Last Train to Istanbul

by Ayşe Kulin

  “If we don’t have something to eat, we’ll starve to death,” Selva said, taking her food basket down from the luggage rack. The sadness they felt leaving Paris and their fear leaving Reims had made them lose their appetites. Now there was solidarity among the passengers, who shared the same destiny, and that had made them feel more relaxed.

  Margot and Constance followed suit and got their food down too. They offered the men, who appeared to only have dry cakes and apples, some of theirs. David Russo was the only one of the three men with a bagful of things to eat; everyone’s mood rose when he pulled out two bottles of very good red wine to go with the food.

  “I’ll find Rafo,” Selva said to Margot. “I bet he’d like something to eat too.”

  Rafo appeared to be quite happy, sharing all the goodies on the table in his compartment.

  “If you fancy some wine, pop in to see us,” Selva said to her husband.

  “If you fancy some cognac, you’d better pop in to see us,” Rafo said in Turkish. “There’s a young man in here who has a bag full of bottles. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s an alcoholic.”

  “He probably needs it to relax his nerves,” said Selva.

  Seeing that Rafo was happy, she returned to her compartment feeling better.

  Passengers who had started the journey feeling suspicious were now more relaxed and at ease with each other. They were mingling together and asking all sorts of questions. Everyone was talking except Perla, who still felt embarrassed and just looked out the window, and the man Margot thought she knew. It was gradually getting dark. The lights of the distant cities started twinkling, like stars in the sky.

  Suddenly the train screeched to a halt, causing the passengers to jolt sharply. Shots were heard in the distance. Everybody looked at each other with fear in their eyes. Fazıl started to cry. David Russo got up, lowered the window, and leaned out. The whole compartment was filled with the smell of coal.

  “We’re not in a station. We seem to be in the middle of nowhere,” David said.

  Others jostled him to look outside. It was very dark, and there was nothing much to be seen, but it was obvious that the pretty places they had passed through during the afternoon were long gone.

  “I must find Rafo. I wonder what’s going on,” Selva said, leaving the compartment. When her son saw her leaving, he started to cry.

  “Come on then,” she said. Fazıl toddled toward her, held her hand, and together they tried to walk down the corridor. It was full of people who’d rushed out of their compartments to see what was going on. Selva picked up Fazıl and held him in her arms to prevent him from getting crushed. She looked into each compartment as she passed by. She saw neither her husband nor Ferit. Her heart felt heavy. She walked back to the carriage exit. Marcel was standing by the door. They tried to force the door open and eventually succeeded. Marcel stepped out onto the running board and looked toward the front of the train.

  “Madame Selva, there are some armed men standing by the side of the train.”

  Selva leaned out to have a look too. There were some soldiers holding lamps gathered around the engine at the front of the train.

  “My God, maybe they’ve taken Rafo away. I can’t find him anywhere!” she said.

  “I’m sure he must have gone to find out what’s happening. Why should they pick on him among all these people?” said Marcel. “Besides, hasn’t he got a Turkish passport?”

  “You’re probably right. I’m just so on edge. All the same, I’d better walk up to the front just to see.”

  “Are you out of your mind?” Marcel said. “Go back inside.”

  Selva felt embarrassed and decided to return to her compartment. As she turned around, she bumped into David Russo, who was right behind her. Although it was dark, she could see the terror in his eyes; they were jutting out like organ stops.

  “Did you say there are armed soldiers up front?” he asked.

  “Yes, somewhere near the engine.”

  “Step aside. Please step aside,” he said to Selva and Marcel. “I want to get off.”

  “To go where?”

  “Wherever. Where I go isn’t important. I must get off immediately.”

  Selva and Marcel looked at each other.

  “But we are not in a station. Where on earth will you go?” Marcel asked.

  “It doesn’t matter. I’m going to get off and walk toward those lights in the distance.”

  “But you don’t know where we are, David. You’re bound to get lost.”

  “I can follow the railway lines.”

