The Forest of Vanishing Stars

by Kristin Harmel

  Zus spun on her immediately, his gun raised and aimed as easily as if it were an extension of his own body. But in a split second, suspicion changed to relief, fear turned to surprise, anger turned to something tender and sad that she couldn’t quite name. When he lowered his weapon and said, “Yona,” she was sure it was the most beautiful sound she’d ever heard: her own name—not the name that had been given to her years ago by strangers—spoken in a deep voice that cracked with emotion.

  “Zus,” she said as he strode quickly to her.

  “It’s really you,” he said, stopping abruptly just inches away, as if he’d thought to embrace her but had changed his mind. “Yona, I was afraid you were…” He trailed off, his voice thick. “Thank God,” he said, his voice so deep and low, it almost vanished into the breeze.

  She wanted to stay in this moment forever, pinned by the familiar weight of Zus’s gaze, but she couldn’t. “We have to move, Zus,” she said, and he blinked a few times, as if pulling himself back from somewhere far away. “The Germans,” she added. “They’re coming.”

  * * *

  On the way to the group, Yona repeated what she knew about the planned infiltration of the forest, though she couldn’t bring herself to explain how she was privy to such a secret. Zus accepted it without question, though, going silent for a while as he absorbed the news and what it meant for them. As they drew closer to the group’s camp, he filled her in on the events of the past month, and Yona was surprised to learn that the settlement had grown by seven in the short time she’d been gone. Two complete families had arrived from a village where they’d hidden for months together in the storage area beneath a farmer’s barn until the farmer was killed in a raid by the local police, who suspected him of harboring fugitives. The families had been looking for a group led by a man named Tuvia Bielski, which was rumored to be large enough to function like a small society. It was the group Jüttner had mentioned, too, the one that was hiding hundreds of Jews. Instead, the newcomers had happened upon this group, and they’d been welcomed immediately.

  Zus, it seemed, had stepped into more of a leadership role in the weeks since Yona had been away. “We all feel that we owe our survival to you,” Zus said, his voice deep with warmth and something stronger. “And to see Aleksander and Sulia act as they did felt like a betrayal of all of us.”

  The words made Yona’s heart thrum with confused gratitude. “No one needed to fight my battle with Aleksander.”

  “There is no battle,” Zus said simply. “Just a clarity about the type of man Aleksander is.”

  They said no more about it, and ten minutes later, as they walked into a bustling camp, her eyes filled with tears when she saw the children chasing each other around, and Zus’s cousins, Israel, George, and Wenzel, their heads bent together as they knelt beside a log, grinding acorns into powder. Oscher was mending a boot, and fifteen-year-old Ester was methodically picking through a basket of berries. Little Pessia was the first to spot Yona, her face breaking into a grin.

  “Yona!” she called, jumping up and racing toward her, and Yona forgot for a few seconds about the danger that had brought her here so quickly. She had thought that this was Aleksander’s family, that she was the interloper, but as Pessia threw herself into Yona’s arms, followed quickly by Leah, she knew that she’d been wrong to run. She belonged here, in the heart of the forest, at the heart of this family, which was hers after all.

  “I’m so glad to see you,” she whispered into Pessia’s ear, and then she kissed Leah before straightening up to face the others. They had all emerged from huts or walked in from the forest to see what the commotion was about, and as she looked out at the small sea of smiling, familiar faces, dotted with a handful of strangers, her eyes prickled with tears of gratitude. “I’m sorry,” she said, raising her voice so it carried across the clearing. “I’m so sorry I left.”

  “You have nothing to apologize for.” Zus’s deep voice came from behind her, and as she wiped away a tear, she could see a few of the women nodding. Aleksander still hadn’t emerged, and Sulia hadn’t, either, but Yona saw plenty of glances toward a small lean-to, just big enough for two.

  “We’re just glad you’re home, Yona,” Ruth said. She was holding Daniel, who had grown even in the month that Yona had been gone. Life had unfolded without her, and the thought of that made her heart throb with regret over what she had missed.

