Chapter 2
The Captain sat at an old stone somewhere in the hills and tried to get his mind cleared. Just two days before he had left his family and went to Dörfli, trying to organize everything after he and his family had escaped from Austria. Had to escape from Austria. He wasn't sure anymore, if it really had been necessary, if he really had to bring his family into this danger, this situation.
Everything happened so fast, he couldn't organize things as they had required to be organized - and now he had seven children and a wife, waiting for him in an old cabin, waiting for him to tell them everything would be fine - and he couldn't.
Actually he had hoped to save some his fortune, by telegraphing it to Switzerland. But somehow the Nazi's must have figured out that he had planed to escape and he had nothing at all. No money, no plans, nothing. How should he tell them? He couldn't.
Although it was getting cold, he couldn't find the courage to return to the cabin. How should he look into their eyes? "Damn!" Georg got up kicking a stone as hard as he could. "Damn, damn, damn." He didn't feel better at all. And he knew that it was time to return. The children and Maria must be worried; he stayed away longer than he had planned to. Sighing he started his way back to the cabin.
Maria sat in front of the cabin. Georg had left two days before. The anger she first had felt had gone, being replaced by worries. Why did he need so long? She looked at the path, hoping to see her husband return. But she couldn't figure out anything, nothing moved but the leaves flying in the wind.
Maria heard some laughter out of the cabin and couldn't help smiling, too. That old man - funny, she still didn't know his name - was a real entertainer. The last two days he had spent his time by walking through the hills with the children, telling them stories, making them laugh. And she was thankful therefore. He had managed it to disperse their fears and worries. Even Liesl seemed to feel comfortable. At least in the days. In the nights, up in the hayloft, Maria heard her crying. She had tried to speak with Liesl, to help her, but Liesl refused any help.
"I'll get over it soon, Mother, there are other things we need to worry about." She had said. Maria smiled. Of course there were, but all this were sorrows a 16 year old girl really shouldn't have. Nobody should have. But Maria trusted in Georg, he'll find a way, we'll find a way.
Her thoughts swept back to the talk she had with Emily this morning. To the things Emily had told her. Softly her hand touched her stomach and Maria smiled. She remembered how Georg and she had been joking during their honeymoon, if they would prefer it to get a boy or a girl first. But this had been joking, joking in another time, which seemed to be years away, although it had been only few days. And now she was really pregnant. She hadn't realized herself, but Emily somehow did. She was carrying her first child. But should she tell Georg right now? Or should she wait till they knew what their future was?
Suddenly Maria saw a dark figure walking towards the cabin. Her heart jumped - Georg was back. She ran towards him. "Oh Darling, I'm so glad you're back." She said putting her arms around him, but taking a step back, as she recognized he didn't response her embrace. "Everything's alright?" She asked.
"Yes" Georg tried to smile. He couldn't face his wife. "I'm just tired; it had been a long walk. I think I'll better get some sleep." He moved towards the hayloft, not even saying Good Evening to the children.
Maria remained at the path, fighting her tears. That's not how it's supposed to be, she thought, feeling anger again. She ran up to the hayloft, too.
"Talk to me" she said and as her husband didn't response, she almost yelled "Georg, please! Talk to me!"
"Maria, I told you, I'm tired. We'll talk tomorrow."
"Tomorrow? No, Georg! We'll talk right now." Maria said much louder than she had intended to. But all her fears, worries, anger, everything she had felt in the last days and nights suddenly broke out of her. "Why don't you talk to me at all? You're just standing there, saying nothing to me. Please, Georg, let's talk!"
"Talking about what? The weather?" Georg responded sharply and Maria gasped for breath.
"Weather, Economy, whatever. Just talk to me!"
"Well - you want to talk - we talk. You married a bump, Maria. I can't offer you the future you were dreaming of. There's nothing left. We lost all our money. Well - there are about 1800 Schillings left." The Captain said throwing some money through the air. "What do you think how long it'll be enough for 9 people? One week? Maybe two? And then we'll got to walk begging through the streets of Switzerland. Tell me, Maria - Have you been dreaming of this?" The Captain's face was all red; his eyes glittered of anger and pain.
"I've been dreaming of a future at your side. Remember Georg - we promised to stay together in good and bad times."
