Finding Rebecca: A Novel of Love and the Holocaust Read Online Free PDF

Stefan made straight for
the door to Christopher’s room and threw it open with a loud crack.

    She was sitting in the middle of the
floor, Christopher’s mother’s pearls hanging around her neck and one of her
hats almost covering her eyes completely. Christopher grimaced as he saw her.
He had told her to stay in the closet until he came back up. But she had come
out and knocked over a carafe of water on the bedside table.   Christopher heard uncle Uli laughing
behind them but his father wasn’t laughing.

    ‚ÄúWho is this Christopher?‚Äù he said in
English.

    ‚ÄúIt‚Äôs my friend, Rebecca.‚Äù

    ‚ÄúAnd where does Rebecca live?‚Äù

    ‚ÄúI don‚Äôt know.‚Äù

    Stefan let go of his son‚Äôs arm and
bent down to the little girl sitting on the floor in his dead wife’s hat and pearls.
“Did you hurt yourself?” he said reaching down towards the puce shaded bruise
on the side of her face. She just looked back at him. “Where do you live,
Rebecca?” She took the hat off and pointed out towards the window.

    Stefan took the hat into his hand and
helped Rebecca take the pearls off from around her neck. “You live over there
do you? Is it far?” The little girl shook her head slowly and stood up. “Do
your parents know you’re here?” Again the girl shook her head. “Well don’t you
think they will be worried?”

    ‚ÄúNo.‚Äù

    ‚ÄúOf course they will be,‚Äù Stefan said,
running his hand through his hair, but the girl turned her head away and walked
over towards the window. Christopher looked up at his father but the look he
got told him he wasn’t getting away with this, no matter how cute the little
girl happened to be. “Are you hungry?” he asked after a few seconds. “Would you
like some food?” Rebecca nodded. Christopher looked across at her looking back
at him, a doleful expression on her face. Why couldn’t she have stayed in the
closet like her told her? It was no good being sorry now. So much for her plans
to run away from home.

    Uncle Uli led Christopher and
Alexandra downstairs with Stefan and Rebecca just behind them. Stefan was
trying to see where she lived and who was there but she wasn’t talking. He set
up a chair for her at the table and they all sat down to dinner again.

    Uncle Uli was first to speak.
“Christopher,” he was smiling again. “Where did you meet your new friend? What
brings her here to visit us?”

    Christopher prodded at the potatoes
on his plate. How could he tell them that Rebecca had tried to run away, and
that he was only trying to help her? He looked across at Uli, and then at his
father and Rebecca. “I met her near the beach. She was crying so I thought she
needed some help.”

    ‚ÄúBringing her back to the house and
sticking her in your wardrobe isn’t going to help her, Christopher,” Stefan
said. Uncle Uli was laughing again. “Uli, please, I’m talking to my son here.”
Stefan glared at his younger brother. Uli laughed still but moved his hand up
to cover his mouth. Stefan shook his head and moved his attention back to his
son, who seemed to be trying to slide underneath the table. “Where does this
little girl live? What happened to her face?”

    ‚ÄúI don‚Äôt know. I heard her crying in
a field near the beach. I thought she could stay here for a while.” He hoped
that Rebecca didn’t speak German and couldn’t understand.

    ‚ÄúOh did you? You were going to hide
her in your room were you? How long were you going to keep her there for?”

    Christopher looked at his plate, at
eye level now as he had slumped down. “I don’t know, I hadn’t thought about
that.‚Äù  

    ‚ÄúThere‚Äôs a shock,‚Äù his father said.
“You never think do you?” He looked over at Rebecca, who had stopped