~Chapter 1~
"It is so beautiful here, Georg," Maria sighed as she looked out over the hills.
He didn't respond, and she looked sideways to him, raising her eyebrows.
"Georg? Don't you think it's lovely here?"
"What? Oh, sorry. Yes, very much so," he agreed, absentmindedly.
His eyes had not been on the landscape, but gazing at Maria. He was so happy and grateful that she was sitting here, outside for the first time since she had been injured, enjoying the Italian evening sun with him.
The children had been in Italy for almost two weeks now and they were glad to be together again as a family. With his children safe with him again and Maria healing quickly, Georg realized he had finally found some peace of mind.
Maria knew what he was thinking.
"It's good to be here," she smiled, indicating their situation in general as well as her being outside in one comment. Instead of answering, he pulled her close to him and kissed the top of her head softly.
They sat for a while longer, until the sun had gone down behind the hills completely, and it started to get chilly.
"We should go inside," Georg suggested, and offered Maria his arm to get up. She nodded. She did take his arm to stand, but Georg was pleased to notice that she hardly put her weight on him. She was moving and walking with surprising ease. Her injury had healed better than he had hoped for.
They went inside and found Max and the older children sitting around the fire in the living room.
"We're turning in," announced Maria, smiling slightly apologetic. "I'm a bit tired, being out of bed all day for the first time. Goodnight everyone."
Upon seeing her parents enter, Liesl walked up to her mother and kissed her cheek. "I'm so happy that you're getting better," she told her. Behind her, Friedrich and Louisa nodded in agreement.
Maria wished her goodnight, and went over to kiss Louisa and Friedrich on the cheeks as well, before leaving the room.
Georg looked at the small scene with a smile. "You three, don't stay up too late," he warned his children with a twinkle in his eyes, before following Maria up the stairs.
As they entered the bedroom, Maria turned to Georg. "I'm going to take a shower," she said, and gave him a soft kiss before walking toward the bathroom door.
Georg sat down on the bed and watched her back as she disappeared into the bathroom. He glanced upwards and said a small prayer of thanks. Only four weeks ago he had held her in his arms, afraid that she would die. Now, she was getting her health back again, he had his family around him, and they were away from the Nazis - he was truly grateful.
***
When Maria emerged from the bathroom, she saw her husband sitting up on the bed, holding a notepad and pen.
"What are you doing?" she asked, sitting down next to him. She was rubbing her hair dry with a towel, using only her right hand to avoid straining the injury on her left too much.
"Just writing down some ideas," Georg answered. "I'm trying to think of how we should go on with our lives." He wanted to involve her in making plans for the future, he thought. He remembered her anger at not being in on the plans he and Max had made to escape from Salzburg. There had been no time to do things differently then, but he was confident there would be now.
Maria nodded, lowering her hand to her lap. They hadn't discussed what to do now that they were out of danger, as they were still concentrating on her recovery. But they would have to talk about it sooner or later, she knew.
Georg seemed to think however, that this was not the right time yet. He tossed the paper and pen to the floor next to the bed.
"Let me take a look at your ribs," he said.
She turned her back to him and slipped out of her robe, letting it fall onto the bed around her waist.
Georg bent forward to examine her back. The wound was now healing rapidly, leaving only an angry red scar surrounded by yellowing, fading bruises. He gently touched the skin around the scar. Her ribs seemed to be getting better as well, though it would probably take several more weeks before Maria would be free of pain again.
"I don't think I need to bandage this anymore," he said. He slid his hand upwards over her back and felt her draw in breath at his touch. He kissed her between the shoulder blades and inhaled her fresh, sweet scent. He was tempted to continue kissing her, but he forced himself to stop.
"Turn around," he asked softly.
She turned to face him. "It's looking better, isn't it?" she asked, looking at his face. He nodded, his eyes travelling to her left side. Part of his mind tried to tell him that she wasn't wearing anything, that he should take her in his arms and kiss her senseless. However, he was so afraid that he might hurt her that he forced himself to focus on the injury.
