Deception - WWII Resistance / Holocaust Novel

chapter 50: playing for time

Elek grabbed my face and kissed me hard, one steeped in passion. His arms encircled me, pulling me into a tight embrace. I clung to him, digging my fingers into his skin. My body began to tremble uncontrollably. I was sobbing. We pulled apart and I took shaky, shallow breaths. He wiped the tears from my eyes with his thumbs and kissed my wet cheeks.

'What have they done to you?' I ran my fingers across the fresh scar across his cheek. He was probably thinking the same thing of me. I tried not to think about how dreadful I looked before him. 'H-how?' So many questions were going through my mind.

'Shh, Shh, don't worry about me,' he brought his finger to my lips. 'We don't have much time,' he urged.

He told me how worried he had been about me when our group had not heard from me for days. Then he told me about he had been arrested and taken to prison. Two nights ago, he, Luuk, Ellis, Lotte, Sven, Dekker, Vera and Eva had been waiting for Frederick and Lenka to arrive before beginning the meeting. They were running late, but that was not unusual.

The sound of lorries and motorcycles filled the streets. Their worst nightmare had materialised. The Germans had begun to surround the building and fill the streets. They only had mere seconds to destroy and burn any and every piece of evidence they had that may implicate not only them, but our contacts.

Flyers were set alight.

The typewriter hammered into a hundred pieces.

The printer hidden behind a false wall.

The names of the hidden children shoved into jars beneath the floor boards.

Eva and Vera's screams piercing their ears as the door was kicked down.

Gun shots fired.

Elek and Luuk had been sitting in the back, sharing a cigarette as the commotion unfolded. They stood up slowly, unsure of what they were hearing. Then it was Lotte who ran out the back door in a panic.

Elek hoisted Luuk over the wall in the alleyway. Luuk's hand reached back for Lotte's, just as she placed her foot in Elek's palm and steadied herself on his shoulders, it was too late, 'Halt!' They froze with their hands in the air as two German soldiers aimed their rifles in their direction.

'You are arrested under the suspicion of aiding the enemy.'

One by one they were all shoved into the back of a lorry.

Ellis.

Eva.

Vera.

Dekker.

Lotte.

Elek.

Sven's dead body was carried out last and hauled into the back next to them. There was foam at his mouth, s hieyes wide open, but still.

Cyanide.

They sat in silence except for the sound of Eva's sniffling.

They were separated upon arrival and then Elek never saw the women and Dekker again... that was until the torture began. They brought him to the basement where Dekker was hanging by his arms from the ceiling by chains. He had been beaten unconscious and was drenched in the blood. Then they inflicted their torment on him. When they were done, they walked him back to his cell, while he heard the screams of a woman – it sounded like Eva, but he did not want to think that. It could have been anyone.

'You'll be seeing a friend of yours,' the guard who had escorted me minutes ago had told Elek. Confused and dazed Elek questioned him, but the guard told him to be quiet. 'No questions. Keep it low. You have five minutes,' then he was shoved into the closet. When moments later, the guard had shoved me inside, he was in shock as much as I.

I ask him, why? How? But Elek shrugs his shoulders, he does not have the answers either.

'You know what they'll do when they're done with us...,' I whispered.

'They may destroy our bodies, but they'll never destroy our souls,' he held my head gently in his hands. 'My only regret is that we did not have more time,' said Elek. 'I thought I was protecting you, by not telling you how I felt. Know that I think of you constantly, your eyes, your hands, your touch...'

He brought his warm lips down to mine. But this kiss was different – it was urgent and filled with so much sadness. It was although he was telling me that this would be the last. This would be our good-bye.

There was a quick succession of knocks on the door, the light went out.

I was hauled out by the arm and marched back to my cell.

'Thank you,' I whisper and search for his eyes in the darkness. He doesn't acknowledge my speech, he pretends to not hear me. 'Who are you? Why are you doing this?' He threw me on the floor and looked me in the eyes for the first time, 'Tell no one!' 

A/N Thank you for all the recent votes and comments <3  We are almost near the end of the book, I have a couple of more chapters planned ahhh! I actually got emotional the other day thinking about how near the end is.