Chapter 2
Garrison was now beginning to wonder if this whole mission was a complete waste of time. ''It has to be the safe,'' he said without much conviction, before glancing at his watch. ''Do you think you can find a way to open it? We don't have much time.'' Casino huffed but turned back to the box.
Meanwhile Goniff was on his hands and knees working his way around the base. Hearing the conversation going on above his head, he paused and looked up at his team mates. ''Thought you said you knew all about old safes, Casino. Well this one's definitely old, maybe even seventeenth century. I saw one of 'em once at an antique's fair in London. Works like a magic box or a desk with a secret drawer. You just need to find the mechanism.''
Casino grinned then, as he realised what he was looking at. ''Hey, I've heard of that, a sort of trick lock, never thought I'd have to open one.''
Before Casino could continue, they heard an audible click as Goniff's skilful fingers found a slight notch at the back of the box. A small section slid to one side, revealing a key slot. Casino illuminated the area with his torch. Selecting an old fashioned key from the bunch in his hand, Goniff carefully inserted it in the hole and turned it very gently. As he did so, the adjacent panel dropped down to expose a space containing three large, antique keys. Goniff carefully took them out and laid them side by side on the palm of his hand. Each key was a different size, while the base of each blade was moulded into an intricate shape.
All three men stared. ''Now what?'' asked Casino shaking his head. ''There ain't any keyholes?''
''Get your ears on mate,'' grinned Goniff, pointing to the projections on the side of the box. ''Look, some of these rivets move. I reckon they open more panels. You listen and I'll twiddle!''
Using his stethoscope, while Goniff moved the rivets one at a time, it didn't take long for Casino to discover he could hear the mechanism shifting inside the box. With quite a lot of trial and error, they were presently able to slide another panel to one side, revealing an oddly shaped keyhole. Garrison left them to it, moving towards the bottom of the stairs. Glancing back into the room, he likened the two men to a couple of eager and inquisitive children faced with a new toy that had no instructions in the box. He just hoped they didn't take too long or they would have to leave empty-handed. With that sobering thought, he climbed the stairs to the upper door, where he positioned himself to listen out for any movement in the building beyond.
GG
Anxious minutes ticked by but eventually a loud whisper could be heard from below, as Casino exclaimed, ''Hey Warden, we done it!''
When he came back into the room, Casino and Goniff stood back to reveal the whole side of the box had swung open. Feeling very pleased with himself, the wily pick-pocket grabbed the papers from a shelf inside and thrust them at the Lieutenant, a huge grin on his face.
''Well done,'' declared Garrison with relief. He quickly scanned through the papers then, placing them one by one on top of the safe, he photographed each sheet, using Casino's torch for extra illumination. As he gathered the papers back together, Garrison paused to read the top sheet, before handing them to Goniff, who replaced them in the safe just as he had found them.
''So how do we re-lock it?'' Casino wondered.
''I guess we need to reverse the process,'' suggested Goniff, closing the door. Together they turned the keys in sequence, removed them and slid back each panel. As they did so the mechanism moved the rivets back into their original positions. Finally they replaced the antique keys in their hiding place at the back of the box.
Garrison heaved a sigh of relief. ''Good work. Now let's get out of here and return these keys to their owner.''
GG
Gina was beginning to worry, it had been over an hour since she had taken the man's keys. She wasn't sure how long it would take for the drug to wear off but she didn't want to be around when it did. At that moment something rattled lightly on the window pane. Cautiously she glanced outside. Goniff stepped from the shadows and threw another handful of grit onto the glass, as he saw her he waved, then darted back into the shadows when the rear door of the tavern opened, casting a glow across the yard. Gina slowly opened the window, pausing when she heard the chink of bottles as a crate was placed outside, then the glow disappeared and the rear door was closed again. Grabbing the string, she lowered it down to Goniff, who had now reappeared. The keys were soon in her hands and Gina hurried over to the bed to re-attach them to the guard's belt. As she fixed the clasp, the man groaned and rolled over onto that side, his arm narrowly missing her as she moved nimbly away. The soldier would probably have a terrible headache when he awoke but Gina was just relieved that all seemed to have gone to plan so far. Grabbing the empty bottles and string, she left the room, making her way downstairs, through the adjacent bar and into the kitchen beyond. Rinsing out the bottles, she placed them on the rack to drain just as the kitchen door opened. Seeing Gina, the barman called her name, then pointing to the bucket by the back door, he waved outside before retreating back to the bar to serve more drinks.
