Assignment Code 321: Heaven On Earth Series

By Colleen Reimer

WORLD WAR II RELENTLESSLY MARCHES FORWARD. HEAVEN AND EARTH, GOD AND MAN, ANGELS AND DEMONS. IT’S TIME TO FINISH THIS. Adolf Hitler is determined to gain as much living space as possible for the German population and his hatred of the Jews becomes radically obvious. Beata Schluter, a young woman living in Berlin, risks her safety to do what her conscience demands. Hahn Brauer, a young German soldier, sees the brutality of war and begins to question everything he has held to, including his devotion to his young bride. David Kohn, once a respected Jewish rabbi, flees with his family to the forests around Krakow to avoid the hatred of the Germans. Anka Trafas is evicted and relocated to the Krakow ghetto, along with her Jewish husband, Aaron Levin, and their three children. Esther Brenner, a young Dutch girl living in Russia on the Crimean Steppe, is required to face the horror of war when her father and brother are taken. What will happen to the rest of the village is unknown.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu Publishing Services
• Release date: Nov 20, 2015
• ISBN: 9781483439143

Colleen Reimer

Colleen Reimer enjoys writing a variety of fiction - Christian, historical, science fiction and fantasy.She lives near Calgary, Canada with her husband and four children, although only two still live at home. She has lived in multiple places over the years, in many different Canadian cities and also spent seven years in North Carolina.Besides writing, Colleen also enjoys gardening, travelling, chatting with friends, a hot cup of Chai tea and chocolate.

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ASSIGNMENT CODE

321

Heaven On Earth Series

Colleen Reimer

Copyright © 2015 Colleen Reimer.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means—whether auditory, graphic, mechanical, or electronic—without written permission of both publisher and author, except in the case of brief excerpts used in critical articles and reviews. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this work is illegal and is punishable by law.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission. NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered trademarks of Biblica, Inc. Use of either trademark for the offering of goods or services requires the prior written consent of Biblica US, Inc.

Certain characters in this work are historical figures, and certain events portrayed did take place. However, this is a work of fiction. All of the other characters, names, and events as well as all places, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

ISBN: 978-1-4834-3915-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4834-3914-3 (e)

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Lulu Publishing Services rev. date: 11/9/2015

CONTENTS

Dedication

Acknowledgement

Preface

Psalm 32:1

Isaiah 66

Assignment Code 321 Character List

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 55

Chapter 56

Chapter 57

Chapter 58

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapter 61

Chapter 62

Chapter 63

Chapter 64

Chapter 65

Chapter 66

Chapter 67

Chapter 68

Chapter 69

Chapter 70

Chapter 71

Chapter 72

Chapter 73

Chapter 74

Chapter 75

Author’s Notes

Dedication

To my husband, Jerrie, who has supported, encouraged and believed in me.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I first of all thank God for giving me the gift of writing. He is the most creative writer and has wonderful ideas.

I’m grateful for my husband and for his tremendous encouragement along the way. Thanks also to my children, Jeremy, Matthew, Felisha and Ashley. They have read my books and gave me their opinions and ideas. It’s a great blessing to have family to bounce ideas off of.

I had quite a few family and friends proofread Assignment Code 321 for me. Linda Rayner was the first to read my book and she slogged through the first draft. I have to admit it required a great deal of work! She gave many great suggestions and made corrections where necessary. Thanks for all your help!

Although all of my children read my book, my daughter, Felisha, took time to make corrections and noted them for me. Thanks Felisha for all your hard work. Thanks also to my sister, Laurel Moser, and my friend, Jenn Kononoff, who also proofread Assignment Code 321 and made changes. I also want to thank Hannah Rayner who also read my manuscript and noted corrections.

Thanks also to all who will read this book and the books that will follow.

PREFACE

This is the second part of a two book series enveloping World War II. These books started with my great aunt, Susie Dueck, sharing her story with me. She lived in Conteniusfeld, a Dutch settlement on the Crimean Steppe in Russia. She spent her childhood there and when she was a young teen the fear of World War II advancing into Russia gripped the whole settlement. As the German army advanced close to her home, everyone she knew and loved was affected by the war. The miraculous deliverance that she witnessed on numerous occasions astounded her. She was very aware of the saving power of her God.

