The private who had driven them to Heraklion had given her the truck’s keys, before standing in line with the rest of his company in order to embark. ‘It’s no use to me any more,’ he’d said cheerily. ‘No vehicles or heavy equipment are being taken on the ships. Orders are, when abandoning vehicles, to put sand in the sump and run the engine at full speed. As you’re not hightailing it to Egypt with us and I don’t want you on foot in the dark, the truck’s yours. I just hope, Miss, that you get safely to wherever it is you’re going.’
Ella clutched the key hard in her hand. Her only chance of reaching Knossos safely was for her to reach it before the Germans realized the island was now theirs, because once they did, there would be roadblocks everywhere. She was going to have to drive fast: faster than she’d ever driven in her life.
Chapter Thirty-One
It was a mild day, the sun warm and the sky showing no indication of the traditional October rain. The men tramped down the steep hillside towards the village, Lewis in deep conversation with Sholto, Tinker at his heels. Close behind them were Christos, Pericles and Dimitri Mamalakis. All of them were armed, Lewis and Sholto with pistols, the others with rifles slung over their shoulders. In the five months since the Allied surrender, no Germans had as yet reconnoitred as high as Kalamata, and as the small group left the holly oaks and cypresses behind them and entered Kalamata’s steep-stepped streets, the village looked as it always had.
Scrawny hens pecked at anything they could find; old Zenobia grinned toothlessly at them from the doorway of her cavern-dark house; the usual horde of children rushed up to them, with the usual endless shouted questions.
Christos called out, ‘I’m going to the cafeneion, Lewis, to see Ella and Kostas Alfred. Pericles is going to Apollonia’s. Okay?’
‘Okay.’ Lewis hadn’t expected anything else from either of them. For one thing, eight people in Dimitri’s house would have been a squeeze; and for another, Christos never let the slightest opportunity go by without a visit to the cafeneion, which was where Ella was once again living.
As Christos and Pericles veered off down one of the village’s narrow stony lanes, Sholto said, ‘Now Illingworth is on his feet again, the sooner he’s moved out of the Mamalakis home, the better. The Germans may not have reconnoitred Kalamata yet, but it won’t be long before they do. And if the village is found to have been sheltering him, then people will be shot and the village may well be burned to the ground. It’s an atrocity that’s happened in my area. You don’t want it happening here.’
Lewis’s mouth tightened into a hard line. The present meeting between them was their first face-to-face meeting since the surrender, but bush telegraph had kept him up to date with the situation scores of miles to the west. Hundreds of troops from Canea, Suda Bay and Maleme who hadn’t managed the crossing of the White Mountains in time to meet the evacuation deadline on the south coast had, rather than being rounded up into a POW camp, taken to the mountains – and in the mountains survival was only possible when the mountain villagers gave them shelter. Although the penalty for giving an Allied soldier shelter was death, the Cretans had given them shelter unhesitatingly, and many had already paid the price for doing so.
It wasn’t a gamble Lewis intended taking in Kalamata.
As they neared his home, Dimitri strode ahead of them and Lewis said, ‘When you return to your hideout on Mount Ida, I want you to take Illingworth with you. You don’t have a problem with that, do you?’
‘No. Not as long as he’s up to the climb.’
The door of the Mamalakis house opened and a toddler uttering squeals of excitement came running out, to be immediately scooped up by Dimitri and seated upon his shoulders. Under normal circumstances Aminta would by now also have run joyously towards him, but Sholto was unknown to her and she stayed shyly in the doorway, blushing as he greeted her politely.
Once in the all-purpose room of the house, Illingworth was introduced to Sholto and they all gathered around the table, some of them sitting, and others – because Dimitri and Aminta didn’t possess enough chairs for everyone to be able to sit – standing.