"Promised, yes." The Captain snorted with rage. "But look at me - I could understand, if you'd leave me and return to Austria."
"How come you're thinking in such a ways of me?" Maria yelled back. "Do you think I married you because of your money? Well, Captain, I did not. And to your information: I married you because I love you. So just stop behaving like a little child!"
"Child - that's the slogan" Georg answered and Maria suddenly felt a knot in her stomach.
"How to tell the children, that they'll spent their future lives as poor as mice!?!?! Tell me. You wanted to talk, so tell me"
"We'll find a way." Maria's voice broke.
"Our way to poverty, yes!"
"Can't we talk reasonable?"
"We had enough of talks, don't you think? At least I'm having enough of all this!" Georg turned around and laid down. Maria couldn't believe what has happened.
"Fine, Georg, than do not talk to me." She said before she left the hayloft angrily.
"I wish I could talk to you." The Captain said into the empty hayloft. "I wish I could, Darling"
That night both laid next to each other, the few centimetres between them seemed to be millions. Maria listened to the breath of the children, the breath of her husband. She knew that he wasn't sleeping. Against her impulse to lay her arms around him, she did not. She felt terribly sorry, but what should she say or do? She just couldn't understand him anymore. He was as reserved as he had been, when she first had met him.
Carefully Maria got up and left the hayloft quietly. Outside she looked at the sky, which was full of stars.
"Still awake?" she heard Emily's voice.
"Yes." Maria nodded. "I just can't sleep"
"You still don't feel very well, do you?"
"No." Maria glanced at Emily. "But not because, because of you know what" she almost whispered. She hasn't told Georg that she was pregnant yet and she didn't want anyone to know. She even wished she didn't know it her self. Or better - wouldn't be pregnant, not in this situation. "Georg - We had a silly discussion. It was the first fight we had, since we're married."
"Sometimes it's necessary to argue. Like a thunderstorm clearing the air, every relationship sometimes needs a little storm" Emily said.
"But this one wasn't necessary." Maria felt the tears coming back she had been fighting the whole evening long.
"Just do it."
"Doing what?"
"Cry." Emily answered softly, laying her arms around Maria, who stopped fighting her tears. "It's okay to cry" she said weeping Maria in her arms. "It's okay."
"I know. It just makes me feel so silly." The tears where streaming down her face.
"Maybe. But afterwards you'll feel better, believe me."
"Oh. I wish I would."
"You will. Everything will be fine. When the Lord closes a door, he always opens a window."
"That's what the Reverend Mother always said to me." Maria smiled under tears.
"It seems to me, that she's a clever woman." Emily grinned "And it seems to me, that I spent too much time with father. I'm already starting to talk like him." Both women laughed.
"You were right, Emily." Maria sniffled "I really feel better. Thank you."
The next morning at the breakfast the Captain and Maria avoided it to speak or to look into each others eyes. And although they tried to hide their feelings from the children, they recognized that something was wrong with their parents. As always it was Brigitta who couldn't stop saying what she was thinking.
"Are you mad at each other?"
The Captain and Maria looked up. "No." Both said at the same time.
"Yes you are, I can see something's wrong" Brigitta responded.
"Really not, Darling, everything is fine." Maria answered smiling at her. "We're just exhausted, that's all. So many things had happened in the last few days."
There was a long pause, everybody seemed to concentrate at his plate, but finally Liesl found the courage to ask what all the children wanted to know. "What are we going to do now, Father?"
The Captain glanced at his oldest child. I got to tell them sooner or later, he thought. They know that something's wrong, it wouldn't be fair to remain silent. During the night he had made a plan, how to get his family out of this situation. After the fight with Maria, he knew he had to do something and now he knew what to do. He cleared his throat.
"Well. As you all know, I'd been in Dörfli the last days." The children nodded and Maria looked surprised at her husband. At least he was honest towards the children.
"Before we left Austria I telegraphed some money to Switzerland - and it never arrived. We have no money to continue our journey, wherever it may end." He sighed. "But don't worry. I've a very good friend at our bank, I can trust him 100 percent. Of course I can't call or telegraph him to send us the money; that would be too dangerous for him. But I know how we can fix it. I'll go back to Austria and get the money myself."
