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But then when they were ready to load the lorries, they got resistance Not just from us A few of their captives came to life – a handful of the men eren’t chained just ran for it, dived into the ditch at the opposite side of the road and lucky for theht into Paul and his e and back to the boats by the river path More shooting as a couple of soldiers went after them and Paul’s men pounded the soldiers Go for the equipunfire was so fierce I kneo shots froo unnoticed I aimed at the chains The Double Tap, two quick shots at the sa at burst apart like a toy balloon – could hardly believe ed to free also ran

When another man tried to run, the soldiers ster filuard Julie had attacked held her doith his heel dug into the back of her neck – he wasn’t giving her a chance She fought hard and got kicked for it by the one who had said not to kill her So noith a few of the hostages dead and a few loaded up in the lorries and a few escaped, there were only 7 living people left lying on the ground – Julie with the guard’s boot against the back of her neck, and two other wo men were chained ankle to ankle And now the Gere who had arrived with the reinforceh lesson – us for trying to free their prisoners and the prisoners for wanting to be freed –

He picked on the men, mainly, the teren’t chained, and hauled the special treat her in place with his foot, he hauled her to her feet as well and pushed her over to stand next to the two other standing prisoners – one of theged and battered

Julie was ragged too She was still wearing exactly the clothes she’d had on when she parachuted into France, grey wool flannel skirt and Parisian chic pullover the burnt scarlet-orange of Chinese lanterns, with holes in the elbo Her hair shone brassy gold in the artificial light, falling loose and wild down her back Her face was skin over bone As though – as though she’d aged fifty years in eight weeks – gaunt, grey, frail The dead spit of Jamie when I first met him in hospital But thinner She looked like a kid, a head shorter than the shortest of thearound her Any of those soldiers could have picked her up and tossed her in the air

Three prisoners in a line The soldier in co Julie down took aier of the captive s

The lad shrieked and collapsed and they fired at hi apart one elbow and then the other, and then they hauled hi, and made him walk to the lorry and climb in and then they turned to the next roin also

Mitraillette and I both knelt wheezing with horror, side by side under cover of the undergrowth and darkness Julie stood cowering, white as paper in the harsh glare of the floodlight, staring straight ahead of her at nothing She was next She knew it We all knew it But they weren’t finished with their second victiain rapidly in the same place to shatter it, my not-very-reliable control just went and I burst into tears I couldn’t help it, sounner at Maidsend and found the dead boys I burst into loud, gulping sobs, bawling like a baby

Her face – Julie’s face – her face suddenly lit up like a sunrise Joy and relief and hope all there at once and she was instantly lovely again, herself, beautiful She heardShe didn’t dare call out to itive

They fired at the secondhis other ar him to the lorry

Julie was next

Suddenly she laughed wildly and gave a shaking yell, her voice high and desperate

‘KISS ME, HARDY! Kiss me, QUICK!’

Turned her face away from me to make it easier

And I shot her

I saw her body’s flinch – the blows knocked her head aside as though she’d been thuone

Gone One rey and dark Out like a candle Here, then gone

I’ll just keep writing, shall I? Because that wasn’t the end It wasn’t even a pause

The officer pulled another woirl screamed at us in French: ‘ALLEZ! ALLEZ!’ Go! Go! ‘Résistance idiots sales, vous nous MASSACREZ TOUS!’

FILTHY RESISTANCE IDIOTS, YOU’RE KILLING US ALL

I knehat she was saying even with ht

We ran They fired at our backs and ca over the bridge walls, and they turned to face this rear attack Carnage CARNAGE Half of us, Paul with thee The rest of us made it back to the boats and set off down the river with the five fugitives we’d ed to save

When ere away fro more for me to do, I bent over with my head on my knees, my heart in pieces It is still in pieces I think it will be in pieces forever