Berlin blood

Half an hour has passed since the trial began. The first cases that were read out in the courtroom were those of a particularly cruel Nazi who regretted nothing. They were all sent to be shot, having proven guilty of the crimes they had committed. Ilsa shuddered every time the judge pronounced a sentence, and felt a tight ball of tension form inside her. She felt as if thousands of needles had been stabbed into her. She couldn’t move, couldn’t relax. — And now the defendant Gunther Richter. — The judge said very loudly. — The prosecution is represented by prosecutor Siegfried May. The defense is represented by Inspector Albrecht Jun. — Gunther was dragged towards the bars. As soon as the metal door closed, the judge continued: “Günter Richter, are you a lieutenant colonel in the German air force?” — Yes, your honor, that’s right. — Richter answered hoarsely. — Okay, then the floor is given to prosecutor Siegfried May. — Thank you, your honor. — Siegfried answered and stood up from his seat. He came closer to the bars and bared his teeth at the sight of Gunther. Ilsa couldn’t believe her eyes. Seeing Siegfried May, her first love, in front of her, she was all ablaze with strange sensations. Pictures from the past, when she was sixteen and Siegfried a little older, kept popping up before her eyes. They met through the same company and fell madly in love with each other. Their love lasted almost a year, but then one fine day Siegfried told her that everything that happened between them was a mistake; that he does not and never had any feelings; that he just played with her soul. He left her and they haven’t seen each other since. Ilsa remembered the pain she experienced during his confessions. And then she suppressed it for many years, mending her broken heart until she completely let go of the situation. And now they met again after such a long time, and even under such bad circumstances. “As you know,” Siegfried’s voice brought her out of the labyrinth of the past, “we have all gathered here to decide the fate of criminals and make the world a little more righteous and fair.” I believe that all of humanity should remember this moment. If we talk about Lieutenant Colonel Gunther Richter, then he is certainly part of the Nazi system, its element. And not the most ordinary one. He held a significant position, and as I know, he has quite a lot of sins behind him,” after these words, Mr. Maya opened the folder and began to read out data from Gunther’s reports, which he apparently obtained during a search of the bunkers. Siegfried told the court how many planes were shot down by Gunther during the entire period of hostilities. May also mentioned that at the time of Hitler’s death, Lieutenant Colonel Richter was in the bunker and was among those who tried to escape. Ilsa thought that Siegfried was too well prepared for the court hearing. She caught Gunther’s gaze again, and this time his eyes looked sadder. As if he had already come to terms with the verdict that had not yet been passed. Outwardly he remained calm, even indifferent to some extent. Ilsa knew that he was, first and foremost, a soldier. A soldier who steadfastly accepted all the difficulties of his life. Becker turned her gaze to Albrecht, but he buried himself in the sheets of paper scattered on the table, and noted something in each of them, while May continued to read out all the facts from Gunther’s service. At the end of the report, Siegfried added a few not very flattering words of his own and expressed hope for the prudence of the judge and maximum justice in the punishment for the Nazi Gunther Richter. After his speech, it was Albrecht’s turn. The inspector stood up from his seat and began to speak: — I’m Albrecht Yun. Inspector for the protection of the rights of defendants. — He looked at Siegfried. “Of course, the words that the prosecutor said have a place to be, and no one denies the fact that Lieutenant Colonel Gunter Richter, like many of today’s defendants, were participants in a bloody war that lasted for many years. But I want to say in their defense that not everyone shared the ideology and views of Mr. Adolf Hitler. Yes, of course, the evil that Germany caused to the whole world will remain in our memory forever. But let’s face it, wouldn’t you go to war on your government’s orders? Would they have disobeyed and violated the law on military service? We all know very well that as soon as Hitler came to power, disorder and chaos began to reign in Germany itself. Everything that in one way or another contradicted the party was immediately destroyed mercilessly. Books were burned, cultural heritage was destroyed, dissenting people were removed from the road. Of course, there were those who realized what awaited them in the near future and fled the country ahead of time. But there were only a few such people. The majority still remained in their homeland, not ready to change their usual life. “If Lieutenant Colonel Gunther Richter did not share the views of Adolf Hitler,” the judge took the floor, “then why didn’t he run away before he declared war?” Instead, Mr. Richter went to serve and carry out bloody orders. — Do you think Mr. Richter had the right to choose? Or the opportunity to travel outside of Germany? If he had not obeyed, he would have faced prison or, worse, execution. Your Honor, you have evidence on your desk that Mr. Richter actually ended up in the ranks of the military against his own will. You can familiarize yourself with them. The judge lowered his head into the sheets of paper laid out in front of him and began to