A/N: Did I shock you? Good, that was what I was aiming for. So here you are, I will not leave you hanging for long. Keep up with the wonderful reviews please!
A Time to Escape
Maria barely heard Zeller and the other soldiers after the sound of the gunshot had resonated in her ears. The most she would be able to remember were little snippets such as "You idiot!" and "Useless Gruber!" and "Get out of here!" before all three pairs of footsteps rushed out of the stone graveyard and out of the abbey forever.
Once the echoing footsteps had completely disappeared, Maria could hear the rasping, shallow, pained breaths of her brother on the other side of the graveyard, and she flew – almost literally, she ran so fast – to his side.
She dropped to her knees beside him and cradled his face in her hands. His eyes were open but unfocused, as if they couldn't really see anything. The hazel irises were glassed over with pain. He was as pale as a ghost, except for the little drops of blood on his jaw line from the bullet impact. In her peripheral vision, she could see the wound, but she didn't look at it for fear it was at his heart not his shoulder. "Oh, Dominik, look at me, please!"
His breathing was shallow and pained, and it seemed to take an eternity for his eyes to travel to and focus on her. "Ria…"
Hearing him say her name in so pained a voice tears spilled down her cheeks, Maria snapped into action. She immediately pressed her hands to the wound to put pressure on it. Dominik groaned in pain, but Maria gritted her teeth and said, "I have to, Dom, to stop the bleeding."
"Ria…" She could barely hear it now. "If this is…is the…"
"It is not, Dom!"
"Tell…tell Liesl I…"
"You can tell her yourself!" snapped Maria, furious and desperate as she had never been before. Making eye contact with her brother, she spoke in a clear whisper. "Dominik Francis Schaetzke, you listen to me: this is not the end. Repeat that now."
"This…is not…the end," Dominik managed to say before another wave of pain swept over him, causing him to grit his teeth in a hiss of pain, his eyes closing tightly.
Keeping the pressure on the wound, Maria bent down and pressed her tear-stained cheek to his pale one. "Don't give up, my dear one…"
When she heard the sound of running footsteps approaching, her head shot up in alarm, her hands keeping pressure on the wound in both defiance and protectiveness. But when she saw it was the Reverend Mother and Sister Berthe approaching her, she felt relief for at least a moment.
"Oh, no, my dears…" she heard the Reverend Mother murmur when she came within earshot. As she got down on her knees by Dominik, she issued instruction to Sister Berthe in her authoritative voice, "Sister, we must get them out of here. I need you to bring the caretaker's car around, but not before you get the Captain and Sister Margaretta here now."
Without a word, Sister Berthe disappeared to complete her tasks. Maria found immense comfort in the Reverend Mother's presence and command of the situation, so she did not hesitate when the Reverend Mother gently asked to see the wound. The twenty-two-year-old watched with baited breath as the older woman looked at the wound. "It's only in his shoulder, Maria," she said in that soothing voice Maria had not heard in so long. "As long as we treat it soon, he's going to be just fine."
"R-really?" asked Maria in a small voice, looking at the face of her brother, who looked like he was close to passing out. "It didn't get him in the…I wasn't sure, it –"
"He would be dead already if it hit his heart, my dear," said the Reverend Mother, who had taken over putting pressure on Dominik's wound with a towel she had brought.
"And…they're gone?"
"Gone," confirmed the Reverend Mother. "Watched them drive down the road and out of sight before we came to you."
Maria still felt too shaken to feel real relief for more than a moment, especially when she looked at her brother's face again. His breathing was still very pained and shallow, and his eyes were becoming unfocused again. As she reached out to touch his face, the Reverend Mother stopped her with a sharp "Maria!" Needless to say, Maria quickly pulled her hand back in shock, but gave the Reverend Mother a furious look, which was only met by her gentle, apologetic one. "Your hands, my daughter."
Confused, Maria looked down at her hands and felt nauseous again. After having put pressure on his wound, Maria's hands were covered in her brother's blood. She could feel her own blood drain from her face.
"The pump is just over there, Maria," said the Reverend Mother in that same gentle tone, and Maria got up and walked towards it like one dead, feeling as if every bone in her body was made of lead. She collapsed on her knees by the pump and quickly put her hands under the soon-flowing water. As she watched the blood wash away, she felt herself beginning to shake like a wet leaf in a storm.
And then she heard the voice of the person she needed most, calling her name desperately. "Maria! Maria!"
Turning her head and rising, she saw Georg running into the large graveyard towards her; his face reflected all of the terror she had felt a few minutes ago. She staggered the last few steps towards his running figure before he swept her up in the most powerful hug she'd ever experienced (and that was saying something, considering Philomena). But she returned it, feeling safe for the first time since they'd left the villa. It was amazing how much just his presence did for her, how safe and secure he could make her feel, even in the most dire of circumstances.
