War Girls Complete Collection Chapter 314

Chapter 33: Lotte

L

otte saw everything through a red haze, but experience had told her that exploding like a barrel of dynamite never amounted to anything good. She deliberately inhaled deeply and pushed the rage from her mind. She released some of the volatile emotions rolling through her body by flexing and straightening her hands several times. By the time the big, awe-inspiring man entered the room, she was as calm as she possibly could muster.

“I hear there’s a problem?” Major Chambers asked.

“Sir, yes. My friend, Rachel Epstein, just returned from the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp and finds that this man, Herr Keller, has appropriated the farm of her parents.”

“I see,” Chambers said. “We do have a process to make these claims and investigate them… although,” he gave a short side-glance at Herr Keller, “since the mayor is directly involved, I guess it’ll be on me to decide.

“You are the young lady claiming ownership of the farm? Do you have any kind of proof?” he asked Rachel.

Rachel paled. “The entry in the land register should say so. We couldn’t take any papers when he,” she nodded at Herr Keller, “evicted us.”

“Where are your parents?”

“Gassed in Auschwitz,” Rachel said.

Lotte felt a cold shiver running down her spine. The American seemed to experience the same feeling, because his jaw tensed for a moment and he took Rachel’s registration form to read through it. “You were born in 1926?”

“Yes, sir.”

Major Chambers clucked his tongue. “That’ll be a problem because you can’t legally assume ownership until you have come of age.”

“She can’t?” Lotte asked, mouth agape.

“Not under the current laws. Fräulein Epstein will need a legal guardian to administer the inheritance for her until her twenty-first birthday.” The major looked around the room. “Maybe if Herr Keller agreed to take over guardianship of Fräulein Epstein and her sibling until she comes of age. In the meantime, I’m sure we can come to a solution.”

Rachel staggered backward, and it was only Richard’s swift reaction that kept her from falling.

“Sir, with all due respect, you can’t be serious about this,” Lotte said, doing her best to keep calm, although she wanted to scratch out his eyes, or better yet, those of Herr Keller.

“And who are you?” Major Chambers seemed amused by her brash behavior.

“I’m Rachel’s friend, Charlotte Klausen. I was the one who hid her before this devious monster found her and took pleasure in sending her to a concentration camp.”

The major turned to Herr Keller, his face not giving away the slightest emotion. “Is what this woman says true?”

Herr Keller paled but immediately recovered and shook his head. “No, Major Chambers. I don’t even know this woman with the short hair. Look at her. Wearing men’s clothing and shearing off all her hair. She can’t be a decent person and you shouldn’t believe a word she says.”

Lotte exploded in anger, and quickly reached for Richard’s arm, hissing, “Hold me tight before I strangle that lying bastard with my bare hands.” Thankfully, her brother obeyed and took both of her hands into his, clasping them together as if his life depended on it.

“Father, can you—” A lean and tall young man with white-blond hair entered the office, and recoiled when he saw Lotte. “You bitch! You have the guts to return to this place! I thought my father made sure you and your filthy Jewish friend would die in a camp!”

Lotte was grateful for her brother’s intervention. Richard wrapped his arms around her, pressing her tight against him. The burning sting of unabashed fury coursed through her veins, and despite her wobbly knees she would have jumped at Herr Keller’s son, Hans, to scratch out his eyes.

“That is not true. Hans is inventing a story…” Herr Keller tried to save his neck.

Hans might be a bully, but he didn’t have his father’s devious trickiness. “But Father… you told me yourself that she’d never forget the lesson you were about to teach her. You even lied to the Gestapo agent—“

“I have heard enough,” Major Chambers said and motioned to the soldier standing beside the door. “Take them into two separate cells for interrogation.” Then he looked at Lotte, who was still confined in Richard’s arms and said with a smile, “You can let her go now. I’m sure she won’t pose a danger to me.”

Lotte bit back a snide remark. She might be nuts but not suicidal enough to attack an armed officer of the occupying authority. “I won’t, sir.”

“I’ll need to interrogate you, too. Your friends can wait outside.”

“Thank you, sir,” Lotte said.

The major smiled. “We truly are here to help, even thought it might not seem that way at times.”

Lotte nodded, rubbing her upper arms. “You didn’t have to grab me so roughly,” she whined, pouting at Richard.

He laughed. “I didn’t want to risk a distressed lioness charging at whoever was in her way. And the snowball fight this morning showed me just how strongly you can fight if you want to.” He turned toward Rachel. “Let’s go and wait outside.”