Derrick snapped a flame to another cigarette. “Because I made the mistake of saying that I intended to have her set before a firing squad for playing me for a fool. Major Schultz asked if he and his Gestapo pigs could watch the execution. Good for his men’s morale to witness the results of their labor, he said. I was forced to agree to his request.”

“The swine,” Konrad said. “But of course you’re not going through with it?”

“I have to. Otherwise, I might be accused of going soft on an enemy spy. Hitler is about over the edge. He’s ordered Himmler’s eye on every department under his command, convinced that with the way the war is going, some of us might be inclined to switch loyalties. I’ve got to take this step to avoid suspicion.”

“But, my God, Derrick, you…you have feelings for this woman!”

“All the more reason why her death is necessary, Konrad. My attraction to her is well-known and documented. The execution of the beautiful woman I’ve come to care about will play well in my favor with Himmler and prove my loyalty to Hitler. Your young friends and the engineer will simply disappear with no eyebrows raised, but if I don’t go through with this execution, I could be the one before a firing squad and our entire operation blown. I plan to arrange it for day after tomorrow, and I need your help.”

*  *  *

The search of Bridgette’s room was over in less than half an hour. The two French Gestapo men knew the hidden cavities to look for. They came down from the attic carrying the wireless set concealed in a suitcase, the mother superior hovering anxiously in her black robes at the foot of the stairs.

One of the men set the case on a refectory table and opened it. “Did you know anything about this, Mother Superior?” he demanded.

Sister Mary Frances pretended shock and shook her wimpled head. “No, I did not. All I know about Mademoiselle Dufor is that she is employed as a fashion designer at the House of Boucher. What has happened to her?”

“She’s been arrested on suspicion of being an enemy spy.” The man snapped the case shut. “This proves it.”

Sister Mary Frances made the sign of the cross. “Oh dear. Where has she been taken?”

“To our headquarters on Rue de Saussaies, where she will be interrogated.” He would have questioned the mother superior further to determine her involvement, but in France, unless for justified cause, the Catholic Church was off-limits to the French Gestapo, most of whose members were reared in the Church.