Actor had noticed Gina's return and made ready to escort her back to the safe house. Finishing his drink, he stood up, adjusted his uniform then strode out through the main door onto the street beyond, more than relieved to get out of the smoky atmosphere. Down the street, he saw Goniff and Garrison waiting by the car. Knowing Gina would probably leave by the alley, leading from the yard at the back of the hostel, Actor walked in that direction towards the car.
Just as he arrived, Chief climbed out of the driver's seat, listening intently.
''What's up mate?'' Goniff asked.
''Something's wrong!'' With a quick glance at Garrison, Chief ran off down the alley nearby. Worried by their scout's unease, Garrison led the rest of the team down the same pathway, approaching more cautiously, not knowing what they were walking into.
GG
Gina had let herself out into the yard, placing her coat on the crates stacked there. Returning, she picked up the bucket of beer slops from the kitchen and walked out through the back door again. The slops were stored in barrels in one of the sheds, to be rebottled later should stocks run low, an easy way to make a profit from the occupying German soldiers!
Meanwhile two of the soldiers, who had been sitting at the table with her earlier, had also noticed Gina's presence in the kitchen when the bartender called her name. Much the worse for drink, they made their way outside through a separate door, to find her. As she walked across the yard, Gina quickly became aware of footsteps behind her. Whoever they were, they were obviously drunk and sniggering like young teenagers. Not wanting to be cornered in the shed, she slowed her pace. When she guessed they were close, she grasped the bucket with both hands and spun round, throwing the contents in their direction before dropping the bucket and reaching into her pocket. The unexpected movement had caused the nearest soldier to stagger to one side, avoiding most of the beer. He steadied himself, then rushed forward shoving her back against the wall of the shed, his hands on her shoulders. As she rebounded he began to pull her towards him. Letting her momentum carry her forwards, Gina stamped on his foot as she jerked her head up into his chin. His cry of pain was cut short as her knife thrust upwards. When he slumped away from her, she turned her attention to the other man. He was drenched but, having cleared the beer from his face, he soon became aware that his friend was now lying on the floor. At the same time, his befuddled brain realised the barmaid was turning in his direction, holding a bloodied knife. Fumbling with his gun, this second attacker was never aware of the knife flying in his direction. His back arched and his eyes widened in surprise as the blade thudded home. When another pieced his chest seconds later, the soldier crumpled forward. Chief came to a halt just feet away from the soldier, now sprawled on the ground. The siblings exchanged knowing glances as they bent down to retrieve their knives.
The others arrived moments later. Swiftly taking in the scene, Garrison took control. ''We need to hide the bodies,'' he whispered urgently.
''This way.'' Gina opened a gate at the rear of the shed, which led out onto a grassy bank. Working together, the four men heaved the bodies up the bank and left them to roll down into the ditch beyond. Grabbing her coat as she passed, Gina joined the others, as they ran down the alley and back to the car.
GG
On the way back to the safe house, Casino and Goniff, still very proud of their achievement, had taken great delight in describing in detail their recent opening of the ancient safe in the Town Hall basement. Now they were all getting changed while Gina prepared some food in the kitchen.
When the door opened behind her, she glanced round to find Garrison had entered. His expression was unreadable but from his stance and the set of his jaw, it was obvious he had something on his mind. ''Problem?'' she asked, though she was quite sure she knew why the lieutenant might want to see her.
''You could say that,'' stated Garrison, striving to keep his voice calm despite the anger that had resurfaced. He waited as she wiped her hands and turned to face him, before continuing . ''I thought I made myself clear earlier that I wouldn't sanction your plan. And yet, you deliberately went ahead and took that guard to your room.''
Momentarily her dark eyes flashed in anger, although she was well aware her earlier actions could have backfired and ultimately put his mission in jeopardy. ''I know what you said,'' stated Gina defiantly. ''But I am not one of your men, remember? Besides, you did say if an opportunity arose, you'd make use of it. The timing was just right.''
''That's not the point and you know that. You took an unnecessary risk back there and it could have gone very wrong.'' Was there just a slight edge of concern in his voice. Then nodding towards the closed kitchen door, Garrison continued ''And where did the drug come from? Did someone help you?''
Realising that Garrison thought Actor might have undermined his authority in some way, she was quick to reassure him. ''If you mean one of the guys? No, they had nothing to do with it. I have my own contacts. Some of the girls have used it before.'' Noting his look of surprise, she tried to explain. ''Not all the waitresses like to be mauled by the Germans. Once they are drunk, a few of the soldiers can get quite unpleasant if the girls refuse their advances. So a couple of the waitresses have started to lace the drinks, especially when they are concerned the men are expecting something more for their money.''
