Opposite Sides (19 page)

“
Papa said
that General Ludendorff was one of them.”

“
What? A
fascist?”

“
A
trouble-maker.”

“
General
Ludendorff?” His voice rose in a crescendo. He could remember his
father talking about that man, for he was an important officer in
the Kaiser’s army. “Why,
was
he a trouble-maker?”

“
It’s only
what I’ve heard from the grown-up’s talking. Papa was always
talking to someone about such things.”

“
I think it’s
marvellous the way you’ve picked it all up.” He remembered that
when he had stayed with Oma in Salzburg during the long holidays,
Heidi had been the most astute of them all. She was fortunate, for
her father had been a patient man and took the time to explain all
the marvels of anything that had interested any of his children,
his daughters as well as his sons. Heidi had always shown an
interest in everything. Her mind never stopped working and she
never stopped asking questions. She had been such a clever child so
it was no wonder she knew about everything.

“
Well, last
year, the General, together with another man . . . ,” Heidi tapped
her head several times as if by doing so, the name she sought
should pop out. “I can’t remember his name.” She laughed. “It can’t
be that important. Well, their group . . . a hundred or so, marched
along one of the main streets in Munich and as that’s not that far
away from us, Papa was most interested.”

“
I think I
remember that there was something in the papers. Round about
Christmas time, I believe. How did you hear about it?”

“
Papa was
told about the march. A friend of his went to Munich for the
day.”

“
When?”

“
November in
twenty-three, I think and that’s when he saw unions marching. I
think there was a group of Bolsheviks there, as well. Trade Unions
and Bolsheviks but agreeing about nothing. Then it turned ugly.
Someone called the police. Papa’s friend said there was some
fighting and some of the marchers had pistols. Soldiers or police
were called and some of the marchers were shot.”

“
Really?”

“
Yes. The
newspapers reported that General Ludendorff and this other man were
arrested for their part in the putsch.” She took out her
handkerchief and wiped her nose which had become drippy in the cool
air.

“
I remember
uncle telling Renard something about a General being part of a
putsch. In thirteen or fourteen just before the war but I did not
take much interest. Renard is the political one in the
family.”

“
This time
the trouble-makers were arrested. I remember Papa discussing their
trial last year with Herr Sessel but he said the judge was too
afraid to do much with such a famous General involved.”

“
Oh?”

His voice betrayed his
inner thoughts for he did not share Heidi’s interest for things
political. He remembered now that Mr Friedl had always found the
subject interesting and had voiced his opinions rather openly and
loudly to anyone willing to listen.

By now they had reached
the gate and brick pathway which led back into Miss Turner’s
garden. The window lights of the distant house began to lighten the
blackness around them and it was much easier to see.

“
I wonder if
we’ll hear any more of them?” Hans unlatched the gate and let Heidi
through. “What was the group, anyway?”

“
I don’t
know. Not Bolsheviks. Not this time. Not like the Fascists in
Italy. Something to do with a union and their working members.
Something like that.”

“
Unions here
hold demonstrations too. Workers want a share in profits. That’s
what Mr Moore tell us.”

“
Do they have
fights here?”

“
No. They’re
not strong enough. Here they do lots of talking. What about in
Austria?”

“
Papa says
our politicians will sort it out. They’ll have to, won’t
they?”

“
I guess so.”
Hans blew through his teeth so that his breath whistled. “They
can’t afford to let the whole country collapse back into conditions
as bad as nineteen nineteen.”

Heidi sighed, then shook
her head.

“
That’s what
Papa says, too. The governments will have to make it
work.”

They had almost reached
the house. A strong light from an upstairs window lit the ground
ahead of them and as Hans glanced upwards, he thought for a minute
that someone had been watching them. But now there was
nobody.

Hans led Heidi round the
edge of the building. She followed him as they walked in silence,
each withdrawn into their minds, thinking how fate had somehow
removed them from the disastrous realities back home. In a minute
they had reached the back-door porch and by now Hans had already
made up his mind to tell Heidi he was available to help her,
whenever she wanted. He did not want her to suffer any more than
she had done and did not want her to feel the loneliness he had
felt during those first few months of arriving in
England.

“
Remember,
Fräulein
,” he said as he placed his
hand on the doorknob, “While you’re here, Mr Hans Resmel is always
at your service. You’ll remember that, won’t you?”

“
Thank you.
It’s very good of you.”

He opened the door and
let her go in first. The clock on the wall read a few minutes after
ten.

“
Come. We’ll
make some cocoa together. You need a hot drink after all that. It
was cold outside.”

CHAPTER
7

Privilege

The weather began to
improve as nature began to shake off the gloom of winter. Bulbs
which had remained dorment under the icy ground now began to stir
as they pushed upwards through the grass and the earliest daffodils
brought splashes of white and yellow into the gardens and along the
college driveway. A few weeks later, millions small bells exploded
from the winter litter and turned the forest floor into the
brightest blue carpet nature could offer. Their glory lasted but
only a few weeks and no sooner had they set their tiny seed heads,
than Hans began to notice Anne and Gerald together more and more
frequently. Lofty had stopped going out with the boys and he had
made them aware that cricket would be off his menu for the coming
season. He told Hans that he had decided to throw all his energies
into his studies as an opportunity had opened up for him to further
his studies at Cambridge.

The college re-opened
after the short Easter break. Students settled once more into their
studies as warmer days increased. Waves of white and yellow
daffodil trumpets covered a countryside which was beginning to take
on a faint light-green hue as the earliest leaves burst from the
trees and announced that the end of winter had truly
arrived.

