Our agreed meeting point was the village of St. Secondin, about twenty miles southeast of Poitiers, right on the border of the Zone Libre. Hélène and my father took the bus part of the way and were to walk the rest. Rosy and I were to ride our bikes all the way, taking turns to carry Jacquie on the handlebars. My mother and grandmother were due much later, on the last bus from Poitiers. My father was to lead the first of the family across the ligne de demarcation, while I stayed to make the most dangerous, final crossing with my mother and grandmother.
