War Girls Complete Collection Chapter 41

Chapter 15

O

ne day after lunch, they were lazing in front of the hut when voices wafted from the thick forest. Uwe raised his head in alarm and motioned for Lotte to crawl inside the hut. They huddled in the corner, scarcely hidden by the straw mattress, and waited. Lotte’s mind conjured up sounds of footsteps and images of SS men bursting through the door.

After sitting almost an hour in complete silence, they dared venture outside again. They perked up their ears, but no sounds except for the wind could be heard.

“Whoever it was, he’s gone,” Uwe said and looked up into the sky where the sun was already hanging low.

“I was so scared,” Lotte admitted as she watched the goosebumps on her arms disappear.

Uwe took a step towards her and wrapped his strong arms around her. The warmth of his body dispersed her fear and made the images of SS men in black uniforms fade away.

Instead, she became extremely aware of the pressure of his arms against her body and his masculine smell. Heat rose in her chest, sending her heart thumping faster. She tipped up her face. For a moment, their eyes locked, and then his lips were on hers in a tender touch.

Instinctively, she opened her lips and felt his tongue explore her mouth with an unrivaled urgency. The pressure of his arms intensified as he pulled her flush against him, oblivious to anything except their feelings for each other. Then he skimmed his hands down her back, and Lotte sighed in pleasure.

She gripped his shoulders, holding onto them like a drowning woman to a lifeline. This kiss, unlike their previous one, showed no signs of hesitancy or nerves. It was sweet first love between two people who had come face to face with their human frailty.

“That was close,” Lotte murmured against his cheek as his lips skimmed over her jaw.

“Yes.” He brought his lips back to hers once more, and after a lingering kiss, he hugged her close, burying his face in the crook of her shoulder. “God, I wish this war was over.”

“Me too.” She sat down on the grass, patting the space beside her. Uwe joined her, and she cuddled into his arm, letting the fear, worry, and tension seep out of her body.

“What did you want to be before the war?” she asked him quietly.

He didn’t hesitate. “A forest warden, like my father. I love the stillness. The distinctive smell of the air. The twilight under the trees. The sounds of the animals. I even love the sweat running down my back when I’m chopping up trees.”

Lotte giggled and ran her fingertips down his back. “Like this?”

“You slay me, but no, that’s even better.” Uwe kissed the tip of her nose. “How about you? What did you want to be before the war?”

“I have no idea. But I can tell you what I don’t want. I refuse to blindly follow orders, to keep my mouth shut when I see injustice, to obey rules that don’t make sense.”

Uwe grinned, but the expression carried a hint of sadness. “I’ll bet you were a troublesome youngster.”

“Possibly. My favorite time of the year was summer break.”

“No teachers telling you what to do?” he surmised.

“Exactly. My brother, sisters, and I would take a trip to the lake with my parents. Richard and I would spend the day swimming, running around, climbing trees…while my sisters gushed about boys I thought were truly awful.” Lotte sighed at the memory of happier times before the war. Ursula and Anna had been eighteen and seventeen, and it seemed all they talked about was boys.

Uwe chuckled. “Most boys in their younger years are truly awful where girls are concerned, so you weren’t far off.”

Some stay awful when they grow up

. “I miss those days.”

“Me, too. And I will miss this place.” Uwe ruffled her hair and smiled, but she could see the sadness in his eyes. “We can’t stay here. Whoever was here will be back.”

She nodded. “I wish I could talk to my sisters. They would know what to do.”

“Would you actually listen to their advice?” Uwe teased her, trying to lighten the mood that had become oppressive.

“Sometimes. I was always so independent…”

“And now you’re not?”

Lotte blushed. “I guess I still am. But I promise never to speak out of turn if I only get to see my family again.”

“Would you still help Rachel if you knew things were going to turn out this way?”

“Yes! I don’t regret helping Rachel and her siblings get someplace safe. The fact I regret is acting rashly and without thinking things through properly.” A worrisome thought entered her mind. “I hope Irmhild is safe.”

“Why wouldn’t she be?” The confused look on Uwe’s face reminded her that he didn’t know.

She glanced at him. “She was the one who stole the forms from the town hall to make fake papers for the Epstein siblings.”

“Geez. You and Irmhild faked papers?” The admiration on his face compensated her for many of the bad experiences she’d gone through.

“We did. They’re now one hundred percent Aryan. Nobody will be searching for Karin Müller and her siblings.” Lotte explained how they’d gone about producing new identities for their friends while Uwe listened in awe.

When she finished, he held her close. “I’m sure Irmhild is fine. The nuns in the convent won’t examine the papers too closely.”

“What about us? Where can we go?” The fear crept back upon Lotte as she pondered the difficulties they faced.

“What about Switzerland?” Uwe shrugged.

She whipped her head in his direction. “Switzerland? Isn’t that too far to walk?”

Uwe was quiet for a moment. “From what I heard it’s three hours by train. So maybe a hundred miles?” He looked at her dirty plimsolls and his sturdy boots. “Call it bonkers, but I believe we can make it. We could walk at night and hide during the day.”

“Four or five days to reach safety.” Lotte’s heart was thumping against her ribs. “Do you know how to get there?”

“Not exactly, but if we follow the main road southwest until we reach Lake Constance, we should be fine.”

She considered the suggestion for a long while, letting all the horrid scenarios play over in her mind. “We should leave tonight,” Lotte said, moving away from him and sitting up. A growing thrill took possession of her. They would outwit the Nazis, and once they’d settled in Switzerland, she would write a letter to Mutter and her sisters with all the exciting details about this adventure.

“Yes. Let’s return to the main road after nightfall and see how far we can get the first night.” Uwe sounded more certain of himself the longer they talked, making plans for the time they reached neutral Switzerland.

“Can you imagine not having to live with Nazis controlling every second of our lives?” Lotte beamed at him, her expression one of wonder.

“I can. Once we cross the border, we’ll make new lives for ourselves.” Uwe jumped to his feet, then he reached down and pulled her up.

“Right now, I’m happier than I have been in months.” Lotte walked into his arms and lifted her face for his kiss. She pushed up on her tiptoes to get closer to him, and he chuckled, clasping her around the waist and holding her up. When he kissed her, the world around her sank into oblivion. Uwe traced her lips with his tongue, and Lotte’s stomach did a little flip.

“We can do this,” he said after he broke the long kiss and looked down into her green eyes. “I know we can.”