Stupid Luck and Happenstance, Thread III

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Fourteen



4th September 1967

Mitte, Berlin

Meeting with Louis Ferdinand regarding the latest awfulness out of the Balkans was not Kat’s idea of fun. It seemed like every effort to prevent that conflict had ultimately proven futile as all sides had wanted war. From Kat’s perspective, the effort to contain the conflict had only succeeded in choosing the victor. At the League of Nations, the Greek, Bulgarian and Serbian delegations had been thoroughly unrepentant over what had happened, sneering at the allegations of engaging in what was now being termed as ethnic cleansing. They had smugly pointed out that what they had done and would continue to do was no different than the French removing undesirables from their country back in the Twenties, completely ignoring the detail that even if what the French had done was right, the French hadn’t invaded France and then spent months killing everyone in sight. The Greek Ambassador had even gone so far as to say that all that was happening was the righting of a wrong committed in the Fifteenth Century by the Ottomans. The new worry was that the Greeks might be setting their sights on the remaining islands in the Eastern Mediterranean that they had historic claims to. Not even they would be insane enough to pick a fight with a nuclear power like the British Empire, or at least that was the hope.

The entire conversation had been corrosive and like everyone else, Louis had concluded that they were left with few good options in this situation. So, it was hardly a surprise that Louis had changed the subject to the return of Nella and Nan. How they had started the new school term and their Teacher being a bit skeptical after hearing their extremely fanciful version of where they had been over the Summer Holiday. He had then asked how Kat’s children were and that had been an entirely different conversation.

Kat sending her children off to another school term had been a reminder of the passage of time. Both Tatiana and Malcolm were sixteen, which meant that they could hardly be considered children anymore. Tatiana seemed intent on being contrary to Kat. While her rebelliousness didn’t seem to extend to academics, every time she had a choice to make, no matter how minor, it felt like she made decisions with an eye on what would aggravate her mother the most. Malcolm had spent a long time struggling academically due to his dyslexia and while he was unlikely to develop a love of literature his younger sister had, he had overcome many of his early difficulties. High level Mathematics were where Malcolm had discovered that he shined.

Finally, there was Marie, who Kat had a hard time not thinking of her as a small child was eleven and had grown noticeably taller over the summer. That had been clear when Kat had gone to speak with Kiki regarding the medical emergency that she had been forced to deal with back in July. There were still questions being asked about the ethics involved and this had provided an opening for her critics. Kat had been asked to help her formulate the public response. Kat had been in the middle of that conversation with Kiki when Marie had walked into the Great Hall at Hohenzollern Castle and the poised young woman that she was becoming was completely at odds with Kat’s image of her. Kat had realized that Marie was reaching an age when that poise along with her equilibrium and confidence were going to be taking a real beating. All Kat could do was hope that the often-painful process of growing up wouldn’t radically change who Marie was as a person.

The thing that Kat didn’t discuss with Louis was Suse’s longstanding fear that she would become her mother. This had been brought to a head by her getting back together with Kat’s nephew Manfred. It seemed that someone had made a few suggestions of what they could do to minimize risk involved and Manfred had apparently taken them to heart. He had grown up around his mother, Helene, as well as Kat herself, and what would happen to him if he failed to be properly respectful to women had been drilled into his head from the time he was a child. While it would be foolish to assume that Manfred had not been involved with a few girls before Suse and so far, he had handled things with her with a great deal of understanding. What he had done though… And Suse’s reaction. To her complete mortification, she had enjoyed it.

The situation wasn’t like Gerta’s tendency to give someone too much information because it amused to her. Instead Kat had told Suse that her experience was actually normal, and she had asked how Kat knew that. Kat had told Suse the truth. That when Gerta had been pregnant with her, Kat had a scare after a condom had broken which had resulted in her and Doug having to be creative for a while until she got past it. That entire talk with Suse had reminded Kat as to how big a mess she had been two decades earlier. She also had refrained from mentioning that it had been Gerta who had made several suggestions as to what Kat and Doug could be doing as opposed to what she referred to as Kat’s boring, vanilla personal life. She figured that Suse really didn’t want to know that part.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Fifteen



7th September 1967

Reinickendorf, Berlin

Spending the summer in the Hohenzollern Castle, Sophie’s return to her normal life had not been easy. There, all the girls had worn the same clothes and gone about the same daily routine, so they had all seen themselves as equals. Now she was back to being the strange little girl in the old, ill-fitting clothes who no one liked. The clothes had been her mother’s from when she had attended school twenty years earlier and Sophie had been told that she ought to be grateful that they had been provided to her.

The sun was setting which meant that Sophie was out of excuses, she needed to go home. It had gotten especially bad since she had returned from the Summer Holiday which was why she had taken to spending her afternoons just walking wherever her feet would take her. Before she had left for the castle her family had been gleeful at the prospect of having her being gone for a month. What she hadn’t expected was the icy reception she got upon returning. Her mother had been especially livid, and Sophie didn’t understand why. The first day back she tried to tell her the story about the lightning storm, how the wind had blown open the window and that had even startled Marie who was very brave… Her mother had looked at her with rage in her eyes and told that no one cared, so she needed to forget about it.

Walking up the stairs of her building, Sophie looked at the door of the apartment which her grandparents had lived in for decades. It was where Sophie and her mother lived as well, though she had struggled to call it home when she had described it to Nan and Nella. Using her key to unlock the door, Sophie eased the door open just enough to slip through. The blue glow meant that the television was on in the parlor and she could hear her grandfather grumbling about the day’s events. The smell of the cheap cigarettes her grandfather smoked hung in the air. How Jews and Communists, or whatever they were calling themselves these days, were ruining the world. When Sophie had described it to Marie, her friend had said that it sounded like her grandfather blamed everyone but himself for things. That had been when she had realized that her grandfather was an embarrassment. Her grandmother never said a word these days and probably couldn’t even if she wanted to. Sophie had once heard her mother say that she had suffered a stroke, whatever that meant.

Making sure that she was silent, Sophie moved slowly down the hallway careful to make sure she wouldn’t be seen from the parlor. The door to her bedroom was only a few paces away, just get inside unnoticed, close the door and she would be as free as she ever was here in this place. She could see that the light was on in the kitchen but couldn’t hear movement. Darting past the door to the kitchen, Sophie closed her hand around the doorknob…

Only to get grabbed by the ear and dragged into the kitchen. Sophie’s attempt to get her mother to let go caused her mother to twist her ear causing her to howl in pain. Sophie was roughly shoved onto one of the kitchen chairs.

“Do you have any idea what you’ve done!” Sophie’s mother yelled at her while waving a letter around. “You’re a goddamned wrecking ball destroying everyone cursed enough to have you!”

Sophie had no idea what her mother was talking about.

“What did you tell them?” Sophie’s mother demanded, “And don’t you dare lie to me!”

Sophie didn’t dare say a word, she knew from painful experience that once she was accused of lying then nothing she said would be believed.

“A routine medical examination on your daughter revealed that she was malnourished and her reactions in certain situations causes us to suspect abuse!” Sophie’s mother read aloud from the letter before giving her a venomous look.

“I don’t know when…” Sophie started to say, only to get slapped hard across the face, she didn’t want to but the pain and shock of that caused her to start crying. She had no idea what her mother was talking about. There had been the time that she had cut herself helping the Cooks in the castle’s kitchens and she had been brought to Princess Kristina to see if she needed stitches, she hadn’t. After that Kristina had given her a carton of chocolate milk and told her to go join the other girls. But that didn’t sound like a medical exam. Sophie had seen those on television, and they involved going into a Doctor’s office. Didn’t they?

“My God” Sophie’s mother snapped, “We give you food, but you don’t eat it. Now you see fit to lie to Doctors about your family.”

One of Sophie’s bitterest lessons revolved around food. She had eaten something without permission and had been severely punished for it. Since then she had rarely taken anything from the pantry or refrigerator. And because what passed family meals with her family were absolutely excruciating Sophie took as little as possible so that she wouldn’t have to hear about how she was a drag on them, another mouth to feed.

“You have been ruining my life since before you were born” Sophie’s mother said, “One thing after another, now this? You’re pathetic!”

Her mother punctuated that last part by hitting Sophie on the side of her head hard enough to send her sprawling out of the chair.

“Will you keep it down in there!” Sophie’s grandfather bellowed from the parlor, which caused one of the neighbors to start pounding on the wall.

“Where are your little friends now?” Sophie’s mother asked coldly to her as she lay on the kitchen floor crying, before walking out of the room.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Sixteen



11th September 1967

Waltz Research Center, Peenemünde

Sigi watched the man in a spacesuit step off the ladder from a Lunar Module on the screen that dominated the Control Center. All the members of the Raumfahrer Program presently in Germany were in this room as they watched the latest landing as the Astronaut’s feet touched the Lunar surface. Everyone heard the static filled radio transmission of “Uhm… Houston, we made it” As Commander Jim Lovell of the U.S. Navy became the first American to stand on the Moon. This was met with a round of applause by those in the room. The Americans might be rivals, but they understood the Science, how every expedition to the Moon advanced human understanding and was of staggering importance. Far more than the petty squabbles that people engaged in on Earth.

There were also jokes flying around about how Naval Aviators taken a leading role in Space Exploration. Albrecht “Uhlan” von Richthofen, Eric “Winkle” Brown, and now James “Shaky” Lovell, Jr. all fit that description. The theory was that the requirement of landing on an Aircraft Carrier caused them to have a different mindset from their Air Force counterparts. As an Army Aviator Sigi didn’t think that she had much to add to that debate until it was pointed out that her mission was dominated by conducting close air support. Army pilots were trained with the understanding that they would constantly be under enemy fire and one of their own had been the first step by mankind on the Moon. Presently, Sigi had been promoted to Oberst and appointed as Operations Officer of Waltz Research Center. Every attempt to be assigned to a Helicopter Wing had been rebuffed at a time when Sigi just wanted to get back into the cockpit of an Attack Helicopter.

Ben Hirsch had come with Kiki, who had come as his guest. While the Administration of Waltz Center normally objected to girlfriends at events like this, Kiki’s military and social rank muted any objectives that they might have had. Sigi had enjoyed a pleasant evening at her apartment in Peenemünde with them before coming here. Kiki seemed to have something weighing on her. Ben said that she was currently mired in something at work that she had been required by law to report to authorities. Sigi had overheard her mention a name to Ben, Elke Sommer, mentioned having someone watched and how things were getting worse. All Kiki would say to Sigi on the matter was that something in her past had come back to haunt her without elaborating.

