A Partisan's Fight - COMPLETED!

Chapter Forty-Two

Hate was a mild word for the dislike that Mina felt now that she was healthy enough to take on guard duties. Her falsified credentials had worked out perfectly. She had been given a higher guard position as she had expected. Honestly, it wasn't much different than the other guard positions. The only differences were that she could boss the other guards around when necessary and give out more orders. It provided some protection to some of the prisoners. It also gave her a better vantage point at figuring out a way to go forward with the plan.

She had new things to work with now. With Lotte in the picture, Aldrik was more open with things that he saw daily. He told her that the tunnels that the prisoners in Nordhausen were working in were being used as both bomb shelters and a place to create more weapons. It was a long shot, but perhaps they could get the guards in there and blow the tunnels up. It would be contained and it'd give them ample time to get the prisoners out of there.

"Sauer, get your head out of the clouds and get those prisoners marching faster!" Edith Weber shouted at her, pulling any plotting out of her mind and returning the putrid feeling she had toward this woman. She had recognized her the instant she had began. It was hard to forget the face that murdered an innocent woman.

Mina got up close to Edith's face. Her teeth gritted together as she forced herself to be in control. Leadership didn't come automatically. It took work and patience. A lot of patience. "I think that is a privilege that you do not get to shout at me. Watch your status, Weber."

"I do not care if you got some higher status then me because of your name. I was here first and I expect you to listen to me." The woman's sharp facial features left little to gentle her face. She was angry, likely more bitter than Mina could ever imagine, and she was here to be a royal pain in her ass.

Mina ignored the woman's broader frame. She might be smaller, but she could guarantee she was smarter. She stood her ground, not breathing a word. She knew there were other guards and prisoners watching the defiance. She couldn't just let it go. She had an image to uphold and power to use.

"That is what I thought. You have nothing to say to that. You are weak." Edith spat on Mina's boots and turned to walk away.

The moment the larger woman turned, Mina raised her gun and bopped her hard between her shoulder blades. A blow that would render anyone helpless. It proved useful as the woman dropped to her knees. Within seconds, Mina had raised the whip given to her to beat prisoners and thrashed the woman mercilessly. She didn't count the strikes, had no desire to. The woman had done worse to the prisoners of this camp; the least she could do was receive some of her evil deeds ten fold. She kept her focus on the woman's legs. She didn't just need to be taught a lesson; she needed to be removed from commission for a while.

Feeling satisfied with her dose of punishment, Mina bent down on one knee just close enough to the woman's face to whisper, "I do not have to say anything to you, Weber. You need to know your place and I will show it to you. Do not ever speak out of term to me."

Edith said nothing, just huffed out labored breaths. Grabbing the woman's tight bun of hair, Mina yanked her head up to face her. "Do you understand me?"

"I understand." She spat out, glaring at Mina with red-rimmed eyes. "Watch your back, Sauer."

Mina stood up and threw a well-placed kick in the woman's ribs. She looked up at a pair of male guards standing near the electrified fence. "Bring her somewhere to clean up and send her home."

Turning, Mina just glared at the prisoners. It didn't take long for them to get the hint of working harder. If beating on rude guards got the prisoners doing their job harder and better so be it. She didn't want to hurt them; this didn't give her a reason to.

"Quite the show, Sauer." Mina turned toward the voice. She recognized it, but she wished she hadn't. Reaching for the prisoner, she shoved her against a building with her pistol aimed at her skull.

"I am sorry, Armina, I have to make it look convincing." Mina kept up a glare, but the relief in her voice was more than obvious.

"Do what you have to, Mina. I am just glad you are safe." She looked aged, and thinner than Mina cared to notice. "You have the first step of your plan in motion. I may have the rest of your plan ready with a friend."

"Speak faster, Armina. I only have a few seconds before I have to do something with you." Mina hated that she had to think that far in advance, but they weren't having tea at Armina's table anymore. This was not a safe place and she needed to treat it that way.

"Find Decker Zimmermann. He has probably been staying at my home. You can trust him. He will have the answers. Now hit me hard with that gun and move along, Mina." She winked at her. "I can handle it."

"I will find a way to get you out of here, Armina. Do not do anything foolish. Stay alive." Mina swallowed the guilt forming in her mouth and the bile forcing its way up her throat. "I am sorry."

She hit her hard over the head with the butt of her gun. She tried to keep her touch gentle, but there was no way to make it look realistic without it being nasty. The moment Armina fell to the ground; Mina knelt next to her and gripped her fingers deep within her hair. She tugged it tight to pull the woman's head closer to her. "I am working on a plan for here. Pass on the word that I can be trusted. We are going to need allies, Armina. Be ready to yell."

Armina looked at Mina with confusion, but ready to do as she said. With that Mina released her hair and stood. She threw a kick at her belly, intentionally not hitting her. Armina was on cue with the holler as soon as she noticed Mina's intentions. Just for extra special effect, Mina did it twice more and Armina managed to play along in spite of the raging headache she more than likely had.

Giving her a quick wink, Mina walked away, allowing a couple of other prisoners to help Armina up and get her moving. It was good to see her friend alive. Not hearing from her in weeks had been brutal. She had assumed something had happened the night their meeting had been raided, but she hadn't heard anything from anyone. Nobody had known what had happened to her or where she had gone.

She already had hope for a better plan, now she had the chance at a more stable plan. She'd go and see this Decker Zimmermann after work. If Armina trusted him there was no doubt she could trust him too. In spite of her friend being in a rough situation, she had still come through. They had more than hope now, they had physical help. It was workable.