“Lucie! No!”
Pain split her chest like a cleaver. She would die, but Dominique needed to live. She stuffed the puppet in Dominique’s pocket. “If I die, if Paul dies, at least Josie will live. But if you die, your baby dies too. You must live. Go!”
“I cannot.” Tears slithered down her cheeks.
The sailor in the lifeboat yelled, strident and angry.
“He...” Dominique glanced down. “He’s going to leave.”
“Go! I stand a chance in the water. You don’t. Hurry!”
Dominique’s face twisted. “I—I will never forget you.”
Lucie scrambled up the net before she could change her mind.
“What have I done?” She was going to die. She’d broken her promise to Paul. And sweet Josie...
“Maman?” Josie cried in confusion. “Maman?”
Lucie climbed over the railing onto the ship. Below her, the lifeboat rowed away, and Dominique embraced Josie.
“I love you, Josie! Be brave!” A sob welled up, and Lucie clapped her hand over her mouth.
To her right, a horrid, shrieking, ripping sound.
The ship split in half.
The deck lurched. The stern tipped forward.
Lucie fell, clung to the railing, stifled her cries.
“Maman! Maman!” Josie screamed.
“Sing our song, Josie!” Lucie yelled, down on her knees. “Sing our song!”
“I’m going to my grandparents’ house.” Josie’s voice warbled and broke.
Lucie crawled up the slanted deck. “That’s it, sweetheart! Sing, Josie. Sing!”
“To Frank and Margaret Aubrey’s...” Her little voice disappeared under the sounds of creaking metal and crackling fire.
46
BASQUECOUNTRY, SPAIN
MONDAY, JANUARY26, 1942
At the tree line at the foot of the Pyrenees in Spain, Paul crouched with Ander, Gigi, and the RAF men. A three-story white farmhouse with a red tile roof stood on the far side of an orchard.
And a morning patrol passed on the road just beyond.
The Gestapo had agents in Spain and Portugal, and sometimes local authorities turned in escaping airmen and résistants as insurance against a Nazi invasion.
Wind rustled through the bare branches, and mist coated Paul’s face.
Maybe tonight he’d have a full belly and a warm bed. How long had it been? The days blended together.
In a few minutes, Ander gestured for the group to follow him. Gigi remained behind. If they were compromised, at least she’d have a chance to escape. At the Basque guide’s signal, the men ran between rows of bare fruit trees.