That sounded like what had become familiar to Sigi. As she had gotten to know her father’s family better she had come to recognize a typical Hohenzollern clusterfuck in the making, and knew that she needed to keep out of the way. The speculation that had started in the tabloids that she was Louis Ferdinand’s secret daughter was bad enough, it was also a bit too close to the truth for comfort. If the full truth of Sigi’s paternity ever became widespread knowledge… She shuttered at the thought. Kiki wasn’t the only one with things in the past that made a reappearance. Sigi had the most recent exchange of letters with Jay Parker, the first had been just him asking how she was and if she had any plans for her upcoming birthday. She had fired back a letter to the American stating that joke wasn’t funny. He had written back that he had intended no malice, but he did have some leave coming up and wondered if Sigi would be interested in meeting him for dinner in a neutral country. If someone from intelligence services of their respective countries was intercepting those letters, then they were probably laughing their heads off at the strange long-distance quasi-relationship that they had been carrying on over the prior year.

Parker had joked that perhaps Hollywood would be interested. Unless the plot of a Long-lost Princess who happens to be an Astronaut having an affair with an Army Officer would be considered too preposterous, that is. Sigi had read that with a bit of amusement, it was becoming obvious to her what Jay was and was not including in his letters.



In transit, near Waltersdorf, Brandenburg

The new International Airport that was being constructed was off to Zella’s right as she sped down A113 towards the junction with A10, known as the Berliner Ring, which circled the city. It was that new airport that had caused a great deal of controversy and had forced the Government of State of Brandenburg to take a far greater role in land use decisions then they had prior. As the City-State of Berlin had pushed outward to its limits, the towns and villages of the largely rural State that surrounded it were increasingly becoming suburbs of the Capital, especially to the south where there were fewer natural preserves of one sort or another. The problems of traffic, pollution, and crime, long seen as urban matters had become growing issues in Brandenburg with many people questioning just how independent the Government was from the nearby Capital City. The new airport was the last straw and response had been to pass a series of laws to sharply limit growth and urbanization, though Zella personally felt that they were pissing into the wind.

After slowing to take the turns in the interchange, Zella shifted into higher gears of her new BMW motorcycle. It was a version of the Café Racer K3 prototype that she had seen in her father’s garage and it was everything that she had imagined it would be. State regulators had been reluctant to approve the design because it had gone too fast in testing. When word of that had gotten out, BMW Motorrad had not been able to keep with demand and Zella had been one of those put on the waiting list. When she finally got it, she had discovered that the engineers who worked for her father had completely reworked it and it showed as she accelerated onto the orbital highway with the throttle wide open. It was the sort of thing that John Lennon had joked with her about the last time the Moondogs had swung through Berlin. Instant Zen.

Zella needed this after what she had gone through over the previous week. Kiki had asked Zella to help document an instance of child abuse that she suspected. After spending a few days with Yuri watching that woman berate and knock the shit out of her kid, she’d finally had enough. She had given the tapes to Kiki and washed her hands of the entire thing.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Seventeen



22nd September 1967

Mitte, Berlin

Standing in a booth sized observation room as the Police interviewed Elke, Kiki watched her from behind the two-way glass and listened as she denied everything and attempted to blame her daughter in equal terms. Elke had no idea that there were tapes of her actions and while the status of those would need to be adjudicated, they were damning.

Kiki had wanted to talk to Elke herself, but had been told that it wasn’t a good idea and there were legalities to consider. Instead she got to watch as investigators got Elke to dig herself further and further into a hole of her own making. To Kiki this seemed wrong. Yes, Elke had neglected and abused her daughter as well as blaming Sophie for everything wrong with her life. There were no excuses for that. However, she had been abused, taken advantage of, and thrown aside when she had become inconvenient. Kiki still felt that Elke needed help. Arresting and prosecuting her wouldn’t serve that purpose. Would it?

Looking at Elke, Kiki had a hard time squaring her now with what she had been like nine years earlier. Back then she had come across like she had the world on a string, thinking she had found a way to beat the system by taking up with Reiner Blum, who she had been completely infatuated with at the time. She had gotten thrown out of the Medical Service for fraternization because Blum’s father-in-law had been the Commandant of the Stettin Training Depot and he had wanted her gone. Sophie being born eight months later told the rest of the story.

Kat had once told Kiki that predators knew how to spot damaged people who could easily be victimized. Many of them were shockingly skilled at manipulation and had strategies for getting what they wanted. Blum had spotted Elke and in retrospect, it was easy to see how he had been able to do that and had gotten away with it for as long as he had.

Kiki remembered how Blum had come onto her after Elke was gone, testing boundaries, and promising that he could ease her way through the remainder of training. It had ended badly for him when Kiki had done her level best to twist off an arm that was connected to a hand that had gone someplace it didn’t belong and had kicked him in the crotch so hard that Doctors had debated if he had needed surgery because of the swelling. Seeing the result of what he had done to Elke, Kiki was starting to feel that perhaps she had not gone far enough.

Finally, there were Elke’s parents.

Elke’s father was a real delight. He was more concerned about missing his programs on television than what was happening with either his daughter or granddaughter. He had commented that he had gotten more than a few licks from his long-deceased father and had turned out alright, so he failed to see what the big deal was. As in a grown man who saw nothing wrong with beating a helpless child thought he was alright. Kiki seldom felt the sort of rage that she had felt watching that interview, she had wanted go in there and give him the sort of beating that he apparently thought wasn’t a big deal. The mother had suffered a stroke few years earlier and was unable to speak, Kiki doubted that she would have anything positive to say if she could.

Unable to watch any more, Kiki left the observation room and to her surprise, Charlotte was waiting for her outside the door.

“You have pursued this as far as you can Kristina” Charlotte said as they made their way towards the exit flanked by bodyguards. Charlotte clearly had her doubts about if Kiki would leave willingly. “This is the part where you need to let it go.”

“But it isn’t over yet” Kiki replied.

“Yes, I agree” Charlotte said, “Your involvement is though.”

Kiki had never known Charlotte to be this firm about any issue. Leaving the building as walking towards the waiting car, they were silent.

It wasn’t until they were seated that Charlotte spoke again. “You are new to this sort of thing” She said, “When I was starting out, I had someone with far more experience than me say almost the exact same thing I told you.”

“I’m not a Social Worker” Kiki replied looking out at the passing city street.

“What you do isn’t so different” Charlotte said, “You found yourself in a position where you were obligated to intervene, and you did it to the best of your abilities. While your methods were questionable, you got the least bad outcome.”

Kiki heard that with some disbelief. Was really the best they could do?

“What happens to Sophie?” Kiki asked.

“She is in a safe place” Charlotte replied, “I was able to see to that myself.”

“Good” Kiki said.

----------------------------------------------------------------

The house was huge, and Sophie found herself walking up several flights of stairs before her guide opened a door.

“She only asks that you tell her about your day and that you follow the basic rules at first” The old woman said with an odd accent. “When you are ready, more will be expected.”

Sophie followed the old woman into a bedroom that smelled of dust and stale air. She had been hearing about the expectations of the Lady of the house and it sounded bleak. Having to explain herself daily? That sounded painful.

“You will be happy here” The old woman said, “Dinner will be in a little bit, I’ll send someone for you.”

With that the door closed and Sophie had never felt more alone in her life.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Eighteen



7th October 1967

Tempelhof

Everyone so rarely got together anymore because they all had busy lives. That was why it was special as they arrived at Kat’s house for a dinner party. As Anne observed as she entered the front doors, the house had taken on a comfortable, lived in feel. In addition to Kat’s family, Asia and her little boy still lived here along with Josefine and Suse Rosa. Asia remained the Mistress of Keys and still played the role as one who carried out the will of the Empress. Helene and her daughter had arrived earlier that day. Anne was a bit surprised to learn that Ina was going to university, studying Veterinary Medicine. It was a perfect fit, just Anne had always considered Helene’s daughter to be a bit too flighty for serious fields of study.

Gerta had been splitting her time between Berlin and Prague these days after overseeing the expansion of her production company to the capital of Bohemia. It had turned out that there was a demand for Czech language programing with high production values and Gerta had seen an opportunity. Presently, Gerta was talking at Kat the way she always had, and it was noticeable that Suse was staying as far away as she could from her mother without actually leaving the room.

Ilse’s husband was back at sea and it was fortunate that she was now the Head of the Environmental Sciences Department at the University of Breslau. Somehow, her son Nikolaus had gotten the idea in his mind of attending the Prussian Training Institute in Wahlstatt like his father and grandfather had before him. She and Helene found a great deal to dislike about that particular idea. The situation wasn’t helped by Niko’s best friend, Sabastian Schultz getting caught over the prior Summer Holiday after engaging in some rather creative vandalism. Tilo and Nancy had managed to keep him out of the Juvenile System, but it had been recommended that a boy with Sabastian’s clear intelligence, energy, and creativity be sent to where those could be channeled into less destructive ends. Wahlstatt had been at the top of the list.

It was nice to see that Kris was doing well. She was now the Headmistress of the secretive Falkensee School, where BND Field Agents were trained. Anne wasn’t supposed to know about that, just as she wasn’t supposed to know that Kat’s daughter Tatiana had approached Kris to talk about the requirements for entry. Kat would be absolutely livid if she ever learned that had happened, which was probably Tatiana’s intention. Leni was still the Director of the Berlin Library’s Rare Books Department. The annual grants that came from the Royal Houses of Germany into the Library System due to her presence insured that she could do what amounted to her dream job for as long as she was interested in keeping it. Over the last two decades Leni had cataloged and preserved some of the oldest and rarest manuscripts in the world. The top floor of the New Central Library Building had been designed to house the collection that she and her team had amassed.

Anne still maintained her boring routine. Seeing her children off to school in the morning. Then banging away at her typewriter for several hours before preparing a meal that she would eat with the children when they got home. Then helping them with their studies if they needed it. Eventually, Martin would come home. Later on, after the children were asleep Anne would open the latest volume of her diary and chronicle the day’s events.

While her friends were out in the world doing exciting things, Anne wrote about it. Her husband Martin’s novel had been a modest success, something that surprised him as much as anyone. While he still needed to go to the Accounting Firm every day, he could joke that it was his day job until he got his big break. Standing around the parlor and library, everyone was having an enjoyable time when Anne saw a pair of brown eyes and pale face peek around from the stairs leading up to the bedrooms. She had heard that Kat had taken in a new little bird who had gotten lost.

“Why aren’t you with the other children?” Anne asked as she approached the girl and joined her sitting on the stairs.

The girl didn’t speak, she just frowned and rested her chin on her knees.

“I’m Annelies” Anne said, “And you are.”

The girl looked at her, unsure how to respond.

“Sophie” The girl said at not much more than a whisper.

“Wonderful” Anne replied, “Lina is your age, why aren’t you playing with her?”

“Lina?” Sophie asked.

“Yes, my daughter” Anne replied. Something about that caused Sophie to withdraw into herself. Anne remembered that the girls that Kat took in didn’t come from the best of circumstances otherwise they would still be with their own families.

“I’m sorry” Anne said, “I didn’t mean to be so forward.”

“They’re strange” Sophie said, “Marie wants everyone to make-believe, and everyone has a different idea of what they are supposed to be.”

Anne understood Sophie’s reaction. The games that Kat’s youngest played in would be completely incomprehensible to anyone who hadn’t grown up understanding the rules.