Tears came to her eyes as she expressed great gratitude to God for showing her such kindness in sparing her life and allowing her the privilege to eventually move to Canada. Since sharing her story with me, she has gone on to her Heavenly home. I’m so grateful that I had the opportunity to sit down with her and hear her story before she graduated to Heaven.

My great aunt’s story is only a small part of the book’s contents. I used literary freedom and changed her name and the names of her family members as well as the dynamics of her family to add interest to the story.

I added fictional characters from numerous countries to give a more complete telling of what took place during those horrific years of war. There are those who whole heartedly supported the war and there are those who opposed it. People within Germany who opposed Hitler opened themselves up to great risk and danger. Jews were at a great disadvantage in many countries and were targeted for extinction. It was a time of great danger and necessary courage for the Jewish people.

With this, the second and final book of the World War II series, the circumstances grow increasingly dire as the darkness of war consumes those it touches.

Including the supernatural in the book; Heaven’s perspective on the war and angels sent on missions, provides an alternate view of what took place behind the scenes. Knowing that Heaven was completely aware of what was coming and what would be required during this time, provides a viewpoint not often seen. God is never surprised by any terrifying situation we face on earth. He already knew what would transpire during World War II before it happened and Heaven was busy preparing for all that it would entail.

Even in this second book, as the war reaches with greedy fingers to include more and more countries, angels are involved and busy gathering souls for Heaven.

Assignment Code 321 continues the story of Hitler’s reign and the many that are irrevocably affected as the war advances. The characters have different responses and experiences, from a Jewish Rabbi making a life altering choice, Jews hiding in the forests, a German girl fighting to save her Jewish friends, to a young Nazi soldier’s first-hand experience. No one is left unscathed.

Without the consideration of God or Heaven, World War II would only be a dark spot on this planet’s history. With eternity in view, we must remember that nothing happens here without God’s involvement. He is intimately connected with each happening and each historical account. It is, after all, His Story.

Psalm 32:1

Blessed is the one

whose transgressions are forgiven,

whose sins are covered.

Isaiah 66

⁸ Who has ever heard of such things?

Who has ever seen things like this?

Can a country be born in a day

or a nation be brought forth in a moment?

Yet no sooner is Zion in labor

than she gives birth to her children.

⁹ Do I bring to the moment of birth

and not give delivery?" says the Lord.

"Do I close up the womb

when I bring to delivery?" says your God.

¹⁰"Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad for her,

all you who love her;

rejoice greatly with her,

all you who mourn over her.

ASSIGNMENT CODE 321

CHARACTER LIST

(Main Characters are in Bold Lettering)

Berlin, Germany:

1. Helmuth and Unna Schluter – German Family

* Two Daughters:

* Beata Schluter

* Ilse Schluter

* Husband: Hahn Brauer

2. Meshulam and Marni Israeli – Jewish Family

* Two Sons:

* Fayvel Israeli

* Doron Israeli

* One Daughter:

* Faye Israeli

3. Mrs. Grossman – Midwife

* Her daughter – Frederika

4. Bastian Haff – Local Bishop

5. Roth and Alda Puttkam – Friends of the Schluters’

* Two Sons:

* Adreas Puttkam – Shoemaker

* Lamar Puttkam – Fine Carpenter

* Wife: Serilda

6. Hahn Brauer – German Soldier married to Ilse Schluter

7. German Soldiers – Horst, Gerard, Dieter and Heller

8. German Officer: Dagobert Schenker

Krakow, Poland:

1. David Kohn: Jewish Rabbi

* Wife: Devora Kohn

* Two Sons:

* Benesh Kohn

* Wife: Jaffe

* Children: Lazer, Aliza and Efraim

* Itamar Kohn

* Wife: Rachel

* Children: Three sons and one daughter (Ruth)

* One Daughter:

* Sulia

* Husband: Menashe Yonson

* Children: Leeba, Ber and Hirsh

2. Binyamin Levin – Jewish Doctor

* Wife: Init Levin

* Three sons:

* Hershel Levin

* Wife: Faiga

* Children: Jonathon and Baila

* Joseph Levin

* Wife: Sonia

* Children: Simon, Minich, Aliyah and Deborah

* Aaron Levin

* Wife: Anka

* Children: Amos, Matis and Lola

* One Daughter:

* Chava

* Husband: Dobry Waglewski – Polish Man

* Children: One son, Two daughters

3. Yankel and Gittel Greenstein (Gittel and Init Levin are sisters) – Jewish Family

* Two Sons

* Solomon Greenstein

* Wife: Heni

* Daniel Greenstein

* Wife: Elisheva

* Three Daughters:

* Chesed

* Basya

* Ayelet

4. Jaromil and Ewa Trafas – Polish Family

* One Son: Jarek

* One Daughter: Anka

* Husband: Aaron Levin – Jewish Man

* Children: Amos, Matis and Lola

Crimean Steppe, Russia:

1. Baldur and Frieda Brenner – Dutch Family settled on the Crimean Steppe

* One Son:

* Herman Brenner

* Two Daughters:

* Esther Brenner

* Anna Brenner

2. Rose Voth – Esther Brenner’s friend

* Her mother: Agnes Voth

3. Jenell Schlosser – Herman’s Girlfriend

4. Helga Unrah – Frieda Brenner’s Sister

5. Gilbert Schultz and Peter Burg – Boys Esther knows from school

6. Samuel and Berta Goldberg

* One Daughter: Beatrix Goldberg

* One Son: Saul Goldberg

German Leaders:

1. Adolf Hitler

2. Joseph Goebbels – Head of Propaganda Ministry

3. Albert Speer – In charge of producing military equipment

4. Ernst Rohm – Commander of the SA Brownshirts

5. Joachim von Ribbentrop – Foreign Minister

6. Herman Goring – In charge of Germany’s war planes

7. Rudolph Hess – Served as Adolf Hitler’s First Aid

8. Martin Bormann – Replaced Rudolph Hess as Hitler’s First Aid

9. Rudolph Hoss – Commandant of the Auschwitz Camp

10. Heinrich Himmler – In charge of the SS forces and killing centers

11. Reinhard Heydrich – Head of the Security Service, the SD

* In charge of selecting the men to be part of the SS troops

* Organized them into four Einsatzgruppen (task forces)

* From there he further split them into Sonderkommandos and Einsatskommandos (special units/killer units)

12. Adolf Eichmann – Head of Reich Central Security Office’s Section IV B4 for Jewish Affairs

CHAPTER 1

Russia, September 1941

Angel generals, Deliverer and Wrath, stood in the fiery carriage harnessed to two pure, white glorious horses. They watched as the battle raged beneath them. They were hovering above the Russian landscape and the air was full of fiery carriages and horses, with two million warrior angels in heavy combat. Another two million harvesting angels in similar fiery carriages were busy gathering souls for Heaven. Heavenly horses and carriages filled the atmosphere with noise, fire and light. The angelic hosts went predominantly unnoticed by the demonic realm below and were completely hidden from the men that fought for their lives and countries.

Below, some soldiers, including men from both the Red Army and German Wehrmacht, were already surrounded by four guardian angels each. Demonic spirits rode the backs of many men, while other foul spirits, scurried here and there, directing the force of destruction. Large evil rulers watched from above, just below the angel host. They flew back and forth, their spindly wings flapping precariously, causing the air to shriek with horror as they screamed orders to their inferiors. They were aware of the angelic presence above but they were too focused on the hellish task at hand to bother ridding the sky of the opposing forces. No harm seemed to come to them and the destruction went unhindered so they ignored the heavenly host. It would turn out to be a critical mistake.

Deliverer had positioned some angels as a smoke screen, diminishing the view of the huge angelic company. The foul spirits only saw a miniscule amount positioned in the skies. They were unaware of the huge army fighting for the Kingdom of Heaven.