With relief, Sholto saw that Illingworth, despite the injuries he had received five months ago, now seemed able-bodied and fit. ‘What I want to know,’ he said to him, ‘is the true story of how Lewis removed you and Kate from the cottage you were being held in. All I’ve been able to get from him is that he walked into the cottage with Adonis, and walked out with all three of you. There must have been more to it than that, but being an annoying bastard, he’s not telling.’
Illingworth grinned, enjoying Sholto’s bewilderment. ‘To be honest, there’s not much more to tell. It was just as he’s said. He walked in with Adonis, and ten minutes later the four of us were in a truck heading for the mountains.’
‘And Winston Churchill is my godfather.’ Sholto turned round on his chair and looked over to where Lewis was leaning against the room’s only window, one foot crossed over the other, his arms folded, ‘Come on, Lewis. Joke over, or I get Kate to tell me. Spill the beans.’
‘It’s just as Illingworth said. I walked in with Adonis. What I didn’t say was that I was wearing the uniform of a German major and that the uniform was embellished at the neck with a Knight’s Cross – not the highest German award for bravery, but pretty impressive all the same.’
Still thinking he was having his leg pulled, Sholto said, ‘A uniform you just happened to be travelling around the countryside with, in case it should prove useful?’
Lewis’s tough, straight mouth twitched at the corners. ‘No. On the drive from Brigade Headquarters we’d passed lots of dead paratroopers still in their parachute harnesses, one of them a major. I doubled back with Adonis to where he’d fallen and we relieved him of his uniform and identity papers.’
‘And a rather natty monocle,’ Kate interjected.
‘And then what?’ Sholto was riveted. ‘How did you get away with the impersonation?’
Lewis shrugged. ‘I’d already come to the assumption there were only going to be a small number of men to deal with. Boot marks around the jeep indicated it had been fired on by three – perhaps four – paratroopers at the most, and the cottage was too small for a platoon to be holed up in it. I’d also come to another assumption, which was that the paratroopers in question were deliberately keeping out of further action in a way that would, if a superior officer knew about it, have landed them in serious trouble.’
Illingworth said, ‘When they saw Lewis striding towards the cottage, complete with Knight’s Cross and monocle, they were like petrified rabbits.’
‘As were we,’ Kate said drily. ‘Although once he was in the house and recognizable, it wasn’t too bad for me. Poor Illingworth thought Lewis was the real thing – and, from Lewis’s manic yelling and shouting, thought he was about to be dragged out of the cottage and shot.’
‘And what exactly was it you were yelling and shouting, Lewis?’
‘I was calling them some rather ugly words indicating they were cowards and a disgrace to their uniform; that they were to make their way north and join up immediately with other remaining members of their units; and that I was taking their prisoner somewhere he could be properly interrogated. I then ordered Kate to help Illingworth outside and into the truck, and three minutes later we were on our way. Whenever we ran into Germans after that I never stopped the truck, just hung out of it and shouted that I was taking a British officer to be interrogated. Once we reached the foothills of the mountains, the countryside was free of Germans and by evening we were in Kalamata.’
‘Well, that’s one mystery solved, but there’s still another.’ Sholto turned his attention to Illingworth. ‘Why no Christian name? Your full name can’t possibly be Illingworth Illingworth.’
‘It isn’t. My Christian name is Eustace. So if it’s all the same to you . . .’
‘It is.’
Lewis said, ‘Now we’ve got that out of the way, it’s time for me to share the latest new
s with Kate and Illingworth.’
Sholto, already in the know, straddled his chair, leaning folded arms on the back of it.
‘An SOE officer has been brought in from Cairo by submarine, as has a wireless operator. They landed two nights ago on the south coast. First thing the officer in question did was send a Cretan ahead to let me know of their arrival. They are making their way here, but as avoiding Germans won’t be easy, when hampered with a wireless transmitter, a heavy charging-engine and the batteries for it, it could be several days before they arrive.’
Illingworth fisted the air in satisfaction. If that kind of Royal Navy operation had been carried out once, it would most likely be carried out again and, when it was, his intention was to be on the landing beach when the submarine came in, and aboard it when it left.
