The Beekeeper's Promise (Page 26)

‘Good morning, Monsieur Lemaître,’ she said. ‘I have that newspaper article that you were asking about the other day. I hope you will find it interesting.’

‘Why, thank you, madame. That is most thoughtful of you and greatly appreciated. I’m sure I shall.’ He took the rolled-up newspaper that she pulled out of her shipping bag and tucked it under his arm. ‘Good morning to you all, ladies.’

And then Jacques walked briskly across the square, purposefully making for the door to his tiny apartment above the baker’s shop.

The next day, Sunday, Eliane was scattering some scraps for the chickens, assisted by Blanche, who was now a sturdy two-and-a-half-year-old. The little girl laughed as the rooster flapped his wings, trying to assert his authority over the hens – who ignored him and carried on pecking busily at the ground. Both of them were surprised to see Jacques Lemaître walking down the track towards the mill.

‘Good morning, Blanche and Eliane. Are your parents and Yves at home?’ he asked as he approached.

‘Of course. Please come in.’ Having ushered him inside, she offered him a seat at the table and went to find Lisette, Gustave and Yves. ‘They’re just coming,’ she told him on her return. ‘Can I offer you something to drink? Our so-called coffee is made from acorns these days I’m afraid. But there are tisanes – lime-blossom or lemon balm?’

He accepted a lime-flower tea, breathing in the summer scent of the dried blossom as she set it before him to steep. Eliane pulled up a chair and sat Blanche on her knee. Jacques watched the pair as they began to play a game of pat-a-cake and Blanche giggled, demanding that they do it ‘Again! ’ as soon as it was over.

As her parents entered, she gathered Blanche into her arms and stood, intending to leave them in private, but Jacques gestured to her to sit down again.

‘What I’m going to say concerns you all,’ he said, his expression grave. ‘Ah, bonjour, Yves.’ He stood to shake Yves by the hand, clapping him on the shoulder in a way that implied a greater degree of friendship than Eliane had been aware existed between the two young men.

‘I have received a copy of a list.’ Jacques turned to address them all, without preamble. ‘All Jews registered in the commune of Coulliac are to be rounded up for deportation to camps in the east. It’s part of a much wider programme that is planned throughout the occupied sector.’

Eliane gasped, unwittingly hugging Blanche so closely to her that the little girl wriggled and protested.

‘There are several people on this list who are your friends and neighbours.’ Jacques’ eyes met Eliane’s.

‘Francine.’ She whispered her friend’s name, her blood running cold suddenly, despite the warmth of the day.

He nodded. ‘Her and two others in the immediate area. We are trying to get word to the other people on the list, too, to warn them.’ Here, he stopped and glanced at Yves, who nodded.

‘Just tell me who they are. I’m meeting a friend for a bike ride this afternoon. We’ll work out the route to pass their doors.’ As Yves spoke, Eliane looked at him in surprise. Her little brother suddenly seemed to have grown up into someone she hardly knew.

Jacques nodded. ‘Thank you, Yves. We have very little time. But remember, take no risks.’

‘I know the drill. Don’t worry.’

‘But for Francine and the other two,’ Jacques continued, turning back to Gustave and Lisette, ‘I’ve been able to get word to a passeur – an agent who will guide them to a safe house. From there, they’ll be moved through the network to safety. However, we need to get them across the river and through a stretch of the unoccupied zone that is patrolled. The Germans have stepped up their vigilance there lately, so it’s more risky than ever.’

Gustave glanced at Lisette, who had been listening with her head bowed. ‘We can get them across the weir,’ he said, ‘but then how can they get to the rendezvous point?’

Lisette purposely avoided returning her husband’s look and instead raised her head to meet Jacques’ steady gaze.

‘I’m the one who has the permit to cross into the unoccupied zone. And it just so happens I have a patient on a farm near Les Lèves – in fact I’m overdue a visit to Madame Desclins. When are you planning on going?’

Jacques reached across and squeezed her hands, which were clasped, as if in prayer, on the table before her. ‘Thank you, Lisette. You know we wouldn’t ask unless there were no other alternative. But we’re going to have to move fast. It has to be tonight.’

