The Children's War

by Stroyar, J. N.

  “They’re not very bright, these people. It’s unfair to expect much of them,” Frau Schindler commented.

  “Indeed,” Herr Schindler agreed, “Karl’s boy more than proves their inferiority.”

  Karl nodded vigorously, though Elspeth looked somewhat dubious. “But he’s English, you know, and they are of the blood,” she reminded them all.

  “Pff!” Herr Schindler sputtered. “I’ve had to deal with these people, and whatever pure blood they once had, it’s gone! They’re a bunch of thugs and reprobates. Hopeless, absolutely hopeless, and the sooner we recognize that, the better!”

  “But how can we change the fact that they are part of the Volk?” Elspeth asked.

  “Hah! We all know that pollution ruins the blood, that’s why we had to clean up our own society first. It’s been obvious from the first,” Herr Schindler lectured. “We try to deal with these people in a civilized manner, then, if that doesn’t work, we know they need special handling! That’s the way it was with the Poles, and—”

  “With the Poles?” Elspeth asked.

  “It’s not generally known,” Richard answered, “but Hitler’s government wanted to form an alliance with them against the Communists. At that point they were considered worthy of being our allies.”

  “Why didn’t they? Weren’t they anticommunist?”

  “Yes, they were, but they were uncomfortable with us as well. They had certain problems with our determination to handle some of their internal affairs. Their Jewish problem for instance. They said that Polish Jews would remain Polish citizens and as such were off-limits to German policy.”

  “Of course, that just proved they were corrupt to the core,” Herr Schindler said. “Then the English, declaring war on us, what a letdown! The Norwegians resisting us, who would have expected that from a Nordic tribe! Ach! So many betrayals. Clearly our movement to purify Europe came not one minute too soon!”

  “My father had to work with them, with the English,” Karl added, “back when we were still trying to coax them into cooperating. What a shambles! We pushed a few into government, but none of them really made it. They were incompetent and sooner or later dropped out of the Party or disappeared altogether.”

  “What about now?” Richard asked. “Some of them still hold key positions.”

  “A mistake, if you ask me,” Herr Schindler said. “I think they should be barred outright. It was an experiment that didn’t work. They’re corrupted, and the only thing they’re fit for is something like what you have, Karl.”

  “The problem is they lack discipline,” Frau Schindler added. “That whole culture is decadent. It leads to lax behavior and that leads to problems. Like with your boy.”

  “Problems?” Elspeth asked somewhat worriedly.

  “Yes, I’ve already told you what I think of your indulging him like you do,” Frau Schindler admonished.

  “Indulging?” Elspeth repeated helplessly.

  Beate smiled wanly at her, Richard busied himself by pulling out a pack of cigarettes and offering them around.

  “Yes, you indulge him,” Frau Schindler insisted.

  “That lad of yours does act uppity, Karl,” Herr Schindler agreed as he accepted one of Richard’s cigarettes. “You’ve been too lenient with him. I think he could do with a sound thrashing.”

  “Ach,” Karl disagreed, “he’s all right. We’ve got him well in hand.”

  Richard thought of the man he had seen the night before. There had been nothing in his behavior to suggest anything other than a weary obedience; yet, judging from the level of discomfort the Schindlers were provoking in the Vogels, it was clear there was more history to the conversation than he understood. He decided to keep a discreet silence or perhaps offer a change of subject. As he was still contemplating the various segues that were on hand, a second servant boy came and stood expectantly in the doorway. This boy looked only marginally older than the first and had a sufficiently similar face that Richardthought the two might be brothers. Frau Schindler acknowledged him, and he announced that dinner was ready to be served.

  They moved to the dining room, and the conversation flowed naturally along political lines, finally settling on an exchange of office gossip between Karl and Herr Schindler, and an exchange of neighborhood gossip between Frau Schindler and Elspeth. Beate remained grimly mute with the unfamiliar conversation imposed on her, but Richard was intrigued by the insights provided by the men. The meal itself was a rather bland affair of overcooked meat served with two styles of potatoes. When Richard complimented it, Frau Schindler admitted that she had a cook who came in during the day to prepare the evening meal.

