Eli's Promise

by Ronald H. Balson

  “Do not punish yourself, Eli. You have always done what was best for us.”

  “Maybe not. The so-called discussions that the Nazis are having, the ones that call for total expulsion of Jews, are frightening to me. Who knows what the Nazis really mean when they say ‘bloodless elimination’? Ghettos are being emptied. In Lodz, Jewish families are being sent to Chelmno. In Lublin, there have been transports from ghetto A to Belzec. Essie, we can’t stay here. We are lambs being led to the slaughter.”

  “Where will we go? Where would you take us?”

  Eli sat up. “I’ve been thinking about it. We could try to make it to the Baltic coast. I have money. Maybe we could hire a boat to take us to neutral Sweden. Or maybe you were right weeks ago when you said we should find a place to hide. A small cabin in the country. A home in the woods.” He shrugged.

  “Whither thou goest, my love. You know I’ll support any decision you make.”

  “Maximilian is correct on one account—we won’t get very far on foot. I will have to find a way to use the brickyard truck and drive us as far as possible.”

  “How will you do that? Won’t we get stopped on the road?”

  “Not if I can schedule an order to be shipped from the Lublin brickyard to Lodz. We’ve done that each week. If I can arrange it, I’ll have written authority to travel on the roads. But I’ll have to make one more trip to Lodz to work it out.”

  Esther gazed lovingly at Eli, but he could sense she had misgivings.

  “Listen, Essie,” he said. “I know I’ve made promises to you in the past that I wasn’t able to keep. This time will be different. I will make one last trip, get the authorizations and take us far away from Lublin. I promise.”

  CHAPTER FORTY-NINE

  LUBLIN, POLAND

  OCTOBER 1941

  MONTH 25 OF THE NAZI OCCUPATION

  Later that morning, when Eli arrived at the Lublin brickyard, it was clear to him that the amount of business had lessened considerably. Apparently, Lodz’s gain was Lublin’s loss. While Eli was examining the orders, Lucya Sikorska, the lay business manager of the Saint Peter the Apostle Church, walked into the office. She had a box in one hand and a paper bag in the other.

  “I brought sweet rolls,” she said, laying the bag on a table. From the other side of the room, Izaak’s ears perked up like a puppy, and he came running.

  “Hello, my young friend,” Lucya said, squatting down to give him a hug. “For you, I brought a special treat: a paszki with strawberry filling.” Izaak took the sugar-covered pastry and walked off with a singsong “thank you.”

  “Is everything all right at the church?” Eli said. “Are you experiencing any trouble with the work we performed?”

  “Oh no,” she said, with a shake of her head. “Everything was done so beautifully, so professionally. Today I am paying a social call because I promised you and Izaak that we would stay in touch, and I mean what I say. Everyone at Saint Peter’s is still talking about Louis’s masterful restoration. The statue of the Blessed Virgin has once again become a pilgrimage icon, at least in our district. Where is Louis?”

  “He hasn’t come in yet. When he does, I’ll tell him you stopped by, and I’ll save him a sweet roll.”

  Lucya held out the box she was carrying. “I also brought something special for Louis. The Women’s Club knitted a sweater as a gift in appreciation. I hope it fits.”

  Eli opened the box and held up a beautiful blue cable knit. “Very nice. I’m sure he’ll love it. Do you have time this morning to share a cup of coffee and a sweet roll? Louis might arrive at any minute.”

  Lucya grinned. “Maybe just one little sweet roll.”

  “You know,” Eli said, “Izzie often speaks of the friends he made at the church when his uncle was ‘the star.’”

  “A star indeed. That was quite a morning.” Then Lucya swiveled to face Eli and spoke with concern. “How is your family doing, Eli?”

  “As a family, we are solid as a rock. No family has ever been closer.”

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  Eli exhaled. “I know. What can I say? It’s incomprehensible. We’re making it from day to day the best we can, and we’re waiting for the tide to turn.”