"You're all right? You're not hurt?" asked Georg, pulling back slightly so he could look at her face and caress it.
Maria nodded haltingly. "I'm fine, not hurt, but…" Her voice disappeared as she looked over Georg's shoulder at her brother, still lying on the stone floor. Georg understood, and wrapped an arm around her so she could lean on him as he led them back to Dominik and the Reverend Mother.
Both knelt on the opposite side of the Reverend Mother, who lifted the towel away so Georg could see the wound. After a few moments, he sighed in relief, "Thank goodness it's not more serious. As long as the bullet is removed and the wound treated and bandaged, he'll be sore for about a month but after that he should be just fine."
"That's what I thought, too," said the Reverend Mother, who looked conflicted. "But your train leaves in twenty minutes, you two will have to hurry –"
"We are not leaving Dominik behind!"
The Reverend Mother and Georg looked at Maria in complete shock, for there was a fierceness in her voice and on her face neither had ever seen before. She had spoken so loudly that every syllable echoed in the graveyard sounded like a command from the Almighty himself. Even a person who was both deaf and blind would know she had never been more serious or decided.
Dominik's hand reached up and touched her face. "Ria…it's all right…"
Her eyes filled with tears but the fierceness remained as she leaned down to kiss his forehead and wipe the drops of blood off his jaw line. "I'm not leaving here without you, end of story."
"Maria," said Georg, reaching out and touching her shoulder. Her head snapped around to face him, that fierceness so strong not even a fool would argue with her. Though it pained Georg to have her look at him like that – it reminded him of the rowboat incident day – he kept his voice firm and gentle, just like his gaze. "I have no intention of leaving him behind."
Slowly, Maria's fierceness melted away as Sister Margaretta made her appearance – Maria hadn't noticed until now that she had not come with Georg – carrying, of all things, a bottle of wine. At the same time, they heard and saw a car come round and stop by the stairs leading down to the alleyway by the abbey. At Georg's alert look, Maria said, "It's just Sister Berthe, bringing the caretaker's car around for us to go to the train station."
Georg nodded and said, "Good. We'd never make the train on foot, even though it is only two blocks away."
"I've brought the wine, Captain," said Sister Margaretta, looking at Dominik worriedly. "But I'm not sure what you need it for."
"Thank you, sister," said Georg, stripping off his jacket and taking the bottle. But he paused for a moment. "This isn't the Blood of Christ, right?"
Somehow, everyone except Maria managed to chuckle, even Dominik. Sister Margaretta shook her head.
"Well, that would do wonders, I don't doubt but…" He leaned down slightly to speak to Dominik, whose breathing had somewhat even but his face was still grimacing in pain; he held Maria's hand tightly as the Reverend Mother kept the pressure on his wound. "Dominik, if Maria and I support you, will you be able to walk when we get to the train station?"
Dominik nodded. "Yes."
"Good," said Georg, opening the bottle. "Now, take some good swigs of this."
"What…" Dominik looked confused first, and then comprehended with a slight smile through is pain. "Ah…good plan…" The younger man reached for the bottle and did what Georg said – he nearly drank the whole bottle. Maria was still at a bit of a loss, assuming that it might dull his pain, but she trusted Georg unconditionally.
"Very good," said Georg, taking the bottle away. "Now let's get you up and get this jacket on you to disguise the wound before we put you in the car."
The next few minutes were spent doing just that, and soon Dominik was in the back seat of the car, trying not to give into the urge to pass out. As Georg got in the driver's seat, he asked, "What about the car?"
"Oh, don't worry about it, just leave it at the station," said the Reverend Mother. He took the hands of all three nuns, one at a time. He ended with the Reverend Mother, looking at her meaningfully. "Thank you, not just for tonight, but for bringing her to me in the first place. I can never be grateful enough."
The Reverend Mother smiled. "I know you have been taking care of her, and will continue to do so." She made the sign of the cross over him. "God be with you."
Georg smiled at the wise woman, and waited for Maria to finish her good-byes.
First she hugged Sister Berthe. "Most likely not the way you imagined me leaving, huh?" And Maria was not only talking about this night.
Sister Berthe chuckled and looked at her. "No, but do not judge me too harshly. I found myself rather missing the noise you made here after about a week."
Maria laughed, and then hugged Sister Margaretta. "I will miss you all so much," she murmured.
"And we miss you, my black sheep," said Sister Margaretta fondly. "Be happy and remember us."
"You know I will," said Maria, kissing her cheek.
When she came to the Reverend Mother, Maria felt more tears fill her eyes and guilt fill her heart. They had remained in sporadic touch at best after Maria had been married, for at that time Maria had felt betrayed. But now she recalled the Reverend Mother's words about Georg's proposal:
"My daughter, I know how much you have gone through in the past weeks, and the blame falls on me for sending you to the Von Trapp family in the first place. But I believe I was right in saying it was God's will that you went…and I can't help but believe that now, it is God's will that you go back and become a part of that family."
