All Things New

by Felicia Mires

  They ignored her and set Jacob up on the back of the truck. When they'd covered him with plenty of rugs to keep him warm, Ferdinand turned to Chloe. "Get in the truck."

  "I'll stay in the back with him. He'll be warmer, and we'll know if he dies."

  The fire had been extinguished, and they drove without lights. Maybe no one had seen them. Maybe Lanky had ended up in a ditch somewhere.

  In the cab of the truck, Joshua glanced at Ferdinand. "Do you think he's going to make it?"

  "He wouldn't be much better off at the farm. He needs a docteur."

  At the first tower, they got out and checked Jacob.

  He waved them away. "I'm fine. Get on with it."

  Joshua picked Chloe up out of the truck. "Stand guard here. If you see anything coming down the road, yell your head off."

  She meekly stood at her post, circling in every direction, while they took out the power line. It took almost thirty minutes, and she felt frozen when they came back for her. The line had been coiled, and they hefted it into the back of the truck before placing Chloe beside Jacob. They would bury the line somewhere else and use a map to find it later.

  Throughout the night, they repeated the process until Chloe was almost falling asleep on her feet. Her respect for Jacob and the nights he'd spent out on a mission grew, as did Jacob's inability to remain lucid. At four in the morning, she insisted they get him to a hospital.

  "Non!" they shouted at her in unison.

  "The docteurs are required to report gunshot wounds," Joshua informed her.

  "Then take me to some tiny town and let me ask the town docteur…please."

  Though the men were trying to hide their true thoughts from her, she could tell they were worried. If only they would listen to her.

  Joshua shook his head. "Why do you care, Chloe? You never gave Jacques a look, even though he'd have done anything for you. Are you suddenly feeling guilty?"

  "You don't know what you're talking about, and he wouldn't want me to tell you."

  "What! That the Nazis used you as their prostitute! Guess what? He didn't care. They killed his wife, and now his little boy is growing up in England without a father. Thousands of Jews have died…hundreds that he knew personally! But you see only your pain. Well, we've all had our losses. You don't have the monopoly on pain!"

  "He never told me. I didn't know."

  Her anguish was genuine, but Joshua turned away from her to peer at Jacob. They were all tired, and Jacob was in serious danger. They needed a solution fast.

  Chloe grabbed his hand. "If you take him to the hospital, I'll go in alone. You can leave me there with him. We have papers. I'll say someone stole our wagon and shot him."

  Ferdinand sighed and walked to the front of the truck. "Let's go. We're wasting time."

  They drove back toward Lyon. In Clermont-Ferrand, they stopped at a house behind the doctor's clinic. Chloe climbed out and banged on the front door. Joshua and Ferdinand had decided there was no way they were going to leave Jacob alone with Chloe, so they waited.

  A window opened, and a caustic voice called out. "Go away. It's after curfew. Do you want to get me in trouble?"

  "Please, monsieur. My husband is dying." Chole's plaintive voice sounded convincing.

  "He's dying, you say?"

  "Oui."

  The front door opened, and the doctor waved at her. "Bring him in."

  Joshua and Ferdinand gently grasped Jacob and carried him inside.

  "This way," the doctor pointed at a table. "What happened to him?"

  Chloe looked around, but they were letting her carry the day. "He was shot by a bandit. We're newlyweds. These two men stopped to help us, or he'd be dead by now."

  The doctor didn't seem to mind that she was rambling. He was busy probing the wound. Jacob moaned but didn't open his eyes.

  The doctor laid down his instrument. "The bullet has gone clean through. He's lost a lot of blood. A fleshy wound generally bleeds a lot. I can give you some antibiotics and wrap it up, but that's the best I can do."

  Jacob mumbled again, and terror struck Chloe's heart. He was babbling in German.

  Surprise lit the doctor's face. "This man is German. I'm calling the authorities."

  "Non, non," cried Chloe. "Please…listen to me. He's my husband. See?" She pulled out her marriage certificate and showed him the date.

  He was ready to believe her, but Jacob spoke several German words.

  "You're lying to me." The doctor reached again for the phone.