“That is just the sort of thing that Marie does” Anne said only to see Sophie get a confused look on her face.

“She didn’t do that at the castle” Sophie said.

Anne didn’t laugh, the girl would probably take it the wrong way if she did. She had heard about where Marie had spent the Summer Holiday.

“Marie was living her fantasy at the castle” Anne said to Sophie’s wonderment.

“Found a new friend?” Kat asked as she rounded the corner.

Sophie cringed and tried to make herself smaller. Anne realized that she thought Kat was going to hit her.

“We were just visiting” Anne said as she put her hand on Sophie’s shoulder and felt her trembling and whispering. “No one here is going to hurt you Sophie” into the girl’s ear.

“I’m sorry Anne” Kat said, “Every time Sophie thinks she’s in trouble she does this.”

“There is no need to be sorry” Anne said, “Sophie just needs to learn that she now has a whole bunch of crazy sisters who will stand with her no matter what.”

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Nineteen



13th October 1967

Jena

Friday falling on the 13th of a month was considered unlucky by some. Peter Holz had always considered that superstitious nonsense but the events of the last day might make him rethink that with so much happening at once and Peter had unexpectedly found himself with a house full of people to contend with on what he had expected to be a quiet Friday evening. He already had one guest, but then his mother and two of his nieces had shown up.

Ernesto Guevara had drifted back Jena as he tended to do whenever passed through Europe and he was a guest in Peter’s house. This time the Argentinian Doctor was coming from Siberia where he had plied his trade in the mining camps and boomtowns over the summer. Like always, Ernesto had a lot of stories to tell because even if a Doctor was always welcome that didn’t mean that a lot of astonishing things didn’t happen.

Peter had found himself contending with his mother’s health issues over the last few years. It wasn’t that she wasn’t in good health considering, it was due to her age that these things were to be expected having recently celebrated her ninetieth birthday. The result of that was she that had a catalog of problems that needed to be addressed.

Marcella Marie Holz nee Fuhrmann had been born in Erfurt in 1877, eventually marrying Hugo Holz, a Book Binder, in 1898 and she moved with him to Jena when he was offered an opportunity to ply his trade with the University. Her first child, Emil, had been born in 1900, followed by Peter three years later. Peter might use the term “Irish twins” used to describe himself and Elina, who had been born less than a year after him. Beate had been born two years later and her difficult birth had meant that she would be the last.

That had been how things had gone until Emil had run off and joined the Army when he was fifteen. Elina and Beate had been unsuccessful in love with their first marriages falling apart with Beate had moved to Australia shortly before the Soviet War to get a new start. Hugo had died in 1947, and she had been forced to move out of her house a decade later because her failing eyesight made it difficult to care for herself.

Presently, Peter’s mother was having a good-natured argument with her namesake granddaughter, the one who remained stubbornly unattached. In recent months there had been a fair amount of speculation about Zella’s love life in the gossip rags due to her career as a documentary film maker making her a minor celebrity. It seemed that there was a young man who had been linked romantically with Zella according to those rags, but she had denied it and Peter’s mother had asked her what the problem was. Zella had just shrugged and had not answered the question. Peter knew the truth, why Zella had not been interested in being in a relationship after what had happened to her when she was younger. He understood, but really thought that his niece needed to get on with her life.

Peter’s other niece, Beate’s daughter Theresa was visiting from Sydney and she just smiled just smiled and listened. Theresa was enjoying being free of her own commitments for a couple weeks having left them on the other side of the globe. The few times that Peter had met Theresa’s children he had found the way they had spoken incomprehensible and he had thought that he was fluent in English.



Trieste

Louis watched as the city faded in the distance before disappearing over the horizon. After more than a year in the Adriatic, SMS SK-12 Windhund was returning to Kiel for refit. When she put to sea again next spring, she would have a different Captain and it was likely that most of the crew would have been dispersed around the Fleet by then as well. It was with a bit of regret that Louis left, there had been no fanfare or celebration with their departure. This was because the entire crew was aware of what had happened and the role that they had played in it. He had been particularly disgusted by the Greeks. They had seen nothing wrong with the wholesale slaughter that had taken place and in Louis’ mind their “victory” had epitomized the old line about Roman Legions creating a desert and calling it peace. It had been a profound relief when he had received orders recalling him to Fleet Headquarters in Kiel and for the Windhund in for refit. He was expecting a posting on the Staff of the Grand Admiral at the Headquarters of the OKM. That meant that he had several boring months as the Grand Admiral’s dogsbody to look forward to.

Thinking back to the charts he had studied before they had departed, Louis knew that they were going back the way that they had come. Across Europe via the rivers and canals. It was an advantage that the Windhund had in being as small as she was, and it would make for a fast transit. He didn’t know what sort of reception they would receive in France. The French seemed to delight in being contrary, especially when a unit of the High Seas Fleet was involved.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty



29th October 1967

Kiel

Another Sunday, except this time Louis was not looking forward to reading the announcements this morning. The crew were not going to be happy about this latest development. It seemed that sometime in the prior weeks the Reichstag had passed a new Naval Law. They had finally succeeded in doing what the British, Americans, and Japanese could only have dreamed of doing in the process ending tradition that went back nearly a century. Louis understood their reasoning, but it felt like a punch in the gut.

Standing on a crate in the warehouse with the crew gathered, Louis read the first of the notes. He figured that he ought to lead with the good news first, the crew might not be as interested in listening after he read the bad news.

“You have all earned seventy-two hours leave, starting at the conclusion of these announcements” Louis read aloud, “All men are encouraged to make full use of the facilities available in this port. You are also advised to avoid public drunkenness and amoral behavior.”

That last line drew wild applause. Louis figured that the first two things that the crew intended to do in Kiel were get drunk and find a brothel.

Louis then flipped to the next announcement.

“Effective immediately, His Majesty’s Ships Preussen, Brandenburg, Rhineland, and Baier are to be stricken from the Fleet Registry” Louis read aloud, and the celebratory mood of the crew vanished in a heartbeat. It wasn’t a part of the announcements, but everyone knew that once the last three Battleships and Battlecruiser’s names were stricken all that was left was to be towed to the Breaker’s yard. “Tonight, raise a glass to the Grand Dames of the High Sea’s Fleet, may they never be forgotten. That is all.”

With that Louis stepped off the crate and walked back to the Windhund. There had been a lot of hope when the Battleships had been pressed back into combat during the Sino-Korean War. However, it had been concluded that it was down to the singular efforts of Christoph Hase in recognizing the opportunities that he had been presented with. It had turned out that conflict was to be the swansong of the High Seas Fleet’s Battle Line.



Halle (Saale), Anhalt

The patent had been brought into the Emergency Department with two broken legs and a broken arm. According to a Police Officer who had been on the scene, someone had deliberately run him down with their car. That was sort of an occupational hazard of what the patient did in working for several legal firms and he was all too well known to Kiki in that capacity.

“I am sorry Sir, but due to a conflict of interest I cannot treat you” Kiki said to the man, Gregor, who had been waiting in the examination cubical. “You work directly for people suing me and you came in here questioning me. Remember?”

“What the Hell is that supposed to mean?” Gregor demanded.

“After what you did in this Department a few weeks ago, there might be the appearance of me wanting to make you suffer and we don’t want that” Kiki replied, and the look on his face suggested that as soon as she said that the implications of his prior actions were sinking in.

“You can’t just make me wait” Gregor said his voice taking on a whining tone.

“This says that it has been determined that you can” Kiki said with a cheerful smile as she pointed at the yellow tag that had been pinned to the front of his shirt by the Triage Nurse. “I would suggest that you not wander off in the meantime.”

“You are really funny” Gregor said.

Kiki just shrugged. “Ever heard the one about not pissing off the cook?” She asked sweetly.

A few weeks earlier Gregor had told Kiki he was a Private Investigator working for the Legal team representing Elke Sommers, he had had a lot of questions and his timing had been terrible. Suing her for her actions was a recent development, that was on top of the subpoena that she had received calling for her to be a witness at the criminal trial and apparently it was all by design. She had been treating a hysterical patient, a housewife who had burnt her hands badly after a cooking mishap and had not liked the interruption in an already fraught situation. Later, the Counsel that Kiki had retained had explained that because the case against Elke was on shaky legal ground, exactly where the right of a parent to discipline a child cross over into assault being what was being argued. The tactic that her defense was using was to file lawsuits against everyone involved so that adjudicating the case became a nuisance for the Court. The trouble for them was that the involvement of Kiki sort of threw a wrench in the works, so she had been the first target. Doctor Holz had told her that it would be nice if the law had allowed her to remain anonymous after she had reported the abuse, but that wasn’t the case. Perhaps some good would come from the publicity that her name would attract.

With a bit of exasperation, Kiki headed for the Nurse’s station and called the head of the Emergency Department to explain her situation. Gregor would only be waiting a few minutes and he was not in danger of dying. If there was anything hospital administration understood it was the need to keep up appearances.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty-One



31st October 1967

Prague, Bohemia

Going window shopping in the Bohemian capital when she should have been at her office working was a distraction that Gerta needed today. It was also Halloween, Gerta had always loved the idea of a holiday dedicated entirely to frivolity and fancy dress without any formal rational. It was too bad that it wasn’t a thing on this side of the Atlantic. Gerta had tried to make it one with Suse Rosa when her daughter had been a child but like with so many other things, Suse had been eager to outgrow it as she got older.

At a time when Gerta was enjoying continued professional success. Moving from acting to production had been a good move, ensuring her longevity in a fickle industry that preferred youth. Yet increasingly she was finding that it didn’t make up for the difficulties of the rest of her life.

Kurt had risen to command an Army Corps, one that he had needed to build from the ground up in a project that he was doing with Michael of Bohemia. Her son Alois was continuing to pursue his interest in the Culinary field, an apprenticeship in Prague was but the first step. The quibble that Gerta was starting to have was that neither of them really needed her. It was however the relationship, such as it existed, with Suse that was weighing most heavily on her.

The last time that Gerta had been in Berlin, Suse had tried to avoid her. Then Gerta had found out the reasoning second hand, from Kat no less. Learning what Suse had done with Manfred was a bit of a surprise. Gerta would have assumed that she would have picked the most boring option beyond doing nothing at all. Considering how up tight she was, it was a wonder that Suse’s head hadn’t exploded or burst into flames. Kat had then told Gerta that she needed to respect her daughter’s boundaries in this case.

Josefine had also been present that night, Kat’s ward and Suse’s best friend who was in the process of squandering several incredible opportunities. She was an incredibly beautiful woman who Gerta had offered to represent if she were interested in acting or modeling. Josefine had said she wasn’t interested which left Gerta flabbergasted. Seriously, who didn’t want to be a star?



Near Jassel, Poland

“Did it ever occur to any of you idiots that those other idiots in Warsaw just did you a favor?” Olli asked out of frustration.

The delegation from the Galician Freikorps had arrived at his farm that evening and they had borne the news that Erwin Bachmann and his favorite lackeys had been arrested by the Polish State Police. Amusingly for disturbing the peace.

