Breaking the Code - Chapter 16
Numb3rs/Foyle's War crossover, set in WWII
Characters: Don, Alan & Charlie Eppes, Colby Granger, Larry Fleinhardt, Christopher Foyle, Samantha Stewart, Paul Milner
Rating: T for some violence and ethnic slurs
Beta: The inimitable Digeediva, grammarian supreme, and queen of the whumpers.
Note: Some of my characters, good guys and bad guys, have attitudes that might be offensive to 21st century readers. I decided to let my characters' attitudes reflect their times rather than the sensibilities of readers in 2009. If you find this offensive, I sincerely apologize.
Chapter 16
“I don’t know, Charlie,” Larry said as he finished the last of his fish. “I think Otto Stern has a good chance at winning the Nobel Prize in physics this year. You remember the lecture he gave last year at Berkley?”
“Of course I do, but don’t you think they’re going to have to ignore the work he did with Gerlach? I mean, Gerlach decided to stay in Germany.”
“Well, so did Heisenberg. That doesn’t mean he’s a Nazi.”
“Gerlach and Heisenberg both had ample opportunities to leave. Why didn’t they?”
Larry shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe they didn’t want to leave their families? It doesn’t mean they agree with what Hitler is doing. But you can’t deny that Stern’s work has been groundbreaking.”
“We’ll just have to wait and see what the Nobel committee thinks. You feel like having dessert?” Charlie asked.
“I would dearly love strawberry shortcake with whipped cream,” Larry said with a sigh. “But I imagine that’s not going to happen.”
“I think you’re right.” Charlie hailed the waitress. “Miss? We’d like to order dessert.”
“Oh, very good, Sir. We have rhubarb pie, spotted dick with custard, or a nice custard pie.”
The men stifled their grins, and Larry asked. “What’s spotted dick?”
“Oh, it’s a lovely steamed suet pudding with dried currants in it. I think you’d enjoy it, if you don’t mind my saying.”
Charlie struggled not to laugh. “Well, then, we’ll definitely have to try the spotted dick, won’t we, Larry?”
“Definitely. And we’d like coffee too, please.”
“Of course, Sir. I’ll be back in a moment.”
The spotted dick didn’t look anything like Charlie and Larry expected. It was a rather unpretentious tan colored cylindrical slice, speckled with currants, resting in a pool of custard. They exchanged glances, then tasted the pudding. “Mmmm,” Charlie said. “She was right. It is very good.”
“It is. Unfortunately, I don’t believe it could ever attain popularity back home unless we gave it a different name.”
==============================
Don grinned at Sam’s expression as the waitress placed the sizzling steak in front her. Once the waitress had left, he said, “I hope it’s as good as it looks.”
“Even if it isn’t, it will still be the best meal I’ve had since rationing started.”
“Well, here goes,” Don said as they began cutting their steaks.
Sam closed her eyes and savored the first bite. When she opened them again, she smiled. “Perfect.”
They ate quietly for a few minutes, watching the seagulls swoop close to the diners. Don chuckled as he noticed Sir Walter shooing a particularly persistent bird away. Just as Sam turned to see what he was laughing at, Susan Berry looked their way and nodded slightly.
“You should say hello to her,” Sam said, turning back to face Don. “It looks like she recognized you.”
“Nah. That’s okay. She’s just someone I met for thirty seconds on the train. I’ll tell Charlie she’s here, though. I think he has a crush on her.”
“Really? She is pretty. And rich. How does Charlie know her?”
“They work together at our … other assignment.”
“Ooh, the top secret assignment they tore you away from to come here. If you and Miss Berry both work there, but didn’t know each other, it must be a large operation.”
“It is. Very large. When we saw her, she said she was going to London to visit with her mother. She didn’t say anything about coming here.”
“Should she have? I mean, this is still pretty much a free country. They do limit travel to the coast, but if she has relatives here, and I imagine she has a security clearance of some sort if she’s working with Charlie … .”
Don shook off his feeling of unease and chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. I’m just getting paranoid. Eat your steak before it gets cold.”
When they finished their meals, Don glanced at his watch. “We’d better get going. The movie will be starting soon.”
Sam rolled her eyes. “There’ll be the newsreel first. More depressing news from the front, undoubtedly.” She glanced out at the fortifications on the beach. “I think the worst was when the boats brought the survivors back from Dunkirk.”
“They landed here?”