  Chloe began to sob. "All right, all right. Please. I'll tell you the truth. Just don't call the police." The doctor looked doubtful, but he waited for her explanation. "He is my husband. He was a German, but…he's Jewish. He escaped. He's lived here many years. Don't turn him in. He's all I have."

  The doctor took several deep breaths then let out a long sigh.

  "You were right not to take him to the hospital." He looked around his office. "Look, I can give you antibiotics, but you'll have to take him away tonight. It wouldn't be safe for him to remain. But…I can't promise he'll live through the night, traveling in the back of a truck."

  The doctor looked questioningly at the two men who had brought the young couple to him. "Can you get them away from here tonight?"

  Ferdinand exchanged a glance with Joshua as if weighing the situation. "I…Yes, we'll take them to Limoges."

  The doctor worked quickly. He re-wrapped the dressing in clean bandages and gave him a shot of antibiotics and one for pain. Considering the shortage of war-time medicines, that in itself was a miracle.

  He turned away to rummage in a medicine cabinet then held out a bottle to Chloe. "Give him one, three times a day." Chloe nodded, and he continued. "Give him one of these, twice a day for pain. And last, change the dressing every day for three days, then trail off as it dries out."

  "I will. Merci, Docteur." She handed him a wad of small bills. "This is all I have."

  "Keep your money, Madame. Anyone that fights for the freedom of France deserves my support."

  She gave him a tremulous smile. "How did you know?"

  "Your wedding certificate. Cachet burned to the ground that day. If you were in Cachet, and now you're on the run with a wounded man, you're in the Resistance."

  He followed Chloe to the truck where Joshua and Ferdinand waited, and she climbed in the back beside Jacob.

  As the truck pulled away, the doctor raised his hand. "Long live the Republic!"

  Ferdinand drove down a side street and turned around to head back toward Lyon. Limoges was in the opposite direction from Lyon. If the doctor said anything to anyone, hopefully, he would remember Limoges.

  Chapter 15

  Daylight came, and they were still twenty minutes from the farm. In the back of the truck, Chloe held Jacob as immobile as she could. Was he warm enough? She'd had a long time to think about what had happened. She couldn't continue to lump Jacob in the same category as the Nazis. He'd proven that all men weren't the same. Not all men wanted to use women. He'd willingly have given his life to save hers. He truly loved her.

  Though he slept peacefully, he was still ghastly pale when they reached the farm. The men didn't even try to be quiet as they carried him in the back door.

  "Antoinette! Antoinette!" Ferdinand called.

  She came running and met them halfway up the stairs. "Oh, no! What happened to Jacques?"

  "Shot."

  "But how…who?" Antoinette looked back and forth from Chloe to the men.

  Chloe averted her eyes. The whole situation was her fault. If only she'd been willing to listen to Jacob.

  Ferdinand edged around her to maneuver Jacob past the door. "Let's just say Jacques has identified the traitor."

  They placed him in the bed and gathered around. There was nothing else they could do.

  Ferdinand reached for Joshua's arm. "I need help emptying the truck before anyone finds our supplies. It should be common knowledge by now that the Resistance cut down power lines last
night."

  They hurried outside to remove any trace of their nocturnal activities then Ferdinand would drive to meet Opossum. The France d'Abord group could radio Marie-Madeleine with the news of the traitor.

  Chloe sat in a chair beside Antoinette, watching Jacob sleep. She'd observed a certain reticence in Ferdinand to reveal how Jacob had been shot, almost like he'd protected her. But Antoinette was watching. Could she see the guilt portrayed on Chloe's face?

  "What happened, Chloe?"

  Shame flooded her being. Not because she'd have to confess to Antoinette. She'd hurt a valiant man, one who professed to love her and had treated her with kindness.

  "It was my fault. He was trying to protect me…again."

  Chloe studied Jacob's still, handsome face and felt a fierce desire to shield him from further pain.

  She glanced up at Antoinette. "Jacques was sure something was wrong. He said he could sense it. When he found a man following us, I thought…finally there was a way I could do something none of the men could do."

  Antoinette sighed. "What did you do?"