Ever since the massacre in Krakow Generallieutenant Bachmann had been giving everyone a lesson as to exactly why he had been passed over for promotion by the Heer until he had left of his own accord. He was good at coming up with tactics on the fly, but when it came down to brass tacks, Bachmann wasn’t the great leader he imagined himself to be. Olli had seen over the prior year how he had alienated the political leaders of the Galician Independence movement at a time when they had the sympathy of the majority of the Empire. Events like the Moon landings had caused the public to forget all about what was happening in what they regarded as a backwater, much to the relief of Warsaw.

That internal squabbling had kept the Warsaw Government firmly in control of Galicia and Ruthenia. The Galician Freikorps was formidable in theory, being composed of veterans largely from the Heer and Luftwaffe, but it seemed like all they were known for was posturing and making the occasional nuisance of themselves. That was why Olli had quietly managed his farm and gotten on as best he could with his neighbors rather than getting caught up in the madness that occasionally flared up in the cities. Olli had seen what had happened in Spain when he had been involved with putting an end to the civil war there. The republican faction had been more intent on fighting with each other than with right-wing nationalists who would have cheerfully had them all lined them up and shot.

“How is losing most of our leadership doing us a favor, Sir?” A man from the delegation asked, clearly angered at what Olli had just said.

“Exactly what was Bachmann’s plan anyway?” Olli asked in reply, “Did you expect that you could show up wave your dicks around and the Government would give you your heart’s desire because you are so fucking awesome? And what were you going to do afterwards? Make Bachmann the King of Galicia as you attempt to throw out anyone who you don’t like, like those assholes in Greece?”

There was some grumbling among the delegation and the man who had spoken nervously shuffled his feet. Meaning that Olli’s interpretation of their plans was mostly on the mark.

“We weren’t planning on making Bachmann King” One of the men said lamely.

“Does he know that?” Olli asked. He had observed many times over the last few years that Erwin Bachmann’s ego knew no bounds.

“Whatever, Sir” The loudmouth who was doing most of the speaking said. “Just what exactly are we supposed to be doing?”

“Ask what’s left of your leadership” Olli replied, “Even Bachmann didn’t consider himself so indispensable that there isn’t a chain of command. Who is next down the totem pole and what not?”

The loudmouth gave Olli a confused look. “But that would be you Major Bauer” He said.

Olli noticed that the men of the delegation were all looking at him expectantly.

“Fuck” Olli muttered. Bachmann had better hope that Poles killed him, because it would be nothing compared to what Olli would do to him if he ever got the chance.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty-Two



4th November 1967

Pawiak Prison, Warsaw, Poland

It was odd for someone like the Interior Minister of Poland to visit such a place. However, Mieczysławm Moczar was humming to himself as he walked with his bodyguards through the corridors of the prison. His critics might accuse him of having come here to gloat, because of course he was going to do exactly that. The man locked in the cell was just the first of many who he hoped to throw into here in the near future. This man had threatened to start an armed insurrection inside Poland so that Germany could once again force a fourth partition on the country just as an independence movement was finally gaining steam. What else could they be planning now that the Soviet threat was a generation in the past? As if flooding Southern Poland with all manner of riffraff did not make that clear. There was also the easy alliance that the same riffraff seemed to be forging with those people who infested the cities to consider as well. History always informed the present, no one should ever forget that. Moczar figured that after a few days locked in the dark would have Erwin Bachmann in the right frame of mind.

Standing outside the cell and looking through the bars, Moczar could see that Erwin Bachmann’s jailers had not been gentle in their treatment of the General. Then, those who ended up in a place like this were here for a reason and it was very few people’s idea of a destination resort.

“I thought I smelled something foul coming this way” Bachmann said when he looked at Moczar through eyes that were nearly swollen shut.

“I am prepared to be generous with you” Moczar said ignoring what Bachmann had just said, “You will be returned to Germany if you promise to never return and give your cooperation in…”

Bachmann started laughing at that. “You honestly think that you’ve won anything?” He asked once he stopped.

“You are one of the leaders working on behalf of your puppet masters in Berlin” Moczar replied, “Removing you from the equation is a victory.”

“I’m nobody’s puppet” Bachmann said, “But if I were at least I wasn’t Stalin’s until it became politically inexpedient. All that nationalistic twaddle hasn’t erased that.”

Moczar glared at Bachmann.

“As I was saying, give your cooperation in disbanding your organization” Moczar said, “Before there is any more violence.”

“My men aren’t unarmed students in Krakow” Bachmann said with a smirk. “If I start singing your tune, they will disregard it, so you can fuck off.”

“I hope you enjoy rotting in this cell then” Moczar said coldly, this had not gone how he had thought it would.



Jena

When Ben had entered Kiki’s house in Jena, he found her laying in her bed and she was a completely despondent wreck. Far worse than usual. He had known that once again, Kiki had been taking the weight of the world on her shoulders. It was something that people seldom thanked her for but that that had never stopped her from trying. The trouble was that it only took small personal matters to cause her to come apart at the seams when she was like this. Vicky had informed him that it was a fairly major event that had occurred this time and that he needed to be understanding.

Hera, the ill-tempered calico moggie who had been with Kiki or Vicky since they had been children had died during the night a week earlier and Kiki was just beside herself. She had always been more than just a cat to Kiki. While Hera was an unholy brute to nearly everyone else, she had been the closest thing Kiki had to a friend during the loneliest portions of her childhood. Hera had managed to live to a great age, small consolation for Kiki who was mostly focused on yet one more personal loss. This one coming at a time when she was already troubled by recent events seemed like a low blow.

Prying Kiki out of her bed and into a shower was a herculean effort by Ben and Vicky. She still had obligations and the excuses that Vicky had been giving Kiki’s employer weren’t going to work if it ran into a second week. Ben found himself sitting with Kiki in the bathroom while Vicky was getting fresh clothes for her. She had a towel wrapped around her and Ben couldn’t help but noticing the small pale circular scar on her left shoulder from a vaccination she had received years earlier.

“All I do is complicate your life” Kiki said, “Why do you put up with it?”

“Because I sort of fell in love with this amazing girl who moved in across the alley” Ben replied.

“Do I know her?” Kiki asked.

“Quite well, I would assume” Ben replied as Vicky came back into the bathroom.

“We need you to be somewhat presentable” Vicky said as she threw clothes at Kiki. “Franz is coming for lunch today.”

With that Vicky rushed back downstairs.

“I cannot believe she’s going through with that” Kiki said as she dressed. “Vicky and Anna think that they can fool the entire world. That sort of thing eventually falls apart and I am worried about her.”

This was the first time that Kiki had told Ben her opinion about her sister’s impending marriage.

“Why don’t you tell her that?” Ben asked.

“I have” Kiki replied as she frowned at herself in mirror, seeming to be unhappy with what she saw.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty-Three



24th November 1967

Wahlstatt, Silesia

They had just finished listening to the Prussian Training Institute’s Headmaster explain the basic overview of the school’s history and current syllabus. Manfred could see from Ilse’s face that she would need a lot more convincing.

“Things might look the same but many of our alumni find that the school is run somewhat differently than when they attended” The Headmaster, a portly man stuffed into an Oberstlieutenant’s uniform said to Manfred and Ilse, “It is a real shame that your husband couldn’t be here today, it would be a thrill for the students to meet him.”

“Albrecht is currently aboard the Lilienthal and will not be back for another two weeks” Ilse said as they left the Headmaster’s office. “We are getting him for the holidays this year though, which is good.”

They walked past a wall that Manfred knew was covered by the framed photographs of famous alumni of this school. There were plenty of photographs of men in military uniforms, but unlike when Lothar and Albrecht had attended this school decades earlier those were now outnumbered by men in three-piece suits and white lab coats. Doctors, Lawyers, Politicians, and Captains of Industry, Manfred realized. The expectations for what the students would do later in life had changed.

A photograph of Albrecht was front and center while Manfred’s had been pushed to the side. He was wearing a bright orange spacesuit and holding a helmet. A brass plate tacked to the frame read Kapitan-zur-See Doktor Graf Albrecht Siegfried von Richthofen, 1932-1939. The last part being the years he had attended. Manfred realized that it would probably include titles Kurfürst and Admiral in the future as Albrecht continued to climb the ladder and they got around to updating it.

“We are particularly proud to have a man like your son as a graduate of our school” The Headmaster said to Manfred, “He went on to University and has done important things. We encourage all our pupils to follow his example.”

“I see” Manfred said as they walked away from the photographs.

“These days academics are our main emphasis and the standards are quite rigorous” The Headmaster said, “I am sure that your husband has told you stories about how this school was run when he attended, but we have had to change with the times.”

It was obvious to Manfred that the Headmaster was pandering Ilse to a degree, though the well-practiced way in which he was giving this tour suggested that there was a great deal of truth behind what he was saying.

“My son Nikolaus wants to come here because his friend Sabastian is next year” Ilse said, she was keeping her voice neutral. Manfred knew that she wasn’t thrilled with the idea of Nikolaus attending this school. “Bas was referred here after he got into trouble, as in nearly getting arrested.”

“You must mean Dietrich Schultz’s boy” The Headmaster replied with a chuckle. If Manfred had to guess he would say that the Headmaster must have read up on Ilse, who her friends and relations were. “We understand that not every boy is well suited to a traditional classroom. A bit of structure and discipline might be needed, or they might excel on the athletic field given a chance. School records indicate that you were quite the athlete in your youth Herr Kurfürst.”

“Among other things” Manfred replied.

“Yes, and your climbing to the top of the church steeple has become legendary” The Headmaster said, “Not that we have ever encouraged our students to engage in such exploits.”

“Did the records say how much trouble he got in for doing that” Ilse asked.

“As a matter of fact, they do” The Headmaster replied.

“Tell me more” Ilse said, finally interested in something she was hearing today.

It seemed that the school as an institution remembered a bit more than Manfred would have preferred.



Tegel, Berlin

The Systems Operator/Bombardier had two jobs aboard the Pfeil. Running the fire control system, the actual aiming of the rockets and bombs and the electronic countermeasures, which hopefully prevented the airplane from getting blown to bits in the meantime. Oberlieutenant Wilhelm “Wim” Franke frequently compared it to juggling chainsaws while on roller skates. It seemed to him that every time the technicians from Arado came around, the systems grew just a bit more complicated and he needed to figure them out all over again.

Presently, Wim was sitting in the cockpit of Black Knight III reading the guidebook. Ben was seated in the pilot’s seat as they waited for the alert that hostile bombers were inbound, and they would need to defend the City of Berlin. Wim could easily point out the absurdity of that. While they might pick off a bomber or two if they even managed to get off the ground, the city was going to get glassed by missiles that couldn’t be intercepted. The truth was that having them sit out here all afternoon was the Commander of SKG 18’s way letting them know who was boss and for the Government to show the taxpayers that their money wasn’t going to waste. Glancing up, he saw the passengers in the Terminal Building looking at them across the runway. Seeing the big Fighter-Bombers parked on the tarmac was a real thrill for them. Word was that SKG 18 was going to be moved to Berlin-Brandenburg International when it opened and the land Tegel was on would be a new suburb like had happened to Tempelhof a decade earlier. At least it wasn't raining.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty-Four



2nd December 1967

Cape Town, South Africa

The cake had been a lovely addition for after dinner.