To be continued..
The Captain sat at an old stone somewhere in the hills and tried to get his mind cleared. Just two days before he had left his family and went to Dörfli, trying to organize everything after he and his family had escaped from Austria. Had to escape from Austria. He wasn't sure anymore, if it really had been necessary, if he really had to bring his family into this danger, this situation.
Everything happened so fast, he couldn't organize things as they had required to be organized - and now he had seven children and a wife, waiting for him in an old cabin, waiting for him to tell them everything would be fine - and he couldn't.
Actually he had hoped to save some his fortune, by telegraphing it to Switzerland. But somehow the Nazi's must have figured out that he had planed to escape and he had nothing at all. No money, no plans, nothing. How should he tell them? He couldn't.
Although it was getting cold, he couldn't find the courage to return to the cabin. How should he look into their eyes? "Damn!" Georg got up kicking a stone as hard as he could. "Damn, damn, damn." He didn't feel better at all. And he knew that it was time to return. The children and Maria must be worried; he stayed away longer than he had planned to. Sighing he started his way back to the cabin.
Maria sat in front of the cabin. Georg had left two days before. The anger she first had felt had gone, being replaced by worries. Why did he need so long? She looked at the path, hoping to see her husband return. But she couldn't figure out anything, nothing moved but the leaves flying in the wind.
Maria heard some laughter out of the cabin and couldn't help smiling, too. That old man - funny, she still didn't know his name - was a real entertainer. The last two days he had spent his time by walking through the hills with the children, telling them stories, making them laugh. And she was thankful therefore. He had managed it to disperse their fears and worries. Even Liesl seemed to feel comfortable. At least in the days. In the nights, up in the hayloft, Maria heard her crying. She had tried to speak with Liesl, to help her, but Liesl refused any help.
"I'll get over it soon, Mother, there are other things we need to worry about." She had said. Maria smiled. Of course there were, but all this were sorrows a 16 year old girl really shouldn't have. Nobody should have. But Maria trusted in Georg, he'll find a way, we'll find a way.
Her thoughts swept back to the talk she had with Emily this morning. To the things Emily had told her. Softly her hand touched her stomach and Maria smiled. She remembered how Georg and she had been joking during their honeymoon, if they would prefer it to get a boy or a girl first. But this had been joking, joking in another time, which seemed to be years away, although it had been only few days. And now she was really pregnant. She hadn't realized herself, but Emily somehow did. She was carrying her first child. But should she tell Georg right now? Or should she wait till they knew what their future was?
Suddenly Maria saw a dark figure walking towards the cabin. Her heart jumped - Georg was back. She ran towards him. "Oh Darling, I'm so glad you're back." She said putting her arms around him, but taking a step back, as she recognized he didn't response her embrace. "Everything's alright?" She asked.
"Yes" Georg tried to smile. He couldn't face his wife. "I'm just tired; it had been a long walk. I think I'll better get some sleep." He moved towards the hayloft, not even saying Good Evening to the children.
Maria remained at the path, fighting her tears. That's not how it's supposed to be, she thought, feeling anger again. She ran up to the hayloft, too.
"Talk to me" she said and as her husband didn't response, she almost yelled "Georg, please! Talk to me!"
"Maria, I told you, I'm tired. We'll talk tomorrow."
"Tomorrow? No, Georg! We'll talk right now." Maria said much louder than she had intended to. But all her fears, worries, anger, everything she had felt in the last days and nights suddenly broke out of her. "Why don't you talk to me at all? You're just standing there, saying nothing to me. Please, Georg, let's talk!"
"Talking about what? The weather?" Georg responded sharply and Maria gasped for breath.
"Weather, Economy, whatever. Just talk to me!"
"Well - you want to talk - we talk. You married a bump, Maria. I can't offer you the future you were dreaming of. There's nothing left. We lost all our money. Well - there are about 1800 Schillings left." The Captain said throwing some money through the air. "What do you think how long it'll be enough for 9 people? One week? Maybe two? And then we'll got to walk begging through the streets of Switzerland. Tell me, Maria - Have you been dreaming of this?" The Captain's face was all red; his eyes glittered of anger and pain.
"I've been dreaming of a future at your side. Remember Georg - we promised to stay together in good and bad times."
