They received word that the children had made it safely, and Georg could tell by the inflection in their grandfather's voice that he had spoken to Brigitta and knew the plan. He could at least breathe a sigh of relief that their children were safe, but he knew it was time to move quickly and intelligently to get himself and Maria there too. Time would not be on their side.

The game plan was that Georg would go to town and close their bank accounts while Maria began to pack their bags, taking whatever money he hadn't sent to their bank in England and using it to pay the staff and purchase their train tickets accordingly. After he returned from the bank, he would finish packing his bags, and they would head to the train station, using Maria's maiden name to purchase tickets just in case anyone was paying attention. The plan was simple enough, as he didn't want to draw too much attention in any way. He only hoped that it would all work in their favor. They still had the risk of Franz, who was thankfully off for the day to visit family.

Maria looked through their closet, making a mental list of everything she intended to pack before she got out a suitcase. She wasn't exactly sure about all the separation from Georg in his plan, but she had a feeling he wanted to make certain she wouldn't be with him if he was requested prior to their leaving. The thought alone was enough to make her cringe, so she pushed it away. No time for that at the moment.

As she looked through their belongings, she found that she didn't much care if they simply left everything behind. No matter how well-off they were, the material things were never all that important to her. She would have been lying had she said she didn't enjoy the size of her closet or the ability to buy anything she desired, it had come as quite a culture shock when they married. But she was more upset about leaving the memories behind. The fact that she and the children would never play games in the back garden again, or that she and her husband would never again make love in the bedroom she designed, those were the things that hit the hardest. She was leaving the first real home she had ever made, and it brought a tear to her eye.

She heard the doorbell ring as she shook herself from her thoughts, and her heart leapt into her throat. She wasn't expecting anyone until Georg returned from the bank, and he most certainly wouldn't have rang the doorbell. She quickly rushed out of the bedroom and down the stairs, afraid of what she would find. Certainly it was just Mia dropping by, she thought.

"Baroness, how are you this afternoon?" It wasn't Mia as she had hoped, but it was Mia's husband. He had never been to their home before, and it was obvious he wasn't there for a social call. Frau Schmidt must have let him in and gone to find her.

"Quite well, thank you. I'm surprised to see you here. I hope you are also well?" She smiled brightly, descending the stairs to stand before him. He had grey, chilly eyes, but his smile seemed warm in contrast. He was much taller than she, but not quite intimidating.

"Yes. Actually, I am here to speak with your husband."

"Oh, I'm afraid he's stepped out for a bit. He's gone to the bank, and I'm not sure when he'll be back. Is there any way I could be of help?" He smirked, and she felt her own smile waiver just a bit. He was impossible to read.

"Due to your relationship with my wife, I prefer to leave you out of this. I'll wait." She nodded, frowning a bit.

"Very well, but I'm afraid you could be waiting a while. Would you like to stop by another time? I expect him home all day tomorrow." A lie, and she wasn't sure if he could tell or not. It sounded good to her, one of the best she had ever told as it naturally rolled off her tongue.

"He's not planning to leave town?"

"Leave town? Whatever for?" She laughed a bit, shifting feet to try appearing more natural. She was incredibly nervous. "I would be quite offended if he was going on holiday and didn't take me."

"I'm going to speak freely, Maria." She nodded, her heart pounding as his gaze hardened. "You're not stupid, and neither am I. Mia told me she believed your husband was working on something big."

"He's retired. I'm afraid the only work he does is recreational nonsense."

"Then your husband is not honest with you." Brow furrowed, she finally allowed her smile to fall. He clearly wasn't one for pleasantries anyway, and she found herself growing quite cold in defense.

"Perhaps it's your wife who isn't honest with you." He chuckled at her defensive tone, stepping closer to her.

"I assure you, she is. I know more about your family than you could possibly imagine."

"Then what do you expect to accomplish here?" Suddenly, she heard glass breaking in the direction of the study, and she turned her head toward the noise. She began to walk toward the study. "Is someone here with you?"