‘It will be an emergency visit then. I know Madame Desclins will be pleased to see me – she’s an anxious first-time mother. I have some medication that I need to deliver to her.’ Lisette smiled as she released her hands from his and stood up. ‘Nothing out of the ordinary. Let’s do what we have to do.’

‘Stop!’ Gustave’s voice broke as he stepped forward and seized her arm to prevent her moving away from him. ‘Lisette, I can’t let you do this. The risks . . .’

She put her hand gently on his and smiled at him, although there was a sadness behind the smile. ‘You know, Gustave, my attitude has always been to try to carry on as normal, ignoring the war as much as possible, just concentrating on getting my family and my patients safely through it. But there’s a question I ask myself every day.’ She looked past him, out of the window towards the weir. ‘When do you cross the line? What does it take to reach that point? For your country to be threatened? Your way of life? Your neighbours’ homes? Or your own? For your friends to be in danger? Or your children?’ She turned back to face him. ‘Every one of us has to make that decision for ourselves. Whether we win or lose this war, we will have to live with the consequences of our decisions. I’ve asked myself: “What will be on your conscience when all this is over? What will your decision be when you get to that crossing point?” Well, I’m at that crossing point now. And I’ve made my decision. Just as all of you –’ she glanced around at Eliane, Yves and Jacques – ‘have done already.’

Gustave released his grip on her arm and nodded. But Eliane had never before seen such a look of anguish on her father’s face.

A young couple slipped into the mill house just as dusk was falling. Eliane recognised them from the market – a young man who had made his living mending watches and clocks before the war put an end to such luxuries, and his pretty, vivacious wife. Lisette greeted them warmly. ‘Daniel. And Amélie – how is the morning sickness now?’

‘Much better, thanks to those tisanes you gave me,’ the girl replied. Looking more closely, Eliane could just make out a slight rounding of her belly; although, like most of them now, the woman was so thin that her ribcage and hip bones protruded above and below it.

There was a gentle tap at the door and Eliane went to answer it. Without saying a word, she enfolded Francine in her arms and drew her into the kitchen, quickly shutting the door behind her. She held her friend tight, as Francine wept.

‘Courage,’ Eliane whispered. ‘You will all need to help each other in order to stay strong . . . And to help my mother to do this.’

Francine nodded, wiping her eyes and making an effort to pull herself together. She turned to Lisette, who was pulling on her boots. ‘Madame Martin, we cannot thank you enough.’

Lisette smiled reassuringly at Francine. ‘Don’t worry. You will be safe. The journey to freedom won’t be easy for any of you, but I know you’ll make it.’ She picked up her basket of essential oils and the leather case containing her midwifery kit.

Yves put his head round the door and said quietly, ‘The truck is ready, Maman. We’ve secured the tarpaulin in place.’

Eliane could hardly bear to watch as Gustave embraced Lisette before she clambered into the cab. The look on his face was one that wrenched at her heart – a tortured mixture of pain and fear. Lisette just smiled at him as she drove out of the yard and reached a hand through the truck’s window to pat his shoulder on the way past. She appeared her usual calm, capable self. ‘I’ll be back soon,’ she promised him.

The others waited for a few minutes in the safe haven of the kitchen, allowing enough time for her to negotiate the checkpoint on the bridge at Coulliac. She would have her documents examined thoroughly when her turn came to cross, and it was very likely that the truck would be searched too. All would be in order: just the local midwife making an urgent visit to one of her mothers-to-be on the other side of the river.

When the time came, Francine hugged Eliane as if she would never let her go. ‘I won’t ever forget what you and your family have done for me. For all of us,’ she choked.

‘Go now,’ urged Eliane. ‘Maman should be waiting for you in the lane on the other side of the field any minute now. Good luck. And Francine – I know I’ll see you again one day.’

Francine, Daniel and Amélie picked up their boots and stepped, barefoot, on to the weir. Gustave led the way, reaching out a helping hand to Amélie as she scrambled up the bank on the far side. Hurriedly, they pulled on their boots and fastened them.