What Only We Know: A heart-wrenching and unforgettable World War 2 historical novel by Catherine Hokin

Author:Catherine Hokin [Hokin, Catherine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781838881825
Publisher: Bookouture
Published: 2020-05-26T18:30:00+00:00

Hertie.

Its arches and gleaming windows were unmistakeable, even in the scant minute Liese had to peer at her surroundings as she lifted Lottie from the truck.

Hertie, which meant Alexanderplatz, which meant…

‘Line up. Three-wide. Move.’

The Alex. The Red Castle. The headquarters of the Berlin Police.

Liese clutched her saucer-eyed daughter and tried not to shiver as the vivid red bricks and squat squared-off tower loomed over them. Maybe Michael would guess where they were and come. Then she remembered the night of Otto’s arrest and her advice and knew it was hopeless. Michael would risk his own life for her, she knew that instinctively, but he was bound too tight with the resistance to risk all the rest his capture would mean.

‘Round the back. Move.’

They were herded, half-running, through a door that was wide and domed and high enough to admit a carriage. Liese lurched as paving stones gave way to slick and greasy cobbles. Lottie’s arms clung limpet-tight. There was no chance of an escape, although she kept looking; there were too many guns. Barely a dozen steps and they were across the deserted courtyard and through a second, narrower doorway which led them into a corridor whose heavy wooden panelling ate up the light. Guards streamed in front of the women, slamming open the green metal doors that marched down both sides of the hall.

‘Inside. Inside.’

They chopped up the column, sending women whirling left and right. The room Liese was pushed into was dark and stank of unwashed bodies.

‘Come over here. There’s a few inches left.’

It was a cell. Liese tried to stay with room but couldn’t make the word stick even inside her own head. Tiled walls, bodies curled on a plain stone floor; one watery bulb dripping out a thin yellow circle.

Liese followed the calling voice to the furthest corner and slid down into the gap that was offered, making herself into a softness for Lottie. Within minutes, she could feel herself bruising.

‘It’s not the easiest place to push through when you’re balancing a child.’

The woman’s voice had the texture of gravel.

‘Do you have a cup?’

‘What? A cup? No. I don’t have anything. I had a case but…’

Liese was too worn out to dredge up anything more. As her eyes adjusted to the gloom, the cell’s occupants assumed more definite shapes. Women, a scant handful of children. All of them still. If they closed their eyes, they would turn into corpses.

‘Don’t.’

Liese gasped as a hand caught her chin and pulled her round. The woman was younger than her voice suggested, although her face was stretched and haggard.

‘You need to stay calm and focus on getting through. Most of us have been here for days, which is why we look so feeble. What day is it?’

‘Thursday.’

‘That’s what I thought, although so little changes in here it was hard to be sure. Well, that’s good news for you. From what we can make out, the transports from here leave on a Friday. All you’ve got to survive is one night. That’s doable, right?’

Liese managed a nod.

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