"I love you, Father."
"I love you too, my boy. Now go and make me proud." Father Haralambos kissed Thanasi on the top of his head. He watched as he put his jacket back on and then his scarf.
Thanasi brushed away the tears and went to the door. "You are my hero," he admitted proudly, and then walked out the door and down the alleyway.
Father Haralambos watched the door close and smiled. "His hero," he repeated and shook his head. He finished his tea and cleaned the kitchen. He looked at his timepiece again. "Well, it’s time I made my way to the train station."
He stopped in front of the crucifix and crossed himself. "Dear Lord, You know what is to come. Use me as You see fit in the time I have left." He kissed the icon and picked up his suitcase. "I hope Saint Peter doesn’t keep me waiting at the Pearly Gates. I hate waiting," he said as he left the house.
Father Haralambos glanced up at the sky, which was cloud free, and shook his head. He shuffled along and rounded the corner of the church, stopping for a moment to watch the routine activity around him. Dimitri, the baker, was starting his day; he saw the priest and bade him a good morning. Father Haralambos raised his hand and waved back. He had watched this town’s residents grow up and get married, had baptized their young and watched their young repeat the cycle. He wondered if life ever truly stopped. Probably not, he thought, and started walking again.
"Ah, Father Haralambos. Beautiful day, isn’t it?"
Father Haralambos turned around and saw Captain Reinhardt. "Good day to you, Captain. Yes, it’s a beautiful day," he replied and began walking.
"Are you looking forward to your trip?" Reinhardt inquired, easily keeping pace with Father Haralambos.
"Quite. I hear Thessaloniki is cold at the moment. Beautiful city. I’m looking forward to seeing Father Makarios when I get there."
Father Haralambos continued to walk towards the station while Reinhardt veered the other way. He shook his head. He glanced up at Muller’s residence and spotted Eva at the window. Beside her was Zoe, who looked as though she had slept in her clothes. He smiled up at them and waved.
Eva blew him a kiss and mouthed, "I love you."
Father Haralambos nodded and walked away. He didn’t want to turn back and have another look. He would lose his composure if he did. He finally arrived at the train station, where soldiers were milling about.
"Halt. This area is restricted," a young German soldier said in broken Greek.
"I am to board the train." Father Haralambos handed his papers to the soldier.
The soldier looked at the papers and after a moment he waved the priest through.
Father Haralambos stood on the platform as the chaos swirled around him. He sniffed the air and grimaced. The smell of decay was all around the train. Before he could discover the source, the door opened on one of the boxcars and a body was thrown out. The soldiers held their noses while their comrades dragged the man from the platform and threw him into the ditch near the tracks. The body rolled down the embankment and landed with a thud at the bottom.
Father Haralambos bowed his head and said a silent prayer. He looked up and met the eyes of the soldier who had pushed the man into the ditch. "Forgive them, Father," he prayed quietly.
"You!" the soldier said. "There is a space here." He pointed to the boxcar. Father Haralambos picked up his suitcase and walked to the car.
"Maybe you can convert these animals before they meet Jesus." The soldier sneered. His comrades laughed.
"I’m sure Jesus will be most happy to meet them. I’m not so sure what He will say about you," Father Haralambos said as he walked into the car, leaving the soldier slack-jawed.
The stench hit him as he stepped into the crowded car. He inhaled sharply. The occupants looked at him wearily and bowed their heads again. Their pain was too overpowering to be worrying why a Greek Orthodox priest was in the car with them. Father Haralambos found a small spot near the rear of the car, put his suitcase down and sat on it. He mentally kicked himself for not bringing food with him.
Father Haralambos bowed his head and prayed. When he looked up, he saw a young child looking at him. The little girl smiled at him. Her big brown eyes were red from crying and tears stained her grubby cheeks, her dark hair was matted, and her clothes were dirty. He tried to see if her parents were with her, but no one was paying any attention to the young girl. He smiled at her and waved her over. "What is your name?"
"Rebecca Stavrithis. What’s yours?" Rebecca asked, looking at Father Haralambos’ long white beard and black robe. His gold crucifix stood starkly against the black of his robe.