Deliverer pointed to groups of angels and gave orders. Here and there, angels flew with lightening speed to assist in the assignment given. Revelation angels were the first into the fray. Open visions appeared before men’s eyes. An absolute knowing was downloaded to others. Whispered encouragement to secure their eternal destiny was silently administered to other soldiers.

Demons screamed out their displeasure as angels flew in and out like lightening bolts. Evil spirits slashed out in fury with long, clawed hands. Some caught the tip of a wing, sliced into an arm or slashed across the chest or back of the large angels. It didn’t help to divert their cause. The angels’ swords caused more damage to the demonic army than what the foul creatures could inflict on the angelic host. More and more heavenly messengers filled the field of battle. The struggle in the spirit was greater than the battle between men. The mission in the spirit held greater sway than the agenda of men.

The land was filled with noise in both realms - screaming, crying, shouting, shooting, bombs exploding, men falling, lightening flashing, hideous demon flesh torn asunder, sulfuric vapor filling the atmosphere, demons impaled, angels cut, prayers uttered, Catholic men crossing themselves before rushing forward, silent prayers sent upward, dirt imploding as bombs detonated, limbs flying through the air, men falling where they stood, the earth soaking up more blood than it had ever seen before, the ground crying out it’s displeasure, demons screeching in satisfaction and then pain as angels flew by, cries of horror and then rejoicing in the skies as souls were harvested.

As men prayed in response to the visions and revelations, Deliverer and Wrath appointed four guardians to each one. They flew down speedily to surround the men who had chosen eternal life. Each man was given an opportunity before their life force was cut off. As soon as men would fall in death, either the angels guarding them or the demons in charge, would take hold of them and take them to their choice of eternity. The spirits of some men screamed in horror as a rope was tied around their necks and foul creatures pulled them down to the fiery pit.

The angelic host was busy lifting their new wards, their earthly lives ended, up through the skies and depositing them in their fiery carriages awaiting the trip to glory. It was a sudden and dramatic shift for many.

The battle below continued to rage furiously, the men oblivious to the spiritual activity all around them. The horror and terror of the demonic horde could be readily felt by all. It was the smell of death surrounding each soldier, officer and general. The sweet fragrance of life went nearly unnoticed, just as Deliverer and Wrath had planned, just as Heaven had orchestrated. The fact that life was winning the battle over death went overlooked by the blind, Hell-consumed, drunk with blood, dark spirits.

Fiery carriages left as they were filled and rushed like streaming rockets off to Heaven.

As the German Wehrmacht gained ground, the Russian forces retreated, leaving bodies scattered across the expanse. Slowly, gradually, the noise and clamor died as the darkness of night settled over the land.

Angel General Wrath turned to face his comrade, Deliverer. The newly departed will be surprised all arriving in Heaven at the same time.

Angel General Deliverer smiled. I’d like to be there to see their faces. Russian and German men dropped off in Abraham’s bosom, facing each other with no weapons in their grasp.

Wrath chuckled, It will be quite a shock for them.

That’s an understatement.

Men of war suddenly finding that their enemies have become their brothers.

Deliverer smiled wide. If Satan had known how many he’d lose to the Kingdom of Heaven, he never would have started this war.

CHAPTER 2

Krakow, Poland

Init Levin spun around her small apartment and looked at the door. The knock came again. Her hands became a knotted, wringing mess and terror filled her chest. No one ever came to her door. She spent her days locked up in safety, surrounded by a suffocating loneliness, waiting for Binyamin to return home each night. With fear throbbing beneath her rib cage she walked cautiously to the door and spoke softly.

Who is it?

It’s me, Chava.

Chava? How one name could shatter the fear so completely and cause hope to soar was amazing. Init quickly undid the lock and opened the door wide. Chava, what are you doing here? Init grabbed her, looked around to make sure no one had seen and pulled her inside.

I’m sorry, Mother. Chava looked like a wreck. She stood nervously, staring at her mother in apprehension, appearing completely unsure of her reception.

Once the door was safely bolted, Init reached for her daughter in a warm embrace. How I’ve missed you! It’s been years! She held Chava out at arms length and gazed into her eyes. Chava had aged so much. Grey shone throughout her once dark hair. Why did you come? Don’t you know how dangerous it is for you to be here? You’d be much safer with Dobry. At least he could protect you from the Germans.