  "I tried to draw him out by flattering him, telling him he was wonderful…that sort of thing. I could tell Jacques was upset. I went into the woods after him to explain, but we got into an argument so I ran off. When I got back to the truck, Lanky was snooping through our supplies. I asked him what he was doing, and he pulled out a gun. That's when it happened. Jacques knocked me to the ground, but he got shot."

  Chloe shook her head as she lived through the events in her mind.

  "Jacques wouldn't stay down. After hiding me, he went off to search for Lanky. He was shaky though. I saw him stumble. Lanky hit him across the head and knocked him out. Then Joshua shot Lanky, but we don't know what happened to him. He escaped. We got Jacques to wake up, but he wouldn't give up the mission. He made them keep going. He said it was all that mattered, saving the members of the Alliance by giving them more time to escape from the soldiers." Her voice petered out. "He didn't make it though."

  "What do you mean? He's here."

  "He passed out. We stopped at a docteur in Clermont- Ferrand. He gave him shots for pain and some antibiotics. He said Jacques has lost a lot of blood."

  Antoinette pulled back the covers and examined Jacob's side. "He's not bleeding now. If we keep him still, he's got a chance."

  "He'll never forgive me."

  Chloe felt so forlorn. She wished Antoinette would say something, but there was nothing that could make their situation any better.

  "If you believe that, you don't know Jacques. He would forgive anyone he loved. He even tries to forgive the Nazis, and look what they've taken from him." Chloe gave her a doubtful look. Antoinette shrugged. "It's his faith in God. He says it has to affect all of him or it's not real."

  Antoinette seemed to know a lot about Jacob, more than Chloe, maybe she could tell about his life. "What really happened to Jacques' wife?"

  "I don't know, Chloe. Perhaps you should ask him when he wakes up. And tell him what you told us. He would rather know you were trying to be helpful than think you were flirting with someone he warned you about. I'm going to get him some water. He'll be thirsty when he wakes." Antoinette left the room.

  Chloe moved closer to Jacob. She hadn't exactly given him any encouragement. The man was in love with her, and she treated him like some hired hand. I don't deserve him. Tears welled in her eyes. But I didn't think I wanted anyone to love me.

  Antoinette bustled in, setting the water on the table beside the bed. She wrapped her arms around Chloe and squeezed before letting go. "Chloe, I wouldn't blame you if you never married the rest of your life. But don't hurt a man that's already been so hurt and loves you. He saved our lives, many times, and at the risk of his own."

  Chloe slipped around the side of the bed and crept up beside Jacob. With light fingers, she pushed the hair back from his face. "He really is very handsome, isn't he?"

  "He is."

  "I'll make sure he gets his medicine."

  "Fine. And I'll make sure Ferdinand and Joshua have what they need."

  After Ferdinand returned from delivering the news about the traitor, most everyone in the household went to sleep. Antoinette was left to creep around the house while her saboteurs slept the day away.

  Chloe took all of Jacob's care on herself. She wouldn't let anyone help her. When it was time for him to take medicine, she woke him, though she didn't think he ever really gained consciousness. He swallowed water and pills and collapsed back on the pillows.

  Chloe was afraid to sleep in the bed in case she rolled over and hit Jacob's wound. She slept in the chair with her feet propped on the side of the bed. A whole day went by with her constant vigil at his bedside. The rest of the household went on as before. They listened carefully to the BBC broadcast, waiting for news of their parachute drop. But the word didn't come.

  Jacob woke late the next afternoon. Chloe was asleep in the chair, and he watched her for a few minutes before trying to move. In sleep, she appeared incredibly angelic. Her face, free of anger with him, looked fresh and innocent. What must she think of him now? What a fiasco! He'd blown that mission entirely. She probably thought he was an idiot.

  He found a glass of water beside the bed and took a long drink. When he tried to sit up, pain rushed through his stomach and his head. He reached for his side and felt the bandages over the gunshot wound. He wasn't about to ask Chloe to help him to the bathroom, so he drew his legs over the side of the bed and pulled himself up with one arm. Little by little, he edged to the door and opened it.

  He peeked down the hallway. Underclothes were not something he wanted to be caught in. When he was sure the way was clear, he stumbled against the wall and down the hall to the bathroom. Each step was agonizing, but he got there on his own.

