Jean Grainger Box Set: So Much Owed, Shadow of a Century, Under Heaven's Shining Stars

by Jean Grainger

  She never saw Hercule. Lise told her he was very impressed by her work and had recommended her to London for a medal once the war was over, but she doubted he had ever actually expressed such a positive sentiment. Probably Lise was just encouraging her.

  Still, she knew her efforts were important. The circuit knew in advance if anyone fell under suspicion and was able to get them out in time. She was able to relay to Lise conversations between Dieter and visiting Gestapo officers and knew a little of what was going on in the highest echelons of power thanks to Dieter’s frequent correspondence with and occasional visit to Berlin.

  In recent weeks, there had been growing reports of German losses. Stalingrad was holding out. The bombing of Germany by the RAF was having a devastating effect on war production as well as on morale. In France, the Resistance was gaining in numbers and becoming more organised by the week. London was sending leaders and supplies to them, arming and preparing them for the European invasion. Increasingly, she was sure that Germany would not prevail.

  THAT NIGHT, DIETER ARRIVED home after midnight, tired and unshaven. She had waited up for him to show him her new dress and the necklace, but while he smiled, his mind was clearly on other things. While she rubbed his shoulders, he told her of how a Panzer division due to be sent to Italy had been destroyed in an RAF bombing raid – it was as if the British knew exactly where to target.

  It was then he confided his worries about Spitz, the Abwehr agent responsible for liaising between the various units stationed in France, who was coming to Poitiers that weekend. He feared the Spitz visit was a direct result of his own connections to an army officer in Berlin, who had fallen from grace.

  ‘Just because my uncle was involved in some anti-Hitler plotting, I’m coming under attack. I knew nothing about it. And anyway, Canaris might be the head of Abwehr, but he’s notoriously anti-Hitler himself – yet he is still sending this Spitz to keep an eye on me. It’s a nuisance as well as unpleasant for me. There is a circuit operating here, and I’m close to breaking it down, but it’s a delicate operation and needs careful handling. The Abwehr don’t believe in subtlety. They will force me to arrest everyone in the region and torture them until they tell us something. I’ve tried explaining that in this uncertain climate, rounding up large groups of innocent people and interrogating them drives ever more of them into the Resistance, but they won’t listen. I can find out everything I need to know without using those sledgehammer tactics; you just need to have the right people in the right places.’

  She was usually careful never to question him, but in this instance, she had to know more, and quickly.

  ‘But surely it would be impossible to run any spy network here with so much military presence?’ She kept her voice light.

  ‘Hmm, you might think so but not really. The Resistance are very clever, and they’re getting help from England, too. There’s a wireless operation somewhere in the city, and we’ve been tracking the signal. The operator keeps the time very short, so we haven’t got a fix on it yet, but we are piecing the information together, and we’ve narrowed it down to within a few streets. I want to take a few more days and be sure of him before we go in. Don’t want to frighten him away as we seem to have done so many times before. Once we find him, or her, then they will certainly lead us to others.’

  Juliet didn’t flinch. The methods by which a loyal resistance worker could be forced to betray their fellow saboteurs remained unsaid. Dieter never spoke of the brutality that she knew he sanctioned.

  She went to Lise’s apartment early the next morning, and told her everything.

  THAT EVENING, AS SHE and Dieter sipped cognac on the balcony after dinner, Juliet wondered what would happen to her if he ever found out who she really was. Lise had been very interested in learning of Spitz’s impending visit and had told her to come to her again in two days’ time for instructions on how to proceed.

  Dieter reached over to touch her hand, and she glanced at him, startled. But he was smiling warmly.

  ‘I love it here, at home with you, Marie-Louise. When we are together like this, it’s as if there is no war.’

  TWO DAYS LATER, JULIET was back in Lise’s little sitting room. The wireless operations had been shifted to another location and now Lise had other things on her mind.

  ‘Spitz is a big fish. He’s been personally responsible for the arrest of even more agents than Canaris himself.’

  ‘The welcoming dinner is tomorrow night.’

