The Paris Architect: A Novel

“Come, my little bunnies; it’s safe now. No one will hurt you.”


She cradled the little girl, running her hand through her soft brown hair. Emile crawled out by himself and hugged her thigh, not wanting to let go. Bette gazed down into the hiding place that Lucien had designed. He had saved her children, and she now loved him more than ever. Bette wanted to spend the rest of her life with Lucien.

Finally Emile let go of her thigh. “Aunt Bette, aren’t you cold in your underwear?”





59





Alain knew that Lucien was heading for a Jew hideout. He was taking an incredibly circuitous route to discover if anyone was following him. Alain would have done the same thing if he had been in Lucien’s place. But then, Alain would never do anything as insane as hiding Jews.

Lucien had strolled at a very leisurely pace through the Tuileries Gardens then over to the Place de la Concorde, where he circled the obelisk twice before heading north on the rue Royale. When he got to the Church of La Madeleine, he circled that twice, pretending to admire its neoclassical features, then went west on the rue Saint-Honoré until he turned right on the rue d’Anjou, then left on the rue de Surène. As soon as Alain turned the corner, he remembered that the last time he tailed Lucien, he’d lost him on the rue des Saussaies, which was the next street over. He kept close behind him as he walked down the rue des Saussaies. Two doors before the intersection of rue Montalivet, Lucien stopped and lit a cigarette. He backed into a doorway and looked intently at Gestapo headquarters across the street. Alain had made his way across the street, where he could get a clear view of his boss. With the quickness of a cat, Lucien darted out onto the sidewalk and in through the door of number 12.

Alain sprinted across the street to the side of the entry and opened one of the double doors to peek inside. He caught sight of Lucien’s left shoe as it stepped on the first stair riser. Alain slid inside the foyer and hid by the side of the stairway. He was relieved to see that the concierge was not about. He could hear Lucien’s quick steps as he ascended the stairs. When Lucien was up to the first floor, Alain started his ascent, hugging the wall, keeping out of sight in case Lucien looked down into the open stairwell. As Lucien reached the second floor, Alain was just a flight below him.

At the third floor Lucien walked over to an apartment door and knocked three times, then three times again. Alain was lying flat against the slope of the stair with his head peeking over the edge of the first riser at the landing when Lucien entered the apartment. He waited a few seconds then went right up to the door. He heard men in the distance talking, but the thick door muffled their voices. Even putting his ear to the panel didn’t help. He backed away from the door to take note of the apartment number, 3A, and quickly descended the stairs.