Chapter 32: Adrift between heaven and hell
"Keep safe darling, come back to me soon. I miss you so much." Maria added a small prayer: "Please Lord, protect him."
The whispered words were carried on a gust of wind as Maria stood on a cliff on the Whitehead estate in Devon, England. Below, the sea was a brilliant blue, swirling beguilingly on this late summer day, the waves eddying gently around some treacherous looking rocks. Today the rugged coastline seemed tame, almost placid. The shrieks of gulls floating on the wind currents could be heard above.
Maria was so entranced by the scene that it felt as if the world was at peace. It was only three days since she and the children had arrived in England. The children were as happy as street urchins roaming freely on the vast estate. Their joyful shouts could be heard all over the rolling pastureland and woods. In this tranquil setting Maria's natural optimism pushed through. The estate was idyllic, with charming hedgerows and sheep grazing like balls of fluff in the fields. The countryside was so appealing that Maria understood why the poet William Blake called England "a green and pleasant land." Its serenity seemed like paradise after their desperate, headlong rush from danger.
After the hideous farewell that she and Georg had exchanged, it had taken many long hours of the train journey for Maria to calm down and control her terrible fears. She had been barely aware of her responses to the children's chatter, though her words must have been appropriate because the children hadn't noticed her stunned distress. Thankfully Max and Sascha had kept the children distracted.
She had felt as if she had been cleaved in two. One part of her remained in a state of shock and paralysing terror for Georg's safety, and the other continued on as if everything was fine. Ever since then, that disorienting dichotomy had persisted. She swung wildly between cheerful optimism and bleak, dark pessimism.
Her hopes were nourished by lovely dreams of Georg at night, and during the day, golden memories of their time together. As she stood on the cliff, gazing out towards the general direction of the European continent, a delightful memory came to her.
It was the third morning of their honeymoon in their chalet on the Untersberg. Georg crouched down stacking logs near the fireplace, while Maria washed the breakfast dishes.
He brushed sawdust off his outdoor shirt. "Do you know, Eliza said the most peculiar thing to me at our wedding reception in that little village square."
"Oh?"
"She said that although you kept telling her I was over-bearing, she knew you were in love with me."
"Oh!" Maria looked guilty as she dried a plate. "Er-hrm, yes, well, I did tell her at one point that I thought you were arrogant. And..er rude, and maybe also insufferable. And sarcastic too," she confessed. "But that was only because I was denying my feelings."
"How could you say such things? I was utterly charming when we first met," Georg insisted haughtily.
Maria was momentarily silenced by this staggering piece of self-delusion. But when she saw the devilish humour lurking in her husband's piercing blue eyes she burst into peals of laughter.
"What's so funny?" Georg contrived to look offended as he stood up, looking too big for the little room.
Maria continued to laugh until a few tears trickled down her face.
"Oh? So you find that amusing do you, my love?" The words were infused with the slightly sinister, taunting tone that she remembered so well from an earlier time.
He raised arrogant eyebrows at her. "May I remind you that I was remarkably tolerant given your outrageous deceit with that ridiculous dialect."
"Oh," that silenced Maria's laughter, though the merriment sparkled in her eyes, along with the guilt.
Georg's eyes grew more playful and suddenly purposeful. There was a distinctly predatory glint in them as he remembered something. "Which reminds me, I really do need to think of a suitable punishment for your trickery."
Maria felt a frisson of excitement as his eyes gleamed like a ravenous wolf spying a juicy rabbit. She swallowed hard, adrenaline flooding her veins as the instincts for flight in the face of danger took hold. She started backing away as he slowly stalked towards her.
"Now, now, let's be sensible about this. It was all so long ago." She tried to placate him, even as she calculated how she could make it out the doorway. There was nowhere to hide in the tiny chalet. He continued that slow, deliberate advance as if he were a hunter, and she the prey.
Maria was elated and astonished. She never imagined that her very proper husband had a hidden capacity for fun. He would never have behaved like this at the villa, where he was restrained by his formal, aristocratic and rather dull world.
"Imagine a postulant committing such a shocking transgression!" He appeared to relish the words. "What do you think you deserve for such a deplorable deception, my sweet?" The thrilling menace in his voice sent shivers of sensation racing along her spine.
"A kiss?" she suggested hopefully, making him laugh.
