Young, Brave and Beautiful Page 14
She walked to the Sueurs’ shop, taking a circuitous route to make very sure that no one was following her. If she were stopped and asked why she was wandering around, she could say she was just window-shopping before the shops opened so that she would not spend any money. Adding a smile or a tickle of humour nearly always disarms the antagonist. Violette had discovered this long before SOE training school in the ordinary run of life when her strict father was up in arms over some, possibly imagined, wrong doing by his sweet but stubborn daughter.
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The exterior of the fashion boutique was immaculate, as were the neighbouring shops. Violette was glad she looked neat and well-dressed even though her clothes were relatively inexpensive. Nothing was war-torn or shabby about these businesses.
This smart and fashionable shop was one of the most successful dead letter drops in France. Jean and Florence Sueur, professional, well known and well liked, were in a position to welcome any person into their environment. A wealthy or not-so-wealthy Résister or giver of valuable information came in under the guise of buying some expensive item. Salesmen and women came with materials for the shop to sell and to do their clandestine business in the back office. Deliverymen drove their vans up to the side door and entered with any number of cartons and boxes containing the usual materials and occasionally other, more clandestine goods. Designers and workers came to the workshop; boyfriends and girlfriends came to meet their partners for lunch or after work. Repairmen and the local press all visited at one time or another. It was an ideal cover for anyone on a secret mission. Violette later discovered that Florence as well as Jean was an external member of the Diables Noirs.
She walked into the store and breathed in the expensive air. A bell jangled as she opened the door. A woman looked up and came towards Violette introducing herself as Lise Valois and asking if she was Corinne Leroy. Surprised, Violette said that she was while shaking hands and then it occurred to her that it was the package from Madame Desvaux that gave her away. She said softly that she was delighted to meet Lise and, sticking to her cover story, that the package contained a lovely blue cardigan in need of some care and attention.
Lise showed Violette through to the workshop. Violette saw the grey of tiredness in Lise’s face, carefully disguised as it was by makeup, but nothing could mask the sadness deep within her eyes. As she directed Violette to her office in the workshop, Lise discreetly observed Violette’s unhurried demeanour. A good start, she thought to herself. A young woman of humour and discretion. And wasn’t she lovely? She was not tall; they must be about the same height. She was slim without being in the least skinny. She looked slightly athletic and in the best of health, moving easily and lightly. She certainly did not look like an Englishwoman in Lise’s eyes.
Lise asked her assistant, Marie, to bring some coffee and biscuits. Marie went off to do her bidding ensuring privacy for the two women. Turning to Violette she asked how she could be of service so Violette went through her cover that Denise Desvaux had delivered the cardigan yesterday evening with a message to pop into the shop first thing in the morning. Denise had pointed out that the buttonholes could be repaired, the torn silk lining changed and new buttons added. Violette was dying to wear it and hoped it could be done soon. Lise replied it could all be done, probably by Friday, before if it were possible.
Violette thought to herself that would be almost halfway through the month. Only sixteen days before she had to rendezvous with Philippe in Luxembourg Gardens in Paris.
Marie came in with a tray of coffee and set it on the table, whispering in Lise’s ear as she did so something Violette could not catch about a visitor. It seemed urgent and the girl was clearly agitated. Lise instructed Marie to take the visitor to the back of the workshop. She would speak to him when she finished and when she had checked that Marie had completed her chores for the day, her beau could then spirit her off with her blessing.
Violette, warming to the kind but business-like approach of the woman, immediately got down to the real reason for her visit in that she needed help to discover as much as possible about the events in February and March, what led up to them, and the present situation for the Salesman network. She also needed to pass on some instructions that could be further passed to the right people about the Allied invasion, even though she could not tell them exactly where or when the invasion would take place. Violette lastly offered funds to help any of the families who had been caught up in the dreadful nightmare. Her message was brief and to the point.
Lise poured coffee and sat down. To give herself thinking time, she leafed through a few of the papers strewn across her desk, putting them into rough order and then pushing them aside. She was convinced of this girl’s integrity and would certainly help. Corinne had nothing duplicitous about her; she was controlled and knew what she was about. What would Jean and Florence think? Her employers had been through hell, she knew from her visits to them since their arrest. She had been questioned, too, quite brusquely, but had been unharmed. It was some time since she had last been permitted to visit and she was concerned for them.
At that moment, a young man came bursting in: ‘Madame, I really must speak with you. It is of the utmost urgency.’
‘Well, Corinne, this is unexpected, but maybe it will go a long way to helping you with all you’ve told me. Let me introduce you: Corinne, this is Lucien, who is a civil servant in the Palais de Justice in Rouen. He and Marie are considering a future together – should this beastly war ever end. But please, tell me, Lucien, what is it? You can speak plainly before Corinne. She has been checked out and is bona fide.’
‘Bien, madame. Isn’t it dreadful, Nénesse and his wife – I mean, Monsieur and Madame Sueur – are being shipped from Compiègne today to Germany.’