Gina watched an involuntary smile twitch at his lips, then his expression and stance slowly became less formal, while he reflected on what she had just told him. Now that he had said his piece and knew that his men were not involved, Garrison started to relax. Perching himself on the edge of the table, he rubbed his brow and ran his fingers through his hair to relieve the tension. Hoping to placate him further and make him see things from her point of view, Gina said ''Look Lieutenant, maybe I shouldn't have acted as I did, but working on my own, I'm used to taking opportunities when I can.'' She paused and smiled at him. ''Anyway, judging by Casino and Goniff's enthusiastic account of events at the Town Hall, I assume you got what you wanted from that safe.''
More composed now, Garrison nodded his agreement, ''Yes, and we'll need to get those photographs back to London as soon as possible, they all had 'Geheim' stamped on them.'' He hesitated a little, as if reluctant to voice his thoughts, before carrying on. ''I did get chance to read one of the sheets. There was a reference to a recent important installation near here. Do you know anything about it?''
''The Germans have been undertaking a lot of building work along this section of the coast, as they are elsewhere along the Channel, '' she answered, relieved the conversation had moved on to something else. Thinking carefully for a moment, Gina tried to recall a conversation she had heard recently. ''But, there was one structure... a couple of weeks ago... some of the soldiers who had been guarding the place, were staying here overnight before returning to their unit. They were discussing what might be going on there because some high ranking officers had turned up unexpectedly. They'd been ordered to keep the locals away, too.''
''Where was that?''
Gina took a map from the drawer and spread it out on the table. She pointed to an area on the coast. ''There. It's about ten, maybe twelve miles from here.''
''Does London know?''
''Yes, I radioed that conversation to them at the time. But I haven't heard any more information about the site since then.''
Garrison thought for a moment. They'd had an easy mission so far, it wouldn't hurt to go and have a look at the place.
''Can you contact London and let them know we have the photographs. They'll probably want the film straight away, so you'll have to arrange our transport out of here, too. But mention 'secret installation' and 'radio control' and see what response you get. If we have time on our hands tomorrow, we might have a look around over there and see what the Germans are trying to hide.'' If there was something secret going on, Garrison knew that any information he could get about the site should be very useful to the Allies. Though, from a military point of view he was also aware that anything the Germans were up to needed to be halted as soon as possible and that London might just sanction a raid on the facility.
''Having left two dead soldiers behind, it would be a good idea to move away from here to another safe house anyway,'' agreed Gina. Looking at the map again, she pointed to a spot further inland. ''There is a place I know, just here, about eight miles away. I'll pass your message on tonight and arrange to make contact again tomorrow from the new safe house.''
Armed with trays of food, Gina and Garrison left the kitchen. When they entered the main room Goniff almost bounced out of his chair. ''So when are we going home Warden,'' he wanted to know as he made a beeline for the food.
''Early tomorrow morning we need to move to new safe house, while we wait for orders from London,'' said Garrison.
Casino looked up from packing his gear. ''Wadda you mean, await orders?''
Garrison knew he would have to explain to his men and was prepared for the usual backlash. ''One of the papers we photographed, mentions a secret facility near here.''
''So? What's that got to do with us?'' growled Casino.
''Maybe nothing. But as we will be moving in that direction, we might as well check it out before we leave,'' responded Garrison, knowing Casino would have more to say.
''Why can't you just leave well enough alone, Warden. Haven't we had enough excitement for one trip?'' argued Casino, though he had already resigned himself to this latest detour knowing there was little likelihood of changing their leader's mind.
Ignoring Casino, Garrison suggested his men help themselves to food before getting some rest, knowing they needed to be on the move by dawn.
GG
Early the following morning, carrying only their equipment and Gina's radio, they drove several miles north. Having put some distance between themselves and the events of the previous night, the car was hidden from sight in a thicket. From there they picked their way across country, avoiding roads and settlements and eventually arrived at the new safe house. It turned out to be a bombed out farmhouse with nothing much left standing except the remains of the ground floor and a couple of barns nearby. While Chief set off to the scout the immediate vicinity, the rest of the team picked over the ruins.
''This has been destroyed recently,'' declared Gina. ''It was still standing the last time I passed through here.'' Taking the radio from Casino, Gina looked around for somewhere safe to hide it.
''Must've taken a direct hit then, ain't much left now,'' said Goniff, stating the obvious.
''Let us hope they're still not using it for target practice,'' remarked Actor as he flicked dirt from his sleeve.
A short whistle from Chief had them all turning round. He nodded towards the trees, raised three fingers, then disappeared back into the bushes. Gina made for the nearest barn while the rest of the group grabbed their weapons and took cover as best they could.