“They did. The fishing fleet went across the channel to pick them up. I was with Mr. Foyle. He had come to tell one of the fishermen his son was no longer a suspect in a murder. But the poor boy had been killed by a Jerry bullet while he was loading survivors onto his dad’s boat.”
Don hailed the waitress and paid the bill. “Please thank the chef for us. The steak was wonderful.”
“I will, Sir. You and the lady have a good evening.”
As they walked past Sir Walter’s table, Don nodded. “Good evening,” he said politely.
Sir Walter scowled, clearly trying to remember who Don was. Susan smiled and said, “Good evening, Captain Eppes. I hope you and your brother enjoy your seaside holiday.”
“You too, Miss Berry,” Don smiled politely.
Once they were out of earshot, Sam said, “Does she really think you’re here on holiday?”
“Who knows? I gave up trying to figure women out long ago.”
Sam gave him a playful punch, and didn’t resist when he grabbed her hand and continued to hold it as they walked to the theater.
---------------------------------------------------
Anna glanced up as Larry and Charlie passed, but quickly looked away when Charlie opened his mouth to speak. She had taken out a notebook and was writing as she drank her coffee. “Good evening, Miss Buonaroti,” Charlie said softly. She didn’t reply.
Charlie slowly shook his head, let out a frustrated sigh and pulled out his pocket watch as he and Larry entered the lobby. “I think I’m going to go back to the school and work for a little while.”
“Would you like me to come along?” Larry asked reluctantly.
“No,” Charlie said, “You have your own work to do. Turing will be down here to hound you for it if you don’t get him his results.” He glanced back at the dining room. “I had hoped to be otherwise occupied after dinner.”
“She is a temperamental young lady, isn’t she?” Larry said.
“She is that. I’m beginning to think she’s more trouble than she’s worth. Just the thought of spending the next fifty years with someone like that gives me the willies.”
“You’re young yet, Charles. You have plenty of time to find that special someone. Speaking of time, I’d better get to work. Just be careful, will you? Even with double summer time, it’s going to be dark when you walk back and they keep the streetlights off now.”
“I’ll be careful.”
“And don’t forget to pull the blackout shades and turn everything off when you’re done.”
“Yes, Mother,” Charlie laughed. “See you later, alligator!”
“In a while, crocodile,” Larry waved as he headed up the stairs.
---------------------------------------------------------
“So, how’d you like ‘Sullivan’s Travels?’” Don asked as he and Sam joined the crowd pouring out onto the street.
“I loved it! I haven’t seen Joel McCrea in many comedies, but he’s very good. It was funny, but it was more than a comedy, you know? It had a very good message to it. People going through tough times do need something to brighten their day.”
“You mean, they don’t need a ponderous, serious movie like that “Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou” that Sully wanted to make?”
“Not at all. If you’re living ponderous and serious, you certainly don’t want to see it for entertainment. Thank you so much for bringing me.” Sam ran her fingers through her hair. “I wonder how I’d look with Veronica Lake’s hairstyle.”
Don touched her hair gently. “You’d look lovely no matter what you did with your hair.”
Sam laughed and began pulling bobby pins out of her hair. She shook her head and let her strawberry blonde hair drape over her right eye. “There. Whaddya think of that, Mr. Smearcase?”
Don laughed and brushed her hair back from her eye. “Nice Veronica Lake imitation. You dropped your accent!”
“Accent? What accent? You’re the one with the accent ‘ere, Yank,” Sam replied in an exaggerated Cockney accent.
Don checked his watch. “How about we stop at a pub on the way back to your place? We’ve got a little while before closing time.”
“I’d love it,” Sam said as she pinned her hair back into place. “It’s easier to see with both eyes uncovered.”
“You know, there’s a newsreel playing in the states reminding women who work in factories to keep their hair back out of their faces. They even got Veronica Lake to model the preferred hairstyle. It looked a lot like the way you wear your hair while you’re on duty.”
“Really? Does this mean I’m a fashion leader?”
Don took her hand gently and gave it a squeeze. “You should be.” He caught sight of a pub up ahead of them. “How’s the Bird and Whistle?”
Sam shrugged. “I haven’t been in there before, but it looks all right to me.” She looped her arm through Don’s. “Besides, I have a big strong soldier boy to protect me if it gets too rough in there.”