"Panayiotis Haralambos. Are you here alone?"
"My daddy was here, but they..." Rebecca started crying.
Father Haralambos held Rebecca while she sobbed. "Do you want me to tell you a story?" He offered as he wiped away the tears.
Rebecca hiccupped, nodded, and rubbed her eyes.
"Okay, do you know the story of the donkey that talked?" Rebecca shook her head and Father Haralambos began his tale as the train started to move.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Private Kurt Barkow stood outside Major Muller’s office, where he had been waiting for his commanding officer for the last hour. Muller had entered and then left without giving the soldier as much as a glance. Barkow wasn’t sure whether to leave or stay.
"Private, why are you loitering out here?"
Barkow snapped to attention on seeing Captain Reinhardt.
"I’m here to see Major Muller."
"He’s busy."
"It’s important, sir."
Reinhardt waved Barkow inside the office and shut the door. He took a seat behind Muller’s desk.
"Yes?"
Barkow shuffled his feet and looked pained as he stood in front of Reinhardt. "Sir, Major Muller assigned me to guard Fraulein Muller."
"Yes, I am aware of that." Reinhardt leaned back on his chair and regarded Barkow. "You have been doing a great job."
"Yes, sir, thank you."
"So other than getting praise for doing your job, what did you want?"
"Major Muller asked me to also report to him if I saw anything out of the ordinary."
Reinhardt leaned forward, his arms resting on the desk, and waited for Barkow to continue. "Yes?"
"Y—yes sir, um—"
"What is it, Private?"
"It’s about Fraulein Muller, sir. I don’t know how to tell you this."
"Start with the first word," Reinhardt suggested, quickly losing his temper. "Out with it before the war ends."
"I saw Fraulein Muller and Fraulein Lambros holding hands…"
Reinhardt leaned back in his chair and chuckled. "Have you been around women, Private?"
"Yes, sir, but--"
"They often hold hands and talk about nonsense things. Zoe is Eva’s maid."
"They were also kissing, sir."
Reinhardt’s smile disappeared. He got up from his seat and walked around the desk to stand in front of Barkow and glared down at him. "Choose your words carefully. Did you see Fraulein Muller kissing Fraulein Lambros?"
"Yes, sir."
"How?"
Barkow was puzzled by the question and stared at Reinhardt. "I don’t understand the question, sir. They were kissing."
"Chaste kiss on the cheek?"
"No, sir."
"Who else saw this? Did Franz see it?"
"No, sir, Sgt. Franz went to relieve himself and didn’t see anything. I didn’t mention it to him because it was getting dark."
"When did this occur?"
"Yesterday, up on Athena’s Bluff, sir."
Reinhardt sat on the edge of the desk and sighed. "Alright, leave it with me."
"Yes, sir." Barkow saluted and left the office closing the door behind him.
Reinhardt grimaced and shook his head. "Eva, Eva, Eva, you are still a pervert," he whispered. Muller had been right to order him to watch Eva.
His orders were clear—keep an eye on Eva and r
eport back to her father. It wasn’t a difficult job, since he enlisted the aid of her guards at various times.
"I wonder how you seduced that child," Reinhardt muttered and tried to work out what was the right time to tell Muller. There wasn’t any right time, especially now that they were falling back, but it had to be done.
***
"What?" Muller lowered the telephone handset and just stared at it, unbelieving. Propaganda, it had to be. Propaganda made up by the Resistance. Athens couldn’t fall that quickly. While it was true that the majority of the troops had left with the train bound for Thessaloniki, the troops that remained were hardened soldiers.
Muller moved his attention back to the phone and he raised the handset to his ear. "What about General Kiefer?" He asked, running his other hand through his hair and holding the back of his head. "Are you sure? Yes. ... Yes, fine. ... I’ll see what I can do here." He hung up the phone and fell into his chair, pinching the bridge of his nose between a thumb and forefinger as he loudly blew out a breath.
There was a knock on the door and, after a pause, Reinhardt walked in, moving to the front of Muller’s desk and patiently standing at attention for several moments.
"Athens has fallen," Muller stated, not looking up.