  David Russo jumped down without using the steps. Marcel and Selva, holding her child, followed him off the train. Marcel tried to hold on to David’s arm, and the two began pushing each other.

  “You’re putting all of us in danger. Get back on the train immediately!”

  “I can’t bear being put back into a camp,” said David. “Never again, never!”

  “Hold on. No one’s taking you to a camp.”

  David freed himself from Marcel. He started running toward the back of the train. Selva and Marcel ran after him. Fazıl, who appeared to be enjoying the chase, began screaming with joy. Suddenly they heard the sound of footsteps running after them. David started running faster, then a shot was heard! Suddenly, he stopped, Selva and Marcel ran into him, and they all fell over. The footsteps got nearer and nearer and then came to halt beside them. Two armed soldiers were pointing their guns at them.

  “What’s going on here?” asked one of the soldiers.

  “We fell,” replied Marcel.

  “Were you running away?”

  “What for?” said Selva.

  “Where were you going then? On a picnic?”

  “My son wanted to pee,” explained Selva. “These gentlemen wanted to do the same and needless to say, they felt they had to distance themselves from me.”

  “Aren’t there toilets on the train?”

  “Of course there are, but they stink. What’s more, there’s a line. The carriage is very crowded.”

  “So why the hell were you running after these men who wanted to take a leak? Why were you running with your child in your arms? How come you fell?”

  “I was trying to help my son do his business by the side of the train door. I heard a shot and I panicked and grabbed my son. I was running away trying to prevent him from being shot, when I ran into them.”

  “What shot? What are you talking about?”

  “There was a shot,” said Marcel. “Didn’t you hear it?”

  “Oh, that! That’s the peasants trying to scare wild boar from their fields,” one of the soldiers said. “Get up!”

  They looked funny trying to disentangle themselves before they stood up. Selva saw Rafo and Ferit looking openmouthed and petrified behind the soldiers. She couldn’t help laughing.

  “I don’t see what’s so funny,” Rafo said, reprimanding her.

  Selva just couldn’t stop laughing. Tears were streaming down her cheeks. Ferit held out his hand to help her get up, and Rafo picked up his son, who seemed to be having a whale of a time. He was trying to say something to his father while clapping his hands. Ferit also helped Marcel and David get up.

  “Return to your carriage at once,” said the soldier. “I’ll also want to see your identity cards. We’ll see how much of all this is true.”

  “What do you want from my wife?” asked Rafo.

  “She was running away.”

  “What? Don’t make me laugh,” he said.

  “We’ll find out soon,” the soldier replied.

  Back in the carriage, the other passengers were all hanging out of the windows trying to see what was happening. When Selva returned to the compartment with the soldier, the other occupants started panicking. The man in the cap was totally unaware of what was going on; he was sleeping with his cap pulled down to his nose.

  “Right! I want to see all three tickets and your identity cards. I want to see the child’s as well,” said the soldier.r />
  “The child is registered in my passport,” Selva said, then she turned to her son and pretended to scold him. “All this is because of you,” she said to Fazıl, who looked surprised. “Just because you couldn’t hang on for a little while.”

  Rafo took out his passport too. Ferit rambled on with an explanation of what they were doing outside while the soldier scrutinized Selva’s, David’s, Marcel’s, and Rafo’s passports and tickets.

  “Hmm…You’ve bothered us for nothing,” one of them said. “You’d better use the toilets on board next time you want to relieve yourself!” Then they turned their backs and marched away. As soon as they left, the man in the cap pushed it back and sat upright. David was sitting in his seat as if in a trance.

  “What the hell were you doing outside?” Rafo asked furiously.

  Selva couldn’t reply, because she was scared of bursting into laughter again.

  Marcel explained what happened and turned to David. “Didn’t I tell you you’d get us all into trouble!” he shouted. Tears started running from David’s empty eyes.

  “Why are you so scared?” Selva asked, approaching him.

  David didn’t answer.

  “You mentioned a camp. Did they take you to a camp before?”

