The Shadows of Trinity

Past Present Future

Wilhelm Hartmann was sitting on his sleeping bag in his tent. The early morning light shone in. He heard the birds chirping and the leaves gently rustling in the soft breeze. Grabbing one of his briefcases he opened it up and noticed a small picture of himself in a dark wooden frame. Staring at the picture he then placed his fingers on the glass feeling a sense of guilt for his past actions.

Suddenly he heard some footsteps rustling in the grass outside his tent. Looking up at the entrance to his tent he noticed Koralin entering it. He then pressed the picture up against his chest Koralin noticed this and approached him and knelt down in front of him. Looking into his icy blue eyes she noticed a hint of guilt in them.

"What's wrong Mr. Hartmann?" she asked.

"I'm just missing my brother," he replied. "He is still in East Germany and I haven't heard from him lately."

"Is what you are holding a picture of him?" she asked.

"Yes. You can look at it if you wish," he replied.

Wilhelm then handed the picture over to Koralin and she started to look at it.

"He looks like you,"

"Well, we are twins,"

Koralin continued to look at the picture until she noticed the uniform. She then looked up at Wilhelm with a look of shock in her eyes.

"Was he a soldier?" she asked.

"No, he was like me. Didn't like violence," he replied.

"Why does he have a Nazi uniform then?" she asked.

"He was a physicist. Working on a project that I saw as terrifying and unimaginable. Smart man, he understood physics in a way that I couldn't," he replied.

"Did you want to be a physicist?" she asked out of curiosity.

"Yes, I did. But unlike my brother, I didn't understand physics that well," he replied.

Koralin then handed the picture back to Wilhelm who put it back into the briefcase on top of his clothing. Wilhelm then looked at Koralin and gave her a small smile. Koralin then pulled a newspaper out of the inside of her long brown woollen coat and handed it to Wilhelm. Who put it down beside his sleeping bag.

"I thought that you would want this," she said with a small smile.

"Thank you Koralin," he replied.

"I'm assuming that I might see you later on Mr. Hartmann," she said.

"Yes I mean I will be out on the wharf for a while. I enjoy the view and it's peaceful out there," he replied.

"I suppose that I better get going. I have to go help my mother at the bakery," she said.

"Enjoy your day Miss Assing," he replied politely.

Koralin then got up off the ground and exited her tent. Wilhelm then took another look at the picture before closing the briefcase. Wilhelm then put his head in his hands and sighed out of frustration mainly at himself.

Wilhelm thought to himself out of frustration and slight guilt. "I need to tell her the truth eventually. But I'm unsure if she will be able to keep it a secret. How can you tell someone that you were formerly a physicist working for the Nazis and building a bomb?"

Tears start streaming down his face out of pure guilt and utter frustration at himself. He then opened his briefcase again grabbed the picture and threw it onto the grass facing up. Then he stood up and violently stomped his foot onto the picture. Shattering the glass pane inside the frame into little shards. Kneeling down he carefully removed the photograph from the frame. Then he started to violently tear up the photograph and he also started fully bursting into tears and cursing under his breath.