Reinhardt sighed. "What about General Kiefer?" He asked.
"He is being held as a prisoner by the Americans."
The phone’s shrill tone startled them both. Muller picked it up. "Yes?"
Reinhardt watched Muller’s face turn a pasty white as he slumped further into his chair.
"When?" Muller asked as he glanced at Reinhardt. "Yes, General. Heil Hitler." He replaced the phone on the hook. "What else could go wrong today?"
"What happened, sir?"
"The troop train going to Thessaloniki was bombed an hour ago by the Resistance. The train fell down the gorge. The track is useless."
"What are you going to do?"
"We are pulling out. General Rhimes has ordered us to withdraw to Thessaloniki. Well, we can’t catch a train on those tracks. The bridge and line have been totally destroyed. The only way out is by truck. See to it," Muller said dismissively and turned to start collecting paperwork.
Reinhardt remained still, a look of total indecision on his face. Muller frowned as he noted Reinhardt hadn’t left to start carrying out his orders.
"Is there anything else, Captain?"
"Uh..."
Muller looked up sharply at the sound. "Out with it, man, I don’t have all day!"
"It’s about Eva, sir."
"What about Eva? Is it so important that you have to tell me now?"
"Yes, sir. We have a problem."
"One of many, Captain," Muller growled, now annoyed with him. "Out with it, man! What problem do you have with Eva?"
"Her guard, Private Barkow, came to me earlier and told me that he had witnessed Eva kissing Fraulein Lambros."
Muller’s blue eyes turned to ice. His face had turned a bright shade of red as he sat at his desk, his fists balling up in fierce anger. A problem with Eva, especially this problem, was the last thing Muller had wanted to hear about in the middle of this crisis. "I thought you told me differently in your last report?" He asked dangerously.
"Yes, sir, but I believed her. She wasn’t faking anything with me."
"She obviously is a very good actress if she could fool you. What did Barkow say?"
"He saw them kissing, sir. It’s not Zoe’s fault, sir. I don’t believe it is—I believe Eva has corrupted her."
"Mein Gott," Muller whispered, sitting back in his chair. With all that was happening, he wasn’t ready to deal with Eva’s betrayal again. But he knew he had to deal with it now, decisively and with no remorse. He sat back up and trained dangerous eyes on Reinhardt. "How long has this been going on? Under my very nose? In my house?" His voice rose and he thumped his desk.
Reinhardt jumped. "I-I don’t believe, it’s been—"
"I don’t care what you believe!" Muller screamed. "I gave you an assignment to watch her, and you are engaged to her. How did you not know?" He looked daggers at Reinhardt. "I have no daughter from this moment on." His calm voice belied his rage. "I will get someone else to start the redeployment. Your assignment now is Eva. Take care of it." Muller stared at Reinhardt. He had warned Eva, had told her in no uncertain terms that if she relapsed, he would kill her. Her betrayal of him now, when he was in such a vulnerable position, was inexcusable and Reinhardt’s ineptitude compounded the problem.
Reinhardt, still standing at attention in front of his desk, was looking nervous and uncomfortable. As well he should, Muller thought. His anger flared again and he narrowed his eyes at Reinhardt. "I will deal with you after you have fixed this problem. Your incompetence astounds me, Reinhardt. Now get out of my sight!"
"How... I mean the problem, how should I handle it, sir?"
Muller cursed. "Do I have to tell you everything? How did you become a captain? Did your father buy you this commission? Kill her. She is no longer my daughter. Get the hell out of my office and go and deal with it! Now get out!"
Chapter Thirty-Seven
"Athens is free!" Apostolos declared and raised his arm in salute at the other Resistance members. They cheered loudly and began to sing "Ymnos eis tin Eleftherian," The Hymn to Freedom. Their voices harmonized even as they laughed. Finally, their dreams of a free Greece were going to be realized and the war would soon end.
Apostolos saw Zoe standing out near the edge of the group. He frowned for a moment and left the circle of celebrating men. Walking over to Zoe, he gently took her arm and silently guided her over to one side. "We got word that the line was destroyed about an hour ago."
