Welcome to chapter 3!
8 months after Liesl's graduation the atmosphere in Austria was dark. Just last week the Anschluss had happened and there were Nazi's patrolling Salzburg at all times. It was a ghost town.
Georg had forbidden anyone (even the staff) from leaving the house and tensions were running high. Most of the time he was holed up in his office waiting for the inevitable telegram. He had told Maria early on in their marriage that if the Nazi party did gain power over Austria, they would more than likely try to recruit him for their navy. He had made it clear that under no circumstances would he accept. Maria wasn't sure what that would mean for the family but she trusted Georg 100%.
"Darling, dinner is ready..." Maria knocked on the study door loudly. She hadn't seen her husband all day and she was worried about what she would find behind the door. When he didn't respond she knocked once more before pushing the door open.
When she saw her husband, she almost wished she hadn't.
"Oh, darling!" she gasped. Georg's eyes were dark, and his frame was rigid. He held his head in his hands and stared unseeing at the floor.
Maria immediately rushed to his side placing her arms around his shoulders and kissed his cheek.
"It happened, didn't it!" Maria stated, already knowing she was right.
Georg held out the telegram and relayed the contents "they want me to report to Bremerhaven within 48 hours, it isn't a request, it's an order."
Maria felt icy tendrils curl around her spine. Just the thought of losing Georg to war was enough to make her shut down. There had to be a way out of this.
"What can we do, Georg?"
"I don't know but I'm sure as hell going to figure it out" he said determinedly, staring at Maria who had made her way to the other side of the desk.
"We, darling!" Maria said reaching for his hand, "I'll have Frau Schmidt join the children for dinner and we can discuss our next move, hmm?"
oOo
Just over 5 hours later, Georg and Maria were still in the study.
"So, this is it! Our last night in the villa" Maria said wistfully, she truly did think of this place at home. In all of its grandeur it was the complete opposite to the home she had grown up in but the villa was the place she had finally found her life and it would always have a special place in her heart.
"Yes" Georg said stoically, not allowing any emotion to cloud his mind at this moment. If their plan was going to succeed, then he would need to stay cold and calculating. He wouldn't risk putting his family in danger for the momentary ease of feeling sad.
"Remind me, Georg, step by step. How are we doing this?" Maria said, feeling a heavy weight low in her stomach.
"We will go to America and visit New York; you have always wanted to see a Broadway show and it will be my anniversary gift to you – nobody will question it. The children will stay with Ottillie and Josef and then they will join us for the second week. We will go from New York to Maryland, earlier I called an old colleague who had offered me a job at the naval university there a while ago and I accepted. Our way of living won't have to change, just where we live will." he repeated the perfectly rehearsed plan to Maria for what must have been the thirteenth time.
"Okay" Maria barely squeaked, ripping at the skin around her nail beds. She was starting to lose her control. She knew that this plan was risky and separating from the children just made her feel worse.
As if reading her mind, Georg promised, "Darling, everything will be fine. I wouldn't put you or the children in danger. We just have to make sure that nobody suspects what we're doing."
"But, darling, I'm terrified that I make a wrong move and...and..." Maria was getting hysterical; the stakes were too high. Tears were running down her pale cheeks, her hands shook, and her palms were sweaty.
"Darling, there isn't anything to mess up. Believe me! Come here." He held out his arms, kissing her head when she flew into them as if she were a magnet and he made entirely or iron clippings.
"Let's get some sleep, hmm? We need to pack in the morning and tell the children."
oOo
"What! Why would we leave Austria?" Kurt asked, shocked. They had just finished breakfast and not even his full stomach could outweigh his sadness.
"But Mother we don't want to leave, what about my doll's house" Gretl asked, he bottom lip jutting out.
"Your father had been offered a job in America and there are bad men after him here in Austria. It will be an adventure my darlings and we will all be together."
"No, we won't! You said it yourself! We're staying with Baron Hauser." Brigitta commented from her space on the floor where she was packing an overnight bag.
"Well...yes, but we will all end up together and we will be safe, that is the main thing." Maria said, trying to convey the positives of this situation, though she was struggling to see them herself.
Immediately all the children began arguing with her. She couldn't blame them, she didn't want to leave either, but she would rather lose a house than a husband. Just as she was preparing to settle them a booming voice came from the doorway/
"You children will obey your mother at once!" the children's head snapped up in the direction of their father's authoritative voice.
"We must leave to protect you. You will stay with Ottie and Josef for a week and then you will meet us in New York before we move to our new home. I know this is hard for you all, but it is much better than the alternative" he finished firmly, putting his finger up in warning when Brigitta opened her mouth to ask a question. Probably to ask what the alternative was.
With a quick nod, he stalked out of the room and back to his study.
"You heard your father, my loves. Let's pack so you can get to the Hauser's" Maria said fixing them all with a loving gaze.
oOo
"Thank you so much for doing this, Ottie" Maria said, hugging her best friend tightly. The whole family had just driven to the Hauser's estate, bags packed and ready to go. All the children had stayed here before and they were good friends with the Hauser children. It wasn't like they were being left with strangers.
"There's no thanks necessary, Ria! The children will be safe here until we see you again next week" Ottie said into the younger woman's ear before pulling away and resting a hand on Gretl's shoulder.
Maria nodded before turning back to Georg, wrapping her slender arm around his waist, and snuggling into his side. She felt extremely sad to be leaving the children, it felt like the end of an era. After tonight she could possibly never see her homeland again. She shook her head to rid herself of that thought.
"Children, we will see you soon. Behave for Baroness Hauser, I don't want any reports of pinecones on chairs or frogs in pockets!" Georg said with a teasing smile on his face, hugging each of the children individually. When none of them responded to his joke he looked pleadingly to Maria, this wasn't how he wanted to leave his children, sullen and angry.
Maria took Georg's hint and rushed over to the children gathering them all in a group hug.
"Oh! We will miss you, darlings!" she said, ruffling Friedrich's hair and pinching Louisa's cheek so that all the children were soon giggling. They didn't seem to be too mad at her and so they all hugged her back fervently, telling her how much they would miss her. She felt bad for Georg, but she knew that one day, when they were old enough, the children would be grateful that their father had protected them so.
"You're crying!" Brigitta's wise voice pierced through the hustle and bustle of her siblings.
Maria, shocked, brought her hand to her cheek and was mortified when she felt the salty wetness of tears on her fingertips. She instantly swiped them away and pulled Brigitta into a bear hug, inhaling the girls scent. She really was far too observant.
"I'm just going to miss you so much, darling!" she said, not quite sure why she was getting so emotional. She would see the children in a week's time. Although, she was due her monthly cycle so she supposed that could account for all the emotion.
"It's only a week mother!" Louisa piped up from the huddle of von Trapps, laughing at the absurdity of Maria's actions.
"Exactly right, sweetheart!" she said with a sniff, "Now me and your father must go, or we shall miss our train" Maria said standing up straight and brushing some imaginary lint of her travel suit. She grabbed Georg's hand said her thanks again to Ottie and they quickly made their way back to the car. If they looked back, they would surely never leave.
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