"I could kiss the floor," she bargained, nerves jumping with the exhilaration of being hunted.
"Oh no, I'll require something much more suitable than that. I can think of a penance that would undoubtedly give poor Sister Berthe an apoplexy; something that we best keep to ourselves." He seemed to be thoroughly enjoying himself, a dangerous slanting half-smile on his mouth.
He was getting so close that she found herself backed against the table. Swiftly turning, she shoved a saucepan towards him, and with startled reflexes he caught it. It gave her the small second she needed to flee, turning over a chair to hinder his chase at the same time.
With a little whoop of gleeful, defiant mirth, she was out the door, hoping to live up to the good Sisters' claim that she was as elusive as a cloud that couldn't be caught and pinned down. She heard Georg's curse as he stumbled into the chair as she slammed the front door shut. Grateful that it had a lock on the outside, she slid the rusty bolt in place.
Slightly dazzled by the bright sunshine, she was off like a hare, as she heard him swearing at the locked door. A moment later she heard the scraping slide of wood when he opened a window to clamber out. Laughing softly to herself, she thought about doors closing and windows opening. This definitely wasn't what the dear Reverend Mother had in mind, bless her heart.
She ran, light-hearted with happiness, her lissom limbs surefooted and agile, the breath burning in her lungs. All those illicit frolics in the mountains whenever she had escaped the rigours of abbey life were being put to good use.
Frantically she looked for a hiding place. She could climb a tree, but he would spot her easily. She saw a rocky outcrop and raced towards it, crouching down and making herself tiny behind it. She was sure he hadn't seen where she had fled. She could hear him calling to her and remained silent, jubilant that she had eluded him.
"Maria darling, come out from where-ever you are." The voice was warm and persuasive. A prowling wolf pretending to be as gentle as a lamb.
Humpf! As if she could be so easily fooled, she scoffed indignantly to herself.
There was utter silence except for birdsong for a long while. She controlled her panting breaths, her skin prickled with exquisite suspense at their little game. Not daring to look, her ears strained for the crack of a twig or the skitter of a stone so she could judge where he was. Surely she would be able to hear the heavy clump of his boots. She relaxed, entranced by the sight of a little patch of edelweiss nearby.
But she should have remembered that he was a master of stealth and strategy, and that he had an astonishing array of medals to prove it.
"Maria." Suddenly he appeared in front of her, triumph and irrepressible humour in his eyes.
She gave a screech of fright and raced off with Georg in pursuit. Although she had the swiftness and suppleness of a doe, she knew he was faster than her, so she was puzzled why she didn't feel his arms reaching out to catch her. Her spine and the nape of her neck tingled with the deliciously agonizing prospect of being caught.
Too late, she realized he was corralling her back to the chalet. She veered to the right, then she felt his arms around her pulling her against him. She resisted, both of them breathless with laughter and exertion. She shrieked with outrage when she found herself upside down staring at the rocky ground as he hauled her over his shoulder and strode back to the chalet, implacable in the face of her struggles and indignant cries.
Once inside he tumbled her on to the bed, and followed her down immediately, an air of a victorious conqueror about him. Mesmerized by the crooked charm of that seductive smile, Maria exalted in the now familiar weight of his body, and the lean strength and beauty of the male form. The deep throb of his voice vibrating with passion in her ear raised her anticipation to fever pitch.
"Now let's see about that punishment my love."
What followed filled Maria with wonder as Georg took her down a new, mysterious pathway to pleasure and introduced her to something she could never have imagined could be so intoxicating. Astonished delight lilted through her.
Afterwards, she lay in a dazed incandescent glow of bliss, her head on his shoulder as she listened to the powerful metronome of his heartbeats. She caressed the damp, silky hair on his chest. Reflecting on their little adventure, she felt a measure of pride that she could unleash him from the shackles of his rigid codes of behaviour, and free him enough to be playful and carefree with her.
Maria sighed contentedly and said cheekily. "If that was a punishment I think I am going to have to provoke you much more."
She felt the huff of tender laughter rumbling through his chest. "Ah Maria, I thank God for you. What would I do without you? I adore you."
Looking out to sea, the memory pierced Maria with happiness. It was easy to lull herself into thinking that it would only be a matter of time before he joined them here in this peaceful, heavenly land for the start of a new life together. Anything as grotesque as war seemed inconceivable.
