Vi shifted nervously. “I—I don’t have my passport with me.”
“I see. But all the information on there is correct, yes?”
“Uh . . .”
“I suspect it has her stage name on it,” Ansel said coldly, not looking at her. “She told me her real name is Violet Ernte of Chariton, Iowa. But seeing as she also said she was a stripper from Chicago, maybe that isn’t her real name.”
Oddly, the major’s smile deepened. “Don’t be disappointed, Sergeant. I’m sure she has a dozen or so names.”
Vi stilled, aware of a curious shift in the room’s atmosphere. “Is it a crime to have more than one stage name?”
“Stage name? No. But that’s not what we’re talking about here, is it, Miss Heart?” The major’s gaze sharpened. “Or should I call you Fräulein Ernte?”
Alarm bells rang in her head, turning her stomach to ice. “Wait! What?”
“Not that it matters.” The major stood. “Thank you, Sergeant, for bringing this young lady tonight. I’ll take it from here.”
“Sir, I don’t think—” Ansel began, also getting to his feet.
“Wait, what’s going on?” Vi asked, glancing uncertainly between the men.
The major started walking toward the door. “What’s going on, Miss Heart, is you’re under arrest.”
Chapter 30
“What? No! Why?” Vi’s whole universe shrank to just those two questions. Her ears buzzed. This couldn’t be happening. Maybe she had fallen asleep backstage and this was just some weird dream . . .
“Oh, come now, Miss Heart.” Major Ricca gave her a disappointed look, as if he’d expected better of her. “A German-speaking American who just happens to intercept a partisan message, then shows up at the store and attempts to interrogate one of our contacts. When that fails, she then tails Sergeant Danger to a partisan rendezvous—”
“But that’s not how it happened,” she said desperately.
“A rendezvous,” he continued over the top of her, “which was conveniently visited by not one but two SS agents, ultimately allowing her to save the day and gain the trust of the partisans—as well as Sergeant Danger here. And now that same young woman is more than happy to take on the task of seducing a dangerous man—one that is, perhaps not coincidentally, also of interest to the Nazis because he stole something from them—because, as she so readily admits, she has experience drugging men.”
“I’m not a spy,” she said, her voice shaking.
“Really?” The major cocked an eyebrow at Ansel. “Sergeant, what do you have to say in the matter?”
He sighed. “I was told the circumstances surrounding Miss Ernte joining the show were a bit irregular. An anonymous tip had a dancer fired right before the troupe left New York, and Miss Ernte was hired by the director shortly afterward. Sight unseen, as near as anyone could tell.”
“I can explain that,” Vi said, her heart beating wildly in a panic. “I know it looks bad, but it’s not what you think.”
“I’m sure it isn’t, but I’ll leave that to the interrogators to sort out.” Major Ricca started walking toward the door.
“Wait,” Vi said, desperate now. “Yes, I took Janet’s spot. And yes, I’m here under an assumed name, but I can explain. It’s not because I’m a spy. It’s because I’m hiding from the police.”
“As alibis go, that’s a rather weak one,” the major said as he put his hand on the doorknob.
“I’m not working for the Nazis. I’m . . . I’m working for the Mob.”
A look passed between the major and Sergeant Danger, and the major returned to his chair and sat down.
“Tell me more.”
Vi’s breath released. The dam broken, she poured out her story about Tony’s death, and Sal finding her this position, and her orders to keep Marcie safe from oversexed soldiers and the girl’s own impulsivity, and how the whole reason she had followed Ansel the night before was to keep Marcie out of trouble.
Exhausted and finally out of words, she braced herself for the major’s verdict. She couldn’t even look at Ansel, too afraid of what she might see in his rugged face after this new revelation.
Someday she would learn her lesson and never again dream of redemption. Her bad choices in life had forever ruined her. She needed to just accept that.
“We’ll need to verify your story, of course,” the major said, finally. “Given the sensitivity of the situation, I’m afraid you’ll have to stay under guard until we do.”
“What is the Mob’s real hold on you, Vi?” Ansel asked, startling her.
“Isn’t avoiding arrest reason enough?” she asked with a careless wave of her hand, hoping he’d