Denise Darvall certainly thought so as she listened to the radio while helping with doing the dishes. It had been her mother’s idea and though just getting it had turned into quite an adventure. They had gotten trapped in the bakery by a police action that had been happening just outside. It seemed that a man under the influence had driven into oncoming traffic and had created a real mess outside. When the police pulled him out of what was left of his car, he was astonishingly unhurt. He was also completely plastered. Denise was reminded of how God supposedly loved drunkards and fools, the driver had certainly was both of those things. The police had dragged him off to dry out.

Over dinner, Denise’s father had mentioned that there was talk of making drunk driving a crime unto itself. “What if you or your mother had been in the street when he had come careening down it?” He had asked and he did have a good point. Landing in the hospital and being unable to go back to work for months, or worse, were awful thoughts.

It was then that the radio station that Denise switched from music to a news bulletin. The lead story was about how a young Carpenter had fallen off a roof and had suffered a major head injury that had killed everything about him that made him, him. A team of surgeons wanted to attempt a heart transplant and felt that he would be an excellent donor. It was not without controversy because the Carpenter was colored and the man who would be the recipient was white. Regardless of that, it did sound an incredible feat of medicine if they could pull it off.



Mitte, Berlin

Sitting in his office, Louis Ferdinand was listening to Katherine as she explained the intricate project that she was currently involved with. He could already think of several questions that would need to be answered.

“An airport is not built for the present capacity” Katherine said, “It has to be built with the projected capacity several years from now in mind. The new Berlin-Brandenburg Airport will be a major Airline hub when it opens next year. Focke-Wulf-Dornier, Arado, and Junkers have all selected it to be the site of their assembly centers as well.”

“How far out are you projecting?” Louis asked, “Ten years from now, 1977?”

“More like 1997 or even 2007” Kat replied, “The land around the new airport was purchased with expansion in mind if number of passengers increase beyond current projections.”

“I see” Louis said, thinking about the implications of that. “What do those companies gain by having all three of them at that location?”

“Scale, less duplicate effort” Katherine replied, “The latest designs out of Boeing suggest that a plane carrying three hundred or more passengers could take to the skies within the next few years. We need to have an answer for that when it happens and all three of the companies that I mentioned have different ideas of how to go about that.”

“And about Tegel?” Louis asked.

That was the key question in all of this. Everyone who had any inkling of how the Tempelhof Project a decade earlier had played out was concerned that Katherine was once again planning on using this to massively enrich herself. Louis would have told them not to worry, it was already far too late to stop her this time. Even if she weren’t playing as direct a role this time, it was obvious that she had financial ties to all the companies that would be working on the project. However, if the city benefited from Katherine’s machinations Louis saw no reason to complain. Still though, he did not want there to be any surprises.

“Just were exactly do you fit in?” Louis asked.

“To began with, my brother is excited that his favorite Football team is getting a new pitch out of this” Katherine replied, “Hertha BSC has been playing at the old Olympic Stadium which only seats around twelve thousand people. That was good in 1936 but the team is a bigger deal now.”

“That is all well and good” Louis said, “But not exactly what I was asking.”

“I am not interested in having the sort of exposure I had during the Tempelhof project” Katherine replied, “The consortium that is giving proposals to the city is mostly composed of universities and business interests.”

“And who better than a Fürstin to coordinate the effort of varied interests that might otherwise be at odds” Louis said.

“If you knew that already, why ask the question?” Katherine asked.

“I was interested in seeing how you would answer it” Louis replied.

“All of this is a part of your legacy” Katherine said, “Think about how different Berlin is, and will be by the time you retire, from the way it was at the end of the Soviet War.”

Louis knew that quite well. At the end of the war there had been gaps in the skyline where Russian bombers had gotten through the city’s defenses and entire blocks had been leveled. Now with Berlin reaching the limits of its outward expanse, it was starting to be built upwards. That was a real challenge considering the sort of ground that it was built on.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty-Five



17th December 1967

Mitte, Berlin

The displays of multicolored lights, smell of cinnamon, and Nella’s unfortunate tendency to overindulge defined the Christmas season. This year was proving no different. Kiki had spoken to Charlotte about Nella doing that and it seemed that there was something about the Holiday Season that caused her little sister to lose all control. It was noticeably something that Nella didn’t do the rest of the year and no matter how much Kiki attempted to get her to moderate her intake of sweets, Nella always managed to eat enough to make herself sick.

The annual outing to the Christmas Market had grown over the years. It had originally been just Kiki and Nella. Then Nan had tagged along last year. This year, Marie Alexandra von Mischner and Sophie Sommer had joined them as planned with Louis Junior joining them at the last minute. Kiki had spent the night before visiting with Suga who was chafing under the ironfisted rule of Doctor Nora Berg who was determined to see the latest addition to the family born healthy. Nella and Nan had been watching all this unfold with wide-eyed amazement. Kiki had been surprised to learn that Berg was rather different when she was dealing with two eight-year-olds, patiently explaining to them what was going on in terms they would understand.

The impending birth was just one thing that Kiki’s father intended to talk about on Christmas Eve during his radio and television address this year. There was also the announcement of Victoria’s wedding as well as the who is doing what where. Rea was regarded as something of a complication. Just how inclined was she to go along with the whole thing? Kiki was concerned about Victoria because she feared that the whole thing might come tumbling down. It was all too easy to imagine that Rea might enjoy running the wrecking ball. Kiki’s father had resorted to the most effective and time proven means of keeping Rea on side, bribery. Not by offering her money, that would have offended her, instead he had publicly backed one of Rea’s causes even if it created a diplomatic headache in the process. Of course, Kiki found it incredibly strange that Norway would get so bent out of shape over the mere suggestion that whaling should be regulated. Not only was that not a radical notion, but there was a growing consensus that the practice should be stopped altogether.

That was how Kiki found herself once again watching Nella gorge herself on sweets and feeling the weight of the jar of ginger root in the pocket of her coat knowing that she would need it soon enough. She had gotten to know the kind Russian woman who had sold it to her extremely well over the last few years. This year Kiki had bought several other items from her as well. At first, she was surprised at just how many of the preserves and pickled items contained medicinal value, but then when she had a chance to think about it, Kiki remembered that there was a tradition of folk remedies that went back centuries.





Silesia

Niko’s cousins were coming in a few days, until then he had the house and grounds all to himself and he intended to make the most of it. When everyone else got here, it seemed like someone always wanted in on whatever Niko had going. It wasn’t as fun once that started happening. Squeezing the trigger of his rifle, Niko saw a puff of dust from the plywood backing the paper target. This afternoon, he was out shooting at targets, the cold was making his fingers numb which was a distraction. The slate grey sky and low clouds suggested that it might snow, which was both good and bad depending on how the grownups reacted to it.

The hunting rifle had been an early Christmas gift from Opa. It was chambered in the same 6.5 x 38mm cartridge that the military used, and Niko was still getting used to how it kicked harder than the old rimfire rifle he had used up until now. He fired at the target before working the bolt and ejecting the cartridge. He wasn’t nearly as good as his cousin Manny, but Opa had told him that Manny had gotten as good as he was by practicing a lot. To emphasize that point, Opa had given Niko earplugs and a large box of cartridges and told him to work at being as good as his cousin.

While it was a fun gift, Niko was aware of why he had gotten it early. Opa was happy with his interest in going to school in Wahlstatt and it was basically a bribe.

When he had learned that Bas was going to be going to school at the same one that Poppa and Opa had attended it had seemed like an opportunity. Living with Bas all the time as opposed to only seeing him during holidays because he lived in Flensburg had sounded fun. It hadn’t been until his father had returned that he had figured out that this was another case of failing to focus on the details that Opa had warned him about.

“For the first time in your life, you have a momentous decision to make” Niko’s father had said, “While the choice is not yours alone to make, what you want will be a part of it. Just understand that you are old enough to understand that your choices can have real consequences.”

His father had then described his own time at that school and Niko had realized that being with Bas there would not be fun and games. Particularly because Bas saw his getting sent there as a punishment after that little stunt that he had pulled with the paint and the giant ship’s screw that was part of a public monument in the center of Flensburg. According to Bas, he hadn’t done anything that most people looking at that monument hadn’t thought to themselves while looking at it. He also couldn’t figure out how they had known he was the one who had done the deed.

Where exactly did that leave Niko? As much as he had complained in the past about having his parents make all the decisions for him, having them tell him that he needed to make one for himself made a complete mess of things. It is so unfair, Niko thought to himself.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty-Six



24th December 1967

Tempelhof, Berlin

It was late at night and Sophie couldn’t sleep. The house that she had been living in was bewildering and the Holiday Season added a surreal element that made it feel like a fever dream. Tomorrow, they were going to Opa’s house according to Marie. She said that Sophie would like him because he was kind in a stern kind of way a good Opa was supposed be, he always liked to teach them new things and that his house was like a huge hunting lodge. He also had a pack of dogs and liked to go hunting every day, which was logical if he lived in a hunting lodge. That was outside Sophie’s experience, her grandfather had ignored her most of the time and had only become animated when her mother had made enough noise to make watching his television programs difficult. She prayed that this new Opa would be better than that.

For her entire life Sophie had thought that the sort of Christmas celebration that she had seen on television was a fantasy, an unobtainable ideal that didn’t exist in real life. The big meal and presents, elaborate traditions. She had stopped asking about it when she had done so once too often and learned that it was a swift way of getting her mother’s wrath. “All that shit costs money we don’t have” Sophie remembered her grandfather remarking towards the television after her mother had gotten through with her while she had been cowering in the corner of the parlor.

That was why it had been shocking to see how the family that had taken her in celebrated the holidays. They went all out with decorations and there were dozens of gifts under the tree. Sophie had been completely mortified to discover that some of them were for her. What had she done to deserve any sort of gifts over the past year? Her mother had always told her that bad little girls didn’t get anything, and that the Krampus was far more likely to visit them than Saint Nicholas. So, she should be happy with how she had roof over her head and food in her belly.

Sophie wiped her nose with the sleeve of the red and black checkered flannel nightgown that had been a gift from Kat and Doug earlier that night. She had tried to give it back, but Kat insisted that she try it on. Then Sophie had noticed that it was too large on her and Kat had said that made it perfect for her to grow into. Feeling restless, Sophie threw the covers off her and climbed out of bed. The floor was cold on her bare feet as she padded out of her bedroom. All she found was a sleeping house though she did notice light coming up from downstairs. When she reached the stairwell, she could hear faint voices below.

