Chapter 45 Chapter Forty-Four

Dieter was desperate.Flick is just too smart.She escaped the trap he set.She was hiding somewhere in Lance, but he just couldn't find her. He doesn't have any resistance people to follow, and if there is, she will contact him so that she can be caught.But now these people have all been arrested.Dieter sent someone to monitor Michel's house and Gilberta's residence, but he believed that Flick was too cunning to expose himself to the Gestapo.There were posters of her posted all over town, but she must have changed her face, dyed her hair or something, because no one reported seeing her.She beat him everywhere.

He waited eagerly for a flash of inspiration. He feels that this method is good now. He straddles a bicycle on the side of the road.He was in the city center, not far from the theater entrance.He wore a beret, goggles, and a jersey sweater with his trousers tucked into his socks.In this attire, no one would recognize him or suspect him.The Gestapo never rode bicycles. He looked west of the street, squinting at the setting sun.He was waiting for a black Citroen.He looked at his watch, the time was up, and it would appear in a moment. On the other side of the road, Hans was driving an old Peugeot that was almost too old to drive.The engine was running all the time, and Dieter was afraid that it would not start when he used it, so he took a risk.Hans also disguised himself, wearing sunglasses, a torn coat, and tattered shoes, just like an ordinary French citizen.He had never done anything like this before, but he took orders with great composure.

Dieter never did it himself.He didn't know if the trick worked.Anything can go wrong, anything can happen. Dieter's plan was desperate, but what more could he have to lose?Tuesday is full moon night.He believed that on this day the Allied forces would make a massive invasion.Flick is an important trophy.To get her, no amount of risk is worth it. However, whether he can win the war or not, he is not as concerned as before.His future is ruined, and he doesn't care who ends up ruling Europe.Flick Claret was on his mind all the time, she had ruined his life.It was she who killed Stephanie.He wants to find her, catch her with his own hands, and lock her in the basement of the castle.There he wants to taste the thrill of revenge.He fantasized again and again how he would torture her: crush her small bones with an iron rod, turn on the electric shock machine to the maximum horsepower, inject injections, let her taste the helpless convulsions and nausea under the great pain The taste of it, and the ice bath, made her tremble and twitch, and the blood in her fingers froze into ice.Destroying the resistance and repelling the invaders was just part of his punishment for Flick.

But first he had to get her. He saw a black Citroen approaching in the distance.He stares at it.Is it this car?It was a two-door type, and it was generally used to transport prisoners.He tried to look inside.He saw that there were four people sitting in it.This should be the car he was waiting for.As the car approached, he saw Michelle's handsome face behind the car, with the Gestapo in uniform next to him.He tensed up. He was thankful that he had ordered Michele not to be tortured while he was away.Otherwise, the plan would not have been possible. When Citroen drove up to Dieter, Hans suddenly started the old-fashioned Peugeot parked on the side of the road. The car rushed to the middle of the road, jumped forward, and hit the front of Citroen head-on.

There was a loud bang of metal impact, followed by crashing glass that shattered to the ground.Two Gestapo jumped out of the Citroen and yelled at Hans in terrible French—seemingly unaware that his colleague in the backseat hit his head and lay there, visibly unconscious, while the prisoner sat next to him. The moment has come, Dieter thought, his nerves like a tight rope.Will Michelle take the bait?He stood in the middle of the street, watching the dramatic scene. It took Michelle a long time to see this opportunity.Dieter almost felt like he was going to miss it.Then he seemed to realize it.He moved to the front seat, touched the door handle, managed to open the car door, put down the seat, and climbed out.

He glanced at the two Gestapo who were still arguing with Hans, their backs were turned to him.He turned and walked away quickly.The expression on his face looked like he couldn't believe his luck. The joy of victory surged in Dieter's heart.His plan worked.He followed Michel, and Hans followed Dieter on foot. Dieter rode for a few yards, then found himself on top of Michele, got out and pushed on the pavement.Michele turned the first corner, limping a little from the gunshot wound, but going fast, his bound hands lowered to look unobtrusive.Dieter followed carefully, sometimes walking, sometimes riding for a while, trying to avoid Michelle's sight, and hiding behind large vehicles when he had the opportunity.Michele glanced back now and then, but made no deliberate steps to shake off the tail.He didn't realize it was a trap.

A few minutes later, Hans replaced Dieter, and according to prior arrangements, Dieter fell behind and followed Hans.Then they rotated again. Where will Michelle go?The crux of Dieter's plan was to have Michele lead him to the rest of the Resistance so he could follow Flick again. To Dieter's surprise, Michel walked towards his house near the cathedral.Presumably he must suspect that someone is watching his house, right?Still, he hit the street.But instead of going back to his own house, he went into a bar called Regis House across the street. Dieter leaned his bicycle against the wall of an adjacent building, a vacant store with a faded "Deli" sign on the door.He waited here for a few minutes in case Michelle came out again anytime soon.After realizing that Michelle was going to stay inside for a while, Dieter walked in.

He simply wanted to make sure Michele was still inside—with goggles and a beret, he believed Michele wouldn't recognize him, and he'd come out on the pretext of buying a pack of cigarettes.But he didn't see Michelle inside.Puzzled, Dieter hesitated. The bartender said, "Sir, what would you like?" "Beer," Dieter said, "draft beer." He said as little as possible, hoping that the bartender wouldn't pick up on his slight German accent and just mistook him for a cyclist coming to quench his thirst. "Come on." "Where's the toilet?"

The bartender pointed to a door in the corner.Dieter walked in.Michelle wasn't in the men's room.Dieter ventured a peek into the women's room, which was empty.He opened what appeared to be a cabinet door and found it leading to a staircase.He walked up the stairs.At the top of the stairs is a heavy door with a peephole.He knocked on the door, but there was no answer.He stood there listening for a while.He heard nothing, but the door was thick.He felt that someone must be looking through the peephole inside, and realized that he was not a regular visitor.He tried to pretend he was going the wrong way to the bathroom, scratched his head, shrugged, and went downstairs.

It doesn't look like this place has a back door.Michel is here, Dieter is sure, upstairs in the locked room.But what should he do with Dieter? He sat down at a table with his glass in hand, lest the bartender would chat with him.Beer was bland.Even in Germany, the quality of beer declined during the war.He forced himself to finish it and walked out. Hans stood on the other side of the street, looking at the window of the bookstore.Dieter walked over. "He's upstairs in a private room," he said to Hans. "He's probably meeting with other resistance cadres there. On the other hand, it's probably a brothel or something, and I'm not going to rush in on him." Take action, and he has to lead us to other people of value."

Hans nodded, understanding the dilemma. Dieter makes a decision.It is too early to arrest Michelle again.He said: "When he came out, I followed him. Once we are far away, you can search the place." "Myself?" Dieter pointed to the two Gestapo sitting in the Citroen monitoring Michel's house and said, "Let them help you." "Ok." "Try to look like a genteel search - catch whores if there are. Don't mention the Resistance." "OK." "Until then, we'll just have to wait."