even knew he was here in the first place.”
Alfie grinned. “And that means we can move in here without having to worry about nosy neighbors.”
Blum found some newspapers that were more than two years old, which reinforced the idea that no one was likely to come to the cabin. It was well hidden and sheer chance, or divine intervention as Blum said, had led them to find it.
Blum started checking the closet and a pair of chests. They were filled with clothing. The dead man seemed about normal size and neither of the three was exceptional, so they cheerfully added more layers to their clothing. Even though there was no fire in the cabin, they already felt warmer then they’d been in weeks. The cabin was sturdily built and kept out the wind. Rosenberg thought the snow piled up outside acted as insulation.
They also found a pair of shotguns and a couple of boxes of shells to add to their arsenal.
Shelves in the kitchen were stacked with canned food. Rosenberg almost broke down. “If we’re careful, we can live for weeks on this, and I don’t care if it isn’t Kosher.”
“Just so it isn’t rotten,” Alfie said.
“Who cares if it’s rotten?” Blum laughed. “We’ve eaten worse, or have you forgotten?”
Alfie gestured towards the corpse. “What do we do with Adolf here?”
Blum frowned. “The ground’s frozen, so a decent burial is out of the question. Too bad. Even if he is a Nazi, he deserves it for possibly saving our lives.”
Rosenberg shook his head. “What we should do is dress him in his own clothing and drag his corpse several miles from here. When the spring thaw comes, someone may find him and bury him.”
“So why the hell dress him up?” Alfie asked.
Rosenberg smiled. “If he’s found in his nightshirt, people might get suspicious as to why he was wandering around the woods dressed like that. Clothed, they’ll think he had an accident and then bury what’s left after the animals are through with him.”
Alfie shuddered at the thought of woodland creatures nibbling on his body. On the other hand, their chances of surviving the winter had just taken a big jump upwards. However, they knew that surviving the coming spring might be even more difficult than making it through the winter.
“Comes the thaw,” Alfie said, “we are likely to be in the middle of the biggest fucking battle in the history of mankind.”
“I won’t mind,” said Rosenberg and Blum nodded. “Just so long as we’re on the right side and maybe, just maybe, we’ll get a chance to do something about it.”
Alfie looked over at the wide bed. “Three of us gonna sleep in that?”
Blum chuckled. “I hope so. Of course, you realize that if you sleep with us for more than a week, you’ll become Jewish.”
Alfie looked up, shocked. “You’re joking.”
Blum roared with laughter. It felt good. “Yes, Alfie, I am.”
CHAPTER 19
Jessica’s supervisor was a pleasant and plump woman in her forties named Turnbull. She was a formal but friendly Brit and nobody knew her first name. Maybe she didn’t have one, they joked. Another British girl said everything in England was rationed, so maybe first names were as well. They presumed she was married so they all called her Mrs. Turnbull. Turnbull neither commented nor corrected them, simply smiling contentedly.
When Jessica arrived, Mrs. Turnbull waved her into her small and tidy office. “Things are changing, Jessica, I need to ask you some questions regarding your future with us.”
Jessica tried to keep from showing her surprise. Had she done something wrong? She did not want to be sent back in disgrace especially since she couldn’t think of anything she might have done, or anyone she might have offended. Had the situation with Monique and her thieving boyfriend come to haunt her?
Turnbull continued. “Because of all the fighting in and around Paris, it’s been decided that we’re going to break up into smaller parts and get out of here. Tell me, do you have any problems dealing with Germans?”
“Not really,” she said, relieved. “I guess we all knew the time would come when we would have German refugees. I’m just a little surprised that you’re inferring that the time is now. I guess I should have realized it since we conquered the Rhineland.”
“Correct. We are moving a group of our people into the suburbs of the occupied German city of Aachen. The city itself is pretty well ruined, but I’ve been informed that there are suitable places on the outskirts and in suburbs just outside the city. We believe it is far enough from the Rhine to be safe and, incredibly enough, its being in Germany might just render it safer than France. At least we won’t have DeGaulle and the communists fighting each other to contend with.”
“Indeed,” Jessica said.
Turnbull grinned. “And you’ll be several hundred miles closer to your paramour.”
Jessica laughed. “He isn’t my paramour, at least not yet.”
“I realize this will cause some complications, so take the rest of the day off, pay your bills, and get packed. Inform your roommate, Monique, that I’ll help her get situated once you leave, and I’d like you to leave as quickly as possible. By the way, you’ll be heading up a section there, so take one of our cars. You’ll need it in Aachen.”
Jessica took the long way home, electing to visit her uncle, who was also glad she was leaving Paris and then informed her that much of SHAEF was also heading for Aachen instead of Rheims, France, as originally planned. A token office would remain in Paris to keep French honor satisfied, but again there was the irony that it was safer with former Nazi enemies than with French allies as the civil war raged. There had been no serious fighting in Paris for the past several days, but that didn’t mean it couldn’t flare up in an instant. Nor would her Red Cross uniform necessarily protect her. A number of innocent bystanders had been swept up in the fighting and several had been killed.
Tom Granville could tell her little about the progress of the war except the obvious-everything was on hold because of the winter weather. “Not exactly a military secret,” he said.
Nor could he tell her anything about FDR’s health since he didn’t know, a question everyone wanted answered. FDR was alive and apparently improving, but how healthy was he? It was becoming as obvious as the bad weather that his health problems went far beyond his contracting a simple case of the flu.
Her uncle did say that it was possible that GI’s would be given leave time. “Until then,” he said, “I don’t think we can pull that chewing out trick again to bring young Captain Morgan to you.”
Jessica was in good spirits as she arrived at the apartment. Being in charge of a group would be better than just being a clerk. She was confident she could handle the job and the fact that it would bring her closer to Jack was a legitimate bonus. The only difficulty she foresaw was telling Monique that she’d have to find a new place to stay. She hoped Mrs. Turnbull really could help her out, but, if she couldn’t, then there always was the women’s barracks.
Jessica turned the knob and entered. A hand clamped down on her mouth and she was thrown to the floor, knocking the wind out of her. Strong arms grabbed her and tied her hands behind her back, and a cloth was stuffed into her mouth. She was dragged into her bedroom and thrown onto the bed.
Jessica blinked. She thought she might have blacked out for an instant. Her chest hurt from where she’d slammed into the floor, but the pain was receding. She looked around and saw Monique looking down on her. Standing beside her was Monique’s former lover, Charley Boyle.
“You idiot,” Monique said to her. “Why did you have to come home now? Promise you won’t scream and I’ll remove the gag.”
Jessica nodded and her mouth was freed. Monique gave her a glass of water but did not untie her.
“I guess you two are back together again,” Jessica said dryly. “But what about Charley’s status with the army? He’s still a thief and a deserter, isn’t he?”
“Nothing’s changed,” Monique said, “except that I’m going with him.”
“Why?”
Monique shrugged. “Because I love him, and he takes care of me. You should also know that I’ve been his
