The Book of Lost Names(28)

“I’ll need to see some other documents.”

“Other documents?”

“Surely you must have other papers? To prove that you are who you say you are?”

Eva just stared at him, her heart thudding. “But all I need to travel legally is my travel permit and my identification card.”

The soldier’s eyes were bright now, excited, and Eva felt like a wounded rabbit being circled by a hungry wolf. “And yet most citizens would carry with them something else that would prove who they are.” He raised an eyebrow and added, “Unless they were traveling on false papers.”

“What seems to be the problem?” A deep voice with a French accent cut in behind the soldier, and as he turned with a sneer, Eva’s mouth fell open. Standing just a row away was the dark-haired young man from last night, the one who had interrupted her in the church library. She sucked in a deep breath.

“And you are…?” the German asked.

“Her husband.” He slid easily into the seat beside Eva, placed his palm possessively on her thigh, and kissed her cheek. “Hello, darling. I’m sorry I was gone so long. I grew enraptured by the scenery and lost track of time.”

“H-hello,” Eva managed to stammer.

“Her husband? Let me see your papers, then.”

Eva stopped breathing. How on earth would he get out of this?

But he just smiled easily and withdrew documents from his pocket, handing them to the German.

“Rémy Charpentier,” the soldier read, and this time, Eva gasped aloud, which earned her a swift jab in the ribs.

“Sorry, darling,” he said cheerfully, glaring at her through a smile. “My arm slipped.”

As Eva gaped at him, he pulled out a few other papers and handed them to the soldier. “Here you are. My wife’s student identification papers, her library card, and a ticket she got last week for riding her bike without a headlight. She tends to lose things, so I hold on to them for her. You know how women can be.”

The soldier shuffled through the papers without a frown and then handed them back. “Very well. But you shouldn’t let her travel by herself again. She has quite a Jewish look to her.”

“Yes, of course, thank you for your advice.” The dark-haired man nodded politely at the soldier as he moved on.

Eva waited until the German was out of earshot before leaning over and hissing, “Would you kindly take your hand off my thigh?”

“What kind of a way is that to thank me for rescuing you?” The man grinned at her, but after a few seconds, he moved his hand. He was still holding Eva’s papers, though.

“What are you doing here?”

“Why, traveling with you, darling,” he replied loudly, pointing out the window. “Look, is that Varennes-sur-Allier we’re passing now? Why, I think it is. Don’t you love the way the river winds through the village? You can see it there, just beyond that field.”

“You want me to discuss the landscape with you?”

“No.” His voice was suddenly hushed, urgent, in her ear. “I want you to calm down and pretend to be in love with me. Or even simply acquainted with me. I just saved you, and the least you could do is trust me for the next few hours. I’ll explain everything once we reach Paris. There are too many people here paying attention to us.” He flashed a charming grin at an old woman staring at them from two aisles away. She snorted and went back to her knitting.

“Fine,” Eva grumbled. “Now, will you give me my papers back?”

He handed her the documents she had forged, along with the ones he had used to persuade the German soldier that she was who she said she was. She glanced at them and frowned. “But these are absolutely terrible.”

The young man looked offended. “I assume that what you meant to say was, ‘Thank you so very much, handsome Rémy, for coming to my rescue.’?”

“I—”

“Personally, I think they’re quite good for a rush job.”

She just looked at him.

“Oh, for goodness’ sake, there’s your rabbit-in-the-headlights look again.” He rolled his eyes. “Now, be a sport and hold my hand, will you? Your soldier friend is coming back.”

Eva glanced up and saw the German striding toward them from the other end of the train car, his menacing gaze glued on her. But before the soldier could say a word, Rémy leaned over and covered her mouth with his, his lips soft and gentle as he kissed her. Eva hesitated and glanced once more at the sneering German before closing her eyes and kissing back. The oxygen seemed to vanish around her, making her light-headed. By the time Rémy pulled away, looking amused, the German was gone, and her heart was racing. She knew the kiss had been merely a diversion, but his tenderness had knocked her off balance. “You can’t just kiss me like that,” she whispered.

He simply laughed and shook his head. “Sorry, what was that? Oh yes, was it, ‘Thank you so very much, handsome Rémy, for coming to my rescue for the second time today’?”

“Was that all that was? You coming to my rescue?”

“Of course,” Rémy said, settling back in his seat with a sigh, traces of a satisfied smirk dancing across his lips. “After all, you’re my wife.”



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