“I suppose the future will tell us.”
“Did he actually say ‘Jewish depopulation’?”
Maximilian nodded. “Removal of Jews from all areas of the former Poland. One possibility means evacuation of Jews to the east, perhaps to conquered regions of the Soviet Union, perhaps in Western Siberia; he wasn’t sure.”
“What is the other possibility?”
Maximilian shrugged.
Eli’s voice hardened. “What is the other possibility, Maximilian?”
“At this stage the brigadeführer was starting to mumble. Part of what he said made no sense.”
“What did he say?”
“Well, one of the solutions was something about natural attrition—disease, starvation, old age.”
“And?”
“Something he referred to as ‘bloodless illumination.’ I’m sure he meant to say elimination.”
“What did he mean by bloodless elimination?”
“He wasn’t full of details, but I’m sure we can use our imaginations. Have you seen the ghetto in Lodz? There are over 150,000 Jews crowded behind those barbed wires with more arriving every day.”
“Yes, of course I’ve seen it.”
“But have you also seen the Jews being taken out of the ghetto in convoys of trucks? More are leaving than are arriving.”
“Are you telling me that those Jews are being eliminated?”
Maximilian shrugged. “The ghetto itself is certainly being depopulated, but what is to become of the deported Jews, I can’t say. I’m only speculating. I know that Jews are being taken out of Lodz to the Chelmno camp, thirty miles north. The Germans call it Kulmhof.”
“We’ve been shipping concrete and other materials to Kulmhof.”
“Correct. It’s a prison camp. The Germans call it a concentration camp. Konzentrationslager. They abbreviate it KZ. Similar camps are going up at Belzec, Sobibor and Treblinka, all in the Lublin District. According to Globočnik, Lublin will soon be clear of all Jews. To bring us back to the beginning of this conversation, that is why you cannot stay in Lublin and wait out the war. I think it’s time for you and all Jews to come to a realization.”
“Oh really? And what would that be, Maximilian?”
“Simply that Germany is winning the war. Soon all of Europe will become Germany, one way or another. Half of Poland has already been subsumed and annexed into Germany. Policies will be dictated from Berlin. The edicts we observe, the measures taken against Jews, will not be interim or temporary; they will become permanent. We have to open our eyes to that eventuality and plan accordingly. They have made it clear they do not want Jews in their territory.”
“So what are we supposed to do? If they want us out, why don’t they just let us go? I think all of us would be more than happy to cooperate. Give us our walking papers.”
“I don’t believe there is a convenient way of doing that. Millions of Jews free to move about Europe runs contrary to the führer’s vision. He has preached that Jews are enemies of the state. You have eyes and ears; you see what’s happening. In every city, Jews are being forced into enclosed ghettos. They are being encapsulated. Soon the ghettos will be empty. To the Germans, expulsion from Poland doesn’t mean freedom. At its most liberal interpretation, it means deportation to some other locations—at the moment, to concentration camps.”
“And all of the Jews will be transported out of Lublin to a concentration camp?”
“Lublin, like all of Poland, will become Judenfrei.”
“What of those who are taken to concentration camps? How long are they expected to live there?”
“The honorable brigadeführer did not get that far before he started snoring. Maybe it hasn’t been decided. Maybe Siberia is indeed the answer. Maybe the whole thing is some Gothic fantasy, but I expect there were elements of truth in his drunken blubbery.”
“When will all of this come to pass?”
“I can’t say. He did tell me that all their plans are still in the discussion stage. Odilo has just returned from Berlin. After tipping a second bottle of the finest Napoleon Brandy my money could buy, Odilo blurted to me that Heydrich is calling for a conference on December ninth, most likely at Wannssee, outside of Berlin. Then he whispered, ‘Don’t tell anyone. It’s top secret.’ Odilo is lobbying strongly to have a seat at the Wannssee table and an inside track on resolving the Jewish Question.”
“Is he that highly placed?”
“I think so. He has a leg up. He boasts that Chelmno, Sobibor, Belzec, Majdanek and Treblinka are all in his Lublin District. Rail lines are in place. If the conference selects the Lublin District as the center of the solution to the Jewish Question, that would put enormous power in the hands of our dear brigadeführer.”
“What the hell is the Jewish Question?”
“Why, simply stated, it’s Hitler’s dilemma—what to do with all of Europe’s Jews?”
“All of them? That’s insanity; it’s beyond comprehension. There are millions and millions of Jews in Europe.”
“Oh, nothing is beyond the comprehension of the SS command. They are quite imaginative. It would be an undertaking, that’s for certain, but as Odilo says, no definite plans have been made. So I hope you understand that waiting out the war is a foolish notion.”
“What about my family? If we can’t wait out the war in Poland, what can you do for us?”
“Ultimately, you will have to flee, but the time is not right. At the moment, Esther is assigned to the workshop, and there is nothing I can do about it. She comes home every night just like Louis’s wife does. But I believe that in the near future the Lipowa site is destined to be closed and the workers will be sent somewhere else.”
“Then I have to take my family and leave Lublin now. I can’t leave the fate of my wife and son to some council’s determination on what to do with the Jewish Question.”
“Ah, but where would you go, Eli? Where in Europe is there a safe landing for the Rosen family? Austria? Russia? Belgium? France? They are all occupied.”
“The Swiss are neutral.”
“And every entrance is manned by German guards. Otherwise, there would be ten million Jews in Switzerland.”
“Then I will find a place to hide. From what you tell me, they could close Lipowa tomorrow, and I will never see her again. I will take Esther and Izaak and go.”
“Listen to me, Eli. Do not take foolish measures. If Esther fails to show up at Lipowa, they will send the ORPO to search for her. Besides, I don’t know how far you can get with a wife and a six-year-old boy, but no matter where you go or where you hide, every village or hamlet will have a prefect who is beholden to the Nazis. They would turn in their grandmothers. Take my advice. Wait for a while. There is no urgency to act today. Right now, the air is calm. Everything is still in the discussion stage. And when the time is right, you can trust me. I can and will protect you and your family.”
“Is this about the welfare of my family, or is it about maintaining a brickyard for the benefit of Maximilian Poleski and his social status?”
“Well, in this case, one hand washes the other. Don’t abandon me. I need you and you need me. In the interim, I will make sure Esther is safe. You have my word.”