Kate was equally elated at the news that they would finally be in touch with Cairo via wireless, but she was also puzzled. ‘How did this new SOE officer know where to make contact with you?’
Across the small room their eyes met and the sexual tension she always felt when they were within touching distance of each other flooded through her.
‘He probably didn’t know for certain, Kate, but as Kalamata was my archaeological headquarters, it’s the first place Cairo would have thought of when suggesting where I might be found.’
‘And is that why you’re here, Sholto?’ Illingworth asked. ‘Did the arriving SOE bloke send a runner to tell you of his arrival as well?’
‘No. My being here is just happy coincidence, especially as Lewis feels the best place for the new man and his wireless operator isn’t here, but with me on Mount Ida.’
Chairs scraped as everyone turned and looked questioningly towards Lewis.
He said, ‘If the Germans discover Sholto’s hideout on Mount Ida, there are more than a dozen escape routes that can be taken. The cave’s position here is more difficult. Adonis has been acting as a runner between our headquarters for the last five months and now, when he does, he’ll be taking with him whatever intelligence information from here needs sending to Cairo, and bringing back with him the latest information sent by Cairo.’
Sensing that all that needed to be told had been, Dimitri said, ‘It is time for food. Aminta has made fasolada soup, mizithra pasties, fava salad and, especially for you and because they are Illingworth’s favourite also, honey macaroons.’
Kate sprang to her feet to help Aminta with the food. Dimitri set a calabash of home-made wine on the table. Christos, Ella and baby Kostas Alfred arrived and, as the soup was being ladled out of a big pot, Pericles and Apollonia arrived.
It’s a glendi!’ Christos said ebulliently, throwing Kostas Alfred up into the air and catching him.
‘A glendi?’ Illingworth gave up his chair so that Apollonia could sit down.
‘A party,’ Ella said. ‘Although for it to be a true party, Christos and Pericles would be outside, firing off volley after volley of rifle shots.’
‘Which Lewis will not let us do, for fear of it attracting unwelcome attention by those devils, the Germans.’ Christos set Kostas Alfred back on his feet. ‘Do you know where their divisional commander has set up his headquarters? He has done so in Archanes! Archanes, which is where Ella and I made our home – a home where, because the Germans are now everywhere in Archanes, Ella and Kostas Alfred can no longer live. And do you know where he has made his residence?’ Christos’s indignation was fast reaching boiling point. ‘He has made his residence in the Villa Ariadne! In the Villa Ariadne he has made it, with no thought of the poor, badly wounded men who were there on his arrival and who were moved who knows where.’
Illingworth looked questioningly towards Ella and she said, ‘Christos’s sister, Nikoleta, was at the Villa when the wounded were moved out and the divisional commander moved in. No one would tell her where they were being taken.’
‘And is Christos’s sister still there? At the Villa?’
Ella nodded. Without sending word to Lewis or Christos of her intentions, Nikoleta had moved seamlessly from nursing duties at the Villa to domestic duties. It meant she was in an unrivalled position to eavesdrop and pry, and whenever she had information to pass on to Lewis, the Villa’s delivery boy acted as courier. The risks the two of them were running were astronomical: torture to reveal the name and whereabouts of the person they were giving information to and then, whether they broke down under torture or didn’t, execution. It was a situation that gave Ella endless nightmares.
From the street came the sound of children shouting excitedly and then there was a knock at the door. Knocks on doors in Kalamata were rare events, but the children’s reactions to the caller indicated that it wouldn’t be opened to someone in German uniform.
With Tinker at his heels, Dimitri swung the door open wide and then sucked in his breath, too stunned for speech.
‘Good to see you again,’ said a voice that everyone but Illingworth instantly recognized. ‘I went to the cafeneion first, and Andre told me I’d find Lewis here.’
As he stepped into the house, followed by a fair-haired second man, Kate leapt to her feet. ‘Kit! Oh, my God, I don’t believe it. I simply don’t believe it!’
