“Adelaide,” Elise said, rising and reaching for her gun, putting it back on the table. “I did listen to him, and he wasn’t capable of making that decision.”

“And I can tell you right now,” Harry said, tears shining in his eyes, “that you’ve just sent Peter to his death.”

CHAPTER EIGHT CATE

CHAPTER EIGHT

CATE

It had been harder than she’d thought to stay hidden. German soldiers were everywhere, and every voice whispering to her on the wind or sound of footfalls or vehicles had Cate’s heart pounding and her teeth chattering. Darkness was their friend, though, and as the German army continued to force the British soldiers toward the beach at Dunkirk, the closer they got to Le Paradis, the easier it became—although Cate knew that the area was probably crawling with the enemy, which meant she could never relax, not even for a second. Every noise forced her to swallow away a tide of anxiety, and every time she felt a vibration through the ground, she thought of the buildings they’d seen reduced to rubble, some of them half-blown apart and exposed like the insides of doll houses. It was horrific.

“Do you think there’s much further to go?” Cate whispered to Jack as they leaned against a tree to catch their breath. What she wanted to ask was how long he thought they could continue, because she was within an inch of collapse, which made her wonder how on earth he kept putting one foot in front of the other.

Her stomach growled; she hadn’t eaten since Dunkirk, and she was beyond hungry.

“Not far,” he said with a grunt.

Cate could hear the strain in his voice, and she inched closer to him. “How’s your pain?”

“I’m fine.”

Liar. She doubted very much that he was fine, but she chose to ignore it. For now, they had to keep moving; it was the only way they had a chance of survival. Cate had no idea how they’d managed to stay alive for so long. Under the cover of darkness, they’d managed to silently amble along, but now, as the sun was starting to lighten the sky again, she knew they had to find somewhere to keep themselves hidden.

“Jack, don’t you think we should find somewhere to rest?” she asked. “I have no idea how far Le Paradis is, but we’re moving so slowly and . . .” Fear laced her voice, and so she shut her mouth, not even sure what she was trying to say.

“Yes,” he said, surprising her. “We need to find somewhere we can survive until nightfall again.”