Chapter Six
Stowe, Vermont
July 1960
Even the warmth of Julia's arms and the heat filling the room with the strong July sun could make Maria stop shaking. Try as she might Julia couldn't get her mother to calm down, to take a deep breath, or even speak to her. "It's going to be okay, Mama," Julia said over and over again. She slid out of the tight crawl space and ran to the linen closet. She got two warm blankets and hurried to wrap Maria in them.
By that time, Julia discerned her mother was having some kind of medical emergency, and she knew she didn't have the knowledge or skill to handle that. Julia rushed to the phone and dialed the sheriff.
"Deputy Stewart," came the comforting reply. Anyone that could help now would be a blessing.
"I need some help," Julia said in a rush, not realizing she was sobbing. "There's something wrong with my Mother. She's really cold and can't catch her breath. There was someone here, I don't know if they hurt her."
Julia gave the deputy the information then hung up the phone. Her next call was to Marta. "I need Curtis!" Julia told her sister in a rush. "Something happened to Mama, I need Curtis. You have to send him up here. I don't know what's wrong. I don't know where Papa is…I'm scared."
Marta's husband, the much disliked, at least by Georg for his strict and overly direct manner, was one of two doctors in the area that still made house calls. If anyone could help right now it would be him.
"He's in his office," Marta soothed. "I'll have him come up to the house. I'll come with him. Go back and stay by Mama, don't leave her side until we get there. It'll be soon."
The reassurance from her older sister helped Julia to calm down. She was torn between calling her other siblings and trying to find her father or going and holding onto Maria like Marta said. Marta's directions won out, the police could always find Georg once they arrived.
Julia slid back over to Maria. She had stopped hyperventilating but was still shaking. "Mama, what happened? Did that man hurt you?"
No answer. "If he did, I know Papa will deal with him and if he tries to bother you again, he'll have to come through me."
Julia was the perfect combination of Maria and Georg. She had all of Georg's strength with just enough of Maria's fire. Julia wasn't proud of her initial panic, but now that Maria was at least still conscious, she could get it together.
Marta and Curtis arrived just as the deputies did. The quiet farmhouse was soon sporting four deputies, Marta, and Curtis. One of the deputies was talking with Julia while two others were trying to get Maria to come out of the alcove and tell them what happened.
"Let me try," Curtis offered. "She knows me better. One of you, or all of you, should be out looking for the Captain."
"Maria," Curtis kept his voice gentle and even. "How are you feeling? Does something hurt? Can I take a look?"
When Curtis went to remove the blankets, Maria's eyes flashed. "No! Don't touch me! Don't you dare touch me!"
Curtis rocked back on his heels and held his hands out so Maria could see them. "Okay, I won't touch you, that's okay."
All the while this mayhem was going on, Georg was playing with his grandsons in the park near their home a couple towns over. He loved being outside with them, watching them run, helping them learn about their environment.
The last thing he expected was to see Louisa with baby Margaret in her buggy waving at him to come closer. "Robert, watch your brothers," Georg told the oldest boy as he went to meet Louisa.
"Father," Louisa's voice was tight. "Marta called, something happened to Mother. Curtis, Marta, and the Sheriff are at the farmhouse. Julia said that someone came by the house and after that Mother just shut down…"
Louisa was still talking as Georg started running as fast as he was able back to his car. Not again was all he could think. Not again.
The short drive from Morrisville to Stowe seemed to take forever. Georg's heart was pounding in his chest. It felt tight, like no matter how deep he tried to breathe he couldn't. He had to get to Maria, he would not be able to handle it if anything happened to his Maria.
By the time Georg arrived, Marta and Julia had coaxed Maria from the alcove, the deputies having determined whatever had happened was under control by the family and had left.
Georg pushed the back door open and bolted inside. "Maria! Maria!"
