The atmosphere was still as the snow continued to bombard the city. Richtofen sat quietly in the back of the car as it hummed along the road. After his meeting with Mr Merkulov, Richtofen's chauffeur had been given orders to drive him to a nearby hotel - the infamous Hotel Lux. But Richtofen was a brilliant genius and he was not going to fall for such a simple-minded trap by the Soviets. He knew exactly what going there would entail.
The hotel in question had long since become notorious for housing German communist exiles who had fled Hitler's rise to power. Its rooms quickly became overcrowded and conditions were poor. The rat infestation had long established itself back in 1921, hot water was only available twice a week; and crammed communal kitchens regularly boiled food next to pots of diapers which were in the process of being sterilised.
In 1934, Stalin began his first purge and by 1936 the hotel was firmly in his crosshairs. The number of German Communists, as well as those from other countries, had long since aroused his suspicions. He began to suspect the hotel's occupants were spies and conducted investigations. And soon, Hotel Lux notoriously became known as "the golden cage of the Comitern".
The hotel's occupants were kept prisoner during these investigations and nightly raids - conducted by the NKVD secret police - saw men randomly being taken away in the night. Many were subjected to interrogation for false confessions and sent to gulags. Their wives and children were left behind in the hotel, isolated from the rest of the occupants and treated as enemies of the state.
Richtofen knew the Russians viewed all Germans with suspicion and his welcome at the Lubyanka was far from lukewarm. He deliberately carried the manuscripts in his briefcase to entice them into making this kind of move. Logically, it would have been much easier to simply take the documents from Richtofen and throw him into obscurity in a Siberian gulag - rather than meet his list of demands.
But showing them that he was a force to be reckoned with would ensure that they would take his demands more seriously. If he were to quietly leave the country undetected - showing he was impervious to their cheap tricks - the Soviets would have no choice but to attract his attention again by keeping their end of the deal. It would be something he would know the outcome of soon enough once he returned to the theatre.
Amongst the discussion between the chauffeur and the small trembling Russian man who had escorted him back at the foyer; he picked out the words "Hotel Lux" mixed in the Russian. Richtofen made sure to remain unphased as he got in the car. As he looked out of the window, Richtofen methodically counted the number of twists and turns as the driver navigated the city. Once he knew they were near to the infamous Gorky Street; Richtofen ordered the driver to stop.
The chauffeur did not put up any resistance and floored the brakes. He silently trembled as he anxiously watched the German in the rearview mirror. Richtofen quietly leaned forward in his seat - never breaking his deadly gaze from the chauffeur in the mirror. The man trembled, completely frozen in place, as the German stalked closer. Richtofen released a sly malevolent smile before producing a flip knife in one had and a 10,000 ruble bank note in the other. The man quietly looked down at the two items and nodded to Richtofen's right hand which contained the money.
"Ja, I zhought jou vould choose zat one", Richtofen smiled before ordering the man to drive into the nearby alley. The chauffeur turned around and reached for the money before Richtofen snatched it back and waved a finger.
"Nein, not until jou drive in zhere", he smirked.
The poor man shakily put the car in gear and released the handbrake as the car reluctantly rolled into the alley. The buildings were packed close together allowing just a sliver of winter light to pass through.
The car slowly fell out of sight before an abrupt blood curdling scream could be heard, which was swiftly muffled. After a few moments, Richtofen emerged from the other end of the alley with tan leather gloved hands gripping a small luggage case. He was now wearing a panama hat which matched his suit and a smart, grey longline wool coat which draped around him. Night was beginning to fall as the meager sunlight was quickly dwindling. He popped the collar of the coat and began to pick up his pace.
A small child stood by the edge of the pavement gawking at the German which caught his attention. Once Richtofen noticed, he straightened up and tipped his hat to the young boy who still remained enchanted by him with childish fascination. He then crossed the road and approached the boy - towering over the child.
"Sprechen sie Deutsch?" Richtofen asked lowly.
"Jawohl", the boy quietly affirmed.
"Bist du vom Hotel?" Richtofen asked as he suspected the boy was the child of one of the Hotel's German occupants.
"Ja, aber meine Mutter ist gestorben", the boy whimpered as tears began to fill in his eyes.
His mother had passed away in the hotel. He must have been no older than five, Richtofen thought. Though, despite his age, he had managed to escape the prison hotel and found himself aimlessly wandering the streets.
"Komm mit mir", Richtofen ordered reluctantly as he rolled his eyes.
The little boy nodded and ran to stand by Richtofen's side. Richtofen looked down at the child with confusion as the little boy looked up expectantly. After a few seconds, the boy held Richtofen's free hand - taking Richfofen by surprise. He narrowed his eyes at the child who seemed unphased by the German's fierce gaze.
A small smile of intrigue formed at the corner of Richtofen's mouth as he suddenly marched forward with the child struggling to keep up with his large strides. Richtofen had booked an earlier flight back to Germany than he had actually disclosed to the Russians - using the arsenal of papers from his safebox in Stuttgart. By the time they would realise, he would be safely on his way back to Germany.
