The Hesitant Hero (10 page)

CHAPTER SEVEN

A Change of Plans

As they walked along the road that led to the orphanage, Tyler looked up and saw three military planes in formation. They were too high for him to tell if they were bombers or fighters, and he could not identify whether they were German or French. He watched them as they continued in the general direction of Paris. Even though he had returned determined to do what he could to help the Jewish children, his thoughts were confused, as he was not certain what form of help he could provide.

He had already moved back into the same room while he worked out his plan for getting the children out of the country, but Marvel’s friend had consented to let him rent the room by the day. Now as he walked along, he thought about the ever-nearing war. He remembered reading something in the Bible about seeing through a glass darkly, and felt a connection with whoever had spoken it. He remembered the story in the book of Genesis about Jacob wrestling with the angel. “I guess I’m like Jacob, struggling to get something out of God and pretty sure to lose. Poor old Jake! He lost the wrestling match and got his hip knocked out of joint. I guess I can’t hope for any better than one of the patriarchs.”

When he entered the orphanage, he was greeted by one of the workers, a petite woman who always wore the same brown dress. She had a cheerful spirit and bobbed her head up and down as she greeted him. “
Bonjour,
monsieur, you have come to visit the children again.”

“Yes, I have. I hope all of them are well.”

“Yes. They are well.” A shadow crossed the small woman’s face, and she shook her head sadly. “But who knows what tomorrow will bring?”

Tyler had actually come to see Jolie, but as he was walking down one of the hallways, Damien Rivard came sailing around the corner, his red hair falling over his forehead and his eyes intent.

“Monsieur Winslow!” he cried.

“How are you, Damien?”

“Did you bring any candy?”

“As a matter of fact, I didn’t this time.” Seeing the disappointment on the lad’s face, Tyler reached out and ruffled his hair. “But maybe I’ll bring some next time. Have you seen Mademoiselle Vernay?”

“She is out in the garden. Yolande is helping her.”

The two went through the back door and Damien at once began calling, “Monsieur Winslow is here, and he didn’t bring any candy.”

Before Tyler could get very far, he was met by a tiny whirlwind with blond hair and enormous blue eyes. He scooped Yolande up, and she put her arms around his neck and hugged him. He kissed her cheek and said, “Well, what have you been doing?”

“Helping Mademoiselle Vernay. You can help too, or we can go inside and have a tea party.”

Jolie straightened up. She had on a pair of brown gloves and held a hoe in one hand. “Hello, Tyler,” she said. “You came just in time.”

“I didn’t mean to interrupt anything.”

“It’s getting pretty warm out here. Let’s go inside and see if we can find some refreshments.”

“Is everything all right?” he asked as the group headed back to the building, Yolande clinging to Tyler as he carried her.

“Yes, although Rochelle is sick.”

“What’s wrong with her?”

“She’s got a cold or something. She’s a delicate child. Sometimes I worry about her.”

“It’s not serious, I hope.”

“No, I don’t think so, but it would be better if she had her full strength before you set off across the country.”

“I’m still a bit worried about taking three children when I know I’m not much good with kids.”

“That’s not so,” Damien put in. “You’re good with me.”

Jolie suddenly laughed. The sunshine caught the gleam of red in her brown hair, and she said, “Yes, Damien’s right. You are good with him.”

“And you’re good with me too.” Yolande put one hand on each of his cheeks and pulled his face around until their noses were almost touching. “I think I would like to be your little girl,” she said solemnly.

The statement touched Tyler Winslow. He had had very little contact with children, but these three, and especially Yolande, had affected him strongly. He laughed and said, “Well, you’ll have to be very good. I’ll only have very good little girls.”

“I am good!”

“Right you are.”

They entered the orphanage, and Jolie led the way to the kitchen. She rummaged in the cupboards until she found some crackers and jam and got the children settled at a table with their snack and some milk.

As the children chattered, Tyler said, “I didn’t tell you exactly what made me decide to come back.”

“No. I thought you were gone for good. What changed your mind?”

“I met a Jewish family in the railroad station. A fine family,” Tyler murmured, “with three children. They were talking about how Hitler was corralling the Jews and packing them into ghettos. I thought about Yolande there, and about Damien and Rochelle. I knew I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t do what I could.”

Impulsively Jolie reached over and squeezed his hand. She held it for a moment, and when he looked up with surprise, he saw she was smiling. “It’s not easy growing up,” Jolie said. “It’s not always a matter of years.”

Tyler was embarrassed, but he understood the truth of her statement. “Well, I should have grown up a long time ago.”

“Come to supper tonight. We’ll talk about what we’re going to do.”

“All right.” He looked over at the children. “Now I think I’ll go join the tea party.”

****

The meal was nearly ready, but Marvel and Jolie stopped what they were doing and listened. As they paused, Tyler came in from the parlor, where he had been reading.

Marvel shook her head. “There are many who say that the British have deserted France, but that is not so. They had no choice. It’s God’s miracle that they got away.”

“It’s a pretty critical situation,” Jolie said. “All that stands between Hitler and England is the English Channel. I’m afraid for England.”

“That may be harder than Hitler thinks,” Tyler said. When Marvel asked him what he meant, he said, “Britain has the strongest navy in the world. How would Hitler get his men across the Channel? I think Britain has a chance, but what I’m worried about is what we’re going to do.”

