Berlin blood

Two months had passed since August’s promotion, he had already settled into his new place, and he liked it. He accompanied Himmler many places and is represented everywhere as his face. Now his duties included checking the camps. He did not do this often, however, if necessary, he checked by personally arriving at the construction site. Often this turned out to be justified, since the deadlines were not met, and once, having visited the barracks of one of the camps, he discovered that there were fewer sleeping places than expected. August reprimanded those responsible to the fullest extent. He didn’t stand on ceremony, ever. Today he must meet Himmler from a business trip, on which he went only with his secretary. He felt what responsibility lay on him and now, oddly enough, he was ready to bear it. For a week now, he has been meeting and accompanying Charlotte to her new place of work, a photo studio, in the mornings. It is small and in a safe place, so August is calm about her. The Fuhrer was always picked up separately, so the column of cars that usually lined up for their arrival was huge. It’s warm at the airport. He saw the plane landing, so he immediately ordered the soldiers to get out and wait for the Reichsfuehrer to appear. The plane landed with the deafening sound of its engines. A ramp was pulled towards the exit, Himmler was standing out of the plane, the secretary was walking on his right hand, but August did not pay attention to this, he opened the car door when his now immediate superior was walking towards him. — Hello, how did you arrive? — Himmler sat down in the salon. — Thank you. We arrived well, but we were really tired,” he closed the door and sat in the front seat, next to the driver of the car. The road was practically empty, so they got there quickly. Spring Berlin delighted with its sunshine and positive temperatures. The first buds appeared on the trees, which meant that very soon they would definitely take off their coats, and it would be summer. He loved spring, because it was summer and spring that brought August joy in life. He looked at the bird cherry and remembered how he wanted Charlotte to have its branches too: she loves bird cherry. Therefore, he, an SS officer, drove up to her house at dawn, noticed a tree and, using his small knife, which he now carried with him, cut off several branches. He then called from a telephone booth that was located directly opposite her window. He called for a long time and persistently and already thought that he had woken up Franz or Agnet, but she answered the phone and, when she saw him standing under her windows with branches of this tree, she did not immediately understand what had happened, and when she understood, the whole house laughed. Agnet and Franz, accustomed to such surprises, slammed the doors to get some sleep, since there were still two hours left before work. He quickly came to his senses; when they arrived, work began anew. Business didn’t stop him from thinking about how to invite Charlotte to move in with him so as not to have to run around every morning. Moreover, this way he can accompany her straight to the photo studio and take her back. The working day was over, he and Franz were going home. “Franz, listen, I wanted to ask you,” he stood opposite him with a serious look, leaving the office when he locked it with the key that he kept. — Yes, what? — in truth, after that conversation with Agnet, he softened and again began to treat August not only as a boss. And this made him happy; he did not want there to be discord between them. “Do you think if I asked Charlotte to move in with me, would it be okay?” “Yes, of course,” said Franz, but his gaze became heavy, he noticeably darkened, and Augustus was already beginning to think about what could have brought him into such a state. He wanted to explain: “I just wanted to invite her to live together because I love her and want to see her every day.” I’m tired of her running around every day and getting up early. Such arguments made Franz relax, although perhaps he simply pulled himself together and decided that August would not do anything bad to Charlotte. It’s not for him to worry about what kind of man he leaves her with. They walked down the stairs, and Augustus immediately noticed that there were too few soldiers in the hall. At this time Franz gathered himself and spoke: — Well, I think she won’t mind, and we won’t either. I’ll move to her room, it’s bigger…” Franz fell silent, noticing that something was bothering August. When they first left the office, it was not so noticeable, but now the half-empty room could not help but alert the man. — Something happened? — Franz looked around. — I don’t know… there are few soldiers, see? Where could they have gone? “I didn’t give any orders, maybe…” he didn’t have time to finish, Augustus rudely interrupted him. — What is happening there? Strange sounds were coming from somewhere at the foot of the stairs; it seemed that all those who should now be at their