  Chloe woke and found Jacob gone. She rushed out of the bedroom, screaming. "He's gone! He's gone!"

  Joshua came running up the stairs. "What's wrong? What's all the yelling about?"

  "He's not in the bed. Jacques is gone."

  The bathroom door opened, and Jacob staggered out. "I'm right here. Can't a man walk to the bathroom alone?"

  Joshua got on Jacob's good side and pulled his arm around his shoulders. They teetered back to the bed, and Chloe tucked him in.

  "You're not supposed to be walking around. The docteur said you'd lost enough blood."

  "Docteur! You brought a docteur to this house!" He gave Joshua an angry glance. The man knew better, even if Chloe didn't.

  "We took you to one in Clermont-Ferrand. We were very careful, Jacques," said Joshua as he backed out the door. "Let me know if you want to get up again."

  He shut the door behind him.

  Chloe was hovering, and Jacob didn't know why. But he felt too miserable to figure it out.

  "Can I get you anything, Jacob? You're probably hungry."

  "I would like something, if it's not too much trouble."

  She smiled broadly. "It's no trouble at all."

  Before she left the room, she pulled back the curtains. The increased light made Jacob blink, but he appreciated being able to see the day.

  A few minutes later she came back with a sandwich and glass of fresh milk. "Here you go. Take this pill to fight infection, and this one if you hurt. Would you like anything else?"

  He stared at her, at a loss to explain her cheerful, conscientious attitude. Perhaps it would be better to find out what Ferdinand had to say. "I'd like to see Ferdinand…whenever he's free."

  "I'll be right back."

  "You don't have to."

  She didn't need to wait on him or spend her day stuck in a sick room.

  The eager expression faded from her eyes. "Oh, I didn't think. You need to speak with him alone…of course."

  She exited the room, leaving a puzzled Jacob wondering at the change in her.

  Ferdinand came up the stairs as Jacob attacked the food.

  "Well, Jacques, you look great! Are you feeling well?"

/>   Jacob nodded with a bite of sandwich in his mouth. He waved his arm. "Shut the door."

  Ferdinand complied then pulled the chair over to the side of the bed. "What is it? Is something wrong?"

  "Non, but I want a clear, detailed summary of what happened. Are we in trouble?"

  Ferdinand related all they'd accomplished when sabotaging the power lines and about the visit to the doctor. Then he told Jacob he'd asked France d'Abord to radio Marie-Madeleine.

  "Have you any word from the BBC on the drop?"

  "Not yet. How are you feeling?"

  "Dreadful." Jacob set his plate on the bedside table. "Ferdinand, I hate to sound a fool, but what happened to Chloe? She seems…different."

  "She does indeed. Perhaps you should talk to her."

  "Non, she probably thinks I'm an idiot for messing up the mission."

  "We've all been under our own share of guilt. Don't you start, too. Joshua and I feel guilty about leaving her there alone with Lanky. She feels guilty because she wasn't trying to flirt with Lanky, but that's what you thought and you got shot…for her. We made it through the mission. You're alive. She wants to kiss and make up. Let her." And with that, he left the room.

  Jacob felt a dull ache, so he rubbed the side of his head until he found the bump. "Ouch! I was better off asleep."

  He swallowed the pain pill and closed his eyes before collapsing back on the pillow. Since he couldn't think of a single thing to say to Chloe, he should pray. But he fell asleep.

  Chloe was hopeful when she came up the stairs. Perhaps Jacob would be receptive to a talk with her, but when she reached the room, he was asleep. She picked up his dirty dishes and took them down. Maybe the next time he woke, he'd talk with her. Thus far, he'd had time for everyone but her.

  Jacob took a short nap this time, and when he woke, Chloe was still gone. Could she love him? He didn't want her pity or her commitment from a sense of responsibility. He wanted the woman to be passionately in love with him.

  "Jacques." Chloe stepped in the room, and shut the door behind her. "I didn't know you were awake."

  Jacob watched her advance in the room. She wore the yellow cotton dress he'd bought, and she looked remarkably lovely. For the first time since they'd met, she was wearing something that suited her, not too young, not too provocative. And he had given it to her. A stirring emotion gripped his senses.