---------------------------------------------
Walking by himself from the inn to the school, Charlie was able to pay more attention to his surroundings. The buildings were squeezed together on narrow streets that meandered down from the surrounding hills to the sea. He passed a bombed out pub and wondered if that was where Sharon Levine had been murdered. Shuddering, he hurried past the building. He wondered whether she knew what was in the message. Did she know her killer? He glanced nervously over his shoulder. Was she killed for the message, and if so, was the killer still around?
Charlie began to wonder if it was smart to walk to the school by himself. It was too late to turn back now. He could see the school ahead in the fading daylight. He might as well spend a couple of hours tinkering with the code to see if he could get it to make any sense. Then he could get back to Bletchley. Larry would be thrilled to hear that. Don wouldn’t.
He wondered how Don’s date with Sam was going. She was a cute girl, and she and Don seemed to really hit it off. Bletchley wasn’t all that far away, so it was possible that they could continue their relationship even after they finished here. He hoped so, anyway. When they were kids, Don had missed out on a lot because their parents were busy arranging for tutors and special classes to nurture Charlie’s genius. Maybe he should take his time with the deciphering and buy his brother a little more time with his new girlfriend. He smiled to himself. There was really no way of knowing how close he was to a solution. That’s why Bletchley had crossword experts and others who were used to picking words out of a jumble of letters. His could deal with the numerical aspects of deciphering, but sometimes the words eluded him.
As he climbed the steps to the school front door, he fished the key out of his pocket. He glanced back down at the street. The good citizens of Hastings were bustling about their evening business, heading home from work, going to the pub, or maybe even a movie like Don and Sam. None of them paid any attention to him as he unlocked the door and entered the empty school building.
He slipped the key back into his pocket and entered the classroom. Everything was as they had left it just a few hours earlier. He studied the letters on the board. The list under “witsef” was clearly wrong, so he turned back to the list under “hitsef.”
LILBBQ TWIELM RRIOEO AMBXRX EYFBRE TJUGEK OUAKEF OTADET ERHHSF AGEBFB OSSBBX EONEYW ILLAED ASAEAE TRELOD TSHXWU LLBXKZ OWNTSE ECOGDE UBAETQ RNEEIL ABEMHI INDLOD KESMRQ LWIELB ROVBDQ ANYMHU NGHYUZ EEDVOZ TACMMQ ASSHOZ ASYHUT AVETCO OMPEIE HEDROG RMILSU ONNXXF DROIWU LLBXIZ THEPHU TEFXAF HER
That was wrong as well, but it looked like it made more sense than the other list. Even to his mathematically trained eye, words were beginning to form. He and Larry had discussed replacing the ‘s’ with an ‘l.’ Working alone, it would take longer, but he settled down to work, writing HITLEF on a blackboard and beginning to write the letters below it.
He had gotten as far as LILIBQ TWILLM RRIVEO when he heard a noise out in the hallway. He stood, frozen, then turned toward the door, holding his breath. The noise repeated, and he identified it as the sound of an old building settling. Blowing out his breath, he wished someone had thought to bring a radio into the room to break the silence. He turned back to his work and decided to hum. Finally, he settled on Glenn Miller’s “Chattanooga Choo Choo.” The humming quickly changed to soft singing. Nothing like a catchy tune to overcome the creaking of an old building.
He had just written the next group of letters, AMBERX EYFIRE TJUNEK OUAREF when the classroom door slammed open. He spun around, half expecting to see Don and Sam. Three men stood in the doorway, grinning. “Uh, can I help you?” Charlie asked.
“Yeah,” one of the men, a burly redhead said as they approached Charlie. “You can get the hell out of Hastings, you bloody Yank.”
“I … I’m afraid I won’t be able to accommodate you. I’m working with the police … .”
“The coppers will just have to make do without you,” the redhead said. He and one of the others, a blond in mechanic’s overalls, stood in front of Charlie, while the other man stood behind him. Charlie glanced back at the man, thinking he looked vaguely familiar.
“Yeah, kike,” the man snarled, “we met in the pub at lunchtime. I didn’t know who you was then, or I would have taken care of business at lunch.”
“Who do you think I am? Listen, I’m just a professor …
“Shaddup!” Mick punched Charlie in the face, knocking him into the others.
The redhead grabbed Charlie and held him as Mick punched him in the stomach. Charlie doubled over, and the redhead yanked him upright again. “You’re a professor who’s gonna get his bloody yank arse out of Hastings.”
“The police are going to … .”
