London, England           Victoria was introduced to Admiral Hugh “Quex” Sinclair, the head of Section Six, inside the Cromwell Road office of the Secret Intelligence Service.           “If you don’t mind my saying so, Admiral, Quex is an unusual middle name. Is it a family name or a code name?”           “We don’t use given names here at the SIS. Just call me C. And we’ll use a code name when referring to you, to keep your identity a secret.”           “Fascinating.”           They rounded a corner and entered a workroom. An angular woman, whose dark hair was pulled into a severe bun, gave them an unexpectedly warm smile. “Is this my new model?”           “Yes, and she must be outfitted to cope with any difficulty.”           “Let me see what we can do for you. Do you have a code name that I should call you by?” When Victoria didn’t answer, Madame looked at the Admiral.           “Evangeline,” he said. “Her code name is Evangeline.”           Madame took Victoria’s coat and handed it to her assistant. “Come, Evangeline. Let me show you what we have here.”           Victoria was amazed by the sheer ingenuity of the SIS. She picked up a small tin. “Foot powder?” she asked.           “That’s what it looks like. It’s itching powder. It’s a good way to distract someone. It’s best if you sprinkle it inside their clothing, so their garments rub it into their skin.”           “How lovely.”           “If you’re going to sail to America, you’ll need these.” Madame handed her a vial filled with tablets.”           “What are these for?”           “Seasickness. I suggest you start taking them before you sail and continue until you disembark. You’ll need to have your wits about you and that won’t happen if you’re constantly nauseated.”           Madame handed Victoria a packet of Gauloise cigarettes. “Use one of these when you want to create a diversion. They each have a tiny incendiary pellet embedded in them. I suggest you draw no more than one or two initial puffs before distancing yourself.”           Madame looked over Victoria’s outfit and went to a shelf where she selected a tan leather handbag. At a workbench, she attached a metal filigree button to it before handing it to Victoria.           “Did you just add my initial? It’s a nice touch, but I doubt I would use this. It’s much too heavy.”           “That’s because it contains a radiation detector; what’s called a Geiger counter.” Madame opened it and removed a gold compact. Inside, it appeared to have face powder, but the powder lifted out and underneath was a small lead capsule. “The material in the capsule is radioactive. If you want to trace someone, unscrew the capsule and dab a bit of the contents onto a small object, like a button or cigarette lighter, and slip it into the person’s pocket. When you activate the radiation detector, you’ll hear static clicks when the object is nearby. Be careful not to touch the radioactive material or get it on your clothing, or you’ll be reading your own signal instead of the person you're trailing. And the sound of the detector may not be easy to explain to anyone who’s within hearing distance. So use it wisely.”           “Wouldn’t it make noise anyway, because of the material in the capsule?”           “The idea is to think ahead when planting the radioactive trinket, so you're not carrying the capsule with you when you’re trying to track someone. But, even if you forget, the capsule’s lead shell should prevent its contents from registering.”           Victoria picked up a ring that was sitting on Madame’s desk. “This is beautiful.” She slipped it on her finger.           “Turn the stone sideways,” Madame prompted her.           Nothing happened. “It doesn’t do anything.”           “Oh, but it does. It’s a telegraph key.” She picked up heels for a pair of women’s shoes. “And in here,” she showed her inside one heel, “is an electromagnetic coil. Inside the other heel is a battery. Together, they’ll help you send out a signal. However, it helps to be near a radio transmitter when sending Morse code.”           “I don’t know Morse code.”           Madame picked up a handbook from the desk and slapped it into Victoria’s hand. “You will.”           C interrupted. “We took the liberty of booking you a room at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York. If Feuermacht travels to America, that’s where he would probably stay, considering he’s now a houseguest of the Astors. If you need to send a message, I suggest you do it from a nightclub in the hotel called the Starlight Roof. They have a live broadcast every night and your message will piggyback on their signal and be picked up by your contact in New York.”           “But I don’t have a contact in New York.”           “You do now. His name is Malcolm Payson. I suggest you commit his name to memory. I’ll let him know you’re coming to New York and tell him to listen for your signal. "Even though you’ll be using Morse code, you’ll be sending what appears to be nonsense.” He took a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Victoria. It was filled with possible messages she might send, followed by whimsical phrases.           She read aloud, “With silver bells and cockle shells?”           “It means your adversaries are armed.”           Madame removed a suit from a rack of clothing. “I would like you to step into my office and try this on.”           “A man’s suit. How liberating.”           “You’re tall and slender and can pull it off. You can use it to go out unnoticed in the evening. And if anyone questions why you’re carrying a man’s suit in your luggage, you can say it’s a gift for your brother. What size shoe do you take?”           “Forty.”           Madame took down a box of men’s shoes from a shelf, then opened the lid and looked inside. These should do nicely. She turned one over and rotated the heel. It came off and she inserted an American twenty-dollar bill and a British twenty-pound note. “If, perchance, you’re robbed, this might come in handy.” She thrust the shoes into Victoria’s hands. “Try these on with the suit. And give me the hat and shoes you’re wearing, so I can replace the heels. We don’t have much time for alterations.”           When Victoria emerged dressed as a man, her blond curls contrasted sharply with the masculine lines of the suit. Madame took down a skullcap and a man’s hat. She showed Victoria how to twist her hair under the skullcap and use the hat to cover it.           Then she handed her a small leather case that looked like a manicure kit. Secreted under one side of the lining was a fake mustache and false eyebrows. A small bottle labeled “polish” contained spirit glue for attaching them. “You can use the tweezers and scissors in the kit to help apply and trim them, if necessary.”           Madame handed Victoria a wristwatch. “I took the liberty of engraving ‘Birthday Wishes’ along with your and your brother’s names on the watch, so that anyone finding it, would not think it anything more than personal. But if you press the stem, this little C shaped knife blade will pop out. Madame placed it in a small gift box and handed it to Victoria. "Just a few more items and we can send you on your way." She called out to her assistant. “Vanessa, do you have Evangeline’s clothing?”           The young woman emerged carrying Victoria’s coat and hat. She showed Victoria the lining saying, “I sewed a secret pocket into the seam of your lining in case you need to transport anything you don’t want to carry in your handbag or in a regular pocket, because they can be picked.”           The Admiral reached into his own pocket and removed a passport and currency. “Secretary Cooper’s driver took your picture yesterday when you arrived at Cadogan Gardens. We’ve used it to make you an American passport. Carry it in the concealed pocket. Use it only in an emergency.”           Madame smiled. “That should do it, I think.”           The last thing the Admiral handed Victoria was a copy of the German plans. Victoria didn't bother to look at them. She never mentioned that the Major already had a set of plans. It was better that the Admiral and Cooper did not know what the Major had done.           They placed Victoria’s items into Harrods packaging and arranged for a driver to take her home.           “Oh, one last thing.”           “What’s that?”           “You are, under no circumstances, to tell anyone what you’re doing. Your life depends on it. So does your brother’s. The Crown cannot acknowledge that we know you. For all intents and purposes, you’re on your own. Good Luck, Evangeline.” *** 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.