April 1941
“Papa, we’re here. They live in this house. Isn’t it cute?”
The limousine pulled up outside a modest, three-story terrace on Rietschelstrasse. It was Easter, and Gabi and Heinz were on leave for a week, Heinz spending it at home in Dresden while Gabi stayed the first few nights with her father in Berlin. Frau Dorfmann had invited Gabi and her father for lunch on Easter Sunday and so, after stopping to buy a bouquet of tulips in yellow and white, they journeyed the two-and-a-half-hour drive from Berlin to Dresden to spend a few hours with Heinz’s family.
Gabi knocked on the front door. A pretty girl, about fourteen, greeted them, her eyes flitting nervously between the two visitors.
“Charlotte?” Gabi enquired.
The girl nodded. “Everyone calls me Lotti,” she said, and she motioned for them to come in.
They walked inside to hear shouting coming down the hallway from a room at the back of the house.
“I swear, if you boys embarrass me in front of a general, I’ll take a hairbrush to the both of you!”
Gabi and General Richter followed Lotti into the room where Frau Dorfmann, looking over her shoulder, shrank in horror.
“I think you’ve done a good job of embarrassing yourself, Mama,” Kurt said, grinning with a smugness that riled his mother all the more.
Frau Dorfmann quickly composed herself, drying her hands on her apron before extending an inviting hand-shake. “I hope your trip was pleasant,” she said. “Please sit down. Now you must be Gabi—well of course you are. Heinz hasn’t stopped talking about you since he arrived home.”
Gabi kissed her on the cheek, presenting her with the bouquet. “I can see where Heinz gets his fine looks; you both share the same hazel eyes and dimples.”
“Thank you, dear. Kurt’s the black sheep; he’s the only one with blue eyes.”
Gabi exchanged a knowing glance with Heinz, and his dimples appeared. Although the boy’s eye colour differed, the family resemblance was unmistakable, both being tall and athletic in build, with the same chiselled nose and cheeky grin.
The two brothers turned to the general and saluted before shaking hands.
“Good to see you again, General Richter,” Kurt said. His gaze ran over the general and he grinned. “Can’t see much of a family resemblance between you and Gabi—she must get her good looks from her mother’s side.”
Heinz rolled his eyes, Frau Dorfmann let out a mortified gasp and Gabi tittered to herself, expecting to see Frau Dorfmann clout Kurt over the head with a hairbrush at any moment.
“Yes, Gabi’s mother was beautiful but she gets her height from me,” General Richter replied.
The smirk on Kurt’s face widened. “Can I offer you a drink, General?”
“I’ve brought some wine, but it will need to breathe.” It was not one of his best wines for it was still young and required aeration to soften its structure.
Kurt accepted and opened the bottle, spilling some of the wine as he carelessly extracted the cork. “How about we have a beer while we wait for the wine to breathe then?”
General Richter nodded and Kurt left the room. He returned from the cellar moments later with a crate of beer, slamming it down on the kitchen bench beside the wine and handing out bottles to the general and Heinz.
“Get that dusty crate off my clean kitchen bench. I prepare food here,” Frau Dorfmann scolded.
“Relax, Mama. Let me drink my beer first.” He turned his back on his mother, who frowned at her arrogant son.
Kurt had always been difficult—especially after his father had deserted them for another woman. His mother had hoped that he would fill his father’s shoes as man of the house but he had neither respect nor manners around women, becoming the self-indulged larrikin that he was.
“Are you married, Kurt?” the general asked.
“Good Lord, no.”
“No girlfriend then?”
Heinz flashed his brother a roguish grin.
Kurt cleared his throat. “No one special,” he said in a flippant tone that grated on the general. Kurt took a liberal swig of beer and made a half-hearted attempt to suppress a burp. Eyes darted to Frau Dorfmann, who let the indiscretion pass, while the general took the opportunity to assert his place.
“Nothing like a sensible woman to help a man mature.”
“I agree. The problem is, I can’t seem to find a sensible one—they’re all ditzy and just want to have fun.”
The general frowned, Gabi stifled another laugh; Kurt really knew how to wind her father up.
“Do you think the wine has breathed enough?” Kurt continued.
The general nodded. “It probably makes little difference. I don’t suppose you drink much wine, anyway.”
They dined on a sizeable beef pot roast sauerbraten, served with red cabbage and potato dumplings.
“What an enormous piece of meat,” Gabi declared to Frau Dorfmann. “Your butcher certainly looks after you.”
Heinz kicked Gabi under the table and shook his head earnestly. Gabi beamed broadly at Heinz and then across at Kurt, who grinned back, oblivious to her defamatory thoughts. The small talk continued over lunch.
“Seen much action, Acorn?” Kurt asked while chewing on a piece of fat.
“Keep your mouth shut when it’s full of food. You’re still not too old that I wouldn’t take a wooden spoon to you.” Frau Dorfmann turned to her other son. “And you, Heinz, sit up straight and get those arms of yours off the table—I didn’t raise you to eat like a peasant.”
Heinz rolled his eyes but did as he was told. Gabi suppressed another giggle; she found the banter hilarious.
Kurt ignored his mother and kept on chewing and speaking. “Well, have you?”
Heinz sat upright in his chair as though making an official announcement. “Our base was attacked last week. I got a Tommy that was about to smack Gabi,” he said proudly, “and Gabi got one too.”
Gabi cringed. She had deliberately not mentioned the attack to her father fearing that he would have her transferred out of harm’s way again. She glared at Heinz.
“Mmmmm, impressive, but you’ll need more experience than that or you and Gabi will be like lambs to the slaughter on your first real sortie,” said Kurt, and he filled his mouth with a dumpling.
“You’re not prepared?” Frau Dorfmann’s eyes flitted about the table in distress.
The general shook his head at Kurt. “You should not worry your mother.” He turned to Frau Dorfmann and placed his hand reassuringly on hers. “I’m sure they will be well prepared before they are assigned any dangerous missions,” he said. “I’ll have a word with Generalfeldmarschall Kesselring. Did I mention he’s Gabi’s Godfather? Anyway, he will see to it that they are well prepared for their first sortie.” He leaned towards Frau Dorfmann and spoke softly. “Not too risky, though, I assure you.”
She smiled back but held her fist clenched.
After lunch, Gabi helped Frau Dorfmann and Charlotte clear away and wash the dishes while General Richter shared a schnapps with Heinz and Kurt in the sitting room. The women chatted in the kitchen as they went about their work, breaking into laughter every now and then as they settled into friendship and familiarity. While Gabi prepared the coffee, Frau Dorfmann drew her close and hugged her warmly.
“I never thanked you for saving my son’s life.”
Gabi beamed her affections at this kind-hearted woman. How she envied this easy-going family, their simple life and cosy home, its walls resonating with laughter.
“What’s so funny?” Gabi asked as she carried coffee and cake into the sitting room. The boys had shown General Richter a postcard that had made him blush. He hastily handed it back to Kurt.