World at War, 1944

by Mary Pope Osborne

  “You did it! You did it!” Annie said to Jack.

  He shrugged as if it was no big deal.

  “Wait here. I will get the children,” said Kathleen. “Sophie and Sarah should have them ready by now.” She dashed to the rocks.

  “Was it hard to drive?” Annie asked Jack.

  “Not once I got it going,” he said. “It all kind of came back to me. Did you give the message to Sylvie?”

  “Yes! I snuck around the back of the bistro and tapped on the window again,” said Annie. “I asked her to send another message, one that said, ‘Unicorn has ten colts. Need bigger bird.’ ”

  “Good work,” said Jack.

  “Here they come,” said Annie.

  Kathleen, Sophie, and Sarah led the small children out of the tunnel. Excited to go for a ride, the little kids raced across the grass to the bakery truck. Jack got out and swung open the rear door. Then he, Annie, and Kathleen lifted each child into the back.

  “Is everyone here?” called Kathleen. She called out all their names to make sure: “Ella? Eli? Leo? Daniel?…”

  As each high voice rang out “Yes!” Jack climbed into the driver’s seat. Soon Kathleen and Annie joined him. Jack could hear the children chattering behind the partition that separated the cab from the back.

  “They are so excited,” said Kathleen.

  “It smells like bread back there,” said Annie. “The children found lots of old crusts to eat.”

  “Really?” said Jack. He could hear their voices saying: “This is good!” “I love it!” “It’s hard to chew.” “Yes, but it’s very good!”

  Jack’s throat tightened. He wanted only one thing in the world right now—to help these little kids escape from France.

  Kathleen opened the map of the Caen area and showed it to Annie.

  “Mondeville…,” Annie said, pointing. “And Biéville. It looks like we have about seven miles to go.”

  “All set?” said Jack. He took a breath. He started the truck, shifted into gear, then drove down the driveway toward the road.

  “Turn right,” said Kathleen, studying the map.

  Jack turned right. He drove faster and shifted gears as they moved up the quiet Road of Rocks.

  “Left onto Calmette Street,” said Kathleen, “then right onto Clopee.”

  Jack followed her directions.

  “Right onto Cabourg,” said Annie, “then a quick left.”

  Jack turned onto Cabourg, then made a quick left—and landed in the middle of a traffic jam!

  “Oh, no,” Kathleen said quietly.

  Up the road, Nazi soldiers were stopping traffic. Two of the Nazis held up spotlights as vehicles crawled toward them.

  “What’s going on?” asked Annie.

  “It’s a checkpoint,” said Kathleen.

  Jack stopped breathing. “What does that mean?” he asked.

  “It means officials randomly stop vehicles and check identities,” said Kathleen.

  The soldiers waved one car through, but they stopped the next. Traffic came to a halt as a Nazi official shined a flashlight into the car that had stopped.

  “Oh, man,” said Jack. When he saw another Nazi inspect the car’s trunk, he started to panic. He was terrified that the soldiers would stop them, too, and look in the back of the bakery truck.

  “Tell the kids to be quiet,” Jack said.

  Kathleen tapped on the partition. “Quiet, please, children! You must be very quiet now! Not one word!”

  The children were silent. Jack gripped the steering wheel to try to stop his hands from shaking.

  “Jack, you have to look calm,” said Kathleen. “You must look as if you drive this truck every day to deliver bread.”

  “Yeah, like it’s no big deal,” said Annie.

  “I—I don’t think I can—” Jack said in a strangled voice.

  “You have to!” said Annie.

  “Wait…wait a moment!” said Kathleen. She closed her eyes and opened them. “Oh, my!”

  “What is it?” asked Jack.

  “I just recalled a spell that will keep us safe!” she said.

  “Really?” said Jack.

  “Yes. Since being with you and Annie, I have grown more hopeful. I think that feeling of hope is bringing back some of my magic!” said Kathleen.

  “That’s wonderful!” said Annie. “What’s the spell you remember?”

  “It is a spell to make us invisible,” said Kathleen.

  “Really?” said Jack.