  “I’m glad, too,” Yona said, and just then, Aleksander emerged from the small structure, followed closely by Sulia, who appeared to be reaching for Aleksander’s hand, though Aleksander ignored her.

  “Yona?” he asked, and in his expression, she saw both relief and trepidation. “I didn’t expect you to return.”

  Yona was surprised when the words didn’t wound her. Aleksander was no one to her now, nothing more than any of the others. He was someone whose life she needed to save, just like everyone else. “Yes, well, life is full of things we don’t expect, isn’t it?” she said evenly, glancing at Sulia, who at least had the decency to look away. Zus cleared his throat, and Yona was certain that the sound covered a laugh.

  “Yona has come with news,” Zus said, and as all eyes turned to him, expectant and waiting, Yona was struck by how much attention he effortlessly commanded. Before she’d left, he’d seemed content with a secondary role, but in her absence, he had filled a void. It was more than she’d hoped for; he was a good man with solid instincts for the forest. He had kept the group safe. “Yona, you can meet the Sokolowskis in a moment, and the Gulniks, too,” he continued. “They are the new families who have joined us.” In the small crowd, the newcomers nodded at her. “But for now, we must listen to you.”

  Yona gave Zus a nod of gratitude before turning back to the group. “The Germans are moving into the forest very soon,” she said without preamble, and a few of the people gasped. She saw both of Chaim’s little boys look up instantly at their father, and he put his hands on their heads, as if he could protect them with his touch. “We must move. Now.”

  “Move where?” Sulia asked, her voice high and harsh. “We live here.” Aleksander took a step away from her.

  Yona took a deep breath. She had been thinking about this during her whole journey here. Where could they go that the Germans couldn’t track them, wouldn’t find them? “Into the vast swamp just to the west of the forest’s heart.” Safe, whispered the voice in her head, an echo from the past.

  “A swamp?” Sulia spoke again, disgust in her tone, and this time Aleksander turned and shushed her loudly.

  Yona turned to Zus, who was nodding thoughtfully. He looked up and met her gaze; she could see the agreement in his eyes. “The Germans will not think we might hide there, for it’s an inhospitable environment. And they won’t risk coming in after us.”

  “And that’s where you want us to go? We’ll be standing shoulder-deep in water, won’t we?” Zus’s cousin Israel said. “God knows what creatures will get us there.”

  “The leeches will not kill you,” Yona said.

  “I can’t swim,” Miriam murmured, and several others nodded.

  “We will help each other,” Yona said. “There are a few places in the swamp that are too deep to walk, and we will avoid them. The adults will carry the children. The strongest among us will help those who are struggling. There is an island I know of in the middle, small, but dense with trees.” She thought of the time Jerusza had taken her there, the water hissing its comfort. “It is large enough for all of us to stay for a time. We can shelter there until the Germans pass.”

  “Who’s to say they will pass us by?” one of the men asked.

  “We are small,” Yona said. “We are not the group they are looking for. They are searching for Russian partisans, and big groups led by men called Zorin and Bielski.”

  “Tuvia Bielski,” one of the men from the new families said. “He owned a store in Subotniki. His is the camp we were looking for when we came into the woods.”

  Yona nodded, though her onl
y knowledge of the Bielskis was what Jüttner had told her. “Do you know roughly where the Bielski camp is?”

  “Yes. We stumbled upon you first, but I believe it should be a few days’ walk to the south.”

  “But in this swamp, as you say, how will we eat?” asked one of the women from the new families.

  It was Zus who stepped up beside Yona to answer. “We will bring the food we’ve preserved already. It’s enough to get us through a few weeks, at least.”

  “That food is for the winter.” Aleksander’s voice was stiff. “That was the plan.”

  Zus didn’t even look at him. “Now the plan has changed. We will begin again for the winter when we are safe. But first, we must survive this.”

  “There will likely be some food on the islands in the swamp, too, though not enough. Zus is right; we must bring what we have. But we must go now,” Yona said. “The Germans have the advantage. I believe they are still a week away, but they’ll cover thrice the ground we can in the same time. There’s no time to waste.”

