Chapter 11: A Restless Night.
Georg awoke with a start. It took him a moment or so to gain his bearings. He lay spooned against Maria's back in the tiny cramped bed in the attic-loft. Her naked body felt warm against his, giving him a sense of comfort as he held her close with his arm wrapped tightly around her waist. She'd fallen asleep almost immediately after they'd made love only a few hours before, and exhausted, Georg had lapsed into a deep sleep shortly afterward.
But something had just woken him from that deep sleep. Confused and feeling groggy, Georg tried to sit up as he heard the sound again. It was a soft but insistent knock on the door of the room. Moving as carefully as he could so he wouldn't wake Maria, Georg uncurled himself from her body and got out of bed. Glancing around the room, he quickly located his trousers and pulled them on. As he was reaching for his shirt he heard a faint voice calling urgently from the other side of the door.
"Mother? Father? Are you awake? It's urgent!" It was Liesl.
Immediately concerned that something was wrong with the children, Georg forgot all about grabbing his shirt and answered the door straight away.
"Liesl? Is everything alright?" he asked at once, blinking several times as the bright light from the hallway hit his eyes.
Liesl stood wide-eyed and open-mouthed as she took in her father's unkempt appearance. Bleary eyed, tussled hair, no shirt, and trousers hanging lose on his hips. She quickly cast her eyes down to her feet and bit on her lip, feeling awkward and embarrassed to have woken him. She'd practically forgotten, with everything that had happened over the past few days, that her father was a newlywed and it was fairly obvious from his dishevelled appearance that he had, most likely, been making love to Maria. Liesl wasn't a child anymore and she knew how things worked between married couples, and of course she knew how babies were made. But it did make her feel uncomfortable imagining what her father and her new mother were getting up to behind closed doors.
"Liesl?" Georg repeated insistently when Liesl hadn't answered him.
"Oh, well I… I…" Liesl stammered. "I mean I'm sorry Father to disturb you and Mother, especially when…" Liesl stopped, her face flushed with embarrassment. Georg rolled his eyes and ignoring the implication of Liesl's words he impatiently asked again. "Is everything alright?"
"No, it isn't. I'm sorry Father, but it's Marta."
"Marta? What's the matter?"
"She's sick. She's running a fever and she can't stop coughing. I've tried my best to get the fever down but nothing's working. She's asking for Mother. Is she awake?"
Georg glanced back behind him into the small room to see Maria continuing to sleep peacefully, despite the disturbance. "No she's not. She's exhausted. I don't want to wake her unless it is completely necessary," he told Liesl quietly. "Give me a moment to get dressed and I'll come and see how Marta is."
Liesl nodded as Georg closed the door behind him to get dressed. At the sound of the door clicking closed, Maria stirred and opened her eyes to see Georg slipping his arms into his shirtsleeves. She rolled over and sat up slightly. "Georg?" She squinted as she tried to rouse herself from sleep.
"Sorry my love I didn't mean to wake you," he said as moved over to the bed and placed a light kiss on her forehead. "But Liesl just woke me. Apparently Marta isn't well. I'm going to go and see how she is. You might want to get dressed," he commented as he scanned his eyes over Maria's naked form, "just in case I need to bring her back here." Maria nodded as she tried to stifle a yawn. Georg finished buttoning up his shirt, then passed Maria her clothes before quickly slipping out of the room.
Liesl waited patiently outside the door for only a minute or two before her father emerged in a much more attired state than when he'd answered the door a few moments before. Georg followed Liesl down the rickety staircase down to the large room all the seven children were sharing together. As they entered, he was surprised to find all the other children wide awake, save for Kurt who was still fast sleep on his makeshift bed on the floor snoring loudly. Friedrich, Louisa, Brigitta and Gretl sat on one bed while Georg could see the small body of Marta curled up in the other.
At once Georg understood exactly why Liesl had come to get him in the middle of the night. Marta looked weak, feverish and every few moments her body would explode into a bout of coughing. He went and sat on the side of the bed and felt her forehead with the back of his hand. She was burning up.
Marta's eyes flickered open at his touch. "Father?" She tried to focus on him in her delirium. "Where's Mother? I want her," the little girl whimpered.
Georg stroked her hair off her face. "It's alright, I'll take you to her," he said before glancing up at the other children who were looking on anxiously. "I'll take Marta up to my room and your mother and I will take care of her. But," he peered down at his watch, "it's almost 3am, time to go back to sleep. No arguments," he said firmly. The children nodded in acknowledgment as Georg picked Marta up in his arms and they dutifully went back to their beds.
When Georg opened the door to the tiny room he was sharing with Maria, he found Maria, now dressed, sitting up on the edge of the bed waiting for him. As soon as she saw Marta's limp form in Georg arms, she sprung up and hurried over to them. "Marta?" she whispered to the little girl. Marta started to open her eyes as another bout of coughing hit her. Quickly Georg lay Marta down on the small bed and Maria sat down next to her looking worried.
"She has a fever," Georg stated as Maria placed her own hand on Marta's head in confirmation.