He’s not safe either, especially with a Jewish wife.

But surely you’d be safer with him, a Pole, than with the Jews?

Deep sorrow and fear ground in her eyes. He no longer wants me. He sent me away. Her face twisted and she collapsed at the admission.

Init held her up and led her to the couch. Chava folded into the seat. Init took a seat beside her, held her hand and rubbed it affectionately.

Confusion wrinkled Init’s forehead. Why would he do such a thing? I thought he loved you! Init tenderly moved a lock of hair that was dangling across Chava’s eyes and tucked it behind her ear.

He was afraid. Afraid of the German’s finding out he had a Jewish wife. He said he couldn’t risk it. He told the children.

He told them what?

That I’m Jewish.

Oh… Init understood now. Chava had told her once, years ago, that Dobry had forbidden her to let that secret slip. Chava’s three children were oblivious to the fact that their mother was Jewish. Dobry’s cowardice saw to that. What did the children say?

They were appalled. Every one of them was disgusted when they learned the truth. Suddenly they didn’t want me either. They told me to leave and never return.

How could they? Init’s face contorted in disbelief.

Dobry and his family have taught them well. They trained them to hate Jews. Now they hate me too. Chava’s eyes remained dry and unemotional. She sat in a daze as if drained of all sorrow, her tears fully spent.

But you could easily pass for a Pole. You dress well, and your hair and nose don’t betray you. Why wouldn’t Dobry protect you?

Chava sighed heavily before continuing. I don’t know if you’ve seen what they’ve done to anyone with power in this city. Dobry and his family are wealthy and the Germans are determined to exterminate anyone with influence here.

Init replied, I’ve heard of the public execution of government officials. I even saw some men hanging from meat hooks once when I took the bus. They were supposedly opposing German regulations. It horrified me!

Chava nodded absently. Everyone’s afraid these days and they do things they wouldn’t normally do.

Dobry shouldn’t have treated you this way. After all, you gave him three beautiful children.

Oh, I don’t blame him. Chava chuckled half heartedly. I might be safer with you than with Dobry. His family will most likely be targeted by the Germans, unless they can convince them of their usefulness. They do have a sewing factory so perhaps they’ll be able to supply the Germans with clothes.

Init nodded sadly. Your father is serving as doctor to the Germans.

Chava’s ravaged eyes looked at her. Have they been good to him?

He’s had work for a while and we get food rations. One injured soldier died a few weeks ago the night after Binyamin operated on him. The Germans beat Binyamin and nearly killed him. I was so afraid I’d lose him. He kept going in and out of a coma that first night. I prayed and Aaron and Anka were praying for him. Two days later he came to and it was like nothing had happened to him. He still had the bruises but those healed over time. Miraculously, no other soldiers have died under his care.

I’m so glad you’re both alive! I don’t know what I would have done if I hadn’t found you.

Aaron and Anka are here in the city too but the rest were resettled and are now in the work camp outside of Krakow.

I thought I’d find you in the ghetto. I went there first but your names weren’t listed.

How did you find us?

Aaron’s name was on the list so I found him and asked him.

Yes, they were transferred to the ghetto a few weeks ago.

Life looks hard there.

How is he doing?

Okay.

And Anka and the children?

I didn’t see them but Aaron told me they were managing.

He works for the Germans.

He told me.

Init took Chava’s hand and squeezed it. She slowly glanced into Chava’s eyes. I think they’ll move us to the ghetto soon. They found a Polish doctor to replace your father and he’s heard they have quite a few German doctors now. Or maybe they’ll transfer us to the work camp outside the city.

The ghetto didn’t seem that bad.

If only life could be like it was, only I’d like you to stay.

Things can never go back. There has been too much death already and too much betrayal. Chava’s gaze was tortured as she stared at the wall, her mind far away.

I’m so sorry, Chava! I wish your life could have been easier. Init reached for her daughter and embraced her. She finally released her and sat back. I’ll get us some tea.