  Most of the group nodded their understanding as Zus spoke. “We will gather our things now and move within the hour.” He leaned in, put a hand on Yona’s shoulder, and added in a low voice, “May I speak with you for a moment?”

  “Of course.” As she followed him to the other side of the clearing, she could feel Aleksander watching her, but she didn’t care as much as she thought she would. “What is it, Zus?”

  His eyes were sad as he looked down at her. “I think we must try to find the Bielski group, to warn them. The Zorin group, too, if we can. Otherwise, we are as guilty as the collaborators at the forest’s edge.”

  Yona sighed. “I was thinking the same. But it will be dangerous.”

  “I know. And this is the last thing I want to be saying right now, Yona, but I think we should separate. You know the forest better than any of us, so I think you should take most of the group to the swamp. And I know the area near the edges of the forest where the Bielski and Zorin groups are likely to be hiding, so I’ll take a few of our people with me to warn them. It makes the most sense.”

  Yona nodded, her heart heavy. “We are stronger when we are together, but right now we don’t need strength. We need speed, and we need to be able to disappear. And we need to make sure the other groups in the forest have time to do the same.”

  “Yes,” Zus said. “Let’s go tell everyone.” But neither of them moved. After a few seconds, Zus cleared his throat. “I—I wish things were different, Yona.”

  “So do I.” She looked up and met his gaze. “But we will both be safe. God will watch over us. He has to, doesn’t he?”

  Zus didn’t say anything, but she could read in his eyes that he didn’t entirely believe her words. She wasn’t sure she believed them herself. Side by side, they walked back to the others, who murmured to each other as they approached. Zus glanced once more at Yona. “Everyone, Yona and I have spoken. The best thing to do will be to divide.”

  “Divide? That makes no sense,” Aleksander blurted out, and several people in the group shot him looks of ice.

  “Let him speak, Aleksander,” said Moshe, the tailor, before turning back to Zus and nodding. “Go ahead. I know you do not suggest this lightly.”

  Yona glanced up at Zus, whose eyes were sad. “It’s too dangerous to have the children and some of the older members of this group trying to find the Bielskis before they find safety—but we cannot ignore our responsibility to our brothers and sisters hiding out there in the forest. And one or two of us should not go alone; that would be too dangerous, too easy to be outnumbered. Yona will lead one group into the swamp; I will lead the other to find the Bielski and Zorin camps.” He turned to Yona. “I will send Chaim with you.” It wasn’t a question. She nodded, and Zus turned and addressed his brother, who stood in the middle of the clearing. “You, Sara, and the boys will go with Yona.”

  Chaim nodded, and Yona smiled at Jakub and Adam, who looked uncertain, and at Sara, who met Yona’s gaze with a single nod.

  Yona looked around and quickly evaluated the rest of the group. “I will also take Oscher and Bina, Leon, Moshe, Ruth and the children, as well as the Sokolowskis and the Gulniks, since they both have children with them.”

  “Take Rosalia, too,” he said. “She will help you. I’ll take Aleksander and Leib, Leib’s mother, my cousins, and Bernard and Lazare. Sulia should come with me, too; she’s fast.”

  “I’ll go, too,” Luba said. “I’m in no rush to have leeches sucking me dry.”

  Yona and Zus exchanged looks. Luba was older, but she was healthy and could cover ground quickly. And an extra pair of capable hands could help the smaller group. Zus nodded.

  “All right, it’s decided, then,” Yona said. “Now, we must move swiftly. Pack up your things, and fill your packs and your pockets with all the food you can.”

  “Go, everyone,” Zus said, and then, putting his hand gently on Yona’s arm, he steered her toward the newcomers, the Sokolowski and Gulnik families, who were still standing in place, staring at her as if she were a visitor from another planet. In fact, she must have seemed like one—a woman they’d never seen, arriving from nowhere, and ordering the camp to disband.