  “Yes, drive on, Jack,” said Kathleen. The cars had started moving again. “Do not look to either side—stare straight ahead.”

  As Jack shifted from neutral into first gear and then second, Kathleen closed her eyes and whispered a rhyme:

  Powers of goodness, powers of light,

  Shield us now from powers of sight.

  When Kathleen started to repeat the rhyme, Annie closed her eyes and joined in:

  Powers of goodness, powers of light,

  Shield us now from powers of sight.

  Holding his breath and staring straight ahead, Jack drove toward the checkpoint.

  Powers of goodness, powers of light,

  Shield us now from powers of sight.

  Kathleen opened her eyes and looked around. “It worked,” she whispered. “We are invisible.”

  “We are?” said Jack. “How do you know?”

  “The Nazis are completely ignoring us,” said Kathleen. “They see nothing but empty space between the car in front of us and the car behind us. When it is our turn to pass the checkpoint, be calm and drive straight through.”

  Jack relaxed a little as he imagined being invisible. Kathleen whispered the magic spell again:

  Powers of goodness, powers of light,

  Shield us now from powers of sight.

  The soldiers waved at the driver of the green car ahead of the bakery truck, giving permission for it to move on.

  “Good,” said Kathleen. “Now just follow closely behind that car and we will be fine.”

  Jack fixed his eyes on the back of the green car. Following it, he drove steadily and calmly past the checkpoint. When he glanced in the rearview mirror, he saw that the soldiers were paying no attention at all to the bakery truck. He had no doubt now that Kathleen’s magic was working. They were definitely invisible.

  “Drive on, Jack,” said Kathleen.

  Jack drove on. When he looked in his rearview mirror again, he saw the soldiers stopping the car behind them.

  “We made it!” said Annie.

  “Yes,” said Kathleen, looking at the map. “Turn left here, Jack. Then an immediate right and follow the sign to St. Clair.”

  Jack did as Kathleen said. He turned left, then right, and pressed harder on the gas pedal. The road ahead was empty. He drove faster and faster, shifting into third gear. In the fading light of dusk, the truck glided along the smooth road.

  “Yay,” said Annie. “I think we’ll make it by nightfall!”

  Jack said nothing. He was afraid to break the spell of invisibility.

  “When you see a sign for Biéville, turn right,” said Kathleen.

  Jack nodded and kept driving.

  “Biéville!” said Annie.

  Jack turned right.

  “Church!” said Annie.

  The white steeple of the church was rising into the darkening sky. Next to the church was the drop zone, the empty field where they had landed with their parachutes.

  “That’s where Teddy will pick us up,” said Annie.

  “Good. Drive to the back of the church,” said Kathleen, “so the truck cannot be seen.”

  How can the truck be seen from anywhere? Jack wondered. Has Kathleen undone her spell? He pulled off the road and bumped over the grass to the back of the church. When he brought the truck to a stop and switched off the engine, Kathleen and Annie clapped.

  “We’re here! We made it!” said Annie.

  “You were brilliant, Jack!” said Kathleen.

 
“Oh, no, you get the credit,” he said. “I could never have done it without your magic.”

  “Yes, you could have,” said Kathleen. “In fact, you did.”

  “What?” said Jack.

  “Jack, I fear I did not tell you the truth,” said Kathleen. “I still do not have magic powers. I did not make us invisible with a spell.”

  “You didn’t?” said Annie.

  “No,” said Kathleen. “I knew that as long as Jack felt confident, an ordinary bakery truck would not draw the attention of the Nazis. I felt sure we could slip safely by.”

  “Oh, brother,” said Jack. He took a deep breath. He didn’t know whether to be angry with Kathleen or amazed at himself. In his confusion, he just laughed. Annie and Kathleen joined in. Well, at least the scariest part of the journey is over, Jack thought.

  Kathleen, Jack, and Annie climbed out of the cab. The countryside was quiet. No vehicles were in sight, and no dogs were barking. The moon was on the horizon.

  “I hope Teddy received the messages from Gaston and Sylvie,” said Jack, “or else we’ll all be stranded here during the D-Day invasion.”

  “Tell me, what is the D-Day invasion?” asked Kathleen.

