Springtime of the Spirit Read Online Free PDF Page B

her own name when Giselle’s had filled her heart and mind. She nearly dropped the brooch but caught it back and slipped it into her pocket before going to the door.
    Leo stood there, not quite as tall as Annaliese. He had dark, receding hair and a slight paunch he’d somehow managed to maintain through four years of blockade and deprivation. He was not the kind of man most imagined when thinking of a charismatic leader—and never claimed to be—but was, without doubt, the right man to stand behind any leader.
    “Are you ready?”
    She nodded and would have stepped into the hall, but he did not move away from the threshold.
    “I’d like to talk to you before we leave. We have time. The streets are crowded today; we’ll have no trouble gathering listeners.”
    The last month had been a whirlwind of action, working for a wage when they could, igniting one rally after another, taking advantage of the crowds in the street who fled the influenza or searched for food or work. It was easy to gather a crowd when they reminded everyone—starting with the police on the street—that they deserved a better life.
    Annaliese stood still, waiting.
    “Inside, please. And close the door.”
    Her mother would have fainted if she knew a man, even one as harmless as Leo, wanted to speak to her without a chaperone inside her small flat, but the thought had little impact on Annaliese. She closed the door behind them.
    “You know, don’t you, that this continued denial of your affection for Jurgen is distracting him from our work.”
    “How odd, since most of his speeches remind others this is not the time to indulge in petty self-interest. It’s time to rise above, to be selfless—”
    “That’s enough. I suggest you support him in any way he needs if you’re invested in everything you claim to believe. Things are changing so fast in this country that it’s difficult for any of us to hold on to what we have. You’re making him take his eyes from the race and put them on you.”
    “I’ve never done a thing to encourage him. He only wants me because he hasn’t had me. Have him ask any one of the others. They’ve been compliant enough so far.”
    “So it’s jealousy preventing you from going to his bed? A petty, self-centered wish to have him all to yourself or not at all. Like a wife , when all of us know marriage is one more vehicle for the government to control us.”
    “Call it what you will. I have my own reasons. If he wants proof of my loyalty, tell him to listen to my speeches.”
    For a moment Leo’s eyes sparked; his color heightened. Never in the weeks since she’d first met him had he looked at her in such a way. He had become, after all, her protector and adviser, too, from the moment Jurgen had spotted her in the crowd and invited her onto his platform. Leo might have sent such a fierce look in the direction of countless others, but never to her.
    And then, as quickly as it appeared, Leo took control of it. Banished it with a smile. “This is why you make such a fine pair, the two of you. Each as stubborn as the other.” He walked past her toward the door but turned abruptly only inches from her face. “I warn you, Annaliese, he will not be put off forever. What he wants, he gets. And for the good of Munich—indeed, all Germany—he should have it. Sooner rather than later. He may be as important as Eisner.”
    “Parade the others in front of him, Leo,” was all she said before walking into the hall.
    The smaller beer halls could no longer contain the kinds of crowds Jurgen drew, particularly when other speakers joined him—including Annaliese. And so they met on the streets, even now in December. The leaflets telling everyone about the rally listed only Jurgen’s name, but most of the rally attendees knew her anyway. That’s all they knew: Annaliese, as if that were her first name and last, like Jurgen. Even she knew him by only one name.
    She had followed Jurgen’s example by design. While her