Let me not
to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the
remover to remove.
O, no! it is an ever-fixed mark,
That
looks on tempests and is never shaken.
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Escaping the Black SpiderThe puzzled expression on Gretl's face almost broke Maria's resolve. She had called the children together in the older girls' bedroom to explain the need for their sudden departure, but now found it difficult to express herself without causing them undue worry. Attempting to remain composed, she remembered Georg's words: 'Don't say anything that's going to make them worry. Just get them ready.'
She inhaled deeply. 'Children, your father has been asked by the Nazis to take up a post as Naval Commander at Bremerhaven.' Hearing their gasps, she smiled reassuringly and squeezed Marta's hand tighter. 'But don't worry, dears, of course he's not going to accept – you know how he feels about the Nazis.'
'But…but people like Herr Zeller aren't just going to let him say 'No' like that,' murmured Brigitta solemnly, the possibility of having to leave the country creeping into her mind.
'Well, I'm afraid that's just it,' said Maria, stroking Gretl's braid. 'There is no way your father would accept their offer and equally no way they would allow him to refuse. That's why – ' she paused, '– we're going to have to leave Austria tonight.'
The children exchanged shocked glances.
'Leave?' echoed Liesl, suddenly realising the full import of Rolfe's telegram. 'But…this is our home…I mean, we're Austrians, we've lived here all our lives.' She gazed around at her siblings sitting on the three beds lining the room, their worried expressions mirroring her own.
'We don't have a choice, Liesl,' Maria replied quietly. 'I know that it's difficult to accept, but hopefully some day when the Nazis have gone we'll be able to return.'
'All that matters is sticking together,' said Friedrich gravely, nudging his brother. Kurt nodded in solemn agreement.
Sighing, Maria turned to Louisa who had been standing by the window sill, her gaze solidly fixed on the lake.
'Lousia?' inquired Maria gently. She knew that of all the children Louisa would probably find leaving the most painful, such had always been her love for the Austrian countryside, from climbing its trees to collecting its spiders.
'I agree we have to leave,' muttered the girl, pensively turning away from the view to face her family. 'Father could never join the Nazis. It's just– just so unfair that we should be the ones leaving while they take over our country.' She impatiently brushed a stray tear from her face, angry with herself for wanting to cry in frustration.
Gently letting go of Marta and Gretl, Maria walked over to her as the others watched soberly. Wrapping her arm around Lousia's shoulders, she guided her back to her siblings where Liesl took her hand in empathy. Usually the one to dismiss such signs of affection as soppy and girlish, this time Louisa returned Liesl's grip, grateful for her sister's support.
'Now children,' said Maria briskly, not wanting them to dwell on the enormity of what was happening, 'we've decided that Switzerland would be the best place to go, and seeing as we haven't got much time, we'd better start getting our things ready now.'
As the group began getting up from the beds, Gretl tugged at Maria's sleeve.
'Are you sure there aren't any Nazis in Switzerland, Mother?' she inquired, a frown puckering her tiny face.
'Quite sure, Gretl,' Maria reassured her, gathering the girl up in a hug.
'So there won't be any flags with the black spider on them?' asked Marta from underneath.
'Not a single one,' Maria replied, reaching down to pat her head. 'In fact, it's going to be a huge adventure, going to a new country, seeing lots of new things.' She raised her eyebrows at the older children as she spoke enthusiastically to the little girls, implicitly asking for support in reassuring their younger sisters.
'Mother's right,' Liesl agreed with alacrity. 'We'll have a lovely time in Switzerland,' she added, hoping that her hearty tone masked any worries she had.
'Right, then,' Maria brushed down her skirt. 'I'll go with Gretl and Marta to pack their things and I trust the rest of you to get your own bags ready.' Her tone was such that all the children sprung into action, Liesl running to her wardrobe to decide what clothes to take, Brigitta heading for the bookcase to make equally important choices.
As she made her way across the landing with Marta and Gretl, Maria could hear the other children discussing the prospect of leaving. Kurt's voice rose above the rest as he attempted to comfort Louisa: 'After all, Lou, there'll be plenty of spiders in Switzerland too.'
Smiling, Maria opened the door to the girls' bedroom, confident of her family's ability to build a new life.
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An hour later, Maria left Marta and Gretl to decide which dolls to take with an extremely bored Louisa and walked quickly towards the master bedroom at the other side of the house. Now that the children were finally packed, she needed to sort out her and Georg's luggage from the mass of trunks they had brought back from Paris. After the children's bags had been taken into account, they would only have room for about one suitcase each, she calculated.
The glint of the lake from one of the landing windows caught her eye as she walked, casting a shimmering shadow on the wall. Stopping, Maria leant by the window sill, mimicking Louisa's posture earlier on as she contemplated leaving her home. It was not for reasons of vanity that she sighed; forfeiting the role of Lady of the Manor did not cross her mind, merely that she would not have the opportunity of being the children's mother in the villa they loved.
'Maria.' She felt Georg's warm breath on her neck. So lost in thought, she had not noticed him until a pair of strong arms encircled her waist and a broad chest allowed her to lean back in comfort.
'Georg,' she sighed in contentment. Nestled in his arms, she felt nothing could ever hurt her. As he tightened the embrace, they both gazed towards the lake which was now bathed in twilight, its sparkling serenity at odds with the afternoon's hectic preparations.
Dissatisfied with being unable to see Georg's face, Maria slowly turned around in his arms, reaching up to loop her arms around his neck.
'We've still got to pack,' she muttered, without any real intention of moving from his firm hold.
'Mmm,' he replied non-commitally, his mind far away from the mundanity of suitcases. 'I never got the opportunity to welcome you home,' he said wistfully, their last Paris night having rapidly slipped into the realm of a parallel existence, an existence of exuberance and love apruptly shattered by the Nazis.
'Perhaps you still can…' Maria murmured, tilting up her head from where it had been resting on his chest. After the trauma of the day – hearing of the Anschluss as the train pulled into Salzburg, then the telegram – she felt a profound need for intimacy, to burn once more through the passion they had discovered on their honeymoon.
Lifting her chin up, Georg brushed his lips over hers, her sweetness absorbing all his senses, effortlessly eclipsing the day's painful news.
Smiling in their kiss, Maria pressed herself closer, standing on tiptoe to deepen their embrace. Georg reacted with equal intensity, his arms almost lifting Maria off the ground as he kissed her with a force, almost a fury, translating his anguished energy over Austria's fate into love for his wife.
Pulling back for air, they stared at each other, gasping and impatient.
'Do we have time…?', Maria whispered anxiously, wanting nothing more than to lose herself in him, despite the worry that they had to leave soon. 'The children…'
'We'll make time,' Georg cut in, silencing her concerns with a hungry kiss. As her hands began to roam inside his jacket, frantically tugging at his shirt, he knew he could wait no longer and, scooping her into his arms, strode towards the master bedroom where they proceeded to find solace in each other.