The Star and the Shamrock

by Jean Grainger

  ‘But what if she forgets me, Elizabeth?’ He looked like a lost puppy.

  ‘She won’t. She’s mad about you – everyone can see that.’ Elizabeth hoped that what she told him was true. Talia did seem to genuinely like Bud, but her confession that she loved Daniel threw doubt on it.

  ‘Today is my last leave before I’m shipped out. There’s a big shipment of stuff coming from the States tomorrow, so it’s all hands on deck. But she’s not even here,’ he said miserably.

  Elizabeth wondered if Talia ever told Bud how close she was with Daniel. The attack on the RAF base was considered a close shave, and though there were fatalities and injuries, the authorities deemed it could have been a lot worse. The hangars remained standing, their precious contents still operational. Bud never mentioned Daniel’s name, and Daniel never came up in conversation, but everyone knew who was to blame.

  Bud only cheered up when Erich arrived with the new model plane Elizabeth had bought him. It needed to be glued together, so Bud and Erich set happily to work, spreading all the pieces out on the kitchen table.

  She noticed that Liesl had not yet come down to breakfast, so she went to investigate. She knocked gently on the bedroom door, and when there was no answer, she opened it.

  Liesl was in bed, her head barely visible.

  ‘Liesl,’ Elizabeth said gently. It was most unlike her not to get up. ‘Are you all right? Do you feel sick?’

  The girl opened her eyes, and Elizabeth could see she’d been crying.

  ‘Oh, Liesl, what’s the matter?’ Elizabeth was shocked. Erich was very emotional, often bursting into tears. But she comforted him, and he went off again about his business. Liesl was much deeper, and she didn’t open up easily.

  ‘I want my mother,’ she said simply.

  ‘Oh, darling.’ Elizabeth gathered her in her arms. ‘I know you do. You must miss her terribly. I wish I could find her for you, I really do.’

  ‘She’s dead, Elizabeth. I won’t ever see her again.’ Liesl was sure.

  ‘You don’t know that, though.’ Elizabeth tucked a strand of Liesl’s hair behind her ear. ‘She could be in hiding, or in a camp. We just don’t know.’

  ‘I know.’ Liesl pointed to her heart. ‘In here, I know I won’t see my mutti or my papa ever again.’ The certainty in the child’s voice broke Elizabeth’s heart.

  ‘Well, you’ll see your papa in heaven…’ Elizabeth tried to comfort her.

  ‘No.’ Liesl wrenched away from her. ‘There is no heaven or God or any of it. There is just here, this horrible world where Nazis kill Jews. How could there be a God if this is allowed to happen?’

  Elizabeth was at a loss. Liesl always went to Shabbat and observed the laws of Judaism. She’d had her bat mitzvah and learned all the prayers and everything – Elizabeth was sure she was a believer.

  ‘I don’t know, Liesl…’ she began.

  ‘You see? Even adults can’t explain it. If there is a God, then I hate him! I hate what he has allowed to happen…’ Liesl was shouting now, something Elizabeth had never heard before.

  Bud and Erich came running upstairs at the commotion.

  Liesl jumped out of bed, crying and screaming. ‘I want to go back! I want them to kill me too! I want to die like Mutti and Papa! I don’t want to stay here… Let me go back to Berlin! I’m not Irish or British, I’m German… Let me go!’

  Before Elizabeth could stop her, she bolted for the door. Luckily, Bud was there and caught her. He wrapped his arms around her as she flailed and kicked against him.

  Erich watched in horror. Liesl was the one who was calm in every situation; she was the one who knew what to do. Liesl out of control frightened him.

  Elizabeth moved quickly across the room, kneeling down beside the girl she saw as her daughter, still in Bud’s arms.

  ‘My darling, you must stay. It’s not safe over there, you know that. And I know you miss your parents, of course you do. I swear to you, when this war is over, we will do everything humanly possible to find your mutti, but for now, you and Erich must stay here where it’s safe.’

  Bud released his grip enough for the girl to turn and face Elizabeth.

