“Is this for the rescue operation they’re talking about?”
Audrey lowered her voice so the other girls wouldn’t overhear. “The public doesn’t know how dire the situation is, but my uncle says our troops are pinned down on the French coastline with their backs to the channel.”
“I can’t drive you all the way to France, Audrey.” Her grin was typically Eve. “I may not have finished school, but I do know my geography.”
“Just take me down to the coast. Father keeps a boat there. They’re asking for every available ship to help evacuate our soldiers—fishing boats, ferries, even pleasure craft like ours.”
Eve nodded as she seemed to grasp the situation. “Alfie took me out on your boat a few times. Let me grab my coat and my purse.” She bolted up the stairs and returned moments later, shoving her arms into her jacket sleeves. Audrey’s fear eased slightly. She had an ally to help rescue Alfie. For the first time, she was grateful for Eve’s relationship with her brother—whatever it was. They hurried outside and climbed into the taxi. “Where are we going?” Eve asked.
“Back to the town house to get the car.” Audrey willed herself to remain calm. They would have a long drive ahead of them to get to the sea. “There’s so little real news in the paper or on the BBC that I’ve been going mad with worry up at Wellingford. My uncle says the Nazis have driven our army and most of France’s army to the coast. The men are surrounded and pinned down on the beach and will be taken prisoner or killed unless we bring them home. When I heard about the evacuation, I immediately thought of our boat. The Navy can use it if I can get down there and turn it over to them. But Father is away, making sure his factories and railroads are running at full steam, so it’s up to me. I need your help, Eve.”
“They were asking for boats on the radio right before you came.”
The taxi arrived at the town house, and Audrey told the driver to take them around to the garages in back. Alfie’s car and the one Williams drove were parked side by side in the former stables. “Can you believe it?” Audrey asked. “Two perfectly good cars sitting here and none of our servants know how to drive them. That’s why I thought of you. I used to watch from my bedroom window when Williams gave you driving lessons.” She glanced at Eve and saw a ghost of a smile. “Don’t say it, Eve.”
She laughed, the same warm, bubbling laugh as on the first day they’d met in the woods. “Don’t say what?”
“That Williams would have taught me, too, if I wasn’t such a coward.”
“I wasn’t thinking that at all. I was thinking you had no reason to drive because Williams took you everywhere. Have you heard from him, by the way? Mum told me he joined the Auxiliary Fire Service.”
“No, I haven’t.” She fought the urge to apologize for not knowing more about her former driver, for seeming not to care. “Which car do you want to take?”
“Not Alfie’s. He’ll murder us. Besides, I have more experience driving Williams’s car.” Eve opened the door and slipped behind the wheel, taking a moment to settle in, running her hands around the steering wheel, adjusting the mirrors. She started the engine, released the brake, and rolled out of the garage. Audrey closed the garage door behind them and jumped in. “Do you know how to get down there?” Eve asked as she pulled into the London traffic.
“I think so. We should have enough petrol coupons since no one has used our cars since Alfie left. The boat is docked in Folkestone, and hopefully the Navy will have people there. I’m sorry, but we may need to spend the night in Folkestone. Unless the sky clears and there’s a moon, we won’t be able to drive home in the blackout.” Nervous energy and fear fueled Audrey’s babbling. Eve seemed calm, as usual, concentrating on the road and the busy traffic. Silvery barrage balloons hovered in the sky above them, swaying from their tethers as Audrey directed Eve southeast through London.
“I never drove this car in the city before,” Eve said, dodging around a red bus. “Just so you know.”
“I trust you.” Rain began falling as they reached the city’s outskirts. “Oh no,” Audrey moaned. “Rain will slow us down even more.” The whir and swish of the wipers grated on her nerves as if whispering, Hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry! According to her uncle, Great Britain would be forced to surrender if the Army wasn’t rescued.
Eve leaned forward in her seat as if trying to get a better view of the road through the steady rain. “Alfie used to speed down to the sea in less than two hours,” she said. “He drove so fast he scared me half to death! It’s no wonder nothing looks familiar to me—the countryside used to go by in a blur.”