Fitz started and gave herself a mental shake. She needed to focus on the mission. If she messed up, she didn’t really care about herself but she knew the implications would be far-reaching and other people in the field were depending on her.
‘How long until we land?’ she called back to André in French.
‘Ten minutes.’
She gave him the thumbs-up before going through her final checks, ensuring she had all her documentation, her false identity, her papers, some French francs in her purse, an old shopping list and a hankie stuffed in her pocket. All little things to help with her cover to make her seem authentic, should she be stopped and questioned.
She could feel the aircraft banking to the left and guessed the pilot had spotted the landing lights and was lining the plane up for its descent.
Within a couple of minutes, the plane was landing on the makeshift airstrip – a field the resistance had identified as a good landing point. The Lysander bumped and lifted, bumped and lifted, before juddering its way along the field and coming to a halt. It would only be on the ground for a matter of seconds, enough time to get passengers off and then on for the return trip to England. Then it would taxi to the end of the field, turn and take off.
The door was yanked open and a hushed but distinctly French voice ordered them to disembark quickly.
‘Dépêchez-vous.’ The man had a hunting rifle hooked on his shoulder and hurried Fitz and André off the plane. Two British pilots appeared from the darkness, both looking rather bedraggled.
In the light of the moon, Fitz searched their faces, hoping beyond hope that one of them was Sam. Neither of them were. They nodded briefly at Fitz as they started to climb aboard but no words were spoken.
Fitz knew she wasn’t supposed to say anything but she couldn’t let the opportunity pass. She grabbed the first pilot’s arm, forcing him to stop.
‘Flying Officer Sam Carter, American. Have you seen him?’
The pilot hesitated, surprised by the question but then shook his head. ‘No. Sorry.’ He climbed into the aircraft.
Before Fitz could even ask the second pilot, he was already shaking his head. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said.
‘Stop wasting time,’ ordered the Frenchman. He bundled Fitz out of the way, so he could close the door to the Lysander.
Next thing she knew, André had grabbed her by the shoulders, spinning her around to face him.
‘You need to think about your mission and not about your boyfriend,’ he hissed. ‘You are a liability to us all otherwise. Ifyou don’t think you can, then you need to get back on that plane now.’
‘I … I’m sorry,’ stuttered Fitz, as shame washed over her.
‘Are you going to be able to do this?’ demanded André.
‘Yes. I promise.’ Fitz knew she was blushing with embarrassment and was thankful it was dark.
‘Good. Let’s go.’ André bundled her towards the edge of the field, shoving her without any care.
Fitz hurried along, trying not to stumble on the uneven ground. She glanced behind as she heard the plane taxiing to the end of the field. She would not humiliate herself any more, she promised. Whatever had happened to Sam was out of her control. She couldn’t do anything to change that or anything to help him, but she could help herself and those around her.
They were in the surrounding woodland now and the resistance members had all left the field and joined them among the trees.
‘What happens now?’ asked Fitz.
‘You will come with us,’ said the man who had opened the door to the Lysander. He appeared to be the one in charge. ‘We will take you to Josselin, where you will make contact with another member of the group.’ He looked at Fitz’s suitcase. ‘What have you in there?’
‘Just a few items of clothing. I’ve come to Brittany from Paris to stay with my cousin, Philippe,’ she said, keeping to the cover story she had learned off by heart.
‘You have travel papers?’
‘Yes,’ replied Fitz, trying not to be irritated at the questioning. ‘Everything has been covered.’
The man looked like he didn’t necessarily trust her. ‘I hope so. Last time one of you came, they had been given the wrong papers,’ he said. ‘They were shot as spies on the spot.’
Fitz swallowed. Of course, she had heard of things like that happening, but it was a stark reminder of how dangerous their mission was.
‘We need to get moving,’ said one of the other men.