  “Yesterday, Frau Vogel cooked the meal herself,” Beate informed her hosts. It was her first attempt at entering into the conversation, and the sudden cold look she received from Frau Schindler caused her to fall into bewildered silence.

  Richard stepped in to rescue his companion, saying, “Both meals have shown me the wonders of Berlin cooking.”

  “Or is it English cooking?” Herr Schindler asked jovially, directing his comment toward Karl.

  Elspeth stiffened; Karl looked wary.

  “Your boy has many talents, doesn’t he?” Herr Schindler pressed.

  “He does what he’s told to do,” Karl answered at last.

  “I’d keep my eye on that one,” Herr Schindler advised.

  “He’s harmless enough,” Karl assured him wearily.

  “I don’t know, I don’t think so,” Herr Schindler said. “I don’t trust any of them,” he added, apparently oblivious to the presence of his own two servants in the room.

  “I think it’s worse when there is only one of them. Like with you, Elspeth,” Frau Schindler interjected.

  “One suffices,” Elspeth responded quickly.

  “Of course. I just meant that you have so much work there, with the children and the house, you really could use more help. Still, I suppose the house isn’t that big.” Frau Schindler added the final jab quite smoothly.

  “One is enough, even for a large house, if everything is properly organized,” Karl grated. “There is a labor shortage, and we’re just doing our patriotic duty to minimize our use of the labor pool.”

  “But it does mean that he’s everywhere in the house, doing everything. That could be dangerous,” Herr Schindler said, then added rather casually, “I think they should all be castrated. We’d all be safer then.”

  Richard noticed a fleeting expression on the face of the boy opposite him. So they weren’t so oblivious!

  “It isn’t current policy,” Karl answered slowly, shifting uncomfortably. Unconsciously he had clasped his hands protectively in front of himself.

  “I think it should be,” Herr Schindler pressed. “Do you have any idea how they breed? Like vermin. We’ll be inundated soon.”

  “We’ll be smothered!” Frau Schindler added tartly.

  At that comment, Richard scrutinized her with keen interest. Here might be the ally he was seeking! Clearly the long-suffering Frau Schindler was frustrated by her husband’s slow and stuttering climb to power and was advertising her disdain for him and his policies. She was proving her cleverness as well, for a glance at Herr Schindler showed that he accepted her comment as dutiful, wifely support of his position, and he did not hesitate to add, “In fact, I think it should not only be offered, it should be mandatory for all of them; especially in domestic situations.”

  “But then, darling, who would we blame for getting the maids pregnant?” Frau Schindler interjected with a pointed glance at her husband.

  “They should be fixed as well!” Herr Schindler snarled.

  Frau Schindler smiled graciously. “Or simply remove the women altogether. That’s the trend, isn’t it?”

  “Why?” Beate asked.

  “They offer too much temptation to our German manhood,” Frau Schindler answered.

  “And the men servants?” Beate asked.

  “Aryan women aren’t tempted by such things,” Elsp
eth explained rather piously. Richard noted the strange look her husband gave her.

  “We could solve the problem by having them all fixed,” Herr Schindler reiterated.

  “I believe the Labor Ministry has weighed these things carefully,” Richard said calmly, “and they’ve come to the conclusion that it would be unwise, under current conditions, to do any such thing to the forced labor.”

  “Why?” Beate asked.

  “Besides the expense, it would be a public relations nightmare,” Richard explained. “Every state kills people, but not many permanently maim their subjects—at least not in the civilized world.”

  “What do we care about public relations?” Herr Schindler asked somewhat belligerently. “Mass sterilization was there in the original plans, and we backed away from it and never have had the courage to follow through. Public relations are for weaklings!” He motioned toward his empty wineglass and muttered a curse at the boy who had failed to refill it quickly enough.