“The police ain’t gonna do nothin’,” Mick said as he punched Charlie in the ribs. “You ain’t gonna tell them who we are.”
“I don’t know who you are,” Charlie groaned.
The redhead punched Charlie in the kidney. “You’re not gonna even remember what we look like.”
Charlie’s knees buckled, and he would have fallen to the floor if the redhead and the blond hadn’t dragged him back to his feet. The blond slugged Charlie in the face. He dropped to the floor, unconscious.
-------------------------------------------------
Don opened the door to the Bird and Whistle and ushered Sam into the pub. The other customers, mostly fishermen, looked up as they entered. Don glanced at Sam and whispered, “Is this okay?”
“It’s fine,” Sam said. “I hope. We’ll see how the publican reacts when we approach the bar.”
The publican grinned as they approached. “What can I get you, Sir?”
“I’ll have a pint. The lady…,” he turned questioningly to Sam.
“I’ll have a half pint,” she told Don.
“The lady will have a half pint.”
Once Don had their drinks in hand, he and Sam went in search of a table. They finally found one in a relatively quiet corner. Don glanced around the room. The fishermen had apparently decided the strangers were all right and had gone back to their own conversations and drinks. “There are no other ladies here,” Don said.
“That’s not unusual,” Sam said. “This is clearly a local. The men come here to get away from their wives.”
Don laughed and touched Sam’s cheek. “I’d never come to a bar to get away from you.”
Sam blushed and looked down at her beer.
“I’m sorry,” Don said softly. “Am I being too forward for you?”
Sam shrugged, not looking up. “Not really. It’s just that you’ll be gone as soon as your brother’s finished his work.”
Don sighed. “True. And before long, I’ll be back home. It doesn’t give us much time.”
“No, it doesn’t.” She finally looked up and met Don’s eyes. “It’s not fair, really. I would like to get to know you better.”
“You think there could be something between us?”
Sam looked away again. “There could be. But how are we going to know? I’m not going to pick up and follow you. And you’re certainly not free to stay here.”
Don took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I guess we just have to enjoy what little time we have together.”
“That we’ll have to do,” Sam said, taking a long drink of her beer.
They had nearly finished their beers when the publican announced, “Last orders, gentlemen.”
“You want another?” Don asked.
“No, thank you. This is more than enough for me. We still have a ways to walk.”
They finished their drinks, and left just as the publican was announcing closing, “Time, please, gentlemen.”
Don put his arm over Sam’s shoulders and pulled her close as they walked. “This has been fun,” he said. “Are there any other movies playing here? We could do this again tomorrow night.”
“I’d love to. I think there’s a cinema in the High Street. I don’t know what’s playing there, though.”
“Does it matter?” Don asked.
Sam grinned and snuggled closer to him. “Not at all.”
“All right. It’s a date then.”
When they arrived at Sam’s place, Don slipped his arm from her shoulders and took her hands in his. “Sam Stewart, this has been a great night.”
Sam looked up at him, smiling. “That it has, Don Eppes.”
Don leaned down and kissed her gently. When they came up for breath, he touched her cheek. “See you tomorrow?”
Sam stood on her tiptoes and kissed him again. “See you tomorrow.”
Don watched as Sam trotted up the steps and opened the door. She turned and waved. “Good night.”
“Good night,” he said as she went inside and closed the door behind her. He waited until he heard the door lock before he turned toward the inn. He had taken two steps when he heard a sound behind him. He turned, but not quickly enough. Something hit him in the head. He stumbled, reaching for his gun, realizing too late that he had left it in his room. Someone grabbed his arm and twisted it behind him. He flung his left elbow back, and heard a grunt behind him. The grip on his arm loosened enough that he could pull free, but there were two more men in front of him. One slammed a meaty fist into his mouth, and the other grabbed his arm before he could react.
The assailant he had elbowed came around front and punched him in the gut. “Bloody Yank! Why don’t you go back where you belong?”
Don struggled to free himself. Suddenly, the thug holding him let out a yell and released his grip. Don turned to see what happened, and caught sight of Sam, swinging a shovel at Don’s assailants. “Get out of here!” She yelled. “I’ve called the police and they’ll be here any minute.”
One of the thugs snarled, “We’ll be back for you and your brother, kike,” then turned and ran with the others.
Don swayed. Sam grabbed him. “Come on. Let’s get you inside.”