Walking down the stairs to the garden floor, Sophie walked through the formal dining room and peered into the kitchen. Julia the senior Maid, her husband Serhiy the Cook, were talking with the Butler, whose name Sophie didn’t know and Darya the junior Maid who had recently arrived from Russia. All of them were talking rapidly in a language that she didn’t understand and were playing a game of cards. Just then a hand closed on Sophie’s shoulder startling her.

“Shouldn’t you be asleep?” Petia asked.

“I couldn’t sleep” Sophie said, fearful of the Russian woman’s reaction. She ran Kat’s household and was not afraid to met out punishments, usually in the form of extra chores with Kat almost always backing whatever she did.

“I can help with that” Petia said, as she led Sophie into the kitchen and sat her down on one of the chairs at the kitchen table. Sophie heard the clank of a saucepan being placed on the stove as she watched the card game unfold. The entire game, Julia, Serhiy and the Butler were passing a bottle of a clear liquid whenever they thought Petia wasn’t looking. Darya just smirked and took a sip from the can of orange Fanta. Eventually they were caught and Petia said a few sharp words in Russian as she took the bottle away.

A few minutes later, Petia came back with a cup of hot chocolate for Sophie. “Drink that all down” She said, and she watched expectantly.

It did smell good, chocolate and cinnamon mingled, so Sophie didn’t mind. She couldn’t help but noticing a bitter aftertaste once she had finished it. A minute later, Petia came back from putting the pan in the sink and joined in the conversation. It was with a bit of glee that Sophie noticed that Petia was making no move to send her back up to bed. It didn’t matter that she couldn’t understand what they were talking about, just being here was fun. Still, after a few minutes, Sophie noticed that her eyes were getting heavy and…

----------------------------------------------------------------

Taking the girl back up to her bedroom was easy enough. They all lived on the top floor, so it was a stop along the way.

Boris was carrying Sophie up the stairs as if she weighted nothing. While the Siberian wasn’t a particularly large man, he was extremely powerful physically. Petia had seen him crush walnuts with his fingers. Formerly of Russian Airborne Forces, Boris had come to Berlin on a lark after he had gotten out. He had found himself unexpectedly getting married to the daughter of one of the Russian sisters and had needed a job that fit his skillset. Becoming the Butler/Bodyguard in Katya’s household was a good fit and she was paying him more than enough to secure his loyalty.

Darya was a bit different. She was Petia’s granddaughter and she was working as a Maid in Katya’s house while she went to University in Berlin.

Both of them had discovered that there was seldom a boring moment in this house.

“What did you give her to fall asleep so fast?” Darya asked.

“Warm milk with chocolate and cinnamon” Petia replied, “With something additional to speed it up a bit.”

“The vodka your Granny took away from us” Boris said.

“That was because you and Serhiy were over doing it” Petia said, “You know how Katya feels about drinking to excess.”

“You gave the child vodka” Darya said, “I think that the Fürstin might have a bigger problem with that.”

“Keep your voice down” Petia said, “Katya speaks Russian, always remember that and it was just a little bit, it won’t hurt the girl.”

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty-Seven



31st December 1967

Mitte, Berlin

The ballroom of the Old Winter Residence was brightly lit tonight. While Kiki’s family hadn’t lived in this drafty old mausoleum for the last few years, it was still used for functions like this. For lack of anything better to do, she was attending her father’s New Year’s Eve gala as the last minutes of 1967 ticked down. Fortunately for her, her closest friends had accepted her invitation to come with her, otherwise Kiki would be spending the evening here talking with Rea or else back in the apartment watching television with a trio of eight-year-old girls. They had reached the point in the night where everyone had tired of dancing and most of the conversation had petered out. Everyone was checking their watches and wishing that midnight would get here already so that they could go home.

Benjamin had done to get drinks, leaving Kiki with Zella and Aurora. Kiki couldn’t help but noticing that Zella was giving Margareta looks that suggested that she was thinking of inflicting serious bodily injury on the Romanian Princess. Across the room, nineteen-year-old Margareta was blissfully unaware of that as she was laughing at something that Louis Junior had just told to her. Like always, Zella said that there was nothing going on there, but her obvious jealousy suggested otherwise.

Aurora found Zella’s antics amusing as Paul, her date tonight, was completely tongue-tied over who he was surrounded by at this event. He had been extremely nervous earlier that night as he had been introduced to Kiki. It had only gotten worse since as the ballroom was full of people most people only knew from television or magazines. He probably was a perfectly functional adult at the office job he worked with Aurora in Hamburg, here he was very much out of his depth. Paul seemed more like a friend to Aurora rather than a romantic interest, Kiki wondered why he had agreed to come to something like this in first place. She figured that Aurora must have talked him into it because she didn’t want to come alone.

Ben arrived back a minute later, with a drink in each hand. More of the sickly-sweet rum punch that seemed to be the only thing available besides Champagne. Kiki found that the alcohol made her head swim while giving her a sugar rush at the same time. With how the crowd around her was downing them, she would have thought that someone would have had a medical emergency of some kind. That would be better than the tedious conversation.

“Remember when we were children and you always wanted to be at this party” Kiki said to Zella who gave her a dirty look.

Back then, they had spent New Year’s Eve in the suite of rooms that had belonged to Kiki that were in a different wing of the Winter Residence. They had played records, ate junk food, and watched television until midnight then they threw open the windows and watched the celebration that was taking place in the Berliner Lustgarten outside the palace and the Opernplaz just across the river. That seemed to have been much more enjoyable than what they were doing tonight.

It was then that they were saved by the band falling silent as the windows were opened and the lights were dimmed. Everyone could hear the crowd gathered outside as the final minute was counted down. At the stroke of midnight mortars set up on barges that were floating on the river started firing. Bright multicolored explosions filled the night sky. Inside the ballroom there was the balloon drop and the air was filled with paper confetti. Just as Ben was leaning in to give Kiki a kiss, she got a bit of the confetti in her eye and the burning of it blotted out all else. In trying to do something about it, she dropped her glasses and they were instantly lost among the feet of the people crowded around her.

Kiki tried to hide her exasperation, she was only seconds into 1968 and it already sucked.



Near Jassel, Poland

There was pounding on the door, which was not how Olli liked to wake up. A glance out the window revealed that it was the predawn hours. Cursing under his breath, he wondered why any sort of crisis couldn’t seem to ever happen during civilized hours.

Opening his door, Oli looked out at three of his men. They had remarked that having him living so far out from the city presented a lot of difficulties for the Freikorps, not realizing that his stubborn refusal to leave his farm meant that they wouldn’t bother him unless it was something important.

Most days, men from the Freikorps would show up at the farm and Olli would end up lecturing them about how idiotic their organization was or some such. Every few days Olli would grudgingly go into Krakow to see what they had been up to. There had been swift changes that he had seen over the last few months. The standardization of weapons and a complete inventory of resources they had available had been desperately needed. They had people who knew how to go about doing that, so beyond Olli telling them to get to work, he had not needed to do more. He had also told them that having them be an exclusive club served only the interests of Warsaw. There had been some question as to what he meant by that. Olli had explained in short words that the Polish Army didn’t give a shit if they were German, Ruthenian, or even a Pole. Didn’t the massacre in Krakow prove a damned thing? All they knew that was you were in front of their guns. Olli had been a bit surprised that he had been listened to and the ranks had swelled with people who had wanted in. Where Bachmann had commanded a few thousand, Olli had found himself commanding an entire Division in an Army that he had never actually joined. Probably more than a few spies from Warsaw had been taken in in the process, but so far no one had done anything stupid, so they were likely to be extremely bored. An ironic surprise was the number of Jews who had entered considering the history of such organizations.

This morning, all of Olli’s efforts in keeping anyone from doing anything stupid seemed to have come undone due to events far outside of his control. The day before there had been a pogrom in Lwów that had been sparked by comments made a few days earlier by that bastard Moczar. It didn’t take a genius to see that the forces put in motion were coming for them next.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty-Eight



6th January 1967

Mitte, Berlin

After the staggeringly disappointing ending of New Year’s Eve, her and Ben on the floor trying to find her glasses while everyone around them had no idea what was going on. Kiki had decided that she needed to find different company before she lost her mind. Spending a couple days with her youngest sister and the sisters of sorts who had joined her had been nice, but then Charlotte had decided they needed to talk and that had upset the applecart. Presently, Kiki was in the company of someone she knew would listen attentively and not try to offer unwanted help in return.

“So, Poppa is traveling to Vietnam to celebrate the Tet Holiday with the Emperor of that country” Kiki said, “Vicky is accompanying him this time so we will have the house in Jena all to ourselves.”

Rauchbier looked up at Kiki with his ears perked up because she was talking to him, wagging his tail happily. He was wearing his red sweater and had boots on his paws the way he did every winter. It was something that caused everyone they encountered to talk about what a handsome boy he was. Kiki had gone running in the Tiergarten and had taken Rauchbier with her, the cold winter air had been invigorating as she had run through the park. Eventually taking a break, Kiki was sitting on a bench talking to him. Her bodyguards were keeping a respectable distance, the First Foot had gotten wise to her and had shifted their tactics to make it a lot more difficult for her to outpace or otherwise ditch them.

Tomorrow, Kiki was celebrating Orthodox Christmas because the Metropolitan of Berlin had made a point of inviting her. The next day she would be heading back to Anhalt to resume her internship. She had five months until the second State Examination and would be one step closer towards meeting her ultimate goal. Charlotte had asked her what she planned to do once she got her Doctorate and was licensed to practice medicine. And Kiki didn’t have the faintest idea. For decades that singular goal that had consumed everything. Charlotte had suggested that she had a year or so to come up with something and it was rather likely that Benjamin would ask her to marry him around that time. Kiki’s stepmother saying that idea aloud had caused her brain to completely fuzz out.

All the things that she had not thought about because they were all off in the future were approaching with alarming speed. For the last few days Kiki had walked around feeling like she was on the verge of panic because of that. She wished that she could be like Rauchbier, he only existed in the eternal now and seemed a lot happier for it.



Near Michałowice, Poland

After the events in Lwów, where rioting had been put down a week earlier, the Government was taking no chances. A column had been dispatched to Krakow to help the police prevent a recurrence. The Interior Minister had issued a public statement that the Prime Minister had endorsed on New Year’s Eve that was hardly controversial. The gist was that Poland belonged to the Poles and Government policy should reflect that. The result had been days of violence, which no one Bogdan talked to seemed to understand. All that Kapral Bogdan Gajos understood was that he was tired of sitting on a bench seat in the back of a lorry as it slowly made its way south. It seemed like the driver of the lorry knew as much about driving as a dog knew about playing a trumpet, so the men in back had been thrown around. It wouldn’t have been so bad if it weren’t freezing cold as well. The canvas cover over the bed of the lorry did nothing to keep them warm.

That was when the lorry slammed on the brakes, throwing everyone into the back of the cab. Bogdan could hear the others cursing at the driver even as they untangled themselves. Looking out the back, he saw the Kapitan running down the column shouting about something before looking at him.