  ‘The perfect opportunity. He loves his drink and beautiful women. He will be relaxed and vulnerable and off his guard.’

  Juliet felt a myriad of emotions – resolve, fear. Evidently, the Resistance were planning to bomb the party. Of course, they would let her know the plan so she could discreetly withdraw to the bathroom at the appropriate time – still, what if something went wrong? But that wasn’t what had sent the shiver up her spine…it was something else. Something she couldn’t even admit to herself.

  ‘It was bound to happen, you know,’ said Lise.

  ‘Of course,’ Juliet replied. ‘We can’t let an opportunity like this slip by. It will do the cause great good. People will realise how powerful the Resistance is and feel emboldened to join us.’

  ‘I didn’t mean that.’ Lise spoke quietly. ‘I meant him. It was bound to happen that you would develop a certain affection for him. People are never all bad. You have hidden it well, but I know that there is a little voice in your head that says we don’t know him like you do. That is true. No doubt he has a good side, and no doubt you have seen it. But, my dear friend, please remember – he is not your love, this is not your time, even you are not you. Your future is back where you come from, with your family and friends. Do not lose sight of that. You are not Marie-Louise, and it is she who has these feelings, not you. Sunday’s events may test you in a way you never anticipated, but you must remember what he is and why you’re here.’

  Juliet took a long moment to look into her heart. For so long she’d been guarding her true feelings about everything, she wondered if she was even capable of knowing what they were anymore. Yet the more she thought about it, the more she had to accept that Lise was right. Although Dieter was everything she was here to fight against, there was a part of her that liked him, maybe even liked him very much. She raised her head and looked straight at her friend and mentor.

  ‘I’ll do what has to be done.’

  They heard the front gate open and footsteps come up the path. Juliet immediately began to play the piano – hesitantly, as if she were being taught a piece. As usual, the score was open and both she and Lise were seated at the instrument.

  A young girl whom Juliet had never seen before entered and gave a message to Lise. She looked about eighteen, and she was trying to appear confident. Juliet felt like she was looking back at herself when she first arrived. How long ago that seemed. The girl delivered her message and left quickly by the back door. Lise read it and instantly burned it in the fireplace.

  She looked at Juliet as if debating how best to tell her the plan.

  ‘Marie-Louise, this will be difficult for you. You are to be picked up by plane tomorrow night, after the dinner. You…’

  ‘That’s ridiculous,’ Juliet interrupted, alarmed. ‘Totally excessive. There’s no reason they would suspect me of being behind any bomb.’

  ‘No, you don’t understand.’ Lise’s tone changed. She took a deep breath and continued. ‘There will be no bomb – that would be impossible. You are to attend and then invite Spitz back to the apartment with you and Friedman for a nightcap. Explain to Dieter in advance that you are going to charm him so that he’ll be more predisposed towards the Poitiers office. When you get back to the apartment…’ She paused. ‘Your orders are to shoot both of them.’

  Lise’s words hung in the silence between them. After a few moments, the older woman knelt and lifted a floorboard under the table. She produced a pistol wrapped in a piece of cloth.


  ‘A silenced Welrod MK1. London says you are an excellent marksman. I assume you’re familiar with this make of gun?’

  ‘Yes.’

  The prospect of what faced her had rendered her almost speechless. Killing Spitz – that was within her capability. But Dieter?

  Lise held her by both arms and stared intently into her eyes. ‘Marie-Louise, listen to me. You are a British agent, he is a Nazi officer. This is why you came here, why we are all here, to win this war. You must not hesitate, even for a second. No last words, you cannot give him time to react. You must offer them drinks, encourage Dieter to show Spitz the view, stand behind them, and then in quick succession shoot them both in the back of the head. Can you do that?’

  She had to kill Dieter. Dieter, who loved her, who wanted to protect her from any harm, who wanted to marry her. Blood thundered in her ears, and sweat prickled her skin. She had to stop thinking of him as the charming, handsome man who had always made her laugh. She had to think of him as the man who would without a moment’s hesitation torture and kill anyone he suspected of being an agent for the British. Dieter, who had happily moved them into the home of a family who were by now most likely dead.

