaegen from prison,” Finn replied.
With delicate precision, Theo pried another snail from its shell and popped it into his mouth. “I won’t do anything unless you promise not to waste your life in a foolhardy quest to rescue her. Besides, offering to exchange your freedom for Mathilde’s release will not work.”
It felt as if the weight of an elephant had landed on Finn’s chest, making it hard to suck in a fortifying breath of air. “Nevertheless, I’m determined to do it.”
Finn’s initial impulse had been to commandeer an airplane and bomb the area surrounding the prison to create a distraction. Then he would find a way into the prison and free Mathilde. But during the long hours crossing the stormy Atlantic Ocean, he’d had the good sense to reconsider this plan. It wouldn’t work. If the prison came under attack, the Germans’ first response would be to increase security of the place even more, which meant additional guards and weapons. Finn needed to come up with another way to free Mathilde, and offering to take her place in the prison was the most likely to succeed.
Theo tossed the snail fork down with a clatter. “Look, you and I have walked through fire together, but I can’t let you do this. General Ryckman is as bad as they come. Last month he executed ten innocent Belgians in retaliation for a single German officer who’d been assassinated. He won’t be interested in a swap for Mathilde’s release.”
Finn’s gut twisted with anxiety at the prospect of what he was about to do. Voluntarily walking into a prison cell and letting the door slam shut behind him went against every instinct, but if it meant that Mathilde could go home to her children, he would do it. While the Germans sometimes killed downed pilots in theprocess of escaping, they had never executed one they’d taken into custody.
“It’s me they want, not Mathilde. Ryckman offered clemency to anyone who helped me escape, provided I was turned over. They will make the trade.”
Theo shook his head. “That was before they found out she was distributing copies ofLa Libre Belgique. Her trial date has been set for June, and there will be no mercy for her. She’ll be executed, Finn, and your sacrifice will come to nothing. They’ll keep you locked up in that cell until the end of the war.” Theo’s expression darkened. “If you survive that long.”
Finn crossed his arms, pondering Theo’s point. The Germans suffered a firestorm of bad publicity when they executed Edith Cavell. Photographs of the martyred English nurse provoked fury among the people of England and America.
“I’ll be offering General Ryckman a deal. Executing Mathilde would only stoke international outrage, just like it did with Edith Cavell. But if I surrender myself to the Germans and offer to take Mathilde’s place in prison, Ryckman can then defuse the situation while still coming out on top. He will claim the moral high ground by releasing her. And he’ll get to clap me in chains, which is what he wants more than anything.”
“And if you die in prison?”
Finn’s mouth went dry. He didn’t want to die, but how could he keep hiding when the woman who had saved his life was suffering in prison? If he could win Mathilde’s release, she could go home to her children.
“If I die in exchange for letting Mathilde live to be a wise old lady, it will be a fair trade.”
“And you want me to use my family’s influence to help you with this insane plan?”
Theo’s family fortune had been built on tobacco. They owned cigar factories in Cuba and tobacco plantations in North Carolina for cigarettes. Trade in cigars and cigarettes were among the mostprized luxury goods in the wartime black market, and Theo’s uncle did brisk trade in Belgium. His traders used forged Spanish passports to move freely within Belgium. If Finn could get his hands on one of those passports, he’d be able to pass through the checkpoints with a wink and a nod. The Germans looked the other way when black-market merchants came through because their officers were the biggest beneficiaries of the goods. Posing as a black-market trader would give Finn the chance to get to Brussels, where he could strike a deal with General Ryckman.
Finn locked eyes with Theo. “Get me one of those forged passports,” he said, “and a supply of the best cigars you can find, and we’ll both be heroes.”
Finn got into Belgium the same way other members of the black market did: with a forged passport, a greased palm, and a wink. The Germans loved Cuban cigars, and those tempting rolled tobacco leaves proved the key to slipping inside Belgium.
It took ten days of travel by barge and on foot to reach Brussels. Everything in his life had been leading up to this point. This was his chance for redemption, the chance for his life to mean something more than flying kites or dropping bombs. He couldn’t save his mother, but he could save Mathilde. This would be both the hardest and the best thing he’d ever done.
He was tired, grubby, and his feet ached from hiking the dusty footpaths along the Belgian canals. Once in Brussels, the cobbled streets rang with the clatter of hooves and the occasional sputter of motorcars weaving through knots of pedestrians. But as Finn turned the final corner and stepped into the Grand-Place, it seemed a hush had fallen over the city. The grand square, once a jewel of civic pride, lay in eerie stillness, its elegance dimmed by the pall of German occupation.
The ornate guildhalls with their colorful facades, steep gables, and baroque flourishes framed the square. This had once been thecity’s bustling marketplace, alive with flower stalls and the cheerful din of merchants and townsfolk. Now it bristled with Germans in uniform. Soldiers with rifles slung over their backs loitered at the bases of statues and smoked beneath gilded balconies, going about their day as if they belonged there.
Theo had told him the Grand-Place was one of the most beautiful squares in Europe, and despite everything, Finn could see it was true. The town hall stood at one end like a Gothic cathedral, its soaring spire laced with stone filigrees, its facade filled with weathered statues of saints and statesmen. It had once welcomed King Albert and echoed with the voices of elected officials. Now it housed the German High Command. And Finn was here to walk straight into the lion’s den.
Golden light from the setting sun played tricks on the elaborate facade, making the stone figures appear almost alive, as if they were silently watching Finn approach. The flag of Imperial Germany hung above the front entrance, waving limply in the breeze. The red, black, and white flag with its imposing iron cross ratcheted Finn’s nerves tighter. Two guards flanked the entrance, rifles at the ready.
He hardened his resolve, the steady drumbeat of his heart ticking off his last moments of freedom. Could he actually see this through? Trade his life for Mathilde’s? A gust of wind sent a shiver down his spine. It would be cold in prison, but summer would come soon. He mustn’t let piddly fears of hunger or cold discourage him. Mathilde had been enduring hunger and cold ever since she was arrested in January.
Oh,Delia, please forgive me for this...
Both German soldiers had spotted him, and Finn raised the palms of his hands as he approached them. An older guard with a wiry frame eyed him with cool suspicion, while the other shouldered his rifle and aimed it directly at Finn’s chest.
“Was ist dein name und was machst du hier,” theolder guard demanded.
Finn halted. “I don’t speak German,” he said in English, then repeated the phrase in French.
The wiry guard shouted something over his shoulder, and more guards rushed toward the front entrance, all of them bearing rifles aimed at Finn.
Finn kept his hands high in the air. “I need to speak with General Ryckman,” he said as calmly as possible. “My name is Lieutenant Finn Delaney. The general has been searching for me.”
