Tsing-Boum by Nicolas Freeling Page B

work. But he is quite reasonable. She knows nothing about history or geography at all, but he says generously that that’s no fault of hers. She can start either German or English next year. What do you think – is Latin a suitable subject for a girl? Since her French is fluent mightn’t Spanish or Italian be better?’ It was a problem they had not faced before; they had only had boys!
    â€˜Arlette – oy.’ It was nine; Ruth had gone to bed.
    â€˜What is it?’
    â€˜I saw the man from DST today.’
    â€˜Oh.’ There was a silence, perhaps a scrap embarrassed on both sides.
    â€˜She was at Dien Bien Phu, you know. I’ve been grasping some of the implications, though all this is of course pretty intangible.’
    â€˜If they’re intangible how can you grasp them?’ asked Arlette pedantically.
    â€˜I floundered about – I’m only a poor Dutch peasant. No, you aren’t in the secret army, and Esther wasn’t either and there’s something peculiar about Esther all right, but he may not know it himself, but the ground is clear, so I can go off to France and try and find out, against a barrier of double-talk because Esther – whatever she did – got covered-up for.’
    â€˜You’re not making an awful lot of sense.’
    â€˜No but neither does she. Now I don’t want you persecuted by this. This child …’
    â€˜Stays where she is.’
    â€˜Good – that’s all I want to hear. That we mustn’t be disloyal to Esther. I think I see – you have quite a lot in common.’
    â€˜This woman,’ said Arlette very slowly, plainly determined to stand no more nonsense, ‘she was at Dien Bien Phu? Convoyeuse de l’Air? But she didn’t stay. De Galard was the only one who stayed.’
    â€˜Hanoi, I gather, filled up with people who wanted to get in, some of whom succeeded. Has it occurred to you that something might have happened – that she did something – which has been covered up? I got a hint that that was it, today. She did something. Maybe later it leaked out and that’s why she left France. Somebody might have taken this length of time to find out where she was. Consequently the machine-gun – but what the hell did she do and how am I to find it out?’
    â€˜She may have done something that the world calls a crime but the army doesn’t,’ said Arlette.
    â€˜What do you mean?’
    â€˜I don’t know. Other women joined that life, feeling – how should I know? – disgusted with life, with the bourgeoisie, with cowardice and envy and petty dirty filthy ways to turn two cents into three – I only know that I could well have donethe same. Brigitte Friang asked to parachute in and they refused her permission. I understand. If Esther was like that, and I somehow have inherited her child, all I can say is that it is a mercy of God. Find out what you can about her. For me. I have to bring this child up; it’s important to me.’
    Van der Valk searched for and lit a cigarette in silence.
    â€˜Yes. Well, I’m going – I have a green light from the Minister.’
    â€˜The Procureur?’
    â€˜No – this is an administrative thing: what standing I have professionally in France, what expenses I’m entitled to. They want it kept quiet, not to upset the French, not to alert the Press, at all costs nothing political. Like the Marschal time.’
    â€˜Where you ended up getting shot.’
    â€˜Oddly enough, that’s just what the Minister said. Don’t worry, having eaten Anne-Marie’s rifle bullet I’ll be very cautious of this maniac with the sub-machine-gun. The thing is, how to go about it. I go to the spot, I get dusty answers. That policeman – champagne or no champagne – he’s a last resort. I have to have something to go on, first. I can’t trot in and ask what it was Esther did and