No. I’m so tired. I need to rest. Chava’s face appeared haggard, like she had been in a race she was ill prepared to run.

Of course! You can sleep in our bed. It isn’t very comfortable but it serves the purpose.

Init helped Chava to the bed and placed a blanket over her. She stepped to the door and gazed at her daughter snuggled beneath the covers. She smiled in thanksgiving for the precious gift that had come to her this day. She was sure Chava would remove some of the loneliness she struggled with day after day.

CHAPTER 3

Russian Battle Field

Hahn Brauer gazed in numb horror at the bodies lying everywhere on the Russian landscape. Gerard and Dieter, his comrades, were dragging some corpses away from their camp and stacking them in a grotesque pile. Arms and legs stuck out stiffly, with some bodies bloated horribly. There were spare parts spread here and there, legs and arms disconnected from trunks. The stench and sight was horrific but hopefully their efforts would ensure a livable spot for the night. Horst was spreading lime on the ground, where worms still crawled on congealed blood. Heller was tugging at the legs of a man who had fallen between two close growing trees. He looked at Hahn.

Come over here and help me!

Hahn resignedly walked toward him and pushed the dead man while Heller pulled. The body finally came free and the two men dragged it outside the temporary camp. Everywhere, soldiers worked to clear the area. They gagged, grunted, pulled and swore as they performed the grisly work.

One soldier shouted, Why couldn’t they all have fallen in one spot! They had to spread out from one end of Russia to the other! Every place we look there are more dead bodies. It’s disgusting!

Some men laughed and joined in with some smart comment in return. Hahn ignored the remarks as he helped Heller drag another dead red army soldier to the growing pile.

A group of wounded German soldiers were spread out on a clear spot of ground a few meters in diameter. They would have to be transported to safety as soon as possible. Perhaps when they reached the next town or city, they could be treated. A doctor traveled with them and he had done all he could in the primitive conditions.

I don’t know if I’ll be able to sleep tonight with this all around me, said Hahn with a sweep of his hand.

It’s horrible, isn’t it? said Heller. I’m exhausted enough to sleep anywhere though. Just be glad we’re the ones doing the corpse removal and that it’s not the other way around.

If only we had pushed the Russians back across the next town. Then we’d have better living conditions.

And Russian women to enjoy! Heller grinned crookedly.

Hahn was well aware what Heller referred to. The Germans had pillaged every town and village they had traveled through and left few women unscathed. So far Hahn had stayed away from the horrific deeds perpetrated by his fellow soldiers but he had seen enough to callous his heart to the atrocity.

Hahn began to wonder if it was worthwhile to hold on to his integrity. He never had a great belief in God. Oh sure, his parents had taken him to church occasionally but they were casual about their faith. Here, on the battlefield, everyone made up their own rules and principles. Nothing seemed completely wrong, with revenge at the root of every decision and with desire raging out of control in the ranks. The sexual abuse was done more out of hatred than desire and left the women ravaged and crying.

Hahn joined the men gathering wood for a fire. He looked forward to the smell of burning logs and sticks, anything to cover over the smell of death permeating the air.

Soon flames licked from the logs and warmth emanated through the cool of the evening. Hahn kept his rifle, a Karabiner 98k, beside him and removed a tin of food rations. He threw the can in the red coals on the edges of the blazing fire. It wasn’t much but it would fill his empty stomach for a few hours. He also removed a dry piece of bread, speared it with a stick and roasted it over the flames.

Soldiers milled around, preparing their supper, their tired faces streaked dirty with weeks of the Russian offensive behind them. None of them complained. They were thankful to be alive and progressing steadily toward Moscow. Some told dirty jokes and laughed as they ate. Others, too tired to wait for their food to heat, had gobbled their rations cold and were huddled on the ground and already snoring.