‘Oh, merde, merde, merde!’ The news brought bitter tears to Lise’s eyes. ‘And I suspect the rest of your news is just as terrible, eh?’ Lise tried hard to contain her fear for her employers, but theirs was a friendship that had enlivened twenty years of business. Their imprisonment had been bad enough; their deportation was horrifying.
‘Yes, madame, I’m afraid so. All the men arrested in February and March are being deported from Compiègne to Germany. Except, of course, for those who have died at the hands of the Gestapo or been shot. I think Broni is still being held. He apparently managed to send a rushed last message to London. Ninety-six people are on the transport, Madame Sueur included, with a number of other women. I’m so sorry, madame.’
‘Thank you for letting me know so promptly. At least they’re still alive. I shall pass this on, as will Corinne to London. Now, can you help her further? I think she should meet a group leader at the earliest opportunity, Lucien. You know who I mean. In the first instance, a meeting can take place at Le Tabac near the Gros Horloge56 or at the Gare de Rouen – the sooner the better – and maybe with one of his lieutenants. Meanwhile, Corinne and I shall go for a walk while I fill her in on what I know, and see how she can help some of the families of these men. It is part of her mission here to do exactly that and she has the immediate means to do so. That’s so, isn’t it Corinne?’
‘Absolutely! Except I’m supposed to have lunch with Denise – in her apartment – at one o’clock,’ replied Violette with a brief smile and nod.
‘It’s just after quarter past ten. We have time to stop for a Viennese coffee in an establishment frequented by German officers and their gals. It’ll help for you to be seen with me. After all, I dress most of their womenfolk. Lucien, you come to Madame Desvaux if you get news with regard to meetings.’
He nodded his assent.
‘Perfect!’ exclaimed Violette. ‘By the way, my “reason” for being in Rouen is that I’ve just arrived and am on my way home to Le Havre after spending Easter in Paris. I’ve been asked by family to find – or find out what has happened to – an uncle missing in Rouen. So, I really need a bicycle. That’s the story I gave to a soldier who inspected my identity papers, so they’ll expect that, and t
hat I meet people. A bike would be ideal – can you help me with that, Lucien?’
‘Oh, of course! It’s difficult to find one that’s at least in halfway decent working order these days, but I shall make sure you have one for tomorrow. Where shall we deliver it to?’
‘I’m staying at a little hotel, in rue Saint-Romain. Madame Thivier is the patronne. She’ll be happy to take delivery for me.’
‘Perfect. She’s a good woman and can be trusted, even though she’s not attached to any group. We’re thinking of using her as a cutout.57 I must be off – my office will wonder where I am. I’ll mention a little problem with my young lady and that’ll keep them quiet!’ He laughed as he gestured towards Marie, who turned pink. ‘Au revoir à tous!’
‘Au revoir,’ chorused all in the office and workshop as he strode out into the street.
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Lise and Violette were left in the office to finish their coffee. It turned out that Lise had, over the years, spent many hours working with and liked Denise Desvaux. While they were chatting, they discussed whether lunch was wise, and Lise felt that the blue cardigan was a perfectly good reason to discuss business over lunch with Denise.
And so it was decided.
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It was with a feeling of relief that, for a while, Violette would not have to walk alone in the streets of Rouen. Now about eleven in the morning, Lise and Violette decided to have a coffee in the ground floor café-bar of Le Bristol, which is still on the corner of rue aux Juifs in this quaint and busy area today. Comfortably dim inside, here clandestine meetings took place on a regular basis in the restaurant and in private rooms on the first floor. It was not difficult to find a corner table, where they ordered two grands crèmes. Lise felt safer not discussing their clandestine work in the more fashionable cafés which the Germans tended to patronise. They chatted about inconsequential things and then Lise described what had happened around her, saying that they had been having a pretty grim time since Inspector Alie was recruited by Vichy. He had completed a wide ranging roundup from Le Havre to Rouen and surrounding areas. He personally had maltreated a number of men; some died in excruciating pain under torture and, often enough, were summarily shot on his orders. Alie had been most assiduous in his chosen task, particularly two weeks from the end of February to early March. Violette listened, horrified. Jean and Florentine had got wind of what was going on and had tried to persuade Claude Malraux to get away while he could. He refused. Lise, however, had tried to insist that Jean and Florentine disappear but it was already too late. They had been arrested, along with Claude Malraux and Isidore. Roger Mayer, who had led the Le Havre group, had been arrested and beaten to a pulp. He had planned and participated in the derailing of a German troop train. His saboteurs had also blown sky-high the entry gates to a factory that produced U-boat components, thus gaining access for other saboteurs.
The women, including Lise, had also been arrested and spent several nights in prison, been interrogated but not tortured. Florentine had been questioned three times but she gave the impression she was strongly against all Résistance activity because of reprisals. She did not care a whit what they thought she knew; she would not tell them a thing of the very great deal she did know or could surmise, or about the activities she had been involved in.
Lise had helped the Sueurs in all things. Under his cover name of Nénesse, Jean Sueur was an essential liaison between the Diables Noirs and Claude, in contact with Philippe’s Salesman circuit. Lise had now taken their place as best she could. Violette understood her sentiments and felt Lise’s passion and strength mirrored her own feeling.