  ‘Yes,’ she said. She didn’t trust herself to say anything more.

  ‘I know you can. I have no doubts about you. Once it’s done, you leave immediately. There will be a vehicle to the right of the door. The driver will be expecting you. Get in the back and cover yourself with a blanket you’ll find there. You’ll be taken to the drop site. The Lysander will be on the ground no more than four minutes. Now go, don’t think too much about it, just do it. Good luck, my dear friend. Perhaps we’ll meet again.’ Lise placed the gun in Juliet’s bag under her music books then, kissing her on both cheeks, ushered her out of the door.

  Chapter 37

  Solange walked quickly from the kitchen door through the trees towards the little cottage. The dish she was holding burned her hands slightly through the tea towel. The stew was from Mrs Canty for Ingrid – convinced, as the old housekeeper was, that the reason the girl looked so pale and wan was down to not eating properly. It was true, Ingrid had lost a lot of weight and all her glossy vitality seemed to have faded. She rarely came up to the big house these days, and James seemed at a loss as to how to help her. She went to Dublin alone every week, leaving Lili in Dunderrig, but these trips seemed to give her no joy. Nothing did anymore.

  Solange had advised James to be patient, but in truth, she had no idea what was wrong with Ingrid. She seemed to love Lili, now two years old and full of mischief, but always appeared distant and distracted. Richard had suggested sending her to a gynaecologist in Cork after the second miscarriage, but she had refused. Reading between the lines from James, there was no chance of another pregnancy – that side of their lives was now non-existent. Though she was not very close to Ingrid, Solange loved James and Lili, and would do anything to secure their happiness.

  Ingrid had apologised for the way she had spoken to Solange that day when she left, and Solange had assured her she completely understood. She really wanted to build a relationship with James’s wife; she even made her the wedding dress. For a while at least, it looked like they were becoming friends. Yet in recent months, it was as if the girl had something on her mind. Solange was reluctant to interfere, but the little family seemed so unhappy. Perhaps the miscarriages were the problem, or maybe it was something else. Ingrid had no family except her uncle in Dublin. Solange knew what it was like to be young and far from everything you knew and understood, so she resolved to try to help. If only she could get Ingrid to talk, to tell her what the problem was, then maybe a solution could be found.

  James had gone to a gallery opening in Cork, so she knew Ingrid and Lili would be alone in the house, and Mrs Canty’s stew was the perfect excuse.

  As she approached the cottage through the woods, she saw Ingrid in the little back garden talking to – no, arguing with – someone. Richard was in surgery, and the Cantys were busy in the house. Whoever Ingrid was addressing was hidden from view by the shed; she was gesticulating wildly, clearly upset. Lili was crying inside the house. Solange stood watching, unsure what she should do. Ingrid finished the conversation and went back inside. ‘I’m coming, Lili!’ Her voice was close to hysterical.

  Solange opened the little gate at the bottom of the garden. She passed the shed, but there was no one standing there. Ingrid’s unseen companion must have walked around the side of the house and left by the front gate. She knocked on the open back door.

  ‘Hello, Ingrid? It’s Solange. Can I come in?’

  ‘Solange…yes, yes, of course.’ Ingrid seemed startled to see her. Her hair was standing on end, and her whole appearance was uncharacteristically dishevelled. She was as white as a sheet, and her eyes were red-rimmed as if she’d been crying. Solange decided just to act normally until she calmed down.

  ‘Mrs Canty made a stew for your dinner. She’s convinced you’re not eating enough! Don’t worry, she does the same with everyone. She won’t be happy until we are all waddling around Dunderrig like fat little ducks.’ Solange tried to keep the conversation light. Looking around, she could see the cottage was badly in need of being cleaned. Used cutlery and delph were scattered on every surface and in the corner, a bin overflowed.

  ‘I’m sorry about the mess, I…I just haven’t had time…’ Ingrid tried to make space for Solange to sit down.

  Solange decided that she would say something. The poor girl was so miserable, and now this strange visitor in the garden. She was certain it wasn’t a romantic entanglement, because Ingrid, who always made time to ensure she looked her best, was wearing no makeup and hadn’t even washed her hair.