And she realized that she would never see her mother figure again in life. "I'm sorry, Reverend Mother, for –"
But the Reverend Mother held up her hand to stop Maria's words. "You have nothing to apologize for. Your life was never meant to be here, and now you have found the life you were born to live. You have found your family and, by what I saw when your husband came in here -"
"And from what I witnessed in the garden," teased Sister Margaretta, making Maria blush.
The Reverend Mother smiled and cupped Maria's cheek as she continued. "- A love that is both right and holy. Now go, my daughter, and live your dream with all of the love you can give. You will never be alone. Remember, I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help."
Hearing the words of her favorite psalm filled Maria with new hope and love. "Yes, Mother," she breathed, and the two women embraced, all between them mended and strong.
One last look, and Maria got into the back of the car to help Dominik. Georg started the car and it drove away from the abbey, and Maria watched the three figures and the abbey until they had disappeared.
Thanks to the short distance and Georg's fast driving, the three arrived at the train station in about two minutes. Georg parked the car and quickly got out to help Dominik out of the car. Soon the nearly unconscious Dominik had arms around both Georg's and Maria's shoulders. "How are you holding up, Dominik?" asked Georg.
"I think the wine is getting to me," said Dominik in a slightly slurred voice, from both pain and alcohol.
Georg managed to laugh. "Well, I can certainly smell it, which makes it all the better."
Maria checked to make sure the coat was buttoned all the way and the three headed into the station. Thankfully, their rather awkward pairing caused the few people who were in the train station at that early hour before dawn to stay out of their way.
When they came to their platform and the door of their train compartment, the young conductor-guard standing outside looked at them strangely rather than suspiciously. "Um, tickets please?"
"Right here, sir," said Georg, giving him the tickets and travel papers.
Out of nowhere, Dominik started to sing with a slur and off-key. "Gurlzzz in white dressssesssssss with bluuuuuue sssssatin ssssssasssshhhheeeeesss…"
"Is he all right?" asked the young guard, looking at Dominik, disturbed.
"Faaaaarrrrr awaaaayyyy froma da colllllld niiiiight aaaiiirrr…"
"Had a little too much fun with his friends in the pub tonight," said Maria, who had caught onto the scheme. And was having quite a challenge not to laugh at her brother's wonderful performance.
Dominik leaned forward and sang right in the guard's face. "Aaaaaaww, isssssa jolly holyday with youuuuuu Bert!"
The guard leaned back and covered his nose. "Oh, yes, I can smell that. Well, your papers appear in order, so all aboard."
"Thank you, and I do apologize for my brother," said Maria, glad their plan had worked.
"Come, let's get you sobered up, young man," said Georg, whose eyes revealed how funny he thought his brother-in-law was.
Just before the door of the train closed, Dominik sang over his good shoulder at the guard: "June is BUSTIN' out oooooooovvvvveeeeerrrrr!"
Five minutes later, the train was out of the station and the three had locked themselves in their private train compartment with a first-aid kit. Dominik lay across the comfortable seats, while Maria sat on the floor by his head, caressing his hair and holding his hand. Georg sat beside her and worked on Dominik, removing the bullet, cleaning and bandaging the wound. Dominik was a very good patient: he held Maria's hand and the alcohol in his system made the pain a bit easier to deal with. By the time Georg finished, he was passed out from everything in a healing sleep.
When Georg had finished, the sky outside was alight with the rising sun, though they could not see it. He looked at his wife, who looked shaken and exhausted. He took her hand and said, "My cousin's neighbor is a doctor. I'll ask him to look at Dominik once we get there. Your brother is very lucky; he's going to be all right."
Maria nodded dumbly, and had to lift herself onto the couch on the opposite side of the compartment. Knowing that the worst danger had passed, the reality of all that could have happened, all she could have lost tonight, and all she was leaving behind, crashed down around her.
Georg could read her like an open book, and sat close beside her and rubbed her back as her breathing became hyperventilating. He instructed her to put her head between her knees. "Breathe, darling, breathe. It's over now…"
When her breathing had calmed and come back to some semblance of normal, Maria turned towards her husband, gripped his shirt and buried her face in his neck. Georg immediately scooped her up and held her in his lap tightly for the rest of their journey.
Only when the passing conductor passed by, announcing they had crossed the border into Switzerland, did Maria finally allow herself to truly smile as Georg kissed her hair.
Finally, they were safe.
A/N: Only about one more chapter and an epilogue left for this story. Happy how this chapter turned out? Me too. It was heartbreaking to kill him once – just couldn't do it again. I live for reviews!
