Posted As Missing

Chapter Fifteen

"I never imagined such a thing was possible," Rachel said after a few minutes. "Such incredible passion, such beauty, such pure animal freedom and enjoyment... Sorry, I couldn't help hearing."

"I had forgotten you were here, Mama. I had forgotten there was much else other than David and me, there were times it was so intense that David wasn't even here."

"That's interesting — I wonder if Fritz is still up there. What time is it?" David pulled his left arm out from under Maria's collapsed body. "Five minutes past noon. If they're like the French and the Belge, they'll have stopped for lunch five minutes ago."

"Unfortunately, they are not that predictable," Rachel said. "The Germans will work until the task is done. The French, though, will stop a hundred-hour-job five minutes before final completion if the clock intervenes."

"Mama, can you pass me two pieces of cotton, we're rather messy over here." Maria giggled, then continued, "I must get on with nursing. I've a wounded soldier here in need of care."

David and Maria pulled apart, and she wiped him with one piece of toweling as she sat on the other. "This is still so large, how do you hide all this in your trousers?"

"It'll go down a bit more, it's been up for a long time, and has had some heavy exercise. Usually takes a while longer after this kind of treatment."

David stuck his head out through the triangle and looked around. The sun was coming directly into the gully, and all the pools were bathed in its rays. He leaned out farther and looked across at the entrance ledge. It was empty. He scanned the tops of the cliffs and still saw them as being impossible to approach safely. He looked at his watch again as he unbuckled it. Twelve past noon.

He pulled back inside and smiled. "Bath time. A quick dip, a soap and a rinse. I'm going to rinse under the waterfall."

He and Maria scampered out. The sun had heated the dark sandstone and gabbro, the entire nook was wonderfully warm, almost hot. Rachel hesitated, then shrugged, undressed and joined them. Six minutes later they were back in the shelter, dried and dressing.

"Let me do your cheek stitches," Maria said. "Properly this time."

"That was very proper the last time." He chuckled. "You'll now need to do it improperly."

She carefully snipped and pulled out the stitches and wiped his cheek with an alcohol-soaked piece of gauze. "We're down to your last roll of this, but we won't need so much after..."

There was a series of cracking sounds above them, followed by loud voices, guttural German voices. Excited voices, then more cracking and a scream. There was a sharp crack and thud close beside them and the sounds of falling rocks and branches. Voices came from above again, "Oh, mein Fick! Leutnant Herzog!"

David knew it was impossible to see in on the nook from above, but still he was cautious as he poked his head out through the triangle. Ten feet in front of him was a man in a German officer's uniform. There was a growing pool of blood on the sandstone beneath his head. He was still, face down, his neck at an impossible angle. The strange-looking wood and leather case, which was fastened to his belt, was skewed onto the middle of his back.

Looks like his pistol holster.

He scanned the cliff tops again, listening to the sounds of cracking and rustling tree branches, snapping of shrubs, dislodged rocks. One rock hit the edge of the canvas and bounced off.

A small one, fortunately.

The excited voices continued above. He looked again at the body, paused for a few moments, then crawled out.