The Sentinels: Fortunes of War

by Gordon Zuckerman

  “Monsieur Jacques Roth, you have enough career for both of us,” she said. “We make pretty good partners, no? Together we set up the gold bearer bond program. Together we solved the German transfer problem. Why can’t I be a partner in your life?”

  He left his seat then, going around and kneeling beside her chair. He put his arms around her. “I can’t imagine any other partnership that would compare. Claudine, please… marry me.”

  She put a hand on his head; her eyes were glistening. “Jacques, you will never know how much that means to me. But not so fast, mon cher. The war is not over, and the Six Sentinels won’t be completely in the clear until it is—if then.

  “I want you to go back to New York. If, at the end of the war, you are absolutely certain that you still feel the same way, ask me, and I will join you there, or wherever you are, and marry you. I just need to know, when you have time to think everything through, that you feel the same way you do now.”

  “But, Claudine… I know how I feel, for the first time in my life.”

  The look on her face warned him.

  Remember whom you’re dealing with. This is Claudine, and these terms aren’t negotiable.

  Jacques and Claudine returned to the chalet early in the afternoon of the next day. They decided not to talk with the others about their new understanding. Jacques thought she might share it with her father, once he and Ian were gone, but that was her decision, not his. He had already decided that this was too important to be influenced by anything but his own certainty, free of persuasion even by his good friend. Ian was in love with Emily and, like all lovers, longed for the whole world to be in love, too. That was fine as far as it went, but Claudine was too important a decision to make on any basis other than his own heart’s dead-level surety.

  At dinner that evening, Jacques asked, “Henri, how much confidence do you have in the Germans? Do you think they will live up to their end of the deal and leave us alone?”

  “I’ve wondered the same thing. You would think, under the circumstances, that they wouldn’t want to do anything that would adversely affect the liquidity of their bonds. On the other hand, that possibility certainly hasn’t seemed to stop them in the past. If I had to guess, I think I would assume the worst. I strongly suggest that each of you return to your sanctuaries until the war is over. By then, you will have to make a decision regarding cashing the next allotment of your bonds. Maybe, by that time, you will know more.”

  “I can always go back to the convent,” Claudine said. “Father and I can keep in touch by our classified ad code. If I fail to place an ad at the right time, he can send in the cavalry.”

  Jacques turned to Ian. “You can’t return to London. And Mike and I can’t return to Sculley Square. In fact, Mike has already moved out to California. I need a roommate and we need to find a new place to live. The question is, where can we go where we won’t be noticed or can’t be found?”

  “Jacques, you never ask a question like that unless you already have an answer in mind. Do you mind sharing it with us?” Ian said.

  “Well, I was just thinking… we’ve done almost everything there is to do in life. How would you like to get a divorce?”

  “Get divorced? But darling,” Ian said in falsetto, “we aren’t even married. What the hell are you talking about?”

  “I understand there are some dude ranches near Reno, Nevada, where people stay while completing their residency requirements so that they can obtain quick divorces. They come and go. There is a steady turnover. Why would anyone question two more male guests? We could register under assumed names and wait for the war to end.”

  “What can I say?” Ian said, finally. “My parents think I’m dead. And you’re right about the risk of returning to London. It’s too dangerous for me to see Emily. By now, they could be watching her, hoping I’ll show up.” He stared into the middle distance for a moment, sadness on his face. Then he gave them his best smile. “Maybe, when we are in Nevada, I can learn to ride a horse. Who knows? I might become a cowboy.”

  Chapter 39

  THE SIX SENTINELS

  Not wanting to take any chances with flying with a major airline back to New York, Jacques called Chairman Malone’s office. Malone quickly arranged for a U.S. Army cargo plane to pick them up in Geneva. With the war effort at its zenith, Jacques and Ian’s travel schedule had to be organized around the more pressing problems of military demands. Flying five different legs, they went to France, England, Ireland, Newfoundland, and finally to an Army/Air Force base on Long Island, New York.

  The planes were slow; they were not pressurized; and they were cold, drafty, and very noisy. After six days, Ian and Jacques, exhausted and grimy, arrived safely. They were placed in one of the vacant officers’ houses, where they could shower, change clothes, make phone calls, and, best of all, catch up on their sleep. The quarters were small, clean, and spartan, and the officers’ club was only a short walk away. By noon of their third day, new identity papers had been placed on the kitchen table.

  ______

  Monday was Natalie’s one day off. She could sleep late, do her weekly shopping, and read one of the books or manuscripts that always seemed to be lying around her apartment. She routinely unplugged her phone, made no dates, and refused to attend meetings, script readings, or rehearsals. Dressed in sweat clothes, sneakers, and large, dark glasses, her hair tucked under a ball cap, she could do her shopping and come and go as she pleased without being recognized.