Hahn glanced at them and envied their ability to ignore the piles of stiff bodies. He carefully opened the hot tin of stew and, with his mess kit fork, ate slowly. The fatality around him only reminded him of the loss in his personal life. He forced his eyes to focus on the glowing fire before him and tried to disregard the weeping of his heart. Throwing his empty tin in the fire, he stood, Karabiner 98k in hand, and wandered to some trees, away from prying eyes. Leaning against the bark, he opened his military pack and retrieved the last letter he’d received. It was from Beata, his wife’s sister. He thought it unusual that she would write but when he had read her letter he realized why. He unfolded it and scanned it, sorrow pulling at him like a death knoll. He didn’t know why he wanted to read it again. Maybe he believed the words would miraculously change and that his life hadn’t been shattered apart.

Dear Hahn,

I understand you’d like a letter from Ilse but she’s in no frame of mind to write. I’m sorry that I have to inform you of something I wish never would have happened. My mother refuses to tell you and I know Ilse won’t so I suppose the ugly task falls to me.

I believe that Ilse still loves you. She is completely distraught with your absence and that’s why she has acted most peculiarly and unbecoming of a wife and mother. She has consorted with other gentlemen and has preferred the bars over her responsibilities to her daughter. Leaving Emma with my mother, Ilse has gone out nearly every night. I am so sorry Hahn! Ilse is pregnant with another man’s child. She has known for quite some time and I have known for two months now. She has hidden it well. Obviously she is horrified and afraid. She was so sure you’d be killed in battle that she never thought of the possible consequences. She was determined to forget the horrors of war and drown it with parties. She begged me not to tell you. She is so ashamed and remorseful. The man wants nothing to do with her, especially since she’s already married.

I’m writing and begging you to forgive Ilse. She didn’t realize what she was doing. She only did it to cover over her great fear of losing you. Please come back to her after the war. She needs you and has left her life of carousing. She’s living in the country now with some relatives. My mother is there with her. They are safer in the country. Mother says Ilse cries constantly and speaks of you, although she still refuses to write. I think it’s her guilt that keeps her from it. You can write me back if you wish. I’m still in Berlin, working at the post office.

Sincerely, Beata

Hahn crunched the letter into a ball, fury and pain tearing at his insides. He didn’t know why he kept reading it. It hurt him terribly. He hoped with each re-reading that the words would change. But it was clear now and the truth began to sink deep into his soul like gangrene. The truth had turned his disbelief into deep grief and with it came an anger stirring and boiling deep within. He despised Ilse, he hated the war and he loathed what it had done to them. His faithfulness had been trampled as if dung, his waiting fruitless and unproductive. Now his wife, the one he loved with his whole being, had betrayed him. There was nothing more to live for. Why hold on to morals and abstinence? Who was he waiting for? No one! Ilse had deserted him and he would never forgive her!

He stood quickly, walked to the fire and threw the crumpled letter into the flames, watching as the flames devoured the death knoll to his soul. Their marriage had been short lived before he was sent off to war, not even two months old. He’d been gone two years now and everything had changed. He vowed right then that he would never write Ilse again. As far as he was concerned, she was dead and gone to him.

CHAPTER 4

Russia

Two angels rushed like lightening to a spot deep in a forest. Bold and Resilient landed softly and undetected and walked to view the group of partisans gathered in a safe hideaway. The angels then hurried to a stock pile, which was well hidden and surveyed the amount of tol, the brand of TNT the partisans used, and counted the number of detonating devices. They looked at each other and nodded.

They walked side by side and stopped to watch and listen as the Russian soldiers discussed their plans. There were about ten of them, ranging in age from twenty to fifty. They had been caught behind enemy lines as the GermanWehrmacht advanced through Russia and now stayed hidden but eager to sabotage the opposing army any way they could. The soldiers were standing around a stump and studying a map.

There! That’s the perfect spot and here too. The man looked like the one in charge. He bent and pointed to another strategic area. If we blow up these two areas of the rail, we will undoubtedly throw havoc into the German shipments. He stood straight and observed his plan from a distance. He looked deadly serious as he weighed the risk.

Will it stop them from advancing toward Moscow? Concern filled the face of a young soldier.

There’s no way of knowing but we’ll do everything in our power to hinder them. That’s what we’re after.

Bold walked toward a young soldier and whispered into his ear.

I wish we had enough explosives to destroy the whole rail line from the Germany Wehrmacht’s position to Moscow! the soldier