In the town, several Jewish families were stirring, awakened by the unexpected sound in the early hours of the morning.
Joshua Alon ran to the window, his little teddy bear hanging loosely from his hand, dragged across the floor. "Papa! Look soldiers! Is there a parade in town? Can we see it? Please Papa! I want to go!"
Shiloh Alon was a tall strapping man, his hair slowly fading from its once black sheen to crystal gray. He was part of the Brownstein Orchestra, where he played the violin. Cassandra, his wife and the love of his life was a tailor who worked at the yarn factory. They married in college, and 2 years later Joshua had come into their lives.
Shiloh approached the window, his eyes narrowed to try and see past the fog. Soon enough he could make out the silhouette of a battalion carrying a Swastika flag. His eyes widened and he bellowed. " CASSANDRA! They're here! Here- Take Joshua and go! We should've been prepared! The devil's army approaches. There's no time. You know where to go don't you?"
Cassandra nodded."Shiloh, what about you?? I can't just leave you behind! They'll take you away!"
"I'll stall them. I have to. GO! NOW!"
Cassandra grabbed Joshua and ran into the cellar. She pulled back the rug on the floor, to reveal a door in the ground. She pulled it open and slowly descended into the darkness. Joshua, all of eight stared in bewilderment but did not say anything. There was a loud bang and the sound of the door being thrown open. Cassandra put Joshua down and said "Listen. Do not make a sound. Bad people are coming and I don't want them to take you away. So you just stay here until Mameh comes back okay? Don't make a sound Joshua!" She smiled and jumped out onto the cellar, pulling the rug down again.
She couldn't have been a second too soon. The cellar door burst open, and three German officers stormed in, one of them holding a bloody Shiloh in his hand. There was a huge gash on his forehead and he was breathing heavily.
Cassandra screamed and ran towards the officers. One of them stepped forward and smacked her on her face, as she went flying across the room.
"NO!" Shiloh screamed, but the guard brought his boot into his ribcage and he collapsed onto the floor.
Meanwhile, Joshua was a little frightened and very confused . He didn't like being alone in the dark but he did as his Mameh had told him to. He kept quiet. He slowly moved down the dark passageway and he could hear sounds as the passageway started going upwards. From a small crack in the wall, he could see his Mameh and Papa lying on the floor while three big men were laughing uncontrollably. One of them slammed a boot into Shiloh's head and the three of them laughed even harder.
"Bring her to me." One of the officers said, pointing at Cassandra. The 2nd officer dragged Cassandra to the man, while she trembled. The big man strode up to her, took her face in her palm and said "You are indeed beautiful.I cannot afford to waste such beauty. You will work for me. You will clean my gardens, wash my laundry and satisfy all my desires whenever I require them to be satisfied."
Cassandra spat onto his face and swore in Hebrew.
The big man wiped the spit off his face and looked at her. And in one swift movement, his hand lashed across her cheek as she fell with a big thud onto the floor.
"You could've saved your life woman. But you made a big mistake. A big mistake. Now you will be entertainment for my guards." He laughed.
"NOO!" Shiloh screamed. The big officer promptly took out a revolver, pointed at Shiloh, and pulled the trigger.
There was a loud bang as Shiloh's body fell to the floor with a big THUD! Joshua covered his mouth to stop himself from screaming. Cassandra shrieked.
"Noo! Noo YOU! YOU BASTARDS! YOU WILL BURN IN THE FIRES-"
The guards pushed her to the ground as the remaining two converged on her, ripping apart her clothing. Joshua could hear his mother screaming for help, but none came, and he was too scared to move.
Suddenly, she stopped screaming. He could hear her panting, while the guards steadied themselves, tightening their trousers. The big man looked at her and said,"Pity."
There was another loud bang and Joshua couldn't hear his mother anymore. Her lifeless eyes stared at him, right through the wall as if she knew where he was. He could see tears rolling down her cheeks, as tears streamed down his as well.
"Well. Better get going," said the Big officer, and the trio slowly left the room, completely unaware that the son of the couple they had just killed was underground, weeping silently into his clothing.
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