  “International relations are important for us,” Richard asserted. “Our economy is faltering without sufficient trade, and besides, we are the master race, we should set an example of civilized behavior.”

  “Pah!” Herr Schindler disagreed.

  “But wasn’t it common before for civilized societies to castrate slaves, say, in harems?” Beate argued rather more cogently. “I mean, if it’s viewed as normal, would people object? After all, these people aren’t planning on having families anyway. They can hardly manage to take care of themselves, not to mention children. It would be doing them a favor.”

  “You’re right,” Richard agreed. “Of course, that has its own problems.” He sipped the last of his wine. The boy behind him refilled his glass as soon as he set it back on the table.

  “How so?” Frau Schindler asked.

  “Seems it was not uncommon for Roman women, for example, to use castrated slaves for their sexual pleasure. Since the women could not be impregnated, they had nothing to fear.”

  “But that’s impossible!” Karl scoffed.

  “No, only if it’s done before puberty,” Beate answered. “You see, if it’s done to a fully adult male, then all it prevents is pregnancies, not . . .” She blushed rather than finish the sentence.

  “Now that is intriguing,” Elspeth commented. Karl glared at her.

  “Yes,” Frau Schindler added.

  “Perhaps it could be done so that the men, at least, are rendered, er . . . ineffective,” Karl suggested.

  Again the boy opposite Richard allowed an expression to darken his face.

  “That would have to be rather brutal,” Richard said. “And there would be the possibility that the subject would feel irrationally vengeful. He would, remember, still be physically fit and quite capable of violence.”

  “Ah, that would be a problem,” Elspeth Vogel murmured.

  “It could be done before they are even released into society,” Karl suggested. “Slam some anesthesia into their face and the next thing they know, they wake up altered, not knowing who to blame. Imagine the look on their faces!” He snickered. “Like those Italians the Ethiopians got their hands on!”

  “I hate to spoil your fun, but I was thinking of something which they would not even know about,” Herr Schindler said. “Something which we could use against inferior populations wholesale, to clear out lands and keep their numbers under control. Let the lowlifes have their sordid little sex lives, I just don’t want them polluting our world with their monstrous little creations.”

  “I thought we already had a handle on the indigenous populations in the colonial territories,” Elspeth commented. “There’s been a steady decline, and I thought we were keeping the rest for labor purposes . . .”

  “Out East, yes! That’s the way we should have done it all!” Schindler howled. “It’s the West that needs control. Do you know, taken together, they outnumber us? They breed filth and corruption right into our society! We must do something!”

  “Yes, it is clear that we do need some method of keeping the lower castes under control,” Richard conceded.

  “Perhaps an education campaign,” Beate suggested.

  “Hah!” Herr Schindler scoffed. “They’re too stupid to learn. That’s obvious! If you knew the statistics on illicit births, the squalling bundles that turn up in Dumpsters and on doorsteps. God knows how many are kept by their mothers,running around, undocumented, unclassified, not serving any purpose, draining our coffers.”

  “Is there any way to do that?” Beate asked.

  “Do what?” Elspeth asked, confused.

  “Sterilize people without their realizing it,” Richard explained.

  “Is there?” Elspeth asked Richard.

  He shrugged. “Radiation, perhaps.”

  “No, no, no,” Herr Schindler disagreed. “We’d want to be more selective than that! Wouldn’t want to get our own after all!”

  “Well, then, is there a way?” Richard asked.

  Herr Schindler smiled. He turned toward the elder boy and said, “You two, go into the cellar and pull out a crate of the Bordeaux ’87. I want you to carefully remove each bottle and clean the dust off each. Remember, like I taught you! Then, when you’ve done that, decant one bottle and bring it to us. And don’t you dare disturb the sediment or it will be your hides! Understood?” As he finished, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small ring of keys and threw them at the feet of the boy.

  Without his expression changing in the slightest, the boy stooped to pick up the keys as he said,“Understood, mein Herr.”

