Familiar Faces

Tamara and I walked until we reached the town of Grdnov. There were many injured people there, and so Tamara and I told one man that we would help, that we had been with a medical unit before.

Later, the man, named Captain Gebhardt strode up to us. He was very grateful for our help, and offered us food.

Outside of the town, there was fighting going on. One troop of young German soldiers began marching out, and its leader caught my eye. An all too familiar face was there. Dobelmann. He showed no sign of recognition, even if he did realize who I was.

As they were heading away, I called out, "Jakob!" I wanted to know if he were still alive. Most people ignored me, but one face, that was twisted and ruined stared back at me.

I and Tamara left on a train later with the injured people. Many others had been left behind, which did not seem fair. As we went along, more passengers came on. But Tamara and I left. We walked away into the woods.

We walked on some streets, where we were attacked by American soldiers who didn't know who we were. When they realized that we were "just kids" they took us to a hospital. But someone told me Tamara, a bundle on the ground was dead.

Later, in the hospital, I learned that I lost my arm. I still thought Tamara was dead, until she came up and visited me while I was getting better. She contacted my family and told them I was still alive, and I received a letter from them.