posts had gathered there. Behind the fear — Augustus clearly remembered the poisoning in the concentration camp in the first minute — came anger. The people who are at his disposal dare to violate discipline! He squared his shoulders and pursed his lips into a thin line. — Very interesting. Let’s go see what’s going on. They went down to the ground floor, where the sounds of voices became clearer. There were dressing rooms and rest rooms here, and they were now filled with people. Augustus thought that this couldn’t just happen. — What’s happening?! “August stood behind one of the soldiers and asked the question in such a way that immediately everyone in the room froze. The soldiers rustled their clothes, tidying up their uniforms and putting on their caps. — So? — August drawled angrily. “Sorry, sir…” the soldier did not have time to finish. — I don’t accept your apology! And excuses will be heard, too! You should be on duty, why are you crowding here? — He turned to one of the soldiers. — What is the procedure for changing guards? While the man—frightened, but clearly and loudly—read the order by heart, Augustus seethed with icy rage. At such moments he was like Himmler, who was able to instill terror with one look, and bring one to a semi-fainting state with the tone of his voice. The authorities gave them both confidence in the exclusivity of their right to people. — What were you doing here if everyone knows how posts change? The soldiers were silent. — Tomorrow your affairs should be on my table! Untersturmführer Franz? — Yes! August turned around and walked out. He was shaking, and in order not to lash out at anyone else, he simply went outside, breathing in the cool air. He walked up to the car and decided that he needed to go to Charlotte and let him pack his things. He knew she would be delighted with such an offer. It’s half past ten, she should be home by now. As he was leaving, he saw Franz getting on the bus. The working day is over. *** Charlotte has already gotten used to the photo studio. The small and very cozy room was flooded with sun in the morning. She entered, ringing the bell on the front door, and was greeted by the elderly owner, a kind and sweet man suited to his business. He sometimes reminded Charlotte of her grandfather, her mother’s father. Here everything was contained in an order that was difficult to guess due to the large number of little details. Two cameras, a bunch of portraits, a cash register, props and scenery that can be easily moved to places where there is more light, depending on the time of day. She really liked it here, especially compared to the work she had as a secretary. People who want to leave a memory of themselves and their loved ones rarely come sad or angry. However, today she had difficulty maintaining a professional smile. Everything had been going wrong since the very morning: she was late for the trolleybus, and, accordingly, for work, for which she was scolded by the usually calm owner of the studio. In addition, we had to stop the first session of the morning because the camera was broken and needed to be repaired. Customers quickly got tired, a queue formed, and Charlotte heard complaints about her slow work more than once. The last straw was a personable, but, unfortunately, very drunk man. Charlotte couldn’t stand people like that. They tended to argue out of nowhere and create chaos in her sunny world of perfect photographs. “Man, please sit up straight,” Charlotte still tried to collect her thoughts, whispering like a mantra: “I love my job, it brings me pleasure.” “Nooo… I… want… And I’ll sit the way I want,” the man slid down from his chair. Alcohol turned a quite nice (as Charlotte determined from fragments of phrases) pilot into a weak-willed wooden doll. — Man! I can’t take a picture of you in this position! “Well… And please,” the man finally dozed off. And Charlotte exhaled slowly and, feeling a headache creeping in, took a photo. She woke up the “pilot” with a slap in the face and, together with the owner, escorted him out of the cabin. “Uhhh,” Charlotte exhaled, approaching the cash register. — Is it hard for you? — the owner of the salon, who had previously pretended that she had offended him by being late, softened. He experienced the First World War, participated in the fighting, but he was lucky and not only survived, but also remained healthy mentally and physically. — No, it’s not hard for me, I’m just not used to such a flow of clients. “Well, I’d go back to where I worked,” the old man folded the camera and hung the “closed” sign on the door. “I would still prefer to work with you.” — Where did you work before? — the old man leaned his elbows on the table. “I worked first as a signalman, and later as a secretary for an SS officer. — SS! How did you get there? “I ran away from home, and then recruitment for signalmen and secretaries was going on almost without restrictions. “It’s not bad,” she noticed the concern on the old man’s face. “I found my love there.” Charlotte closed