War Girls Complete Collection Chapter 170

Chapter 25

L

otte instinctively stepped forward when the hospital doorway filled with German soldiers, as if she could hold up a dozen soldiers intent on raiding the ward. As far as she knew, she was currently the only prisoner in the hospital. The male POWs always got transferred to either a real hospital or a prison as soon as possible.

“God gracious, a Blitzmädel,” one of the soldiers said, beckoning to her. “What are you doing here?”

“I was captured on the fifth of August,” she stated, not in the mood to give him more details. Having heard all the harrowing stories from Mors, the safety of the patients preoccupied her thoughts.

“That long? Doesn’t matter, get out of here, before the SS comes.” He pointed his rifle toward the exit and peeked into the ward behind her back, where the mobile patients were slinking to the door into the basement.

“This is a hospital. According to the Geneva Convention…” Lotte mustered all her strength to keep from swaying.

“The SS doesn’t give a shit about anything except booze and dolls. Nurses especially. You should really come with me before they mistake you for one in that smock,” the soldier said with a shrug.

Lotte tore off her white nurse’s apron to expose the uniform she wore beneath. Panic rolled over her in suffocating waves. Her gaze fell on Pauline, the nurse girl. She couldn’t leave her to suffer at the hands of rampaging brutes. Neither could she leave without Mors/Janusz, and Peter, and all the other patients that had endeared themselves to her during the past month.

“Hurry up, girl,” the soldier said and pointed at the door where his comrades stood, cigarettes hanging from the corner of their mouths. They didn’t seem in a hurry to storm the hospital, but rather enjoyed the small break from fighting.

“Just a minute. I’ll be right out. I need to gather up my things,” she said with her sweetest smile.

He rolled his eyes at her and turned to ask his comrade for fire to light his own fag. “One minute,” he called after her.

She had no idea what to do, but she returned to the ward and found Peter approaching her.

“Get out. Save yourself. Right now,” he said, giving her a one-armed hug, before pushing her away. The certainty that she’d never see him again crushed her soul.

Out of nowhere the doctor appeared with Jan, who urgently tugged on her arm. “We can get out through the sewers, but we need time.”

“I’ll buy you time,” she said, picking up a small bundle of medical supplies to make her previous excuse look valid. Turning to Peter she added, “Take care of Jan and Pauline.”

“Go. Tell Anna I love her,” he answered and herded everyone who could walk to the door in the back of the room that led to the basement and from there into the sewers.

Lotte squared her shoulders and returned to the German soldiers waiting for her. It was one of the hardest things she’d ever done, but she was the only chance Peter and the others had at life.

“All done,” she waved her bundle at the man who seemed to be the leader and graced him with a smile. “Would you mind terribly if I took a drag?”

He grinned and handed her his cigarette. “Here you go, Fräulein.”

She made a show of puffing out smoke, almost choking in the process. Batting her eyelashes at him, she said, “The partisans treated me well, but I’m still so glad you rescued me. You’re real-life heroes. All of you.”

That compliment served to loosen their tongues and they launched into relaying all kinds of heroic anecdotes they’d experienced during this awful battle. Lotte wondered why none of them seemed to be in a hurry to rush inside and hinder the patients from escaping. There was no way they couldn’t notice how the room had emptied, leaving only the bed-bound patients behind.

“Let’s go! The SS is here!” the leader of the unit shouted and grabbed Lotte’s arm to make sure she stayed by his side. “God help those poor souls,” he murmured almost inaudibly.

“Get in.” He helped her into a Kübelwagen similar to the one she’d been riding in with Johann when they were captured. Her stomach squeezed at the thought of him.

I hope he’s alive and well.

Lotte lapsed into silence, praying that Peter and Janusz had been successful in getting everyone out of the hospital and into the sewer tunnels that ran beneath the city.

During the drive across the city the vehicle passed devastation worse than anything she’d seen before, including Berlin after the heavy air raids. Row upon row of buildings stood in flames, burning hot and bright, clouds of smoke reaching high into the sky. She hadn’t left the hospital in almost one month, and the shock at the utter destruction of the formerly beautiful capital settled deep in the pit of her stomach.