Munro & Carter #02 - Cold Harbour by Jack Higgins

Author:Jack Higgins [Higgins, Jack]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: History, Military, Espionage, World War II, Fiction, General, War & Military, World War; 1939-1945, Adventure stories; English, Spy Stories; English
ISBN: 9780425193204
Publisher: Penguin
Published: 1990-01-01T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

Genevieve and Craig and René stayed below at Hare’s request as the Lili Marlene left harbour. Sitting at the table in the tiny ward room Genevieve found herself reaching for a Gitane almost as a reflex action. Craig gave her a light.

“You’re really enjoying those things now, aren’t you?”

“A bad habit.” She nodded. “I’ve had the horrible idea that it might haunt me for the rest of my life.”

She leaned back and thought of the leave-taking in the rain on the quay. Munro, strangely serious in his old cavalry coat as he shook hands, Edge in the background, watching her malevolently all the time. And then Julie’s quick, affectionate embrace, the final whisper.

“Remember what I told you.”

The movement of the E-boat was quite pronounced and a door opened as Schmidt came in from the galley balancing himself, three mugs on a tray. “Tea,” he said. “Hot and sweet. Lots of lovely condensed milk.” Genevieve made a face. “No, you drink it down, sweetheart. Good for the stomach on this kind of trip. Stops you being sick.”

She doubted that, but took him at his word and somehow managed to get some of the sickly brew down. After a while, he glanced in again. “The guvnor says you can come up top if you want to.”

“Fine,” Genevieve turned to Craig. “Coming?”

He looked up from the newspaper he was reading. “Later. You go.”

Which she did, leaving him with René, going up the companionway. When she opened the door the wind dashed rain into her face. The Lili seemed vibrant, full of life, the deck heaving beneath her feet as she held on to the lifeline and struggled towards the ladder going up to the bridge. She felt totally exhilarated, rain on her face, pulled herself up and got the wheelhouse door open.

Langsdorff was at the helm, Hare at the chart table. He swung to face her in the swivel chair and stood up. “Sit here. You’ll be more comfortable.”

She did as she was told and looked around her. “This is nice. Exciting.”

“It has its points.” He said to Langsdorff in German, “I’ll take over for a while. Take a coffee break.”

“Zu befehl, Herr Kapitän,” the Obersteuermann said formally and went out.

Hare increased speed, racing the heavy weather which threatened from the east. The fog was patchy so that at times they travelled in a private, dark world and at others, burst out into open water, for the moon was clear on occasion in spite of rain squalls.

“The weather doesn’t seem to know what to do,” she said.

“It never does in this part of the world. That’s what makes it so exciting.”

“Different from the Solomon Islands.” It was a statement, not a question.

“You can say that again.”

It was rougher now, the Lili Marlene rolling occasionally, barrelling forward, the floor of the wheelhouse tilting so that Genevieve had to brace her feet firmly to stay in the chair. Visibility was poor again and as the waves broke, there was a touch of phosphorescence on the water.

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