"I suggest you stop right now." His tone was aggressive, as he grabbed her arm to stop her from walking away. She met his eyes nervously, pulling her arm from his grasp. She was thankful he let go, but more concerned than ever at the prospect of others roaming in her home.

"What's happening?"

"We are simply waiting for your husband to return."

"We? I told you…"

"Yes, yes, he's at the bank." He waved her off flippantly, and she bit her lip in frustration. She needed him to leave before her husband really did come home. She had no way of warning him.

"I think it's time for you to leave." He laughed, unmoving and uncaring.

"I can't do that. My orders…"

"Orders? From who?"

"I don't think you realize the gravity of what you're doing. Mia tells me she believes you are about to leave Austria." She shook her head, trying to look as if it was the first time the thought had ever crossed her mind.

"The children have left to spend a couple of weeks with their grandparents. I don't know how she would come to another conclusion."

"My wife doesn't lie to me." She scoffed, feeling incredibly defensive and increasingly nervous by the second.

"Of course she does. Someone who sneaks around to gather information for you is certainly sneaky enough to leave out some details." She crossed her arms over her chest, maintaining their eye contact. "Perhaps I know more about your family than you could imagine."

"I'm doubtful." Something else shattered in the kitchen, and she turned toward the noise once more.

"How many people are in my home right now?"

"Several."

"What exactly do you need help finding?"

"Proof that your husband is working on something for our enemies." She sighed, rolling her eyes to seem as if it didn't sound familiar in the slightest. "When Mia spent the night here not long ago, she said you stayed up chatting about…"

"You're kidding!" She laughed a bit, taken aback by the lie he was told. "The only thing she spent the night doing was bedding my sister-in-law. I didn't even know she was here until morning, when I heard her gasping in pleasure through the bedroom door."

"You're a vulgar woman. How dare you say such things."

"I'm a truthful woman. Ask her what her favorite part is about being pleasured with someone's tongue." He jolted forward, his hand raised as if he were going to strike her, and she flinched. He stopped himself, and for a moment she thought she saw the injured man behind the facade, but it didn't last long.

"Get his papers for me."

"I don't know…"

"You would know, that man worships the ground you walk on. Give me what I want, and we'll leave for now." She shook her head, knowing full well that Georg had already burned anything he thought could even possibly be incriminating.

"You'll find nothing but drawings from the children in his desk." She turned to walk away, hoping to find Frau Schmidt to make certain she was alright. Turning away was apparently her biggest mistake, as suddenly everything for her went black.

xxxxx

She felt cold, her body stiff and sore, lying upon something incredibly hard. Enveloped in silence, she could hear nothing over the slight ringing in her ears. She took a deep breath, willing her body to relax as she tried to move. Pain shot through her back, all the way up her neck, and through her head. Her brain would surely explode.

"Shit…" It took her a moment to realize the obscenity had passed between her own lips, but she couldn't have helped it if she'd tried. She gasped as she rolled onto her side, letting out a breath that she didn't realize she was holding. What exactly had happened to her?

She tried to open her eyes, but her head throbbed painfully, and she brought one of her hands up to counter the pressure. She wasn't sure her body had ever felt so heavy, so sore. Slowly she was able to open her eyes, immediately recognizing that she lay upon the tiles of the kitchen floor. How on earth did she get there? She began to try sitting up, her head pounding as she pushed through the pain. Suddenly, she heard a sniffle, and she turned to find Frau Schmidt and a couple of maids tied up and gagged across the room, propped up against the counter.

She gasped and crawled to them, having stumbled when she tried to stand, so she made due. She pulled the gag from Frau Schmidt's mouth first, tears falling from both of their eyes.

"Oh, Maria, I thought you were dead." There was no formality between them, but neither noticed as she untied her, and they wrapped one another in a tight embrace.

"I'm so sorry this happened." They broke the embrace and each rushed to untie the other two women, who were equally crying and scared. She couldn't blame them, they were merely innocent bystanders in the whole situation. She felt terrible for them.

