apprehensive, knowing the longer she was anywhere, the greater chance there was of being exposed. Anne-Marie must have perceived her fear and placed a hand on her arm.
‘You are secure here, Sparrow. No one knows of this place.’
‘We only use it occasionally,’ Terrier added. ‘I live in Le Diben and I hate involving my sister in my adventures.’ He stamped out his cigarette, waves of smoke coiling up from his lip. ‘But it is the only way. There is nowhere appropriate here for a female operative to be overnight without raising suspicion. You and I will travel together in the morning,’ he added.
That surprised Vivi. She’d expected to be making the journey alone but was grateful she would have his company.
As the day wore on, they settled into easy conversation. Terrier had a great sense of humour, and Anne-Marie was the perfect foil for his jokes and stories. She playfully punched him on the arm or shook her head in mock disbelief as he regaled Vivi with funny anecdotes of their childhood.
Anne-Marie cooked them a lovely late lunch, and after two glasses of wine, Vivi had to pinch herself to remember that she was undercover on her way to Paris to be a spy. She felt as if she was abroad visiting friends. They talked and laughed about all manner of things, avoiding conversations about their work in the war or the occupation as she had been trained to do.
Terrier appeared to have nothing else to do for the day, and as late morning moved into the afternoon, Anne-Marie brought out another bottle of good French wine and a gramophone record player, on which she started to play music. Terrier pulled Vivi to her feet before she had time to react. He laughed as he drew her in firmly, pinning her hands playfully behind her back.
‘I hope your training is better than this,’ he joked.
A playful smile moved across Vivi’s lips, as quickly twisting her wrists she moved them into a different angle, so she was able to force him to release his grip and then pin him herself, her arm around his neck, as Anne-Marie roared with laughter.
Vivi whispered into his ear, ‘Would you like to see where I keep my knife? You’re in the perfect position for me to slash your throat.’
Terrier thrust his free hand into the air as he too roared with laughter. She spun him around, and gently took both of his hands and started a dance with him, as Anne-Marie sang along shouting out her encouragement.
‘There may be a war on,’ he rasped out through stilted breath as he tried to keep up with Vivi’s impressive dance moves, ‘but we can still enjoy ourselves, no?’ he said, quirking an eyebrow.
Vivi felt the stress leaving her body. Everything leading up to her mission had been so intense, the warnings so dire, consequences so weighted. The last thing she’d expected to be doing in France was dancing with a good-looking man.
Later, Anne-Marie served them dinner. She had food that Vivi had not seen since before the war – there were eggs, butter and coffee, and she wondered if Terrier or Anne-Marie had connections to the black market.
As they laughed and talked late into the evening, the conversation drifted to what they all wanted to do once the war was over.
‘I just want to go back to having a peaceful life,’ Anne-Marie mused wistfully.
‘You don’t enjoy all this excitement, then?’ Terrier’s eyes flashed as he lit another cigarette.
Anne-Marie shook her head as she started to clear the dishes to the sink. ‘No, I want to be very boring after the war. I want to get married and have three children, and grow fat and be happy.’
Vivi contemplated her words. She hadn’t thought much about what she would do after the war. She tended to be an impulsive person, driven by whatever was calling to her at the time.
Terrier shook his head. ‘Not me. I want to go out in a blaze of glory. I would rather live a short but exciting life than die of boredom in obscurity. I want to take out one hundred German soldiers before I die. Then they will create a great monument to me, the Terrier, and they shall put it right here, in the centre of your town, Anne-Marie.’
Anne-Marie shook her head, laughing. ‘You’re incorrigible,’ she said, tapping her brother’s cheeks with the palm of her hand.
Vivi watched this interaction with a sense of awe. They obviously loved each other deeply