Hammelburg, Shop of Johann Mueller
July 27, 1944, 1645 hours
Dorfmann eased the staff car to a stop in front of Johann Mueller's small shop and turned off the engine. He sat in the car, preparing himself for the short walk into the building. He had kept the windows up in the car even though it made the car stifling hot. He knew that it wouldn't stop the odor from coming in, but it did lessen the intensity.
He had come to Mueller's shop to escort Ilse home, as he had been doing for the past several weeks. He had done a lot of thinking about his relationship with Ilse since he had found out for sure that she and her family were involved in the Underground. He had been hurt when he found out – thinking that Ilse had been using him to get information. Then he had realized that Ilse had never asked any questions of him, and if they had ever talked about his work, he had been the one to bring it up. She had never once – or so he told himself – expressed interest in anything that could be considered helpful to her family's cause. This realization had allowed him to give in to his feelings and begin seeing Ilse again.
And it had been a wonderful few weeks. He had missed spending time with Ilse and was glad that they could be together again. He still kept an eye out for any sign she might be using him, but had seen none. And in fact, it was he who would volunteer information to her when he thought her family might be in danger. But he knew that in the long run, things could not remain as they were. Either her family would have stop committing acts of sabotage in the area, or he would have to leave. He did not want to be put in the position where he had to arrest anyone in Ilse's family.
Taking a deep breath, he opened the car door and hurried to the shop.
- - - - -
Ilse was sitting at the small desk at the back of the shop when she heard the door open. She looked up to find Dorfmann standing in the doorway. "August, come in quickly and shut the door," she said. "The smell is so much worse when the door is open! I will be ready in a minute."
Dorfmann walked in and shut the door as Johann Mueller emerged from the back room.
"Ah, Captain Dorfmann," Mueller said. "How are you today?"
"Hot and smelly," Dorfmann replied smiling. Ilse began gathering her belongings.
"Yes, the odor does seem to permeate everything," Mueller replied. "I wonder what is causing it."
"The Underground destroyed a train carrying a load of sauerkraut the other night," Dorfmann replied.
When Ilse heard this, she froze momentarily, dropping her bag to the floor. She quickly bent down to pick it up.
"That is terrible!" Mueller exclaimed. "Who would do a thing like that?"
"I do not know," he said. "But whoever it was would not be very popular around town if their identity was known today."
Ilse picked up her bag and stood upright. Dorfmann was staring directly at her, his face an emotionless mask. Her heart skipped a beat. Why is he staring at me like that? She opened her mouth to tell him she was ready, but nothing came out.
Dorfmann continued to stare at Ilse. "Major Hochstetter is also not happy and has ordered more patrols around the area," he said. "He is hoping that whoever did this will try something else soon."
The longer Dorfmann stared at Ilse, the more uncomfortable she became. She looked away, rearranging items on her desk to give her something to do.
"Well, I will not keep you two," Mueller said. "I will see you tomorrow, Ilse."
Ilse grabbed the rest of her belongings. "Danke, Johann," she replied, walking to the door. Dorfmann opened the door and held it for her, tipping his hat at Mueller before leaving the shop.
- - - - -
As he drove the car down the road, Dorfmann said, "It is so hot, it would be a nice day for a walk," he said. "If it were not for the smell," he added.
"It is bad," she replied, wrinkling her nose.
Dorfmann smiled. She didn't know that the train contained sauerkraut. That was a surprise to her. I hope she managed to understand my message – Hochstetter has increased the patrols because of this and because of the increased level of paranoia since last week's bombing in the Führer's compound. "It makes me never want to eat sauerkraut again!" he said.
Ilse chuckled. "Speaking of eating, will you stay for supper this evening, August?" she asked.
Dorfmann shook his head. "I am afraid that I have a lot of work to do," he replied. "With the increased patrols Hochstetter ordered, I have a lot more coordination to do."
Ilse nodded silently. Dorfmann looked at her out of the corner of his eye. I wish I knew what was going on inside her head right now. Does she suspect that I know about her family at all? Is she plotting another act of sabotage? He remained silent as they drove out of town. I have a hard time believing that Ilse is a mastermind in this. Her brother Hans – yes, but Ilse doesn't seem to have the personality of a saboteur. So why is she participating?
The pair remained silent until the car pulled to a stop in front of the Wagner farmhouse.
Ilse put her hand on Dorfmann's arm. "I am sorry you cannot stay," she said. "Will I see you tomorrow?"
Dorfmann took her hand in his and nodded. "If I am free for lunch, we can eat together," he replied. Then he smiled. "Anything but sauerkraut!"
Ilse smiled back. "That would be nice," she said softly. She leaned slightly toward him, inviting him to kiss her.
Dorfmann leaned forward and kissed her. "Until tomorrow," he said when their lips parted. He watched Ilse get out of the car and hurry into the farmhouse.
- - - - -
Ilse walked into her house to find her brothers sitting at the kitchen table and her father busy getting the dishes to the table.
"Did you enjoy your drive home?" Hans asked mischievously. "Your Captain Dorfmann didn't stay this evening – did you scare him off?"
Ilse glared at her brother. "How many times do I have to tell you he is not my Captain?" she shot back. "Besides, he is busy tonight. It seems that there are trains being destroyed around here." She heard her father huff in annoyance. She knew he was not happy about his children's activities.
Hans smiled back at her broadly. "It is a shame that is happening," he said sarcastically.
"It could be a shame if they try something again," she countered. "August said that Major Hochstetter has increased the patrols in the hopes of catching the people responsible."
Hans nodded. "Very good information to know," he said, looking at his brother Karl. "See Ilse, I told you that you could get useful information from your Captain if you tried."
Ilse was now standing beside her brother and hit him hard in the head. "I told you that I am not seeing him for that purpose!" she shouted.
Hans stood up, anger burning in his eyes. "What other purpose is there for you to see him?" he asked
"I see him because I like him!" Ilse retorted.
Hans shrugged. "As long as you keep learning useful information, I suppose you can keep seeing him," he said.
Ilse narrowed her eyes as she looked back at her brother. "You cannot tell me what to do," she said angrily.
"Hans, leave your sister alone," Friedrich Wagner said, setting the dishes on the table. "She is a smart girl and knows what she is doing."
"Which is more than I can say for you, Hans," Ilse exclaimed. "I learned one more piece of information tonight." She paused, seeing that the statement caught her brother's attention. "Apparently you are not as smart as you think you are," she said with a smile. "The train we blew up the other night contained nothing but sauerkraut."
"What?" Hans cried.
"That is right, Hans," Ilse continued. "You are responsible for this terrible stench that everyone in the town has to suffer through."
"That cannot be," Hans said.
"It is," she replied. "So I guess you had better not tell me what I should do until you stop making your own mistakes!" She huffed in anger as she stomped from the room.
"Hans, one of these days your headstrong ways are going to lead you to trouble," Friedrich said. "And I fear that someone will be hurt."
"Father, I know what I am doing," Hans replied. "I do not care what she says!"
"Hans, maybe we should not do anything for a while," Karl said helpfully. "If it is true that Major Hochstetter has increased the patrols, we should not take the chance."
Hans thought about it for a moment before slowly nodding his head. "Maybe you are right, Karl," he replied. "We should concentrate on gathering the information we need on the fuel depot instead."
"Ach," Friedrich sighed. "Maybe you should concentrate on giving up the whole notion and let the Underground make the decisions," he said softly.
"Father, we are part of the Underground," Hans replied. "And once we destroy that fuel depot, I am confident that the Underground will be taking direction from me."
Friedrich shook his head sadly. "This will end in no good," he muttered as he walked away from the table.