Chapter 361944: The Road to Berlin
My joints ached. I sweated like a pig, anaesthetized with vodka and hot tea. At night, the chills came. The others piled blankets on me yet my limbs quaked and trembled. I saw visions. My parents, just as I remembered them. My mother sat in the big overstuffed chair near the window where the light was better. She sewed delicate blouses for Katya and repaired torn socks and shirts for me and Simmy. Papa sat reading, holding the book very close, mumbling some of the words back to himself. I pictured a tranquil scene, a place that brought me peace. The vodka helped dull the ache in my soul.
“He should see a doctor,” I heard Rolf say.
“What doctor?” asked Mischa. “There isn't one for hundreds of kilometres.”
“There must be a field hospital somewhere,” Yur