"Promised, yes." The Captain snorted with rage. "But look at me - I could understand, if you'd leave me and return to Austria."
"How come you're thinking in such a ways of me?" Maria yelled back. "Do you think I married you because of your money? Well, Captain, I did not. And to your information: I married you because I love you. So just stop behaving like a little child!"
"Child - that's the slogan" Georg answered and Maria suddenly felt a knot in her stomach.
"How to tell the children, that they'll spent their future lives as poor as mice!?!?! Tell me. You wanted to talk, so tell me"
"We'll find a way." Maria's voice broke.
"Our way to poverty, yes!"
"Can't we talk reasonable?"
"We had enough of talks, don't you think? At least I'm having enough of all this!" Georg turned around and laid down. Maria couldn't believe what has happened.
"Fine, Georg, than do not talk to me." She said before she left the hayloft angrily.
"I wish I could talk to you." The Captain said into the empty hayloft. "I wish I could, Darling"
That night both laid next to each other, the few centimetres between them seemed to be millions. Maria listened to the breath of the children, the breath of her husband. She knew that he wasn't sleeping. Against her impulse to lay her arms around him, she did not. She felt terribly sorry, but what should she say or do? She just couldn't understand him anymore. He was as reserved as he had been, when she first had met him.
Carefully Maria got up and left the hayloft quietly. Outside she looked at the sky, which was full of stars.
"Still awake?" she heard Emily's voice.
"Yes." Maria nodded. "I just can't sleep"
"You still don't feel very well, do you?"
"No." Maria glanced at Emily. "But not because, because of you know what" she almost whispered. She hasn't told Georg that she was pregnant yet and she didn't want anyone to know. She even wished she didn't know it her self. Or better - wouldn't be pregnant, not in this situation. "Georg - We had a silly discussion. It was the first fight we had, since we're married."
"Sometimes it's necessary to argue. Like a thunderstorm clearing the air, every relationship sometimes needs a little storm" Emily said.
"But this one wasn't necessary." Maria felt the tears coming back she had been fighting the whole evening long.
"Just do it."
"Doing what?"
"Cry." Emily answered softly, laying her arms around Maria, who stopped fighting her tears. "It's okay to cry" she said weeping Maria in her arms. "It's okay."
"I know. It just makes me feel so silly." The tears where streaming down her face.
"Maybe. But afterwards you'll feel better, believe me."
"Oh. I wish I would."
"You will. Everything will be fine. When the Lord closes a door, he always opens a window."
"That's what the Reverend Mother always said to me." Maria smiled under tears.
"It seems to me, that she's a clever woman." Emily grinned "And it seems to me, that I spent too much time with father. I'm already starting to talk like him." Both women laughed.
"You were right, Emily." Maria sniffled "I really feel better. Thank you."
The next morning at the breakfast the Captain and Maria avoided it to speak or to look into each others eyes. And although they tried to hide their feelings from the children, they recognized that something was wrong with their parents. As always it was Brigitta who couldn't stop saying what she was thinking.
"Are you mad at each other?"
The Captain and Maria looked up. "No." Both said at the same time.
"Yes you are, I can see something's wrong" Brigitta responded.
"Really not, Darling, everything is fine." Maria answered smiling at her. "We're just exhausted, that's all. So many things had happened in the last few days."
There was a long pause, everybody seemed to concentrate at his plate, but finally Liesl found the courage to ask what all the children wanted to know. "What are we going to do now, Father?"
The Captain glanced at his oldest child. I got to tell them sooner or later, he thought. They know that something's wrong, it wouldn't be fair to remain silent. During the night he had made a plan, how to get his family out of this situation. After the fight with Maria, he knew he had to do something and now he knew what to do. He cleared his throat.
"Well. As you all know, I'd been in Dörfli the last days." The children nodded and Maria looked surprised at her husband. At least he was honest towards the children.
"Before we left Austria I telegraphed some money to Switzerland - and it never arrived. We have no money to continue our journey, wherever it may end." He sighed. "But don't worry. I've a very good friend at our bank, I can trust him 100 percent. Of course I can't call or telegraph him to send us the money; that would be too dangerous for him. But I know how we can fix it. I'll go back to Austria and get the money myself."
To be continued..