A star-shaped, red scar now marred the skin under her left ribs where the bullet had exited her body. The bruises were fading here as well, but were still darker than on Maria's back. He gently felt for the broken ribs, and he noticed her tense under his touch.
"That is still sensitive," she grimaced, but tried to smile. "It's a lot better than a few days ago, though."
"Good," he murmured, and took a last long look at her side. When he was finished, he looked up to her face.
Not taking her eyes off him, she leaned into him and kissed his lips.
Electricity shot through Georg's body. While he was worried for her health, her life even, he had been too preoccupied to notice how much he had missed her touches and kisses. But as her health returned to her and a little peace came over him, he started to feel how his body ached for her as she lay in the bed with him every night. He had kept her in his arms, feeling her closeness and breathing in her sweet scent, but he had been afraid to do more than hold her to him, not wanting to cause her pain.
As he bent over her now, kissing her, he almost let himself get carried away in the moment. But he felt her mouth twitch in pain under his lips as he tried to draw her closer, and he quickly pulled out of their embrace.
"Forgive me," his whispered, the realization that he had just hurt her causing his stomach to contract.
Maria let out a small moan. "Don't apologize," she mumbled. "It hurts.but I miss." she looked into his eyes, blushing slightly.
"I know," he told her. "But I am grateful that you're still with me. We can be patient for a little while longer." He gave her a loving smile and stole another kiss, before gently helping her to lie down, and snuggling close to her. He carefully slipped his arm around her waist and she let out a soft sigh when she felt the comfort of his embrace. Temporarily satisfied just by their closeness, they drifted off to sleep.
***
The next morning, Georg woke up to the sound of knocking on their door.
"Georg?" Max's voice came slightly muffled from the other side of the door.
Georg slipped out of bed, careful not to disturb Maria, and looked around for something to put on. He found his shirt on the floor next to Maria's robe.
He opened the door and stepped out into the hall, fumbling with the buttons of his shirt. Max smiled as he looked at his friend, but decided not to comment on his appearance.
"You've missed breakfast," he stated instead.
Georg looked up in surprise. "Why didn't you wake us?" he asked.
"I sent Liesl to get you," explained Max. "You didn't answer when she knocked, and when she peeked in, you two were sleeping so tightly that she didn't have the heart to disturb you." He grinned at Georg.
Georg raised his eyebrows at Max, not reacting to his friend's suggestive look. "Yes, we did sleep rather well," he stated. "But I don't think you came here just to tell me we missed breakfast."
"No, indeed," said Max. "I wanted to tell you that I'm taking the children for a walk through the hills this morning. I thought you and Maria might like some quiet time to yourselves."
Georg was slightly surprised at his friend's generous gesture, but nodded at him gratefully.
"Thank you, Max," he said.
Max just grinned and started to walk in the direction of the stairs. "We'll be back in time for a late lunch," he told Georg over his shoulder. "Just make sure you're decent by then, all right?"
***
About an hour later, Georg and Maria were sitting together at the kitchen table, both still in their robes, enjoying a cup of coffee.
"That was a lovely breakfast, dear," Maria complimented Georg as she looked at their empty plates. "I never took you for a cook before!"
Georg smiled and leaned in to kiss her.
"Anything for you, my love," he told her.
Maria took another sip of her coffee. "So, what ideas did you write down yesterday while I was in the shower?" she asked, taking the opportunity to discuss their plans for the future while they were together.
"Well," said Georg, putting his hand on hers, "Quite a lot, really. I think you'll agree that we can't stay here."
Maria nodded. Italy was sympathizing with Germany, and though it was still safe to be here for a while, she knew they could not be sure how much longer they would be able to remain here.
"I've considered going to Switzerland, like Nikolas and Anke," Georg continued. "But with the Germans invading Poland and the Netherlands, I can't stop feeling that soon no country in Europe will be safe from Hitler anymore. So.. .. I think we should try going to America."
