Chapter 5

Heinrich landed at the airbase, his plane coming to rest on the runway. He got out of his plane and entered the main base whilst his Messerschmitt was wheeled into the hanger. The atmosphere was tense as operators seemed to be hurriedly trying to devise a new plan.

“What happened?" Heinrich asked Captain Hoffmann as he approached him.

“They had a precautionary defence line that intercepted and destroyed our tanks. After the attack they were going to know we are here, but now we have fewer defensive measures for when they come." Captain Hoffmann replied.

Just then, one of the operators approached them.

“Captain, we need you to see this. We have got good news." the operator said. Captain Hoffmann left with him, leaving Heinrich alone. To him, at this point ‘good news’ meant more people, possibly innocent people, dying.

Chris entered the main base and it became clear to him that something was wrong. The operators were talking in almost hushed tones and trying to devise strategies. There was an unspoken panic in the air. He did not understand why though. They had just prevented reinforcements from entering France. Then he spotted Captain Clark and hurried to him.

“Sir, what is going on?” he asked quite confused.

“The Germans are here, on British soil. They sent a tank platoon and moments later we lost communication with our platoon. Not long after we got a report that a bombing run was done over the eastern side of London. Thankfully it was a small section. Unfortunately, the air raid sirens did not go off and it was a bombing run like no other, nothing in the section was left standing.”

Chris could not believe what he was hearing.

“We are sending in relief to help search for survivors as we speak.” Captain Clark continued.

“Sir, permission to assist?”

Chris arrived at the site with some of the others. He was the only pilot amongst them. His heart almost stopped when he saw what remained after the attack. What were once tall buildings and people’s homes were now reduced to rubble. It was as if a powerful bomb had been dropped and decimated everything. The Blitz raids had been bad, but this looked even worse than them. The streets were also torn up, as if something heavy had landed with great force on them. Dark smoke was rolling up from some of the buildings in the distance. It almost looked unreal. He stared into the disaster zone, unable to move. Then relief washed over him as he spotted Emma, also looking at what had happened. Chris’s biggest fear was what had happened to her, seeing her alive relieved him, though after the sight of the destruction, it was not much.

“Emma!” he called and went over to her. She turned to him, tears in her eyes.

“Chris.” She uttered and he hugged her tightly.

“Chris, I am sorry. I am so sorry.” She uttered.

“It is alright. You are alright. Were you here when it happened?” Chris asked.

Emma shook her head. “No. I… I should…”

“It is alright. You are safe now, that is what matters. Try not to think about it.” Chris said.

“I did not think they would do this, Chris. I am sorry.”

“Emma, Emma, you are alright now… What do you mean by that?”

It took Chris a moment to register what she had just said.

“He said they were coming into the city but I thought it was going to be with tanks, not a bombing squadron.”

“Who told you?”

“Heinrich, he told me.”

Chris released her and stepped back. “Your brother told you this was going to happen? You knew this was going to happen!” he raised his voice.

“I… I did not know…” Emma stuttered.

“You knew they were coming and let this happen! You could have told me!”

“Chris…”

“We could have prevented this! DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT?”

Emma took a step back, choking on her own words.

“Chris, please, just…”

“SAVE IT! At least now I know where your loyalties lie.” Chris turned away from her and walked into the ruins of the city. Emma tried to call for him but her voice caught in her throat. It was not that Chris was angry with her that upset her most; right now, he had every right to be. She had in a sense betrayed him. It was the guilt, the knowing that she could have stopped this that was unbearable. Emma fell to her knees, unable to stand. Her eyes welled with tears and she did not try to hold them back at all.

Chris walked along the demolished streets, in disbelief of everything around him.

“I should have blown that asshole out of the sky when I had the chance.” He uttered to himself. He did not know where to start. A section of the city he grew up in was attacked and the person he trusted most betrayed him. He was so caught up in his thoughts that he did not realise part of the street was uneven and he tripped. Before he could even try stop himself, he hit the concrete. He swore as he forced himself up, then he noticed something. He had seen what it looked like when a bomb hit a street or runway, and it did not look like this. A section of the road would have been taken out; but here it was all still there, just dented and cracked; maybe even torn up. This was not the work of a bomb. There was something else, it seemed specific, like a pattern or a print into the concrete. Though the damages made it hard to determine what it was.

He turned his attention to the buildings. The debris lay as if the building fell, not as if it were struck from above. One’s bottom half was still standing. It looked like the top half had been torn off. He went over to the remains of a house. If a bomb had struck it, the thing would have been blown up. But this house was crushed, and not by a falling building. Something had come down on it from an angle and crushed it. Chris thought back to what he had seen of the Blitz raids. Though this looked much worse, it also did not look like what had happened there. Planes and bombs could not have caused damages like this; it had to be something else. Chris would have not put it passed the Germans to do this, but the ‘evidence’ said otherwise. He thought back to the destroyer that abruptly began sinking. And the tank platoon that they lost contact with. If the Germans had tanks coming in and got passed the defence line, then why did they stop here; that is if they even got there.

Chris hurried back out of the site and found Emma. She was right where he had left her, now crying. He hoisted her to her feet and hugged her tightly again.

“I am sorry, I should not have yelled at you like that.”

“You were right. It was my fault.” She cried.

“I am not so sure about that anymore. I do not know if we could have stopped this, even if you let me know it was going to happen.”

“You do not have to try make me feel better.”

“But it is the truth.”

“What do you mean?” Emma asked, trying to calm her breathing.

“The street, though destroyed, was not struck by bombs. The same goes for the buildings, they were toppled or crushed.”

Emma looked him in the eyes, slightly confused. “What are you saying Chris?”

“I do not know. But I do not think the Germans were responsible for this. I think something else is at play here.”

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