"Captain," Curtis greeted him. "She's lying down now in the bedroom. Marta is in there with her and Jul…"
"Papa!" Julia ran from the sofa and launched herself into Georg's arms. "Papa, it was awful. I didn't know what to do."
Georg inhaled and rocked Julia side to side, "You called for help, you did the right thing. It's okay, you're okay, Papa's here."
Georg gave Julia a kiss on the forehead, "Curtis, can you please…"
Curtis nodded and took Julia into his own embrace. Marta, having heard her sister speaking to Georg, stepped out of the bedroom. "She's asking for you. Curt gave her a little something to help her calm down. I've never seen her like this."
Georg nodded and gently patted Marta's cheek. "Take care of your sister for me?" he asked softly. "And maybe make your mother some chamomile."
Marta went to brew the tea and talk to Julia, the poor girl was shaken, but Marta was proud of how she handled herself. She wasn't sure she could have kept herself together in the same circumstances at Julia's age.
Georg bit his lip as he entered the bedroom. Maria was still wrapped in blankets even though it was warm in the house. She was lying on her side, facing the wall. Georg sat down on the edge of the bed and gently touched Maria's shoulder. "Maria? I'm here, my love."
Maria turned over and looked at her husband. Her eyes were red and swollen and her color was pale as a sheet. "I…" she began softly but backed off. There was no excuse for how she had behaved.
"What happened, Darling?" Georg asked gently. "Come here, come here my love."
Georg pulled Maria close and held her tight. "I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere, okay? Did something happen? What happened?"
How did she vocalize this to her husband without sounding like a complete lunatic? It was bad enough she'd behaved as she did in front of her daughter, and over something that truly couldn't have happened. She didn't trust her voice, but Georg was shaking almost as much as she was in his distress. "I…" Maria licked her lips. "It was…the smell. I smelled that odor and…He was here, on our porch, only it wasn't. It looked just like him, Georg and I couldn't. I'm so sorry. Julia must be so scared, I…"
"Ssh," Georg soothed. "Ssh, Julia is a tough girl, just like her Mama, she can handle it. Don't worry about that. It was the cologne, hmmm? Door to door salesman, perhaps?"
Maria sighed, "He asked for you, but he didn't have a card. He didn't push me, he didn't…do anything but he…It all came back, it all came rushing back. I could feel his hands, his face, his…I felt it all over again."
"I know," Georg sighed rocking her back and forth. "Every time this happens, I despise myself for not killing him that day in the alley. He's out there someplace living his best life and you have to deal with this."
Maria inhaled her husband's soothing scent, she felt sleepy. "I'm so tired," she whispered.
"I'm sure you are," Georg comforted. "Close your eyes, Marta's fixing you some tea, I'll be right here with you. I promise. Trust me?"
"With my life," Maria replied softly. It was their thing.
When Maria had sipped half her tea and was sleeping soundly, Georg extricated himself from her slack graps. "I'll be close," he whispered in her ear. He had to try and give some explanation to Marta, Curtis, and Julia, then let Louisa know things were under control.
"How's Mama?" Julia asked, appearing to be relatively calm no with Marta and Curtis' help.
"She's sleeping for now," Georg replied. "I'm very, very proud of you Julia for helping your Mama the way you did. You're a grown up young lady."
Julia sniffled, "It was really Curtis and Marta that helped. I was so scared."
Georg nodded, "I know. I was too when Louisa found me. My heart is still pounding. Your Mama is everything to me. To all of us."
Marta nodded from inside her husband's embrace. "I have to call Gretel and tell her Mother's all right. She's keeping my kids. None of us knew what was happening at first."
"You can go," Georg told Marta. "She just needs rest now and I'm here. I won't be leaving her any time soon."
The entire time Georg was speaking, Curtis looked like he'd been deep in thought. He had see stress reactions like this in medical school, most of the time in veterans, but just occasionally in women. "Captain, "Curtis said carefully not wanting to set Georg off. "Can I have a word with you please?"