Author’s Note: Here’s a link to the WWII public service newsreel Veronica Lake made: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgpvKXLTwr8
Characters: Don, Alan & Charlie Eppes, Colby Granger, Larry Fleinhardt, Christopher Foyle, Samantha Stewart, Paul Milner
Rating: T for some violence and ethnic slurs
Beta: The inimitable Digeediva, grammarian supreme, and queen of the whumpers.
Note: Some of my characters, good guys and bad guys, have attitudes that might be offensive to 21st century readers. I decided to let my characters' attitudes reflect their times rather than the sensibilities of readers in 2009. If you find this offensive, I sincerely apologize.
Chapter 16
“I don’t know, Charlie,” Larry said as he finished the last of his fish. “I think Otto Stern has a good chance at winning the Nobel Prize in physics this year. You remember the lecture he gave last year at Berkley?”
“Of course I do, but don’t you think they’re going to have to ignore the work he did with Gerlach? I mean, Gerlach decided to stay in Germany.”
“Well, so did Heisenberg. That doesn’t mean he’s a Nazi.”
“Gerlach and Heisenberg both had ample opportunities to leave. Why didn’t they?”
Larry shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe they didn’t want to leave their families? It doesn’t mean they agree with what Hitler is doing. But you can’t deny that Stern’s work has been groundbreaking.”
“We’ll just have to wait and see what the Nobel committee thinks. You feel like having dessert?” Charlie asked.
“I would dearly love strawberry shortcake with whipped cream,” Larry said with a sigh. “But I imagine that’s not going to happen.”
“I think you’re right.” Charlie hailed the waitress. “Miss? We’d like to order dessert.”
“Oh, very good, Sir. We have rhubarb pie, spotted dick with custard, or a nice custard pie.”
The men stifled their grins, and Larry asked. “What’s spotted dick?”
“Oh, it’s a lovely steamed suet pudding with dried currants in it. I think you’d enjoy it, if you don’t mind my saying.”
Charlie struggled not to laugh. “Well, then, we’ll definitely have to try the spotted dick, won’t we, Larry?”
“Definitely. And we’d like coffee too, please.”
“Of course, Sir. I’ll be back in a moment.”
The spotted dick didn’t look anything like Charlie and Larry expected. It was a rather unpretentious tan colored cylindrical slice, speckled with currants, resting in a pool of custard. They exchanged glances, then tasted the pudding. “Mmmm,” Charlie said. “She was right. It is very good.”
“It is. Unfortunately, I don’t believe it could ever attain popularity back home unless we gave it a different name.”
==============================
Don grinned at Sam’s expression as the waitress placed the sizzling steak in front her. Once the waitress had left, he said, “I hope it’s as good as it looks.”
“Even if it isn’t, it will still be the best meal I’ve had since rationing started.”
“Well, here goes,” Don said as they began cutting their steaks.
Sam closed her eyes and savored the first bite. When she opened them again, she smiled. “Perfect.”
They ate quietly for a few minutes, watching the seagulls swoop close to the diners. Don chuckled as he noticed Sir Walter shooing a particularly persistent bird away. Just as Sam turned to see what he was laughing at, Susan Berry looked their way and nodded slightly.
“You should say hello to her,” Sam said, turning back to face Don. “It looks like she recognized you.”
“Nah. That’s okay. She’s just someone I met for thirty seconds on the train. I’ll tell Charlie she’s here, though. I think he has a crush on her.”
“Really? She is pretty. And rich. How does Charlie know her?”
“They work together at our … other assignment.”
“Ooh, the top secret assignment they tore you away from to come here. If you and Miss Berry both work there, but didn’t know each other, it must be a large operation.”
“It is. Very large. When we saw her, she said she was going to London to visit with her mother. She didn’t say anything about coming here.”
“Should she have? I mean, this is still pretty much a free country. They do limit travel to the coast, but if she has relatives here, and I imagine she has a security clearance of some sort if she’s working with Charlie … .”
Don shook off his feeling of unease and chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. I’m just getting paranoid. Eat your steak before it gets cold.”
When they finished their meals, Don glanced at his watch. “We’d better get going. The movie will be starting soon.”
Sam rolled her eyes. “There’ll be the newsreel first. More depressing news from the front, undoubtedly.” She glanced out at the fortifications on the beach. “I think the worst was when the boats brought the survivors back from Dunkirk.”
“They landed here?”