  While she was standing in front of the meat counter at her favorite neighborhood grocery store, she noticed an attractive man wearing dark glasses and military fatigues. It was obvious that he was not an experienced shopper. Amused, she watched him searching for items, asking questions of the other patrons, and having a difficult time determining which of the multiple brands to select. She was so intrigued by him that she moved away from the meat counter to watch him proceed up the next aisle. There’s something familiar about him. Moving quickly down a parallel aisle, she rounded the corner and stared as he approached her. Well, I’ll be damned. It’s Jacques!

  Slowly, she started pushing her cart toward him. When he showed no sign of recognition, she shifted her attention to the canned goods, waiting for him to pass. “Statue of Liberty, two o’clock this afternoon,” she heard him whisper as he passed by.

  At two on the dot she was standing at the top of the Lady, looking at the skyline of Manhattan, when she heard Jacques say, “Natalie, don’t turn around. It’s important that we talk and avoid showing any signs of personal recognition. I could have been followed. I apologize for all the mystery. I am afraid there’s not much I can do to explain. All I am allowed to say is that my friends and I are involved in some serious work that might bring the war in Europe to an early and successful conclusion. There have been some very nasty people trying to stop what we are doing. That night I left your hotel, I was followed by some dangerous people who were trying to kidnap me. Thanks to some alert work by members of the United States Secret Service, they were arrested and I was able to complete an important trip that I had to make to Geneva. I’ve just returned.

  “It’s not just me that I’m worried about. If these people learn of our relationship, you could be in danger as well. If it weren’t for the fact that something has happened that we need to discuss, I wouldn’t have taken the risk of tracking you down.”

  Natalie had been on Jacques’ mind ever since he and Ian had left Geneva. No matter how hard he had tried, he couldn’t figure out a way to tell her about Claudine without being hurtful. It had only been two months since they had spent the night together in Boston, and now he was supposed to tell her he had asked another woman to marry him?

  Explaining things to Natalie was difficult enough, but not being able to face her, hold her hand, and look into her eyes made things a lot worse. It didn’t take Natalie long before she began to understand what Jacques was trying to tell her. The realization of what he was saying was the worst pain she had ever
experienced. She could sense his discomfort in his voice and in the quick glances she made from the corner of her eye. What did I do wrong? How many times did I ask myself if I was making a mistake by falling in love with such a high-profile, worldly man? I can’t even turn around or show any emotion. Whatever I do, I will not cry.

  Never one to express himself when it came to personal feelings, Jacques struggled along. Not knowing how Natalie was going to react, he was afraid to stop talking. His continuing babble gave her time to collect her composure and organize her thoughts.

  “Jacques, I’m sure that what you and I had was real. I’ll always remember those special occasions when it seemed we were on our own special planet and the world had stopped. I don’t want to let what’s happening ruin those memories.”

  Anyway, she thought, how do I know it’s really over? It could be that he’s feeling guilty about having affairs with both of us at the same time. Things can change.

  “As hurtful as it has been to hear what you’ve been telling me, I will always love you. I know if you didn’t care, you wouldn’t have made the effort to personally explain what has happened. For that, I thank you. But I wish it could have been me. You are the only man I have ever loved. If it would have made you happy, I’d have gladly given up the theater. It wouldn’t have been as much of a sacrifice as you might think.”

  She took a few steps away from him and whispered, “Bon voyage, my prince. Maybe we will meet in our next life.”

  ______

  From Reno, Jacques and Ian watched; from the convent, Claudine watched; from the well-guarded Sentinels’ Vineyards, Cecelia, Mike, and Tony watched, along with the rest of the world, as Hitler’s war efforts ground to a halt. In April 1945, Allied forces entered Berlin. Shortly afterward, Hitler killed himself, and what was left of his officer corps negotiated for peace.

  The war in the Pacific was progressing. Allied forces, on their island-hopping campaign, were approaching Japan. Soon, the invasion of the Japanese mainland would become the last great battlefield of the Second World War. With the capture of islands well within the range of America’s new, long-range B-29 bomber, the Allies were able to launch massive bombing raids on Japan’s principal cities and military installations. But even the destruction of the once-proud Japanese navy, the costly loss of men and matériel during the island battles, and the firebombing of Tokyo itself failed to alter Japan’s will to defend its homeland down to the last man.

  American invasion plans were being developed. They forecasted the loss of hundreds of thousands of men on both sides.

  As part of a separate strategy, the Manhattan Project, America’s most carefully guarded secret development of the atom bomb, had been completed. Hoping to avoid the loss of so many American lives, President Harry S. Truman authorized the bombing of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. Two days later, they dropped a second bomb on Nagasaki. Shortly thereafter, the Japanese surrendered. After seven years, the war in Europe and the Pacific was finally at an end.

  Walter Matthews, a leading war correspondent, reported, “An exhausted victor and the conquered enemy have both been forced to pay a terrible price to restore sovereign equilibrium to the world.”

