“I missed you, my love,” he whispers in my ear.
“I missed you, too,” I say, as I snuggle into the crook of his neck.
Leaving my arms, he turns me so I can look at the table he set up. The candles give light to two tin cups and two white plates. Next to one plate is a small bouquet of wildflowers. His thoughtfulness never escapes me. The glimmering candlelight paints the barn, mimicking the stars in the sky. The little barn cat has made her way to a soft spot in the hay. I place the cheese I brought next to her.
“Go and sit. Pull up a pile of hay.” He smiles and gestures towards the makeshift table.
I walk to the crate, fluff up the hay in front of it, and sit. Bringing the bouquet of flowers to my nose, I inhale the sweet floral scent.
He ruffles the hay on the other side of the table and takes a seat.
I can’t hold back my questions any longer. I don’t want to ruin the moment between Henry and me, especially since with us, they’re stolen moments in a world of madness, but I need to know. “Henry?”
“Yes, my love?”
“Where is Mae?”
His smile falls into a frown and I know the news he has for me can’t be good.
“Estherly, you must believe me when I say I do not know. I will find out, though.”
“Why did they kill Mae’s father? Why were they at her home?”
“I will do all in my power to find out where they’ve been taken and why this happened. I know how much Mae’s friendship means to you, but for tonight, let’s pretend the world outside this barn doesn’t exist. I want to comfort you and show you happiness. Let me take your fears away, if only for this moment.”
While Henry’s words mean everything to me and they’re the air I breathe, I’m not sure he can take all my worry for the Steins away.
Opening a sack that sits next to him, he takes out a loaf of bread, some cheese, and some sausage. He places pieces of each on my plate.
I raise an eyebrow.
“It’s beef. Don’t worry. I know your family doesn’t eat pork.”
His thoughtfulness brings a smile to my face.
“I know it is not much, but the rest of the items are for your family, all but this,” he says with a smile, as he pulls out a bottle of red wine. He hands the sack to me. Peering inside, I see paper packages wrapped in twine. Henry explains what the packages contain: meat, cheese, bread, preserves, coffee, and four shiny, red apples.
“I know how much you love apples,” he says, as he brushes his fingers across my hand. “I’m sorry there are only four this time.”
“This is too much, I can’t—”
“Stop, my darling, I want you to have this food. I wish that I had more to give.” Grabbing my hand, he brings it to his lips and lets them linger on my skin for a moment. “I wanted to get an apple for each of you, but I was only able to get these.”
“We can share them. I’m so grateful. Thank you so much.” Tears stream down my face, thinking of how wonderful he is.
“Please don’t cry. It breaks my heart in two seeing you this way,” he says, grabbing for the wine and filling both of our glasses.
“I can’t help it, Henry. Each week, you keep giving us more and more goods. Without you, we would have so little food to eat. You have no idea what this means to me.” I look at him with tear-stained cheeks. “How can you afford to give us this?”
“Let me worry about that. I get what I need, and the rest I give to you. I’m one person, Estherly. You have a family of six. I don’t need much, and I will be damned if you and your family starve, not if I can help it.” He pounds his fist on the table, and it rattles the dishes a bit.
“Shh… we don’t want to get too loud.” I take his hand into mine and rub my thumb across the top of it. While his palm has calluses from his daily, soldierly duties, the skin on the top of his hand is smooth and inviting. “Thank you. I love you so much.”
“You’re welcome. Now, let’s taste this wine.”
Picking up my cup, I inhale the aroma of the wine. It fills my nose with a robust, fruity scent. Sipping the liquid, I let it remain in my mouth for a moment before I swallow. The taste, bittersweet, leaves me wanting more.
“Where did you get this? It’s delicious,” I say, taking another sip.
“I traded my cigarettes with a captain.” He laughs. “I wanted to make this night special for us.”
“Henry, anytime with you is special.”
Finishing our meal together, I stare starry-eyed into his gaze, remembering how we first met.
One day, I was approached by three soldiers in the school yard and they surrounded me. They kept pushing me from one to the other, calling me names and pulling at my hair. Finally, when they let me free, I ran to the classroom. Alone in the classroom, I broke down.
“Are you okay, miss?” Shocked, I jumped and turned towards the direction of the voice. I didn’t expect to see a soldier looking back at me.
“Are you hurt, miss?”
Frightened, I shook my head and looked down at the floor. “I’m not hurt.”
“Are you sure?” he asked, in a soft tone.
I lifted my eyes to his, and at that moment, I knew I was in no danger. His blue eyes captivated me, even though he was a Nazi. Henry didn’t earn my trust in the beginning. It took several months and kind gestures for me to realize he was different from the others. His heart was not filled with hate and disgust. I soon learned that it was only full of love for me.
Now, sitting across from him, my heart overflows.
“Dance with me,” he says, breaking our silence.
“But, there is no music.” I giggle.
“I don’t care. I want to hold you in my arms and dance.” He stands, comes around the table, and holds one hand out. Grabbing it, he lifts me to my feet. He twirls me into an embrace and then places his hands around the small of my back. Henry’s touch sweeps my mind to a place hidden amongst the stars, and I throw my arms around his neck. Pulling me tighter against him, he puts his mouth to my ear and hums. His warm breath on my skin envelops every part of my body with love and takes my breath away. Swaying back and forth, we move together as if we are one. I pull slightly away so I can see his face, and his lips fall on mine. Rocking side to side, our tongues intertwine. Unable to control the passion inside me, I pull him down to the ground and let him consume me.
“When we are together like this, it’s like we are the only two people in the world,” I say, as I snuggle into his bare chest.
“I do, too, my love. I wish things could be different for us. One day, I know this horrible war will end and we can be married,” he says, as he pulls me in closer. “But for now, if this is the way we can be together, I’ll take it.”
“I’ll take it, too,” I say, hoping in my heart that the words that he says can be true someday.
“I have to tell you something. You may not like what I have to say, but I have to get it off my chest.” He pauses for a moment, and I sit up and turn towards him.
“I was part of the squad that burned down the school.” His eyes lower, as if he is afraid of what I will say. “Please believe me. I didn’t want to, but I had no choice.” Henry’s gaze lifts, meeting mine, and I sense he searches for what I may be thinking. “I have to play the part, Estherly, even if I don’t want to, you must understand. In the world out there, I’m your enemy.”