by J. R. Sharp
“Well it’s about time,” he said. “I was wondering how long it would take. They always seem to be happy when they are together.”
Anna grabbed the letter from Bruno and started to read it.
“Father, I thought you didn’t like Gino,” Bruno said.
“I don’t like any guy trying to take my daughters away from the farm,” Pietro said. “They are great helpers and do the chores we men don’t like to do, isn’t that right, Valerie?”
Valerie just looked at her father and went back to her doll. Anna just shook her head disapprovingly. Pietro laughed and winked at his wife.
“Pietro, they are getting married this afternoon. There is no way we could make the wedding,” Anna said. “Why would they get married so suddenly, unless Gino wasn’t doing well, but the letter says they are all doing fine?”
Pietro went next to his wife and put his right hand over her shoulder as she started to cry.
“Honey, who knows? We won’t know the answer to those questions until she comes back from Treviso. Or call and leave Patricia a message. Maybe we can find out from her. I just want to know where they are going to live when he comes back from the army. We are getting tight here in this house. Bruno, we need to talk, and did you get the things from town that I asked you to get?”
“Yes, I got everything, and I did get a job with the railroad this winter, and we start next week,” Bruno said.
Bruno had gone to Cimpello early in the morning to check on the status of his job, get messages, and buy a metal box and the largest container he could find. It was market day and a lot of venders came from out of town to sell their goods. Gypsies made their rounds as well. Bruno had a tough time with the container and was glad he took the cart that he pulled with his bike.
“Where did you get the container and box?” Pietro asked when Bruno returned.
“From the Gypsies, Dad, they always have this kind of stuff. You just don’t ask where they get their stuff from,” Bruno said with a grin.
Pietro started to laugh and told his son he did well and that they needed a good hiding place for the container and metal box. Bruno finally asked his father what he was going to hide in the container and box.
“Son, the future doesn’t look good for this farm, and we need to get ready for what is ahead. We need to bury that container where nobody but your mother and I know where it is. We’ll keep food in it. That way, when and if the loiters and soldiers come here to take our food, we at least have enough for ourselves. The metal box is to hide our money, jewelry, and metal objects. Hurry up and find a place for that container. I have some beans and corn to put in it and I don’t want them to freeze.” Pietro looked at his son and winked at him.
“Anna, you and I need to get all of our valuables together, including your wedding ring and necklaces, and put them into this box. Only wear cheap stuff that you will not miss. The Fascists will be coming soon. When you go to town tomorrow, go to the bank and do what I told you to do.”
***
Anna woke up early and got the children ready and walked them to school as she always did during winter. Pietro and Bruno were still asleep after being up late burying the container. As she exited the house with her two youngest, she could not tell where the container was buried. They did a great job, she thought.
After Anna got the children to school, she went to town to send a message to Patricia, and then went to the bank as instructed by her husband. This was not the first time she had gone to the bank after dropping off her children, but it was the first time she requested coins instead of paper lira. Anna knew that the teller would ask her why she wanted the coins and she had the answer. She hated to lie, but she knew it could mean the difference between surviving the future or not and she would do anything for her family. After she sent her message to Patricia, she went to the bank and filled out the proper paperwork for her money. They wouldn’t take all of their money but slowly withdraw what Pietro thought they would need in case of an emergency. Anna got in line, which was smaller than usual. She passed the withdraw slip to the teller, who started counting out paper lira. She was wearing a Fascist Party uniform.
“I’d like coins please,” Anna said.
“Mrs. Zucchet, you never get coins; you always get paper lira. Why are you requesting coins?”
“Didn’t you hear that Gino and Catherina got married? We want to give them a gift. In our family it is tradition to give coins instead of paper money because metal lasts longer than paper and we want their marriage to last as long as the coins.”
The teller gave her the biggest smile and took back the paper money and started to count out the coins as requested by Anna. “That is very sweet and what a great tradition your family has. Please tell Gino and Catherina I wish them all the happiness. Where did they get married?”
“They were married in Treviso; it was a military wedding. We couldn’t make it because of the children.”
As Anna was leaving she noticed a gathering at the center of town. She decided to see what was going on. She saw Gino’s father in the middle of what was going on and she wondered if he knew his son was married. Gino’s father always seemed to be involved with just about anything going in Cimpello. The town’s auctioneer was always involved with matters concerning cattle, crop, and beans, but Mr. Cartelli tended to be a little more than involved. Some would say that he was borderline nosey. It didn’t help his reputation that he liked to drink and gamble his money away. There was a family farm, but he had not been taken care of it ever since he became the town’s auctioneer. Anna noticed that there were quite a few Fascist supporters and for the first time she noticed Germans with them as well.
Gino’s father was really mad and yelling at all the uniform personnel. As she got closer to the center of town, she noticed that the mountains were full of snow and the clouds were grey. It was getting colder as winter was in full swing. In the summer time it was harder to see the mountains due to the heat, but in the winter it was a daily occurrence. She wrapped her scarf around her face to protect her skin and also to protect her identity. What she noticed was that there were other town employees with Gino’s father and they also were visibly upset, but most were just listening to Gino’s father yelling.