“They did. The fishing fleet went across the channel to pick them up. I was with Mr. Foyle. He had come to tell one of the fishermen his son was no longer a suspect in a murder. But the poor boy had been killed by a Jerry bullet while he was loading survivors onto his dad’s boat.”
Don hailed the waitress and paid the bill. “Please thank the chef for us. The steak was wonderful.”
“I will, Sir. You and the lady have a good evening.”
As they walked past Sir Walter’s table, Don nodded. “Good evening,” he said politely.
Sir Walter scowled, clearly trying to remember who Don was. Susan smiled and said, “Good evening, Captain Eppes. I hope you and your brother enjoy your seaside holiday.”
“You too, Miss Berry,” Don smiled politely.
Once they were out of earshot, Sam said, “Does she really think you’re here on holiday?”
“Who knows? I gave up trying to figure women out long ago.”
Sam gave him a playful punch, and didn’t resist when he grabbed her hand and continued to hold it as they walked to the theater.
---------------------------------------------------
Anna glanced up as Larry and Charlie passed, but quickly looked away when Charlie opened his mouth to speak. She had taken out a notebook and was writing as she drank her coffee. “Good evening, Miss Buonaroti,” Charlie said softly. She didn’t reply.
Charlie slowly shook his head, let out a frustrated sigh and pulled out his pocket watch as he and Larry entered the lobby. “I think I’m going to go back to the school and work for a little while.”
“Would you like me to come along?” Larry asked reluctantly.
“No,” Charlie said, “You have your own work to do. Turing will be down here to hound you for it if you don’t get him his results.” He glanced back at the dining room. “I had hoped to be otherwise occupied after dinner.”
“She is a temperamental young lady, isn’t she?” Larry said.
“She is that. I’m beginning to think she’s more trouble than she’s worth. Just the thought of spending the next fifty years with someone like that gives me the willies.”
“You’re young yet, Charles. You have plenty of time to find that special someone. Speaking of time, I’d better get to work. Just be careful, will you? Even with double summer time, it’s going to be dark when you walk back and they keep the streetlights off now.”
“I’ll be careful.”
“And don’t forget to pull the blackout shades and turn everything off when you’re done.”
“Yes, Mother,” Charlie laughed. “See you later, alligator!”
“In a while, crocodile,” Larry waved as he headed up the stairs.
---------------------------------------------------------
“So, how’d you like ‘Sullivan’s Travels?’” Don asked as he and Sam joined the crowd pouring out onto the street.
“I loved it! I haven’t seen Joel McCrea in many comedies, but he’s very good. It was funny, but it was more than a comedy, you know? It had a very good message to it. People going through tough times do need something to brighten their day.”
“You mean, they don’t need a ponderous, serious movie like that “Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou” that Sully wanted to make?”
“Not at all. If you’re living ponderous and serious, you certainly don’t want to see it for entertainment. Thank you so much for bringing me.” Sam ran her fingers through her hair. “I wonder how I’d look with Veronica Lake’s hairstyle.”
Don touched her hair gently. “You’d look lovely no matter what you did with your hair.”
Sam laughed and began pulling bobby pins out of her hair. She shook her head and let her strawberry blonde hair drape over her right eye. “There. Whaddya think of that, Mr. Smearcase?”
Don laughed and brushed her hair back from her eye. “Nice Veronica Lake imitation. You dropped your accent!”
“Accent? What accent? You’re the one with the accent ‘ere, Yank,” Sam replied in an exaggerated Cockney accent.
Don checked his watch. “How about we stop at a pub on the way back to your place? We’ve got a little while before closing time.”
“I’d love it,” Sam said as she pinned her hair back into place. “It’s easier to see with both eyes uncovered.”
“You know, there’s a newsreel playing in the states reminding women who work in factories to keep their hair back out of their faces. They even got Veronica Lake to model the preferred hairstyle. It looked a lot like the way you wear your hair while you’re on duty.”
“Really? Does this mean I’m a fashion leader?”
Don took her hand gently and gave it a squeeze. “You should be.” He caught sight of a pub up ahead of them. “How’s the Bird and Whistle?”
Sam shrugged. “I haven’t been in there before, but it looks all right to me.” She looped her arm through Don’s. “Besides, I have a big strong soldier boy to protect me if it gets too rough in there.”