"Oh Georg, she's so hot!" Maria exclaimed. "Can you get the washcloth for me please?" Georg nodded and fetched one from the basin. As Maria placed the cool rag on Marta's head, the little girl gave an involuntary shudder. "I'm hoping this will bring down her fever," Maria explained.
"Good idea," he replied. Georg ran his hands through his hair as he thought. "All those nights sleeping in the cold out in the mountains, I should have thought… Poor little dear, no wonder she's sick. I just hope none of the other children come down with this illness as well."
"I know," Maria replied with concern, as she shifted so that she was holding Marta upright as she began coughing again. "All we can do tonight is try and keep her fever down and see the doctor in the morning. At least we know the town has a doctor," she said remembering the doctor who was called when Georg and the other men brought Hans down from the mountain injured.
"I have a feeling we're not going to get much more sleep tonight," Georg said, slumping down onto the single chair in the corner of the room. Maria gave him a sympathetic smile as she tenderly stroked the little girl's hair with her hand.
For the next few hours they took turns changing the washcloth on Marta's head every ten minutes or so trying to keep her fever down. Eventually all three fell asleep: Maria on the bed with Marta's head in her lap and Georg sitting on the chair on the other side of the room. As the morning sunlight poured in the tiny window, Georg awoke and slowly stretched his arms up above his head, feeling sore and stiff after the restless and uncomfortable sleep he'd gotten sitting in the chair. He stood up and the sudden movement in the room caused Maria also to stir from her sleep.
"How is she?" Georg asked.
Maria put her hand on Marta's forehead gently trying not to wake her. "Well, it seems the fever has broken, but I still don't think she'd very well."
Georg nodded in agreement and as he stretched again, he went to look out of the small window. From the height of the attic room, he had a very good view of the township below. The market place from the previous day was now gone and the streets were beginning to come alive with the morning hustle and bustle of the village. People, horse-drawn carts and the occasional motorcar went up and down the streets as the sun rose higher in the sky.
Georg was just about to turn away from the window when something caught his eye. Coming into the village from the road leading out of town back up to the mountain were four men dressed in the distinctive uniform of officers of the Third Reich. Georg froze immediately.
"Soldiers!" he exclaimed.
"What?" asked Maria, quickly laying Marta's head on the bed before getting up off the bed herself to go to join Georg at the window. She took a moment to look out and saw the men stop in the middle of the street for a discussion before separating into two groups of two men, who then walked in opposite directions. One group walked directly towards the inn where they were staying.
"We must leave. Now!" Georg announced. "Quickly, go down to the children and get them ready to go," he instructed Maria. "I'll collect our things and Marta and meet you down in the children's room."
Maria immediately slid on her shoes and picked up her travel cloak and satchel, then carefully opened the door and slipped out of the room. Georg took only a few moments to put on his own boots, jacket and hat, not bothering with his tie at all only placing the thin bit of material inside his trousers pocket. After a quick scan of the room to make sure they hadn't left anything behind, Georg picked up Marta and made his way also to the children's room.
Despite seeing the soldiers approach the inn from the window, Georg was surprised to see or hear no evidence of their presence as he made his way quietly through the inn. But he knew they had to hurry to leave the inn because it wouldn't be too long before the men would be searching the building for them. When he got to the children's room, he found it in the throes of chaos as Maria had obviously just woken the children. They were sleepy, confused and asking a ton of questions. Maria, calmly and as quickly as she could, was helping to dress the younger children and instruct the older ones with what to do. Georg put Marta down on the nearest bed.
"Maria, I'm going to go and see what's going on," Georg told her.
"Georg, no!" Maria protested. "What if they see you and capture you?"
"Well if we stay here in this room, they'll find us eventually anyway. At least this way, I may be able to come up with some sort of plan for escape if I know what they're up to."
Maria opened her mouth to protest again, but then realised he was right. She gave him a quick nod before turning her attention back to the children as he left the room.
Georg quietly stole down the corridor to the top of the stairs. He could hear muffled voices but no footsteps, so for the present it didn't appear that anyone was coming up the stairs looking for them. He waited a moment before he heard the distant sound of a door closing then soft footsteps coming up the stairs. He stepped back into the shadows but from his vantage point, he could see directly down the stairwell. He saw almost immediately that the person coming up the stairs was Johanna.
Thankful that it wasn't the soldiers, Georg breathed a sigh of relief as he stepped out of the shadows. Johanna saw him at once. "Georg! There you are! You must hurry, there were soldiers just here…"
"I know, I saw!" he replied in panic.
"They were asking about you and your family. They had your exact descriptions but I told them that you'd enquired about a room, but the inn was full so you'd moved on. I don't think they believed me but they left anyway to search the rest of the town."
"And so they'll probably be back any moment when they can't find us," Georg concluded. "Everyone is waiting in the room the children were sharing. Do you have a back door that we can leave by?"
"Yes we do, but I'm afraid that'll do you no good. The town is small and if they do a search, they'll find you."
"Yes, I suspected that would be the case," Georg replied, rubbing his chin with worry as he thought. "Is there anyway to quickly get out of town? I was hoping for a bus or something."
