Page 28 of The Berlin Sisters
The family had become much quieter recently, and although Hanna hadn’t shared her worries with her own family yet, she was certain her mother would have noticed, too. Hanna also understood – the Goldmans been cooped up like chickens for so long, and she couldn’t imagine how they were coming to terms with their new life being so small. Not to mention they were probably worried about Ava having discovered them.
But they had a life, and that was what she had to keep reminding herself when she began to fret about them. It wasn’t a full life, but so long as they were safe for now, they might one day have a full life again. She would work on Ava.
‘Come on, let’s stretch our legs before we have dinner,’ David instructed his family. ‘We need to move as much as we can so our muscles don’t waste away.’
Eliana stepped aside as David and her parents walked past, and Hanna turned to her, sensing she wanted to say something.
‘Are we still safe?’ Eliana asked.
‘Of course. Why would you ask such a thing? You are as safe as you were yesterday, and the week before that.’
Eliana reached for her hands. ‘I mean now that Ava knows. Do you trust her?’
‘Yes,’ Hanna said, holding her hands in return. ‘I do trust her. If I did not? I would have moved you somewhere immediately, Iwould never knowingly put you in harm’s way. She’s just struggling, that’s all, and I imagine most of it is guilt.’
She watched as Eliana went to say something else, opening her mouth, before a loud knocking sounded out downstairs. Hanna froze, turning to her mother. The impatient knock sounded out on the timber again.
‘Quickly,’ her mother cried, as the Goldmans ran back to the attic stairs again, picking up their plates and sending some of the food flying.
Hanna ran past her mother and down the main stairs to answer the door, knowing that the longer it took them to answer, the worse the situation could be. Had her father fallen asleep? Ava appeared wide-eyed at the top of the stairs, already changed into her nightgown, her hair loose about her shoulders.
‘Papa!’ Hanna called as she ran down the last two steps. ‘Papa, someone is here!’
Her father appeared and strode ahead of her, flinging the door wide as she hovered behind, expecting the worst. But it was one of the officers they had hosted, his cheeks still ruddy from the alcohol he’d consumed.
‘Back so soon?’ her father said with a laugh. ‘If you’d wanted another brandy, all you had to do was ask.’
‘My wife left her scarf here,’ the man said, walking straight on into the house and clapping her father on the back. ‘But another brandy would have been an excellent idea.’
‘I shall find it for you, just a moment,’ Hanna said quickly, frantically looking around the room for it before he happened to march off to find it himself. Within seconds she spied a pale pink silk scarf and collected it to give him, just as a thud sounded out from upstairs.
She imagined she visibly paled at the noise, her hand trembling as she held out the scarf. ‘I must go up and check on Mama,’ shesaid, deciding not to hide her alarm. ‘That sounded as if she might have fallen. I certainly hope she didn’t have too much to drink tonight.’
That made both men chuckle, and Hanna dashed up the stairs to the sound of them joking about women not being able to hold their drink, hoping her quick thinking had sounded plausible, and not wanting to look back downstairs to make sure she’d fooled their guest. But as she neared the landing at the top of the stairs she paused, watching as Ava bent to collect an errant bread roll that must have rolled there as the Goldmans went back into hiding, tucking it behind her back. And she was only thankful that she hadn’t had to explain why a bread roll had fallen to the SS officer standing at the foot of the stairs.
‘Sorry to scare you, darling!’ her mother called out in a theatrical voice. ‘I tripped in the bathroom!’
Her mother’s voice was loud enough that it would reach the men downstairs, and Hanna breathed a sigh of relief. They’d had two near misses in one evening; how much longer could their luck possibly hold?
Chapter Eleven
AVA
The following week, Ava didn’t immediately look up when she heard someone walk into the office. She was concentrating on the document she had to type, so it wasn’t until she heard someone clear his throat, and realised that the other secretaries had stopped tapping and were now silent, that she lifted her gaze.
When she did, her stomach felt as if it were sliding straight to the floor, and she couldn’t help but think about the replica she’d been about to start – an identical second letter to pass to her father before she left for the day.
Heinrich was standing near the door, in uniform and holding a small bunch of flowers, and she could tell by the collective sigh in the office that she was immediately the envy of all the other women. He looked so handsome, and exactly as he had when she’d last seen him, with his blond hair neatly parted on one side and brushed back, his blue eyes twinkling as he watched her, his lips moving into a smile as soon as she met his gaze. Even with her recent change of heart about everything that was happening around her, she still managed to forget everything else and jump out of her chair to greet him. Just seeing him was enough to set her heart to racing.
‘Heinrich, you’re home! I can’t believe it.’
He grinned and passed her the flowers, stepping forward to kiss her cheek. Warmth flooded her body when his hand brushed her waist, and she knew her face would be bright red from his open display of affection.
‘You look as beautiful as I remembered,’ he said. ‘What a sight for sore eyes.’
Ava laughed, gazing up at him. ‘Thank you. I can’t believe you’re here, after all those months of writing letters...’
She glanced over her shoulder, noticing that no one had returned to their typing, more interested in watching what was unfolding before them than resuming their work.