  “Yes, I just came out of one.”

  Selva sat beside him and put her arms around him. She gently stroked his hair. Everyone in the compartment was totally silent. Eventually, Marcel broke the silence.

  “So, why did we stop? What did the armed soldiers want?”

  “Apparently we are waiting for some soldiers to board this train. They are being transported somewhere.”

  “I wonder how long it will take?” asked Margot.

  “It seems that we may be spending one or two nights here,” said Ferit.

  A murmur of discontent spread through the compartment.

  “I’d like to have a word with you outside,” Rafo said to his wife. Fazıl, who was sitting on Perla’s lap, started to make a fuss when he saw his parents leaving the compartment, but one look from his father put a stop to that. Rafo and Selva stood in the corridor face-to-face.

  “Listen to me, Selva. I’m warning you for the last time: if you bite off more than you can chew trying to help others again, I promise I’ll divorce you the minute we get to Istanbul!”

  Selva turned her back on him and returned to the compartment, slamming the door in his face.

  The next morning, even though the sun was low, the rays disturbed David and woke him up. The sedative the old man had given him last night had sent him into such a deep sleep that he woke up totally rejuvenated and happy. When he was wide-awake, he remembered the previous night’s incident and blushed. He had behaved like an idiot. Even though his traveling companions had treated him with compassion after hearing his story, he couldn’t help feeling ashamed.

  I wish I’d listened to those back home when I was released from the camp and seen a doctor, he thought. If I’d done that, it’s possible we might not have had that incident last night. He realized that if Marcel and Selva hadn’t run after him, he might have been shot by the soldiers trying to stop him from running away! He decided he was indeed a lucky soul: this was the second time his life had been spared by God.

  A new day was dawning, a sunny, quiet, run-of-the-mill day. David, who couldn’t bear being cooped up in small places since his time in the camp, felt stifled by the thought of spending the whole day in the compartment. He tried to relax.

  Your life has been spared yet again, he thought. You’re among friends. You’re heading toward freedom. Come on, man, pull yourself together!

  Margot was opposite him, sleeping. He smiled to himself. She was a beautiful girl. He wished she had been the one who showed him the care Selva had; maybe then this boring journey would be a little more interesting.

  Selva, Perla, and Fazıl weren’t in the compartment. They had probably gone to the toilet. The rest were still sleeping, their heads leaning on the shoulders of those next to them. Samuel’s head was on the knees of the man in the cap. David went outside to go to the toilet and saw Selva talking to Perla.

  “For God’s sake, David, don’t get off again, even if you really need to relieve yourself. They might recognize you and cause you trouble.”

  “I promise I won’t. Please don’t worry,” David assured her.

  “How did you sleep?”

  “Extremely well. Madame Alfandari, I want to apologize sincerely for last night. Had it not been for you and Marcel, I would have been in big trouble. I’m deeply sorry for putting you in danger. Please forgive me.”

  “Don’t mention it, and let’s not talk about it again. There’s nothing more natural than being scared of armed soldiers, after what you’ve been through. I can assure you that there is no need to apologize. Now then, I want to ask you a favor. First of all, please call me Selva, and second, throughout this journey, I want you to feel free to talk to me about anything, anytime, whatever it is that bothers you.”

  “I promise you it won’t happen again.”

  “I know, David. This sort of thing doesn’t often recur anyway. If it does, we’ll all get locked up.”

  Just then David saw Rafael coming out of another compartment. “Here comes your husband,” he said, trying to cheer her up, but she wasn’t amused.

  Rafo hugged and kissed his son. “Did you sleep well?” he asked his wife. Selva didn’t reply, and David felt obliged to answer.

  “Extremely,” he said. “How about you?”

  “Thanks to you, I’ve been having nightmares all night,” Rafo replied.

  David bent his head down as his face turned crimson. Selva held Fazıl by the hand and walked him back to the compartment. Margot had woken up and was staring at the man in the corner.

  “Haven’t you figured out who he is yet?” Selva asked.