For the hour or so he had to wait, he had decided to take refuge in the seedy undergrowth of the city. But now, he had taken on the responsibility of this child. Although, he knew obtaining fake papers was not difficult - even at short notice. As they were walking, Richtofen caught this thought and began to question himself.
"Vhat am I thinking?!" he asked himself in disbelief.
Why should he go out of his way to help the child? As far as he was concerned, the boy was lucky not having to grow up with a mother anymore - especially a Mutti that could not beat or berate him. But the boy was wandering the streets in a jumper full of holes, shorts and worn-out shoes. He would not survive the unforgiving Russian winter. The thought of which evoked a feeling of hopelessness in Richtofen.
He looked down at the boy trailing beside him and sighed at how pathetic he looked. The little boy's face was full of determination to keep up as he held onto Richtofen's large gloved hand. And in that moment, Richtofen felt a feeling that he had long since thought was dead within him.
He felt sympathy for the boy.
Richtofen eyed the pub ahead and swiftly took himself and the boy down the stairs. As he swung through the door, the pub's patrons looked around and eyed them both suspiciously. He ignored them and made his way to the bar to approach the pub owner. A burly Russian stood drying out a beer glass as his eyes flicked up to Richtofen.
The German leaned over the counter and whispered something which made the man's eyes widen. He put down the glass and ushered Richtofen into the back room as the boy followed close behind. Upon reaching the threshold, Richtofen swivelled around and ordered the boy to wait outside - which the child did obediently. The door creaked closed behind the two men which was quickly replaced by eerie silence.
After 10 minutes, Richtofen emerged alone - clutching papers which he then stuffed into his coat pocket. The boy perked up and ran to Richtofen's side before holding his hand as they left. The pub owner shakily emerged from the room as the patrons anxiously awaited his appearance. He nodded to them and returned to the bar before continuing to dry glasses with now trembling hands.
Richtofen and the child made their way to the airport and subsequently produced their papers to the staff. The officer scrutinised the papers before reluctantly allowing them to board. After an hour of more waiting, the plane left the ground and was now making its way to Berlin.
Once they arrived, Richtofen took the boy to an inn in the city. As Richtofen entered through the door, the elderly man at the desk gasped and looked at the doctor like he was a ghost.
"Edvard, it has been twenty years!" the man exclaimed before ushering him and the boy into the private office.
Richtofen put down his case and collapsed into the chair in front of the man's desk. He let out a sigh and placed his hat on his lap before realising the child was standing loyaly right beside him, which startled him. The man sat at his desk and eyed the boy with confusion.
"Edvard--", the man tried to speak before being cut off.
"Nein! Don't go zhere!" Richtofen interrupted angrily.
"Jou have become soft Edvard. Vhat happened to zhe man I vonce knew?" The man began as he smiled.
Richtofen looked up at him and glared before the man put up his hands to back off.
"I need jou to make sure zhe child is looked after", Richtofen ordered earning a look of surprise from the man.
"Edvard, vhat am I to do vith a child?" The man asked exasperatedly.
"Jou helped me, Hans", Richtofen said lowly.
The boy still remained sentinel beside Richtofen as both men negotiated.
"I vant jou to look after him und give him a good life. He has been zhrough a lot in his exishtence so far", Richtofen explained.
"Just like jou, Edvard?" The man compared; causing Richtofen to keep his head bowed and avoid eye contact.
"Very vell, he can stay here vith me und help at zhe Inn", Hans agreed.
"Zhank jou", Richtofen said quietly before putting on his hat and getting up to grab his case.
As he bent down to grab the handle, the boy put his small hand on his causing Richtofen to look at the child in bewilderment.
"Wilhelm", the child said in a small voice.
Richtofen stood up and put his hands on the boys shoulders.
"Jou vill have a good life vith Hans. Jou have a shecond chance--", Richtofen explained before being cut off.
Wilhelm suddenly wrapped his small arms around Richtofen and gave him the warmest hug as tears began to fill in his eyes.
Richtofen looked around at Hans anxiously - clearly out of his depth. Hans nodded as Richtofen awkwardly patted Wilhelm on the back before kneeling down to his level.
"Look, jou have to shtay here. I have to go somevhere vhich is unsafe for children", Richtofen explained to the crying boy.
Large tears fell from the boy's eyes as they ran down his pink rosy cheeks. Richtofen looked back around at Hans with panic before Hans gave him an expectant look. Richtofen took a deep breath and sighed before hugging the boy who sobbed into his right shoulder.
"Jou have to be a big boy und shtay here. It is for jour own good", Richtofen tried to explain gently.
"Nein, I vant to come vith jou!" Wilhelm cried which cracked Richtofen's usual disconnected demeanour.
The sobbing child was becoming too much for him to bear as it reminded him of the feelings of sadness that he felt as a boy.
"Bitte", Richtofen whispered as Wilhelm suddenly stopped crying and looked at him with curiosity.
Richtofen looked down and did not make eye contact as his usual stony demeanour was increasingly beginning to shatter.
"Come Wilhelm, let me show jou vhere jou vill be staying", Hans intervened as he came over and took the boy's hand.
Richtofen quietly stood up and left as the boy watched him leave with tears still rolling down his cheeks.
End of part twenty-nine...