  “Sometime after midnight, more than a hundred thousand Allied soldiers will invade by sea and air to drive the Nazis out of France,” said Jack. “It will be the beginning of the end of World War Two.”

  “That is good. Very good,” breathed Kathleen. “All the world is living a great nightmare now. When it wakes, everyone will wonder how this could have happened, and I fear no one will know the answer.” She shook her head. “Well, what should we do now?”

  “I think maybe we should do a better job of hiding the truck,” said Jack, looking around.

  “You and I can move it down the road,” said Annie.

  “While you do that, I will hide the children in the church,” said Kathleen.

  “Good plan,” said Jack. “We’ll help you get them inside.”

  Kathleen, Jack, and Annie walked to the rear of the truck. When Kathleen opened the door, they found the children sprawled all over the back, fast asleep. Even Sophie and Sarah had closed their eyes. “Wake up, birdies,” Kathleen sang softly. “Wake up.”

  Her sweet voice roused the children from sleep. As they began to stir, some reached out and put their arms around Jack, Annie, and Kathleen. Jack gently lifted Leo and Eli out of the back of the truck. Then he clutched their hands and walked with them across the grass. “Let’s go inside this nice building,” he said. “It’s peaceful in there.”

  “Is this our new house?” Leo asked, rubbing his eyes.

  “Can you live here with us?” said Eli.

  Jack led his two sleepy three-year-olds into the church, while Annie, Kathleen, Sophie, and Sarah shepherded the others after him.

  Inside the dark front entrance, the air smelled of old wood and incense. The last light of day shone through stained-glass windows. After Jack, Annie, and Kathleen got everyone settled in the front pew, Kathleen started to lead the children in song.

  “Let’s move the truck now,” Jack said to Annie. She nodded. As they slipped down the aisle and out of the church, they heard:

  Are you sleeping, are you sleeping,

  Brother John, Brother John?

  Morning bells are ringing,

  Morning bells are ringing,

  Ding dong ding, ding dong ding.

  Night was falling fast as Jack and Annie climbed back into the bakery truck.

  “We shouldn’t drive far,” said Jack. “Kathleen left a note for the baker, telling him to look for his truck near the church in Biéville. I hope he’s still alive tomorrow and comes to get it.”

  “You hope he’s still alive tomorrow?” said Annie. “That sounds terrible.”

  “I know,” said Jack. “War is terrible.” He started the truck, and they bumped back over the grass to the road. Jack drove about a hundred yards, then pulled off the road and parked the bakery truck beside a clump of trees. “I think this should do it,” he said.

  Annie hopped out of the truck. Jack switched off the motor and rolled up his window. Then he climbed out, too. “Let’s hurry—”

  “Look, Jack.” Annie sounded scared. “Look up.”

  Jack looked up. Two giant beams of light were sweeping across the sky, crisscrossing each other.

  “What’s going on?” asked Annie.

  “Those lights must be looking for planes to shoot down,” said Jack.

  “Oh, no!” said Annie. “What if they spot Teddy’s plane?”

  Jack didn’t answer right away. Maybe the worst isn’t over yet, he thought. “Let’s hurry back and tell Kathleen,” he said.

  Jack and Annie ran up the road to the church. Inside, they found Kathleen still singing with the children.

  Row, row, row your boat

  Gently down the stream.

  Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,

  Life is but a dream.

  Our plan isn’t going to work, Jack thought. He felt sure that the Nazis would spot Teddy’s plane and shoot it down before he could land.

  “Kathleen!” Annie called.

  Kathleen told the children to keep singing, and she hurried over to Jack and Annie. “What’s wrong?” she asked.

  “The Nazis are using searchlights to spot planes,” said Jack. “They’re sure to see Teddy.”

  “Show me,” said Kathleen.

  Jack and Annie led Kathleen outside. The lights were still sweeping across the night sky.

  “See?” said Jack, pointing up at the moving beams of light. “How can Teddy possibly—”

  Annie gasped. “Look!” she said. “Look at the field!”