the cash register, counted everything in it, and went to put on her coat. “Love… love is good,” the old man concluded and shook her hand goodbye. Charlotte smiled at him and hurried home. The sister promised to tell her about her lover. On the way home, her mood kept improving, so when she ran into the living room and saw Agnet’s frozen figure in an armchair, she did not immediately tune in to her condition. The sister smoked, looking at one point, and did not pay attention either to Charlotte or to the small accident when Franz, who arrived a minute later than his sister, flew into her back. They looked at each other. — What happened to her? — Franz asked, whispering to his sister. — I don’t know, do you know? “No idea,” they stood and watched forever, but the sister apparently heard them and, turning her head, said: “Sit down, I have something to tell you,” both, obeying her voice, came up and sat down. — Agnet, what happened? — Remember I told you that I found myself a mate? “Charlotte nodded, ignoring Franz’s questioning look. “So, this guy, Arthur Lehmann… the nephew of the same Lehmann who was accused of killing the workers,” when she finished, she put out the smoldering cigarette and looked at them. — On what basis did you agree? “Franz really found it interesting.” He even beat Charlotte to opening her mouth to say something. “He came to my studio to have his uniform hemmed, and I couldn’t refuse him. “I see…” Franz was overcome with anger. Both of them, Charlotte and Agnet, cannot live without adventures. He took out a flask and took a sip from it. — You’re angry? — Charlotte turned to him. — Love is evil. Looking at you, my dear sisters, I realized this right here and now. This is nonsense, this is darkness and this is evil that must be destroyed. “I,” he turned to his sister. — I knew that you would fall in love with more than just a good boy. Make sure this doesn’t play a cruel joke on all of us,” he said this more calmly, pacing around the room. He needs to release the energy that his sister’s confession generated. — Franz, please don’t go crazy, this is not the worst thing that can happen. — Is there something even worse? — Our parents invite us to a family dinner, and from somewhere they found out about Augustus and Arthur. “What’s wrong, we’ll refuse as always, that’s all,” Charlotte leaned back in her chair. “I’m afraid they won’t accept refusal.” They know the owner of the house, they could kick us out. — What? What kind of nonsense is this? — Franz disappeared into the kitchen, only to return immediately with a bottle of wine and glasses. “I don’t know whether this is nonsense or not, but I don’t want to tempt fate,” Charlotte lit a cigarette. — And when do they invite us? “Tomorrow at eight,” Agnet motioned for Franz to pour her a drink. — Yes, I do. OK. I still thought that sooner or later this day would come, let’s accept this fight with dignity. “Come on,” the doorbell rang, and Franz immediately ran to open it. “August, what a blessing, you’re going to help us now,” Brown immediately led him into the living room in which they were sitting. — What? Why? “August had absolutely no idea what was happening. Charlotte raised her eyebrows. — August? It’s late, why have you come? “I came to ask you,” he hesitated and did not know how she would react with her current mood. — You? “I came to ask you if you would like to move in with me?” Charlotte, despite the tense atmosphere, almost giggled: he was looking at the ceiling in his stupid habit of raising his eyes from excitement. “I…” Charlotte slowly walked up and looked at him, grinning. “I agree,” she hugged him and August immediately exhaled and smiled. — Can I help you pack your things? — Certainly. Tell me, are we… — I bought a new nice apartment, almost in the center of Berlin, so don’t worry, we won’t go back there again. “Great,” Charlotte pulled him to pack his things in the room. She was putting clothes and all sorts of small things into a suitcase, and August asked: — Did something happen to you? It’s like you’re in mourning. “Well, to tell the truth, we were invited to dinner by our parents to meet you and our beloved Agnet.” — What’s wrong? — He didn’t understand why she suddenly became sad. “The fact is that my parents are against the SS and everything that happens in the country, I don’t know how they will react to our choice with Agnet.” “It doesn’t matter how, I’ll endure everything, I’m strong and don’t worry, now we’re together,” he hugged her, trying to calm down internally. Although I understood from the beating of my heart that this was impossible. — Who is Agnet’s boyfriend? — Arthur. Lehmann,” she said the name with doubt. — Wait, Lehmann, who… — Yes, August. He sighed and sat down. Yes, he didn’t think that he would encounter him again, as he did then at the admissions committee. — Okay, pack your things, we’ll sort it out. She put her things away. She hugged her sister and brother goodbye, and they went to their new home. Now Charlotte had no doubt that they were together.