Georg nodded, "Marta, you please let your siblings know that your mother is okay, that she is resting and I'm home. Ask them to please not try to stop by for a day or two and make sure you let Lida and Cathy know to be very quiet when they return home."
Marta nodded as Georg led Curtis to his study. "Thank you," Georg said genuinely. "For taking such good care of Maria and Julia today. I'll be happy to reimburse you for any patients…"
"Stop it," Curtis said in his usual rough manner. "You might not like me, and to be honest I'm not wild about you either, but this is family we're talking about now. Truth be told, I'd even drop everything and rush over here to take care of you, so it was no thing to hurry over here to help Maria, the woman who helps everyone."
Georg looked down at the top of his desk. It was humbling for him to be indebted to anyone except perhaps Max, and that he considered reimbursement for all the wine and strudel he'd consumed over the years.
Curt waited a beat then asked, "When did it happen? During the escape?"
Georg swallowed hard, he wanted to deny it, but he knew he couldn't. Curt was a doctor, and a good one at that. "No," Georg replied after thinking for a moment if he could trust Curt with this truth. "Before we got married, while she was still Marta's governess. It was a random thing, more or less. Maria attracted someone at a party and he wasn't used to being rebuked by women so when she did…He stalked her, cornered her, and attacked her one evening. It took her months to fully remember what had happened."
"Well," Curtis sighed. "The mind has it's filters."
"How did you know?" Georg asked.
"I've seen it before, doing my residency in Philadelphia. There were sometime women there that behaved like Maria when I would be called to examine them in emergency. She's got a wallop."
"She's hauled off and whacked Max a few times when she was having a memory and I wasn't around," Georg admitted. "I'm sorry if she hurt you."
"Only inside," Curt replied. "It's not fair that anyone as loving and sweet as Maria has had to face such a terrible thing. That anyone has to face such a thing is just a damn shame. I'll do anything I can if she's not able to shake this. Do you know what the trigger was?"
"Usually it's news' report," Georg explained. "And our daughters dating habits have done it, but this time she said it was an odor, a cologne that was popular in Europe when we were first married. They still make it. Some traveling salesman probably was wearing it."
"Smells can often set off shell shock episodes," Curt observed. "Well, I'm going to get Marta home if there's nothing else you need. I'll come by later and check on Maria but given the shock and the medication I've given, she should sleep a good long time."
"Thank you," Georg said as he offered Curt his hand. "Thank you again for all you've done. Maria is the most precious person in my world, and the thought of something having happened to her…"
"I understand," Curt replied. "Marta is, as I've told you, my very soul. I'd be beside myself if she ever had to experience something like this. Captain…"
"Georg," Georg corrected. "We are family as you put it so eloquently."
"Georg," Curt echoed. "Marta's never mentioned this to me, not even in passing…"
"Marta doesn't know," Georg replied. "She was too young when it happened and Maria. In the 30s, there was a lot of shame associated with this and Maria didn't want any of the children to know."
"Still is a lot of stigma unfortunately," Curt confirmed. 'We'll consider this a doctor/patient conversation then, I won't repeat any of this to a living soul, not even Marta."
"I appreciate that, Curtis,' Georg replied. "Go on home, kiss the grandchildren for me and give Gretel a hug. Spread the word that I'll give them all an individual call later or tomorrow. I have to catch a little rest myself. I haven't run so fast in a long time."
"Two Tylenol," Curt joked. "Call me in the morning."
Curt was almost out the door when he stopped, "In all seriousness, Georg. IF you or Maria need anything, call me."
With that Curtis left to collect Marta and return to his office and his family. Georg took a deep breath, it was funny sometimes how that happened, the last person you would ask for help or expect to get it from was the one that helped the most.
Georg got himself a cup of water and a couple Tylenol then slid onto the bed beside Maria. He wrapped her up in his arms and held her as tight to him as he could so she would know even in sleep he was right where he'd said he would be.