The cliffs were a favourite place for her because she felt closer to Georg. As a nautical man he must have loved coming here with Agathe when they visited. He would have enjoyed gazing at the endless horizon, taking pleasure in the changing colour of the water, from the slate grey of a cloudy morning to a startling blue on a sunny day. She could imagine he would have savoured the surging power of the tide as it stormed in with spellbinding drama twice a day.
She felt his presence beyond the horizon. That sixth sense that connected them, transcending speech, touch and even physical presence, which Maria liked to think of as the entwining of two souls, felt strong today. She had a slightly uneasy feeling that he was venturing into danger. To calm that strange tingling concern she sang one of his favourite Schubert songs Licht und Liebe [Light and Love]. Fancifully, she liked to think the notes would somehow carry over the sea to give him comfort.
Maria poured her heart into the words, gathering all her sense of artistry, toning and colour, to give the lyrics their deepest emotional impact.
"Love is a sweet light.
Just as the earth aches for the sun
and those bright stars
in the distant dark, glitter,
so the heart aches for love's bliss,
for love is a sweet light."
She had sung it to him before and she remembered his pleasure as the musical notes and lyrics unfolded like the petals of a flower. It filled her heart with rejoicing to remember how enraptured he had been.
ooooOOOOooo
Elisabeth and John Whitehead had been nothing but kind since Maria's arrival, welcoming them all with open arms. Despite their impeccable aristocratic pedigree they were not at all concerned that Georg had married someone, that some might consider of a lower social status. For them, all that mattered was that children loved their new mother.
Maria had been feeling like an interloper when she arrived, as if she was trying to step into Agathe's shoes, but her concerns had been allayed immediately. On their second day, she and Elisabeth had spent some time alone and Maria had humbly brought up the fact that she could never replace Agathe in the children's and Georg's eyes.
"Thank you for saying that my dear child, but it's not a concern that John and I have. We lost our darling Agathe and we know we can never get her back, but she lives on in our hearts. Now Georg has given us another daughter to love. And the children are blessed with a mother who adores them, just as Agathe did. So we are all delighted to have you my dear."
The generosity of the sentiment had moved Maria unbearably. She could only count her blessings for their kindness. Feeling as fragile as she did these last weeks, she could not have coped if they had been guarded and hostile to her, even though it would have been entirely understandable if they had been.
During dinner on their third night, the children excitedly told their grandparents all about Maria winning the Festival.
"How splendid! Do you think you might sing a few songs for us?" Elisabeth asked Maria.
"I'd be honoured," Maria replied, though she felt very self-conscious.
Everyone gathered in the music room. The children looked on proudly as their new mother sang. Max accompanied her on the piano. Sascha had already left for London, hoping to seek his fortune amongst the dazzling musical talent in the capital, many of whom were exiles from Nazi Germany.
Maria chose a selection of Schubert's songs from her wedding gift to Georg. Just as Max had taught her, she was able to convey the nuances of sound and the subtle phrasing which characterizes much of Schubert's work. Max nodded with approval as she emphasized the darker or lighter shading of tone that gave meaning and emotion without overdoing it.
"Oh my dear, that was simply exquisite," Elisabeth said emotionally. She came from Austrian nobility, so hearing songs from her homeland touched her deeply.
"It was Max who taught me so much about music so that I could sing at the Festival."
Max grinned. "I've been trying to convince her that she could have a wonderful career on stage but alas…." He trailed off, though he still looked hopeful.
Maria shook her head, laughing at Max's crestfallen expression.
"Well at least have some more lessons Maria. I've taught you as much as I can, but you really need someone with far more expertise than me."
"Thank you Max, but I prefer to sing just for the family." And for Georg, she added to herself.
"Ah well, if you change your mind, you can get in touch with me in London. I'll come and visit whenever I can."
"You're leaving?" Maria was dismayed. She had relied so heavily on Max these past months. The thought of him leaving made her feel bereft.
He stood up. "I'm afraid so Maria, but not for a few days. I really must thank you both, Countess and Lord Whitehead, for your superb hospitality. Your wine cellar rivals even Georg's!" He added, "I don't want to impose on you further, but I am available to come back any time Maria and the children need me."
"Well we have enjoyed having you stay with us, Mr Detweiler, but perhaps we can prevail upon you to stay a bit longer, in case there are any developments." John Whitehead subtly passed on the message that Max was still needed.