He looked into her eyes, trying to fathom what she thought of this.
"America.. .." Maria whispered, looking at his hand, which was still holding hers. "Georg, that's so far away!"
He squeezed her hand. "I know, darling. But I want to put as much distance between Hitler's war and my family as possible."
Maria considered this for a moment. The thought of leaving her beloved country so far behind unsettled her deeply.
"I had hoped we would be able to go back to Austria someday. If we leave Europe, it would feel like.. .. a definite goodbye. And Switzerland is neutral, why can't we stay there? It will be more like home," she reasoned. Her expression saddened when she mentioned the word 'home'. It seemed a lifetime ago since they had left the villa.
Georg looked into her eyes.
"I understand, darling," he told her. "But if all of Europe gets into this war, even Switzerland might not be safe anymore. I want to keep my family safe and start a new life with them, and I think there is no better place for that at this time than America."
She nodded in understanding, but didn't speak.
"Maybe we can return to Austria someday. But the war could take years, and we need to live safely in the meantime. I owe that to you, and to the children," Georg added.
Maria knew Georg was right. The most important thing was that they would be safe, and together. She wanted the children to have a reasonably normal life, without having to hide, or go hungry, or suffer any of the other effects of war. She looked up at him and smiled.
"America it is, then," she said softly.
"I'm glad you agree," Georg said, his voice kind. He knew how hard this was for her. He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it. "We'll manage, Maria, as long as we have each other."
They gazed into each other's eyes for a while and knew their decision had been made.
Georg kissed her hand again, pressing it to his cheek.
"I'll start enquiring after boat schedules soon, so that we can start making concrete plans," he said. "But we'll stay here as long as you need to recover completely."
Maria nodded. The sheer enormity of the decision they had just made was only slowly sinking in.
"I think I'll get dressed," she said, a bit shaken, but with a brave smile.
"I'll come with you," said Georg.
As they walked up the stairs hand in hand, they realized that their future was slowly taking shape again.
"It is so beautiful here, Georg," Maria sighed as she looked out over the hills.
He didn't respond, and she looked sideways to him, raising her eyebrows.
"Georg? Don't you think it's lovely here?"
"What? Oh, sorry. Yes, very much so," he agreed, absentmindedly.
His eyes had not been on the landscape, but gazing at Maria. He was so happy and grateful that she was sitting here, outside for the first time since she had been injured, enjoying the Italian evening sun with him.
The children had been in Italy for almost two weeks now and they were glad to be together again as a family. With his children safe with him again and Maria healing quickly, Georg realized he had finally found some peace of mind.
Maria knew what he was thinking.
"It's good to be here," she smiled, indicating their situation in general as well as her being outside in one comment. Instead of answering, he pulled her close to him and kissed the top of her head softly.
They sat for a while longer, until the sun had gone down behind the hills completely, and it started to get chilly.
"We should go inside," Georg suggested, and offered Maria his arm to get up. She nodded. She did take his arm to stand, but Georg was pleased to notice that she hardly put her weight on him. She was moving and walking with surprising ease. Her injury had healed better than he had hoped for.
They went inside and found Max and the older children sitting around the fire in the living room.
"We're turning in," announced Maria, smiling slightly apologetic. "I'm a bit tired, being out of bed all day for the first time. Goodnight everyone."
Upon seeing her parents enter, Liesl walked up to her mother and kissed her cheek. "I'm so happy that you're getting better," she told her. Behind her, Friedrich and Louisa nodded in agreement.
Maria wished her goodnight, and went over to kiss Louisa and Friedrich on the cheeks as well, before leaving the room.
Georg looked at the small scene with a smile. "You three, don't stay up too late," he warned his children with a twinkle in his eyes, before following Maria up the stairs.
As they entered the bedroom, Maria turned to Georg. "I'm going to take a shower," she said, and gave him a soft kiss before walking toward the bathroom door.
