Chapter Thirty
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Asp, Norway
Evelyn collapsed in the corner of the old, crumbling stone structure. At one point in time, it had been a home, but now it was empty and falling apart. Anna had told her that there were many of these types of buildings in the mountains. Most were still owned by the original families, but had been either long forgotten or minimally maintained over the years. This one fell into the latter category as there were still doors on the structure and the fireplace in the center of the far wall was intact. The windows were gone, but the wind had died down now, and there wasn’t much of a breeze coming through the two empty openings. Even if there had been, she reflected, she was too tired to care.
After checking the chimney and finding it miraculously clear of debris, Erik was preparing to set a small fire in the heart with the wood Philip had carried in from the trees. She watched him numbly for a moment, wondering how he could be so calm and still continue to move when the rest of them were half-dead on their feet. At least, she and Anna were.
She looked over to where Anna had dropped onto the hard stone floor near to the fireplace. Her face was streaked with dirt and her hair had come out of its braid and was hanging in tangles around her face. She seemed completely unaware of any of it as she watched her brother work to get a fire going. Anna looked the way she felt: utterly defeated.
The door to the cabin squeaked on rusty hinges as it swung open and Philip came through with another armful of tree branches.
“We should be safe here for a few hours,” he said, dropping the wood beside the hearth. “There’s no sound for miles, and we’re deep enough into the hills that they won’t see the smoke.”
“Even if they do, they will assume it’s a local,” Erik said, sorting through the fresh wood, looking for pieces that weren’t damp. “They’ll expect us to go towards the town, not into the wild again. You get some rest. I’ll take the first watch this time.”
Philip nodded. “You won’t get any argument from me,” he said tiredly, turning to look around the small space. Seeing Evelyn in the corner, he went to the opposite corner near the door. “I’ll just clean and reload first.” He glanced at Evelyn. “You’ll want to do the same,” he told her.
“I already gave her the kit,” Erik said over his shoulder. “She knows.”
Evelyn nodded mutely and reached for the box Erik had handed her when they first arrived. Inside were rags and a long brush to clean the barrel of the rifle. Another box of ammunition cartridges was beside it.
“Can’t she rest first?” Anna demanded, looking at Erik. “She’s exhausted.”
“We all are,” was his only reply.
Anna exhaled loudly and dragged herself to her feet tiredly to go over to Evelyn. She dropped beside her and leaned back against the wall, turning her head so she could watch her.
“Are you all right?” she asked. “Can I help you?”
Evelyn smiled faintly and shook her head, beginning to dismantle the rifle. “No. It won’t take long.”
“I don’t see why you can’t sleep first,” she muttered. “If we’re so safe here, it shouldn’t make a difference.”
“They’re right. It’s best to do it now. Just in case.”
“You mean just in case we’re not as safe as they think?”
“Yes.”
Anna was silent for a moment, then she rubbed her face.
“Do you think he died quickly?”
Evelyn swallowed. “Yes. There was more than one machine gun firing. I’m sure he went quickly.”
She looked at the radio beside her and her hands trembled momentarily as a wave of sorrow washed over her. That radio, Peder’s pride and joy, was all that was left of him now. And it was the very thing that had led to his death.
“Part of me still can’t believe he’s gone,” Anna whispered. “We just left him there, and then...how could we just leave him?”
“We had no choice,” Philip said from his corner, glancing up from his own rifle. “He couldn’t have made it out of the ravine.”
“He knew and understood,” Erik added, turning to look at them from where he had finally managed to get a fire started. “He told us to leave him. It was a very brave thing that he did. He died with honor.”
Anna stared at him for a minute, then nodded tiredly. “I suppose he did,” she agreed.
“We’re not going to make it, are we?” Evelyn asked suddenly, looking up. “How can we? We’re all exhausted. We have no food left. We’ve lost Peder. I have his radio, but no idea if I’ll be able to get it to work. The German SS are looking for us, and are probably all over the mountains by now. We’ll never make it to Namsos.”
“That’s the exhaustion talking,” Anna said. “You’ll feel better after some sleep.”
“I don’t think I will. I don’t know if I have the strength to continue...or the will.”
“Why? Because you saw what this war is really about?” Erik demanded. “This is what happens in war. People die. Men die. Boys die. Women and children die. It’s never pretty and it always takes its toll. Peder died well. I wish that we all could go as quickly and with little fuss.”
“It’s not just Peder,” Evelyn said, her voice shaking. “I shot and killed a man. I...I watched him die!”
“Yes, and you will watch many more men die,” he retorted harshly. “Do you know why? Because you’ll have to. You chose to be part of this war. You believed in something, and you chose to fight. Well, this is what that means. It means you will do things you find repulsive, and you will witness atrocities you never thought possible. You will be forced into situations that are unimaginable, but
