Courbouzon

Alerted by the engine noise, Bella emerged from the kitchen, her hands on her apron. It was early evening, but it would still be light for perhaps another hour. With so few vehicles on the roads, she could only think of two reasons for visitors – either Stefan and the Americans had returned or they had been captured and a German patrol had been sent to search the farm and arrest her.

Stefan emerged first, from the small van. He was still wearing his habit and he looked tired. Clearly the last day or so had taken its toll. She began to move forward to greet him, but he held up a hand to stop her. He spoke in French, so she knew his words were only for her.

"Bella, stay back. We have a guest, but she is very sick. We think it is the measles and we have all been exposed to the infection. You should stay away if you are not to catch anything."

Her response was calm. "You can only have the measles once, c'est vrai, n'est-ce pas?"

Stefan nodded.

"Well, that is all right then." She started to walk forward again, and her husband stood aside to let her peer into the van. What she saw there surprised her. A young woman, lying unconscious on a makeshift stretcher.

Actor appeared at her side. He had shed the tight uniform jacket and hat, but with the jodhpurs and boots was still clearly in Nazi uniform. Fortunately, Bella recognised him before she looked more closely at what he was wearing. He continued the conversation in French. "I am not an expert, but I suspect this might be a rare side-effect of measles. It could be encephalitis, a swelling of the brain. If it is, there is little we can do for her except keep her quiet in a darkened room and hope she recovers."

"Shouldn't we take her to the hospital?" Bella looked to both her husband and the tall Italian, then the slightly shorter leader. She sought in her memory for his name. Corbeau. That was it.

It was Dalgliesh, Corbeau, that replied. "She will have to take her chance. We can't risk her falling into enemy hands a second time. She knows too much." He turned to wave to Chief and Casino to extract the stretcher, before turning back to Bella. "Where shall we put her?"

"The room you used when you were here last. It is quiet and will be dark with the shutters closed."

Actor turned to Stefan. "We need to get some fluids into her. Do you have a rubber tube, something long enough to reach the stomach?"

Stefan shook his head. "No, but I know what it is you want, and I think I know where to get one. There is a clinic in Mer where the doctor is not immune to a little bribery." He smiled. "This time, perhaps I will take the Mercedes. I have always wanted to drive one."

Stefan was back an hour later, carrying the necessary equipment. He handed the spare money back to Dalgliesh. "He was very accommodating and did not over-charge us, nor did he ask too many questions. He did offer assistance, but I explained we already had a doctor who was familiar with the procedure." Stefan turned to Actor. "I assume you do know how to insert it?"

Actor bristled slightly. "I assisted once and have seen it done on several occasions. It was often used to force-feed people on hunger strike."

"Yes, that seemed to be what the doctor assumed, and I did not deny it."

Whilst Stefan was away, Bella was busy. It was not the first time she had nursed someone. In his final months, she had cared for Stefan's father in this very bed, washing him, cleaning him. It was not pleasant, but then not everything in life was. Carefully, she removed Adeline's clothing and washed her emaciated body, before redressing her in a clean nightgown. It was the best she could do. It was a shame the young woman was pregnant – there would be little chance of the baby surviving the illness.

Two days passed. The men waited impatiently, occupying their time with the usual card games, a little fishing and helping Stefan with a few repairs around the farm.

"Is she any better?" Dalgliesh had mostly stayed away from the sick room, leaving the woman's care up to those who could do some good.

Actor shook his head. "No, there is no change. She is keeping the fluids down that we are giving her, and her bodily functions are still operating."

"Have you radioed headquarters?" Like all the men, Actor was frustrated by the delay.

"Yes. We are to stay put for another week. If she is still unable to travel..."

The conman knew what that instruction would be.

Matters came to a head more quickly than anyone had expected. It was a little after two the next morning, when Actor was shaken awake by Stefan. "Bella says to come quickly. Adeline is having convulsions."

By morning, it was over. Bella washed the body and prepared the woman she had worked so hard to save. She had lost the child in the night too, but it had never stood a chance anyway.

"We will bury her on the farm. There is a pleasant place where my father liked to sit. She will be comfortable there until the war is over."

GGG

Had the mission been a success? Whatever intelligence Adeline had been carrying had been lost with her. But then, had that really been Major Johns' target, or had his only goal been to extract the woman herself?

Adeline's mistake had been in getting pregnant. Perhaps her German lover had been tiring of her anyway. Throwing her onto the streets, then ensuring she was picked up for vagrancy and prostitution, had been a convenient way out of a sticky problem.

At least the Orleans situation had been resolved. That would save the lives of a few that passed through the city bidding for freedom.

Dalgliesh closed his kitbag with an air of finality. They had twenty-four hours to make it to the coast and rendezvous with the submarine. Then, he could finally go back to what he did best.

GGG

Stefan stood at the entrance to the farm, his arm around Bella's shoulders. His habit had been cleaned and returned to its trunk. He doubted he would wear it again.

That was one thing the last few days had taught him. He no longer hankered after his old life. He was comfortable here with his wife at his side. Matters between the two of them had changed as well. Finally, he had stopped thinking of her as Maurice's wife. She was, at last, his and he no longer felt she was looking down on him because of his lameness. He bent to kiss her as the car disappeared from view, and she turned her face to accept the kiss with pleasure.

GGG

Reluctantly, Dalgliesh was forced to abandon the car in Blois. Forced to choose between the staff car and the Mercedes, they had chosen the former. Partly because it was slightly larger, partly because it was less ostentatious, mostly because they were leaving behind a car Stefan could enjoy once the war was over. They had drained its tank of fuel, but even with the extra supplies, they could not make it to the coast.

The men took the train as far as Nantes. After nearly two weeks in an area little affected by war, it was something of a culture shock to return to a heavily occupied city.