Tough Love
Part 5
Mother!" Liesl called out running to break Maria's fall as the younger children stood by in horror. The Captain reacted instinctively then not seeing his son before him, but any other man who dared to touch his wife. He grabbed Friedrich by the collar and pushed him up against the door, "Don't you ever hit your mother, do you hear me? Don't you dare!"
He was seething with rage, all the anger and hurt that he'd held inside for the past two months now boiling over.
"Papa!" Marta called out; she had never seen her father act this way. He'd been strict and stern, mean and coarse, but never physically angry.
"Georg!" Maria's own pleas joined Marta's. He backed off.
"Get out of this house!" he ordered. "Get out of this instant!"
The order was firm and exactly what Friedrich wanted.
The Captain moved to look at Maria's face. Her cheek was red where Friedrich's hand had hit her. "Are you all right? Liesl get some ice." The Captain brushed back Maria's hair the pulled her close to him. He heard Gretl start to cry, then Henry, then Marta…He moved away from the door and opened one arm to the children still inside. They rushed to their parents, crying and holding onto them. No one was sure what had just happened. No one was sure what the outcome would be.
It took a bit of doing, but the Captain and Liesl were able to dig deep and raise the children's spirits. Louisa and Brigitta remained quiet but joined in as the three adults among them tried to resurrect the night.
They didn't discuss Friedrich's dramatic exit, in fact, the Captain didn't mention his name at all for the rest of the night. After the children were in bed and Henry secured in his crib, Maria and the Captain were finally alone together.
"Does it hurt?" he asked in a husky whisper. What he wouldn't give for a whiskey and a chain of cigarettes.
"Not on the outside," Maria replied. "Georg, where is he? I know you were angry but to send him out like that…it's so cold outside."
"He'll be back," the Captain assured her. "I doubt he's gone farther than the barn."
"I hope so," Maria replied. "it was an accident; I really think he was just shrugging me off. I fueled the fire…"
"Do NOT try to excuse his behavior, Maria. Intentional or not, he hit you. Any man, and that's what he claims to be, that hits my wife might as well have hit me. You remember don't you, what happened to the man that tried it in that pub in England. If he wasn't my son, he'd have gotten that and worse."
The Captain sat down on the edge of the bed. "He is in the barn," he sighed. "I checked when you were putting the baby to sleep. A night out there will cool him off, but in the morning, I'm doing what I have to do Maria. We can't allow this any longer. We have tried it and we have failed."
Maria knew he was right. They couldn't get through to their son, he was too angry and they were spread too thin. Perhaps a year or two in the American military would help straighten Friedrich out. He needed a firmness they couldn't seem to give. While her heart broke, she would support her husband in this for she knew deep down this was going to hurt him far more than it would hurt Friedrich.
The sun had barely risen over the barn when the Captain rose and headed out to speak to his son. He and Maria had talked most of the night, it took a lot of convincing, but she finally came around to his way of seeing things. It was hard for her to admit that this boy that they loved and cared for and tried their best for was heading down a path they both knew would lead to trouble. The Captain wanted to help Friedrich, so did Maria but they could not give him the time and attention he obviously needed.
The Captain half expected Friedrich to be gone, but instead he found the boy in the back of the barn, in and empty stall. It was clear he didn't sleep all night.
"I thought you wanted me out of your sight?" the boy grumbled, though his voice held a bit less of an edge than it had lately.
"I spoke in haste," the Captain admitted. "I tend to do that when I'm angry and Friedrich, believe me I have never been as angry in my entire life as I was with you last night. Intentional or not, you HIT your mother, you could have hurt her very badly."
"She's not my mother," he replied again.
The Captain wasn't going to argue the point, "Maria then. You could have hurt her, her face is bruised, she didn't deserve that. She's done nothing to earn that. Regardless, Maria and I would like to speak with you up at the house."
"I'm in trouble again." He rolled his eyes. He wasn't going to try anymore. Even he didn't know how to get himself off the slippery slope he was sliding down. Whatever his father had come up with for punish could not be as bad as the confused mangled thoughts constantly in his head.
Maria was sitting on the sofa, some of her hair combed forward to hide the dark mark on her cheek. Friedrich wanted to say he was sorry, but his pride didn't let him. "Sit down, son," the Captain told him. His voice stern and unemotional, yet Maria could see a wealth of feeling going on behind his eyes.
"Friedrich, Maria and I have been talking most of the night and we just need to know, that is we cannot understand how we got to this point. The move was hard on all of us, your brothers and sisters, Maria, me…and it's clear to us now that as much as we want to we cannot give you the kind of help we now realize you need."
The Captain moved to sit next to Maria, to go on he needed her strength. She took his hand in hers just as she had when he had faltered in singing Edelweiss on the festival stage. "You might not have noticed it lately, but you have two brothers and five sisters that all need our time and attention as well. We realize now that as hard as we have tried, we have failed to give you the structure and guidance you need to succeed. That's why we have decided that you are going to have to learn about rules and order somewhere else."
Friedrich's stomach dropped. What were they going to do? Send him away? To where? They had no family here and his father wouldn't send him back to Austria where he'd be pulled into the war as a Nazi almost as soon as he arrived there. Would he?
"What are you talking about? We don't know anyone here but the O'Briens and Father Flannigan…"
"We're talking about taking a drive into Montpelier to see the naval recruiter at the college there, that's what we're talking about," the Captain replied. "You will live there, you will finish your education, learn skills, and learn the honor and respect a man should have towards his family. I tried to teach you that above all else, I failed. They won't."