  ______

  Jacques had scheduled the first formal meeting of the Six Sentinels for December 15, 1945, in New York City. The meeting would convene at nine o’clock sharp in a small conference room reserved in the Plaza Hotel. The war had been over for four months; the Sentinels needed to meet.

  Everyone had been contacted, but as he sat in his old office at Stone City Bank the week before the meeting, Jacques knew there was one very special invitation he needed to extend personally. Although he had talked to Claudine on a regular basis, it had been fifteen months since he had last seen her, in Chamonix. For some part of every day, he had thought of her, imagined her being with him in whatever he was doing, imagined what she would say and how her voice would sound while saying it. And he was more certain than ever that life without her wouldn’t be worth living. Talking to her was one thing, inviting her to New York was his invitation to marriage.

  He stared at the phone on his desk. Just do it, damn it! Pick up the phone and make the call. But what if she’s changed her mind? This is Claudine, for God’s sake! She could have any duke or baronet she wanted just by crooking her finger. Call her, you fool! This is the chance of your lifetime, and if you don’t make the attempt, you have no right to call yourself a man.

  Finally, he dragged the phone from its cradle. After calculating the time difference for the thousandth time, he dialed the international operator and gave her the number for the chalet in Chamonix. The phone buzzed in his ear.

  Come on! Answer, Claudine, Henri, anybody.

  Two rings.

  Damn! I don’t know if I can do this again later . . .

  Three . . .

  Oh, dear God…

  “Hello?”

  The sound of her voice nearly made him fall over backward.

  “Claudine… It’s me, Jacques.”

  “Well, hello there, handsome.”

  He melted. “Claudine, this is the call that I have been waiting to make for fifteen months. Will you come to New York and marry me?”

  “All right.”

  “What? What did you say?”

  “I said, ‘all right,’ you silly man. I love you. Why wouldn’t I marry you?”

  He laughed aloud, right into the phone. “You do? I mean… You do! And I do!” Her laughter on the line was like a Mozart sonata.

  Six days later—six agonizingly long days—Jacques arrived at the airport nearly two hours before Claudine’s scheduled arrival. After watching her plane taxi up to the gate, his attention was riveted on the open door of the aircraft.

  Come on, people! My God, these people are so slow…

  Finally, Claudine appeared in the doorway.

  There’s something different about her. She’s still wearing her hair short, and maybe she’s regained a little weight, which she definitely needed after her ordeal, but . . .

  Then, he saw it. The sad look in her eyes was gone. It had been replaced with the knowing look of a quiet, confident woman who was in love.

  As she passed through the gate, he extended his arms. Almost immediately, he experienced the familiar feel of her sliding up against his body. He held her tightly, afraid to let go. The deplaning passengers and those waiting for them watched as Claudine and Jacques quietly held each other.

  Once they collected her bags and cleared customs, they took a taxi to the Plaza. After checking in and sending her bags to her room, they strolled into the Oak Bar. Mike, Cecelia, Tony, and Ian were seated at a corner table. Beside the table was a line of champagne bottles turned upside down in the buckets.

  As they walked to the table, Jacques realized that this was the first time the six of them had all been together in one place since their graduation.

  What would any of us have thought if we’d known then what we know now? Would we have done things differently?

  Jacques looked around at the smiling faces, each beaming like it was the first day of school. “Well, I see you declared war on the champagne supply while you were waiting for us,” he said. “So glad you weren’t worried.”

  “What the deuce are you talking about?” Ian said. “We’ve been shot at, kidnapped, on the run, arrested by the military police, and generally put through merry hell during the last two years. Why should we have lost any drinking time fretting about whether you and Claudine could find your way back from the airport?”

  Everyone laughed. “Don’t mind Ian,” Tony said, grinning at his friend. “He’s been giddy ever since he found out Emily is on her way here to meet him.”

  Jacques gave Ian a broad smile. “Congratulations, my friend! Though, frankly, I don’t know how she had the patience to wait on you.”

  Ian shrugged, a foolish grin on his face. “I am a lucky man. And I shall dearly miss having fun with the rest of you, going forward with all this.”

&
nbsp; “You can always reconsider,” Cecelia said.

  “And risk losing Emily? No.” Ian shook his head, a little sadly. “I’ll leave saving the world to the rest of you. My forgery career is over.” Everyone smiled and nodded.

  Jacques looked around at them all.

  Yes, that is the difference, isn’t it? Ten years ago, our ideas were just a bunch of theories. Now, bloodied and battered, we are here to make a life commitment to those same ideas.

  He found a bottle that still had some champagne, poured the balance into two glasses, one for Claudine and one for himself. Next he raised his drink. “To the Six Sentinels—five in number from now on, but always six in spirit.”

  “Now on a more personal note, let us toast Mike and Cecelia. Ian and Emily, may you share a long and loving journey. Tony, may all your dreams come true, and finally, to my future wife and my partner in everything I do, may our path be lined with love, adventure, and our great friends.”