  ‘Don’t you see, Elizabeth? Nowhere is safe. The Luftwaffe know there’s an RAF base just a few miles away, so they will come. They broke your lovely house in Liverpool, and it is only a matter of time before they come here. We are all going to die anyway, and I just want it over with now.’ Liesl sobbed.

  Elizabeth and Erich were shocked, neither knowing what to say. Despite decades, a faith and a nationality separating them, they were both united in their love of Liesl and their total inability to help her now. Before Elizabeth could think how best to handle the situation, Bud dropped to his knees, his big hands on her thin shoulders, and looked deep into her eyes.

  ‘Liesl, you listen to me now, y’hear?’ His eyes burned with intensity. ‘The Germans won’t win this war because we won’t let them. On top of that, America is going to join us soon, and then Hitler is gonna get blasted with a force that will send him to hell where he belongs. Everyone here in Europe is doing their best, but he was allowed to get too strong. So now it’s time for the USA to get stuck in, and I know my countrymen – they will.’

  Elizabeth stood back; Liesl was transfixed.

  ‘We are sending military equipment and money, we’ve seized all German assets in the States, we’ve closed their embassies. FDR and Churchill are on the same page, honey, and so it’s just a matter of time until there’s American boots on the ground and American weapons in our hands, I promise you. Uncle Sam didn’t get into this war easily, but once we do, we ain’t goin’ home with anything but a total surrender from Hitler and everyone who serves him. You know, they are even makin’ grenades the exact shape and weight of a baseball ’cause they know every American boy can throw a baseball? We’re ready, all of us – the British, the Europeans who got out, and now we’ve got Mr Stalin blocking them on the other side. The stupid jerk don’t stand a chance, as all of us Allies together got so much firepower, we can flatten anyone or anything that gets in our way. It’s gonna be bad, and bloody, and I’m not lookin’ forward to it. I’ll lay it on the line for you, I’m scared half to death, but our generals, our officers, and every single man fighting for the good countries on this earth are determined to win. So we will win. Right is on our side, Liesl darlin’, and America ain’t never lost a war, not ever.

  ‘So you and Erich and Elizabeth and Talia and all the people on the farm, y’all just gotta sit tight and let us all get on with it. And when I’m over there, I’ll be thinkin’ about y’all and fightin’ for you, and your mom and your pop, and all the other people those Nazis hurt. And that’ll help me. So can you do that, honey? Just wait?’

  Liesl’s gaze locked with his. Slowly, she nodded.

  ‘Good girl.’

  Bud pulled her to his chest and held her tightly. And Elizabeth exhaled with relief.

  Chapter 22

  Elizabeth woke to the sound of her letterbox springing open, then shut. She hurried downstairs. She had received a letter from Rabbi Frank.

  Mrs Klein,

  I think he will be tried in the coming days, but I cannot be sure. The authorities are not obliged to let us know, and the trial will not be public. Daniel wanted me to let you know.

  l’shalom

  David Frank

  Elizabeth folded the short note, a lump in her throat. Familiar feelings of frustration washed over her. Should she go to Detective Inspector Gaughran, tell him what she knew? What did she know? That Talia lied about Daniel writing a letter, that she said she didn’t sell many paintings and yet the man in the shop said they were all sold and that they had been painted by a man? What would that have to do with Daniel’s innocence? She could just see Gaughran’s face, her showing up like a lovesick child claiming she had new information when in fact she had nothing. Something wasn’t right, but she needed proof for anyone to take her seriously. And what if she was wrong? Talia was he
r friend, she was just a girl, and she loved Daniel too. Hadn’t she been through enough without someone she saw as a friend accusing her of…well…what? Even if she wanted to confront her, what could she accuse her of? The police had searched the farm from top to bottom and found nothing. They interviewed everyone. What she had was so insignificant. So Talia sold paintings to a gallery. The gallery owner lied, but maybe there was a reason. Perhaps refugees were not allowed to earn money like that and he was protecting her or something? And she lied that Daniel wrote to her, but she’d admitted she loved him. Perhaps it was just wishful thinking on Talia’s part? Maybe she wanted people to think Daniel had deeper feelings for her than he had?