“One thing is certain,” Marvel said. “You must leave very soon.”

“And take at least Rochelle, Damien, and Yolande with you.”

“That’s why I came back,” Tyler said. “But I’ve been giving it a lot of thought, and I’d like to convince the two of you to come with me.”

“Leave my home?” Marvel straightened up. “Never.”

“It won’t be the same after the Germans come. You know that, Marvel.”

“
I
will be the same and
God
will be the same. Someone must stay here. One day the Germans will be gone. They will be defeated, as they were in the last war.”

“I believe you are right, but still it will be a hard time for everyone.”

Tyler argued as vehemently as he knew how, but neither Marvel nor Jolie seemed to be listening. Finally they sat down to eat, and immediately after dinner, Tyler went back to his place, discouraged.

It had been a long time since he had written to Caroline, and he decided it was time to be honest with her about the situation. Taking a sheet of paper and a pen, he sat down and began to write.

He went on to write about how he had almost left France and then had changed his mind. As he wrote, he was careful to focus on the situation at hand—the German invasion and the plight of the Jewish children should the Nazis take over—but he said almost nothing of a personal nature.

When he came to the end of the letter, he tried to put into words how he felt. When he had left, Caroline had made it plain that she wanted a future together for them, and he knew she was used to getting her own way. He took a used envelope out of the wastebasket and tried to compose a sentence that would express his sentiments, but he wasn’t happy with anything he came up with. Finally, feeling like a coward, he wrote:

He reread what he had written and, shaking his head, folded the page and put it in an envelope.

****

When Tyler arose the next morning, he turned the radio
on and stiffened, for the announcer’s voice crackled as he spoke, and a cold chill seemed to run over Tyler as he listened.

Early in the morning the Nazi army had struck at France with all their might along the Somme and the Aisne. From the announcer’s attitude and obvious despair Tyler read into his words, the French were in utter confusion. No one, it seemed, was really in charge, and though the military said they had mobilized six million men, it was apparent that they had actually mobilized only three million. This put, the announcer said, only sixty French divisions along the Somme to oppose at least a hundred fifty Nazi divisions. The big mistake was keeping troops inside the Maginot Line instead of facing the Germans head-on. There seemed to be a stubborn density in the minds of the French leaders, who still believed that a fixed line of force could stop airplanes and tanks, while airplanes could fly over and the tanks could easily go around the ends of a line.

Tyler went at once to the Vernay house. As he had suspected, both Jolie and Marvel had heard the broadcast. They invited him to eat breakfast with them, and he tried to put a good face on the events. “Maybe the Maginot Line will stop them, and remember, the British still have some forces in France that weren’t evacuated.”

“It is not enough,” Jolie said. “France is doomed.”

“Jolie is right,” Marvel agreed. “You and the children need to leave soon—while you still can.”

“Will you take them right away?” There was a pleading light in Jolie’s eyes. “If you don’t, I will do it myself.”

Her words hurt Tyler, for he had come back for no other reason. He saw that she still did not trust him and knew that the weakness she had seen in him before, especially when they were still in the States, kept her suspicious. “I’ll do it, of course.”

“That would take a huge load off of my mind,” Jolie said. “We must plan carefully.”

****

Tyler would have left the next day, but Rochelle’s illness had gotten worse, so they were forced to wait. There was little else to do except listen to the radio. They heard that the roads were now filled with refugees streaming away from the battle zones, and one day Tyler said, “We may run into German troops somewhere along the line.”

“If that happens,” Jolie said quietly, “then God will have to guide you.”

The three were having supper together, as had become their custom since Tyler had returned from Paris.

“You really believe that God guides people?” Tyler asked. “My folks believe that and my brother does too.”

“Yes, I really do. What about you? Don’t you believe it?”

“I guess I do in a sort of vague way, but the rest of my family has great faith in God.” He looked down and didn’t speak for a moment. “I’ve missed something somewhere along the line.”

“You will do fine. Maman and I will be praying for you. God will be with you. But what will you do when you get them to England?”

“I’ve been thinking about that,” Tyler said. “England is in for a rough time. It’s the only nation that stands against Hitler now. I think I’d like to take the children to America. I could find a good orphanage there. Or I’ve even thought of taking them to Africa.”

“To Africa!” Marvel exclaimed. “You mean to be with your family?”

“Yes. It’s a rough life, but at least there’s no war there.”

When a knock sounded at the door, Jolie went to answer it.

“Your daughter says I’m a weak man,” Tyler commented when Jolie was out of earshot.

“We’re all weak people.”

“You’re not—she’s not.”

“Yes we are. Weakness comes out in many ways.” She
reached over to put her hand over his. “You haven’t found yourself yet, but you will.”

Tyler felt warmed by this woman’s strength and by her encouragement. He had not expected to have it. “Do you know who Superman is?”

“You mean the cartoon figure? Yes, I have seen the comic book.”

“She wants to marry Superman, a man without faults—and that’s not me,” he said, attempting to smile.

“Jolie is a very strong woman, but she has to learn that everybody has shortcomings, and we must not love people less because of them. We must pray that they will be overcome. Find God’s will, Tyler. If it is His will for you to be with my daughter, He will find a way to bring the two of you together.”