  Lucya shook her head. “I don’t see it turning, Eli. They are steamrolling through Europe, crushing anything in their way. I have never witnessed such abject evil. Cruelty for cruelty’s sake alone. I am sorry to confess that I have been wrestling with some very strong emotions that I shouldn’t have. My Christianity is being put to the test.” She finished her coffee and gestured to Izaak, who sat reading a book and eating his pastry. “I look at Izaak and I wonder what is to become of such a fine young man? These are menacing times, and I feel that we, as Christians, as God-fearing people, are not doing enough. If there is anything I can do to help your family in any way, please do not hesitate to call on me.”

  “Thank you, Lucya, I apprec—”

  “Maybe I’m not making myself clear.” She pointed directly at Izaak. “Anything. Do you understand what I am saying to you?”

  Eli nodded. “Yes, I do.”

  She picked up her purse, slipped on her coat and said, “I have to get back. Please tell Louis how much we appreciate him. Tell him to come by and say hello. And should the time arise, allow me the privilege of being an instrument of God’s charity.”

  * * *

  Louis returned to the office in the early afternoon, and he was visibly distraught. Essie was right. Eli handed the sweater to him, and started to tell him about Lucya, but Louis’s mind was somewhere else. He waved Eli off and laid the sweater on a table.

  “What’s wrong, Louis?”

  “Chava,” he said. His chin was quivering. “I don’t know where she is.” Then he began to weep and turned away.

  “I thought she was staying at Maximilian’s house?”

  “She was. I was visiting her twice a week since you and Maximilian have been in Lodz. She was living in the house all alone, but I was afraid to bring her home or even to take her out of the house for a walk for fear she would be grabbed by the ORPO and sent away to some camp. Last week when I went to check on her, she wasn’t there. I had no way of contacting you or Maximilian. Can you imagine my panic? Eli, my little daughter is gone.”

  Eli put his arm around his brother’s shoulders. “Maximilian didn’t mention anything about Chava to me, but he’s back now. I’ll go over there.”

  “It doesn’t matter. I already went there this morning, and Maximilian told me that he had placed Chava in another man’s house. For safekeeping, he said. Safekeeping.”

  “Whose house?”

  “He wouldn’t tell me. He said it would be too dangerous for me and for Chava if I went over there. Eli, we have to do something.”

  “What do you want me to do, Louis? I feared this would happen. I warned you about letting Chava go with Maximilian.”

  “Don’t you dare judge me, Eli. What choice did I have? Don’t you remember what Maximilian said? She had been noticed by Zörner’s deputy. She was going to be sent away. Far away. Maximilian agreed to take her in to protect her. And he did. And I visited. She had her own bedroom. I thought everything was all right. But now she’s gone.”

  Eli sadly shook his head. “I’m sorry to say, she was probably a gift to some Nazi officer. He’s done that before. Young girls are a commodity for him. He uses them to serve his ambition.”

  “Don’t say that. Don’t you dare say that to me, Eli. She’s not a damn commodity. We have to rescue her. Please, Eli. You have to help me.”

  Eli nodded and hugged his brother. “I’ll go to Maximilian. I’ll do what I can.”

  * * *

  Maximilian stood in the doorway in his usual pose—one hand on the doorknob, one hand on the doorjamb, blocking the entranceway. “I know why you’re here, Eli. It’s about Chava, isn’t it?”

  “Where is she?”

  He shook his head. “I had no choice in the matter.”

  �
��You always have a choice, Maximilian. Sometimes it may profit you less, but it’s still a choice. Is she here?”

  He shook his head. Eli looked over his shoulder.

  “What teenage girl is living with you now?”

  “Does it matter? You came to talk about Chava, and she is currently in a good home with a nice young man. I wouldn’t send her to an old man or an abusive person. She’s with a lieutenant in the Abwehr. He’s thirty-six. Never been married. He took a liking to her at one of my parties, and she took a shine to him as well. They get along nicely. If you remember, when you and I were sent to Lodz, Louis begged me to take Chava. He knew she would be left here all alone. She couldn’t go out of the house or the Jew Hunters would capture her. She couldn’t even leave the house to get food. I had to do something to take care of her. I felt it was the right thing to do. Besides, Horst wanted her, what could I do?”

