The Alice Network

In May 1947, Charlie is still reeling from the news of Rose’s death. After departing the burned-out village, Finn gets them a room at a nearby hotel because Charlie is too distraught to go any farther. She begs him not to leave her alone that night for fear of nightmares, so they drink heavily and talk instead. Finn divulges his wartime experiences while liberating a concentration camp at Belsen. He’s haunted by the memory of a gypsy girl who died at his feet: “I’m here to rescue her, my regiment and me—and that’s when she dies. She lives through so much, and she dies now” (309).

The next morning, they return to their hotel in Limoges to find Allenton in the lobby demanding to speak to Eve. She refuses to see him even though they had dinner together the night before. He leaves in a huff after giving Charlie and Finn a case containing Eve’s war medals. Charlie reflects, “I released a slow breath. Eve wasn’t just a former spy. She was a decorated heroine, a legend of the past for whom senior army officers still jumped even if they disliked her” (313). Charlie and Finn are both left to wonder why Eve rejected her medals.

In October 1915, Lili and Eve are taken into custody and searched. Lili manages to swallow the coded message about Verdun, but a German official sees her and tries to make her vomit out the slip of paper. Eve merely weeps and proclaims her innocence. Eventually, a German soldier recognizes Eve as a waitress at Le Lethe and vouches for her character. She’s released and given a pass to Tournai while Lili remains under arrest.

Eve reaches the meeting house in Tournai, where she finds Allenton along with Cameron. Allenton wants her to return to Lille, even though Cameron objects. Cameron takes her upstairs to get her statement about Verdun and Lili’s arrest. He tries to persuade her to come home, but Eve distracts him by seducing him. She slips away later while Cameron is sleeping and asks Allenton to issue her a safe-conduct pass so that she can return to Lille. He confides that Cameron worries about her more than his other spies. Cameron’s own code name is “Evelyn.”

In May 1947, the night after her trip to the village where Rose died, Charlie meets Eve and Finn at a Limoges restaurant for dinner. Eve expresses sympathy for Rose’s death and asks Charlie what she plans to do next. The girl doesn’t know, although Eve intends to continue the hunt for René. Eve says, “‘There are two kinds of flowers when it comes to women,’ […] ‘The kind that sit safe in a beautiful vase, or the kind that survive in any conditions . . . even in evil […] Which are you?’” (336).

Finn doesn’t join in their conversation because he’s been in a foul mood all evening. When he notices the proprietor drive off a gypsy beggar woman, he grows enraged. Finn pummels the man until Charlie intercedes and accidentally gets punched in the face. Finn is horrified by what he’s done and runs off. Charlie follows him to the Lagonda. Even though he tells her to go, she stays with him, and they make love in the back seat of the car. 

In October 1915, Eve returns to her empty flat in Lille. Both Lili and Violette have been arrested, and Eve feels utterly alone. When she reports for work the next day, the restaurant is closed. René calls her upstairs and points a Luger at her. While she was gone in Tournai, he searched her apartment and found her gun. René heard about her arrest, along with a known spy, and demands to know who Eve really is.

Eve kicks the gun out of his hand. As she twists the doorknob to escape, René smashes the miniature bust of Baudelaire against her knuckles and shatters the bones. Eve swears in English. Knowing the game is up, she says, “I will not tell you one single solitary fact about my work, my friends, or the woman I was arrested with. But I will tell you this, René Bordelon. You’re a gullible fool. You’re a terrible lover. And I hate Baudelaire” (352). 

In May 1947, immediately after their tryst in the Lagonda, Finn advises Charlie to go back to the hotel and get some rest. Instead of going to her own room, she goes to Eve’s. Charlie tells the old woman, “‘I know what I want, Eve. I want time to figure out what comes next.’ I looked at her hands, taking a deep breath. ‘And I want to hear the rest of your story’” (356). Eve agrees and launches into the tale of what happened after René caught her.