Page 62 of Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure

“I’m so glad to see you happy at last,” Mavis said. “Who’d have thought, when we set off all those years ago, that we’d find the place where we belonged right here?”

The Germans surrendered. The war was officially over, and Saint-Benet held a party.

The street was decorated with bunting and balloons and flowers.

Flags flew from all the boats in the harbour.

A band played. People hugged each other.

Then, as everyone sat at long tables, Monsieur Danton called for silence and got up to speak.

“I was about to raise a toast to the citizens of Saint-Benet, for their courage and endurance and the part they played in defeating the enemy, but I have received a communication from the new government, asking us to name and shame those who collaborated with the enemy.”

“Madame Adams.” One of the women stood up, pointing a finger at her. “She was one. She was friendly with those Germans.”

“They were forced upon me.” Mrs Adams spat out the words, her face bright red. “I had no choice. I was told to house and feed them. What could I do? A woman alone with no man to protect her?”

“Yes, and you didn’t do badly from it, did you?” the woman snapped. “We could smell the coffee and the meat that you cooked for them.”

“So they gave me coffee and meat to cook for them,” Mrs Adams retorted. “I couldn’t refuse to cook it, could I? They could have shot me.”

“My brothers and sisters, calm yourselves.” Father André stepped in front of them, raising his hands.

“I think we must agree that Madame Adams had no choice in the matter. We all saw how the soldiers threw their weight around, how they robbed us of all our foodstuffs and tools. And this poor woman had to survive alone, with her husband gone and presumably dead. She did what she could to survive, as we all did. Now is a time for forgiveness, as our Lord would want us to forgive.”

“But what about Giselle Blanchet?” one of the young men shouted out. “She collaborated. She went with German soldiers.”

Giselle screamed as hands grabbed her and dragged her forwards to stand in front of Monsieur Danton. “Here she is, the slut, the whore. What should we do with her? Hang her from the flagpole?” Voices echoed around the square.

“No,” Giselle screamed. “It wasn’t like that. I really loved Wolfgang. He was a nice person. He didn’t want to fight. He wanted to marry me.”

Monsieur Danton hesitated. “This girl doesn’t deserve to die,” he said.

“She’s a sinner if ever there was one, Father. She needs to be punished, taught a lesson,” someone shouted from the crowd.

Then a woman screeched, “Shave her head. Let the world see her for the traitor and whore she is.”

And in spite of Father André’s pleas, someone rushed away and returned with clippers. Madame Blanchet shouted in protest. Giselle struggled as they attempted to hold her down. Ellie glanced at Nico and nudged him.

“Make them stop,” she said.

Nico stood up, roaring, “Enough! Stop this nonsense.”

He stepped out, grabbed a man by the collar and jerked him away from the girl.

“We are civilized people. We will not behave as our oppressors behaved. You should be ashamed of yourselves. She’s a young girl who was attracted to a young man.

What is so wrong with that? There was only one traitor in Saint-Benet, and that was the viscount who betrayed us and is responsible for the death of our beloved Mr Tommy.

He better not show his face here again, or I will be the first to press charges or to strangle him with my bare hands. ”

“The viscount.” The words echoed around the square.

“And now, enough drama,” Nico shouted. “Let us get on with celebrating.”

There were cheers, and glasses were raised in a toast. Madame Blanchet came over to Ellie and Nico.

“I can’t thank you enough for saving my daughter,” she said.

“I warned her. I tried to talk to her, but she wouldn’t listen.

She was flattered that a German boy liked her.

Now let us hope she will settle down and get some sense into her head. ”

The party went on until the first streaks of dawn appeared in the sky.

“Now perhaps we can finally go back to enjoying life,” Nico said as they walked home.

Visitors started to return, as did Mr Adams. He had spent the war in Gibraltar, having been taken from Corsica to the coast of Spain and then making his way south.

But he said he had not suffered as they had.

Life in the British enclave had not been unpleasant.

There were plays and Gilbert and Sullivan, bangers and mash and English beer.

