CHAPTER26
OLDENBURG, GERMANY—JANUARY24, 1917
Anna darted down the stairs to the workshop, void of light. “Max!” she cried, kneeling and extending her arms. She felt a lick to her hand from Nia, and then located Max, his body face-down on the floor.
Oh, God!Her heart pounded against her rib cage. “Max, can you hear me?”
Nia whimpered.
She examined him for injuries by gently running her hands over his spine, neck, and head. “Max,” she said, her voice quavering.
He groaned.
“Can you talk?”
“Ja,” he wheezed.
Nia’s tail whipped back and forth, striking Anna’s side.
Anna felt him attempt to get up. “Wait. Are you hurt?”
“My mouth tastes like copper,” he said. “I might have a bloody nose.”
“Any other pain?”
“Nein.”
Thank God.“Let’s rest a moment.” Anna helped him to a sitting position on the floor, then she sat behind him with her legs straddled. “Lean back.”
Max rested his back to her chest. He labored to remove a handkerchief from his pocket, then wiped his nose. “I’m all right. It’s merely a nose bleed.”
Anna drew a jagged breath and exhaled. She wrapped her arms around him, feeling his diaphragm rise and fall. “You could have broken you neck.” Hot tears pooled in her eyes.
“I didn’t,” he said.
Nia curled onto their feet, as if she felt the need to protect them.
“What happened?” she asked, leaning her cheek to his shoulder.
“As I descended the stairs, I became light-headed. I must have missed a step and stumbled.”
“Have you become dizzy before?”
“Nein.”
“How much did you eat today?”
“Enough.”
“Are you eating any of your military lunch?”
“A little.”
Anna’s heart ached. “You can’t be giving us all of your food. You’re training all day, and you need every morsel they give you to keep your strength.”
“You need extra nourishment, too,” Max said.
“But I’m smaller than you.”