---------------------------------------------
Walking by himself from the inn to the school, Charlie was able to pay more attention to his surroundings. The buildings were squeezed together on narrow streets that meandered down from the surrounding hills to the sea. He passed a bombed out pub and wondered if that was where Sharon Levine had been murdered. Shuddering, he hurried past the building. He wondered whether she knew what was in the message. Did she know her killer? He glanced nervously over his shoulder. Was she killed for the message, and if so, was the killer still around?
Charlie began to wonder if it was smart to walk to the school by himself. It was too late to turn back now. He could see the school ahead in the fading daylight. He might as well spend a couple of hours tinkering with the code to see if he could get it to make any sense. Then he could get back to Bletchley. Larry would be thrilled to hear that. Don wouldn’t.
He wondered how Don’s date with Sam was going. She was a cute girl, and she and Don seemed to really hit it off. Bletchley wasn’t all that far away, so it was possible that they could continue their relationship even after they finished here. He hoped so, anyway. When they were kids, Don had missed out on a lot because their parents were busy arranging for tutors and special classes to nurture Charlie’s genius. Maybe he should take his time with the deciphering and buy his brother a little more time with his new girlfriend. He smiled to himself. There was really no way of knowing how close he was to a solution. That’s why Bletchley had crossword experts and others who were used to picking words out of a jumble of letters. His could deal with the numerical aspects of deciphering, but sometimes the words eluded him.
As he climbed the steps to the school front door, he fished the key out of his pocket. He glanced back down at the street. The good citizens of Hastings were bustling about their evening business, heading home from work, going to the pub, or maybe even a movie like Don and Sam. None of them paid any attention to him as he unlocked the door and entered the empty school building.
He slipped the key back into his pocket and entered the classroom. Everything was as they had left it just a few hours earlier. He studied the letters on the board. The list under “witsef” was clearly wrong, so he turned back to the list under “hitsef.”
LILBBQ TWIELM RRIOEO AMBXRX EYFBRE TJUGEK OUAKEF OTADET ERHHSF AGEBFB OSSBBX EONEYW ILLAED ASAEAE TRELOD TSHXWU LLBXKZ OWNTSE ECOGDE UBAETQ RNEEIL ABEMHI INDLOD KESMRQ LWIELB ROVBDQ ANYMHU NGHYUZ EEDVOZ TACMMQ ASSHOZ ASYHUT AVETCO OMPEIE HEDROG RMILSU ONNXXF DROIWU LLBXIZ THEPHU TEFXAF HER
That was wrong as well, but it looked like it made more sense than the other list. Even to his mathematically trained eye, words were beginning to form. He and Larry had discussed replacing the ‘s’ with an ‘l.’ Working alone, it would take longer, but he settled down to work, writing HITLEF on a blackboard and beginning to write the letters below it.
He had gotten as far as LILIBQ TWILLM RRIVEO when he heard a noise out in the hallway. He stood, frozen, then turned toward the door, holding his breath. The noise repeated, and he identified it as the sound of an old building settling. Blowing out his breath, he wished someone had thought to bring a radio into the room to break the silence. He turned back to his work and decided to hum. Finally, he settled on Glenn Miller’s “Chattanooga Choo Choo.” The humming quickly changed to soft singing. Nothing like a catchy tune to overcome the creaking of an old building.
He had just written the next group of letters, AMBERX EYFIRE TJUNEK OUAREF when the classroom door slammed open. He spun around, half expecting to see Don and Sam. Three men stood in the doorway, grinning. “Uh, can I help you?” Charlie asked.
“Yeah,” one of the men, a burly redhead said as they approached Charlie. “You can get the hell out of Hastings, you bloody Yank.”
“I … I’m afraid I won’t be able to accommodate you. I’m working with the police … .”
“The coppers will just have to make do without you,” the redhead said. He and one of the others, a blond in mechanic’s overalls, stood in front of Charlie, while the other man stood behind him. Charlie glanced back at the man, thinking he looked vaguely familiar.
“Yeah, kike,” the man snarled, “we met in the pub at lunchtime. I didn’t know who you was then, or I would have taken care of business at lunch.”
“Who do you think I am? Listen, I’m just a professor …
“Shaddup!” Mick punched Charlie in the face, knocking him into the others.
The redhead grabbed Charlie and held him as Mick punched him in the stomach. Charlie doubled over, and the redhead yanked him upright again. “You’re a professor who’s gonna get his bloody yank arse out of Hastings.”
“The police are going to … .”
“The police ain’t gonna do nothin’,” Mick said as he punched Charlie in the ribs. “You ain’t gonna tell them who we are.”