She shook her head. "There aren't any buses from our town, but there is one from the next town which is around 5 miles away. It leaves at noon twice a week, on a Tuesday or on a Friday, and travels as far as Zurich."
Georg mentally calculated what day of the week it was. The festival was Friday night and they'd spent that night plus two more nights in the mountains followed by the night in the village, which meant it was Tuesday that day. "If we can get there, I think that's our best option," he told her.
Johanna looked down at the ground for a moment as she thought. "I'm not sure whether this will work, but we have a car. My husband could drive you to the next town, but I don't think it'll fit all nine of you. But we have a couple of horses in the paddock out the back, you could borrow them as well if you like. It'll still be difficult getting past the soldiers but I think that's the only option."
"I agree," Georg said. "One of my daughters is quite ill. If my wife can take her and the other girls in the car with your husband, then I can ride with the boys to the next town."
"That's a good plan, sir," Johanna agreed. "Now we must hurry and get you all out of here before that soldiers come back. I can get you out to our barn where you can hide until the soldiers leave, then you'll be safe to leave town."
Georg and Johanna quickly returned to the large room where the rest of the family was waiting. Thankfully Maria has gotten everyone dressed and ready to go. She was pacing the room impatiently when they opened the door. Georg rapidly told them the plan. Without hesitation, they all left the room and hurried as quickly and as quietly as they could down the stairs and to the back door.
Johanna slowly opened the back door and peered out. The field behind the inn was deserted. She silently ushered Maria and the children out the door and motioned for them to go cross the field and into the barn on the other side of the paddock. They went in groups of two or three. Firstly Liesl and Kurt, then Friedrich, Louisa and Brigitta, followed by Maria and Gretl. Finally Georg carried a very weak Marta into the barn. They waited only a few moments before Johanna's husband, Erik, joined them.
"Johanna has remained at the inn to keep a lookout for the soldiers," he explained. "They are still searching the town. Until they go, I suggest you all find a place to hide in case they come in here searching for you."
Georg looked around and saw a ladder leading up to the loft of the barn. Wordlessly, he motioned for the family to go up. The older children went first, followed by Maria who helped Gretl climb the long ladder. Lastly Georg managed to somehow scrabble up the ladder while still carrying Marta. In the loft, they found many hay bales to hide behind. As the children all crouched down, Georg put his finger to his lips, informing them to keep quiet.
But without warning, Marta began to cough. Maria looked up in alarm and left Gretl to take Marta out of Georg's arms. She sat the little girl more upright and somehow managed to muffle her coughs so that she wouldn't be heard down below. Thankfully, a moment later Marta stopped coughing, before just then, Maria heard the barn door open and the sound of footsteps coming inside.
"Heil Hitler!" a gruff and severe voice proclaimed to Erik who had remained down below in the main part of the barn. "We are searching for a man travelling with a young wife and seven children. Have you seen them?"
"No, I haven't," Maria heard Erik reply. "I've been out here in the barn and the paddocks since dawn. I haven't seen anybody."
"Hmm…" the soldier replied, sounding unconvinced. "Mind if I take a look around?" he asked. Maria felt her blood run cold with the fear that they might be discovered.
"Of course," Maria heard Erik reply somewhat nervously. She flicked her eyes in Georg's direction in panic. He locked his gaze with hers and gave her a faint nod of reassurance, before waving his hands to motion everyone to crouch down as low as they could behind the hay bales. Maria held her breath and prayed that Marta wouldn't be struck with another bout of coughing as she listened to the soldier wandering around down the bottom of the barn.
"What's up there?" she heard the soldier enquire, presumably asking about the loft where they were all hiding.
"Nothing," replied Erik nonchalantly. "Just hay for the horses."
The soldier replied with something that Maria couldn't make out before she heard the distinct sound of footsteps climbing the wooden ladder. Maria's heart thumped wildly in her chest as she crouched low, holding Marta to her. She waited for what seemed like an age before she heard the sound of those same footsteps climbing back down the ladder.
"Nothing up there except hay," the soldier remarked. "Alright, I'm going to continue searching the rest of the town. Now sir, if you do see this man and his family, please inform me, or one of my fellow officers, straight way. This man is a coward and a traitor." Maria saw Georg flinch at the soldier's words. "He must be captured as soon as possible to stand trial in front of officers from the Order of the Third Reich. Heil Hitler!"
Maria let out the breath she'd been holding as she heard the door to the barn close. They waited for several more minutes before they heard Erik climbing the ladder. He cleared his throat. "The soldier has gone."
Georg rose from his hiding spot behind the hay bale. "I watched the solider from the barn's window," Erik told Georg. "He met up with his fellow officers and they've begun leaving town. I think it's now safe to try and get you all to the next town. Come down now and follow me, the car is just outside the barn and I'll quickly saddle the horses."
A/N: A big thank you to those who have favoured and followed this story. It means so much to me and I hope you're still enjoying the story! Also, thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed, it really is very encouraging to me. Please, it would be wonderful if everyone continue this encouragement by dropping me a few words letting me know what you think of the story.
Usual disclaimers, etc.