"Yes of course your Lordship."
John changed the subject. "Maria, I must say your singing was most frightfully good. But I was thinking that perhaps you should learn some of our outstanding English composers. Purcell is my man. And one can't beat Tallis for excellent hyms and sheer artistry. And of course there's Handel - although German born, he became more English than the rest of us." He chuckled. "And nothing can rouse the blood to fervour more than the pomp of Elgar."
"That's a lovely idea," Maria agreed, keen to learn more about English composers, and also aware that John had been hinting ever since they arrived that it would be best if Maria learned English quickly. She knew that with the relationship between Britain and Germany so tense, it would inappropriate for them to be speaking German on the Whitehead estate.
She had a basic grasp of the language but was by no means fluent. She marvelled at John and Elisabeth's perfect diction and the wonderfully modulated tones of their crisp, upper-crust British accents. As a musician, their intonation captivated her.
Secretly, she also wanted to be able to show off her English to Georg when he finally arrived. In the same way as she had confounded him with her fake dialect, this time she wanted to amaze him with her perfect English pronunciation. Perhaps she could also amuse him by using some of John's quainter aristocratic expressions like 'dash it all', 'old bean', 'spiffing,' 'golly' and 'Well I say!' Whenever John said something endearing like that, Maria would always make sure to write it in her little notebook in her bedroom. The thought of making her austere, reserved husband laugh was always a special thrill for her. She hugged the thought to herself happily.
She continued the discussion about British composers. "It will help me learn English. But I was thinking of asking the children to help me learn too."
There was a chorus of excited "Oh yes" from the children.
"We taught Mother how to speak Hochdeutsch, Grandmamma and Grandpappa! And she learned so quickly," Brigitta told her grandparents.
Maria flushed guiltily. Only Georg knew how she had deceived them all with her fake dialect.
"Splendid," John said approvingly, though Elisabeth's eyes twinkled, suspecting that there was more to the story than that.
Gretl and Marta pouted. They didn't know English like their siblings, so this time they couldn't be teachers too.
Maria wrapped her arms around them and whispered. "We'll have a competition to see who can learn the quickest. And there might even be a prize," she promised.
The sulky looks immediately turned to bright-eyed eagerness at that thought.
ooooOOOOoooo
"Maria, John would like a word." Elisabeth knocked on her door one morning.
It was now six days since their arrival, and John, a Peer of the Realm, had made frequent trips to London during that time. He was on one of the House of Lords' Select Committees relating to the Third Reich, so he had access to more information than most.
"Sit down, my dear." John welcomed her into the library with his beautiful, quintessentially British manners.
"What is it?" Maria asked uneasily.
"We've had word from our chap in Vienna – the British Ambassador – that Chancellor von Schuschnigg may make an announcement today or tomorrow, but we don't know about what."
"Oh!" Suddenly the fears came rushing back like a tidal wave. Maria felt that familiar sensation of helplessness about events over which she had no control.
With her throat closing in anxiety, she had to force the words out that she did not want to ask. "Do you think he will declare war on Germany?"
Lord Whitehead pondered for a while, expressing himself carefully. "We don't know Maria. The odds are stacked against him. Austria only has a tiny professional army. It would be carn-" he stopped himself from using the word carnage, but it hung in the air.
He cleared his throat and continued. "Austria wouldn't stand a chance against the formidable military power of the German army. Austria's defenses would have to rely non-professional soldiers: men, young and old, who would be called upon to defend their towns and villages. Many of them would be boys, not much older than Friedrich and Kurt, being asked to hold a rifle in their hands for the first time. Regrettably, Austria's soldiers would be made up of shopkeepers, farm-hands, bankers, musicians, poets…." He trailed off somberly.
Maria's heart ached thinking of the innocent, fresh-faced boys and the older men leaving their loved ones to go to war; and the agony of mothers and wives and children watching their menfolk leaving their farms and jobs, not knowing if they would ever see them again.
"All of us have too many unspeakable memories of the Great War. It was hell on earth." He sighed wearily. "War is an insatiable beast, baying for destruction, and it's filled with the remorseless hunger to devour innocent lives. My personal hopes are for a surrender. With many Austrians already changing allegiance it seems more likely somehow."
Maria hoped the same. Was there any choice between terrible bloodshed or surrender? It was an impossible situation. Georg would be heart-broken over the latter but she knew he could not bear for Austria's young men to be devoured by war either.