Zoe lowered her head and Apostolos held her for a few moments. "Did anyone...?" She asked softly against Apostolos’ shoulder.
"No. No survivors. The train went down the gorge," Apostolos replied, not bothering to tell Zoe that the soldiers that survived the wreck were shot dead by the Resistance. Some things were best left unsaid.
They stood there, amidst the celebrations, each feeling their own grief at losing a beloved friend. "Alright, we’ve been told the Americans are on the move. I’m not sure when they will get here, but I think it’s our duty to help our German friends out the door."
Dimitri, the Thessalian Resistance leader, trying to get Thanasi’s attention, yelled to be heard above the din of the celebrations.
He came over to where Thanasi, Apostolos, and Zoe were now standing, a little apart from the others. He clasped Thanasi on the shoulder and grinned. His smile turned to a scowl when he saw their faces. "What’s the matter?"
"The train was blown," Zoe said quietly.
"Oh." Dimitri looked down and sighed. He had forgotten about the train amidst the good news from Athens. They had lost another hundred and one people from the village. We will mourn when the war ends, he thought. They still needed to focus on killing as many Germans as they could. He turned to Thanasi. "Leftheri has gone to Muller’s place. As soon as the bomb is detonated we can begin—"
"What bomb?" Zoe interrupted Dimitri, her eyes wide with alarm.
"The one that will blow Muller straight to Hell," Dimitri replied.
"No, wait!" Zoe cried out. "Eva is in that house!"
"So?" Dimitri asked and shrugged.
"But you can’t kill her!"
"She’s a German. Or are you going soft on them?"
"Shut up, you idiot!" She yelled right in Dimitri’s face. "You don’t understand. Eva and Father Haralambos were working together!" Grabbing his arm, she pleaded with him, "When is Leftheri going to detonate the bomb?"
Dimitri checked his watch. "In ten minutes. You’d better run. You don’t have much time to get her out."
"I have to stop him!" Zoe cried, running away from the gathering and down the nearest alleyway.
***
Zoe’s heart was beating so hard it felt as though it would explode from her chest. As she ran, her thoughts were only on Eva and reachin
g the house in time. Her awareness returned just in time to see the slow moving horse and cart ahead of her. It stopped, blocking the exit from the alley. Running up to the cart, she saw that its load had shifted and fallen to one side, the contents of the wheat-filled bags spilling on the ground all around the cart. There wasn’t enough space to squeeze around the sides and the spilled bags blocked the route underneath. She was trapped in the godforsaken alley while precious seconds ticked away against Eva’s life. Meanwhile, the old man driving the cart still hadn’t moved from his seat. He was sitting halfway turned, forlornly gazing at his spilled cargo.
"Come on!" Zoe yelled. "Move!"
"What’s your hurry, little Zoe? Is the devil after you? You young people have no patience," the old man grumbled, as he slowly climbed down to the cobble-stoned surface, limping around to take hold of the horse’s lead and trying to coax it to move.
"Damn it, Pappou!" Zoe cursed and scrambled up the piles of wheat, slipping several times before she made it to the cart and climbed over it. Jumping off the seat to the ground, she tripped as she landed awkwardly on her ankle. She got to her feet and began to run, despite the pain shooting up her leg with every step. She had to get to Eva in time, before Leftheri blew up the house.
***
Reinhardt was shaken and angry. He closed the door to Muller’s office and stood there for a moment trying to get his control back. The guards looked at him but didn’t say a word. They had heard the yelling coming from Muller’s office and were quite content to be outside rather than in there with their commanding officer.
Reinhardt straightened his uniform and checked his gun. With a scowl, he turned and stomped up the steps to Eva’s rooms.
Eva stood at the window watching the trucks being loaded. The door opened and Reinhardt entered. He had composed himself and was smiling.
"Jurgen, what are the men doing?"
Reinhardt came to stand behind Eva and looked out at the soldiers loading the trucks. "Packing up; we are moving out," he said and put his arms around Eva’s waist. "Athens has fallen to the Americans."
In The Blood Of The Greeks (Intertwined Souls Series Book 1) Page 28
