Clappenburg, Germany
Day 8
While the heroes were feeling helpless at Stalag 13, Emery was just west Clappenburg eyeing a road block from the crest of a hill. From the distance, he couldn't tell if it was a Gestapo roadblock or otherwise and in all honesty he wasn't that particular. He looked at the time on his watch and glanced in the mirror at the kids in back. They had been quiet since Bersenbruck and expectedly so. His own thoughts occasionally tripped along the side of the worst case scenario. If Fritz and Major Miller along with the rest of the kids had already been captured, then there was no mistaking that the Gestapo and anybody helping them would be looking very closely at any cars with any number of youths in it.
Emery picked up his map and traced another road. Although he would lose about ten minutes taking a longer route, he would lose the same amount of time, if not more, by trying to bluff his way through the roadblock. He placed his map down and backed the sedan up, turned around and headed back the other way to pick up the other road.
A little over thirty minutes later, on another route just east of Clappenburg, Fritz slowed the sedan at a military checkpoint. Miller, his glasses removed, handed his Soldbuch to Fritz. The two checkpoint guards assumed positions no different than had been seen at previous checkpoints.
"Heil Hitler," Fritz intoned, bringing his hand up in a casual salute. He handed the Soldbuchs to the waiting soldier.
The soldier looked at each Soldbuch and peered into the car, looking at each man. He glanced in the back seat at the three boys. "Wer sind die Jugend?" the soldier asked, still retaining the Soldbuchs. Who are the youths, Major?
Fritz gave his same answer, that the boys were delinquents escaped from a nearby work camp, found by a farmer and being taken to the nearest Gestapo office.
The soldier merely nodded, still studying the Soldbuchs. "Würden Sie aus dem Auto heraus treten, Major?" the soldier asked, casually opening the driver door. Would you step out of the car, Major?
Fritz felt a thousand little pins prickling at him. He hid his discomfort and glared at the soldier. "Was ist die Bedeutung von diesem?" What is the meaning of this?
"Aus dem Auto heraus bitte." Out of the car, please. The soldier looked at Fritz and then further into the car at Major Miller. "Sie außerdem, Hauptmann Maynard." You as well, Captain Maynard.
Miller had been so busy paying attention to Fritz and the first soldier he didn't notice the second soldier had moved from the barricade to the passenger door. The door now popped open. Miller turned and looked up at the blurred face of the soldier. He then glanced back at Fritz, feeling those same pins. Fritz was already stepping out of the car. Miller did the same.
"Sie beantworteten nicht meine Frage, Soldaten," Fritz said. "Was ist die Bedeutung von diesem?" You did not answer my question, soldier. What is the meaning of this?
The first soldier ignored Fritz and looked across at the roof of the car at his comrade standing with Miller. "Guten Tag, Herr Hauptmann. Wie heißen Sie?"
Fritz gulped. Damn! "Um was sind Sie bitten seinen Namen?" he demanded. "Sie haben das Soldbuch, Sie kennen seinen Namen. Dieses ist lächerlich!"What are you asking his name for? You have the Soldbuch, you know his name. This is ridiculous!
"Ja, aber kennt er seinen Namen?" the soldier glared back at Fritz. "Spricht er deutsch?" Yes, but does he know his name? Does he know German?
The second soldier poked the business end of his rifle into Miller's right shoulder. He repeated the question. "Wie heißen Sie?"
"Maynard," Miller answered. He had picked up the word 'name' in Fritz's rebuke and knew the word 'sie' was 'you.' They were asking his name. More than that, they were acting as though they knew he was going to lie to them. "Claus Maynard." Miller looked back and forth between the two blurred soldiers. I wish I could see!
"Woher Kommen Sie, Claus Maynard?" Where are you from, Claus Maynard?
You want to see Miller? I'll tell you what you're seeing. You're seeing your cover about to be blown!
Fritz was seeing the same thing. The soldiers were more than just suspicious. They knew who they had. And Fritz knew that Miller didn't know enough German to understand what was being asked of him, nor to be able to reply. They would not be able to talk their way out of this.
"Dieses ist lächerlich!" Fritz said. "Er ist von Bonn, es hat Recht im Soldbuch." This is ridiculous! He is from Bonn it is right in the Soldbuch.