“You lot, out now!” The Kapitan yelled.

For lack of anything better to do, Bogdan got out of the lorry followed by the others. Up the column he could hear the Kapitan yelling at someone up front. Walking up to the front of the column, Bogdan saw that the road had been cut. It wasn’t just torn up either, where the road had been was a ditch a few meters wide and several meters deep that continued in both directions on either side of the road into the forest.

From what the Kapitan was yelling, they were supposed to be doing something about this. Though Bogdan wasn’t sure exactly what besides turning around and going back the way they had come. It was then that he heard several loud cracks and saw several trees drop onto the road behind them. This caused the Kapitan to become completely red-faced as he demanded that the Radio Operator come forward that instant so that he could get reinforcements to kill the dogs who were bedeviling them. It was then that Bogdan noticed that they were between two hills and there was a low overcast. The radio was useless here. Whoever was out there chose this place for a reason.

Then Bogdan had an intrusive thought. The radio was useless for them, but for marking out an Officer and a Radio Operator it was excellent. It was then that he heard what sounded like the buzzing of hornets and the low thuds as the Kapitan was struck by several rifle bullets. Not waiting to see what happened next Bogdan dove for the nearest ditch as the crack of rifle shots filled the air and there was pandemonium throughout the column. He could see that others were attempting to shoot back into the forest. After a few minutes, it slacked off as they realized that they couldn’t see what they were shooting at.

And it was starting to snow.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty-Nine



20th January 1968

In transit, somewhere over Central Asia

It was now tradition that the Royal Family used a factory new airliner from Focke-Wulf-Dornier that was set up for their use for the first six months of its service life. Everyone saw the white plane with Luftwaffe markings, the Imperial Crest on the fuselage and rudder and assumed that it was always the same airplane, they would be wrong though. As soon as they were done with the airplane it would be repainted in Lufthansa livery and delivered to the airline.

Looking out the window of the airplane at the wing and engines grew tedious after the first six hours. Vicky had lost interest in the book she had been reading. It was part of the material that was supposed to be studying ahead of her religious conversion, but all it did was remind her of the cynical reasons for her course of her actions. She could hear the others sleeping around her. All she could do was look with envy at the members of her family who could sleep on an airliner, something that she had never been able to do. Charlotte was sleeping in the seat beside Vicky’s father while Nella and Nan were snuggled together in the seats by the window on the opposite side of the cabin. Vicky’s father was awake, but he was going over the notes that he had taken regarding the greeting of his Vietnamese counterpart when he stepped off the plane in Hanoi. There were also representatives from Laos, Cambodia and Thailand who were going to be present.

The last thing that anyone wanted was a diplomatic mishap. With the continued success of the Cam Ranh Bay Space Center, Vietnam had emerged as the German Empire’s most important strategic ally in South-East Asia. The stated reason for this visit, the start of the Lunar New Year, the Vietnamese Tet Holiday was a pretext for the start of negotiations of a regional trade deal and the continued containment of Chinese territorial ambitions. After the greeting at the airport, they were going to a resort on the South China Sea where they would spend a week acclimating.

“You have the same look on your face as you did when you were a little girl and you wanted to break something” Vicky heard her father say. It took a second for her to realize that he was talking to her.

“Having to care about what other people think is growing tiresome” Vicky said.

“You could always be like your sisters” Louis said, “Disregarding general opinion and making their own way in the world.”

“If I did that, I would only invite a massive scandal” Vicky replied, “I would hurt everyone I care about in the process.”

“That is why you have made some of the choices that have” Louis said, “You are a lot like Kristina in that regard, always caring about what people who are not necessarily inclined to like you think. It seldom makes either of you happy.”

That gave Vicky pause.

“If you think that and know the truth, how can you be fine with what I’ve been doing?” Vicky asked, “What I am going to be doing?”

“Because I also know that you want a family and that you and Franz seem to be friends” Louis said, “It seems like a way for you to live the life you want without causing the scandal you are obviously trying to avoid.”

It was ironic. Vicky knew that her father understood the reasons for her actions and was supporting her because he thought it was what she wanted. There was a voice in the bad of her head that was whispering that she had wanted him to tell her no.



Near Jassel, Poland

The tactics that Olli had used had worked, but he knew that the Polish Army would adapt in a hurry. Once the roads were cut, the columns were trapped, and their leaders had been picked off the men from the Polish Army had been forced to walk back the way they had come. They had been forced to abandon most of their equipment which had been a windfall for Olli’s side, however he knew that they would anticipate that the next time they came in force. The political leaders of Free Galicia movement had trumpeted it as a great victory, much to Olli’s dismay. He had tried to warn them that it was just a skirmish.

That was why Olli had sent off dozens of letters to every contact he had in the Heer trying to get them to understand the situation here and requesting help. He was trying not make it sound like he was panicking but Olli knew that he was in way over his head. He had returned to his farm and had felt a lot of guilt when he had seen Nele and his children. He was profoundly thankful that he had gotten Conrad into University in Thuringia so that his oldest son wouldn’t get caught up in this mess. Nele had endured his career for years. Living in Posen, Werder, and Zossen where she wasn’t comfortable. Now, he was back to being a soldier. He had started to apologize to her, but she had told that this time was different. The community that they were now a part of, and the farm was hers just as much as it was his. She understood that he was reluctantly having to defend it.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Thirty



24th January 1968

Prague, Bohemia

It was a good day in Prague as Michael awarded medals to the first recipients of the Kepler Order of Art and Science. He had wanted to give the Order to just one man but had been warned that it would look bad, so Michael had taken suggestions about who else would be worthy of such an honor. It was their idea to have Albert Einstein be posthumously inducted into the Order and his family had been grateful when it was presented to them.

Among the living recipients, the first went to Miloš Forman, a Film Director whose work in Babelsburg and now Prague were considered groundbreaking. Michael hadn’t had time to watch movies in years, so he had not had much to say to the man other than to congratulate him and give thanks on behalf of Bohemia. Next was Doctor Maja Kozel, an Epidemiologist whose tireless efforts against communicable disease was highly regarded. It was hoped that the recognition that the medal would bring would help provide more resources for her work. Finally, there was Gotthard Glas, a weapons designer whose work Michael was familiar with. A couple years earlier Michael had asked Brno for one thing, to build a new machine pistol that was comparatively good as the vaunted but expensive MP5 for vehicle crews and rear support units at a much lower price per unit. It had been Glas who had delivered, and the machine pistol had been issued widely.

It made for an enjoyable afternoon.

Unfortunately, like a black cloud on the horizon, Kurt Knispel entered the reception afterwards. He wanted to talk about a letter that he had received from an old friend who had gotten himself in a fix in Poland. A fix that he had played a large role in getting his friend into.

“I don’t know what you expect me to do about it” Michael said, “Poland enjoys the same sort of sovereignty as Bohemia does. That includes not having others mess about in internal matters. Do I need to tell you that us getting involved in a matter like this would essentially be escalating it into a civil war?”

“So, you are saying that we cannot do anything?” Kurt asked.

“This Olli Bauer, how much do you trust him?” Michael asked in reply. An idea had occurred to him; the machine pistol wasn’t the only untested toy that he had at his disposal. This was an excellent opportunity to see how they performed in actual combat.

“With my life” Kurt answered, “He was the Loader in my Panzer in Spain and throughout the Soviet War.” Michael understood, a Panzer’s crew had to be a tight knit unit to survive for any length of time. Kurt’s crew had been together for years and their accomplishments bordered on miraculous.

“There are a few possibilities” Michael said, “But they will require everyone involved to keep their mouths shut about it, probably for a long time afterwards.”

Kurt looked at Michael eagerly, he knew that half of something was always better than all of nothing.



Jena

Of all the insulting things that could have happened to Kiki this had to be the worst. It being in the middle of winter, she had been surrounded by sick people and they just couldn’t keep their viral infections to themselves. That was why she was at home on a weekday feeling like death. Rather than trying to get upstairs she was sleeping on the couch in the parlor, for the last day she had alternated between being chilled to the bone and burning up. Getting up to let Rauchbier out every few hours had been as much as she had been able to do.

Kiki didn’t hear the door open when Peter Holz and Nora Berg entered, but her security detail tended to come and go. She had told them that she was sick, they had to have known that something was off though. It occurred to her that she had never bothered to know anything about them, for years they had quietly tolerated her behavior as she had treated them like an obstacle as best.

“All these years and you still don’t know when to ask for help Kristina” Berg said as she forced her to sit up and Kiki felt her shirt being lifted up and the cold metal of a stethoscope pressed against her back. “A deep breath now.”

Kiki did the best she could to follow those directions, but a coughing fit put a stop to that.

“Looks like you’ve earned yourself another stay in the hospital this winter” Peter said, as he watched.

“Why are you here?” Kiki asked, “Both of you.”

“You told your bodyguards that you were sick, and they have been watching you get worse for the last two days” Burg answered, “They called us when they got concerned.”

Who had told them to do that? How had they even gotten the phone number? Then Kiki had a fuzzy memory that suggested that she had been the one who had given it to them when they had asked.

“Oh” Kiki said, as she watched with complete detachment over the next few minutes as Burg and Peter started gathering her things.

“Do you think that she can make it out to the car?” Burg asked Peter.

“With a bit of help” Peter replied.

“What about Rauchbier?” Kiki asked, they turned at looked at her almost as if they weren’t expecting her to say anything.

“Your dog will be taken care of” Peter said, “You are the concern right now Kiki, so let us do that.”

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Thirty-One



31st January 1968

Huế, Vietnam

When Vicky had been asked if she wanted to travel to Vietnam with her father, he had gently suggested that she might not be in a state to take such a trip a year from now. That had sent her mind reeling as she understood the implications of that. It was what had caused her to fret for the entire flight from Berlin to Hanoi. Spending the week since at a luxury resort at Cam Ranh Bay a few kilometers from the Space Center had pushed that from her mind as she had made use of the amenities and had a lot of fun with Nella and Nan on the beach.

She couldn’t help but notice that her father was trying to keep tabs on a crisis that was unfolding back home. Something about Poland, how he was feeling that he could no longer trust the Government of the Protectorate as they had minimized the situation and told him that it was a strictly internal matter. Vicky was getting the idea that there was far more to in than that. News had also arrived that Kiki had landed in the hospital with a bad case of influenza. It had been a few years since the last time that had happened and Vicky’s father just shook his head, he said that he wished that Kristina would take better care of herself and not work as hard. She didn’t have anything to prove anymore by behaving that way. That had been when Vicky had noticed just how much the pressures of his Office and being the pater familias of the House of Hohenzollern weighed on him.

Finally, they were able to make their way from Cam Ranh Bay up the coast to the ancient Imperial capital of Vietnam.

