London, England           When Victoria returned to Cadogan Gardens, a Grand Mercedes was parked in front of the house.           Her driver opened the door to her Bentley and the driver of the Mercedes did likewise for his passenger. Victoria found herself face-to-face with the Secretary of State for Defense.           “Good evening, Victoria. Or should I call you Lady Tyning?” “Good evening Secretary Cooper. You may call me Lady Méliès.           “I need to speak with you.”           “You could have telephoned.”           “It’s about your brother.”           She sighed. “Come inside.”           Wills' maid pulled open the front door as Victoria reached the top step and took Victoria’s cape and Cooper’s hat. Victoria showed the Secretary into the front parlor, but instead of offering him a seat, she turned to him and asked bluntly, “Why are you here?”           “I see you’ve chosen to abandon aristocratic niceties.”           “I believe you set the tone for our relationship years ago, when you took advantage of my naïveté and dumped me like the next day’s rubbish.”           “I’ve told you how sorry I was about that.”           “You still haven’t answered my question. Why are you here?”           “I want to be perfectly frank with you, Victoria…”           “Lady Méliès,” she corrected him.           “Lady Méliès. I’m aware of the special arrangement you have with Mademoiselle Chanel.”           Victoria’s face did not reveal her surprise. “You’re spying on my dressmaking habits?”           “No, just on your dressmaker. When an influential woman like Coco Chanel strikes up close friendships with Nazi officers, it piques our interest.”           “I believe she’s above reproach.”           “She may be. We’re just keeping an eye on her.”           “That doesn’t explain why you’re here, unless you think I’m hiding her in my wardrobe.”           “We’ve been made aware that you’ve become quite adept at… uh… eliciting and passing information.”           “Why would you ever think that?”           “Because one of the men inside the Café where you deliver Mademoiselle Chanel’s little packages is one of our agents. He followed you one day and you not only intuited that he was following you, you confronted him with some outlandish story that he said was very convincing. We replaced him with another man, who managed to get invited to a soiree at Chanel’s apartment the following evening and he overheard you worming information out of a man named Günter Frankel. From what I gather, you got him to admit the Germans have designs on Switzerland and then managed to gracefully take your leave with an older married couple, much to Herr Frankel’s disappointment.”           “Fanciful rumors. I’m surprised a man in your position believes them.”           “That’s not all I believe. I believe you could do a great service to the Crown and help secure your brother’s freedom.”           His words tugged at her heart. “What news do you have for me about Wills?”           “Sit down, Lady Méliès. We have much to discuss.”           Cooper and Victoria discussed the people she had seen in England since arriving. She told him she had been to a house party and had seen an old family friend.           "Where was the house party?”           Victoria paused for a moment before looking directly into Cooper’s eyes. “I’m sure you already know.”           “Yes. But I’d like to hear your description of the event.”           Victoria described Cliveden on the night of the party in great detail, but completely omitted her conversation with Siegfried Feuermacht.           “I think you’re holding out on me, Lady Méliès.”           Victoria raised an eyebrow but said nothing.           Cooper continued, “Tell me about Siegfried Feuermacht. I know you were introduced to him. I know he told you something that affected your demeanor at that party. I’m told after speaking to Feuermacht, you quickly pulled Major George Thorpington aside for a few hushed words and then retired for the evening. I’m also told you left the next morning, saying you were ill. Did Feuermacht give you any indication that the Germans were willing to trade your brother for information?”           “Your spies are good, I’ll give you that.” Victoria sat silently for a while, trying to determine how much to tell Cooper. She decided to be forthright. “Feuermacht claims my brother stole some papers. Of course that’s not true, because if Wills stole the papers – and the Germans have Wills – the Germans would have the papers. But they claim we have them and they want me to get them.”           “I’ll be honest with you.” Cooper replied. “We do have the papers. We suspect they’re Feuermacht’s work. But we can’t take any action, because frankly, we have no solid proof against him.           “There is no way to link them to Feuermacht other than the fact that they’re on Cliveden stationary. Besides, Feuermacht is a guest of Viscount Waldorf Astor. Making any kind of allegation against him could set off an international incident.           “Lady Méliès, we want you to agree to Feuermacht’s demands and take whatever course of action he prescribes. And we want you to keep us apprised of the situation every step of the way.”           “He wants me to sail to America on the next voyage of the Queen Mary.”           “Then do it. I will supply you with an exact duplicate of the German documents. And we will have an agent on board to watch over you.”           “Who will that be?”           “For that person’s safety, as well as your own, we must keep his or her identity a secret.           “Before you embark on the journey, however, I will need you to visit the Madame.”           “Mademoiselle Chanel?”           “Close.” Cooper took a card out of his jacket pocket and scribbled an address on the back. I want you to go to this address tomorrow, dressed in the traveling outfit you’ll be wearing onboard the Queen Mary.”           “I’m sure I will be wearing many ensembles aboard ship.” “Yes, but if I know women, you’ll have one preferred outfit for outdoor daytime travel. Coat, bag, hat.”           “You pay attention to women’s fashion?”           “I pay attention to everything. Madame needs to alter your clothing.”           “They fit perfectly.”           “I don't remember you being so contrary.”           "Mademoiselle Chanel tailors every stitch of my clothing, just for me."           "Just do it." *** Share | Code Name: Evangeline is available in its entirety on Kindle Don't own a Kindle? Download a free app to read Kindle books on your iPhone and iPod Touch. Or get the free app to read Kindle books on your PC.