Mrs Adams did not seem overly pleased to see him back, especially as this was a new and confident Mr Adams who was clearly going to be the boss.

Ellie thought about Mrs Adams. She had never warmed to her or really understood her from the first day they had met.

The sort of woman who is a survivor, she realized.

She did not consider right and wrong, just what was best for her at a particular moment.

Ellie realized how easily Mrs Adams could have turned them in if they hadn’t helped her own husband.

The viscount did not return. A little later they learned that the chateau had been sold to a film director. There was excitement about this and the hope of seeing movie stars in Saint-Benet.

As soon as postal contact had been restored with England, Ellie wrote to Lionel asking about their sons.

She wrote a brief, factual note saying that she had survived the war and life was returning to normal.

A brief, impersonal letter arrived back saying that Richard was still stationed out in the Far East but was well and had been promoted to major.

Colin had been demobbed from the RAF and returned to his bank.

Here were the latest addresses for both of them.

Before Ellie could write to her sons, she received a letter from each of them.

Richard hoped she was well and looked forward to visiting when he returned from the Far East. Colin wrote a longer letter.

He had survived flying four years of Spitfires before being put on to training new recruits.

He had also met a young lady and hoped to bring her out to meet his mother when travel was reestablished.

She’s from a good family, you’ll be pleased to know.

Her father is a vicar, so quite holy! And she was jolly brave in the WRAF.

Ellie treasured the letter, looking forward to a future wedding, grandchildren, hope for the future.

Thinking of grandchildren made Ellie’s thoughts turn to Jojo.

Recently the little girl hadn’t plagued Ellie’s dreams so often, with so many other worries.

But now she felt she had to know. She talked to Nico about it.

“Do you think we have any way of finding out whether she’s all right? I’ve worried about her so much.”

“I suppose we can make enquiries,” he said, “although everything is still so chaotic that I doubt records are up to date. What was the mother’s name?”

“Yvette,” Ellie started to say, then shook her head. “It’s probably useless. I don’t even think she gave us her real name. All I know is that the man she was with was called Ali, and he was a bad lot. Someone in the police somewhere in France will know about him.”

“Someone, somewhere in France. And he’s called Ali. That gives me a lot to go on,” Nico said with a wry smile.

Ellie sighed. “I know. It’s hopeless. But I’d just like to know Jojo is safe and well.”

“We’ll do our best,” Nico said. “But she is with her mother. And not all mothers are perfect, as I can attest. But the mother has her rights.”

“I know,” Ellie said. “I just want to know, that’s all.”

They spoke to the police in Marseille, but they were not helpful, saying, “If you don’t know a last name, really we have no chance. And we have so many missing persons to trace right now.”

Then, when Ellie had given up hope, she received a letter:

Dear Madame Ellie,

I’m sure you are surprised to hear from me, but I felt I had to write to you.

It took a long while for me to realize how very kind you were to me, how you took me in, a complete stranger, and believed in me when I was lying to you all the time and using you for my own ends.

Now I feel so bad. When you met me I was not running away from home.

I was fleeing from the police. They rounded up our gang, but I managed to escape.

I saw your face at that garage, and you looked kind.

Without your help, I don’t know what would have happened to me.

I would have had my baby in prison, and she would have been taken from me. So you saved both of us.

It has taken me all this time to see what a fool I was.

I met Pierre. He was handsome, and he flashed money around.

I was from a poor home with a dismal future ahead and was immediately seduced by him.

When I found out that he was in with a group of bad men, it was too late.

Ali came for me to make sure I did not talk to the police or give anyone away.

He was very evil. At last the police caught up with him, and he is now in jail for many years. So I had a chance to take Jojo and go to an aunt, where we live today. Jojo is a lovely little girl, so pretty, so clever. You would be proud of her. And I am working hard to give her a good life.

I said once that you were an angel, and it’s true. You were.

A thousand thanks,

Your Jeanne-Marie (not Yvette)