Maria stared out the car windows, grateful that she had been able to return without any complications and praying that Georg and Liesl would have as smooth a time as she had had. However, the sirens she heard in the distance were making her very nervous. There had been no sign of her family for what seemed like an eternity, and the thought made her sick to her stomach.
As she waited, Maria glanced around frantically, not really knowing the direction from which Georg and Liesl would appear, but struggling to maintain an optimistic outlook that they would come at any moment.
Suddenly she saw movement through the bushes and froze, merely staring wide-eyed at the sight. Instinctively, she placed her hand on the gun in her pocket and held her breath. All of a sudden, Georg sprinted through the bushes, with Liesl limping closely behind.
Maria let out a sigh of relief and leaned over to open the driver's side door for him.
Georg helped Liesl into the backseat and quickly took his place up front, not even stopping to greet Maria before he sped out of the alley toward the main road.
"They've closed the borders. I've been listening to the wireless," Maria told her husband solemnly. She glanced at Georg and saw him staring ahead mutely, his face stoic and calculating.
After a short delay, Georg nodded, the dreaded statement hitting him full force. For a moment, he sat motionless in thought, but then reached toward Maria and hurriedly stroked her jaw line. He sighed with relief; his wife and daughter were both safe.
"We're together," Maria whispered to him, her voice faltering.
"Thank God," he said lowly.
"Father," Liesl suddenly called out, sitting up in her seat and leaning forward toward her parents. "Go to the station in Innsbruck. There's a train leaving for Milan at noon. It's the last one out."
"How do you know that?" Georg asked her curtly, his mind concentrating on plotting his family's escape, but his daughter's words ringing in his ears.
"Please just listen; it's our only option," she insisted.
Maria turned around toward Liesl and could see the pleading look in the young girl's eyes. She gave her daughter a questioning glance, which immediately softened into one of belief when she beheld the urgency and truth in her eyes.
"I think we should listen, Georg. What other option do we have?" Maria asserted. She glanced upwards toward her husband again and could see him contemplating the idea.
He sighed deeply. "All right," he said with certainty.
Georg made a sharp turn and accelerated the car in the direction of Innsbruck, all the while looking in the rear view mirror to keep an eye on their surroundings. In the far distance a vehicle appeared to be gaining speed.
The Von Trapps' car neared the entrance to the main stretch of highway connecting Salzburg and Innsbruck; it was the most direct route and the shortest, albeit the most obvious. Georg opted to take it regardless, choosing convenience over wariness. With so little time before the supposed train from Innsbruck would depart, this was a risk they would have to take or there would be no chance that they would get to the station on time.
Maria glanced upwards toward Georg and noticed that his gaze seemed focused on the rear view mirror. As she watched him, he set his chin with anger and accelerated the vehicle further. Looking back to see what was troubling him, she noticed the car in the distance that seemed to gather speed with the same haste as her husband. Suddenly, the distinct, but still distant, sound of sirens caused Maria to gasp.
"That's them," she said, unable to hide the panic in her voice.
"They're far behind us," he assured her in a firm, unfeeling voice.
"I thought we were clear, but I guess it was silly of me to think we'd get away that easily," Maria said in a near whisper.
"We have a good head start," Georg told her flatly.
Maria turned to lean towards the backseat and her arm brushed Georg's unintentionally.
His brooding mannerisms softened when he felt her soft quivering. He reached over to rub the length of her arm with his hand, causing her to turn to him and smile; his strong touch calmed her nerves as always.
"How far is Innsbruck, Father?" Liesl asked with a slight hesitation.
"Not close enough," he answered, squinting his eyes at the vehicle in his rear view mirror and accelerating the vehicle even more.
"We'll get there, Liesl," Maria told her with a forced smile, turning towards the backseat to reassure her daughter.
Liesl nodded with belief and gave Maria an encouraging look.
For the rest of the ride to Innsbruck, Georg continued to keep a close watch on the distant vehicle. Despite his efforts to stay far ahead of it, the car was now close enough for the Von Trapps to see the unmistakable Swastika on the front hood.
