Last Stop Auschwitz by Eddy de Wind

Author:Eddy de Wind [Wind, Eliazar de]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Published: 2020-01-21T00:00:00+00:00

And then a hundred more sweet words and wishes followed, stirring that great longing in Hans once again. He leapt out of bed and got dressed. It was half past three and the soup kettle had already been delivered, but he was desperate to see her, to speak to her for a moment, to comfort her and try to build up her spirits.

The door to Block 10 was open. The doorkeeper didn’t seem to be around. Hans hesitated for a second and then, for the first time, went in just like that, without a kettle. In the corridor he saw a Dutchwoman, who went to get Friedel for him. But no sooner were they standing opposite each other than the doorkeeper came sailing out of one of the rooms and started yelling. Where did he get the nerve, in the middle of the day! If she’d kept herself under control a little, it would have all turned out all right, but she screamed so much that things had to go wrong. Hans started getting nervous. Suddenly Goebel was there in front of him.

Dr. Goebel was a puny little chap in civilian riding breeches, which are not flattering at all if you have spindly legs. With his light sports jacket he gave the impression of a low-level civil servant who’s picked up something at a clearance sale. But the women hated and feared him.

Clauberg could be reasonable sometimes and would often spare a woman if she had some reason to request not being injected. But two weeks ago Goebel had appeared and seemed to have come to Block 10 as some kind of supervisor. He stuck his nose into everything and mercilessly forced all of the women to participate in the experiments. He wasn’t a medical doctor, but a chemist from IG Farben, the company that funded the experiments and had a financial interest in the new liquids. Goebel was coarse and sarcastic and had the meanness that was typical of all these people who had never learnt to lead and suddenly had power over others.

“Does the gentleman think it’s a casino here perhaps?”

Hans was not usually shy of an excuse. But in this instant hatred flared inside him. He found it so difficult to suppress and felt such an urge to kick the pipsqueak to the ground that he was only able to stammer out a few incomprehensible syllables.

“We’ll sort it out,” said the mighty one, noting down the number Hans wore on his left breast. Hans slunk off and spoke to no one about his adventure. The next morning Paul came up to him.

“Son, what’s going on? Your number came in from the Schreibstube, you have to go up to the front of the camp.”

“To the front of the camp” meant to the gate, where the Rapportführer had his office. He had to wait in the small hallway of the Blockführerstube.

Kaduk, the Rapportführer, addressed Hans: “150822.”

“Zum Befehl,” he responded. At your command.

“Überstellung Strafkommando Birkenau.”

He was being sent to the punishment detail at Birkenau.

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