It seems that they were being told that their jobs were no longer needed. Mr. Cartelli was telling them that they had no authority to cut their jobs and that they were all fools in uniforms. Anna noticed that there were a couple of Germans in a car watching. Just about the same time as Mr. Cartelli was making some insulting remarks, one of the German soldiers walked towards Mr. Cartelli, reaching for what looked like a pistol from his left side. He walked briskly to the right of Mr. Cartelli who did not see him and struck him in the back of his head with the butt of the revolver. The German officer then looked at one of the Fascist supporters, which was Francisco, and told him something in German. Francisco had a look of surprise and shock and told everyone to go to their homes and that there was nothing left to discuss.
As she rode down the long road to the farm, Anna noticed the German car driving past her on the parallel road, leaving town. There was a bigger truck behind the German car and it was full of troops. They all were looking at Anna as they drove by. As she pulled into the driveway, she got off the bike and started to walk the bike to the main house. Pietro and Bruno were outside having coffee. As she approached the main house, Pietro could tell that something was wrong.
“What is wrong, my dear? Did you have problems in town?” She explained what she saw. Pietro looked at her and got up from the bench and put down his coffee and gave her a big hug.
“You are so brave, my dear wife, and you will not go back into town again. Were you able to go to the bank and get what I asked you to withdraw?”
“Yes, I did get the money, but please don’t ask me to go back to the bank again.”
“Bruno, you are going to have to go to town from now on to get what we need,” Pietro said. “It is getting too dangerous for your mother . .
. Anna go to the kitchen and get yourself a cup of coffee to relax and I will join you in a moment.”
Anna was sitting in the kitchen having a cup of coffee wondering where the container and metal box were hidden. “Where did you bury the items,” she asked her husband.
“Well, if I tell you then the fun will be over. See if you can find it.”
After Anna finished her coffee, she went outside to find the container. Anna knew it was near the barn and started looking for signs of loose dirt or hay. She continued to look on both sides of the barn and in the back but couldn’t see anything. They couldn’t have gotten too far from the house, she thought. After about thirty minutes of searching she was about to give up. Anna was getting tired and walked over to the hazelnut trees next to the fields and sat down on one of the old chairs that they leave there for people to sit and enjoy the nuts. The trees had been there for as long as Anna could remember and they always had hazelnuts to eat year round. As she looked back at the main house, she could see Pietro and Bruno looking at her and smiling.
“You two look guilty of something,” she yelled back at them.
“Do you give up, my dear?” asked Pietro.
Anna looked at her men. “Of course not, but if you two want dinner tonight you better tell me soon or you will be getting the kids from school and cooking us dinner.”
They both started to laugh at the same time. Pietro finished smoking his pipe and tapping it on the bottom of his shoes and then placed it in his tobacco pouch he kept with him at all times. He walked to where Anna had sat down and placed both of his hands on her shoulders. She raised her head and looked into her husband eyes and said, “So where is the container?”
“You’re sitting on top of it right now!” She looked down at the ground and didn’t notice anything different about the appearance of the whole area. “It was Bruno’s idea to bury it here with the trees and not near the barn or house because that is where they will be looking for food. They won’t be looking for food where there is always food.” She looked at the hazelnut tree, then at Pietro and Bruno, and all three started to laugh.
Chapter 4
BACK TO WAR
IT WAS FEBRUARY 1940 and the whole country was in turmoil. The direction in which Mussolini had played the country was starting to wear on its citizens and the world, mostly because of the cruelty that Germany was inflicting on countries that it invaded. The fact that Italy was part of the Axis Powers only hurt the country’s efforts to get the world to support their expansion of power. The country still was not out of their financial problems, and to make matters worse jobs were still hard to find. Italy’s future did not look promising and this also meant that its armed forces were struggling.
Catherina was getting ready to go see Gino at the hospital and was making her bed before she went to the kitchen to share a cup of coffee with Patricia. This was her routine since coming to Treviso months ago. As she made her way to the kitchen she couldn’t help but wonder what was in store for Gino and, of course, their future as a married couple. He had gotten all of his strength back and the doctors had cleared him for full duty, but he was still awaiting orders from the army.
Gino’s birthday was February 14, and Catherina needed to get him a present, but she was running low on funds. Bruno came to visit a couple of weeks ago and brought her some money plus wedding gifts from her parents. She noticed that Bruno still looked sick and wasn’t very strong, but he explained that he started to work on the railroad lines plus working long hours had made him tired. As Catherina entered the kitchen, Patricia was already sitting at the dining room table with her coffee and morning smile. By the time Catherina made it down to the kitchen in the morning Patricia’s husband and his parents were already gone for the day. Catherina always waited for them to leave before going to the kitchen so she wasn’t a burden on their family.
“Good morning, Catherina, how did you sleep last night?” asked Patricia.
