Chapter 40

40

Babi's house echoed with the sound of children's voices. A joyous sound, thought Jana as she watched Michal, Yveta and Maddie rummage through Papa's old toy trunk, deciding what to play next.

Michal pulled out a wooden box. ‘Ludo!' he exclaimed.

‘Ah, my favourite when I was a child,' said Papa, as he settled himself down on the floor beside them. Michal slid open the lid, which served as the playing field and retrieved the four wooden tokens, each brightly coloured.

‘I want red,' said Maddie, snatching up the figure and holding it behind her back.

‘Well, that's decided, then,' laughed Papa.

Jana sat with Babi on the sofa, their weight causing the old springs to dip in the middle.

‘It gladdens my heart to hear your father laugh again,' said Babi. ‘The children are a balm for his soul.'

‘And for yours too.' Jana smiled.

‘Indeed, they are a blessing. Even though tragic circumstances brought them here, I am grateful for the purpose they've given me.'

Yveta rattled the dice in the cup and sent them skittering across the board.

‘Your father and his brother used to play with that very set for hours, right up till they were teenagers,' Babi said fondly, her eyes with a faraway look.

‘You must miss him,' said Jana, wishing she had known her uncle.

‘The Great War took so many.' Babi sighed. ‘Just young boys, they were. And now this madness is happening all over again.' She shook herself free of her thoughts and turned to Jana. ‘And how are you, my dear?'

‘Fine,' she answered automatically. But how was she really? It was now April, 1944, nearly two years since the assassination of Heydrich and the terrible reprisals.

Since then, she'd watched the people of Prague continue their lives as best they could, faces grim with resignation. The suppressed hatred against the Germans was poison in the veins that turned one bitter and hard and angry. People were starving, tired and overworked. The Germans demanded they work long hours in factories and transport services to keep their war machine rolling.

Her courier work had been temporarily paused because of a possible leak in their activities, but Egon would contact her again when the coast was clear.

It was also nearly two years since she and Andrej had made love in the little, old steam boat on a warm summer's evening, but she could feel his touch and taste his lips as if it was yesterday. And as each day passed, the pain of losing him scoured deeper into her heart .

‘You are not fine, my angel.' Babi laid a hand over hers. ‘Shall we go into the kitchen to talk?'

But although Jana would've loved to unburden herself, she didn't know where she would begin. Not a soul knew about her love affair with Andrej.

‘Really, Babi, I'm fine,' she repeated.

There was a loud shriek from Michal; the faces of the dice showed a double six and he triumphantly moved his token around the board, counting loudly. Jana caught Yveta giving her a surreptitious glance from beneath her long, straight fringe. The girl, now a teenager, was still wary of her but was deeply fond of Babi. She had grown tall with long limbs, and beneath her dress, a small bosom was evident. The green, floral dress she wore had belonged to Mama once; Babi had altered it on her sewing machine, taking it in at the seams. Babi had used every piece of available fabric to sew clothes for the growing girls.

Jana gave Yveta a small smile but she looked away.

After the game, they ate lunch: a potato and leek casserole. It was a wonder, Jana thought, how Babi had kept the children fed for the last two years, but somehow with her chickens and vegetable patch, she managed. Jana and Papa brought what they could from their rations when they visited.

Babi had taken it upon herself to continue the children's education, and Jana helped with reading and writing on Sundays, keeping up a supply of books. After lunch, Jana unpacked the books she had brought and spread them out on the floor. The children gathered round to look through the books and claim their next read. After some quiet time reading, the children were allowed to play with a skipping rope in the garden while Babi kept lookout from the attic window. The children had learned to keep their voices low, and Jana was amazed how they had adapted to their confinement .

The afternoon passed quickly and soon it was time for Jana and her father to catch the bus back to Prague. They said their goodbyes with promises to see each other the following Sunday. Maddie gave Jana an extra fierce hug and whispered, ‘Have you heard anything about Mama?'

Jana's heart twisted. ‘No, my sweetheart. But that doesn't have to mean bad news.' In reality, she didn't even know if Lillian was still being held in Terezin. Perhaps she had been transported elsewhere. The not knowing was terrible, but Jana held on to the belief that no news was good news.

It was early evening when the bus dropped Jana and Papa back in the centre of Prague. It was warmer here in the city so Jana shrugged off her cardigan and slipped it over her arm. As they strolled down the busy, tree-lined avenue, the boy at the newspaper stand called out the headlines, his adolescent voice breaking on his words.

‘International Red Cross approve Theresienstadt,' he shouted at the passersby, waving a newspaper in the air.

Jana and Papa exchanged sceptical looks. Papa bought a newspaper.

‘Papa, would you mind if I sat here on a bench to read the newspaper a while before going home?'

He was happy to do so and handed it to her. She couldn't wait to read the article.

‘See you later,' he said and strolled in the direction of home.

She sat down on one of the benches along the avenue and snapped open the newspaper, her eyes racing over the report: a delegation from the International Red Cross had visited the town of Theresienstadt at the invitation of Germany; the three inspectors praised the town developed for the largely Jewish community; the streets were clean and an array of shops provided groceries, including fresh daily bread. There was a school, post office and even a theatre. Culture of all types was encouraged, especially music and literature. The delegates had spoken with happy, well-dressed children and had even witnessed a well-attended football match. As proof of their findings, there were two photographs: one of smiling children in smart clothes, and one of a crowd cheering the football teams.

Jana's stomach churned. She was sick of the lies, the propaganda, the staged photographs. How could the Red Cross delegates be so easily fooled? Did they not look behind the scenes like she had done? She hadn't wandered very far to see the true conditions.

She slapped the newspaper down on the bench beside her in disgust. It was puzzling how the Germans had been open about Lidice, but were making such a big effort to promote assurance over humane conditions in Terezin; it made her uneasy, as if they were hiding something. Something big.

She thought of Lenka, who'd feared she might be transported. Jana hadn't heard anything from her friend since Andrej had disappeared. All communications with Terezin had been cut off. She didn't know if Lenka was still there or even alive. And what about Michal's parents and Yveta and Maddie's mother, Lillian? There had been no news from them either.

She heaved a deep sigh and closed her eyes a few moments.

A bus rumbled to a halt at a nearby bus stop. A dog barked behind her.

‘Hello, Jana.'

Her eyes flicked open at the familiar voice. It was Nela.

‘I saw you from across the street. What are you doing here?'

‘I'm just reading the newspaper. I can hardly believe what they are saying…'

The words tumbled out of her as she told Nela what'd she'd read about the Red Cross visit and the fa?ade put on by the Nazis, her voice full of passion and indignation.

‘It's propaganda, of course,' Nela said quietly. ‘The international press will pick it up and show the world what the Nazis want them to see. Their humane solution to the so-called Jewish problem.'

‘Oh, I know that. I saw it for myself at Terezin and told Miss Novak. She's the Red Cross lady who was with us at the time. Actually, I haven't seen her for a while…' She tailed off and cast a wary glance around her, wondering if it was all right for her and Nela to talk in public. She lowered her voice. ‘Any news from Egon?'

Nela nodded. ‘He's out in the countryside, gathering support. We have to be patient and wait for the right moment. Don't give up on the resistance, Jana; things are happening.' Nela gave the merest hint of a smile, then got up and sauntered away.