"Wir möchten, damit er uns das erklärt," the first soldier said. "Hauptmann Maynard, sie sind mit dem Gestapo gewesen, wie lang?" We would like for him to tell us that. Captain Maynard, how long have you been with the Gestapo?"
It's no use Fritz, they've got us pegged... Miller appeared to think about his answer for a moment and then suddenly he grabbed the second soldier's rifle, pushing it away from his shoulder and swung out a good swift kick to the shin. The soldier howled on impact and one hand let go of the rifle, immediately reaching down to his bruised leg. Miller kept a hold on the rifle, yanked it from the soldier's single handed grasp and followed up by swinging the butt end of it into the soldier's stomach, knocking the wind out of him. A second hit sent the soldier to the ground.
Fritz had reacted within a split second of Miller's sudden move. The first soldier had looked quick when his comrade had howled in pain and then was suddenly in a struggle with Fritz for his rifle. The three boys spilled out of the back of the car to help in subduing the soldiers. Adler and Ahren gave some help to Fritz, while Erik stood with Miller, who had the second soldier well situated. Miller didn't have to see much to know the soldier was within point blank range of the rifle.
Ahren pulled the rifle from the first solider and Fritz and Adler forced the soldier over the hood the car, pulling his arms behind him. Fritz held the soldier down and spoke quickly in German to Adler, telling him to retrieve the rope from the trunk of the car. They would tie the soldiers to the post of the barricade. Ahren took a position in front of the car and kept the rifle trained on the first soldier. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Miller, Erik and the second soldier.
Adler retrieved the rope and returned to the front of the car. The first soldier's hands were tied behind his back and he was left face down on the hood for a moment, under Ahrens watchful eye, while Fritz and Adler came to the second soldier and tied his hands behind him.
"Up," Fritz commanded. He and Adler hauled the second soldier to his feet and marched him over to the side of the road, near the post that held the wooded barricade. Ahren poked the rifle he held into the ribs of the first soldier and ordered him to move.
Miller disengaged his aim of the rifle and dug out his glasses so he could see what the heck was going on. At that point he realized his heart was racing and he stepped back to place a steady hand on the open passenger door. The two soldiers were seated at the base of the post and situated back to back, the post between them. Fritz went to work, wrapping the remaining of the rope around the two, securing them to the post. With the last knot tied, Fritz stood back and looked at Major Miller, his expression a cross between a grin and a scolding look.
"I am not sure if I should thank you or curse you!"
Miller nodded. "It was the damn stupidest thing I could have done, I know."
"But it worked," Ahren said.
"Yes, but it just as easily could have not," Fritz said. "All of us could have been shot!"
"You are to be shot," the first of the two soldiers said in English, startling Fritz and Miller. They looked at him and he sneered up at them. "The Gestapo and the SS are looking for you." He looked at Miller. "Especially you. And when they find you, they will shoot you."
Miller stared at the soldier and then turned slowly to look at Fritz. The bandleader paled at the decree and Fritz too gulped at the prospect.
"Let's get out of here..." Fritz said.
Since the sedan was already equipped with two guns in the trunk, the two rifles were tossed into the woods. The Soldbuchs were picked up off the ground and the sedan then pulled away, kicking back a fine cloud of dust to the two tied soldiers.
Miller pulled his mustache off. "What do we do now?" he asked. "Where do we go?"
"The nearest safe house is in Garrel, only a few miles from here. From there we will have to...rethink our route." Fritz paused and took his eyes of the road briefly, glancing at the American in the passenger seat. "Herr Miller, I--"
Miller held a hand up. "Don't say it. Just do the best you can, Fritz. My fate is in the hands of God anyway."
"Then God help me," Fritz said. "I made a promise that I would see to it you return safely to England. And that is exactly what I intend to do..."
Wilhelmshaven, Germany
Fritz, Miller and the three boys had been safe at the safe house in Garrel for almost two hours by the time Emery reached the outskirts of Wilhelmshaven. It was near six pm and the sun had long set. Although he was worried for Fritz and the others, Emery had a more pressing problem at the moment. A Gestapo roadblock.
