Page 36 of The Pianist's Wife
‘So you’ve always had to hide yourself? From everyone in your family?’
Fred’s face was impossible to read, but she noticed how quickly he downed the rest of his drink before answering.
‘My father would have been the first to turn me in if he’d known,’ he said, and it was the first time she’d heard hatred in his voice. ‘If he’d so much as suspected what I was, he would have made sure I was properly dealt with.’
Amira watched Fred rise and pour himself another drink.
‘And your parents? What were they like?’ he asked.
‘My father spent his life doing everything he could to keep me safe.’ She thought of her mother then, of how proud she would have been to know that the man she loved had been able to keep her daughter safe for so many years. ‘He was a good man. I probablydidn’t appreciate it enough at the time, but he did his best after my mother died. She was the lifeblood of our family, but after she passed he tried to be the best parent he could.’
They sat in silence for a moment as they finished their meal, before Fred’s eyes caught hers, as if he’d known she was waiting to share something with him. She knew that she had to tell him tonight, especially now that they’d opened up to each other.
‘Fred, there’s something I need to tell you.’
He sat back, glass in hand, his eyes meeting hers.
‘Maxi has asked me to join him at a hotel tomorrow. It might be the only chance we have to be together.’
‘You’ve already said yes to him?’
She looked up, not prepared to lie. ‘Yes, I have.’
Fred pushed his chair back from the table and stood, his face ashen as he stared down at her. ‘You’re prepared to risk both of our secrets to be with a man who might turn you in if he discovered the truth?’
Tears burned in the back of Amira’s eyes. ‘I love him, Fred. You’re right, I don’t know what he’d do if he knew the truth about me, but I have the chance to be with him again.’ She swallowed. ‘I thought I’d lost him forever.’
Fred turned his back, and she didn’t know what he was looking at or what he was thinking until he finally faced her again.
‘If you do this, if you go to the hotel—’
‘I’ll be careful, more careful than you could imagine,’ she said. ‘I promise.’
He sighed, silent for so long that she felt as if she were breaking. ‘Then go.’
She stared at him, barely believing the words she was hearing.
‘You’re certain?’
‘I am. If the shoe were on the other foot, if I could have even an hour with Christoph...’ He shook his head. ‘Perhaps I would have done so without even thinking to seek your permission.’
‘Thank you,’ she said, wiping at her eyes. ‘Thank you, Fred. I will never be able to thank you enough for trusting me.’
‘Just make sure you don’t get caught. You’ve seen first-hand now just how much those Nazi wives like to gossip.’
Chapter Fifteen
Amira was well used to feeling uncomfortable; she’d been a Jew hidden in Germany for much of her life, after all. But walking into the lobby of the Hotel Kaiserhof and asking for the room of Mr Maxi Richter, her wedding band clearly displayed on her finger as she folded her arms, was perhaps the most uncomfortable she’d ever been. She knew that the staff would simply presume she was looking for her newly returned husband, but still, she was deeply embarrassed and trying desperately hard for her fear not to show on her face. It was so unlikely that she’d see anyone she knew, because she knew so few people in Berlin, but she couldn’t stop thinking about the wives she’d met at the concert, about how a split second of being seen could jeopardise everything. But she had a cover story – she was visiting a cousin. So long as she stuck to it and wasn’t seen doing anything inappropriate, everything would be fine.
It was late afternoon by now, because she had no way to contact Maxi and hadn’t known what time to arrive, and her stomach was a ball of knots as she was directed to the elevator, standing there while the button to his floor was pressed by the operator. And even once she was alone, walking quietly across the soft carpet and inspecting the numbers on each door, she was still a bundle of nerves.
This is Maxi, she told herself.There is nothing at all to be nervous about.
But when she lifted her hand to knock at the door and he opened it within seconds, her nerves didn’t dissipate. At least not until he took her hand and led her into the room, closing the door behind them.
‘I thought you’d never come,’ he whispered, as he leaned down to press a soft kiss to her lips.
Maxi’s hair was still damp from a shower, his skin clean-shaven and soft, and she found herself lifting a hand to press her palm against his cheek as she kissed him back.