The way that Huế was decorated for the holiday made it beautiful with red and yellow decor everywhere Vicky looked. Almost all the government functions were handled in Hanoi these days, but the ancient city and citadel remained the cultural capital of Vietnam. It had frequently provided a spectacular backdrop for key civic events, the Tet Holiday which celebrated the Lunar New Year was an example. Earlier in the day, there had been a military parade through the city. Vicky had seen that different units of the Vietnamese Army from either the north or south had maintained their longstanding rivalry. This had come in the form of trying to out do one another in their presentation. Then came the banquet as they waited for sundown and the start of the festival that would last for the next nine days.

As she had waited, Vicky had found herself talking with the wife of the American Ambassador to Vietnam. Wishing that the sun would hurry up and set already the entire time. She had introduced herself to Vicky with the same breath that she had told her that she was from Texas and it seemed she was an avid reader of the American version of the tabloids that Vicky abhorred.

“I’m glad in was the Kaiser’s good daughter who came visiting” The Ambassador’s wife said, “I don’t know what I would say to those other two.”

“Excuse me?” Vicky asked.

“You know, your oldest sister as an Army Doctor and the other one is…” The Ambassador’s wife paused as she thought about what to say next. “You have to see how she looks with her hair cut short and the way she dresses. People get an impression.”

“I see” Vicky said in disbelief, the irony was breath taking. This woman was presuming that Kiki was way out of line for not fitting into a neat little box labeled Princess by having a career, and that Rea was a lesbian based solely on her appearance.

“Don’t get me wrong, I understand how it must be having black sheep in the family and you have my sympathy. Back home we would have straightened them out and back on the Lord’s path in no time.”

Vicky maintained her outward calm but inside she was screaming. Anna had warned her about how there were well meaning people out there who were prepared to do the most appalling things in order to “fix” people like them. It got even worse when they couched their actions in religion, it meant that they could rationalize anything and get others to look the other way. To actually meet someone like that…

“I saw a while back that you are getting hitched” The Ambassador’s wife said with a dazzling smile that made Vicky’s skin crawl. “To the Crown Prince of Bavaria, no less.”

“Yes” Vicky replied, and she understood that people like this woman were the reason she was entering into the marriage in the first place. Both she and Franz needed it to shield them from their presumptions and how they would react if the truth ever came out.

“You must be so happy” The Ambassador’s wife said, and Vicky actually wished that she had Kiki’s courage and combat training at that moment.

Fortunately, Vicky was saved by the first fireworks going off in the distance as the sun set. As had been arranged weeks earlier, Vicky joined her family and followed her father and stepmother with Nella and Nan as they entered the Imperial Palace of Vietnam as the first visitors of the new year where they were warmly greeted.

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Thirty-Two



5th February 1968

Huế, Vietnam

Like everywhere else, the city of Huế was a hive activity during daylight hours. That was particularly true because of the Holiday. Once the day’s festivities concluded it actually became quite peaceful.

It was a warm rainy night, Charlotte understood that was fairly typical here as this was the tail end of the rainy season. Looking out through the screen that covered the window of the room of the guesthouse that Antonia and Annett shared, Charlotte could see the other buildings of the Purple Forbidden City and the Perfume River beyond. She had been told that in a couple months it would be intolerably hot here, something that was perfectly plausible, even if she wasn’t in a hurry to return to the German winter.

The events of the prior days. were at the forefront of Charlotte’s mind, keeping her awake. For lack of anything better to do, she had gone to check on the girls and had found them asleep. While she might have been cross if they had been awake and playing some sort of silly game, that would have given her something else to focus on.

There were times when she had to consider just how frightening the world must be for her youngest stepdaughter. Victoria lived at all times with the thought of the consequences of what might happen if certain aspects of her life became common knowledge in the back of her mind. Charlotte had come to understand that it was a life that few would choose for themselves regardless of what many people believed. That was why it didn’t come as a surprise what that brash American woman had been overheard saying to Victoria and having her act as if nothing untoward had happened afterwards. It was all part and parcel with how she had to live her life, drawing too much upon herself was simply something that Victoria could not afford to do. Charlotte found it depressing that for all that had changed over her lifetime she still frequently encountered what could only be described as a Medieval mindset.

Looking at Antonia and Annett, Charlotte hoped that they would one day live in a world where they wouldn’t face impossible choices like the one that Antonia’s older sister had been stuck with. No matter what they would have each other though. When Charlotte had discussed taking Annett in, she had no idea that the girl would grow so close to Antonia. Charlotte had no idea if friendship between the two girls would endure in the years to come, there were times when they seemed intent to aggravate each other. There was also the struggle to find their place in the world. Charlotte had seen all her stepchildren going about that in different ways.



Jena

The stated worry was that Kiki would develop pneumonia again during her latest bout with influenza, which was why she had been kept in the hospital for an extra week. Then it had turned into the Doctors wanting to be sure that she would take care of herself once she was released as per her father’s instructions. That last part was particularly grating. Every aggravating turn seemed to be of her own making. However, it had turned out that Kiki was hardly the only one who had come down with the flu this time, she had been taken to an open ward which was the standard practice when dealing with an epidemic. She had thanked Peter for trying to help her and he had said that he felt sort of felt obligated to help, as her Doctoral Advisor having her die would look bad for him.

Peter had told her that an expert was saying that this was a strain of avian flu. Kiki understood how Biologists were able to reach those conclusions, but it hardly got her any closer to getting out of the hospital. That was why she was sitting on her bed, with the curtains closed around her, going through a large stack of letters that had arrived over the prior days. Invitations to various social events. There was one inviting her to a retreat of the Johanniter Order that mentioned how they would really like it if she showed up this time.

Finally, there was a notification from Koblenz stating that two pieces of her equipment needed to be turned in because they were being phased out. The first was the Panzerweste Ausf. E. It seemed that the aluminum rivets could pop out and injure the wearer under certain conditions, in the new Ausf. F Panzerweste that problem had been solved. Many found it strange that it had taken thirty years to essentially reinvent brigandine armor with more modern materials, but there they were.

The second piece of equipment hit Kiki harder than she thought it would. All variants of the Walther P38 were being phased out in favor of the new Walther P66. As a member of the FSR, Kiki would be required to qualify with the new pistol before she went back out into the field. Kiki had really only carried the old pistol she had originally been issued because she was obligated to protect herself and her patients, not because she had ever enjoyed having it. Later she had discovered that when she was angry and wanted to make a lot of noise it was perfect for doing exactly that. The notification said that she could keep her service weapon once the new one had been issued if she had the necessary permits. Was it something that she really wanted to keep?

 

[Peabody-Martini]

Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Thirty-Three



9th February 1968

Mitte, Germany

Perhaps it was inevitable because there were several exhibits that featured members of his family, but Manny found himself appointed to be one of Generaloberst Helmut Lent’s many aides at the Imperial War Museum on Fischer Island after six months of classroom instruction. That meant that he was wearing his dress uniform while leading tour groups through the museum every afternoon. All the aides were encouraged to continue their formal education while they were posted here, and Manny had found that he was no exception.

When Manny had first met Lent, the museum’s present Commandant, the Luftwaffe General had looked at the US Army Expert Marksman’s badge that he had earned during the cooperative mission the prior year and had said that Manny was likely to already have a few interesting stories to tell. Then he had asked how Manny’s mother was doing, if she was still living with a dozen cats and how her diet plan really must have been something. That had confused him and later when he asked his mother about it, she had just laughed. It seemed that during the Soviet War when she was directing night intercept missions, then Oberlieutenant, later Hauptmann, Lent had been one of the pilots she was constantly in contact with. A joke between them was that the pilots just loved her voice and had no idea what she really looked like, she had told them that she was massively overweight and had a dozen cats. Of course, every single one of the pilots knew full well what Helene von Richthofen actually looked like but had gone along with it because it was part of the fun. According to Lent, his entire Air Wing had gone into deep mourning when word reached them that Manny’s mother had gotten engaged to his father.

It was strange to learn about how his parents had had entire lives before he had been born, but they must have. All the stories that he had heard about his father in the Soviet War and his mother talking about living and working in the castle, the vast Flak tower that had been imploded after the war. His parents had only known each other tangentially at that point, Manny’s mother being a close friend of Aunt Kat’s.

“Of course, this is one of our more impressive displays” Manny said as the group walked through the museum. They were a group of school children who were looking in wide-eyed wonder at everything as they went from hall to hall being led by Manny with their teacher keeping an eye on them from behind. The display was a Tiger II that guarded the entrance of the Hall of the Panzer Corps. The long barreled 8.8-centimeter gun with the multi-chambered muzzle brake high over the heads of those who entered. Only the variants of the Lynx and Leopard Panzers were comparable. However, those were at the far end of the hall and their presentation lacked the same gravitas as the King Tiger. Manny knew full well that the Tiger series of Panzers were eventually cancelled because they lacked the sort of mobility that was critical for use in warfare, it was impressive though. The only Panzer in the Imperial War Museum that exceeded it was Lucifer, the Raupe Panzer of First World War vintage in the Entrance Hall that had a staggering weight of history about it.



Krakow, Poland

They were doubtlessly screwed unless a miracle happened.

Poor weather had prevented what Olli knew was inevitable retaliation for stopping the columns that had been approaching Krakow. Unfortunately, that had given time for a wider revolt to kick off and he found himself in the vanguard. The problem was that few of his men had modern weapons, mostly old bolt-action Mauser G98 rifles that were used for hunting. They had a few machine guns and light mortars from the Krakow City Armory that had been seized on the first day, but almost everything heaver had been moved north months earlier. That was because the Polish authorities in the city had not been stupid, they had seen Bachmann swanning about and knew full well how untenable their position was. Olli added it to the ever-growing list of problems that Bachmann was still causing him. At this point, the Poles wouldn’t need to kill Bachmann, Olli would be perfectly happy to do it for them.

On the other side of the ledger, Olli had found that he had excellent operational intelligence. The Poles couldn’t make a move without him knowing about it. If most of those under his command knew the source of that information, they might have found it questionable but right now Olli was taking all the help he could get. If they were willing to throw their lot with him, then he wasn’t about to turn them away and it seemed that they had people everywhere.

“Sir, you got to see this” One of the men who came into the warehouse that he had been using as a headquarters said. Following the man out, Olli wondered what new Hell awaited him as they walked down the street to the railyard that was nearest to the city center. Some of his men were standing around a boxcar with the doors opened and were looking at a crate. Olli saw that whatever had been stenciled on the top of the crate had been burned off and that the men were pulling submachine guns from the crate. He recognized them as the SA 25 machine pistols which the Bohemian Army had been sending to the foundry having come up with something better.

“Mind telling me what is going on here?” Olli asked.

“This train arrived Sir” One of the men said, “There was this fellow who told us it was a gift to you from an old friend, then he took off.”

Olli looked at the box car which was full of similar crates.

“This is helpful” Olli said, “Just a drop in the bucket though.”

“An entire train?” The man asked.

“You are saying that this entire train is more of the same?” Olli asked in reply.

“This just happens to be the first car we opened Sir” One of the other men said.

Olli looked down the line of rail cars. He had needed a miracle and it looked like he had just gotten one.