She understood from Lise just how people had broken under the strain of arrest and fear. Among those left, many were far too frightened to continue resisting except passively but that there were still quite a few, even in Rouen, who continued the work building up to an invasion by the Allies – more than Philippe might have thought after the disaster of his blown circuit. It was essential to be so very careful to whom one spoke. Lucien from the Palais de Justice was a good man, Lise reported. He had helped them enormously in procuring papers and stamps, having them carefully copied and returning the originals so that nobody was the wiser. As an external member of Libé-Nord and Diables Noirs, Lucien had a hand in many nefarious activities, causing much damage to the enemy. He had intimated to Lise in an aside earlier on, she had told Violette, that he would willingly act as messenger or guide, if she needed it, to deliver information, instructions or plans and to attend the financial needs of stricken families, or receive intelligence for delivery to London. He was entirely trustworthy, Lise added, after having undergone a number of trials.
Violette asked when she could meet other Maquis members and Résistants and also wanted to know if she could get to Le Havre. She had her full set of perfectly produced false papers for the region stating she was born in that zone and lived in the town as a commercial secretary. Le Havre was one of the most difficult areas to enter as it was in the red zone of the restricted area. German military and naval personnel had flooded into the town. And, of course, the Gestapo, SD and French Milice were constantly on the lookout for those involved in sabotage, clandestine printing and intelligence activities for the Allies.
Violette was happy to have some company at last. She felt the tension easing in pleasant, unhurried surroundings. She carefully studied the barman, the waiter and customers while they surreptitiously looked her over. They knew Lise well, and she chatted to them and introduced Violette as one of her new clients. This coded message told them that Violette was to be trusted and helped, so one or two smiled at her in greeting. The fact the coffee was real was equally a silent welcome, part of the unspoken code of recognition. Violette felt she could turn to the staff if she so needed, but knew too that she had to prove her worth in the first place.
An hour later, after a few à tout à l’heures,58 the two women strolled to rue Jeanne d’Arc with a few detours to shake off anyone who might be interested in their destination.
‘You know, Corinne, in spite of the privations, women here remain remarkably well-dressed and even elegant.’
‘A lot more so than English women, I can assure you!’ lamented Violette.
Lise continued, ‘My nineteen-year-old niece, Édith, raided the attic and found piles of old clothes. From them, she has made an entire wardrobe, even her own bras (with a little help from me). She makes her own shoes, as do quite a few women. They buy the wooden soles ready-made and shaped, join them onto uppers made of material, old leather and other leftovers and now wear them as the most fashionable article around! They do look good, too.’
‘We put make-up or dye on our legs and then run a pencil line up the back of the calf to look like real silk or nylon stockings,’ commented Violette.
‘Oh, yes, we do that here too. And the son of a friend of mine found an abandoned pair of British soldier’s boots. He repaired them with bits of canvas and leather. He’s still wearing them. Amazing really! How quickly we become scavengers. And yet scavenging with style, I’d say!’
They both laughed, enjoying one another’s tales. It helped Lise to put aside for a while the dreadful plight of her employers. She did not want to talk about them for she was sure she would burst into tears, and she wanted to keep her composure in front of this brave British agent.
They picked their way through an area of ruin and rubble, stopping to watch a teenager digging furiously with his hands in the debris. Finally, he triumphantly held high a box of tools to show his two pals, then went back to scrabbling, hoping to find more treasure. Suddenly Lise nearly fell and grabbed Violette’s proffered arm. Looking to see what had tripped her, they saw an arm bone, almost fleshless, its stiff fingers pointing along the ground. The lad must have dislodged it while digging. He studiously ignored it, and them. They both grimaced and walked on.
In the next square, a girl was bent over her upturned bicycle next to a German marine, replacing the chain. Violette thought how strang
e it was to see a peaceful co-operative scene of occupier and occupied while just around the corner some black outfitted officer was pushing and shouting at someone.
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They arrived at Denise’s apartment building and climbed the stairs. Lise knocked, and immediately Denise opened the door and ushered them in with a smile of surprise to see Lise accompanying Violette.
‘I see you’ve brought my dear friend to join us, Corinne. Thank goodness I managed to get an extra baguette. After our conversation yesterday, I went to Micheline’s and we made the plan with the cardigan. It seems that I made the right decision for once. You couldn’t find a better person than Lise to help you.’
‘Glad to help in any way,’ smiled Lise, pleasant and charming. She took a large pot of pâté from her handbag and presented to Denise who thanked her. Lise looked exactly what she was: the manager of a ladies’ fashion store; elegant and worldly wise. As she walked in, she put her gloves and purse on the hall table. ‘We shall have a good discussion, the three of us, Corinne, on how we can assist you.’
‘You have already been so kind, Lise, and you too Denise when I knocked on your door so unexpectedly,’ replied Violette quietly. ‘I’m truly delighted to have met you both. I had heard so much of the help that you’ve given to my friends over the last year. Clément, or as you may know him, Charles, asked me to tell you that I will do anything I can to help you. He is particularly concerned about the families: should any of them find themselves in difficulty – financial or otherwise – I am in a position, and very much wish, to help.’