jammed. She could not tell if her message had gone through or not.
Marie struggled to breathe as she processed the information. London thought Julian had landed. Where was he? Had something happened to him, midflight or on the ground? It was impossible to know, but one thing was certain: if there was a possibility that Julian had landed, there was no way she could leave France.
Marie wanted to wait to see if there was a response from London, but she did not dare make Will sit in the plane on the ground any longer than necessary and risk capture. She looked at the radio once more. It was her only source of information about Julian now, and she couldn’t bear to destroy it. No one could use it without the crystals anyway.
Grabbing the crystals and silks once more, she turned and raced from the flat to meet Will.
Outside Marie forced herself to walk normally, adjusting her sweater as she started down the street. “Mademoiselle!” a male voice called in a loud whisper. She froze, certain it was the police or one of the Germans. It was just the bookseller, though, beckoning to her from across the street.
Marie hesitated. She didn’t have time to stop. She waved, hoping that would suffice. But he continued to gesture to her. Fearing someone else might see, Marie walked hurriedly to the shop.
“Bonsoir,” she said politely, stepping inside the empty shop. She had gone into the bookstore once or twice since her arrival, looking for something to read to pass the endless hours alone. They had never exchanged a word about that first night, when she had asked him for help with the mission. What could he possibly want with her now?
He slipped her a Rudyard Kipling novel. But before she could express her confusion, he opened it to reveal an empty compartment instead. He was offering to help after all.
Only it was too late. She thought of telling him, then thought better of it. “That will be of great use,” she said. The old man’s face brightened and he stood a bit straighter, seemingly proud to help. “Thank you, monsieur.” She clasped his hand, and then walked hurriedly from the shop.
She started out of town, crossing the bridge over the canal as she had the first night Julian had brought her here. An hour later she reached the landing site. A plane idled at the center of the field and for a moment she hoped it was Julian, returning. But Will stood in the doorway, hand over his eyes as he scanned the horizon for her. His face broke when he saw her, first to relief, then impatience. “Get in, quickly. The detonator is set to go off soon. We have to leave now.”
He stepped aside to let her onto the plane, but she stood still, struggling to catch her breath from the sprint. “Will, wait. I received a transmission from London, saying that they delivered Julian.”
“But that’s impossible.” His face registered a mix of surprise and dismay. “We were at the landing site at the right time.”
“Unless he was dropped somewhere else.”
“I set the location myself. How could that happen?”
“I don’t know. Someone must have changed the location somehow. But it means Julian’s in-country. He could be anywhere, hurt or arrested or...” She could not finish the thought. “I can’t leave until we know what happened to him.”
“You mean...” He stopped short. “You aren’t planning to come with me?”
“I’ll stay here and keep looking for him. You go to London and tell them he’s missing. I tried to signal it, but I can’t tell if it went through, or maybe they didn’t believe me.”
“Marie, it won’t be safe here after the bridge is destroyed. No one cares about my cousin more than me, but this is crazy. Staying here is a death sentence.”
Marie shook her head. “I’ll take the next transport.”
“There might not be another transport.”
“You’ll find a way to come back. You always do. And while you are gone, I can keep looking for Julian. I need to be here when he returns,” she insisted. “Without a translator and a radio operator, he’ll have nothing.”
“He’s the circuit leader, for Christ’s sake!” Will exploded. “He managed for a long time before you were on the ground. He’ll manage now.”
“I can’t leave until I find him—or at least know what happened.”
“Julian would want you to go,” Will pressed. “He couldn’t go on if something happened to you. Julian has feelings for you,” he added,