A Purpose True by Gail Kittleson

Author:Gail Kittleson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: forgiveness, french resistance, world war 2, clean romance, d day, soe agent
Publisher: WordCrafts Press

Chapter Eighteen

The burly commander's collar dripped with sweat in the afternoon sun. Domingo touched his own, just as wet, and listened to the man’s every word.

“Now that London has given us free rein, we can break into our ammunition stores. We have enough to arm at least five thousand men, with close to that number of partisans waiting in the forest.

“A Belo-Russian squad that found its way here tells of strapping explosives to dogs trained to run under tanks, but the Soviet diesel fuel confused the dogs. We have a better idea.”

Domingo noticed men in the crowd stiffen. Surely this commander must know these partisans tended sheep and loved their dogs. But he continued.

“The Russian army fit forty thousand dogs with a ten to twelve kilo mine each and removed the safety pin just before deployment. On the eastern front, the Germans were desperate, too, and shot them without hesitation. That at least helps us understand why the Nazis kill every dog they see here.”

“But you say you have better ideas?” Petra’s calm question staved off Domingo’s disgust.

“With bazookas and leisure to hit the weak place in the back of each tank without hundreds of infantry on hand, it would be easy. But armed troops accompany the tanks, so we must kill the guards, send a man underneath the tank to place the mine, pull the pin, and flee to safety. A complicated procedure best accomplished by night.” He scanned the group of men before him. “Obviously, this task requires a wiry frame, a fast runner, a cool head, and strokes of good fortune.” He looked Petra and Domingo over. “Does either of you qualify?”

“We’ve seen those iron beasts in motion—that qualifies us.”

“I see, but I hate to lose good men.” The leader rubbed his dense beard. “Tanks do have one disadvantage. They can’t make it through deep water, and to reach Normandy, these units must cross both the Dordogne and the Vezere Rivers, and if we hit the bridges first, we stop more tanks than if we physically disabled each one.

“The enemy has already brought tanks forward to guard those bridges. Still, with twenty thousand Panzer troops approaching from Toulouse, armed with the newest Mark IV Panther—the Reich’s largest single armored unit—we aim to stretch their four-day trip into fourteen.”

Petra ground his teeth. “Or forever.”

“Our forces have scattered, yet we must kill twenty guards while others place the mines. Are you ready?”

“Oui.” Domingo and Petra spoke as one.

“You can swim?”

At their nods, he gestured them closer and lowered his voice.

“You’ll be heading toward a bridge over the Dordogne. North of there, the citizens welcomed forty thousand Alsatians in ’39, so they’ll be mighty glad to see you. We assemble in a few hours, over there. Get some rest.”

In the luxury of having alert sentinels posted around them, Domingo and Petra made themselves comfortable under a tree and lost no time falling asleep.

The next thing Domingo knew, Petra’s gruff shake woke him. “Don’t want to miss the excitement, do we?”

For the first time in days, his eyes showed more white than red.

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