The Queen of Paris by Pamela Binnings Ewen

Author:Pamela Binnings Ewen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Published: 2019-12-02T17:55:53+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Six

Paris

Fall 1940

That evening Spatz calls downstairs for cocktails—a martini for him, a sidecar for her. Then he disappears into the bedroom for a change of clothes. Coco, sitting in her chair beside the window, puckers her lips. The September leaves are turning. A day has passed since the meeting with Admiral Canaris, and she thought she’d be packing for Madrid by now. Yet Spatz says these things take time. The schedule is out of his hands. She must wait. He’s acting as if this is any other evening and nothing has changed.

When the doorbell rings, she sits unmoved. Spatz opens the door and takes the drinks from the waiter, carrying them to the table between the chairs. He hands over her drink and, holding on to his martini, sits down across from her.

Ignoring Spatz, Coco sips the cocktail and looks off. She thinks of nothing but André. Not even the possibility of losing No. 5, nor of Pierre, or Göring. André has tuberculosis! She stares at the straight sturdy column in Place Vendôme feeling fragile. It’s as if she’s made of shattered glass, as if the bits and pieces of her formerly ordered life have been rearranged in a pattern she does not understand.

Take care, Coco. Boy taught that fate is the consequence of choices.

“How soon, Spatz?” A moment ago she’d felt overheated. Now she is cold. “I cannot stand this waiting.”

He nods. “Not long. But you must have patience. We’re traveling to Berlin next week to see Herr Walter Schellenberg.”

“What!” She starts, sits up straight, and sets the glass down on the table. “Why?”

“Schellenberg is head of all SS counterespionage, not only in Germany, but for all of Europe, including France. His power mirrors that of Admiral Canaris in foreign military intelligence—the Abwehr.” He raises the martini to his lips, watching her over the glass. “Schellenberg insists upon meeting you before approving the Abwehr agreement to free André.”

Coco opens her mouth, but nothing comes out. She’d thought the agreement was complete.

Spatz lifts a brow. “Schellenberg wants to look you over.”

Rising, she stands looking down at him. “I thought everything was agreed. You told me everything was agreed after this meeting. I have been cleared by the admiral, isn’t that so?”

“Sit down. This is protocol. The trip is just a bow to the SS and Walter Schellenberg—Heydrich and Himmler’s man.” He gives her a sympathetic look. “Schellenberg is friendly with Canaris, but he trusts no one, not even the admiral. Most likely he’ll go along with the admiral. Why, they even exercise their horses together every morning when the admiral’s in Berlin.”

Coco says nothing. Spatz leans back, clasping his hands over his stomach. “Walter Schellenberg is a fine fellow, Coco. Hitler appointed him deputy director of this division of the Gestapo last June. You’ll appreciate his style. You’d never know he’s SS from his mild manner. He has charm. He’s smart, yet subtle.”

“I don’t care about his charm, or brain, or personality. I only care about getting my son out of that prison camp.

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