After what seemed like an eternity, Georg finally pulled up in front of the Innsbruck Train Station. He stopped the car along the side of the station, away from the main entrance.
"Come quickly!" he instructed Maria and Liesl while exiting the vehicle himself. Reaching for Liesl's hand as she leaned forward to step from the car, he helped her get out and steady herself before the three of them sprinted to the door of the station.
The sirens were getting louder every second and when Georg cast one final glance backward as he held the door open, he saw the Nazis speeding down the road toward the station in their pursuit.
Without hesitation, he led his family toward the train schedule and noted that although the tracks were listed for each city, there appeared to be no departing trains out of the country at all. They all scanned the chart for the Milan train, praying that it in fact it would still be leaving.
"Milan!" Liesl exclaimed, upon finding what they had been looking for. "Track 7!"
Georg and Maria both took Liesl's hands to steady her. They bolted toward Track 7 just as the Nazis came through the main entrance and the piercing sound of whistles filled the station.
The Von Trapps reached the train, which was on the verge of departing; the conductor had already disappeared inside the main cabin and the doors were on the brink of closing. They all felt a tinge of relief; the train was legitimate and they had made it just in time. Hearing the angry Nazi shouts heading in their direction, Georg turned to Liesl and Maria.
"Grab the handle and jump on!" he shouted.
With trembling hands, Maria reached for the handlebar and jumped onto the train. She heard the conductor telling all passengers to stand clear of the closing doors and panicked.
"Now!" she shouted to Liesl, grabbing the girl's wrist and pulling her on board while Georg pushed her from behind to help her up the few steps. Once inside, Liesl, stumbled past Maria and fell against the wall next to her.
"Georg! Get on!" Maria yelled to him. "It's closing!"
He looked behind him and saw three Nazis running towards him with their guns cocked. Passers-by gaped openly at the scene and did everything they could to get out of the way.
"Grab my hand!" Maria shouted again. The doors started to close, but Maria had positioned her body as a barrier, pressing her back up against one end and jamming her feet into the other side. She pushed with all of her might and Liesl held one side with her hands too, increasing the force. Georg grabbed hold of Maria's hand as the train began to depart. Slowly, it began to roll out of the station and he ran alongside it for a few meters. Suddenly, he grabbed the door handle with his other hand and hoisted himself upwards. He smacked into Maria and Liesl, sending them both falling backwards. The doors snapped shut instantly, but not before Georg was safely inside.
He looked through the window and saw the Nazis standing on the platform, yelling in his direction. By this time, Zeller had approached his soldiers and Georg was just able to see him angrily kick a pole and begin to shout at his troop. The train picked up speed and slowly the four enemies disappeared around a corner.
Suddenly, Georg felt an arm go around his waist as he stared out the window. He glanced behind him and saw Maria standing there shaking and looking up at him with wide eyes of fright. Next to her, Liesl wore a similar expression of horror. Georg reached forward and hugged both women to him, and for a moment the family stayed very still in each other's embrace.
"Georg," Maria said lowly after a moment, "We don't have tickets."
"Or passports," Liesl added.
"I thought of that," Georg said with a frown. "Which makes it convenient to be standing so closely to the toilettes."
He looked to his wife and daughter and noted their puzzled looks.
"Let's just say that once upon a time a poor, Navy boy did a lot of stowing away on trains," he said wryly.
"Oh, of course," Maria said with a nod of realization.
Turning from Liesl to Maria, Georg told them his plan. "I'll keep a lookout and when we see the conductor coming, we'll go into the toilettes and wait there until he has passed through the cabin collecting tickets. It's a short ride to Milan, so he should only go through once."
"Are you sure, Father?" Liesl questioned with scepticism. "It seems too easy."
"Positive," Georg said bluntly, hoping that his words would be proved correct.
"All right. It's the only thing we can do I suppose," Maria agreed with a shake of her head and a raise of her eyebrow. "Let's hope you're right."
They waited a few moments between cars until they saw the conductor approaching. Following Georg's plan, they stayed in the toilettes until he had passed them by, and then casually walked to the nearest seats to rest for the remainder of the trip to Milan.