  “Yona,” Zus said as they stopped in front of the seven strangers: two men, two women, and three children. It was only then that Yona realized that one of the women was heavily pregnant. She sucked in a sharp gasp without meaning to at the sight of the woman’s swollen belly and felt terrible when the woman’s eyes filled with tears. Yona would protect her; she had to. But there was much danger in escorting a pregnant woman through the forest with the Germans on their tails. “This is Shimon Sokolowski and his wife, Elizaveta,” Zus said, nodding to the pregnant woman. “And their son, Nachum.” A wide-eyed boy of about six looked up at Yona and nodded. “And these are the Gulniks, Leonid and Masha, and their children, Sergei and Maia.” Sergei was a boy of about fifteen, and Maia a dark-haired girl of four or five, her cheeks hollow with hunger but her eyes alight with what looked like determination. Yona liked her immediately and smiled at the girl first before greeting the rest of the family. “I trust Yona with my life,” Zus added, “and you should, too.”

  Leonid looked skeptical as he studied Yona. “But she’s only a girl.”

  “She knows the forest better than all of us combined,” Zus said instantly. “I believe in her more than I believe in anyone else I know.”

  Yona looked up at Zus and saw tears in his eyes. He looked quickly away. “Thank you, Zus,” she said softly. “I believe in you, too.”

  He nodded and then strode away before she could say more. She turned back to the newcomers, all of whom were studying her curiously.

  “How far along are you?” Yona asked Elizaveta, who was protectively cradling her pregnant belly.

  The woman’s eyes were full of worry as she blinked at Yona. “I should deliver in about two months. I’m—I’m sorry. We did not mean for this to happen.”

  Yona reached for the other woman’s hands, though her own throat was thick with concern. “Never apologize for bringing life into the world. We will make do.” She smiled once more at Maia, the little girl, and then she nodded at Leonid, Shimon, and their wives. “There is work to be done. I will see you soon.”

  * * *

  Two hours later, the camp had been packed up, and all the adults were loaded down with as many supplies as they could carry on their backs. They were leaving many things behind—fabric, extra clothing, pots, pans, cups—but the hope was that when the Germans left the forest, the group would be able to return for their things. They would leave everything in holes dug into the earth, making it harder to plunder if the Germans came upon this spot.

  Shimon Sokolowski had drawn a detailed map to the location where he’d been told the Bielski group had made camp, but he had declined to join the group on the southern route; he wanted to stay with his son and his pregnant wife.

  Zus approached from across the clearing and put a hand o
n Yona’s shoulder. “Would you take a walk with me?” he asked in her ear, and she nodded. She glanced once more around the camp, where everyone was milling around, anxious, in motion. There was a frisson of excitement, of anxiety, in the air. As she turned and walked toward the woods with Zus, she could feel eyes on them, and when she turned, she saw Aleksander standing still, watching. She looked away.

  “Yona,” Zus began once they were alone, deep enough into the trees that no one could see them. “There is something I must say to you.”

  His voice caught, and when she looked up at him, she was surprised to see that he looked uneasy. Did he have doubts about the plan? “What is it, Zus?”

  “I—I regretted not saying something to you before you left last month.”

  “Zus…” She opened her mouth to tell him that whatever it was could wait, that she knew she would see him again in a few days’ time, once they’d reunited on the island deep in the swamp, but there was something in his gaze that stopped her.

  “Yona, you see yourself through a different looking glass than we see you, perhaps because you’ve been alone for so long.” His words fell quickly, as if he was trying to force them out before he could change his mind. “I just want you to know, in case we are separated, that I think you are extraordinary.”

  “Zus—”

  He held up a hand to stop her, his voice deepening. “Perhaps you still love Aleksander. But I—I wish my own heart was not so broken, Yona, because if it was whole, I think I would fight for you. I would tell you that I refuse to let you go, that I will not let you disappear into that forest without me ever again. But I don’t think I am capable of that, of all that comes with those kinds of feelings. And perhaps you don’t want to hear these things anyhow, so I will simply tell you good luck. And I wanted you to know, in case we do not see each other again, that I think you are far more special than you seem to see.”

  His eyes didn’t leave hers as he waited for a reply, and in the quiet between them, she could hear them both breathing heavily. “We will see each other again,” she said at last. “We will reunite in the swamp in a few days, and then the Germans will retreat, and we will find our way back here together.”