“Not so good I am sad to say. I am worried that Gino will be shipped off to some foreign land to fight another useless battle for expansion.”
“When does he find out what his future is with the army?” Patricia asked.
“Soon they will clear him for duty and we are waiting for the army to send someone to tell him what his next assignment will be. It should happen this week.”
“It has been very nice having you here,” Patricia said. “I finally have someone my own age. Most of my days I don’t get to have someone around that I can talk with, so you are welcome here for as long as you need to stay here in Treviso.”
Catherina thanked her for the kind words and remarked that as soon as Gino left the hospital she would be returning to Cimpello and the farm. She would wait for him there until he returned from his time in the army. Patricia understood and excused herself from the kitchen so she could go to the markets and get some supplies. Catherina finished her coffee and dressed for the walk back to the hospital.
***
As Catherina entered the hospital she noticed a couple of army trucks parked in front. When this happened they usually were retrieving the wounded being discharged. As she entered Gino’s floor, she sensed something was going on as she passed the nurse’s station. Nurse Trisha was going over some patient files with an army doctor. Catherina made her way to Gino’s room and he wasn’t alone; there was another soldier in his room with some boxes. Gino was putting on a uniform. Catherina walked up to Gino’s bed.
“Gino, what is going on?” asked Catherina.
“They have decided that they need me for further service and are taking me today,” replied Gino.
“For how long? Where are you going?” asked Catherina.
“That is for the upper command to decide,” one of the soldiers interjected. “We are here only to gather soldiers that have recovered from their wounds. We are going to all the hospitals on this coast to pick up our soldiers. We have three to pick up from this hospital today.”
Catherina looked at her husband with disappointed eyes. Gino was about to put his shoes on when he asked the soldier to leave the room so he could have some alone time with his wife. The soldier nodded and stood in the hallway.
“I was just paid. Take all the money and use it as you need. I will try and finish my tour as quickly as I can and return to Cimpello very soon.”
“Can I stay with you until you leave?” asked Catherina.
“Of course you can. They still have to get the other two soldiers before we load up and leave for the truck,“ replied Gino.
Catherina escorted her husband to the truck with all the other soldiers and their families. She really was going to miss her husband and wanted to go with him. She knew he had no choice because desertion was punishable by death.
As they loaded up on the truck, Gino gave Catherina a long kiss goodbye and whispered into her ear that he would return soon and that he loved her. She stayed until the truck was out of sight and then walked back to Patricia’s house to tell her the news that she was going back to Cimpello.
***
The train ride back to Cimpello went by quickly. As she arrived, Catherina noticed the changes in town right away. Bruno had told her what was happening when he visited her the last time in Treviso, but to see the Fascists with her own eyes was frightening.
Catherina’s return was unannounced. Nobody came to meet her, so she had to walk home in the cold, which gave her time to clear her head. There was so much to tell her mother and father when she got back to the farm. She had missed her family and wanted to see everyone again, but she knew things would be different now that she was married.
Catherina made her way out of the town and towards the farm before anybody noticed her. If anybody stopped her, she wasn’t even sure what to do or what to say so she just kept her head down and walked very briskly. As she made her way to the dirt roads towards the farming communities, one person that recognized her noticed her from afar. Betty was sipping her morning coffee. She knew who it was right away and beca
me very agitated as soon as she made the connection. Francisco would be coming over for dinner tonight and Betty would tell him that Catherina was back from Treviso. He couldn’t resist looking for contraband from people just arriving from other cities and this would be a good reason for him to visit the Zucchet farm.
Francisco was recently appointed Adjunct Deputy Commander, responsible for enforcing Fascist Italy’s radical and racial laws. One of his duties was to investigate all suspicious activities and report them to the higher authority. Another one of his duties was to submit all known Jewish families names and what type of work they did in the community to his German supporters. He disliked this duty and currently hadn’t submitted any names, even after his uncle told him to do so during his last visit. There were rumors about what was happening to German and Polish Jews after they were taken away, and he didn’t want that to happen to his fellow citizens here in Cimpello. He was also assigned to collect all the extra metal and any other type of material that the Italian and German Army asked for from all the businesses, homes, and farms in Cimpello. Most of the metal and other materials were needed to make ammunition and other military gear for the ongoing war. The army sent trucks and infantry weekly to collect all the material that was collected, and Francisco always made sure that the trucks left with as much material as they could carry. This, of course, was possible because of all the pillaging that he and his supporters did on a daily basis.
As Catherina made her way towards the farm, she could see that things had changed since she left to take care of Gino. The landscape looked different and the farms seemed to be missing some of their equipment. She also noticed that the amount of cattle outside feeding was fewer than she remembered. As she turned to start the always familiar walk on the cobblestone driveway, she noticed her mother outside hanging clothes to the left of the main house. It was a sunny day and not too cold and yet windy enough to dry clothes. Catherina knew her mother would be doing some type of laundry and, sure enough, there she was hanging up sheets to dry out.