Through the long endless day, Maria was physically present and even managed to speak with the children as if nothing was going to happen, but her mind was elsewhere. Her chest was so tight with distress it was actually difficult to breathe beyond the shallow breaths she was taking in.
Finally, the children were in bed and she sat in the library listening to the wireless with the adults. Elisabeth patted Maria's hand comfortingly. The familiar radio pips of the BBC came through, and a moment later came the cut-glass accent of the announcer. Almost immediately the news broke away to Chancellor von Schuschnigg making a live broadcast which was being carried all over Europe. Despite the static crackling across the airways, the Chancellor's voice was clear; solemn and heavy with emotion.
"This day has placed us in a tragic and decisive situation…."*
Maria listened intently, on the edge of her seat, desperate to hear the fate of Georg, and of Austria. She heard the Chancellor say that under the threat of a German invasion, he was resigning. In his place would be a Chancellor appointed by the German Fuhrer: Arthur Seyss-Inquart.
With his voice breaking with emotion the Chancellor declared these words:
"President Miklas has asked me to tell the people of Austria that we have yielded to force since we are not prepared even in this terrible situation to shed blood. We have decided to order the troops to offer no resistance. So I take leave of the Austrian people with a word of farewell uttered from the depth of my heart: God protect Austria."*
"….order the troops to offer no resistance." The words reverberated in Maria's tension-filled head, hope blossomed slowly into a wild elation that Georg would be safe. Georg wouldn't have to fight! Suddenly, her mind was reeling and whirling in an incoherent blur of emotions and thoughts. She could scarcely make sense of them. She caught at one, the easiest one to catch: it was profound relief.
But there was a lash of shame too, that she should find such comfort knowing that her husband was safe, but right now in Austria there must be thousands of families, many Jewish families, listening in terror and despair, weeping over their uncertain future now that the worst had happened: Austria had joined the Third Reich.
They all listened until the broadcast finished and there was a long silence. She looked at John. Strangely, he did not appear to be as relieved for Georg's safety as she would have thought. He looked deeply troubled. Having lived in Austria, perhaps he was grieving over the loss of its independence. But even Max looked grimmer than she had ever seen before.
She found herself plummeting down from her secret elation. The sense of unease started growing to a gnawing indescribable dread. "This is good news for Georg isn't it? At least... at least it means he won't have to fight….?"
John was silent for some time then forced a smile. "Yes, quite right of course. Georg won't have to fight now that the Chancellor has ordered a stand-down. Austria could never win against Germany so we must be grateful for the avoidance of all those deaths."
By his tone there was a "but." Maria waited on tenterhooks.
"But it may be difficult for Georg to escape Austria now, Maria."
Maria went white with realization and shock, finally understanding that Georg may well be trapped inside Austria.
John hastily sought to reassure her. "It may just take some time for him to get out. We know how resourceful and intelligent Georg is. He has a superb military mind, and he's an unsurpassed tactician. He proved that over and over again in the Great War. He will find a way."
Maria swallowed as she forced out another question that she could barely articulate. "What will they do to the people who have opposed them?"
He hesitated then said tactfully, "I don't know."
Maria cursed her stupidity. How could she have been so naïve to think in such simple terms: if the Chancellor declared war, Georg would have to fight and he would be in danger, but if the Chancellor surrendered Austria, Georg would be safe. What had she thought? That Georg could just pack his bags and hop on a train and then there would be a glorious reunion in England as they started the rest of their lives together? Yes, fool that she was, that was exactly what she had thought. She had somehow failed to take into account how inhumane and ruthless the Nazis had been in Germany for the last five years.
Sheer misery and fright made her feel as if she were looking into a dark abyss. What if he was arrested, or forced into service in their navy? What if they imprisoned him? What if he could never escape from Austria? Even if he evaded their clutches, he would be forever on the run as they hunted him down. He had made no secret of his opposition. Oh God, what would they do to him?
Knowing she was on the verge of breaking down, Maria got up in a daze. "I have to….." she trailed off as she left. She didn't see John shake his head at Elisabeth to let her go.
Maria found herself in the music room and blindly made her way to the piano, caught in emotions too intense to control. In her extreme agitation she wanted to run as fast as she could to outpace the ghastly pressure of panic in her chest. It was impossible of course. Instead she played a harsh chord, full of darkness and despair, then another, and again, repetitively. It sounded like a bludgeon. The sound was unbearable.