read through the paragraphs that Albrecht had specially highlighted for him. After a few minutes, the judge looked at Richter. “Mr. Richter,” he turned to Gunther, “what is your opinion about your service?” Gunther shuddered slightly, and Ilsa saw how his Adam’s apple moved from swallowing the accumulated saliva. “Your honor,” Richter began hoarsely and excitedly, then cleared his throat and continued, “I was born into a not-so-rich family.” My life was not much different from the life of other children growing up in Berlin at that time. The beginning of my youth fell on the First World War. But then I did not understand even a fraction of all the horror that the war left in its wake. I grew up, set goals, planned for the future, wanted to start a family. In general, live like everyone else. I never wanted to get involved in hostilities, I never wanted to kill. But time passed, and the government changed. I didn’t support the party then, and I don’t support it now. And I did not go to the polls, this can be confirmed by archival records. I think you have already read all the materials, but I will say it anyway. My choices had consequences. Later, police representatives showed up at my home and showed me a warrant for my arrest in connection with my distribution of banned books. But I have never done this in my life. I had a main job and my favorite hobby was drawing. I wasn’t particularly interested in books. But they came and said that I was facing a prison term. I didn’t agree, but I mentally understood that I couldn’t challenge it. We have all been deprived of our rights. And they offered me a deal: freedom in exchange for military service. I understood that I would not be free in any case, and of two evils I chose the army. I started as a simple private, served honestly and followed orders unquestioningly. You probably want to know how I rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel? I just wanted to live. Sounds selfish, yes. But honestly. I never killed for fun, much less for the benefit of the ideology that Mr. Hitler propagated. I have never touched women, children, old people or men who are civilians. I never touched Soviet soldiers unless they threatened my life, and I never robbed ordinary people. Yes, I have no excuse. I walked for a country that killed many. But I only went because I was saving myself. I guess that’s all. — Gunther fell silent. “Okay,” said the judge, who was listening attentively to the former German army pilot. — Your answers are accepted. Wait for the verdict, and I will ask you to bring the next defendant. Gunther was taken out of the courtroom, and Ilse followed him with her gaze until the last moment, until Richter disappeared behind the doors. “His speech,” Andreas’s quiet voice came from her left, “was impressive.” If I were a judge, I would let him go straight from the courtroom. Ilse nodded, completely agreeing with Andreas' words. “Andreas, tell me,” she turned to the man, “does Albrecht have to protect anyone else?” “She noticed that Mr. Yun was in no hurry to leave the courtroom. — Yes, three more, and only after that the court will retire for a meeting and pronounce subsequent sentences. I think we’ll stay here until the end of the day. Becker looked at Siegfried, who was already ready to voice the following facts about the new defendant. “I know the prosecutor,” Ilsa said for some reason. She trusted Andreas, and she suddenly wanted to express her feelings. — Let me know how you know him? — Andreas clarified with caution. “Once upon a time in the distant past, we were in the same teenage company. -Were you close? Ilsa pursed her lips and nodded. — Yes, we were more than just friends. Then he left me. “She looked at Andreas. — Don’t think anything, Andreas, everything is in the past. Looking at him now, I am filled with only one desire: to tear that arrogant face into pieces. Andreas was amazed at this speech from the lips of the gentle Frau: “Ilse,” Andreas said softly, “I understand that you are haunted by memories that awaken anger and disappointment, but understand, you should not waste your time and nerves on a person like Siegfried.” He’s not worth your little finger. Ilsa smiled faintly. She was glad to have such support. — Did he see you? Ilsa shrugged. — Don’t know. Maybe I saw it, maybe I didn’t. Who cares? I’m not going to start conversations with him. Perhaps he will come up on his own if he notices me, but if not, then no one needs it. Andreas said nothing to this. The hearing of the next accused began. Ilsa looked towards the bars and noticed a tall man with dark thick hair on his head and aristocratic features. His blue eyes looked straight, and it seemed to Ilsa that this man’s mind was far from the courtroom. Siegfried read facts from his biography, which told a lot about the man. The officer turned out to be from the SS and held a decent position. He was charged with collaborating with Himmler, as well as with working to build concentration camps. In addition, the prosecutor May accused him of Nazism and of having the blood of thousands of innocent lives on his hands. hen the charges were read out, not a single muscle moved on the man’s face, and his gaze still remained glassy. Albrecht, in turn, voiced facts that were completely opposite from the facts that Siegfried announced. The defendant’s story began back in 1934, when he worked as a foreman at the construction of camps that had nothing to do with Nazi concentration camps. Later he was offered the position of chief of Himmler’s security, and after his death he briefly led the Fuhrer’s