  Below the dazzling searchlights, a silver plane sat in the dark field. The gleaming plane was much bigger than a spy taxi. It had a snub-nosed cockpit, a long row of windows, and four huge propellers—two on each wing.

  “Where did that come from?” said Kathleen.

  “I don’t know,” said Jack, stunned. “I didn’t see it when we moved the truck or came back to the church. I didn’t hear it fly overhead or land or anything!”

  The rear door of the plane swung open. Silhouetted in the doorway was a person in a flight suit and helmet.

  “Teddy!” said Annie.

  “Oh!” cried Kathleen. She dashed across the dark field. Jack and Annie ran after her.

  When Kathleen reached Teddy, she threw her arms around him. Jack and Annie piled on, and they all hugged him at the same time. Everyone was laughing.

  “I’m so glad you got our messages!” said Annie.

  “So am I!” said Teddy.

  “Do you know that D-Day is tomorrow?” asked Jack.

  “Yes, I found out today,” said Teddy. “With all the preparations for the invasion, I had trouble finding a big enough plane to come for you. But finally I was able to call upon a friend to help me.”

  “Great!” said Annie.

  “How did the plane land without the searchlights spotting it?” asked Jack. “And why didn’t it make any noise?”

  “I will explain later,” said Teddy. “We must act quickly. You have others with you, no?”

  “Oh, yes, lots of others!” said Annie.

  “This way!” said Kathleen. She grabbed Teddy’s hand and pulled him toward the church.

  “Kathleen rescued ten little kids from an abandoned orphanage,” Annie said.

  “That’s why she couldn’t get out of France,” said Jack.

  “Oh, no!” Teddy whirled around to Kathleen. “I should have come myself to save you!”

  “Do not feel bad,” said Kathleen. “Jack and Annie have given me miraculous help, and all without magic. I have lost my powers, Teddy.”

  “I gathered that from your message,” said Teddy. “That is why I sent you the wand and—” He stopped and smacked his forehead. “Oh, no! I forgot, didn’t I?”

  “You did,” said Jack. “But it’s not all your fault. Annie and I forgot, too, until just befor
e I jumped. And then it was too late.”

  “I am so sorry!” said Teddy.

  “It’s okay,” said Annie. “You had a lot on your mind.”

  “No, it is unforgivable!” said Teddy.

  “Seriously, it’s okay,” said Jack. “We managed.”

  By then they had arrived at the door of the church. “Get ready to be mobbed by little kids,” Annie said to Teddy.

  Kathleen led the way inside. “Sarah! Sophie! We are leaving!”

  Led by the two sisters, all the children clambered toward the door of the church. They gathered around Teddy, asking questions.

  “Hush, children, hush now,” said Kathleen. “Everyone grab someone’s hand. Etty, take Sophie’s hand. Daniel, take Sarah’s hand. Leo and Eli, Jack’s hands. Marcella and Ella, Annie’s hands. Pierre and Solly, Teddy’s hands. Come along now. Follow me! We are about to go on a great adventure!”

  With little hands tucked into bigger hands, everyone followed Kathleen out of the church into the field.

  “Oh, look!” said Leo.

  “Pretty plane!” said Eli.

  “Yes,” said Jack, walking with the two boys. “Let’s run! We’re going to fly through the air on the silver bird!” Gripping their hands, he ran with little steps so the kids could keep up.

  When they reached the plane, Teddy took charge. “Big kids help small kids up the step-ladder,” he said.

  Kathleen lifted two preschoolers up to the rear door. Annie climbed up with two more. Sophie and Sarah each helped a smaller child. Jack held on to Leo and Eli and led them up the steps.

  Boarding last, Teddy squeezed into the passenger cabin with Pierre and Solly. Then he closed the heavy door and latched it. “Sit down. Relax, everyone!” he said. “We don’t have far to go!”

  The little kids laughed and squealed as they scrambled into seats. Some of them jumped into Kathleen’s and Annie’s laps. Others climbed onto Teddy, all chirping at once.

  “Wait a minute,” said Jack. “Teddy, aren’t you going up to the cockpit to fly the plane?”

  “No. As I said, I called on a friend to help me,” said Teddy. “He is the pilot.”