The line of cars was short but Emery could see it was a road block. The flashlight beams from the Gestapo men crisscrossed in the dark and shined off windows and mirrors from cars as they checked each vehicle. Emery stopped the sedan several hundred feet back from the road block, pulling off to the side of the road and cutting the engine and lights. In the dark, he and the four boys sat quietly watching.
"They are...looking for us" Avril asked.
Emery nodded. "I'm sure of it. This road normally does not have a roadblock or checkpoint"
"Herr Miller, Herr Fritz, Ahren, Adler and Erik...were captured" Roderick wondered.
"Possibly."
Silence enveloped the inside of the car. The boys had all feared this since Fritz, Miller and the others had failed to show up at the checkpoint back in Bersenbruck. Like Emery though, they tried to think that maybe Fritz had just fallen behind or got held up somewhere, by either mechanical trouble or an impassable road. But not by the Gestapo.
"What do we do" Roderick asked. "Do we try another road"
"I have the feeling the other roads are no different than this one," Emery replied. "The two main roads have well fortified checkpoints at all times and the secondary roads like this one I am sure have roadblocks as well."
Another moment of silence, only this time each of the boys appeared to be thinking. Johann peered out the side window and looked toward the canal. "What if we cross on foot" he suggested.
"All of us" Avril said.
"Well perhaps not all of us Herr Reynard could drive through the roadblock with one or two of us, while the others cross the canal on foot and meet up on the other side"
"That would take less suspicion off this car as we passed through," Emery said. "I am sure they are looking for a group of young boys traveling with one or more adults."
"Yes, and the fewer boys in the car, the less suspicion," Johann said.
"But we would have to swim the canal," Avril said. "Perhaps you have not noticed but it is a little cold tonight!"
"You won't have to swim it," Emery said. "The canal lock was bombed a couple of months ago, preventing the water from flowing. The canal is dry."
Johann looked at Avril with a smile. "There. You won't even get your shoes wet"
Avril snorted. "Very well, I will go"
Johann nodded. "Me as well." He looked at Oskar. "You come with us"
The boy nodded. "I will."
Emery looked at Roderick. "Youbest stay with me."
Roderick appeared a little relieved. He glanced at the other boys, who nodded in agreement and he gave a nod to Emery. "Very well."
Emery nodded and gave some quick instructions to the boys, explaining that the road on the other side of the canal turned to the right after about a hundred feet. Once they crossed the canal, they were to stay out of sight of the checkpoint guards, preferably along the edge of the woods and brush. Emery then explained that he would pull over after the turn and wait for them.
The boys nodded and Emery wished them luck. They then exited the car and crossed to the right side of the road, heading for the canal. Roderick moved from the back to the front passenger seat of the car as Emery started it. The car then rolled back onto the road and drove on toward the checkpoint.
Johann, Avril and Oskar moved as quickly and as quietly as they could, leaving the road and walking down the slight embankment to the small clearing that was between the canal and the woods. The boys stopped and looked toward the checkpoint that was probably a hundred feet away. Their car pulled to a stop behind another one that was already being questioned by the checkpoint guards. With the guards sufficiently occupied, the boys continued on into the clearing, keeping low.
The car was waved through and Emery pulled up next. He saluted the guards and presented his identification papers. The guard examined the Soldbuch while the second one walked around the vehicle.
The three boys reached the edge of the canal and paused to look toward the lights of the bridge. Their car was at the entrance to the bridge, being questioned by the checkpoint guards. There were no cars behind it. They had to keep moving while the guard's attention was diverted. One at a time, they climbed over the concrete barrier of the edge of the canal and eased their way down into...
...about eight inches of water.
"So I'm not going to get my shoes wet, ja?" Avril hissed.
"Quiet!" Johann hissed back, grabbing a hold of both Avril and Oskar to keep them still. The small splashing noise sounded deafening and the three boys looked toward the bridge again. There was no change in the guard's postures.
At least, not that they could see. While the first guard was talking to Emery, the second one heard the sound of water splashing in the canal. He stopped moving and listened, but he heard no more.
All the boys could hear was their hearts pounding in their ears. Finally Johann loosened his grip on Avril and Oskar. "We must move quietly and slowly, do not splash the water as you walk...come" Johann started to walk, slowly moving his legs through the water to reduce the amount of splashing. Avril and Oskar followed suit.