security. Then, when his patience ran out, he tried to escape, but was caught by the Americans. The judge clarified a lot and asked many questions, but all the answers ultimately led to the fact that the truth was on Albrecht’s side. A verbal skirmish ensued between Siegfried and Albrecht, but Albrecht quickly put his opponent under his belt, which Mr. May did not like very much. He considered it necessary to accuse Albrecht of incompetence, but the judge did not accept his words, saying that this was not relevant to the case. *** Next in the dock was a very young man with handsome features. His tenacious chocolate eyes looked at everyone in the room, and his dark hair puffed up funny in different directions. Ilsa noticed that the guy was disabled: he was missing fingers on one of his hands, and the other hand was simply missing. But, despite his inferiority, the young man behaved with dignity. His story seemed quite ordinary to Ilse, except for the loss of memory and escape across the border into Austria, where he was captured. He did not resist and surrendered voluntarily. Before his escape, he worked as an adjutant to a famous, but now deceased, boss, and until the last he tried to save the team. Albrecht cited disability and the attempt to save his comrades, as well as the man’s young age. When explaining why he went to war, the young man answered: “I didn’t know myself and the world. I’ve always been in search of my inner self, but I took the wrong road to make the world a little better.” To prove his words, Mr. Yun presented the judge with pages from the young boy’s personal diary, where he wrote about the difficult decision to go to war and the consequences of this decision. The judge took this into account. And Siegfried was not allowed to say a word. *** The rain did not stop drumming on the roofs of the houses. And only the clock hanging in the hall made it clear that about five hours had passed since the beginning of the trial. A break had not yet been announced; there were only short breaks between hearings of cases. Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled outside the windows, and dirty gray clouds looked down on the guests of the court from above. There were sometimes power surges in the room, and the sounds of the typewriter eventually began to irritate Ilsa. Because of the bad weather, Becker wanted to sleep, but she wanted even more to eat and see Gunther again. Thank God that the next and, most likely, last meeting for today was ending, after which they promised to announce a break. The last person whose case was considered was Gunther’s age. The man looked tired and exhausted. Ilsa noticed that as soon as his name was spoken, almost the entire hall immediately tensed. It is obvious that the defendant was a very important person. As befits the scenario, numerous accusations fell from Siegfried, which included treason, selling to enemies, collaborating, and divulging secrets. The judge listened to him calmly and scribbled something on a piece of paper. After Siegrifd’s loud speech, Albrecht came on stage and began to say that no secrets had been divulged by this man, that the defendant was on the spot and was hiding from his enemies, and that he did not know anything so important and secret and was not a traitor. The judge gave the floor to the defendant, who did not refute a single argument of his lawyer and explained that he was really hiding from his own people, who had been pursuing him for a long time with the goal of subsequent execution. After the defendant’s words, Albrecht showed the judge a document confirming that the soldier was not in command at the end of the war. Siegfried furiously tried to prove the guilt of the defendant, for which he received a reprimand from the judge for too emotional statements towards the defense and its accused. Ilsa, who observed all the processes, thought that everyone survived as best they could, that those who had nowhere to go went to faithful service to the Motherland. Siegfried had no idea what kind of cross people sometimes carried behind them, especially those who did no harm, those who simply had no other choice. How sad and annoying it was for her to watch the defendants who were not merciless killers. She saw regret in their eyes; they showed love for the world and everything that was created in it. She did not want them to be executed, and she could only hope for the judge’s favor. The proceedings ended and the secretary announced the end of the trial. “That’s all, Ilse,” Andreas’ voice pulled Becker out of his thoughts, “let’s go, I think the results of the trial will be announced tomorrow.” It’s too late today. Andreas rose from his seat. — Tomorrow? “Ilsa said a little sadly, standing up after the man. Andreas nodded and walked towards the exit, where other people were crowding. As soon as Ilse and Andreas were in the corridor, the man continued the dialogue: “They need to discuss all the details of the case and all the new facts that were announced today. There’s no point in us staying here. I think Albrecht will notify us. Ilsa nodded, bit her lip, thinking about something, but then finally decided: “Tell me, Andreas, can I talk to…” Andreas shook his head, not allowing the lady to finish. — Strictly prohibited. — He said firmly. “We need to go before it gets completely dark.” But Andreas did not have time to take a step towards him. Ilsa noticed how his eyes looked behind her, and wariness was clearly evident in them. She wanted to ask Andreas what was the matter, when a painfully familiar voice was heard behind her: — Well, hello, Ilsa.