Overcome: Chapter 4
Chapter 4
Frances placed a clean sheet of paper onto her notebook and picked up her pencil. Dear mum, she began to write. It’s been a week since the children from Germany arrived. We hardly know how to act around them, and John and Claire have been barely civil.
“Frances, would you mind watching Ted?” Mrs. Baker asked, entering the kitchen where Frances was sitting. “Mr. Baker and I have to go into town.”
“That’s fine, Mrs. Baker,” Frances said, putting her pencil down. “Where is he?”
“Outside, playing with Annie,” Mrs. Baker said. “Thank you.”
Frances went out the backdoor to find Ted as Mr. and Mrs. Baker left the house to make the short trip to the police station. Entering the tiny office, they gained the attention of the officer on duty.
“Mr. and Mrs. Baker?” Officer Brooke said, looking up from his paperwork.
“Yes,” Mr. Baker replied. “How can we help you, Officer Brooke?”
“We got a message saying to come down here to the police station,” Mrs. Baker added, looking a bit worried.
Officer Brooke rose to his feet. “Yes…. look, this is a bit awkward, but my superiors have instructed me to ask.”
“What is it?” Mr. Baker said.
“We’ve had reports from several different villagers, saying you’ve taken two German children into your home.”
“Yes, that’s correct,” Mr. Baker said, nodding.
“But you’re also hosting a few children from London, is that right?” Brooke pressed.
“Yes.” Mrs. Baker glanced at her husband.
Brooke coughed. “Don’t you think it’s a problem to keep good British children in the same house as the enemy?”
“Sir, with all due respect, those two German children are not the enemy,” Mr. Baker said slowly.
“Of course they’re not,” Mrs. Baker said. “Officer Brooke, the poor children’s mother died when they were young, and they’ve just lost their father.”
“They were sent out of Germany by a sympathetic neighbor, and had a terrible time just making it out of the country,” Mr. Baker added.
“They are no threat to the children from London, or to the village as a whole. They are children.” Mrs. Baker pressed the desk as she emphasized the last word.
Officer Brooke looked skeptically at them. “Hitler is indoctrinating thousands of children into his regime, all over Germany.”
“These children are different, and even if they weren’t, this would be a marvelous opportunity to teach them truth,” Mr. Baker said.
Brooke shrugged. “I was instructed simply to make inquiries. We’ll be keeping an eye on them. I’ll need to see all the documentation you have for them.”
“Of course, Officer Brooke,” Mr. Baker said. “I can bring that all down to the station tonight.”
Brooke nodded. “Thank you, Mr. Baker, ma’am.”
The Bakers thanked him and left the station to walk the brief half-mile home. As they moved slowly through the village, Mrs. Baker turned to her husband. “Do you suppose we’ll have a deal of trouble?”
Mr. Baker sighed. “Not us as much as Elias and Mia will have. Perhaps we shouldn’t have taken them in.”
Mrs. Baker stopped walking. “What do you mean?”
“I’m not worried about criticism of ourselves,” Mr. Baker explained. “But those children have been through so much already, and now…”
“But you knew their father. That makes you the most obvious person for them to stay with. We can’t send them somewhere where they’d know absolutely no one. The others will get to know them.”
Mr. Baker sighed again. “I hope so. The way Elias looked at me last night…”
Mrs. Baker hugged his arm. “It’ll just take time, that’s all. Come on, let’s get home.”
To be continued