"Madame!" whispered a voice. "Open the door toute suite n'est-ce-pas." It was the old woman's voice.
I pulled away the barricading chair, and let her in.
Over her shoulder I saw a man.
It was no German, this!
It was dear pie-coloured Henri in a grey suit with a white-and-black handkerchief swathed round his neck.
Behind him were the two little girls.
"Quick, quick!" breathes the old woman, "you must go, Madame, you must go at once! My brother is frightened; he refuses to have you here any longer. He is terrified out of his life lest the Germans should discover that he has been allowing an English woman to hide in his house!"
She threw an apron on me, and hurriedly tied it behind me, then she brought out a big black shawl and flung it round my shoulders. Then she picked up the blue-and-white check handkerchief lying on the table, and nodded to me to tie it over my head.
"You must go at once, you must leave everything behind you. You must not take anything. We will see about your things afterwards. You must pass as Henri's wife. There! Take his arm! And you, Henri, take one of the little girls by the hand! And you, Madame, you take the other. There! Courage, Madame. Oh, my poor child, I am sorry for you!"
She kissed me, and pushed me out at the same time.