Georg sat down on the bed and watched her back as she disappeared into the bathroom. He glanced upwards and said a small prayer of thanks. Only four weeks ago he had held her in his arms, afraid that she would die. Now, she was getting her health back again, he had his family around him, and they were away from the Nazis - he was truly grateful.
***
When Maria emerged from the bathroom, she saw her husband sitting up on the bed, holding a notepad and pen.
"What are you doing?" she asked, sitting down next to him. She was rubbing her hair dry with a towel, using only her right hand to avoid straining the injury on her left too much.
"Just writing down some ideas," Georg answered. "I'm trying to think of how we should go on with our lives." He wanted to involve her in making plans for the future, he thought. He remembered her anger at not being in on the plans he and Max had made to escape from Salzburg. There had been no time to do things differently then, but he was confident there would be now.
Maria nodded, lowering her hand to her lap. They hadn't discussed what to do now that they were out of danger, as they were still concentrating on her recovery. But they would have to talk about it sooner or later, she knew.
Georg seemed to think however, that this was not the right time yet. He tossed the paper and pen to the floor next to the bed.
"Let me take a look at your ribs," he said.
She turned her back to him and slipped out of her robe, letting it fall onto the bed around her waist.
Georg bent forward to examine her back. The wound was now healing rapidly, leaving only an angry red scar surrounded by yellowing, fading bruises. He gently touched the skin around the scar. Her ribs seemed to be getting better as well, though it would probably take several more weeks before Maria would be free of pain again.
"I don't think I need to bandage this anymore," he said. He slid his hand upwards over her back and felt her draw in breath at his touch. He kissed her between the shoulder blades and inhaled her fresh, sweet scent. He was tempted to continue kissing her, but he forced himself to stop.
"Turn around," he asked softly.
She turned to face him. "It's looking better, isn't it?" she asked, looking at his face. He nodded, his eyes travelling to her left side. Part of his mind tried to tell him that she wasn't wearing anything, that he should take her in his arms and kiss her senseless. However, he was so afraid that he might hurt her that he forced himself to focus on the injury.
A star-shaped, red scar now marred the skin under her left ribs where the bullet had exited her body. The bruises were fading here as well, but were still darker than on Maria's back. He gently felt for the broken ribs, and he noticed her tense under his touch.
"That is still sensitive," she grimaced, but tried to smile. "It's a lot better than a few days ago, though."
"Good," he murmured, and took a last long look at her side. When he was finished, he looked up to her face.
Not taking her eyes off him, she leaned into him and kissed his lips.
Electricity shot through Georg's body. While he was worried for her health, her life even, he had been too preoccupied to notice how much he had missed her touches and kisses. But as her health returned to her and a little peace came over him, he started to feel how his body ached for her as she lay in the bed with him every night. He had kept her in his arms, feeling her closeness and breathing in her sweet scent, but he had been afraid to do more than hold her to him, not wanting to cause her pain.
As he bent over her now, kissing her, he almost let himself get carried away in the moment. But he felt her mouth twitch in pain under his lips as he tried to draw her closer, and he quickly pulled out of their embrace.
"Forgive me," his whispered, the realization that he had just hurt her causing his stomach to contract.
Maria let out a small moan. "Don't apologize," she mumbled. "It hurts.but I miss." she looked into his eyes, blushing slightly.
"I know," he told her. "But I am grateful that you're still with me. We can be patient for a little while longer." He gave her a loving smile and stole another kiss, before gently helping her to lie down, and snuggling close to her. He carefully slipped his arm around her waist and she let out a soft sigh when she felt the comfort of his embrace. Temporarily satisfied just by their closeness, they drifted off to sleep.
***
The next morning, Georg woke up to the sound of knocking on their door.
"Georg?" Max's voice came slightly muffled from the other side of the door.
Georg slipped out of bed, careful not to disturb Maria, and looked around for something to put on. He found his shirt on the floor next to Maria's robe.