She saw a guitar in the corner of the music room and rushed over to it, seeking solace and calm in the familiar instrument. She held it in position and took some deep breaths trying to control herself enough to sing.
Maria strummed some chords and then unconsciously picked out a simple tune. She found herself singing the love-song for Austria that she had sung at the Festival. Her voice resonated with sadness, barely rising above a whisper.
"Edelweiss, edelweiss
Every morning you greet me
Small and white, clean and bright
You look happy to meet me"
Her mind was full of images of Austria: the heavenly sound of church bells echoing through the valleys and mountains; the delighted squeals of children listening to the glockenspiel in the clocktower in Salzburg, as the sounds of Mozart's Don Giovanni tinkled with a sweet cascade of notes, silver-clear in the afternoon air; the glory of the alps with their majestic jagged peaks permanently dusted with snow, timeless and enduring despite the follies of human beings.
"Bless my homeland forever."
The last notes drifted, lead-weighted and hopeless. In that moment the song seemed like a requiem for Austria. The jumbled incoherent thoughts and anguish were too overwhelming. She lay her head on the top of the guitar and wept.
ooooOOOOoooo
The next morning, she brought the children to the drawing room where they joined the adults. It was time to tell them about the Anschluss.
John spoke calmly. "Well children it looks like the annexation of Austria, which we all expected, has finally happened."
The younger children looked bewildered, not really understanding, while the older ones looked worried.
Maria gathered her composure, infusing her voice with as much soothing reassurance as possible. "It means, my darlings, that we will have to stay here for a while, maybe a long while. We can't go back now, but I hope one day we will be able to."
"What?" The children were shocked into silence, never imaging something like this could occur. They were stunned. It was if there had been a seismic shift and the ground under their feet had given way. Their secure, happy world had disappeared in an instant.
"What about Father?" Friedrich asked worriedly.
John sounded comforting and convincing. "He will join us in England as soon as he is able."
"Is he in danger?" Liesl picked up the thread of concern and the other children stirred anxiously.
Elisabeth said gently, "We are lucky that it was a peaceful transition, which means your father does not have to fight for Austria. There will not be a war, which was a definite possibility. He will come when he can."
She continued brightly, "In the meantime, Grandpappa and I are so pleased that you will start a new life with us here."
There was a sudden deluge of questions as the children absorbed their change in circumstances.
"When will Father come here?"
"Can you ask him to bring my chess set?"
"And my doll Emilia."
"What about our bicycles?"
"When can we go back?"
"Who will look after my pony?"
"Why can't we go back if we are very quiet about it?"
The adults answered the questions as best they could.
Max attempted to rally their spirits. "There's no need to be such gloomy kittens. While we wait for your father to come, why don't we learn a few songs to impress him. When he arrives we'll tell him you will be performing at Covent Garden! That would be a wonderful surprise for him," he joked. They all knew how much their father hated the thought of them performing in public. It elicited a few weak smiles from the children but the air of dejection persisted. Nevertheless, Maria was grateful for his presence and support.
ooooOOOOoooo
Two evenings later the adults listened to a delayed broadcast on the wireless, grim-faced, as Hitler arrived in Vienna and made a speech from the balcony of Hofburg palace. With incredulous disbelief they heard the crowd of over 200,000 people cheering madly. Every word was like a bitter blow. Hitler gloated that German troops had been rapturously welcomed by Austrians with flowers and hugs and boundless love. As an Austrian, Hitler proclaimed he was overjoyed as the country took its proper place in the Third Reich.
When he declared to tumultuous cheers: "Not as tyrants have we come, but as liberators!"** Maria couldn't bear it any longer and fled the room, too choked with grief and horror. What new fresh hell was this? Could this be really happening in the Austria she knew? Her mind refused to make sense of it.
Needing to be close to Georg she went to her favourite place by the cliffs. She deliberately put on the midnight-blue, velvet opera cape that Georg loved so much. A wisp of a memory tugged at her.
On their honeymoon, in a bed bathed in bright moonlight, Georg had whispered his love as he wrapped her in the soft folds of the midnight-blue cloak, as their heartbeats calmed and their skin cooled. She was unaware that the moonlight gave her skin the delicate translucence of a pearl, but she could see the adoration in Georg's eyes as he murmured, "I can't get enough of you my love. I'll never get enough of you."
