Chapter 5

The next morning dawned unseasonably warm. Terry had dressed in the skirt and blouse from the day before. Goniff had gone into the nearby village during the night and procured some SS uniforms for Garrison and Actor. Craig was already dressed in his major's uniform. Actor took the general's clothes and went in the spare room to change.

Terry wandered over to the table where Craig was going over the map one more time with Casino and Goniff. He motioned his sister in and repeated the plan and the route for her.

The bedroom door opened and the con man stepped out. Actor tugged at the tail of the too small tunic and smoothed the material. Casino snickered. "Getting a little chunky there, aren't you, Beautiful?" asked the safecracker sarcastically. Actor decidedly ignored him. "Well, you look like you're bulging a little there in spots, yuh know," egged on Casino.

Terry rolled her eyes. Craig was about to open his mouth to put a stop to it, when Terry stepped forward. Craig mentally cringed. He never knew what his sister would do. Actor watched her in puzzlement as she calmly walked up to him. She reached up and straightened the cross at his neck, then bumped his arms away from his sides with her hands. She proceeded to wrap her arms around him and give him a hug. He stared at her. Terry backed off, ignoring the big Italian and looked at Casino with a shake of her head.

"Hate to burst your bubble there, Babe," she said matter-of-factly, "But there's nothing wrong with that." Terry turned her back and walked away.

"Yeah, and you might be just a little prejudiced, yuh think?" shot back Casino.

Terry stopped and slowly turned to face the safecracker. "Two things, Casino. One, don't get catty with a woman. You won't win. Two, jealousy does not become you."

"Jealous? Ha! You just need to hug a real man."

"Sorry, Darling, but I just hugged him and that's my quota of real men for the day." With that she turned and walked back to her brother.

Goniff burst out laughing. Craig buried his face in his hands. Actor stared at her in shock. And Casino glared at her, unable to come back with anything suitable in front of her brother.

A bit later, they went out to the vehicles. Chief had put the top down on the staff car. He and Goniff went to the other vehicle. Craig stepped up to the front passenger door and paused to watch Casino hold open the back door. Actor climbed in first and nodded. Terry laid her hand on the offered hand of a very serious looking Casino. She allowed him to assist her getting into the back seat next to the con man.

"Danke, Heinrich," she said.

He nodded silently back at her, fully aware of Garrison watching him.

After they had left the yard, Terry leaned into Actor and spoke in his ear. "Did you teach Casino how to do that? He's very good."

"No," said Actor. "He would not accept that from me. He started out well on his own. I believe the Lieutenant has been coaching him. He is very good."

"How is he with the safes?" asked Terry curiously.

Actor gave a snort. "I don't think there is anything that man cannot break into."

"What about you?" asked the girl. "Your dossier says you're also a master jewel and art thief."

"I have a certain talent," said the Italian with a hint of arrogance.

"So how did you get caught?"

Actor turned his head and looked at her with one raised eyebrow. "That is a long story and not for your ears, Little One."

Terry considered herself put in her place. She couldn't resist adding, "Must have been a woman."

"There was one involved," admitted the con man. He turned his head away from her, effectively ending that conversation. He missed the amused grin on the girl's face.

They were halted at a roadblock without papers. Terry sat with studied disinterest beside the SS general. Actor was aristocratic and haughty in speaking to the younger German officer. He spat out an order and the German motioned to let the car through, saluting Actor with a 'heil Hitler." Terry snuck a glance at the con man. The corners of his mouth were downturned and a steely expression was on his face. After they were out of sight of the roadblock, the man's features relaxed back into his normal countenance.

They made it to the coast by dusk. The weather had taken a sharp turn. Heavy clouds were coming in over the Channel and the wind was strong and icy. Terry couldn't wait for the sub so she could get into her pants and out of the skirt that was doing nothing to keep her legs warm. She moved over to her brother's side. He reached an arm out and pulled her up tight against him.

"Snow coming," said Terry. "You can feel it."

"Glad we're not flying," said Craig.

"You know for a minute back there at that roadblock, I wasn't sure who I was sitting next to. I would have sworn Actor was an SS general."

Craig grinned, "He is the best."

"I'll believe it. He's almost scary."

"I really wish you would be careful teasing him," said Craig. "That is one man I would hate to see lose his temper."

"He is very controlled," admitted Terry. "I have to tease him," she added. "He's too doggone full of himself not to."

Once on the sub, Terry got permission to use the officer's quarters to change clothes. She was still chilled when she went back to the holding area where the men were. Craig was on the bridge with the captain. She could not understand her brother's fascination with the underwater coffins. The other men were asleep on the metal benches, except for Goniff.

"Come here, Love," he invited.

Terry gratefully moved into a now familiar position in the crook of his arm. He hugged her, trying to warm her up. "You're not sick?" she asked.

"Not yet," said the Englishman.

"Maybe the key is to not feed you before you get on one of these things."

Goniff gave a humpf. "You're not takin' away me food, Love. I'm starvin' 'alf to death now."

Terry chuckled quietly. "I still don't understand how you can eat as much as you do and not gain any weight."

"I 'ave a very good metabolism," said Goniff proudly.

"More likely a tapeworm," muttered the girl.

They were fifteen minutes away from the British sub pens when Garrison went to check on his men. He smiled at all of them sleeping and shook his head at his sister snuggled in tight against the pickpocket.