Irena's War by Shipman James D

Author:Shipman, James D. [Shipman, James D.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington Books
Published: 2020-11-23T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

Escape

July 1942

Warsaw Ghetto, Poland

Irena waited in the long line to enter the ghetto. The July heat was stifling, and she sweated profusely. Although she thought she might pass out from the burning, humid sun, the moisture on her face masked the fear raging through her heart. Today was the day she’d planned so many months for.

The search at the gate was perfunctory. She knew the primary guard well, having walked through this entrance hundreds of times. He barely glanced at her documents and she didn’t even have to slow down as she passed through the entrance. She walked quickly into the crowd, losing herself in the business of the Jewish Quarter. The familiar sights and sounds greeted her: the begging, the pleas for help, mixed with the black-market salesmen and -women hawking some bread or flour they’d secured on the Aryan side of Warsaw.

She made her way toward Sienna Street, reaching the wooden footbridge over Chłodna Street that separated the big ghetto from the little one. The Judenrat had ordered the bridge constructed a few months after the ghetto was created so that traffic on Chłodna would not have to be interrupted by the passage of the Jews from one section of the ghetto to the other. As she walked along, she thought about the streetcars that used to operate here. She had planned to use them, but the Germans had ceased their operation through the ghetto as part of their crackdown on smuggling.

There was a glut of foot traffic at the bridge, a common occurrence. She waited her turn, climbing slowly, one step at a time, up to the platform and then swayed with the rest of the crowd as the shuffled across to the little ghetto. She walked the last couple of blocks to Sienna Street and found her destination: Dr. Korczak’s orphanage.

She entered the building. Adam was already waiting. He put his arms around her and held her briefly. She felt her whole body begin to tremble, a mixture of pleasure and fear.

“Hush now,” he whispered. “Everything is going to be all right. Today is the day.” His words echoed her own.

“Is everything ready?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“You’ve talked to Ala?”

“This morning.”

“Let’s go then,” said Irena. Adam turned and she followed him through the entrance and past a set of double doors into a long corridor. Adam stopped at the last door on the left. “Are you ready?” he asked.

Irena steeled herself. “I’ve worked so hard to prepare this. I am ready.”

Adam opened the door. They entered a sparse room with a single bed. A small desk and chair rested in the corner. There were a few books, a tiny closet with a smattering of hangers. Ewa was there, sitting on the edge of the bed, smiling up at her, holding a little girl’s hand.

“Kaji. I’m here.”

Kaji looked up and squealed with delight. She threw herself in Irena’s arms, holding her close. “Is today the day?” she echoed.

“It is. Do you remember everything I told you?”

Kaji nodded.

“Good. We must follow all the steps exactly like I instructed.

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