Back at the entrance to the bridge, Emery was explaining that the young boy with him was his nephew. The guard took that at face value and Emery's Soldbuch was returned to him. The guard bade him a good evening and let him through.
The three boys weren't even halfway to the halfway mark of the two hundred foot wide canal when they each saw the car move across the bridge. They glanced at it as it crept across the bridge and they continued on, one slow watery step at a time.
The second of the two guards paused at the now empty checkpoint and lit a cigarette. He tossed his spent match over the railing of the bridge and looked down at what little water there was in the canal. The lights of the bridge reflected and danced in the water below. As he listened he thought he could hear the faint sound of water splashing up stream.
He could see nothing in the dark however, and the sound of an approaching car drowned out any other sounds from the canal. He took a drag on his cigarette and turned at the car's approach.
The boys kept on, reaching the halfway point of the canal. The depth of the water remained the same, mercifully, but the temperature was starting to have an effect. "My feet and legs are cold!" Oskar hissed.
"We're almost there" Johann replied.
Up the road, Emery had pulled the sedan around the turn and was parked off the road, he and Roderick waiting in the dark.
The car on the bridge was soon allowed to pass. As the motor echoed across the nearly empty canal, the boys stepped a little faster, trying to gain as much ground as they could while they couldn't be heard. Avril glanced toward the bridge and then looked back ahead of him...just as his foot hit something in the water and he tripped forward.
"AGH!--" Splash!
The guards on the bridge suddenly came to life at the noise and were now looking in the general direction of the boys. Halt! Who is out there!
Johann and Oskar stopped and reached to help Avril to stand back up. The boy had sprung back up as quickly as he went down and a barely audible sound of shock coming from his mouth once his body registered the cold water. "Let's go! Let's go!" Johann yelled and the three ran through the rest of the water to the embankment.
Warning shots rang out. A spotlight came on. The boys clambered up the embankment and darted into the woods. The spotlight was turned towards the woods, following them but they kept running, knowing they could be seen but using the light to their own advantage.
Another warning shot rang out. Halt!One of the guards came running off the bridge going after the boys.
Roderick and Emery had heard the gunshots and the sedan sprung to life. Emery swung the car around and charged back around the corner and barreled down the road. "Get down, Roderick and stay down!" The young boy obeyed and huddled down in the backseat, hanging on for dear life.
The guard stopped and was waving for the car to get off the road. But Emery wouldn't have it and kept his foot to the pedal eventually forcing the guard to dive out of the way.
"Dumpkof! What are you doing!" the guard yelled at the sedan as it pulled up the road and then swung around in the dirt, aiming for the guard again. The guard scrambled and rolled out of the way as the sedan went speeding past.
Thoroughly annoyed, the guard opened fire on the sedan, aiming between the little red taillights of the car. Bullets danced across the trunk of the car and Emery swung the sedan around one more time. Johann, Oskar and Avril, meanwhile, kept running to the point where the road turned. They took cover behind trees and brush, keeping an eye and ear in the direction of the sedan and the belligerent guard. The guard was still on the ground and he managed one shot at the oncoming sedan that went wild. He rolled again out of the way and went down into the ditch on the side of the road.
The other guard on the bridge was shooting at the sedan now. Emery figured he'd harassed them enough and he swung the sedan around again for the last time, pushing the car back down the road and away from the bridge.
The guard on the bridge was hollering for his comrade. After a moment, the first guard answered back that he was okay and climbed up from the ditch and back to the road. He looked in the direction the sedan went, the dark revealing nothing, the night air settling back to its crisp quietness. He didn't know who had been in the canal or who was in the car and this angered him more than having been attacked to begin with. He stomped back toward the bridge so that he could radio to his superiors in town what had taken place.
Up around the turn, Emery told Roderick to keep a watch out for the others. The boy, trying not to appear shaken by the ride in the car and the gun fire that had crackled around them, looked out the window. The sedan crept along slowly and soon, Roderick spotted the other three as they came out from the edge of the woods.
"There they are"
Emery stopped and the boys, wet and chilled to the bone, piled into the car. Once the door shut, the sedan pulled forward hurrying on into the town of Wilhelmshaven.