  ‘Ingrid, what’s wrong?’ Solange asked kindly. She took Lili in her arms and led Ingrid to the couch. Placing Lili between them, she gave her a doll to play with. ‘Please tell me and I promise you, it won’t go any further – not to James or Richard or anyone. We are all so worried about you, especially James, he loves you so very much, and little Lili needs her happy mother back.’

  Ingrid looked like she might cry and, clearly not trusting herself to speak, she simply shook her head.

  ‘Is it the babies? The miscarriages?’ Solange guessed Ingrid wouldn’t volunteer anything so she had to try to guess. She was determined not to let this moment pass; she didn’t want Ingrid to close down again and insist everything was fine.

  Ingrid hunched her shoulders. She looked small and defeated.

  ‘Ingrid? I’m sure, whatever it is, we can work it out together.’

  ‘I am in trouble, Solange. If I tell you something, you have to swear to me, on Lili’s life, that you won’t say anything. James always says that when he and Juliet confided in you, you always kept their secrets.’

  ‘I promise,’ Solange agreed.

  ‘Oh, God! How did it come to this? It’s all ruined, everything. My life is over, and James and Lili, I just can’t, I can’t Solange.’ Ingrid was shaking now.

  ‘Just take your time, tell me everything. What can’t you do?’ Solange was rubbing the younger woman’s back as giant sobs racked her body.

  ‘My boss in Dublin, Helmut Clissman, he…he isn’t just a school manager. He works for the Abwehr.’

  Solange tried to absorb this information. ‘The German secret service? How did you find out? That must have been such a shock to you – you’ve known him and his wife for so long.’

  Ingrid half-smiled through her tears. ‘Solange, I always knew. Edith, Otto, all of them, they’re all in the Nazi party. Otto sells artwork and jewellery confiscated from the Jews, that’s why he’s so rich. He has contacts all over the world, since before the war. He sells the stuff, pays a significant portion to the party and keeps the rest himself. James thought they were just Germans sitting out the war in Dublin but that’s not the case. The Clissmans work directly for Hitler. The others…well, they’re all involved.’

  Solange was struggling, trying
to process this information. Richard had told her about James and Edith so her name didn’t come as a surprise…but that they were working for the Nazis? It was too much to take in.

  ‘But, if you knew, why did you work for them in the school, continue to see them, lie to James about it? I don’t understand, Ingrid.’

  ‘Solange, don’t you see?’ Ingrid was anguished. ‘I work for them too, not as a secretary. They, we, are involved with some things that…I thought I could handle it, but I can’t. The lies, the danger to you all, I can’t take it anymore. In Dublin, it was different, I wasn’t alone, but down here, I never realised…’

  Solange thought quickly. She had to get Ingrid to tell her the full story. What danger were they in? The need to protect her family surged through Solange.

  ‘Ingrid, tell me everything. I promise I’ll help you, there must be a way out of this.’

  Ingrid looked up into Solange’s face, like a child. Sadly, she shook her head. ‘There’s no way out of it.’

  ‘Ingrid, look at Lili. Do you want her to grow up in a world where Hitler makes the rules? Tell me what’s going on. When I was approaching the garden, you were speaking to someone. Who was that?’

  Ingrid looked at Solange with fear in her eyes.

  ‘I don’t know his name. I think he’s from the IRA. They’ve been involved from the start. Apparently, we are going to give them back the North when we win the war. He’s here to ensure I’m doing my part. I think Helmut sent him. He’s worried about me.’ She barked out a joyless laugh. ‘Well, not about me as such – worried I won’t do what I’m supposed to do.’

  ‘And what’s that?’ Solange spoke gently, trying to control the panic rising within her. Ingrid seemed strange, slightly manic.

  ‘There’s a boat coming into the cove at Castletownshend tonight. There’s someone on it, someone important. I don’t know who. I’m to meet him and help him ashore and put him up until it’s safe to move on. I also have a package of maps and photographs from Helmut to deliver to the man rowing the boat, to go back to Germany.’