“I don’t know who you are,” Charlie groaned.
The redhead punched Charlie in the kidney. “You’re not gonna even remember what we look like.”
Charlie’s knees buckled, and he would have fallen to the floor if the redhead and the blond hadn’t dragged him back to his feet. The blond slugged Charlie in the face. He dropped to the floor, unconscious.
-------------------------------------------------
Don opened the door to the Bird and Whistle and ushered Sam into the pub. The other customers, mostly fishermen, looked up as they entered. Don glanced at Sam and whispered, “Is this okay?”
“It’s fine,” Sam said. “I hope. We’ll see how the publican reacts when we approach the bar.”
The publican grinned as they approached. “What can I get you, Sir?”
“I’ll have a pint. The lady…,” he turned questioningly to Sam.
“I’ll have a half pint,” she told Don.
“The lady will have a half pint.”
Once Don had their drinks in hand, he and Sam went in search of a table. They finally found one in a relatively quiet corner. Don glanced around the room. The fishermen had apparently decided the strangers were all right and had gone back to their own conversations and drinks. “There are no other ladies here,” Don said.
“That’s not unusual,” Sam said. “This is clearly a local. The men come here to get away from their wives.”
Don laughed and touched Sam’s cheek. “I’d never come to a bar to get away from you.”
Sam blushed and looked down at her beer.
“I’m sorry,” Don said softly. “Am I being too forward for you?”
Sam shrugged, not looking up. “Not really. It’s just that you’ll be gone as soon as your brother’s finished his work.”
Don sighed. “True. And before long, I’ll be back home. It doesn’t give us much time.”
“No, it doesn’t.” She finally looked up and met Don’s eyes. “It’s not fair, really. I would like to get to know you better.”
“You think there could be something between us?”
Sam looked away again. “There could be. But how are we going to know? I’m not going to pick up and follow you. And you’re certainly not free to stay here.”
Don took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I guess we just have to enjoy what little time we have together.”
“That we’ll have to do,” Sam said, taking a long drink of her beer.
They had nearly finished their beers when the publican announced, “Last orders, gentlemen.”
“You want another?” Don asked.
“No, thank you. This is more than enough for me. We still have a ways to walk.”
They finished their drinks, and left just as the publican was announcing closing, “Time, please, gentlemen.”
Don put his arm over Sam’s shoulders and pulled her close as they walked. “This has been fun,” he said. “Are there any other movies playing here? We could do this again tomorrow night.”
“I’d love to. I think there’s a cinema in the High Street. I don’t know what’s playing there, though.”
“Does it matter?” Don asked.
Sam grinned and snuggled closer to him. “Not at all.”
“All right. It’s a date then.”
When they arrived at Sam’s place, Don slipped his arm from her shoulders and took her hands in his. “Sam Stewart, this has been a great night.”
Sam looked up at him, smiling. “That it has, Don Eppes.”
Don leaned down and kissed her gently. When they came up for breath, he touched her cheek. “See you tomorrow?”
Sam stood on her tiptoes and kissed him again. “See you tomorrow.”
Don watched as Sam trotted up the steps and opened the door. She turned and waved. “Good night.”
“Good night,” he said as she went inside and closed the door behind her. He waited until he heard the door lock before he turned toward the inn. He had taken two steps when he heard a sound behind him. He turned, but not quickly enough. Something hit him in the head. He stumbled, reaching for his gun, realizing too late that he had left it in his room. Someone grabbed his arm and twisted it behind him. He flung his left elbow back, and heard a grunt behind him. The grip on his arm loosened enough that he could pull free, but there were two more men in front of him. One slammed a meaty fist into his mouth, and the other grabbed his arm before he could react.
The assailant he had elbowed came around front and punched him in the gut. “Bloody Yank! Why don’t you go back where you belong?”
Don struggled to free himself. Suddenly, the thug holding him let out a yell and released his grip. Don turned to see what happened, and caught sight of Sam, swinging a shovel at Don’s assailants. “Get out of here!” She yelled. “I’ve called the police and they’ll be here any minute.”
One of the thugs snarled, “We’ll be back for you and your brother, kike,” then turned and ran with the others.
Don swayed. Sam grabbed him. “Come on. Let’s get you inside.”
Author’s Note: Here’s a link to the WWII public service newsreel Veronica Lake made: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgpvKXLTwr8