Jack and Annie stared in shock at the woman. Before they could answer, the door to the bistro swung open, and three Nazi soldiers entered. The men ignored everyone as they sat at a corner table not far from Jack and Annie.

The young waitress moved quickly to serve them.

“My name is Sylvie,” the girl’s mother said softly to Jack and Annie. “I am a friend of the twins. A good friend.”

Jack was wary. Is she really a friend? he wondered.

Annie did not seem to have the same doubts. “Oh, wow, hi,” she said in a low voice. “We know their parents.”

“I have never met Tom and Theo’s parents,” said Sylvie. She glanced at the table in the corner. The Nazis were laughing loudly with her daughter. “In the Resistance, we keep our personal lives secret from each other. That way, other families might avoid punishment if one of us is caught. Do the parents know what happened to their sons?”

“No. Only that they were caught in Paris,” said Annie. “They don’t know if they’re in prison or not.”

“Tom and Theo are not in prison. They are safe,” Sylvie whispered. “With help from others, they escaped from jail and fled to the south of France. Then they crossed over the Pyrenees mountains into Spain.”

“That’s great!” whispered Annie.

Jack looked at the Nazis. They were still joking with Sylvie’s daughter. Was there any chance Sylvie was working with them? What if this was a trap? Was she making up the story about Tom and Theo?

“Are you sure that’s true?” he asked, narrowing his eyes at Sylvie.

“I understand your caution,” Sylvie whispered. Then she slowly moved two silver spoons into the shape of a V.

Jack nodded. Okay, he thought. He was willing to take the chance that Sylvie was telling the truth.

Sylvie then straightened the spoons. “It is very dangerous for you to carry these flyers,” she said under her breath.

“I know. It’s my fault,” said Annie. “I wanted to help Tom and Theo. We got caught on a train, and Jack was almost arrested. But then the tracks got blown up and we escaped.”

Sylvie smiled. “You are brave,” she said. “In this time, even children must be brave.”

“But helping Tom and Theo isn’t really our mission,” said Annie. “We’re trying to find a friend and help her escape to England.”

Jack glanced again at the corner table. The Nazis were studying their menus now.

“Is there any way I can help you?” said Sylvie.

“Yes,” said Annie. She slipped Kathleen’s rhyme out of her pocket and put it on the table. “Our friend sent us this coded message.” Sylvie discreetly looked at the note. “The only lines we don’t understand are the last ones.”

Jack glanced at the soldiers again. One of them looked up and his gaze rested on Sylvie. “They’re watching you,” Jack whispered.

Sylvie nodded. Then she laughed. “So you both love apples?” she said.

What is she talking about? Jack wondered. Is she speaking in code?

“Yes, we love apples,” Annie said, smiling.

“What kind of apples do you like best?” Sylvie said.

“Um …I like Granny Smith apples,” said Annie. “So does Jack.”

“Good, good!” said Sylvie. “Well, we have very delicious varieties of apples in this area. They have funny names, such as the Gentle Bishop and Skin of the Dog. But my favorites are the Yellow Knights and the White Calves.”

Jack didn’t know what to say. He wasn’t sure how to play this game.

Annie looked calmly at Jack. “Yellow knights,” she said, “and small, round cows.”

“Oh … oh,” said Jack. Apples! So in her note, Kathleen was secretly writing about apples! Not knights! Not cows!

Annie laughed. “And can we find those delicious varieties of apples somewhere near here?” she asked.

“Oh, yes,” said Sylvie. “In fact, my bistro is on the Road of Rocks. Down the street is a deserted château with a small orchard. Beautiful Yellow Knights and White Calves grow on trees there. So perhaps that is where you will find what you’re looking for.” She casually tapped the note. Jack saw that her fingers were pointing to the line a crack in a rock beneath the boughs.

“Cool,” Jack said. “Thank you.”

“You’re most welcome,” said Sylvie. She stood up and straightened her apron. “Enjoy your day, children. I hope you find the apple of your dreams.”

“With your help, I think we will,” said Jack. He glanced at the Nazis. The soldier was no longer looking at their table. He was lighting a cigarette and listening to his friends. Jack flashed a quick V Is for Victory sign at Sylvie. She smiled, then crossed the dining room back to the kitchen.

“Friend,” Annie said to Jack as she put the note back into her pocket.

“Big-time,” Jack said. He checked a clock on the wall. “It’s almost two. We have six hours left.” He took a long sip of lemonade, left some money on the table, and stood up. As he and Annie quietly slipped out of the bistro, he heard the Nazis laughing with each other.

It was still cloudy outside. A damp wind was blowing.

“This is the Road of Rocks,” said Annie, looking at a sign. “Now we just need to find a deserted château. What’s a château?”

“I think it’s like a big, fancy house,” said Jack.

“Cool,” said Annie. “Let’s find it.”

“Oh, wait,” said Jack. “We have to do something first.”

“What?” said Annie.

“Come with me,” said Jack. He led the way around the bistro to an open window in the back. Through the window they saw Sylvie in the kitchen. She was stirring a pot on the stove.

Jack looked around to make sure that no one was watching. Then he called in a loud whisper, “Sylvie!”

She looked surprised and came over to the window. “Yes?”

“Could you do us a favor?” said Jack. “Could you send a wireless message to the BBC?”

She nodded.

“Could you have it say …” Jack thought for a moment. “Have it say, Your twin unicorns are free in Spain.”

Sylvie looked puzzled.

“Tom and Theo,” said Jack. “Their parents will understand what that means when they hear it over their wireless. It will make them very happy.”

“Yes,” said Sylvie. “I will do that.”

“Thanks!” said Jack.

“Good work!” Annie said as she and Jack slipped back around the restaurant.

“Yep,” said Jack. “Now, a deserted château with apple trees!”

“Onward!” said Annie.

As they started up the Road of Rocks, Jack and Annie strolled past a couple of houses, a churchyard, and an ancient-looking cemetery. They passed a butcher shop, a bookstore, and a bakery called La Baguette.

“I don’t get it,” said Jack. “Why would Kathleen be hiding in a cave? It seems so safe here. Why doesn’t she come out in the open?”

“I was wondering the same thing,” said Annie. “And why didn’t she just tell Teddy when and where to pick her up and then go there to meet him? You have to be cautious, but you can still travel around. Something’s not right.”

“Yeah, really,” said Jack.

Jack and Annie walked farther up the road and rounded a bend. “Whoa,” said Jack. “A deserted château?”

Set against a rocky hillside was a mansion with a sagging roof and broken windows. On its grounds were fallen-down sheds, overgrown gardens, and a scattering of bushes and weeds.

Annie pointed to a cluster of flowering trees in front of the hillside. “Apple orchard,” she said. The spring breeze shook their boughs, and white petals floated to the ground like snowflakes.

“Yes!” said Jack. He looked around. No vehicles or pedestrians were close by. “Trespass!”

Jack and Annie walked up the driveway. Their boots crunched over the gravel path as they hurried across the weedy grounds of the château. When they drew close to the hillside, they studied the rocks.

“There,” said Annie. She pointed to a crack big enough for a person to slip through.

“Okay,” said Jack. “Wait.” He reached into his pack and took out the flashlight Teddy had given them.

“I’ll go first,” said Annie. She squeezed through the shoulder-wide crack in the rock, and Jack followed her. They stepped into a tunnel, lit only by the shaft of light from the crack.

Jack switched on their flashlight and shined it on the cream-colored stone walls. “This must be one of the limestone tunnels that Suzette and Gaston talked about,” he said.

“Listen,” said Annie.

Voices were singing deep inside the tunnel—high, sweet voices:

Twinkle, twinkle, little star,

How I wonder what you are.