  After he and his companion left the room, Herr Schindler paced to the door, checked they were gone, and said, “That will keep them busy for a few minutes.” He sat back down at the table, enjoying the atmosphere of mystery he had created, and then, leaning forward over his plate and lowering his voice conspiratorially, said, “The Führer has plans . . .”

  44

  “YOUCOME HERE OFTEN?” Stefi asked the young officer. She sipped her drink, demurely peering over the glass at him. He was a short fellow with thin brown hair that was already, prematurely, receding.

  “What? Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t notice you there.” The young man seemed nervous and somewhat out of place in the large hall.

  “I asked if you come to these official parties very often,” Stefi repeated, rephrasing the question toward something she hoped he could handle.

  “Only when my father makes me.”

  “Which one is he?” Stefi asked, indicating the dignitaries, officials, and officers standing around, munching on appetizers and chatting.

  “That one.” The young man pointed toward an older man.

  “Oh! Isn’t that Herr Schindler?”

  “Yes. That’s him all right.”

  “My name’s Stefi.”

  “Oh.”

  “What’s your name?”

  “Me? Oh, I’m Wolf-Dietrich.”

  “Pleased to meet you.” There was an awkward silence, then Stefi added, “I really hate these things. I feel so out of place here.”

  “You, too?”

  “Yeah. Do you mind if we just chat a bit? That way I can say I socialized.”

  “I don’t think that’s wise. I have a girlfriend.”

  “Is she here?”

  “No, but . . .”

  “Oh! I’m sure she wouldn’t mind if you are friendly to a poor lost soul. I’m just visiting Berlin, and I don’t know anybody here, and I was hoping we might be friends.” Stefi paused, waited an appropriate few seconds, then added in a carefully provocative voice, “Just for the time I’m here. Only temporary, you see.”

  Wolf-Dietrich suddenly lost interest in the chandelier that he had been studyingand turned his full attention to her. He let his eyes stray down her body, notingthe deep cut of her dress, the curve of her waist, the long legs just barely visible through a demure cut in her gown. “Temporary, you say?”

  “Yes. I’m just looking to have fun,” Stefi answered with a winning smile.
“How about you?”

  “I’m only in town for a few weeks. I have a girlfriend here, but we don’t get to see each other that often. It’s sort of a leftover relationship.”

  “So, where you are, there are no women?”

  “No. It’s a research lab located way out in the middle of the heath. Nothing around for miles. Of course, I could go into town, but, well, it’s not really my style to just meet women in bars.”

  “Which town?” Stefi asked.

  “Hamburg,” Wolf-Dietrich answered. “Oh, I’m not supposed to . . . oh, I’m sure, no harm done. Just don’t tell anyone I told you that.”

  “Of course not. You know, I think that’s really nice, that you don’t go barhopping. A handsome young officer like you would have, I’m sure, no trouble picking up all sorts of women.”

  “You think?”

  Stefi nodded solemnly. “In fact, I’m sure the village girls are all over you.”

  “We’re not even close to a village.”

  “Nothing?”

  “For miles. The area was cleared out years ago for some reason or another.”

  “Where does the help come from?”

  “Oh, most of them are army and live there. Some locals come in, but they’re all men or old and haggard.”

  “Too bad! I had heard the girls in that region were especially beautiful.”

  “Well, if they are, they are kept well-hidden.”

  “Have you ever been into the village?”

  “Which one?”

  “Any of them.”

  “Well, I haven’t seen Undeloh, but everyone assures me there’s nothing there. As for Döhle, it’s a dump.”

  “Pity.” Stefi sipped her drink and waited for Wolf-Dietrich to say something. When it became apparent he was incapable of initiating a conversation, she asked, “If you don’t get to see her often, why isn’t your girlfriend here?”

  “Her Women’s League is off somewhere improving the world,” Wolf-Dietrich answered grumpily.

  “That is a pity,” Stefi sighed. “I think a girl should be around for her man. If you’re not here most of the time, she should make a point of being here when you are.”