  Elizabeth toyed with the idea of asking her why she lied. Maybe there was a perfectly logical reason. But something stopped her. What if there was some connection and, by bringing it up, she alerted her? What if somehow Talia did do those drawings? She was artistic surely, but they were different – they were precise, technical. Could Talia have done them?

  Round and round the whole situation went in her head. No solutions presented themselves.

  Erich’s friend called for him to go out to play after breakfast, while Liesl stayed in the sitting room, dressing dolls with Maisie Dornan, one of the local girls.

  Unable to settle to anything, she decided on impulse to go to the farm. She told Liesl she was going, and the girl assured her she would keep an eye on Erich, who was now climbing the big cherry tree in the middle of the village green. She had planned to cycle, but as she came out of the house, she spotted Levi in a truck across the road.

  ‘Hello, Levi. Are you going back to the farm?’ she asked pleasantly.

  He nodded. ‘Yes, in five minutes.’

  ‘Can I hitch a lift?’

  ‘Yes,’ he replied, taking his toolbox off the seat.

  Levi was dark-skinned, with a prominently hooked nose and dark curly hair. He was muscle-bound from all the physical work on the farm, and Elizabeth thought he could be quite pleasant looking if he ever smiled.

  She made no effort at conversation, and neither did he. She did not want to have to lie about the purpose of her visit. She wanted to meet the rabbi and talk to him about Daniel. She had more or less decided to confess her worries to him. Perhaps he would not take kindly to her casting doubt over another one of his flock, but she wasn’t accusing Talia of anything, just asking his advice.

  Once they arrived, Levi immediately went wordlessly back to whatever it was that needed doing. As she strode away, she noticed he glanced in the kitchen window to where Ruth was washing huge pots. He waved and she waved back, a smile on her face.

  Being summer holidays, the whole farm swarmed with children, all busily active in farm chores. As she crossed the yard, a loud bell rang to suggest it was time for a break.

  The children piled into the dining hall for bread and jam and glasses of milk before going back to work, greeting her as they passed. Elizabeth marvelled at how cheerfully they undertook it all, cleaning chicken coops, peeling potatoes, digging up vegetables or hanging out laundry.

  She walked into the main building that housed the administrative centre and the makeshift synagogue. She hoped she would just run into Rabbi Frank rather than having to summon him. He could be very stern and serious, and in truth, he intimidated her a little, but she knew he had a good heart.

  Daniel had relayed the story of Rabbi Frank’s humiliation as he was taken from his house one night by the Nazis and forced to scrub anti-Nazi slogans off the wall with a sponge before being badly beaten. His hands were raw and bleeding from the scrubbing, and then they set on him, kicking and punching him. Because he was a Chassidic Jew, and Orthodox, he had long peyot that curled in ringlets from his temples, and these were cut as he was forced to kneel, semiconscious, on the street in front of a jeering crowd. When his synagogue was destroyed and set alight, he knew it was time to go. Luckily, he had a brother practising as a rabbi in London who helped get him out. Daniel explained to her how Rabbi Frank didn’t feel relief at his survival; rather, he felt profound guilt that he did not stay and defend his people, or at least be with them as they were led away.

  Elizabeth pushed the door to the synagogue where she had been with Erich and Liesl on several occasions now for various Jewish events.

  As she hoped, Rabbi Frank was there, Torah in hand. But so was Talia. She was speaking to him, their heads close together, and when she looked up, Elizabeth could see that her face was tear-stained. She said something to the rabbi – Elizabeth was too far away to hear what – and then she left, muttering hello to Elizabeth as she passed.

  ‘Ah, Mrs Klein, I was not expecting you. Did we have an appointment?’ the rabbi asked. Clearly, she had intruded.

  ‘No, I’m sorry…’ she answered, awkward now, knowing her presence was an imposition. ‘I…I just wanted to talk to you about Daniel.’

