Ruby immediately started packing things up around the room, then the radio began beeping again.
“They’re still looking for him,” Gordon muttered. “Apparently the one place he isn’t, is near a radio. Last I saw him was in Düsseldorf two weeks ago. He could be anywhere.”
“He always shows up,” Ruby said. “We have to go.”
“I’m ready,” Dash said, getting to her feet, but she staggered, lightheaded.
“You’re not coming,” Ruby said. “You’ll slow us down. But you’ll be safe here until we can come back with more help.”
“Well, not exactlyhere,” Gordon said from the other room.
Ruby’s mouth twisted. “Not quite as comfortable as here, no. But you’ll be safe. Come on. I’ll show you.”
Dash leaned against Ruby as they made their way through the apartment. They stopped beside a tall shelving unit populated by the faded spines of books, and to Dash’s surprise, Gordon shoved it aside, revealing a wall in its wake, unbleached by sunlight. He squatted and slid his fingers along the bottom of the wall, then Dash heard a tinyclick!When he gave it a push, it opened into what appeared to be a hidden room.
“You get her settled,” Gordon said quietly. “I’ll get the room fixed up.”
“This wall does not open from the inside,” Ruby informed Dash, helping her into the little space.
No one had been here in a while. The corners of the room were inhabited by cobwebs. The wood floor was old and cracked, and a musty odour clung to the air. There was a small cot, and on the floor by its head, Dash spied a couple of well-thumbed books in French.
Her arm throbbed, but worse was the swell of apprehension building in her. “Where’s Gordon going?”
“He’s going to make the place look like we were never here, then he’ll go outside to keep watch. I’m sorry to leave you here,” Ruby said, “but we have no choice. You’d be a liability in this condition. We’ll come back when we have reinforcements.”
“How long?” Dash asked, trying not to sound afraid, but she already felt claustrophobic. “How long do I have to stay here?”
“I wish I could tell you. So many things are going on right now. Big things. The good guys are winning, but we’re still fighting fierce battles. The fact is, Margaret, you are not our most important mission. We will let our leader know you’re here, and he will pass the information on, but we can’t promise anything.”
From her pack, Ruby produced a canvas bag, which she handed to Dash. Inside was a short length of dried sausage, a roll, and a container of water.
“That’s all I have. We didn’t plan on having you with us, so we put our own rations in here for you. Drink and eat sparingly.”
“Is there a candle for light?”
She shook her head. “No one can know you’re here. You’ll have to live in the dark for a bit.”
Why did she have to hide? “Who might look for me? Is someone coming?”
“No, no. It’s just in case.”
Dash’s stomach fell. “Please don’t leave. I’m scared.”
“You fall out of the sky, crash into a tree, get tracked down by Nazis, andnowyou’re scared?” Ruby chuckled. “You’re safe here. We use this place all the time. If all goes well, you will soon be tucked into your safe little bed back home. We will do our best.”
Dash wanted to grab her, insist that she let her come, because she couldn’t stand the idea of staying here alone. But they were right. Until she was healthy, Dash would slow them down. Her body needed to heal.
Ruby ducked under the hidden entrance, then she turned back. “I almost forgot. This was in your flight suit, which we had to burn, I’m afraid.”
She handed Dash an envelope, and somewhere in her memory she recalled the mail boy giving it to her in the pilots’ room at Hamble. Dash was about to thank Ruby, but the wall was already closing behind her. It shut with a click, leaving Dash in the darkness. She heard the cabinet sliding back and then Ruby’s receding footsteps.
There was no light in Dash’s world save a sliver leaking from beneath the bottom of the wall. It was too dark to read the letter, so Dash hugged it to her chest as she waited for her eyes to adjust to her tiny refuge: the shapes of a small sack of food and water, a cot, and two books. That was all.
Her throat burned with tears, but she forced them away. There was nothing to be afraid of. A dark room was nothing. She was safe here. They would come back for her.
Outside, someone pounded on the front door of the apartment. The creaking of the floorboards told Dash that Ruby was moving swiftly, and a window scraped open. All at once, she heard a smash, then two men were shouting in German, demanding, accusing… Ruby replied in that same language, sounding reasonable, but there was a tremor in her voice that made Dash’s blood run cold. A shot cut through the room. Something heavy fell to the floor, and the two men said something to each other.
Ruby.
