Her mother spread her hands. ‘He tried to kill you anyway. It’s the only way he’ll be sure you won’t talk.’

‘I know,’ Aimee whispered. ‘What can I do?’

Mrs Fletcher picked up a shawl and threw it across her shoulders. ‘Captain Ellis is looking for a spy. Now I can tell him who it is. You stay here and feed the lambs for me.’

She found Captain Ellis in the old school, packing away the office they’d set up just a few days before. In the bustle of the hurrying men he listened. ‘Aimee’s word is not enough. No one else heard the phone call. But we can watch Silver Hand now. Even set a trap for him. Though it will have to wait. The Germans will be here tomorrow. If we remain in Bray they’ll destroy it with their guns. We need to get back to Amiens.’

‘I’ll stay here and keep spying for you.’

‘You’re a brave woman, Mrs Fletcher.’

Colette pretended to pick something off the floor to hide her blushes. ‘I have Aimee to help me. Together we’ll make life hard for the Germans. Goodbye for now. I’ll see you when you return,’ she said with a faint smile.

Captain Ellis nodded. ‘We will be back.’

But it would take longer than he thought.

26 March 1918: East of Bray

Marius watched in horror as three British fighter planes began to close in on the Baron’s Albatross. His pilot shouted, ‘Shoot at them.’

The boy looked down the barrel of the machine gun, lined up one of the Camels and pulled the trigger. ‘It’s not working,’ he cried.

The Baron steadied the plane, stood up in his seat and turned around. He pulled a small lever on the side of the gun. ‘Safety catch off first, idiot.’ He threw himself back into his seat and dived towards the River Somme, weaving to throw the enemy off his tail.

A Camel followed every move and was just fifty metres behind Marius now. The boy pulled the trigger and the gun crashed into life. Bullets spewed wide of the Camel but the enemy pilot panicked and threw his plane out of the way.

Then the Baron began firing his own gun that pointed forward as a second Camel attacked from in front of the Albatross. The British pilot fired too. Marius watched as bullets stitched a line of holes through the wings to his right and the tail-plane behind him. The next time the stitching could be through him.

Then he saw their airfield ahead where pilots and crew were running around like ants. He felt like cheering. They were almost safe. The German planes had large white patches with black crosses on their colourful wings. The Baron flew low over the field then soared upwards again.

‘Why aren’t we landing?’ the boy wailed.