‘You’d better believe it, Sis.’
She rushed towards him and he gave her a brotherly hug, as Kit struggled to recognize Lewis, who, now moustachioed and bearded and wearing a black shirt, black waistcoat and wide vraka trousers tucked into knee-high boots, was nearly indistinguishable from Christos and Pericles.
As he was enthusiastically back-slapped by everyone who knew him, Kit said over Kate’s head, ‘There are a couple of faces here that are new to me, Lewis – and Nick doesn’t have a clue who anyone is, so introductions first, I think.’
‘The Brits you don’t know are Lieutenant Illingworth and Sholto Hertford, Daphne’s husband. Illingworth isn’t SOE. His jeep was shot up by a group of paras and he missed out on the evacuation. Sholto was seconded into Military Intelligence from the Foreign Office.’
Kit shook hands with them both and then, without waiting for Kit to introduce him, Kit’s companion introduced himself. ‘Nick Virtue,’ he said, fair hair flopping low over his forehead. ‘Signals sergeant. And as the wireless, charging-engine and batteries are outside on mules, perhaps we should get them under cover?’
Dimitri and Christos rushed outside to lead the mules from the front of the house round to the back of it, where the Mamalakises’ goats and donkey were stabled. ‘We’ve never yet had Germans climb as high as our village,’ Dimitri said to Nick, who’d had no intention of letting his precious equipment out of his sight. ‘For tonight, hay will provide enough of a hiding place.’
Nick said that as long as it was only for one night, he was happy with the arrangement.
There were now a dozen people plus a toddler and Tinker squeezed into the small house. Kit shrugged himself out of his battledress jacket, saying, ‘I see you and Sholto are in full Cretan rig, Lewis. Nick and I need similar duds, if we’re not to stand out like two sore thumbs.’
‘That’s easily sorted. It’s a miracle you travelled all the way from the south coast without being shot, dressed as you are. There’s a lot you and Nick need to be filled in on, with regard to the situation here, but before we start on it – and as it will take some time – give us an update on any news we’ve had no way of receiving.’
There was a major shuffling of rush-bottomed chairs, with priority around the table now being given to Lewis, Christos, Sholto, Kit and Nick.
‘A piece of news that wasn’t even broadcast by the BBC, as it came under the category of being damaging to public morale, was that the evacuation fleet came under heavy air attack.’
The room was suddenly so silent that a pin could have been heard to drop.
‘An hour and a half after the ships sailed, the steering gear on one of the destroyers jammed and the crew and soldiers were transferred to one of the other ships. It took time, and because it took time, the fleet was still in range of enemy b
ombers when the sun came up. All the ships came under heavy air attack, and by the time the ships limped into port at Alexandria, the death toll was close to five hundred and the number of wounded was even greater.’
Ella’s face drained of blood.
Sholto looked as if he’d been slammed in the stomach by a baseball bat.
Seeing the effect his news had on him, Kit added hastily, ‘Your wife arrived quite safely. I know Daphne, from when I was an archaeologist at Knossos and she visited Kate and Ella. A couple of weeks ago I saw her at Shepheard’s Hotel having coffee with a woman friend.’
Sholto’s relief that he hadn’t been widowed without knowing about it was clearly obvious. Ella didn’t feel any relief at all. Had Sam also survived the murderous crossing to Egypt? Chances were that if he’d been on HMS Hotspur with Daphne, he might have. But what if he hadn’t been on the Hotspur? After all, she hadn’t seen him board it. He could well have sailed aboard one of the other ships – one of the ships that had suffered a colossal loss of life. Kit might well know if there had been fatalities amongst the RAMC ranks, but if she asked about such fatalities, Christos would know it was Sam she was interested in, and her showing such concern for another man – especially as she would be doing so in front of so many people – would be an affront to his Cretan masculine pride. The question was one she would ask, but not until she could do so privately.
Beneath the Cypress Tree Page 35