Karolina's Twins by Ronald H. Balson Page B

papers.’
    â€œâ€˜Hitchhiking? Is this true, Herr farmer?’
    â€œMr. Tarnowski lowered his head and nodded. ‘ Ja .’
    â€œâ€˜Where did you come from and where are you going, little hitchhiker?’
    â€œâ€˜I’m from Lublin,’ I said nervously. That’s what I’d heard my father tell the Nazis in our home. ‘I was going to school there.’
    â€œâ€˜I do not believe you. The schools have been closed now for more than a year.’ The officer looked at Mr. Tarnowski and waggled his finger back and forth. ‘You know, Herr farmer, I would be within my rights to shoot you right now for picking up hitchhikers that are probably Jews, isn’t that so?’
    â€œMr. Tarnowski did not answer.”
    â€œThe officer raised his voice. ‘I said, isn’t that so?’
    â€œâ€˜ Ja, Herr Oberst,’ he said softly. ‘That’s so.’
    â€œâ€˜But then I would miss my weekly deliveries of cheese and butter, wouldn’t I?’ He chuckled, and I thought for the moment he was going to let us go. But he pointed at me and beckoned with his index finger. ‘Come along, little hitchhiker.’ I grabbed my duffel and jumped down from the wagon and walked over to his car.
    â€œAddressing Mr. Tarnowski, the officer said, ‘You are very fortunate that I am such a softhearted man. Perhaps, as a thank-you for my generosity, you will deliver an extra portion this week? Ja? ’
    â€œâ€˜Oh, ja, Herr Oberst.’
    â€œâ€˜Now finish your deliveries and no more hitchhikers. I will see that the young Fräulein gets to the train station.’
    â€œThe Nazi, several inches taller than me, pointed at my duffel. ‘What have we here?’ He fished through, saw only my clothes and pictures and gave it back to me. ‘Who are you really, young lady?’ His tone was civil, but stern. ‘What is your name and where do you live?’
    â€œAt that point I figured what the hell, and I told him the truth. ‘I’m Lena Scheinman and I’m proud to be Captain Jacob Scheinman’s daughter. I’m looking for my family. They were grabbed by your soldiers, treated very rudely and taken from our home two months ago.’
    â€œâ€˜Well, aren’t you the spunky one?’”
    Catherine interrupted. “Pretty bold. At seventeen years old, where did you find that courage? How did you keep it all together? I think I would have lost it during that episode.”
    â€œI figured it was all over for me anyway. I was going to be sent somewhere and it didn’t really matter.” Lena refilled her cup of tea. “Truly, I don’t know what got into me. The officer then opened the back door to his Mercedes and motioned for me to get in. I slid into the backseat and we drove toward the northeast part of town. Just me and the colonel. The irony was not lost on me. I had just boldly asserted myself before a Wehrmacht colonel and now I was sitting in the backseat of his posh automobile, shined to sparkle like a mirror, with oblong chrome grille in the front and Nazi flags flying from the front fenders. People jumped out of the way as it rolled through town. German soldiers stopped to salute as we drove by. And here was little me, sitting on the soft leather seats by myself being chauffeured by a colonel.
    â€œThe colonel took off his cap and laid it on the passenger seat. ‘I know your father, Captain Scheinman. I briefly served with him at Galicia. He’s a good man, your father, but he’s a Jew.’
    â€œâ€˜It didn’t bother you back then, when Jews were putting their lives on the line for Germany. Now your German soldiers break into our house, rough up my father, mother and my baby brother and arrest them.’
    â€œâ€˜You best watch yourself, spunky one. Times have changed. Jews are no longer respected by the Reich.’ He shrugged. ‘It doesn’t matter whether I