Friedrich couldn't believe it. The Navy!? The American Navy was his father's solution.
"Father, you can't do that!" he pleaded. "I'll be better, I'll apologize to Mrs. O'Brien, I'll call Maria mother again, I'll do whatever you want. Don't send me there."
"The decision is made, Friedrich," came the emotionless reply.
Maria was watching her husband's wall go up. He was the same strict man she'd first met in the ballroom of the villa, the one she swore couldn't possibly have a heart. She knew better now, he had a big heart, perhaps the biggest of any man she knew and it was shattering as he resisted his son's pleas.
"And what if I don't want to do this?" Friedrich was getting desperate. "What if I'm not going to do this?"
The Captain's grip on Maria's hand was painful now as he replied, "You tell us. If you can come up with a better plan that does not include residing here, we'll consider it. As far as I see at this point, it's this or you leave with only those things that are your own. I'll be generous, you can keep the clothes you have on."
"I put two bags outside your room," Maria said as she rose, her resolve beginning to waver. Perhaps she could try to talk Georg out of this.
"We are leaving in an hour," the Captain confirmed. With that he pulled on Maria's hand and led her to their room leaving Friedrich staring after them.
The Captain and Maria waited in their room for some kind of sound. Soon they heard Friedrich's angry voice, addressing Kurt, accusing his brother of wanting the whole room to himself and wanting him gone. They heard Liesl try to diffuse the situation followed by the angry slamming of the door and of a chest of drawers.
Maria's eyes were wet with tears as she looked at her husband's stone face. "Tell me we're doing the right thing again," she whispered trying not to break down and cry.
The Captain felt her fear and closed the gap between their bodies, taking her into his arms. "We're doing the right thing," he murmured against her hair. "It helped me, I was lost as a teen too, I did some really stupid things I'm sorry for now. I hope that he'll see the wisdom in this someday. When he's past the anger."
Maria took a deep breath, "I know you already told me, but you might need to tell me again as we pull away from the recruiting station and maybe again on the drive home."
"I'll tell you as many times as you need me to, my love," the Captain promised. "I know this is the only way to stop him from going down the disastrous path he's on and we must stop him, Maria. He can't stop himself."
She nodded and pulled back to look the Captain in the eyes. "I hate this," she sighed wondering if her indecision would challenge his resolve.
"I have to say I don't," the Captain replied. "I'm relieved we are doing something, and it's the right thing, Maria. In the deepest parts of my heart, I know this is the right thing to do."
He spoke with such conviction Maria felt reassured by it. "Then I'm with you," she agreed and leaned over to kiss her husband's cheek. "Let's go."
The drive to Montpelier was only about an hour long, but it felt eternal. Friedrich didn't say a word. He'd left without telling his siblings goodbye, without acknowledging Mary Kate who had arrived to help Liesl with the younger ones. Maria heard the strains of "Favorite Things" as they started the engine, she wished simply singing a song could help now.
When they arrived, the Captain went inside first leaving Maria and Friedrich to wait until he called them. "I'm Georg von Trapp, Austrian Imperial Navy, retired, we spoke on the phone a short time ago about my son. My wife and I have decided to accept the generous offer you made, Lieutenant Stern."
When Friedrich began to get into trouble, the Captain had researched options for military service, boarding school, anything and everything. The naval recruiter he spoke to was sympathetic to the situation and had offered to help by bring Friedrich into the class regardless of time and place. Lieutenant Stern too was brought up by the Navy.
"Pleasure is all mine," the younger man replied. "And I must say too that even though our two countries were enemies in the last engagement, I do admire your record. Is your son outside?"
Outside the building, in the cold Vermont air, Friedrich stood by Maria. She could see the anger radiating off of him as he stared at his father's back. "Don't blame your father," she said softly. "He didn't do this alone, I did it too."
Friedrich rolled his eyes, "You can't protect him. I know it was his idea."
"He wants to help you, Friedrich," Maria replied. "He doesn't want you to get into real trouble, especially because you are just struggling with where you are in your life. He does love you so very much."
Before Friedrich could replied the Captain motioned for them to go inside. "It's time to go," Marie told him reaching out to open the door.
Maria had pushed open the door at with an insolent, but reluctant Friedrich by her side. "My wife, Maria and our son, Friedrich. This is Lieutenant Stern."
"How do you do?" Maria greeted very softly. She was losing her nerve.
The lieutenant only permitted a few more moments of discussion before taking the Captain's signature on what seemed to be and endless supply of paperwork. "And that's the last one, Captain. Have a safe journey home. Young man," he commanded. "Follow me."
And that was that. Lieutenant Stern led Friedrich through the double doors and out of his parents' sight. Maria felt her heart lurch, but the tears she'd been afraid and embarrassed to shed never came. The Captain had turned his back to her. She stepped closer and put her hand on his back. He was shaking. "Georg?"
The Captain turned to face his wife, tears falling out of his eyes. He didn't try to speak, he couldn't even breath, let alone muster any words.
Maria took the Captain's face into her hands and held his gaze. "I love you," she said with firm reassurance. "I know this is the right thing to do, Georg. I know you know deep in your heart, this is the right thing to do."
She enveloped him into her arms cradling his head against her chest as he sobbed. He had always been the one to push on, to lead, to make the hard choices, he'd held her and encouraged her through their escape from Austria, a tumultuous pregnancy, and challenging birth. He always knew the right thing to say…now he needed her, and there were no words to lessen his pain. All she could do was hold him tight now and through the nights to come, all she could do was be there for him to hold him close as long as he needed her.