W. E. B. Griffin The Devil's Weapons by Peter Kirsanow

Author:Peter Kirsanow [Kirsanow, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2022-12-06T00:00:00+00:00

Sztum, Poland

Daria Bacior appeared uniquely out of place in Nazi-occupied Poland. She had none of the outward manifestations of someone who had witnessed monstrous atrocities, suffered prolonged bouts of hunger and thirst, and had desperately hidden from the enemy in conditions that were best described as feral.

Somehow, years into the most horrific conflict in human history, Daria Bacior retained the appearance and bearing of a nineteenth-century czarina. She was tall, redheaded, and strikingly beautiful, with an intelligent, erudite-looking countenance unblemished by lines or scars. Her clothing was neat and clean, and she managed somehow to project an utter lack of consternation regarding the madness that surrounded her. She looked, in a word, innocent.

It was a façade.

Daria was, in fact, quite beautiful, but she was a cunning and determined agent of the Home Army. She had not killed any of the enemy, but her actions had resulted in the deaths of hundreds of German soldiers, the destruction of hundreds of metric tons of enemy equipment, and the obliteration of nearly a half-dozen enemy installations.

Daria’s most notable contribution to the resistance effort was something to which, despite her intelligence and cunning, she had been entirely oblivious for weeks. Several weeks ago, she’d had the feeling she was being watched. Not by the Germans, but by someone else. A few times she thought she’d glimpsed someone watching her from behind a tree or edifice, but upon closer inspection saw no one there. Then she did see someone; tall, lanky, haggard, with worn clothing. He didn’t look like a soldier or partisan. He didn’t look like a shopkeeper or farmer.

He’d appear at odd times—just for a moment—before disappearing. Daria thought perhaps her imagination was playing tricks on her.

Then two weeks ago, the apparition appeared before her as she walked to the run-down barn just outside of Sztum, south of Danzig, where she’d often made contact with Armia.

The apparition said, “I need assistance getting to the coast.”

His voice was low, neutral, and unthreatening. He looked intelligent and sincere. And worn to the bone.

Nonetheless, Daria kept walking. She hadn’t survived this long in Nazi-occupied Poland by being naïve. Still, she felt a pang of remorse for not at least listening for an explanation. She told her Armia contact about the encounter, who waved it off as inconsequential.

The next day the apparition appeared again this time closer to the barn. He appeared calm, and once again, unthreatening.

“I need help and I believe you can provide it.”

Daria continued to walk without varying her pace. If an informant was watching the encounter, it would appear natural.

“I do not know you.”

“Yes,” the apparition acknowledged. “That is a problem. I understand. All I can say to assure you is that I am not a collaborator or spy. I am a Pole in need of help.”

“And I am a Pole with no resources,” Daria said warily.

“I will be grateful for anything you could do to help me get to the coast. Anywhere on the coast.”

Daria said nothing and kept walking at the same pace.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.