He opened the door and stepped out into the hall, fumbling with the buttons of his shirt. Max smiled as he looked at his friend, but decided not to comment on his appearance.
"You've missed breakfast," he stated instead.
Georg looked up in surprise. "Why didn't you wake us?" he asked.
"I sent Liesl to get you," explained Max. "You didn't answer when she knocked, and when she peeked in, you two were sleeping so tightly that she didn't have the heart to disturb you." He grinned at Georg.
Georg raised his eyebrows at Max, not reacting to his friend's suggestive look. "Yes, we did sleep rather well," he stated. "But I don't think you came here just to tell me we missed breakfast."
"No, indeed," said Max. "I wanted to tell you that I'm taking the children for a walk through the hills this morning. I thought you and Maria might like some quiet time to yourselves."
Georg was slightly surprised at his friend's generous gesture, but nodded at him gratefully.
"Thank you, Max," he said.
Max just grinned and started to walk in the direction of the stairs. "We'll be back in time for a late lunch," he told Georg over his shoulder. "Just make sure you're decent by then, all right?"
***
About an hour later, Georg and Maria were sitting together at the kitchen table, both still in their robes, enjoying a cup of coffee.
"That was a lovely breakfast, dear," Maria complimented Georg as she looked at their empty plates. "I never took you for a cook before!"
Georg smiled and leaned in to kiss her.
"Anything for you, my love," he told her.
Maria took another sip of her coffee. "So, what ideas did you write down yesterday while I was in the shower?" she asked, taking the opportunity to discuss their plans for the future while they were together.
"Well," said Georg, putting his hand on hers, "Quite a lot, really. I think you'll agree that we can't stay here."
Maria nodded. Italy was sympathizing with Germany, and though it was still safe to be here for a while, she knew they could not be sure how much longer they would be able to remain here.
"I've considered going to Switzerland, like Nikolas and Anke," Georg continued. "But with the Germans invading Poland and the Netherlands, I can't stop feeling that soon no country in Europe will be safe from Hitler anymore. So.. .. I think we should try going to America."
He looked into her eyes, trying to fathom what she thought of this.
"America.. .." Maria whispered, looking at his hand, which was still holding hers. "Georg, that's so far away!"
He squeezed her hand. "I know, darling. But I want to put as much distance between Hitler's war and my family as possible."
Maria considered this for a moment. The thought of leaving her beloved country so far behind unsettled her deeply.
"I had hoped we would be able to go back to Austria someday. If we leave Europe, it would feel like.. .. a definite goodbye. And Switzerland is neutral, why can't we stay there? It will be more like home," she reasoned. Her expression saddened when she mentioned the word 'home'. It seemed a lifetime ago since they had left the villa.
Georg looked into her eyes.
"I understand, darling," he told her. "But if all of Europe gets into this war, even Switzerland might not be safe anymore. I want to keep my family safe and start a new life with them, and I think there is no better place for that at this time than America."
She nodded in understanding, but didn't speak.
"Maybe we can return to Austria someday. But the war could take years, and we need to live safely in the meantime. I owe that to you, and to the children," Georg added.
Maria knew Georg was right. The most important thing was that they would be safe, and together. She wanted the children to have a reasonably normal life, without having to hide, or go hungry, or suffer any of the other effects of war. She looked up at him and smiled.
"America it is, then," she said softly.
"I'm glad you agree," Georg said, his voice kind. He knew how hard this was for her. He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it. "We'll manage, Maria, as long as we have each other."
They gazed into each other's eyes for a while and knew their decision had been made.
Georg kissed her hand again, pressing it to his cheek.
"I'll start enquiring after boat schedules soon, so that we can start making concrete plans," he said. "But we'll stay here as long as you need to recover completely."
Maria nodded. The sheer enormity of the decision they had just made was only slowly sinking in.
"I think I'll get dressed," she said, a bit shaken, but with a brave smile.
"I'll come with you," said Georg.
As they walked up the stairs hand in hand, they realized that their future was slowly taking shape again.