The cloak flapped wildly around her near the cliff. What a difference a few days had made to the sea. A ferocious storm was brewing. Gone was the gentle wash of water lapping at the shore. In its place was a seething maelstrom of waves rising ferociously high to crash and boom with a roar on the rocks, sending explosive spray everywhere. It had all the drama and harrowing fury of a Wagnerian opera. Sullen angry clouds covered the moon, and a bitter wind howled viciously as if it intended to hurl Maria off the cliff. The violently churning water, black and desolate, looked terrifying. The waves hissed menacingly as they retreated from the shore only to return with renewed savagery to smash against the cliffs again and again in a relentless surge.
"Where are you my darling? Are you safe? I'm so scared for you." The wind snatched the words away as tears mingled with the salt spray.
Knowing how dangerous it was for her to get too close, Maria bowed her head and prayed some distance away, unaware of the bone-chilling cold. She lost track of the time and it was only when the first heavy splashes of raindrops fell that she was roused her from prayers. Max hurried up to her with a blanket and they made their way hastily back inside. Elisabeth was waiting there, as comforting as any mother, chafing Maria's hands to get the blood circulating again. She led her to a roaring fire and placed a cup of hot broth in her shivering hands.
Eventually warmth seeped back into her skin, but Maria's heart felt frozen. Almost in a trance she watched a burning log shift and settle, causing glowing embers to flit up the chimney in a fairy-like dance. It brought painfully bitter-sweet memories of Georg and herself lying next to a blazing fireplace on their honeymoon.
oooOOOOoooo
The days bled into weeks with no word of Georg. Every time John returned from London, Maria would look at him hopefully but he would shake his head gravely. She was kept busy though, distracting the children from their worries about their father with a forced cheerful optimism. She was also helping them come to terms with their new life and the start of school in a new country.
When they were asleep she always returned to the cliffs where she felt closer to Georg. Sleep itself was a blessing because he always came to her in bewitching dreams. It was only when she awoke each morning and left him behind, that she realized that it was the real world that was the nightmare.
A month after the Anschluss, John had some news, though it was scanty at best.
"Maria, I have an intelligence report about a strange incident just after the Anschluss. It makes me wonder…."
"Yes?" Her heart clenched.
"Does Georg know a General Towarek?"
"Rudolf Towarek? Yes, yes he does. They would speak quite often on the telephone. They first met at the opening Ball for the Festival. What about him?"
"It appears that despite Chancellor von Schuschnigg's order for Austrian troops to stand down and not resist, the General defied the orders, no doubt out of a sense of honour for Austria. The information is patchy, but it appears he refused to let the Wehremacht enter the Theresian Military Academy."
"Oh my goodness!" Maria gasped. "I am sure Georg must have been there with him. What happened? Oh God, did….?" She couldn't ask.
"From what we can tell at this point there was a siege but no shots were fired. The stand-off lasted several days."
"Then what happened?"
"We don't know Maria, I'm sorry. We are trying to find out. Georg might not have been there. It's hard getting information. Austria is as closed as a fortress now."
He didn't tell Maria about the trickle of refugees arriving from Austria that had turned into a steady stream then a flood; desperate people with nowhere to go, begging for the right to stay in England. Many brought horrifying stories of mass arrests, of new prison camps set up for the captured opponents of the Anschluss. Even ex-Chancellor von Schuschnigg seemed to have disappeared without a trace after his arrest. John felt there was no point in distressing Maria until more news could be found.
"I'm sorry Maria, the only thing we can do is wait. Have faith in Georg, my dear. His military prowess and strategic mind are exceptional. And pray."
ooooOOOOooo
AN: Sorry for a dark chapter. While writing parts of this I was immersed in sadness watching the people of Ukraine plunged into a hideous war.
*Chancellor Schuschnigg's resignation speech the night before the Anschluss.
** Hitler's Anschluss speech, Vienna 1938.
72,000 opponents of the Nazis were arrested within the first weeks of the Anschluss.
Thank you for reading and I would love to know your thoughts. xxx
PS. Thank you to the guest reviewer from ch. 29 who suggested that now that G and M are living in the nightmare, the lovely dreams will sustain them. I ran with that idea. Huge thanks x.