  “She’s barely sixteen.”

  “She’s mature for her age. Look, she’s being well cared for. The alternative would be a slave labor camp in a distant location. Ask her what she wants. She’ll tell you. Ask your brother. He gave her to me.”

  “My brother didn’t give her to you; he put her into your care for safekeeping. Now my brother is beside himself. You sold his daughter to a Nazi.”

  “I didn’t get any money.”

  “I thought it was against the law for a Nazi officer to have a relationship with a Jewish girl.”

  Maximilian laughed. “Do you think Horst is the only Nazi with a Jewish girl? Who are we kidding? Besides, he’s not going to marry her. That would clearly be against the law. Tell Louis she’s safe and healthy. She’s with a man who treats her well and with whom she’s comfortable. And then tell him there’s not a damn thing he can do about it. She’s with Horst now. Get used to it.”

  Eli took an aggressive step forward and put a heavy hand on Maximilian’s shoulder. “Louis is a religious man and a very protective father. He’s a peaceful man, not the least bit belligerent, and not at all given to confronting you. But I am different, and I will not hesitate to wring your neck. You swore to protect her, and you turned her over to some Nazi. Now get her back!”

  “All right, all right. Take it easy, Eli. I’ll do my best. I’ll go talk to Horst. I’ll tell him her father wants to see her. Maybe he’ll consent to letting them meet.”

  “I want an answer tomorrow morning, Maximilian. I will see you at the brickyard.”

  CHAPTER FIFTY

  LUBLIN, POLAND

  OCTOBER 1941

  MONTH 25 OF THE NAZI OCCUPATION

  Louis and Eli watched as Maximilian’s polished sedan pulled into the brickyard. The back door opened, and Chava stepped out. She had a fur stole wrapped around her neck, covering the open collar of a black jersey dress. The dress was long and form-fitted. She walked slowly to her father in her black pumps and patterned nylons and sheepishly bowed her head. “Hi, Daddy.”

  “Chavala…”

  She put a finger to his lips and said, “Don’t be mad at Maximilian. I’m okay, really. No one has hurt me. Horst is very sweet.”

  Louis swallowed hard. “You have makeup on your face, lipstick on your lips. He’s dressed you up in nightclub clothes: black nylons, high heels. Look at you, Chava.”

  She nodded. “Yes, look at me. I’m standing here. Alive, safe, healthy. I’m not sewing in a dark, musty factory like my mother. I haven’t been sent off to a labor camp. I’m not scrambling for a meal on the streets of the ghetto. I’m well fed, well dressed and living in a nice home with a German officer. I’m treated with respect and not like a slave.”

  Louis’s voice started to break. “God knows what that man has done with you, Chava.”

  “Nothing I haven’t willingly permitted. In truth, encouraged.”

  “Oh, my Lord. I don’t want you living with him. You’re much too young. I insist that you come home.”

  “That day has passed, Daddy. If I did come home, if I even wanted to come home, what would happen to me? Where would I be sent the very next day?”

  Louis, his lips pursed, his face flushed, spun around and pointed at Maximilian. “You did this to her. She’s just a child. You promised me you’d safeguard her, and I believed you. You sold her,” he screamed. “You turned her into some Nazi’s whore!”

  Chava wound up and slapped Louis hard across his face. “Don’t you ever call me a whore. I am an officer’s lady.” She turned and walked back to the car. Maximilian shrugged his shoulders and followed her. Louis slumped down into a chair, his face in his hands.

  * * *

  “I feel so bad for Sylvia and Louis,” Esther said later that evening. “I’ve known Chava since she was a child, and I’ve never thought of her as anything other than a sweet young girl. I’ve never seen that side of her. I guess that’s what the war can do to people. It must have been devastating for Louis to see her dressed like that and declaring herself to be a German officer’s lady.”

  “You wouldn’t have recognized her, Essie. She’s a casualty of the occupation, but Louis blames himself. He says the whole thing was his fault, he never should have placed Chava in Maximilian’s care.”

  “He did what he thought was best, but I have to admit, I was surprised when he allowed her to move in with Maximilian.”