  “No, I just can’t place him.”

  The man’s cap had slid back while he was sleeping, and despite the stubble on his face, Margot could see him more clearly now.

  “Oh dear!” she said suddenly. “Selva, I’ve got it. I know who he is.”

  “So who is he?”

  “Come outside with me.” Margot pulled herself together and they went out.

  “I’m dying to know—for God’s sake, who is he? Is he someone important?”

  “You bet. He’s only one of the world’s leading scientists. He’s a force to reckon with in the world of physics. Two years ago he won many awards for some discovery or other. Don’t you remember? I remember seeing his photograph all over the medical magazines at work. He was being interviewed on the radio all the time. He’s Meyer…Siegfried Meyer. That’s it! The famous Siegfried Meyer.”

  “Oh yes! I remember. Oh, Margot!” said Selva, choking with excitement. “The Germans must be looking for him everywhere. They’d take him away the moment they spotted him.”

  She wanted to share this exciting discovery with her husband. What a pity that she was still annoyed with him. They returned to the compartment. Now Selva started scrutinizing the man’s face herself. Yes, of course it was him. She was absolutely sure. In spite of his shaven head and having no beard, it was definitely him.

  The sun had finally brightened up the whole compartment. Everyone had woken up. When Samuel opened his eyes and realized he had his head on a stranger’s lap, he immediately sat up.

  “Where’s Perla?” he asked Margot, who was smiling at him. “Let me go and find her.”

  “Go if you wish, but don’t worry about your sister. She’s fine now. There’s nothing to worry about.”

  All the same, Samuel got up and walked out. When Selva heard him greeting Ferit outside, she jumped from her seat and rushed out to see him.

  “Ferit, I need to tell you something,” she said, holding him by the arm.

  “What? Has something gone wrong again?”

  “Ferit, do you know who’s traveling with us in our compartment?”

  “Who?”

  “Siegfried Meye
r, the—”

  Ferit covered her mouth with his hand. “Yes, I know.”

  “Why didn’t you tell us?”

  “No one knows. Is there anyone else who does?”

  “Margot. She’s the one who recognized him.”

  “Please keep this to yourselves,” he said.

  “Does Rafael know?”

  “Yes, he’s the only one apart from me.”

  “What name is he traveling under?” She tried to hide the fact that she was disappointed her husband hadn’t shared his knowledge with her.

  “Kohen.”

  “Has he got a Turkish passport?” she asked.

  “Yes, he does.”

  “But he doesn’t speak Turkish, does he?”

  “That’s why I sat him in the same compartment as you and David, and those who, thanks to you, can manage a few Turkish words. The Nazis don’t generally speak Turkish, but you never know. An officer who spent time in Turkey might come along and want to show off. I know how quick and capable you are in such situations. I thought I’d better put him with you.”

  “How would I have known that? I should have been warned.”

  “I have faith in you, Selva. You don’t miss a thing.”

  Samuel interrupted their conversation. “How much longer do you think we’re going to wait here?” he asked.

  “That’s what I was just going to find out,” replied Ferit. “I’m just going to see my wife, and then find out if anyone knows when we’re supposed to continue.”

  “Give my regards to Evelyn, even though I’ve never met her. Ask her if she needs anything to eat or drink,” Selva offered.

  “Thank you, but I’m afraid that I can’t do that. She isn’t aware we are all traveling on the same train.”

  That Thursday by the German border was a rather long day. It was boring being cooped up in the train. Time passed more easily when the train moved through ever-changing scenery. Stopping away from a town or village, in the middle of nowhere, waiting from morning until night, was stifling, even though they were allowed out of the train to stretch their legs. Most of the passengers took advantage of a stroll along the track to get a breath of fresh air. Ferit spent most of his time with his wife. In spite of her brother’s insistence, Perla decided not to go out, but rather to lie down and read her book in the nearly empty compartment. The only other person who stayed was the man in the cap. He would be solving puzzles until the early hours of the morning.