  ‘What about him?’ He stood, facing her, shorter at least by five inches. He was dressed in black trousers and a white shirt buttoned to the neck, and had a white beard and grey hair. His peyot had grown back a little, but they now stood out a bit from the sides of his head and curled in ringlets. On his head, he wore a hoiche, a high-crowned black hat with a wide brim. His sapphire-blue eyes watched her closely. She knew he was very traditional, and while she was the widow of a Jew, she was gentile, and perhaps that was the reason for his reticence. He was polite and grateful for what she was doing, but he kept her at arm’s length. Daniel and the others seemed to hold him in very high regard.

  ‘Just… I don’t know, Rabbi. It feels so wrong. I believe him when he says he didn’t do those drawings, and I know all the evidence points to him, but I feel like we must do something…’ she finished miserably.

  The rabbi indicated that she should sit on one of the tubular steel and hardboard chairs that had been acquired somewhere. The entire place was a mishmash of borrowed and leftover furniture. The plan for the new synagogue that Daniel had designed had never materialised.

  People had been kind, and the Dublin and Belfast Jewish communities had taken the farm project to their hearts. Daniel had remarked how nice it was for the farm community to feel welcome again, especially after feeling like they had been reduced to the status of vermin in their own countries. The treatment of Jews – not just by Nazis but by their neighbours, people they would have considered friends – had taken a deep psychological toll on everyone. It manifested in the adults and the children in the same way, as stoic determination, but she was sure it masked a hurt so deep, she doubted it would ever heal.

  She sat and he sat opposite her. She was glad she’d dressed as appropriately as she could, with a headscarf covering her head and a light summer coat. She had buttoned her coffee-coloured blouse up to the neck, as to show a collarbone was offensive, as was revealing any flesh above the ankles. She smoothed her beige check skirt over her knees. She was wearing thick stockings, her very last pair, which she washed and wore with extreme care, as purchase of a replacement pair was impossible.

  ‘Mrs Klein.’ He spoke quietly. ‘I, like you, do not believe Daniel is a Nazi, but there is nothing to be done, I am afraid.’

  ‘But, Rabbi, with respect, we can’t just sit there and wait for them to hang him.’ Her eyes pleaded with his. ‘We must do something.’

  He smiled, the first time she’d seen it. A slow, sad smile. His English was almost perfect now, though heavily accented.

  ‘I think Daniel will die. And if I may say how ironic it is? Here you are, an Irish woman, so concerned for the life of one Jew, when all over Europe, Jews are dying by the hundreds of thousands. It strikes me, that because Daniel is an individual, and a person who has touched your heart, you care so much. Each of those put on a train east, each person beaten to death on the street or worked to exhaustion in a quarry or a mine, they too are individuals, and their presence on earth touched the heart of another. It is as if we can only process what is happening on this small level – one man, one community. The reali
ty of what is happening in Europe is too hard for one person to understand. The scale is too big.’

  He noticed her look of shame. He was right. She was living in relative comfort while those horrors were being enacted on the mainland of Europe. It wasn’t that people didn’t care – they did – but it was on a scale that seemed impossible to solve.

  ‘Please, Mrs Klein, do not see my words as an admonishment. That is not my intention. It is simply an observation. You have done a very kind thing, taking Liesl and Erich into your home and your heart. The way you care for the children in your class – I see how going to school gives them a break from the endless worry about those people they had to leave behind. You’re a good woman, and God will reward you. The Talmud says, “He who saves one life saves the world entire.”’ He nodded slowly.

  ‘But we can’t save Daniel?’ she whispered, the anguish she felt draped over every word.

  ‘No. We cannot save Daniel. But he is a good man, he has faith in God, and he will go home.’

  She could not raise the subject of Talia. The words died on her lips. Talia was Jewish and a victim and a girl with a broken heart. She wanted to save Daniel too – of course she did.

  The rabbi rose and nodded at her before turning and walking away.

  For a while, she sat in the room, taking in her surroundings, alone for the first time. There was a reading altar, which they called a bema, and on it was the Torah scroll. Usually it was held in the ark, a special cabinet for that specific purpose. Rabbi Frank had managed to salvage the scroll from his burning synagogue and chose to take it to the farm, though he had only one little suitcase like everyone else. Elizabeth knew how much that Torah meant to the community. It was a link to their past, to their faith, to all they had lost. They saw it as a symbol that they could rise again.