  “Maximilian told him that she had been observed by Zörner’s office. They wanted to know why such a tall and healthy girl had not been put to work. They said she would be assigned to a work camp at a distant location.”

  “If they wanted to put her to work, why didn’t they send her into Lipowa? Why didn’t Maximilian arrange that?”

  “Because Lipowa was fully staffed.”

  “Fully staffed? Who said that?”

  “Maximilian.”

  “Hmph. Well, that explains everything. It’s not true. There are always empty sewing stations. Maximilian was the one who noticed her, not some deputy.”

  Eli hung his head. “I should have realized it was a lie. It was probably what he had in mind for Chava all along. I’m sure it wasn’t the first time that he supplied a young Jewish girl to a Nazi officer.”

  “How can we force Maximilian to return Chava to Louis and Sylvia? If she has to be sent to a labor camp, she can work at Lipowa with her mother.”

  Eli sadly shook his head. “Chava made it clear she wanted no part of that. As she said to Louis, ‘That day has passed.’”

  CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE

  LUBLIN, POLAND

  NOVEMBER 1941

  MONTH 26 OF THE NAZI OCCUPATION

  The home visit flew by too quickly, and before Eli knew it Maximilian was informing him that it was time to return to Lodz. He insisted they return early the next day, but Eli objected. “I can’t leave just yet,” he said. “I need to stay a few more days. I have to get things in order.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means I need a few more days.”

  “Impossible. I was at the brigadeführer’s office yesterday, and Globočnik made it clear that he has urgent plans for shipments of construction materials to his camps. The work at the Lodz yard is going to quadruple. He’s drafted new workers, and there are dozens of new orders. You know I can’t fill those orders without you.”

  Eli shook his head. “Everything is too unsettled here. I can’t leave my family. The ax could fall tomorrow, and the Lipowa camp could close. I have to protect Esther and Izaak.”

  “Lipowa won’t close tomorrow. Look, I appreciate what you’re saying, believe me, but nothing is going to happen tomorrow. I need you at the brickyard. If you don’t come back with me, Globočnik will have my ass. He knows that I am barely competent and that I rely on you. He’s not stupid. A drunk maybe, but not stupid. He knows that it’s Eli Rosen operating the Litzmannstadt brickyard. He brags that he has the finest construction company in the Reich. You can’t run out on me. Just give me a few months, and I will use every method at my disposal to get you, Esther and Izzie out of harm’s way. Maybe out of Europe alt
ogether.”

  “To Sweden?”

  “Sure, why not? To Sweden. I’ll get you there; you just have to help me for a few months while Globočnik is breathing down my throat.”

  * * *

  “You believe him?” Esther said.

  “I believe he needs me. Globočnik knows that I am the one who’s running the brickyard,” Eli said.

  “I thought they hired a foreman?”

  “They did. Avram Horwitz. He was taken from his home in Wrocław and sent to Lodz. He comes from a religious family and he’s a very nice guy. We talk at length. But he doesn’t have my experience, and Globočnik doesn’t trust him to run the yard.”

  Esther scoffed. “How in the world is Maximilian going to get us all to Sweden?”

  “Maybe there is a way. Sweden is neutral in the war, but it does business with Germany. Sweden supplies ball bearings, iron ore and other materials essential to Germany’s war effort. We could justify going there on business, maybe to solidify an order or to arrange for shipments. Maximilian could arrange for that order. Once we’re there, we’re safe. Essie, it might be a lot safer than taking the brickyard truck and driving off into the night. If he can actually arrange for us to go to Sweden, that would solve all our problems.”

  Esther put her hands on her hips and stood defiantly. “You want to know what I believe? I believe that Maximilian will never help you to escape, let alone me or Izzie. If Globočnik needs you to run the brickyard, then they will never let you go. As you said, the Lodz brickyard is getting busier every day. They’ll want to keep you there indefinitely.”

  “I’ve considered that and here’s my promise to you: if Maximilian doesn’t arrange for us to leave in a few months, then we’ll go without him. I’ll draft orders for materials, forge transit authentications and drive us out of Lublin. We’ll get as far as we can.”