The school committee,
made up from the head boy, two parents and four masters, announced
that the senior classes could have a social evening. This was part
of their education as it gave the ‘young men and young women’ the
opportunity to experience some of the acceptable social graces
under the watchful eyes of the staff. This form of social
‘get-together’ had long been an important part of the college and
after that, the students were expected to settle down to hard work
and diligence until the final exams in June.

It was a great privilege
for the girls to be invited to the evening as all invitations had
to be sent out, and received, by the young men. Masters were on
hand to give advice and the students had to make themselves
available during lessons to write out invitations and to decorate
the hall, as well. Good weather was prayed for, even in the church
on Sunday morning. If they could have just a few weeks of good
weather, the large hall doors could be left open so that students
could dance or chat on the paving or grass area that connected the
hall to the main school building. But, knowing English weather, one
really never quite knew what was round the corner. Then it turned
cold again and someone said it had been snowing further up the
country. In May! A decision was made not to decorate the outside
area.

One of the girls had
previously whispered to her boyfriend that it would be a good idea
if small titbits of food were on offer, a new idea that was
beginning to catch on quite rapidly with the young ones. The only
problem seemed to be the music, finding a small group of musicians
who were prepared to play what the adults considered to be
reasonable dance music. Miss Turner forbade any of the loud, modern
dance music commonly found in the rowdy music-halls. She did
condescend, however, to permit the Charleston or one of the other
latest dances . . . only as long as it didn’t get out of hand. She
had seen how the young danced; jiving and wriggling in all
directions, flinging out parts of their bodies they ought to keep
strictly to themselves. She had made it quite clear to the students
that she did not approve of the modern ways or of the latest
Flapper craze.

Everyone was given a list
of rules to be adhered to. Everyone would be checked in and out at
the main entrance. Strict dress code was to be observed and no-one
without a partner was permitted to enter. It would be like the
animals going on to the ark, arriving two by twos and immediately
being taken inside. Mr Somerville, one of the masters who was known
for his copious proportions and booming voice was given the job of
standing at the entrance and announcing each couple as they
arrived. The final obstacle was to be approved and welcomed by Mr
Bowes-Heath and Miss Turner. Now only the invitations needed to be
hand delivered. Everything to the exact detail had been sorted and
Janine Turner had been told she could go.

“
Resmel, you
can show me how honourable you can be and offer your invitation to
my niece.”

That was all that Hans
wanted to hear. He was sure Miss Turner was making absolutely
certain that Jan would be able to attend for what she said sounded
more more like a command than any suggestion. By his calculation,
Janine Turner was still too young to be seriously taken to a dance,
especially by him. Besides, if it was permissible for Jan to be
allowed to attend, then Hans thought he might be able to ask for
Heidi to be his partner. But that would have meant asking Miss
Turner and she had already chosen her niece.

Miss Turner made it quite
clear that Heidi was here to work; not to mingle with the offspring
of the well-to-do. Everyone was expected to know their place and
never, never cross the boundaries that separated the classes. Then,
he thought of Miss Anne Sutherland but he would have to get his
invitation to her ahead of any one else. Could be tricky for Anne
was one of the most popular girls and was always in great demand:
seen either in the company of some lucky lad as she sat perched on
the rear seat of a sporty motorcycle, her arms wrapped with great
satisfaction around the lean leather waist on the front; or she
would be seen on many Saturday mornings riding to hounds with some
eligible young son of one of the local gentleman farmers at her
elbow, so Hans did not think he’d have much chance with Anne. And
now Miss Turner had firmly quashed both ideas. Janine Turner it was
to be. Still, once inside the dance hall, who knows what may
happen?

Hans could feel the
tension and excitement in the house as Ellen spent a good hour
setting the twenty or thirty slim curlers into Jan’s hair. Ellen
enjoyed messing around with hair and had previously shown she had a
talent in that direction. Jan sat reading one of her favourite
novels as her hair was tightly twisted around each blue curler and
then doused heavily with the strong smelling setting lotion. When
Hans had opened the living room door and had watched the procedure
for a few minutes, it was Ellen, with the bottle of liquid in her
hand, who turned round and gestured with a nod of her head that
anything that resembled a male was not wanted in the
vicinity.

Late in the afternoon,
the unveiling of the wrapped head of hair was ready and as the hair
fell free in ringlets onto her shoulders, Jan’s voice carried from
the living room and along into the hallway.

“
How does it
look? What’s it like, Ellen?”

“You look a treat, miss.
Real grown up.” Ellen handed over the silver-backed hand mirror
Miss Turner had lent her niece for the occasion.

Jan pushed the morning
gown she was wearing off her shoulders and held up the mirror as
she moved it around to admire her new style. Ellen had had a bright
idea to decorate the curls with small white daisy
flowers.

“
Jus’ like a
princess, miss. As beau’iful as Queen Alexandra was when she was
young.”

“
Oh, stop
being so silly, Ellen.” Jan shook her head to make the curls swirl.
“Tidy up and then come and help me change. I’ll be in my
room.”

Jan rushed out of the
room in such a hurry her morning gown slipped down to her waist and
she almost banged into Hans at the foot of the stairs.

“
Do watch
yourself Hans Resmel!” she exclaimed as her hand gripped the
banisters to steady herself. Her chest heaved up and down under the
light camisole as she caught her breath. Hans could not help
noticing she had breasts.