"Do you think they've gone?" She was feeling better, the sharp pounding in her head lulling a bit as she became more lucid and aware of her surroundings.

"I think so. I don't know if they took anything, but they talked about coming back tomorrow." She nodded, running a hand over her face. "You're bleeding, Maria…Baroness, I mean."

"No, Maria is fine." She reached to touch her hairline, cringing at finding a mixture of fresh and dried blood. She had no idea what he had used to hit her over the head, but it certainly left a gash. She hoped she didn't need stitches, or perhaps have a concussion. She shook the thoughts from her mind. "Well, no time for that now, I suppose." She turned to the two crying women who had remained silent by Frau Schmidt's side. "Gather your belongings, and I'll see you out, okay?"

They nodded and rushed to the closet off the kitchen for their belongings. Maria helped Frau Schmidt stand, and they shared another hug, sharing a moment of gratitude that they were all okay. When the maids returned, Maria cautiously peeked out of the kitchen, eyes widening in surprise. Pictures were pulled from the walls, glass shattered against the ground. Vases and sculptures were smashed as if there had been an explosion.

"My goodness…" Frau Schmidt gasped as she followed Maria, bringing a hand to her mouth in surprise. They walked through the house and into the hall, making their way toward the door with glass crunching beneath their shoes as they looked about. Each room was destroyed, glass littering the entire house.

"Maria!" Georg burst through the front door, panic etched across his face. His eyes widened at the sight of their home, and she rushed toward him as he pulled her into an embrace. "Are you alright? Let me look at you."

"Yes, I'm fine." He pulled away and placed his hands upon either side of her face, focusing on the large gash upon her forehead.

"She was out for a long while, Captain." Frau Schmidt interjected as she led the two maids to the front door, seeing them out. They couldn't have been moving faster if they'd tried, and Maria's heart ached for them. She was snapped out of her thoughts by Georg's hand upon her stomach, his eyes searching her face.

"I'm fine, honestly." Frau Schmidt approached, smiling softly in a knowing kind of way at his hand upon her stomach, before she began to pick up some of the mess. Maria and Georg both reached to stop her. "Oh, please don't."

"Yes, Frau Schmidt, you've had enough excitement today." She nodded, looking between the two of them.

"You're leaving, aren't you?" They stared at her for a moment, unsure if they should say anything. They had never questioned her loyalty to the family, but neither were sure of her political viewpoints. Georg sighed, pulling an envelope out of his pocket and handing it to her.

"I'm very sorry we couldn't tell you sooner."

"It's just as well, I'm a terrible gossip, you know." She chuckled a bit, smiling to them. "Franz is expected back within the hour. You'd better hurry."

They nodded and rushed up the stairs to pack, leaving Frau Schmidt with months worth of wages and a hug from each of them before she went to her own room to pack her belongings. She was not going to be there when others arrived to look for her employers.

Georg and Maria rushed to stuff anything they could into suitcases, and he hurriedly carried them out to the car. He had given her bits and pieces of his experience in town, having just finished his business at the bank when he saw men in uniform entering. Luckily, his friend who worked at the bank hid him in a vault room and sneaked him out a back door when the opportunity presented itself. He would forever be grateful to the man.

Maria hurried to toss a few things from the bathroom into a bag and rushed down the stairs, grabbing their coats and rushing out the door to meet him at the car. They tossed everything in the trunk and drove away without looking back. She wondered if it was perhaps for the best that they had to hurry from the house, as it prevented them from feeling regret or sadness.

Upon arriving to the train station, Georg brought her face to him to wipe the wound upon her head with a handkerchief, and she tossed on a hat she had grabbed on her way out to effectively cover everything. He gave her a soft smile before kissing her upon the lips, and she was off to purchase the tickets in no time.

As they boarded the train, they gripped one another's hands tightly in anticipation. The wheels began to move, the whistle sounded loudly through the air, and they were on their way out of Austria. She felt a tear fall down her cheek, but she couldn't tell if it was from sadness or relief.